Cut the Fat

In my effort to get motivated back into the gym, I've been listening to my health and fitness podcasts again. Today I was listening to my most recent discovery, Cut the Fat, and they were discussing set point.

Set point is that weight that our bodies are most comfortable at. A lot of times you can lose weight, but then it's very easy to gain it back so that you're at your set point again. I honestly think that my set point has become 190 pounds. Except for when I shot up to 235, 190 is where my body settles when I'm not eating horribly, but not really watching what I eat either, and when I'm not really getting to the gym regularly. I was 190 when I graduated from college. For 3 years I lost weight down to around 180 and then I would always gain back to 190 when I stopped working out. This year, when I haven't been able to lose any weight, I've been bouncing around 188-192.

I've always heard about resetting your set point, but for some reason that concept really clicked for me today when listening to the podcast. Basically, they advise losing 10% of your weight, then doing all you can to stay there for 3-6 months. This is supposed to reset your set point. Then, if you still have more weight to lose, lose 10% of your new weight. It's an arduous process, but is supposed to be more of a permanent solution than the usual diet up and down.

I think part of my problem has been I'll lose, and then I get lazy and just gain back up to my original set point. But losing 10% of my weight and then holding for 3-6 months doesn't sound unreasonable. That would take me to 171, which I would be absolutely thrilled with.

But how do I lose weight? Anyone who has been reading this blog this year knows about my frustrations with not being able to lose at all. So here is my plan, and we'll see how it goes.

1) Cardio AND strength training. Earier this year, I focused on cardio pretty exclusively, and even though my resting heart rate got insanely low, I didn't really see much improvement in my body. Today I did 30 minutes on the elliptical, then 20 minutes of strength training (crunches, squats, push ups, etc.) Also, once I feel more fit, I'll add in some HIIT. Right now, 30 minutes on the elliptical is wearing me out. I get weak so quickly!
2) High protein diet. It's a fact for me that carbs don't keep me full. I get hungrier more quickly, even when I eat complex carbs, which are supposed to digest slower. Most of my diet will be protein, veggies, and fruit, with some carbs here and there. I'll try to stay below 100 net carbs per day.
3) Not get too crazy about it. My goal is to not eat sugar most days, but, for instance, on Thanksgiving I'm making a pecan tart, which I will be eating.

Gym

Just thought you would like to know that I went to the gym this morning.

And I'm going tomorrow too. I'm tired of making excuses.

On another note, has anyone read The Metabolism Miracle? I heard an interview with the author and it sounds very interesting.

Salmon & Broccoli

Last night I had salmon and broccoli for dinner and remembered how much I enjoy eating clean and healthy. It's so very easy to forget.

Apparently Jason had a discussion with his co-workers yesterday in which they asked what I generally cook and he said "Salmon and broccoli." Then he came home and asked me what was for dinner. Why, salmon and broccoli of course. Which is funny since we haven't had salmon for a couple of weeks and in between I've made chicken and turkey and such. I do like me some salmon and broccoli, though. And I've convinced Jason with the magic roasting of the broccoli and then sprinkling it with parmesan and lemon juice that broccoli is awesome, despite his claims that he did not like broccoli one bit. I'm sorry, but if you're married to me and I'm doing the cooking, you have to eat broccoli. I like it too much to only cook occasionally.

While we're on the subject, I think I'm pretty lucky that I actually LIKE healthy foods. Broccoli has always been one of my favorite foods, as have sweet potatoes with just a bit of cinnamon) and cauliflower. And in my mind there's nothing like a nice big salad. I like the way they taste, and I feel good after eating them.

I wish there was some way that I could remember these things when diving headfirst into a sugar binge.

Sugar Detox Number Four Hundred Seventy-Seven

Once again, I am off the sugar. This weekend we went to Cheesecake Factory with a gift card and split a piece of pumpkin cheesecake and it was divine, but now I'm done (until Thanksgiving).

Last week I bought some Halloween candy on sale and proceeded to have a few pieces every day. And Jason made an apple pie last Sunday so we had some of that with ice cream for dessert for a few nights. I walked to work a few days, but haven't been to the gym in too long, especially considering the $46 a month it costs.

Last week I noticed that I felt kind of yucky a lot of the time, in direct proportion to the amount of sugar I had eaten that day. It's time to get this monkey off my back (Yes, it is very similar to heroin in my life).

No sugar today so far, and my head is achey. At least I'm familiar with this process and know that by Wednesday I will feel FANTASTIC. But not today.

I need some motivation. A friend emailed me and asked for this blog address again because she needed some inspiration (Hi, Donna!) and I thought to myself, bwahahahahaha! I mean, when she knew me in Chicago, I weighed about 40 pounds more than I do now, so I suppose that whole aspect might be a little inspiring. But I feel like a giant lazy bones lately, with no desire to go to the gym. Maybe feeling fantastic with no sugar in my system will help with the motivation.

Also, reading articles like this one don't help with the whole desire to go to the gym. More reason to get off the sugar, I suppose.