Not much to report. Just wanted to make sure I am keeping up with this blog. I think the accountability really helps. I have continued to stay under 136.6 (on my weekly weigh ins). That is almost a full 6 months without going over! Yippee!! Still not exercising though.
I have had a lot of people ask me how I have kept the weight off. Honestly, I think it is a combination of A LOT of factors. I think I give everyone who asks a different answer! I am going to try and list as many as I can, maybe add to it later...
First, I don't keep my house stocked with treats. If they are here, I eat them. And there is nothing wrong with NOT having crap in my house. Hopefully, my kids will learn to like more healthy foods. It is hard because we have been the treat house for so long, they are very accustomed to having treats around. But it is nice to grab an apple or carrots instead of chips or a candy bar.
Next, I have not completely eliminated "treats" from what I eat. That probably seems to counter what I just said, but there is a difference. When I want a treat, I have to go buy it. It takes a lot more effort and thought than just shoving a candy bar down my throat because it is there. But if I really want a treat and don't feel like I have been eating too much, I go get a treat.
One major thing is portions. I have always had the "I have to get my fill", "I have to get my money's worth", "I can't let this go to waste (but apparently can let it go to waist)" mentality. I have learned to throw things away, eat in moderation. I don't have to eat until I am so full I can't move. When I eat less, I actually have MORE energy which in turn burns more calories than laying around because I am too sick to move.
I have modified the ingredients that I buy. We use a lot of Velveeta in our house. Now, I always buy the 2% milk variety. We also like butter. We have substituted butter spray. When I buy canned fruit, I always buy it packed in juice instead of syrup. Checking nutrition information on comparable products also helps cut calories. Tyson breaded chicken patties have almost twice as much fat and calories as Banquet patties.
I have cut out a lot of condiments. It takes a big mental change, but really, they add a lot of calories. There is no rule that says pancakes must have 500 calories worth of butter, peanut butter, syrup, and/or jam added to them. When we have pancakes, I add butter spray and call it good. I never use mayo/Miracle Whip anymore. I have found that mustard and honey mustard give sandwiches a little moisture without adding tons of fat and calories. When I have a peanut butter sandwich, instead of slathering on the condiments, I just do a thin layer.
Juice is another biggie I have cut out. I never really had an issue with soda or other flavored drinks so it wasn't hard to completely cut them out. It is really easy to justify juice because it is "healthy". But in reality, it never did anything to curb my appetite and just added calories that I didn't need.
I don't "diet" all the time. I mentioned this in an earlier post. I eat what I want on the weekend (Saturday and Sunday). I then cut back the rest of the week. I don't necessarily "diet" because I don't count my calories and I don't cut out particular foods but after a year of "dieting", I have a pretty good idea of how much I should eat in a day. And knowing I can eat all my "favorites" on the weekend helps.
This actually brings me to another point. I spent a full year getting to the point I am currently at. I didn't use "magic" diet pills or shakes. I watched what I ate and exercised. And yes, it was frustrating at times to see how slow the weight came off, but eventually, it DID come off. And knowing how long and hard I had worked makes it a lot easier to want to stick to it. And as I just mentioned, watching my intake for that long taught me what my portions really should be like.
Another thing that I can think of was reversing my daily eating habits. I used to eat very little in the morning and then a lot at night. There were two problems with this. I would be so hungry at night that I would eat everything in sight. Couple that with going to sleep on a full stomach, and the weight loss thing wasn't going well. When I switched that around, and ate the bulk of my food in the morning and early afternoon, I wasn't as hungry at night and had time during the day to burn off what I did eat.
Finally, one thing that I know has helped me keep the weight off is to continue with regular weigh ins. I actually weigh myself before breakfast every day. That may seem a bit excessive but it has really helped me to cut back on my eating before my "official" Saturday weigh in. I don't get to Saturday (or a month later for that matter) and realize I totally screwed up and have to work my butt off to take of the pounds that I added. This way, it is always under a pound when I do go over and that is much more manageable.
Well, that ended up being a lot more of a post that I had originally intended! I guess what most of this really boils down to is that during the course of the weight loss, I made a lot of lifestyle changes that have, in turn, helped me to KEEP the weight off.
