Running on Ice
Today I am alert and feeling really good, which makes Day 1 look not so bad when I reflect on it. I do notice that being active puts me in a better mood typically, so I think moving more on my days off can make them more enjoyable. Otherwise, on the rare days where I just get to loaf around, my spirits sort of sag. It will be something I plan on working on along with my other mind,body and spirit type fixes.
I got up early to dance this morning and it was one of those rare times when I just wanted to keep going and going even after I knew I had to get ready to go about my day. Everything flowed so smoothly today and the kids and I got out the door and off to school and work as smoothly as if we didn't just have a week and a half break.
After a long stretch of warmer-than-normal days, all the snow melted and we were seeing green grass again (really unusual for Wisconsin) and then it got colder and snowed on Monday, leaving really icy surfaces all over. When I was out with my dog in the dark of Tuesday morning, it was so bitter cold that he wanted to hurry up and get inside and I found myself running over the icy areas. My first instinct was to stop him and walk more carefully so I don't hurt myself. Then I realized that I was expecting the worst possible situation to arise, planning for the worst when nothing bad was actually happening. so I continued running on the ice and guess what? I made it just fine. Now, I realize that it's a little like Russian Roulette and a fall at my age could really hurt me, but I put my anxiety aside for that brief moment and it felt pretty liberating. I want to do more of this, following the fear through to see if it's really not rational or pressing, and if not, be more open to letting things go. Mentally, it feels like a burden being lifted.
So yesterday ended up like this:
So by Fitbit standards, I was "in the zone" meaning I had enough calories to spare without being so low that it affects my metabolism. Interestingly enough, when I ate my last meal last night it was showing that I was "over budget" at the exact same calorie count, but after it updated my 'calories out' it said I was in the zone. I do have to remember to sync my watch so it has accurate information throughout the day.
I found it very interesting that my planned snack of 3 pieces of cheese (roughly 3 ounces) was more calories than the very satisfying bean burrito with cheese, sauce and generous portion of sour cream. The cheese would have been 319 calories, the burrito with all the goodies was 270 calories. Here is what the comparison looks like on a plate:
That is an eye opener. It feels a little foreign to me not worrying about macronutrients because I have been so conditioned to keep my carbs low. I don't think I went crazy on carbs yesterday and I don't intend to, but it's nice to know that I can eat a sweet treat here and there and still be "on track".
I did find the calorie budget calculating method that I was looking for last night. Here's how it works ( I will use my own numbers as an example).
Multiply your weight (mine is 195) times one of 3 multipliers:
10 if you are sedentary and exercise 2 times or less per week
15 if you exercise 3-4 times a week
20 if you exercies 5-7 times a week.
Since I plan to be more active but know I won't be perfect, I am using the 15 multiplier.
195 X 15= 2925. Now, that is a rough estimate of the amount of calories I would need to take in just to maintain my current weight. If I eat more than that I will gain, if I eat less than that I will lose. So I want to create a calorie deficit so I lose. The article I read recommended 20-30% calorie deficit so I calculated right in the middle at a 25% deficit. 2925x.75= 2193.75 calories should be my goal. That still seems pretty high to me so I calculated it for the 10 multiplier and that brought me down to 1465 calories (with a 25% deficit) and that feels really low to me so I opted to do an average of the two totals which puts my goal just over 1800 calories. I feel like as long as I am somewhere between 1400 and 1800 I should be good. I don't anticipate being below 1400 calories very often at all, if I am then something out of the ordinary is going on. I do think this is very doable. I am interested to see how many calories Fitbit allows me on days like today where I worked out and am getting a fair amount of steps in at work.
I feel really good about this on Day 2. Again, I am following the method of Sean Anderson and one of the questions he has answered is about how he was able to stay on track and keep his motivation, and he has said that he fought the urges by thinking about the future and all he would be gaining by losing the weight. I have been giving some thought to that in the past month or so and I have a pretty big list. Here is a small sampling:
I got up early to dance this morning and it was one of those rare times when I just wanted to keep going and going even after I knew I had to get ready to go about my day. Everything flowed so smoothly today and the kids and I got out the door and off to school and work as smoothly as if we didn't just have a week and a half break.
