Keeping Company

Monkey see, monkey do. When we spend enough time around those in a particular scene, our actions usually become similar. It is just the way we're made. And it is especially true if the one in the minority is insecure and unsure...All things being equal, if you run with bad company, you will be corrupted. The good won't rub off on them. Their bad will rub off on you. ~ Living above the Level of Mediocrity by Charles Swindoll via the Life Lessons Devotional

I struggle a lot with my eating habits when I am around people who don't eat healthy. At home and in my routine, I do great. But get me out of my routine and put me around people who don't eat the way I do and I pick up their habits quickly. I don't like to draw attention to myself and refusing dessert at a party is one way to quickly draw attention to yourself. (It's not that I don't ever eat dessert, it's just that I like to save desserts for special occasions and then they need to be GREAT desserts; not just a sheet cake at an office birthday party.)

On a good note, our office is going to start Weight Watchers at Work next week. Almost everyone is participating. Which means that the company I keep at work is going to be changing their habits to mine.

Charity's Diet

Charity enjoys a wide variety of colorful fruits and vegetables (excluding raw tomatoes and olives). Favorite fruits are watermelon, frozen grapes, and berries. Favorite vegetables are colorful salads, asparagus, butternut squash, and Healthy Valley Garden Vegetable Soup.

Meats Charity usually eats are lean proteins, particularly chicken breast and beef sirloin, with occasional higher-fat cuts of beef. She likes using various marinades and rubs on grilled meats.

Charity's diet includes 2-3 servings of dairy each day. These are normally Braum's non-fat sugar-free yogurt, Braum's 1% milk, and cheese in limited quanities.

She also tries to include small (28 gm) servings of nuts in her daily diet. Favorites are pecans, cashews, macadamia nuts, almonds and Smuckers Natural Peanut Butter with Honey

The whole grains in Charity's diet come from oatmeal (usually old-fashioned, but occasionally instant) and Garden for Life sprouted grain products.

Healthy fats in Charity's diet come from Smart Balance Spread, olive oil and vinegar salad dressings, nuts (mentioned above), and the occasional avocado.

Chocolate is an important part of any diet, and Charity's favorite treats are Sugar Free Chocolate Fudge Pudding prepared with 1% Milk and Organic Dark Chocolate. She also likes to add 2 tablespoons of cocoa powder in her morning coffee.

Beverages of choice are Ozarka bottled water or reverse osmosis water and green tea. She enjoys one cup of coffee daily containing 1/4 cup powdered milk and sweetner daily. She also enjoys an almost daily glass of wine.

To avoid food cravings Charity avoids refined sugars, flours and processed foods, especially those containing high fructose/maltose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils. She does use artificial sweetners including spelda, stevia, and nutrasweet.

Did you miss me?

Did you notice I was gone for a week? Sugar Pop and I went to Nashville for GMA Week and the Dove Awards. We had a really good time and got to listen to a LOT of Christian artists peform. Hopefully, we made some good contacts for Sugar Pops music, but only time will tell what develops on that front. The excitement of the week for me was getting to meet Mike & Jeannie from the Air1 Morning Show.

So, after a week of being away from home, eating whatever whenever, and not exercising, the scale was up 2.4 lbs. I was amazed that it wasn't more. My six week maintenance period is now officially over and I am returning to weight loss points again. My 20 year high school reunion is in 48 days and I have 8.6 lbs to lose to be back at my goal weight. Not impossible, but not a breeze either.

I am happy to be back home and back to my healthy habits and healthy eating and exercise. After a week of indulging, it feels good to return to discipline.

The Next Six Weeks

I've been struggling with losing a few pounds for months now. I am really getting aggravated with it and I am feeling very obsessed with the number on the scale. I've been having binges more often which is making it even harder to get the weight off.

This weekend the sermon was on "How to Make Important Changes" and it had me thinking about my weight loss, binging, fitness, etc. I want to stop the binging. Don talked about "Rear View Mirror Practice" and the different places we identify the behavior we are wanting to change. Imagine the behavior is a car passing us on the right side. If we don't see the car (behavior) until it is passed us (we done it again), that is not a failure. It is a victory because we are identifying it. As we practice the change, we start to notice the "car" when it is beside (we are in the middle of the behavior) and we catch ourself. That is also a victory. With time we begin to use the mirror and see the behavior coming up behind us and put our self on alert.

Anyway, I was thinking about this during communion time and how I have been struggling with the number on the scale and with binging and eating healthy and all that "stuff." It came to me that I need to just do maintenance for six weeks. I almost recoil at the thought of it because I want to see that magic number. However, I also want to take some pressure off myself. I mulled it over all day yesterday and since I got up this morning. I believe the idea of doing maintenance came from God as it was nothing I had even pondered until communion yesterday. I am going to trust Him and work on maintenance the next six weeks.

