Declaration of Intent...
I had thought about starting a new blog just for this endeavor but frankly that doesn't make sense in the grand scheme of life simplification. So I am going to keep this content here but I guess I will label and tag it some how as to designate it as "weightloss related".
I spoke with Rose quite a bit on Thursday and Friday. We chatted about what has been really bothering me lately. It is a recurring problem that I don't seem to be able to muster enough willpower to overcome. Yes, it's the weight. Not for the vanity aspect, but because of my health. I don't feel well. My joints ache more than they should. I'm out of breath walking... anywhere. I can't bend over without losing my balance. I just can't live like this. And I have no one to blame.
So I took some time to reflect. When was I most happy? What did I do differently? How did I get control of my life? And it's funny, I had an answer for all three questions and it was the same. 2 years before I moved down here I lost a bunch of weight. I ate well, planned out meals and I exercised. I felt great. My moods were kept in balance. I was sleeping through the night. I was focused. Everything I set my mind to do I did. My life was running smoothly and in a forward motion, not because I was thinner, but because I was eating better.
The secret was in what I was eating. I realized 10 years ago that I was carbohydrate sensitive. I don’t process them very well. I don’t use them for energy my body pretty much just stores it. The less carbohydrate s I eat the more energy I have. I know that is totally against all we learned in Health class, but that’s the way it is. My body processes cholesterol extremely well. So fat and proteins aren’t my body’s enemy, carbohydrates are. You would think knowing this I would avoid them… Yeah me too. But when I moved here in 1999, life for me changed. More than I thought it would. Once I was out of my routine and regimen, I never went back. I started buying things I hadn’t bought in years… like bread to make meals on the run, stopping for pizza(easier than cooking), cookies to snack on, candy for the candy dishes (yeah right), juices, macaroni and cheese, pasta(quick meals)…etc.
Pretty soon my whole diet consisted of 90% carbs. Not good. That would explain the 10-12 pound a year increase in my weight and how it sneaks up on me. So I am fighting back. One day at a time. I know I have said it before and I will probably say it again… But I’m not going to give up the fight.
So I went to Costco in a search for a pack of eye of the round steaks - I used to buy them in bulk and cook them up with some green beans and that would be dinner. Nope, no steaks but they do have pork chops 9 to a pack for $16. I picked up some fresh French green beans, broccoli florets, medium cheddar cheese, diet cokes and home I went. The steaks were way too thick to cook on the G5, so I butterfly cut them to make 18 and then grilled them. I then divided up the green beans into steamer bags with butter to make individual servings for easy nuking. I had been to Kroger earlier and bought salad fixings for lunches during the week: Some tomatoes, fresh parmesan cheese, green olives, onions, sesame seeds and creamy Caesar dressing. I then had all the leftover fruit to deal with - 1 apple, grapes(red, green), 2 peaches, 4 nectarines. So I cut it all up and made a fruit salad which I then divided into 1 cup servings to eat as early in the day as possible.
I pulled out the coffee pot so I can save some time in the morning. I have been French pressing it instead of using the coffee pot. I take coffee to work in a thermos, so this should help in the time management and cash management area of my life. Plus I find that coffee helps deter my appetite and keeps me from grazing. I bought some of that crystal light energy to boost me after lunch when I start to hit a low. Instead of reaching for a Diet Coke, I’m drinking 20 ounces of water. Yeah it has caffeine in it, but in my quest for better health I am trying to back off from carbonated drinks… they make me feel bloaty.
I am also getting up at 5:00am instead of lingering till 5:30am. I am watching the street to stake out my claim for “walking the dogs” time. Foster needs the walks, but Dollie has a fit if she doesn’t go. So I need to find an empty zone in the morning where there are no other dog-walkers so I can walk both my idiots. If this doesn’t work, I’ll figure something else out.