After a long stretch of warmer-than-normal days, all the snow melted and we were seeing green grass again (really unusual for Wisconsin) and then it got colder and snowed on Monday, leaving really icy surfaces all over. When I was out with my dog in the dark of Tuesday morning, it was so bitter cold that he wanted to hurry up and get inside and I found myself running over the icy areas. My first instinct was to stop him and walk more carefully so I don't hurt myself. Then I realized that I was expecting the worst possible situation to arise, planning for the worst when nothing bad was actually happening. so I continued running on the ice and guess what? I made it just fine. Now, I realize that it's a little like Russian Roulette and a fall at my age could really hurt me, but I put my anxiety aside for that brief moment and it felt pretty liberating. I want to do more of this, following the fear through to see if it's really not rational or pressing, and if not, be more open to letting things go. Mentally, it feels like a burden being lifted.
So yesterday ended up like this:
So by Fitbit standards, I was "in the zone" meaning I had enough calories to spare without being so low that it affects my metabolism. Interestingly enough, when I ate my last meal last night it was showing that I was "over budget" at the exact same calorie count, but after it updated my 'calories out' it said I was in the zone. I do have to remember to sync my watch so it has accurate information throughout the day.
I found it very interesting that my planned snack of 3 pieces of cheese (roughly 3 ounces) was more calories than the very satisfying bean burrito with cheese, sauce and generous portion of sour cream. The cheese would have been 319 calories, the burrito with all the goodies was 270 calories. Here is what the comparison looks like on a plate:
 |
| I did not eat the cheese last night, that will be saved for tonight. |
That is an eye opener. It feels a little foreign to me not worrying about macronutrients because I have been so conditioned to keep my carbs low. I don't think I went crazy on carbs yesterday and I don't intend to, but it's nice to know that I can eat a sweet treat here and there and still be "on track".
I did find the calorie budget calculating method that I was looking for last night. Here's how it works ( I will use my own numbers as an example).
Multiply your weight (mine is 195) times one of 3 multipliers:
10 if you are sedentary and exercise 2 times or less per week
15 if you exercise 3-4 times a week
20 if you exercies 5-7 times a week.
Since I plan to be more active but know I won't be perfect, I am using the 15 multiplier.
195 X 15= 2925. Now, that is a rough estimate of the amount of calories I would need to take in just to maintain my current weight. If I eat more than that I will gain, if I eat less than that I will lose. So I want to create a calorie deficit so I lose. The article I read recommended 20-30% calorie deficit so I calculated right in the middle at a 25% deficit. 2925x.75= 2193.75 calories should be my goal. That still seems pretty high to me so I calculated it for the 10 multiplier and that brought me down to 1465 calories (with a 25% deficit) and that feels really low to me so I opted to do an average of the two totals which puts my goal just over 1800 calories. I feel like as long as I am somewhere between 1400 and 1800 I should be good. I don't anticipate being below 1400 calories very often at all, if I am then something out of the ordinary is going on. I do think this is very doable. I am interested to see how many calories Fitbit allows me on days like today where I worked out and am getting a fair amount of steps in at work.
I feel really good about this on Day 2. Again, I am following the method of Sean Anderson and one of the questions he has answered is about how he was able to stay on track and keep his motivation, and he has said that he fought the urges by thinking about the future and all he would be gaining by losing the weight. I have been giving some thought to that in the past month or so and I have a pretty big list. Here is a small sampling:
- In my car: I am only 5 ft tall so reaching the gas, brake and clutch pedals means I have to be close to the steering wheel. I have a big belly and when I also have winter coat and gloves in my pockets, I feel like a big stuffed sausage trying to make it all work. Sometimes I have to work my way out from behind the steering wheel because I have to sit so close and have all those extra layers on. I won't have to worry as much about that feeling when I have less belly in the way.
- Worrying about sneaking through chairs/small spaces in public places will be a thing of the past
- I am hoping it will mean my joints hurt less
- Lower blood pressure/ getting off the medicine
- Feeling good about how I look puts me in a better mood. I can't deny it.
- Be a good role model for my sons
- I won't even have to think twice about wearing strappy sundresses on a hot day
- My own pride in a accomplishing my goal
- Self esteem
Yeah, I missed cheese so much that I ate a little.
ReplyDeleteI am finding room for cheese as well. It's hard to resist!
Delete