Day 4 of Recovery:  Changes in the wind!

This morning I was down to 159.8.  How I long for the scale to say 145 again!  At least I know for sure it can happen...and will again.  In the meantime, I already feel more energy and even got by on two less hours of sleep last night.

In fact, I started a new (or re-started an old) morning routine today: getting up at 6am to work out in the basement after feeding the dogs. Usually my hubby takes care of this task and lets me slumber for another two hours.  But this week I've been getting up to help with the new dog, and this morning I decided to just STAY UP and go to the basement to work out.
I cherish that quiet time down there, which I share only with Don Draper and the rest of the "Mad Men" staff via Netflix on my iPad.  Each episode is 43 minutes--a perfect workout on the elliptical or exercise bike.  This morning I threw in some abdominal work on the exercise ball to start regaining some core strength.

Two hours later I was at the massage therapist's, indulging in my twice-monthly regimen.  I used to consider massage an extravagance, but have talked myself into considering it a necessary part of my health maintenance budget.  Age is definitely catching up with me, and muscles get out of whack with much less effort.  A combination of yoga (strengthening, stretching, and balance) and massage makes it possible for me to keep moving (Bucket List Weight Loss Concept #7).  Believe me, without them I'd be more crippled than most of you who are older than I am.

In fact--you're sitting down, right?  Wiggle your toes.  Just stretch them up and down.  Feels good, doesn't it?  If you don't have toes (and even if you do), rotate your ankles.  Now do some sitting leg raises.  Tighten your quads.  Now tighten your butt.  Now roll your pelvis under and out, under and out.  Feels really good, yes?  Careful movement--even a little--can feel wonderful. 

More movement feels even better.  Flex and enjoy whatever muscles you have, and feel your body at work.  THIS IS EXERCISE!!  It warms your body, gets the blood circulating, and revives you from the inside out.  And you don't even need to work up a sweat to achieve some of the benefits.  Remember, your body was designed for MOVEMENT, not for sitting still.  So move whatever you can, and keep it in motion.

More changes: tomorrow I'm getting a haircut.  Last summer I had it radically layered, and recently I've been looking like an unkempt cocker spaniel as the layers grow out oh-so-slowly.  Enough is enough.

So what changes have you made today?  Empower yourself to have a better tomorrow.

Day 3:  How are we doing?

How I see myself in yoga

Closer to how I probably look in class

It's Dec. 3...the third day of our start toward gaining control of our eating, our health, and our lives.

I weighed in today at 160.1.  Not much of a drop since Monday, but I swear I could see it in my face as soon as I got up this morning.  I'll take it.

To what do I attribute my rapid weight loss of .9 pound since Monday?  (I'm being facetious; I would have hoped for more, but obviously I didn't deserve any more than that.)  Well, I gotta say it's probably a reduction in alcohol intake.  On Monday I had none.  On Tuesday I had 2 glasses of chardonnay after yoga class.  I've been drinking a lot more water too. 

The most remarkable thing I've done thus far, however, was to put back a bag of leftover turkey casserole that I'd just taken out of the fridge.  This was my personal bag of emergency nutrition:  a strange mix of leftover kale salad, Waldorf salad, brown rice and turkey.  My husband would never eat that many weird things mixed together, so the bag is all mine.  I dip into it when I get truly hungry.  But yesterday when  pulled it out of the fridge, I held it in my hand for just a moment and then realized, "Hey, my stomach really doesn't want this right now."  And, just like that, I put it back in the fridge.  That split second of communication between my mind and my stomach saved me from overindulging at that moment.  I had a drink of water instead, and then--fairly impressed with myself--I sauntered out of the kitchen.

Oh, wait, I just remembered another positive event: I chose to not lick the spoon I'd used dish out my husband's salad dressing.  It wasn't because I didn't want the calories.  It was because I'd just brushed my teeth and I knew the garlic and cheese would leave a bad taste in my mouth--a taste I might be tempted to cover up by eating something else.  Lesson learned: if you're tempted to eat something you shouldn't, go brush your teeth instead!

It's those little moments that add up to Bucket List Weight Loss.  Communication with your gut is something I mention in BLWL Concept #2.  That one's not about losing weight, but rather asking your stomach what it wants and listening for the answer.  You have a miraculous machine down there which somehow manages to keep working regardless of the crap that our minds tell us to send down there.  Have respect for it.  Don't make it work so hard processing all that inferior fuel.  Give it a rest.

That reminds me, I'm going to bed hungry tonight!  Bring on that growly feeling!! I know tomorrow will be even better because of it!

Share your comments below!

Do you really need to journal?

