Monday, August 18, 2014

So, How's the Diet Going?

It's been about four weeks since I wrote my "Time to Diet" post, so I figured it was now time for an update.  Although, to be honest, I'd been dieting since we came home from North Carolina, so when I wrote that post I was already a couple of weeks into it; this is actually a six-week update.

Things are going well, thanks for asking!  My body is definitely looking better - partially due to the diet, partially due to working out at Planet Fitness five times a week for the past six weeks (plus what I did before our two-week vacation).  Running club also started up again, and I've added an extra day of running (I'm actually following the schedule this year, so I'm running four days a week now), and I'm sure that is making a difference as well.  As an aside, I have to say that the difference in simply doing the 30 minute circuit vs. when I was killing myself three days a week working out with my small group (back in 2009/2010) is amazing...amazing because I am not incredibly sore like I used to be and yet I'm seeing muscles develop, plus I'm feeling stronger.  Moderation - it works!

But, I've always said that you can outeat your exercise, so for me to try and lose weight, I was still going to have to make some significant changes to my diet.  I had a few blips, mostly in the area of under-fueling my body before stressing it out by running several miles in the heat and humidity, but I think I've got that figured out a little better.  Basically, I'm eating even more protein than I thought I needed; my carbs are mostly coming from fruit, some baked sweet potato fries, and a little granola with my Greek yogurt in the morning.  I'm not counting calories, but I am very aware of what I'm eating, if that makes sense.  I guess after so many years of dieting and then maintenance, I know what I need to do to stay status quo, and what I need to do to get to status slim (haha).

You might be wondering how, since I don't weigh myself, can I definitively tell that I'm losing weight?  It's the clothes, pure and simple.  Things are looser - my denim capris are not tight at all, fresh from the laundry.  A too-snug running shirt that my mom sent me in February is now loose enough to wear - I was thrilled enough to snap a very early-morning selfie in it last week:
 Ignore the squinty eyes and instead please note that this shirt is not stretched tight over my stomach rolls - hurray!

This whole "getting lighter/dieting" thing isn't going to result in drastic changes overnight, and I knew that going into it.  My goal is to make running easier by having less of a body to haul around, and my races aren't for quite a while, so I'm happy with the progress I've made thus far and don't feel stressed by any deadline to hit a certain point by a certain date.  I'm eating what I want on the weekends (Mexican food, chips and salsa, and frozen yogurt) but even then, I'm still aware of how hungry I am and have left food on my plate when I start feeling full.  The only time I feel a little deprived is when I watch my friends eat the delicious treats (cinnamon twists, chocolate croissants, cookies) at Blue Baker, but you know what?  The day I really, really want something like that?  I'm going to have it.  And then I'll get back to doing what I've been doing.

20 comments:

  1. <3
    no drastic changes---but VISIBLE CHANGES ALREADY.

    xo

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  2. Sounds like you've got a great handle on this. As we know, deprivation is NOT GOOD and just leads to silly eating that we wouldn't even want if we hadn't deprived ourselves. Because of my workshop which has definitely changed the way I think, "giving up" things like bakery items isn't even hard for me now. I simply think of it was advancing me towards my vision.

    Status Slim. I'm stealing that!!

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  3. I think you are doing great and doing it like everyone that wants to lose weight should do it. Losing weight is all about being patient and accept that it will take time to lose it. After all we didn't eat the extra weight on our body in one night either.

    Keep doing what you are doing because you're doing great.

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  4. Sounds like you've found the "secret" of how to maintain without drastically losing, gaining, losing and gaining. I love the moderation you express without using that term. It's what I've always longed for but haven't quite been able to grasp. T

    Thank you for sharing your journey because it helps me!

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  5. Sounds like you are doing everything the right way and things will be happening in due time! Great job on sticking with it!

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  6. Very inspiring post. Feeling a difference in how your clothes fit seems to work for me better than a number on a scale. I quit weighing myself and added a couple extra days to my weekly workouts. Slow and steady "finishes" the race and sometimes that is what we are shooting for. You are looking great! :)

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    Replies
    1. Slow and steady may not get you on the cover of a magazine for weight loss, but it's what will help you develop better eating and exercise habits, which in turn will help keep the weight off.

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  7. Wow! I can definitely see the difference! And your exercise routine is really admirable. Love it--moderation in both diet and exercise!

    P.S. Love the color of the shirt--it really looks good on you!

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    1. Thanks! Now to continue to do this next month in Cali, right? ;)

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  8. Slow & steady is my new mantra ....rather than deprivation followed by feelings of shame & guilt after a binge. You look terrific Shelley.

    Have a great week!!

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  9. Oooh, looser clothes is such a reward and achievement, congrats! I so appreciate your common sense approach too.

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  10. You look great Shelley! I like your attitude about the treats.

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  11. Such a sensible way to approach things and so cool you are getting great results!

    "Moderation - it works!" Great slogan, I should try that some time!

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  12. Good job! Definitely can see a difference!

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  13. Glad to hear you're having so much success!!!! You know, when you talk about the changes you've made, they don't even sound that drastic. Just common sense stuff that people like us already know (but tend to forget sometimes - totally guilty of that). I think we have the same kind of realistic attitude, that things like this just take time to really start seeing any results, but everything you're doing is definitely working.

    I've actually been doing something similar - upped my running to 4 times a week a couple months ago and started paying more attention to what I eat again. I haven't weighed myself regularly in a while, but people keep telling me I look like I've lost a bunch of weight (my face had gotten chubby around the holidays, it's not anymore) so something must be working.

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