Friday, March 18, 2011

Lots of Little Changes Can Add Up

So its a few days after switching my mindset about the tail end of this adventure. 10 lbs to go and a solid plan in which to lose them for good. But I've noticed that lots of little changes can really add up to a big difference. 
First off, I'm hiding that darned scale! It has been an obsession since Day 1, and since I'm an engineer, I love numbers. Seeing it the same for so long has been a bit of a drag on everything and it's time to free myself from it. My trainer told me on Day 1 of our session in January to stop weighing daily and switch to weekly. I'm starting with going 1 week no scale, and then from there we'll see. I'll probably pick 2 days to weigh, Monday and Thursday, to keep myself in check for the weekend and see progress during the week.
Second, I'm finally starting to make better food choices and beer choices when I go out. I love the dark beers, but there's a big difference in calorie content with some of them. Guinness Daught has a shocking 120 calories per 12 oz, so I got one of those last night. Yuengling is 125 calories too. So I'm going to avoid the really dark, heavy beers for a while. Light Spring beers are in season anyway. And for food choice, I ended up with a chicken breast last night instead of a cheeseburger or something equally unhealthy. I ate a few of the fries that came with it, that's it. I was happy with myself. I'm eating out again tonight, I'll be running around the lake beforehand, and I'm gonna be smart with my food and beer choices again tonight.
And this whole concept of eating more and sticking to protein at night is making a difference. For the first time in a while, I'm actually feeling really hungry! And I've been eating like 1500+ calories a day since Tuesday. Hopefully it's helping to reverse my sluggish metabolism and get things moving in the right direction. I feel like I'm always eating, but I'm using slightly high calorie foods like my love Peanut Butter to get me to where I need to be in terms of net calories.
And finally, I'm really starting to see an inprovement with running! First was my 5K RUN last Friday. And then on Wednesday, I ran outside for the first time since Fall. What a difference! I was able to run long, and I would have been able to run more of the 5K except for the stitch in my side/stomach ache. I think my new plan is to stop eating around 2:30 or 3 on days I have to run, and try not to drink a ton of water later in the afternoon. And I need to start stretching before I run. Usually I just dive right into it, but I read an article with some tips to avoid a side stich or stomach ache. I managed my outdoor 5K with running as much as possible and taking a minute or two long walking breaks in 39 minutes! That's pretty awesome, with a 12:30 per mile pace. I'm aiming to run a sub-35 minute 5K on May 1st I think. I'm not sure if that's a reasonable goal, but if I can run more of it, I think I could shave off 4 minutes. And I'll have my buddy Sarah to keep me moving.
So, all those little things added up I hope will spell results on the scale when I'm allowed to get back on it on Thursday. I redid measurements and for the second month in a row, they were all the same! Not a single inch lost anywhere, so I'm 100% in plateau/starvation mode. It'll take some time and effort to get out of it, but I think I'm finally in the right mindset to do it. Food is good, working out is good, eating enough food to balance out exercise is even better! 

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