posted
Ever since Eric went on his trip to Boston I've made it a habit to get up in the morning to exercise before work. That first week I got up at 4 and exercised until 5 a.m. because I didn't need to be to work until 7 a.m. and had to drop the kids off at daycare.
The rest of the time I've gotten up at 3:30 and work out until 4:30. I'm not any more tired than when I would sleep until 4:15 and actually have a lot more energy to do more things. When 8 p.m. comes I am ready for bed but not to the point that I'm dragging myself to bed. I even get up on the weekends and work out!!
I haven't lost more than 5lbs but my clothes fit much looser. I'm starting to feel my abs firm up...
I hope that I can keep it up for a year to see what affect it will have on my body. If anything it is making my heart stronger.
posted
Good for you. My resolve to consistently get up and do the same thing is not as good as yours. I wake up but don't always make the next step. Keep up the good work.
Posts: 53 | From: Green Bay office
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posted
Once again I've let myself down. I haven't exercised in a week and have not watch nothing that I've been eating. If it looks good I have been eating it. I have gained back my 5 lbs and a few more.
Today I started back up exercising and have watched the points that I've eaten. Plus drinking more water. I know why before New Years??!! Because if I don't I won't be wearing the size that I'm currently in. I would have to go get the next size up. My goal is to lose 40lbs before our vacation at the end of June. That is 5 months away I believe that I can do it.
posted
As of January 1st I have lost 11 lbs. The exercising was going good until I got sick last weekend. So I took a few days off but next week I'm going to start back up and only do every other day so that I don't burn myself out.
I'm hoping that by June I'll have lost another 25-30 lbs. I do my best when I write down what I eat because that makes me more accountable for how many calories that I'm actually taking in.
I've learned to really like 2 egg whites scrambled with a little mozzarella cheese on top of one piece of toast. Makes a very delicious breakfast sandwich. I found out that eggs with the yoke is like 75 calories and the egg white is only 17 calories. Makes a big difference.
posted
A whole egg also contains more than two-thirds of the recommended daily limit of 300mg of cholesterol. I'm willing to give up 1/2 of that protein to cut down on my cholesterol intake. It is considered a very lean protein and a whole egg is considered a medium fat protein.
The egg white sandwich I make does keep me very satisfied until the next meal. I eat for the most part every 2 to 3 hours so that I don't let myself get too hungry that I grab for whatever is within reach. It is working out well for me. Loosing 11 lbs in 5 weeks is about 2.25 lbs each week. That is a healthy amount of weight to lose each week.
In addition to watching my calories I'm watching my carb intake because that helps lose weight and has helped me from being as tired as I use to be.
posted
You are doing great Sheryl. Keep up the good work.
I would rather cut down on cholesterol some place else than have just the whites of an egg. I think I could eat 2 eggs with only 1 yoke even would be better.
-------------------- Vonnie S. Toop Posts: 1399 | From: Eau Claire, WI USA
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posted
Thanks, it is going to be a life time of trying to stay healthy.
I thought the same thing when I first started eating eggs without the egg yoke. Now that is the way that I prefer to eat my eggs. It is one of the easiest ways that I can control my cholesterol because some foods you can't take the cholesterol out of.
I eat it with toast like a sandwich and it is very delicious!! Try it and give it time.
posted
You are on the right track, Sheryl! It's the little things that you can easily modify that helps make progress.
As a personal example, whenever I go to Subway I never get cheese on my sub. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE cheese, but Subway cheese isn't very flavorful and doesn't really add to the sandwich. I also skip the mayo. Instead, I add banana peppers and spicy mustard to enhance the flavor, both very low calorie options.
It's all about choice and getting real with the food you eat. For example, most people do not realize drinking only one 20-ounce bottle of soda daily for a year can lead to a 25-pound weight gain. Rather, they think "It's just one soda". It's about big picture thinking and making good choices consistently.
We're only human and we can't eat great ALL the time, but balance and moderation are key. Dessert is fine, if it's only once a week, not every evening. Stuff like that.
Your efforts inspired me to write - good luck and continue to strive for your own personal improvement. The journey can be life changing!
Posts: 68
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posted
Thanks John!! I like your examples of subway sandwiches. I'll be trying it without cheese. The banana peppers and spicy mustard is awesome so subtracting the cheese shouldn't be that big of a deal.
I heard on the news just recently that they did a study on diet pop and regular pop with rats. They found that regular pop drinkers didn't gain as much as diet pop drinkers. Their study showed the artificial sweeteners caused people to have cravings to eat more. After hearing that I don't desire it like I use to just knowing what it does. I use to be the one that drank 1 pop a day and also cut that out. Now I only have it on occasion.
