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OK, short and sweet is the theme of the day. Two things caught my attention last week, both of which centered on calories. I know most of us hate calorie counting…I can attest that I’m not a fan, but I am actually doing my best do so because I think I’m at a stage in my weight loss where it matters. I will certainly concede that it is not for everybody.
The first item came from a blog post on Yahoo from Lucy Danziger, editor-in-chief of SELF magazine. I am not familiar with SELF at all, but obviously the title caught my attention…
Lose Weight Without Counting Calories
OK, well this will be completely obvious to just about anyone who has a pulse. Let me briefly reiterate her tidbits: 1) pick up produce, 2) snack smart, 3) sip more water, 4) map out your meals, 5) eat every meal. With no disrespect intended for Ms. Danziger, it seemed the the first utterance out of my mouth was, “duh.” Is it that simple? I think it can be…though we know it usually takes much more than that to get real results.
The second item is still in the same ballpark, but with a twist. I am an alumnus of Arizona State University and on occasion I’ll check the website out to see what’s new. Last week I came across a press release for a recent study done by the W.P. Carey School of Business…
ASU Study: 100-calorie packs makes dieters eat more
Slightly intriguing, no? I think there is clear face validity here…doesn’t it make sense that our minds often focus on the quantity we eat over the content? Well, let me put it this way…I get what they’re saying, but I don’t know if I always buy it. I think there’s a problem here with external validity in terms of the study. They used M&Ms and Mini M&Ms and I just think that some other food combos should be tried out before a b-school tells the world what’s up with how people perceive and eat their calories. When I think of 100-calorie packs, I think of the little, low-fat Oreos or packages of Wheat Thins. We don’t get them often in our house, but when we do, I think it’s understood that you still just eat…one. I don’t like diet food in the first place…I prefer to eat regular food with extreme moderation and monitoring…but hey, that’s just the way I prefer it.
So, now, I throw it to you…what are your thoughts on calorie counting and 100-calorie packs?
Else, where would I be in this fight to drop pounds and get healthy?
The one thing I have absolutely treasured in the past five weeks is that not one person has told me, “No, you can’t.” I had a soccer coach in middle and high school who would make us run laps if we ever used the word ‘can’t.’ I learned early on that it was not taken lightly, and after a decent amount of laps due to that violation, I learned to keep my mouth shut and just do it.
For the most part, I have eradicated the word ‘can’t’ from my vocabulary.
Now, I do know my limits, but rather than say that I can’t do something, I just postpone it…or rather, make it a long-term goal. Truth of the matter is, I can do most of what I’ve set out to do. Even with this week’s setback of struggling with the five minute interval, I’ve realized I just need a little more time. I know I can do it.
I have been doing my best to eat well while we’ve been traveling. There are some really good cooks in our family, especially my sister-in-law who makes quite delicious white chocolate macadamia nut cookies. They have been hard to resist, and I’ve only had one so far, and I fear that will be my limit. However, a plus to being in Nevada these past few days is all of the runners and walkers we have in the family. We’ve hit the track the past fews days – my mother-in-law, two of my sisters-in-law, and myself – in an effort to “keep on a goin’” as we like to say. They’re all really great motivators, and are pretty disciplined. I get lapped by each and everyone one of them, but that’s okay…someday I’ll be able to keep pace with them.
So, odds are, I will repeat Week 4 of the Couch to 5k into Week 6 of my training. Geez…just thinking that I’ve kept up with this for six weeks still floors me, but I know the repetition will be well worth it.
When we get back to Georgia, I’m a little worried about the next month. I’ll be starting classes again, my boy will be born shortly, and I have several projects that need some dire attention. I have a conference in Florida to go to in September, not to mention a work trip back to Arizona. Things are going to get crazy busy, and I feel that I have a huge challenge ahead of me in trying to maintain my training while I start to get busy with life again.
Can I do it??
I think I can.
This is something my wife just reiterated to me.
I didn’t realize traveling would be so hard on my exercise plan…because let’s face it, I don’t want to consider exercise being hard on my traveling. I did a run this morning, and while I was still happy that I did the requisite 3 minute intervals, the course was not as long as I hoped. However, I guess I shouldn’t be too upset because I’m about to make a pivotal turn in my Couch-to-5k training. I’m starting week four (week five for me since I repeated a week) on Wednesday and am about to kick up the running time. I am truly excited for this…call me crazy, but I just can’t wait.
My diet has been crap, and I should have done better in planning ahead while traveling. The past few days will surely incur the wrath of my coach when I call him. He’s maybe 5′7″ tall and lives in Salt Lake City, but the distance is the only cushion…that fire of his will definitely burn through the phone line. But I deserve it…it’s a lesson learned, and I’ll need to do better in the future.
My back seems to be improving. It’s still sore when I’m sedentary or immobile, but seems to be fine when I walk, or even run. My father-in-law and I went to Massage Envy the other night and I greatly underestimated my therapist. She found all the right spots…nearly killed me, in the process, but I think it helped.
