Whoosh!

I am starting to see a pattern with the Thanksgiving holiday. I have had issues with it in the past when I was doing great and on track and then I let my guard down at Thanksgiving and everything fell apart. I am sure I have documented similar situations more than once on this blog. While this year wasn't a catastrophe, i did notice a shift. when we were first planning it we were going to do a brisket with simple sides. My goal was to either make keto sides or eat very little of the non-keto sides. Then the plan changed and I made turkey and potatoes and stuffing and desserts. Potatoes are a thing I miss from time to time so I knew I was going to have some and my resolve just sort of melted and I ended up eating a little of everything including non-keto cheesecake. One meal is no big deal. I had some turkey and keto brownies leftovers before they were gone, but left the carb-laden sides alone. I had a clean restaurant meal on Friday (steak and salad) then fasted 22 hours and had a smoked salmon salad to break my fast. While I was fasting Saturday morning, we went grocery shopping and decided on spinach ravioli for dinner. So Saturday night was another off-plan meal. I had a smaller serving than I normally would have but also had two glasses of a local wine. I enjoyed it so I don't feel bad about it. To my surprise,there was cheesecake leftover for way longer than I expected and even though it's not my favorite thing, it taunted me for a couple days but I didn't cave. I really haven't had cravings or feelings of deprivation since starting intermittent fasting (I know that sounds contrary to logic but it's true) so it gave me pause and reminded me of the power of sugar and how badly it has damaged my health. Making the right choice was easier this time around, I have learned from past experiences; and indulgence is fine once in a while but when you have too many tools close together the biochemical events suck you in and it's a really tough loop to get out of. Being sober from sugar is totally worth any sacrifice. I felt less inspired by the whole keto and fasting lifestyle this week. That could be just from getting back to my schedule after a holiday, but I know part of it was that Thanksgiving dinner made me gain 2 pounds and after weighing nearly every day this week, I have only lost 1 of those two pounds. I have consistently been losing for the past couple months so it's a little frustrating that this week I haven't. I also watched one of my favorite YouTubers yesterday (Thomas Delauer) and he was presenting some studies about how sitting more than 4 hours a day completely erases any intentional workout you do. So if you do a hard-core workout in the morning then work a desk job for 8 hours (and sit the whole time) it basically erases the benefit of the working, at least as a way to reduce mortality. I sit most of the day at work then typically sit more after that. He did say that if you get 8,500 steps in each day that it negates all the sitting. Ugh. I am lucky if I get 3,000 steps in most days now that I have a desk job. I do have a standing desk and actually reminded myself to stand more today and I will keep working on it. I have also been watching a lot of videos on cholesterol and exercise and how crucial exercise is to bring cholesterol and glucose down. I decided to work out tonight. I did an intermediate level bodyweight strength session on the Peleton app. It was only 20 minutes but it was designed as a HIIT style so tiny rests and lots of heavy breathing. There were squats and static squats and lateral squats and push ups and planks and burpees and side planks and plank with rows... OMGeeee. I needed to go on my knees early into the push ups and struggled to get my arms to support me through the rest of the workout. I watched some Extreme Makeover Weightloss Edition episodes today and that re-inpired me to push more. I am going to be pretty sore the next few days! The other thing I did for myself today was take measurements. As tedious as it is, I was happy that even though my weight hasn't changed much this week, I am shrinking, even from where I was October 27. That's a fantastic non-scale victory. The scale may show me in my first plateau but according to the seasoned ladies in the keto Facebook groups I'm in, this is perfectly normal foe the body to hold onto a few pounds but if you keep keeping on, it releases those pounds in one big SWOOSH! Some of these ladies have been living the keto lifestyle for more than a decade so I'm going to trust them. The measuring tape has proved time and again that there's more than one measure of success in this journey. Beyond the weight or looser clothes, I am finally in a place where I feel like anything is possible if I don't get in my own way.