Hiatus vs Cancellation

I'm back. For good? Who can say? There is a sudden burst of desire to blog lately. Maybe 'blog' isn't the right word. Online journal? Perhaps this is more in-line with what my expectations are currently. Stagnation has absorbed the majority of the past 2 years. Let me rephrase, weight stagnation. Plateau. Boredom. Whatever. Life certainly hasn't been stagnant. Graduation, moving, break-ups, new job, new family members, loss of family members, travel, new relationships. Hardly stagnant. But, in the midst of all the mountains and valleys, the weight has remained within about 20 lbs. That sounds outrageous to some and even writing it makes it seem like a huge number. However, it is the truth. And, it hasn't been pretty. I have been able to lose 10 here, gain 5, lose 15, gain 10, etc., etc. Seriously, I've lost over 100 lbs; it's just the same 5-10 over and over! I say that lightly, but there is nothing light about the reality. It's extremely disheartening. Being honest, there were periods of extreme determination (loss) and then periods of apathy (minimal loss to gains), times of semi-determination (slight loss). But, nothing lasting. Nothing to get past the hump. Past the set-point. Ah. The Set-Point. I first heard this term in a nutrition class in 2007 and it has stuck with me. At that time, I was having great success with WW and hadn't reached my lowest set-point. It wasn't until I gained quite a bit of weight back that I realized no matter what I did, what I ate, how much I worked out, how many carbs I did/n't eat, etc., the weight wouldn't push past a certain number. I couldn't break the ceiling. Floor? You know what I mean. How have things changed? Have they changed? Let's wait to find out!

The NP becomes the patient

After seeing hundreds of patients over the past few months, it was finally my turn to go to the doctor.

There have been three weeks of working out, eating right, and then gaining at the scale on Saturdays. I'm over it.

While I haven't given up, I'm discouraged.

At the doctors office, we did some blood work to rule out anything metabolic.

Now we wait. And continue to work out.

Fresh

Can you tell I've been on a food-movie kick lately? :) I'm watching this movie as I type and I had to pause it because this woman just said, "The raising of chickens now is totally different now than back when I was growing up". Ok, keep going. "The type of feed that was given to them, they didn't grow as fast". Ok, she's right. Keep going. Her husband pipes in with, "We're controlling the air temperature, the type of litter they're on", ok...and then she chimes back in with, "I don't believe there's anything unhealthy in these chickens just because they grow as fast as they do, I just think these chickens are genetically bred to do this. It's not steroids, they just eat. They're comfortable so they eat". Then her husband comes back with, "It's good, quality feed, but I don't know what's in it".

Alrighty then. I pray she's not as ignorant as she just came across.

For the past two weeks I have led a pretty vegetarian/vegan diet. Nuts, fruit, veggies, hummus, lentils, water, oatmeal. Very little to no animal product. I gave up beef for Lent, so yesterday was the day to break my fast. I hadn't intended to eat beef yesterday, however, instead of ham, my BF's mom had tri-tip. I love me some tri-tip but I was a bit hesitant. I had just succeeded in not consuming beef in 40+ days, did I need to eat it? Was it worth it? What was my real rationale for giving it up originally? Let me answer that last one. I gave it up to see if I could. Plain and simple. However, over the past 6 weeks or so, I began to realize how much beef I did eat and how it made me feel. Don't get me wrong, I love the taste and flavor, but it wasn't providing me with much beyond that. I was still alive after 40 days with no beef. I didn't need it to survive. So, I broke my fast. and I paid the price. I also was more relaxed on what I ate yesterday and I felt horrible last night. I woke up gagging after I almost aspirated on some acid reflux. This has not happened in months. And I attribute it to diet. So, today, I am back to low-to-no animal product.

I feel like I need to humble myself for some reason. I am not a PETA supporter, nor am I pro-slaughter. I believe God gave us dominion over animals, but the way we do this in America, is not conducive to what I believe God planned. Maybe going back to a biblical diet isn't such a bad idea, after all.

Biblical eating

What is that anyway?

I am by no means the first person to come up with such a concept. In fact, I googled it and found a lot of people have their own ideas, theories, diets, programs, etc., all claiming to be "the way Jesus ate".

So, what did he eat? Fruits, vegetables, nuts, herbs, meat, bread, milk (and honey!) were probably included in his diet and those of his contemporaries in the Bible. While some did keep kosher, the gentiles may have eaten meat that was considered unclean (crab, lobster, pork).

I didn't see anything that said Jesus (and by Jesus, I also mean people in the Bible times) ate Twinkies, donuts, chips, etc. These people were afflicted with cancer as early as 1500 B.C. as breast tumors were recorded on papyrus in Egypt (who knew you were getting a history lesson today?!) just as we are now. The prevalence may be increasing and what can we atribute that to? Diet. Exercise. Lifestyle.