Oreos

I walked into Honey's room this afternoon and this is what I saw. Yumm...Oreo cookies. I could have eaten that entire package. BUT, I gave up chocolate for Lent so I didn't even eat one. Whew!

Comparison to Successful Losers

Vicki had an interesting post today [yesterday by the time I finished this] and asked others to go to write their thoughts on this same topic. Here is mine:

"No Quick Fixes."
In the past I have tried so many different "diets." What I am doing now is a lifestyle change and there is nothing quick about a lifestyle change.

"Be Active."
I used to struggle with getting exercise in, but now it is just what I do. My goal is to get a minimum of 10 minutes on the treadmill a day (except Sunday which is my rest day). Some days it is a lot more than that - maybe an exercise video or going to the gym and using the elliptical or lifting weights. I also do some floor exercises [almost] every day - ab work, pushups, lunges, stretching. Nothing hard or heart pumping. It is just a little extra movement every day.

"Track Your Weight."
I weigh every day and record my weight in an excel spreadsheet that calculates a weekly average of my weight. I use that weekly number as my "official" weight. My goal range is 127-131. If my weekly number is a little high, I need to cut back until I'm back in the range. (Right now I am working on getting back in the range.)

"Enlist Support."
I am a lifetime WW member and I attend at least one meeting a month. Sugar Pop is good support most of the time because he cares about his health and weight, also. However, he is the only person who tempts me with trips to Braums for ice cream. I am also active on the WW Message Boards and post daily to a thread called "10 Cent Healthy Habit Challenge."

"Start Your Day With Breakfast."
I have always been a breakfast eater. My favorite is oatmeal made with milk and parched fruit or yogurt mixed with applesauce and fiber one cereal. Perhaps I should say those are my usual breakfasts. My favorite would be french toast, but that doesn't fit into my normal food plan. ;)

"Set Small Goals."
I'm good at this. Sometimes, my goal is to just make it through the day on plan.

"Find Motivation to Get Started."
I've always had plenty of motivation to get started and just haven't always had the motivation to keep going. I've been either dieting and gaining for years now. However, for the past few years I am really learning about maintenance and it is great. I love that when I do need to lose weight it is usually just 3-4 pounds not 15-20.

"Find Motivation to Keep Going"
I don't ever want to need to lost 20 pounds again. I want to be fit and healthy the rest of my life. That is my motivation to keep going.

"Set a Limit for Regaining Pounds."
This is where my weight range comes in. I like the weekly average because then I don't have so many worries about a high-sodium meal out and gaining a bunch of water weight. It will all even out in the average.

"Plan Ahead."
I am big into planning. I plan our meals for the week before I go to the store. I plan my meals for the day in the morning. I have a "travel journal" I use when I am going to be away from home. That has been a big help in maintaining my weight. Trips used to really through me off and lead to weight gain. Having a specific place to journal food, health, fitness, etc. for trips is great. I can look back and see what worked. I can write myself notes to read before the next trip.

"Figure on Plateaus."
Because I weigh every day on a scale that measures to .2 lbs, there is always a different number on the scale. I don't really feel like I have plateaus because I'm looking at the number every day. I do remember getting kind of stuck when I had 5 lbs to lose and I finally listened to the WW good health guideline to get healthy oils. I started making a salad dressing with olive oil and that helped me lose that last 5 pounds.

"Reward Yourself."
I love rewards. They are very motivating for me. My latest was to weigh less this past Monday than the Monday before. We were going out of town for the weekend and I was tempted to just eat anything and everything I wanted. So I set that goal and my reward was a new pair of Easy Spirit workout shoes. I met my goal and my new shoes arrived yesterday. :)

"Stick With It for the Long Haul."
Oh yes, I am definitely in this for life. I have truly made a lifestyle change and I know that I must continue it. I do not want to go back to the diet/gain lifestyle I had for so many years. It is great to know that all my clothes always fit (well, except for the one pair of capris that are a little snug right now - just a few more pounds and they will be comfortable again). I plan on always journalling my food and exercise, weighing daily and getting plenty of exercise. This healthy lifestyle makes me feel good and the longer I keep up my healthy habits the easier they become. I can't imagine going back to the days when I stopped for fast food almost every day for lunch, when I was getting candy bars and chips from the vending machine. I don't want to go back to those days. I felt like I was hungry all the time because my body wasn't getting any nourishment from those foods. I love the foods I eat now and I love exercising. Life is good. This journey has been worth it.

Food!

Did you miss me this morning? I started a post during my quiet time, but it is going to make me think more and isn't ready for the "world" yet - if there is even anyone out there reading this. Anyway, I thought I would give you a list today.

