Well, this week there has been no gym due to the wonders of illness. Strep throat? Really? Where the hell did that come from? But really, besides the derail caused by illness, I’ve been able to remain vigilant in my excercise mission. It’s been really paying off, but it’s easy to forget how far you’ve come.
As a result of being sick, I was at the doctors and weighed yesterday. I don’t know if I’m the only one with Doctors Office Scale Syndrome (DOSS) but usually I think I’m one weight, then get weighed in a doctors office and the results are usually different, generally being higher. I think it’s the distant cousin of Dressing Room Syndrome.
Anyway, this time the results were in my favor and it made me realize I’ve lost 21 lbs. by eating reasonably (not obsessively strict, which can’t be maintained, but in a healthy flexible way) and sticking with my fitness routine. This all means I’m 2 lbs. from what I’d set as my healthy goal weight, which is pretty cool!
For the win!
The Book in Question
So it’s somehow been a month since I posted. Since then, I’ve enjoyed a really interesting book by David Kessler, the former head of the FDA, called The End of Overeating: Taking Control of the Insatiable American Appetite. Before you roll your eyes, it isn’t one of those annoying self-help books that spends its pages telling you how you’re a unique snowflake and that if you just eat 10,000 grapefruit slices a day, you’ll be a better, skinnier, you, but rather an interesting look at what the fuck is going on with the food industry in America and why a vast majority of the population are apparently “helpless” against the onslaught of overly processed, absurdly sweet and criminally fatty foods. It doesn’t promise to solve all your problems, but will have you thinking about food in the ways that the people who make their money on the back of us eating think of it. Even if you skip the last part of the book, which is bascially “Eat healthy, stupid!” (which isn’t easy for a lot of people, lol) it is worth it just for a better understanding of what is going on chemically in the brain when we’re devouring a plate of brownies, lol.
So I’m now really happy I took those measurements on the 5th. A relatively short time later and I’m down inches all over! Two and a half inches here, an inch and a half there… Yes! The scale shows a creep in the right direction, but the measurements tell the tale. Point in fact, I now fit comfortably in yet another pair of pants that were un-buttonable last month! This is really exciting.
I have finally gotten back to the enjoyment level with the exercise, enough so that last Sunday I woke up and instead of wanting to make a big breakfast I wanted to use the cool, quiet morning to do some pilates. This was after a Saturday that featured a return to DDR and the previously hated Jillian Michaels 30 Day Shred DVD.
I can’t wait to know what I am feeling like and fitting into a month from now. Currently I’m feeling great – it’s nice to actually enjoy getting dressed in the morning, and to want to make an effort to look nice. I also feel stronger and like I’m sleeping sounder. My appetite is better and I get full from sane portions. In fact, I’m doubly glad I’m logging food because I’ve caught myself a couple times coming in with too few calories and made sure to add in another healthy snack. Don’t want to tank my metabolism by under eating!
Also, I am in love with my new food scale! No more guesstimating for some things. I actually wound up eating more pork tenderloin as a result of finding the piece I liked was only 4 ounces, and not the 6 I was thinking it might be. Whee!