Someone asked me if I "journal."  This always makes me think of Weight Watchers, which teaches its devotees to write down everything they eat, every glass of water they drink, and every exercise they do throughout the day.  It's a system that works wonders for lots of people, as it heightens our awareness of where those "hidden calories" (from licking the spoons and spatulas, for instance) come from.

I don't "food journal" anymore.  I learned a great deal from the Weight Watchers experience, and had success with it...until I realized my somewhat OCD personality was kicking into high gear over the journaling thing.  I became a slave to my journal and spent so much time counting "points" on the computer screen (I subscribed to the internet version) that it consumed my thoughts. With food journaling, focusing on food became the most important activity of the day.  The whole point of my Bucket List Weight Loss system is to forgo the "diet mentality" and simply eat what your body says it needs.  With BLWL, we literally put food on the back burner of our minds.

That said, journaling your thoughts is another issue.  I guess that's basically how I got Bucket List Weight Loss written.  That's also why I continue this blog.  We all do a lot of "self talk," and sometimes we actually tell ourselves something so brilliant that it should be remembered.
Examples:

• "I don't really want to lick that spoon because it will leave a bad taste in my mouth."
• "I'm waiting for the toast to pop up.  This is the perfect time to do some side stretches."
• "Kitchen faucet dead ahead.  Grab a sip of water."
• "I feel hunger pangs!  Hallelujah, that means I'm losing weight!"

Even if you never read your journal notes, the act of writing them down will help etch them in your mind so you can pull them up on your brainscreen at a later time and read them.

Oh...one more thought on the subject of food journaling.  I do it in my head.  You and I already know how many calories are in an egg, or an ounce of booze, or in a bottle of our favorite beer, or half a carton  of Greek yogurt.  It's easy to mentally keep track during the day without driving yourself crazy.  Remember you're shooting for somewhere between 900 and 1300 calories a day if you want to lose weight.

 Excusing vs. Understanding
So we've gained back some weight.  We have, after all, been yo-yoing all our lives, so the cycle is more natural than not. We all have our reasons, most of which we cannot excuse.  Therefore, making excuses for our weight gains does us no good whatsoever,  In fact, having "excuses" for something is a way of justifying--or making right--our behaviors.

Understanding our behaviors, however, is another matter.  If we understand why an automobile quits functioning correctly, we'll know how to get it fixed. That makes a lot more sense than excusing the issue and buying a brand new car.  It's the same with our weight control issues.  If we understand why we regained the weight, we already have the tools and knowledge to fix the problem, especially if you've already read my book, Bucket List Weight Loss.

I totally understand why I've gained back 14 pounds over the past four years:  I ate more calories than I was burning!  More precisely,  I exercised less because I was recovering from injuries.  I "tasted" too much of the food I prepared for guests and parties.  I drank more alcohol.  I took a hiatus from yoga.  I used food to keep awake while driving long distances to dog agility trials.  I wrote a lot more magazine articles this year and had the Peanut M&Ms next to my computer to keep me there working to meet deadlines.

None of these, however, is an excuse.  I should have found non-eating ways to deal with those situations, but I just got lazy.  Now I have to become UN-lazy once again.


Understanding = Acceptance
How many times have you loathed yourself for gaining back a few pounds?  The negative self talk is enough to send you spiraling deeper into a pit of depression that can once again trigger binge eating or even drinking. But if you understand the actual reasons for your weight rebound, then you automatically have the tools necessary to repair the problem.  Just think of it as a malfunction rather than a personal defeat.  Address each reason  intellectually, rather than emotionally.  Take measures to fix each reason.  And use the Bucket List Weight Loss concepts to get the job done.


Your lesson for today:  
List the reasons why you've regained weight in the past year.  Remember, they're not excuses!  They are reasons!  Come to understand the reasons, and then find the tools in Bucket List Weight Loss to fix the problem.  Key words:  water, movement, gut talk, hunger, whole foods, calorie-counting, daily weighing, no bandage eating (?!)

My numbers for Dec. 1:

• Weight:  161 pounds
• Ideal weight:  147.5
• Lowest weight in the past 4 years:  141.5
• Age:  62
• Height:  5'10"
• Size: 8 (barely)
  
  

It's over, so clean out the reefer!

You're drowning in a refrigerator packed with a half-empty carton of whipping cream, a ziplock bag of stuffing, a Tupperware dish of cranberry sauce, a container of leftover sweet potatoes, one unopened package of dinner rolls,cheese,  a big bag of turkey, three half-eaten pies, a dish of leftover mashed potatoes, a bowl of gravy, an extra two pounds of bacon (you bought too much), a dozen bagels, half a dozen English muffins, a loaf of pumpkin spice bread, cheese,  two opened bags of salad mixes from Costco, jams and preserves that relatives brought as hostess gifts, six Costco muffins, cheese, and two and a half cans of Redi-Whip (they came in a 3-pack).