Jillian on biggest loser suggested having 3 meals and 1 snack a day. I thought it was you needed to eat every 2-3 hours. So what I've been doing is 3 square meals and 2 or 3 snacks. Do you think I'm over eating? I usually only have 1200 calories a day.
I pulled a muscle in my right calf so exercising has been put on hold until it heals. Each day it is getting better but I don't want to push it too much that I'm down for too long. What exercised do you suggest?
Wow...glad that I've inspired you to write. Keep giving suggestions because I know that you've made some huge changes and the results are obvious.
posted
Muscle strains are such a pain - literally! You can still do a lot of core training while your calf heals. I would do some research online for some pilates, yoga, and overall core fitness regimens. I will remind myself to look for you as well when I have a little bit of time.
Focusing on those types of exercise will not only give your calf time to heal, but it will help you build a foundation for your fitness goals. A lot of people (with the best intentions) jump into an exercise program without laying a proper foundation and then end up with a major injury. Its important to recognize the three broad stages of fitness training:
Stability, Strength, and Power.
Stability is core training and absolutely must be done. By strengthening your core, you add to your body's ability to adapt to both stable and unstable exercise environments (stable example would be a push up, an unstable example would be a push up on an inflatable ball).
While most people never reach the 'Power' level (because they aren't professional athletes or competing in some sport), the 'Strength' level comes from developing a solid core and increasing your muscular endurance.
Combine the core and strength training with cardiovascular conditioning and eating right, and you'll be on your way.
There are entire books written about this stuff and I can't possibly do this topic justice right now, but its a little insight.
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posted
I forgot to address your question about meals. Here's the thing - it really depends on the person and your activity level - but you'll never rev up your metabolism if you just eat three square meals a day.
It's great to have structure, so I'm not saying get rid of your three meals a day, but just look at them differently.
You should have most of your calorie intake earlier in the day, lets say by lunch, because your body needs those calories to perform throughout the day. As the day winds down, you still want to have food to keep your metabolism working, but not as many calories because your body doesn't need that much to watch TV or sleep.
For me, personally, I have two snacks throughout the day. One before lunch, the other before leaving work. Typically the snack is a handful of nuts or some baby carrots. Something lower in calories but will provide my body something to work with to keep the metabolism pumping.
Again, your calorie intake really depends on your activity level. Somebody going to the gym and working out for an hour and a half is going to need more calories than someone not doing that.
posted
Thanks for all of your advise. The core exercise sounds due able and I actually like that kind of exercise. I do have a stability ball so that works out well for me.
How close to lunch do you have a snack?
I usually have 6 a.m. breakfast, 9 a.m. morning break, lunch at 11 a.m., afternoon break is 1 p.m. and supper is at 6 p.m. Then I'm in bed by 8:30 p.m. Give me an example of what you eat for each meal.
posted
Well, this is going to probably sound weird because I don't approach food like your regular person. I mean, I have no problem eating a chicken breast for breakfast if I'm in my hardcore mode. Ha!
However, first thing in the morning (and I mean first thing) is a small glass of orange juice and a two or three baby tomatoes (you know the kind that are tiny that come in a mesh bag or plastic container). There are so many nutrients in the skin of a tomato!! Then I'll shower, get dressed, and have a glass of V8 (low sodium) before I leave for work. (V8 is primarily how I get my veggies).
Once I'm at work I have a bowl of Oatmeal (Quaker Oats in the tube, not the pre-sugared, pre-flavored packs) and a banana. That's around 7:00 a.m.
By 10:00 I'm ready for a snack so I'll typically have some baby carrots - like 10 or 12 of them. Just crunch on them at my desk.
Between 11:30 and noon I'll have lunch. This can vary depending on what I've brought from home, but if we look at today for example, I'll have a salad from the salad bar at Cub and some slices of deli smoked turkey (plain, no bread or condiments) from the Cub deli.
Around 2:30 sometimes I'll treat myself to a 90 calorie bag of Quaker Mini-Delights, they are snack packs of mini rice cakes with flavoring drizzled on them. My favorite is the caramel!! Typically though I'll just have a handful or two of soy nuts or a trail mix of some kind.
I'll hit the gym between 4:00 and 4:30, lift weights for about an hour, cardio for 40-45 minutes.
After working out I might have a protein bar or something, but this is not guaranteed.
Dinner around 6:30-7:00 and it might be an open-faced sandwich, chili, side of veggies (carrots, cucumbers, onions, squash) whatever we have handy. Not huge portions, but enough to satisfy me.
Before bed I might have a cup of green tea or a small glass of V8, just depends on my mood.
Isn't that a lot of eating?!? I don't think people realize how much eating it takes to lose weight (sounds funny, doesn't it), but its WHAT you're eating that matters.
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