Foods I Eat Almost Every Day
1 cup of coffee (half caf/half decaf) with 4 tablespoons powdered milk and a packet of Splenda
Braum's Yogurt
Motts Healthy Harvest Applesauce
Fiber One Cereal
Oatmeal (made with 1/2 cup old fashioned oats, 1 cup milk, and 1/2 cup "Just Blueberries, Just Strawberries, or Just Cherries" - put in a BIG bowl and microwave for 4 minutes, watch to make sure it doesn't boil over)
Fresh Fruit - since it is winter it is usually an apple or clementines
Health Valley 14 Garden Vegetable Soup with a can of chicken - sometimes with a little curry seasoning in it. Yum!
Ezekiel 4:9 Cinnamon Raisin Bread
Ezekiel 4:9 Sesame Bread (These are sprouted grain breads and contain no flour - look for them in the freezer section)
Carrots
Laughing Cow Cheese
Roasted Red Pepper Hummus
String Cheese
14 gms of Smuckers Natural Peanut Butter with Honey
Grilled or Baked Chicken
A fresh salad (see picture here) with olive oil and vinegar dressing
Steamed veggies seasoned with Mrs. Dash Garlic & Herb Seasoning
1 glass of wine
SF/FF Chocolate Fudge Pudding made with Braums 1% Milk

I don't eat ALL those things everyday, but these are the foods that make up the majority of what I eat most of the time. These are also the things I miss the most when we are away from home.

Things I used to eat/drink a lot, but hardly ever have now
Cereal
Fast Food
Soda
Gum
Ice Cream
Fudgesicles
Packets of Hot Chocolate
Candy
White Flour

Evil Candy Coated Fruit

It started off innocently enough on Monday afternoon. I had one piece of this chocolate covered dried fruit that was in the breakroom. I told myself that it would be fine to have piece every day. I was in my maintenance range and I had upped my points to 24 so I could fit in a little treat.

Then on Tuesday, I had lunch with a friend at a mexican food restaurant. I picked a fairly healthy thing on the menu, but then LET myself get talked into a sopapilla for dessert. The sugar and flour set me off. When I got back to lunch, I still wanted to have my one piece, but instead of one, it was one of each flavor. And then I went back for more, and then more, and then more, and then some M&Ms and then some Cheezits. I was MISERABLE by the time I got home. I had planned a healthy supper (chicken was thawed and everything), but I was too miserable to cook or eat. We picked up some chili for supper and I couldn't even eat a bowl full.

Wednesday I had lunch with my sister for my birthday. I did ok, but not as healthy as I usually eat - 1/2 a sandwich, a cup of soup and we shared a FABULOUS piece of key lime pie. The rest of the day was normal. I did not have any of the evil candied fruit.

Thursday was a normal day. Whew! Because I needed a normal day.

Friday it was cold and froggy (freezing fog). It was slick out so I stayed at the office for lunch (which I identified today as a trigger). The office manager ordered pizza, but I had some of my favorite soup in my desk drawer and had that instead. I wanted something sweet to top off lunch though. I had a cup of sugar free hot chocolate (which I haven't had in ages as it is sometimes a trigger). Then my snacks of string cheese and carrots I brought. I still wanted more. There were these chocolate covered pecans in the breakroom so I had TWO cups of those. For supper we went out with friends for my birthday and I ate WAY TOO MUCH. That was my planned splurge for the week and it was good. I probably would have enjoyed it more if I hadn't been eating junk all week.

Anyway, it is time for the binging/overeating/junk food to stop. It makes me feel gross. It will make me gain weight. It is not worth it. Dinner last night was worth it, the key lime pie on my birthday was worth it, the rest of the food was just junk!

I walked on the treadmill for 50 minutes today and listened to some Julia Havey. I felt so much better, so much more in control, so ready to return to my healthy habits afterward. It has been a good day. I almost have all my healthy habits in and haven't missed anything. I am aiming for 100% today. It will be a great start in getting back to my routine. I thrive on my routine.

Salad

This is a picture of the typical salad I eat for supper almost every night. I try to have every color of the rainbow. I always miss blue though. I guess some day I might need to try adding a few blueberries and see how I lack that. You will also notice there are no tomatoes. Yuck! I don't like raw tomatoes. Cooked tomatoes are great, but I don't like raw. I make an olive oil and vinegar salad dressing with the Good Seasonings packets. (That's how I get my healthy oil in every day.) I LOVE MY SALADS! When you go on vacation, this is one of the first things I miss.

Weight Lost and Gained

Since October 14, 2002 I have lost 97.9 pounds and gained 80.4 pounds (17.5 net loss).