We no longer walk to school, walk to the store; heck! We barely walk the dog! People didn't have to deliberately exercise as their lives were simply more physically active than ours. I remember playing outside at the park, in the back yard, with a friend, running, riding bikes, and swimming with my friends as a kid. Now kids watch TV and play video games at alarming rates and this cause contributed to the obesity epidemic facing the youth today. (Am I on a rant or what?!)

Basic nutrition states burn more calories than you consume and you will lose weight. Great. How is that possible when the food of today consists of burgers, pink slime, pizza, Ranch dressing, sugary coffee drinks, and hormone-antibiotic-dye laced meat products? It is near impossible to consume these foods and maintain a healthy waist. Therefore, we come back to Biblical eating.

More fruit. More vegetables. More whole grain. Less processed foods. More home cooked foods. Less meat. More legumes.

This is my goal. More to come.... :)

Whole food

No, this isn't a post about the grocery store; rather, what is a whole food? What is whole food eating?

These are questions I've been pondering for the past few weeks. If you're anything like me, you've considered many different 'diets' or eating plans, nutrition options, good food vs easy/convenient foods.

Over the last six months or so I have watched several movies about food, nutrition, and health. Forks Over Knives; Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead; and Food, Inc are all wonderful! They are available on Netflix, too! Each has a different agenda and point of view, but each spoke to me in it's own way.

As a result of watching Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead, I drank fruit and vegetable juice for four days. I noticed more stability over my mood, emotions, which lead me to conclude my blood sugar was more stable throughout the day as a result of not eating refined sugar and processed foods. Food, Inc challenged me to buy protein (beef, chicken, eggs, pork, etc.) that is hormone-free, free-range, grass fed, antibiotic free, etc. And to the best of my ability, I have done just that. Finally, Forks Over Knives challenged me to do something I don't want to do. FOK promotes a vegan lifestyle citing meat as a leading cause for cancer and many other health problems. As an RN, I know (and teach my patients) that fruits and veggies are best. Whole grains over white grains are a better choice. Soda is poison, and on and on. I like meat. I like Filet and chicken. I believe God gave us dominion over animals and provided them as food for us.

Let me clarify. I do NOT believe the animals in the Bible are the same as they are now. A cow is and was a cow, yes. But, the cow and sheep and chickens were part of the family. They lived with other animals, grazed all day, were treated well, slaughtered responsibly and used to their fullest potential. They were not crammed in a feed lot, standing in feces all day, pumped full of hormones to create breasts larger than any poor chicken should have on their body.

So, that leads to me to my next thought about Biblical eating. Which, I'll save for another day!

Reality Check

So last week I was spot-on with my tracking. I measured, portioned, counted and weighed almost every single thing I ate. Convinced I was going to lose weight last week, I entered the meeting confidently. Only to find I was up 2 pounds. Really? Are you kidding me? I was so disappointed. That's putting it mildly. I tuned the meeting out after that. I was discouraged and unmotivated.

I know the body will do what the body will do. I know that it's about the journey and not about the destination. I know that it's more than what the scale says. I know all these things. It doesn't make it easier.

How do you maintain motivation? How do you pick up and continue when you don't see results? I know the answers to these questions too, so I'm just throwing them out there. Seeing what you think. What works for you? What doesn't work?

Good luck. Keep going. It's a marathon, not a sprint.

"A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step" ~Lao-tzu

Portions

When you think of dieting, what is the one consistent theme? Regardless of the plan or program, research or science, portion control is always near the top of weight loss strategies. Plates have gotten larger over the past 50 years and so we've continued to fill our plate when eating dinner. This has only added to the excess calorie intake.

WW meetings are so helpful because you get to hear all the tricks and tips that other people have learned. Sometimes I use them, sometimes I don't. One of the best ones is around Thanksgiving, they hand everyone a paper plate and you get to draw on your plate the foods you anticipate eating. My plate is always filled with special Thanksgiving foods that I only get once or twice a year. Am I really going to waste space on carrots? I get carrots all the time. Grandmas rolls on the other hand....! I always save space for those!

It comes down to portions and choices. I'm choosing the roll over the carrots. Yes, carrots are the better option, right? But, I only get the rolls once or twice a year so they win!

In the past week I've been very conscious of my portions. Measuring, weighing, counting. I love food so much that I will eat 2 or 3 portions rather than one, so I have to portion it out correctly. My coffee in the morning gets FF creamer but the serving size is one tablespoon. Not 3. I keep the tablespoon and the 1/2 cup measuring cup handy each morning. Since I'm using them for the same things (creamer, oats and soy milk), I just rinse and let it air dry and they're ready for the next morning. It sounds so OCD and Type A, but really, I have to do this. If I don't, my 1 Tb, becomes 3 and my 1/2 cup becomes 1 1/4 cups. I also feel more empowered. I know exactly how many Points+ I'm consuming. For this OCD, Type A girl, the control over my food and me is what I need to stay on track.