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| Photo by Kiss My Buttercream. |
Now, this may not sound like a lot of weight, but I am less than five feet tall (about 141 cm).
Also, the timing is a bit shocking. I'm going into the holiday season with a little Santa's bowl full of jelly.
I am too cheap to buy new clothes, so I need to trim down, or I won't fit into my clothes by the end of the winter.
I should probably start with a food journal so that I can be more honest about what I'm really eating.
Also, I'm hypoglycemic, and I am supposed to curb refined carbohydrates.
I'm going to do my best to stay away from cookies, cake, pie, candy, and other sweets. I also have to minimize the amount of potatoes, corn, bread, crackers and pasta I consume. I also have to watch how much fruit I eat, especially juice and dried fruits, which are more concentrated in sugars.
I also need to resume my regular trips to the gym for a combination of cardio, strength training and yoga. At the very least, time at the gym keeps me from having easy access to snack food.
They gym offers a course correction to my otherwise sedentary life. I teach online, read a lot, watch films about aging and maintain this blog. That's a lot of sitting. I do better physically, emotionally and mentally if I exercise for at least 45 minutes a day.
But the first order of business is for me to decide how often to weigh myself. Some people habitually weigh themselves daily, which helps bring gradual weight gain into focus quickly. Others weigh in once a week, which prevents being discouraged by normal fluctuations of a pound or two.
There's also the "throw away the scale" school of thought.
I do concede that I have often gone MONTHS without weighing myself and still "kept my figure." If I am keeping a food-and-exercise journal and monitoring how my clothes fit, then I really don't need the scale.
Ultimately, I believe that it's more important to focus primarily on my behaviors rather than focusing too much on the results. I can control what I eat and drink and how much I exercise. If I'm doing my best to make healthy lifestyle choices, I need to let go of the number on the scale.
But I have to admit in the last two months I've been making horrible choices and deluding myself about it. Today's trip to the scale is an invitation to be more responsible. Honestly, I've really been doing everything in my power to gain weight, and now it shows.
Related:
Outrunning Father Time and the Grim Reaper
I don't ever need a # to know where I'm at....to be completely honest!
ReplyDeleteI do my best when I weigh (and write it down) every day. I don't do it every day, but it's what works for me.
ReplyDeleteIt's ok to gain a few pounds now and then. I always try to cut myself a break when that happens and make adjustments to what I've been eating. I like your reminder here to behave :)
ReplyDeleteTomorrow is a new day so just move forward in a positive way and don't look back, unless it's to see your fat laying on the floor! Seriously though I would not worry about weighing. Maybe once a month or maybe every week if you feel like your pants are getting snug. Fall/Winter holidays are the hardest if you don't have your plan ready before. You can do it!
ReplyDeleteOh, I am so with you. It seems like I've been doing everything in my power in the past few months to gain weight - and I've succeeded, exceeding expectations!
ReplyDeleteI once worked with a woman who weighed first thing, every morning. If she was up 2 lbs or more, she eliminated all refined carbs and ate small portions until she was back to her ideal weight. She always looked and felt great. On the other hand, I haven't been at my ideal weight for nearly 30 yrs, so her strategy depresses me. Oh well, I've had lots of fun over the past 3 decades!
ReplyDeleteWhat a great post. I appreciate your honesty in sharing about your weight battle. And I can SOOOOOO relate. I have to weigh everyday if I want to stay accountable about what goes into my mouth and what kind of exercise I do. If I don't get that daily kick-in-the-pants motivation as soon as I get out of bed, then I'm running undisciplined. I say that I have to do it everyday, as if that's what I do. But I still don't...and my waistline shows it. Best of luck to you, especially around these holidays.
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