Friends, can I just tell you how great I feel despite all of this? Sure, I have complaints, but this is the best I’ve felt in a very long time. I am still flabbergasted that five weeks later, I’m still here, and I’m still doing it. I can actually see a difference in my body. My belly is shape-shifting, my man-boobs are shrinking, and I think I’m slowly going back to one chin. I run in the mornings and see people who smile and say “Good Morning.” This is the opposite, in fact, of a bad dream I had where I was running down the street with people pointing and laughing and making some really horrible remarks. Eh. If it happens, they can say what they want. I’m doing this to make a better me.
It’s been hard for me to say this, but whether one agrees with me or not, if one perceives something differently, regardless, I can now categorically state:
I am a runner.
I have been tagged by Andrew from Andrew is getting fit!
And, I might say, I think this is a great topic to be tagged on. It seems as if there are numerous things I could call a vice in terms of health and fitness, and I’ve had difficulty in pinpointing what could be the biggest or worst of all of them.
I don’t smoke (my mother did for over 20 years and it revolted me), or chew tobacco (my father did/does and I was equally repulsed by it). I don’t drink (too many alcoholics in the family) and I’ve never tried any drugs (unfortunately, I’ve got loved ones who are substance abusers, and its just not for me). So, I think we can cross all of this ‘big’ stuff off the list.
When I really think of it, I think the biggest health and fitness vices I have are: 1) doubt and 2) carbs.
Doubt. Yes, doubt. Doubting that I can accomplish what I want to. Doubt that I could actually lose weight and learn to live a healthier life. Doubt led me to quit anything, which in turn led to depression, which led to weight gain. Hell of a lot of good doubt did me. And it’s weird, because I was and am still competitive. I was an athlete in high school. I played football, basketball, soccer (yes, believe it or not), golf and threw the shot put and discus. But through it all, the doubt won, my weight fluctuated, and what can I say? I got fat.
Carbs. When I was most recently living in Arizona, I saw a nutritionist who’s response to nearly everything that went wrong was, “Ohitsdefinitelythecarbs!” She really did talk like that, by the way. But it was frustrating to accept that answer, though she was more than likely right. I don’t load up on much fat, sweets or salty things. I eat meat sparingly (and after living in Georgia and seeing the gigantic chicken transportation trucks, I’ve wanted to quit altogether…but I won’t). But, I love bread, I love pasta, I love potatoes, I love grains…the list goes on and on, and I just hear Debbie rattling off, “Ohitsdefinitelythecarbs!“
The great carb debate came about on Saturday when a couple of other guys and I went to give a little bit of service to a Vietnam vet in some pretty bad condition (cancer, super-emaciated…down to 97 pounds). One of the guys cleaned his house, while another cleaned his yard, and I took him in to town for some errands. The first thing he said to me once in the car was, “You have to stop eating carbs after 3 p.m. God knows we’d hate to lose you so young.” Wow…two minutes into our relationship, and I get hit with this bomb. I wasn’t too shocked though…I’ve heard things like this most of my life. Like when I lived in Italy…a woman whose house we painted, Ines, just stared at me (while speaking to someone else as if I were deaf or not there), “Ma, dai…questo qui deve dimagrire subito…e’ troppo ingrassato!” Which more or less means: Come on, this one here needs to slim down immediately…he’s too fat! I wasn’t nearly as big as I am now, not to mention her son was much bigger than I am. I was reluctant to paint her house after that comment, but did it anyway. Afterward, she fed us lunch as kept pushing a plate of bread and cheese at me. “Mangia,” she’d mutter as if she didn’t really mean it.
I lost it. I told her I wasn’t a circus freak, and I hopped on my bike and left.
For those of you who recall, I actually lost a lot of weight while in Italy (only to gain it back of course — you can read that earlier post HERE if you’d like).
So, plain and simple…I’ve stopped doubting myself. I have a great network of supporters who help me a great deal, not to mention more motivation than ever to help me make these changes. Carbs and I will be at war for a long time. I’ve done a decent job at managing them for the most part over the past 25 days, but I am prepared to educate myself on how they should best be consumed for me. It will be a battle that will last a long time, but I know that there’s a strategy for winning the war…
I think that a lot of hard work in these two areas will definitely help make a better me.
OK, I tag:
And anyone else who might want to give it a whirl!
MizFit, pinkcowgirl, Andrew, and Elle — you guys are amazing commentators. Thanks so much for all you said in my last post. Folks like you make this blogging-for-health gig worth it!
So, a few things to follow-up from yesterday…
I am slowly realizing that Jeff Galloway is not the only supreme being of the running world. I do like a lot of what he says, but I don’t think that some of it is meant for a lard-jogger akin to myself (yes, I really did just write ‘lard-jogger’). No doubt, he definitely seems to be more than adequate for highly competetive runners, but he might not be for me. Though, since I don’t live that far from Atlanta, maybe I can track him down one of these days and ask him some questions (unlikely, but a thought no less). I had heard of Hal Higdon before, but not of John Bingham (thanks for that, pinkcowgirl). I’ll definitely have to read more of what they say.