During 2004 I lost 27.5 lbs and gained 19.3 lbs, 8.2 net loss, highest - 141.4, lowest - 127.7
During 2005 I lost 23.1 lbs and gained 22.9 lbs, .2 net loss, highest - 136.0, lowest - 127.4
During 2006 I lost 12.6 lbs and gained 15.4 lbs, 2.8 net GAIN, highest - 132.8, lowest - 128.2

My weight fluctuations are decreasing. I want both of those numbers to be lower in 2007, but this year the weight lost needs to be more than the weight gained.

After the New Year's Eve festivities I weighed 133.6. This is outside of the 127 to 131 weight range I would like to maintain. Most of the difference between 133.6 and 131 is probably water weight and the results of snacking from 8:00 pm until midnight. My plan is to be back in my weight range this week, although I know it might not be possible for my weekly average to be in the range. This is not the time to slack off (not that any time is a good time). I have lost and gained too many times. I want to maintain my weight during 2007. I will maintain my weight during 2007!

"Diet" History

I thought I would give you a little background on my diet history. I don't think I have ever been more than about 20 pounds overweight (The highest weight I have recorded is 149 on 10/14/02 but I don't have records further back than that), but it seems like I have always been on a diet. Here is a list of "diets" I have tried (not in exact order because I can't really remember when I did what and often times would go back to diets I had tried before):

• Don't eat lunch diet - In high school I would skip lunch a lot to save the spending money for going out on the weekends.
• Don't eat after 7pm diet - I did this a lot in high school too. This meant a lot of skipped suppers.
• Dexatrim - I remember using Dexatrim some in high school, I don't recall using it later.
• Fit for Life - This is basically a food combining diet. Only fruits in the morning. You didn't eat dairy, protein or breads together.
• Diet Pills - I had forgotten this until I mentioned the Dexatrim. I dated a resident once who gave me a prescription for diet pills.
• Atkins Diet - I think everyone knows what this is. I ate way too much processed food on this diet and felt hungry all the time and I had horrible body odor (anyone else experience that?)
• Carb Addicts Diet - I ate WAY too much (and too much junk) during the one hour you were allowed to eat carbs each day. I did learn about weighing daily and calculating a weekly average weight which I still do.
• Southbeach Diet - I think this diet was actually good for me because it helped me to realize that a lot of my cravings were based on not eating enough protein and too much refined sugar and flour.
• Weigh-Down Diet/Thin Within/The Lord's Table - All 3 of these "diets" seemed to make me MORE obsessed with food. I was supposed to eat anything I wanted as long as I was hungry and then stop when I was full. Or I was supposed to have 1/2 days, liquid days, or fasting days. I did not eat a balanced diet and was constantly wondering if I was hungry enough to eat.
• Three Apples a Day - You eat an apple 30 minutes before each meal.
• Dr. Gott's No Sugar No Flour Diet - The name speaks for itself, just avoid anything containing added sugar or flour. I still try to avoid sugar and flour, but know that portion control is important also.
• Weight Watchers - This is where I have had the most success. Counting points helps me with portion control and the WW healthy guidelines help me keep a balanced diet.

I have been "on and off" Weight Watchers (with some of the other diets in between) since I joined in 1998 to lose weight for my wedding. I lost about 15-20 pounds then (at some point I trashed those records so I'm not sure on the exact amount) and made lifetime before the wedding. We went on a cruise for the honeymoon and I gained 7 lbs on the cruise. Then I fell into the classic trap of not wanting to go back to meetings because I would have to pay (OH NO, not that!) Being newly married and getting used to living with my husband and a change in routine, I gained more weight. I went on and off various diets until August 2004 when I rejoined Weight Watchers. I weighed 145.6 at that time and made it to my goal of 129 by November. I successfully maintained through the holidays. Through most of 2005 I struggled again. I didn't realize at the time, but I had a binge/diet routine going on. I would binge and then diet, binge and then diet. In September of 2005, I stumbled across the BEC (Binge Enders Challenge) Board on the WW website. I joined and it was after I joined that I realized I did have a problem with binging. I went through several 21 day binge-free cycles there and made it back to my goal in that fall and maintained through the holidays again. I left that thread and started posting on the 10 cent Healthy Habits thread at WW in early 2006. This was started by some ladies on BEC who realized that if they were following the WW good health guidelines that there wouldn't be any room for binging. During 2006, my weekly average weight has only been above my weight range of 127/8-131/2 (I've adjusted it during the year) six times. I have finally learned the right way to maintain my weight. Instead of overeating and gaining a few pounds and then dieting to get them back off, I am eating a little more food all the time and remaining satisified. Now, I work on keeping my diet balanced and I avoid a lot of trigger foods (mainly sugar and flour).