It's a friggin' nightmare.  They haunt you.  They call your name.  "Hey, we're in here.  Hey, don't waste us because there are starving people all over the country.  Hey, we're special and Thanksgiving is special so you can't throw us away.  Hey, you only do it once a year.  Hey, you paid for us so you should eat us.  Hey, you worked so hard to prepare us that now you should enjoy us!"
Meanwhile, you're looking in the mirror and facing the truth.  You feel like a blimpo, under the direct control of those damn leftovers.  And they're all SO GOOD/.

No, they're not.  Chew on this:

"Nothing TASTES as good as being thin FEELS." 

 It's absolutely true.  I've been there.  So have you.  In fact, you said this to yourself WHEN YOU WERE THIN, but then you forgot its potency.  So now's the time to look those leftovers in the face and tell them you know the truth.  THANKSGIVING IS OVER.  The celebratory eating is OVER.  You're not allowed to have turkey, sweet potatoes and stuffing on any day except Thanksgiving.  It never tastes as good when it's heated up anyway.  What you didn't eat on Thanksgiving is now garbage.  If you can't give it to your neighbors or to your spouse for dinner tonight, GET RID OF IT.  As soon as it's gone, your mind will be quieted and you can once again start feeling like a thin person in control of her own weight and body.

Sometimes having a full pantry and a full refrigerator can put you at ease.  Other times it's like having a thousand demons lurking behind those doors. screaming at you to open them and step inside their world of high-calorie binge eating. If the food in your home is haunting you, "exorcise" it NOW.  Throw it out.  Clear your mind and cleanse your palette. 

Thin people have bare refrigerators and sparse pantry shelves. 

Toss your leftover leftovers into the trash can, and then bring the garbage outside.

You've just started acting like--and becoming--a thinner person.  Don't you feel better already? 

Enjoy the journey.

Mental rehearsal will get you through tomorrow!

The first three days of a new eating or exercise regimen are always the roughest.  Here's a sure-fire tip borrowed from Olympic athletes that will help you make it through those first 72 hours and on to a permanent lifestyle change.

It's called "mental rehearsal."  It's a proven fact that your body can achieve whatever the mind can perceive.  Elite athletes don't just spend time training their bodies.  They also spend time training their minds.  They visualize the upcoming event for which they're preparing.  They imagine themselves there, at the venue.  In their minds, they hear the sounds, smell the smells, and see the activity.  They imagine themselves at the start line of a race, and then they see themselves actually in the race itself.  They feel the blood pumping, the surges of adrenaline.  In their minds, they rehearse the same physical actions they've already rehearsed with their bodies.   They see themselves forging ahead of their competition.  They even see themselves crossing the finish line and hearing the crowd cheering.

Athletes will mentally rehearse the scenario over and over.  They're not engaging in "wishful thinking" or daydreaming.  They are actually preparing their bodies to go through the desired motions on the big day of competition.  They're programming themselves.  On Race Day, they're calm and confident because they've practiced, and they know how to successfully get through the event.

You can mentally rehearse the new eating routine you're about to start tomorrow.  Do you expect to be hungry?  Then rehearse it...and rehearse getting through it without overeating.  Visualize yourself hungry, or even fatigued or depressed, and visualize yourself working through those moments of temptation and moving on.  See yourself drinking water when you want something in your mouth.  Visualize yourself going to bed hungry but satisfied because you made it through the day without caving in to your cravings.

Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse.  When tomorrow comes, you won't have to worry about "What if someone brings cookies to work?" or "What if I want two glasses of wine instead of one?"  You will have already run through those scenarios in your head, and you'll be ready to sail past them, just as you mentally practiced.

Need more tips?  Order my book, Bucket List Weight Loss, at Amazon.  It's my personal success story of major and permanent weight loss after age 50!

Find your own peace first

No, losing weight is perhaps not as significant as establishing world peace.  But be honest: if it weren't important to you, you wouldn't be reading this right now.  So....just between you and me....let's talk about what you really want.  If you get it, after all, you'll be much more likely to establish world peace because you will finally be AT PEACE WITH YOURSELF.

You can do this thing.  In fact, once you do, you'll look back and laugh at how easy it was.  You'll wonder why everyone doesn't just do it.  You'll probably even want to write a book to share your experience with countless others in your same situation.

If you're overweight, lost, and miserable, get my book.  I wrote it for you.  I discovered what worked--permanently and healthfully--to help me lose weight and get thinner than I dreamed possible.  I didn't have to buy anything--no supplements, pre-packaged foods, or club memberships.  You won't have to buy anything either, except my book.

Don't die fatter than you want to be.  Get started today and enjoy the remainder of your years as a thin, healthy, vibrant person.  What are you waiting for?

Order it here:  Bucket List Weight Loss