MizFit probably hit the nail on the head with me when she said it is probably best to do what works for me in terms of ‘fueling-up’ or carbo-loading before a race or intense workout. Thinking over all of your comments, I have probably reached the point to where I would definitely want to improve the things I eat before the workout or race at hand, and as you all seemed to infer, perhaps eat in relation to the length of the race…that is, not that much for a 5k. Truly, though, you all gave invaluable insight, and for that I’m most appreciative. Thanks!
One thing I do need to work on, however, is fluids. Since moving from a dry, hot Southwestern state to a humid, hot Southeastern state, I have realized that I sweat much more than I ever have in my life. I used to think I was good at replenishing my fluids…but I may have thought wrong. After yesterday’s jog, I drank my usual water and felt pretty good. However, I went an played 18 holes of golf with a friend, and by the end of it, I was dying. Bad me. I need to learn my lesson.
On Andrew’s advice, I checked out the Garmin Forerunner 305 for my heart rate monitor. I love it. However, I’m going to have to save for it as my paltry graduate assistant salary would take a major hit. The great part about being a full-timer with my Ph.D. is that I can make time to exercise…the bad part is that it’s self-inflicted poverty.
Thanks again for your comments everyone. Kepp them coming when it’s convenient for you…they really do help!
Hope everyone had a splendid weekend.
Today started week two of my Couch-to-5k program. It was a good workout…a bit longer and further, but I must admit that I still have some doubts to my ability. When I “ran” on Saturday evening, I did 1.75 miles and my pace was nearly 16:00. However, this morning, I went 2.25 miles and had a pace of 15:09. Am I getting delusional or am I just slowly improving? Anyway, I also realized that I probably should invest in a decent heart rate monitor and watch to help me with timing and to optimize these workouts. Any suggestions for a good buy?
So, lately I’ve been reading snippet’s of Galloway’s Book on Running. I have found it to be helpful for the most part, though there’s some antiquated stuff in there that should probably be updated (I don’t know…I’m reading the 2nd edition – is there a newer one?) Thanks to Andrew and all the nifty online tools he uses, I doubt I’ll ever necessitate a handwritten runner’s log. All that aside, I was surprised to read that Jeff Galloway does not do the somewhat ritualistic “loading up of the carbs” the night before a race. In fact, he said that it might be best to eat nothing. Is he serious?
I know he’s Mr. All-American Runner, and obviously I value his advice (else why pay $14.95 for the book), but I can’t, for the life of me, fathom not having some sort of fuel to burn off. The race I did with my family in April, we definitely ‘carbed’ it up the night before. Whether or not it made or broke the race for me, I don’t know, but I do want to know what others think…
- What should one be eating before a race?
- What should one be eating before a regular workout?
- When and how much should be eaten?
The past two weeks I’ve eaten a little energy ‘cube’ with who knows what mixed with pistachios from a local store and a couple of pieces of dried fruit to give me a little boost before I start. It seems to be somewhat effective, despite the taste of the cube.
Bear in mind, I am a large man…I am almost 6′3″ and am pushing 365…maybe I’m nuts, but it just seems slightly asinine for someone of my stature to ever run on an empty stomach.
Can anyone give me their take on it?
Food is an interesting topic with me. I think a lot of people tend to generalize that all overweight and obese people are fat because they eat too much, when in fact, I might not completely fit into that category. I know, I know…it sounds like an excuse, but sometimes my wife has to prod me to eat! But those who know how the body works know that not eating isn’t exactly healthy either, especially for those of us who tend to be insulin resistant.
I am not, nor do I intend to start a diet anytime soon. I am done with dieting. I’ve tried and tried, and realize now that I’ve gained nothing (but my weight back) from dieting! So, I have a goal to make healthier choices with food, to use portion control, and to eat the right amount of calories my body needs per day.
When I was in my early 20’s I lived in Italy for a couple of years. One lady who found out I was going there was worried about me. “Oh my,” she said. “They have such a fattening diet.” Suggesting that she obviously though I could stand to lose a few…which I could have. I wasn’t too offended because she perpetually stuck her foot in her mouth, but she did make me think about it for a minute. I’ve never seen a fat Italian, I thought. Maybe I’d actually lose weight? And that’s exactly what happened. I ate a diet high in carbs nearly every day in a country where my main modes of transportation were bicycles and walking…after three months, 38 pounds melted away, and over the next five I lost 26 more and then plateaued after moving to a city where I traveled mostly by bus. In two years of not a lot of exercise, and a so-called “fattening diet,” I still managed to lose 64 pounds.
When I returned to the U.S., over the next three years I gained back 80.
Yikes.
One of the reasons I love Italy (and loved my experience there) is not only because it’s the land of my ancestors (alla parte della mia mamma), but also because I loved the food! I learned how to cook what the Italians cooked, but the food had a reverse effect on me when I came home. Why? Because I decided to lug my fat ass around in my truck instead of walking or biking more…that’s why.
And so goes my challenges and goals with eating healthy. I know it’s a perpetual process, and of course, I always welcome suggestions from others. Since discovering MizFit’s blog, I have really enjoyed the recipes she’s posted and will definitely have to try them out. But I know that in the long run, I need to exercise more to burn off more of that I eat. I need to avoid huge meals, and perhaps get better at ‘grazing’ or smaller, more frequent meals.
Any thoughts lingering out there?
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