| Description: | Leaning into nutrition and away from processed foods has been a challenge that has preoccupied me for quite a while now - this has not been an overnight transition. But it's getting easier, and I'm seeing results; my hard work has not been in vain. The better I feed my body, the more willing my mind becomes to change the way I think about food and the easier it is to make healthy choices. I still eat junk, there are still moments I cave and splurge. But it's okay, and that in itself has been hard to learn...to love myself and not hate myself when ice cream calls. But I'm getting there ;)
I have a typical story, having tried dieting on and off for 30 years and mostly failing. My bout with Nutrisystem finally shook me up and headed me once and for all on the road to searching for health. What the heck was I doing eating small processed portions out of a box? Who eats like this? So I began trying a different approach with the help and advice of a good friend (MRS.) During my NS trial I started researching weight loss and came up with some basic rules to follow. This was my stepping off point, this was when I started listening to what felt right to me instead of following someone else's plan. I wanted to purge all the crap, the tricks, the easy solutions and work on getting healthy.
I had some things going for me, having sworn off most things white while slowly killing myself on a low carb diet. And I had already gone decaf. But now it was time to take a closer look at what a body is, how it works, what it needs, and how to treat it like a temple.
I began with some simple rules:
Don't buy anything with the words hydrogenated
Don't buy anything with the words high fructose corn syrup (HFCS)
Don't use artificial sweeteners or refined sugars
Limit Dairy
Start adding flaxmeal every day
Stay away from wheat & Eat only whole grains
Following the McDougall plan on line I learned to:
Substitute beans for animal protein
And reading Eating Clean taught me to shop the perimeter of the store.
Then I read Eat to Live & The China Study and started to:
Limit starches to 1C per day
Measure nuts, only eat 1oz per day
Eat a pound of raw veggies & 4 fruits per day
And as I began implementing these guidelines I took the next steps to:
Make cruciferous soups in winter, blending greens for nutrition
Not use oil & eat the healthy fats in nuts, seeds and avocado
Make blended salads & smoothies in summer
And a critical component for mental health:
90% nutrition 10% treats
A treat might be ice cream, a sour dough roll, a scrambled egg - but it is a treat, not an everyday thing. And as I enjoy my smoothies, salads and vegetarian dishes more and more...those are the things I want. Is that really me standing at the sink and licking out the last of my spinach smoothie from a glass wanting every last drop? Yep.
I'm not a vegetarian, or an activist, I am a woman coming to peace with what has been a long and tedious struggle. Don't get me wrong, the war is not over, and that is why I am here journaling. But I feel healthier, stronger, and on the right path to health and happiness. It's all about leaning into the nutrition, and learning as much as we can about ourselves, and I am happy to have found friends here who feel the same - what a relief! |
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After:
Where I want to be!
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| My Goal: |
I would really love for last year's jeans to fit come winter!!
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| About me: |
59 and tired of being fat. I know eating for nutrition makes me feel great, and the weight loss is an added bonus. After dissolving a long term partnership I have spent the past year wallowing in a pity pool the size of Montana. It stops now. And I begin again.
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| Diets I like: |
"EAT FOOD, NOT TOO MUCH, MOSTLY PLANTS"
A healthy diet full of nutritionally dense plants and following the guidelines of making healthy choices 90% of the time. All calories are not equal, and filling that 90% with nutrient dense food is important. Ice Cream is a treat, not a food group ;) I am fans of both Dr. Fuhrman and Dr. McDougall, finding both information and recipes that helped to lose weight before. Also, guidelines from Michael Pollan & Jeff Novick are always informative and helpful.
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| Workout of choice: |
Walking the dog, shooting my bow, and riding my bike. None of which I can currently do because I am in horrible shape. Bad achilles tendon, bad back, and vertigo are the current challenges to overcome!
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| My plan: |
Michael Pollan says everything he's learned about food and health can be summed up in seven words: "Eat food, not too much, mostly plants." An important part of the current plan is to stop eating fast food; going back to work was the beginning of gaining back the weight, and driving thru to eat has been a big part of that. It has to stop. Now.
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| I need the most help with: |
Believing that every small decision matters. Sometimes I still eat for comfort and I need to keep working on ways to put space between an urge and an action.
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| Additional Info: |
I spent three years losing 50 pounds and then the past four gaining it all back! I have a laundry list of ailments all related to my new large size and my 60th birthday is on the horizon. I do not want to die old, grey and depressed. I can still feel my inner athlete and I want her back. This is me getting back up and fighting for what I want.
Waistline History by Month and Year:
Date ... Waist
Oct 06 ... 39
Nov 06 ... 38
Dec 06 ... 37
Jan 07 ... 36.5
Jun 08 ... 36 ...(joined PT in May 08)
Nov 08 ... 35.5
Feb 09 ... 35
Apr 09 ... 34.5"
Jun 09 ... 35"
Jul 09 ... 34
Jan 11 ... 36"
Aug 14 ... 40.5 OMG!! Largest ever in my life
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