This post may come across as a "duh" post to you, but I feel like it could also help someone! So let's get in to it! Today after leaving the gym, I headed home to enjoy the rest of my Saturday! Of course the first thing I wanted to do was eat!! I had worked really hard during Saturday morning Bootcamp (which for some reason I'm convinced the instructor's goal on Saturdays is to kill the participants) and I also lost another 1.8 pounds since my last weigh in!! That takes me to 19.8 pounds since October!!! I'm not bragging or boasting, but that certainly is a big deal to me!
Anyway, after class I knew food was on the agenda, but I had to decide what I was going to eat. I usually don't do meal prep for the weekends unless I'm traveling since I have more time to figure out what I'm going to eat and more freedom and flexibility to eat things that might not be as quick to put together during the week. My first meal after the gym consisted of a protein shake, 1/2 of a banana, and a handful of almonds. That was cool for a while, then I got hungry again. This time I chose grapes and carrots because I am planning on making something a little more heartier for lunch, but hadn't gotten a chance to do that yet. So I'm looking at my carrots and trying to decide what I'm going to pair them with. I have three options: peanut or almond butter, hummus, or nothing at all. I really wanted the peanut butter because I loooooove peanut butter, but I then realized I already had almond butter with breakfast and almonds in my post workout snack. I am also planning on making a meal later on that might be a little higher in calories, so I chose the hummus (forget nothing at all).
It then dawned on me that this whole thing is truly about choices. Peanut butter is great, but it's also a whopping 190 calories per serving. It's not even noon here yet so I had to decide what I was going to do to be smart about the rest of my day. I forgot my heart rate monitor at home this morning so I have no idea how many calories I burned during my workout so I don't know how much wiggle room I have today to "indulge" per se. This concept applies to anything you're eating! There are so many other choices that are just as good and pair well with our food that can be a better option at the time. The hummus I chose only has 30 calories per serving, yet I only had half the serving (15 cals) since I didn't have that many carrots that I was snacking on.
The power to choose also comes into play when you're out to dinner/lunch/etc. I was talking to a friend this morning and she was telling me about her plans for next weekend. She has a dinner lined up just about every night of the weekend for her birthday and she said "I'm going to have to really be careful what I'm eating during the week so I can afford to have more flexibility and freedom this weekend". Yes!! That's what it's all about!! Being aware of what you're eating and also in a week's time frame. To lose 1 pound of fat/week you have to burn 3500 calories or take in 3500 less than you usually would (cutting 500 calories/day for 7 days is an easy way to do this). If you're taking in more calories than you're burning then you're not going to lose. Weight loss is science and math, not magic! Making good choices and thinking about why you're doing this is also a way to stay motivated and on track!! To be honest with you, I have found myself asking me regularly "why are you doing this"? I have to ask myself this to keep me in line. I haven't always been this dedicated to the cause, but changing myself and helping others is what truly keeps me going!!
Always remember: if you don't choose, someone or something else will choose for you. In this case, if you just go through life not making these conscious choices, then not meeting your weight loss goals will be the choice that will be made for you!
It's a work in progress and every day isn't perfect, but just keep going!!! When I stepped on the scale today and saw that I was down to 177lbs (first time since like college), I thought about how if I gave up in December, then I'd be looking at March now wishing I had started and kept going back then! It's been almost 5 months and I've come so far that I just can't give up now!!! Keep pushing, keep educating yourself, keep making good choices and you'll be transformed!!
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