So, it's been hard for me to eat healthy when I have to eat in a dining hall full of white flour, grease, and sugar. I mean, I almost always eat salads but there is no protein availbale to add to it (no eggs, bacon, ham, or chicken - or even lentils) so I'm not getting enough protein. Not that they don't serve any, it's just that it's all fried, undercooked, or processed. In other words, disgusting and unhealthy.
So, at my mother's recommendation, I decided to read one of Suzanne Somer's books. I got Fast and Easy and read enough to understand what I needed to do.
Essentially, when we eat sugar or foods that turn into sugar, our pancreas secreates insulin (a chemical that has to be present to store fat). So, when we eat foods in specific combinations and eliminate sugar, no insulin is released and therefore no fat is stored.
These are the basic guidelines:
1. Eliminate all funky foods (things like bananas and carrots that are high in sugar and olives and avocados that have some carbohydrates and fats)
2. Eat fruit alone and on an empty stomach.
3. Eat Proteins/Fats with Veggies
4. Eat Carbos with Veggies and no fats.
5. Keep Proteins/Fats separate from Carbos.
6. Wait three hours between meals if switching from Proteins/Fats meal
to a Carbos meal, or vice versa.
7. Do NOT skip meals. Eat three meals a day and eat until you are
satisfied and comfortably full.
So, I've been following this plan for a week now and I like it. It's still hard because I still don't have access to good kinds or carbos or proteins but I'm trying. Plus, the temptation to gorge myself on pizza or unhealthy carbs is still there. I'm still having a hard time fitting in exercise but that will change once my midterms are over. Before today, I had not weighed myself since the end of January...so almost a month. I have lost 5 pounds. I do not know if it's because of the Somersizing or something else but I am determined to stick with this plan as best as I can. I can't wait until this semester is over and I can just cook my own food.
Okay, so I was visiting my parents and I was able to try some of the recipes out. I'm really excited. So, I made Eggs Florentine - eggs baked in ham - and breakfast burritos - basically egg crepes with bacon, scallions, and sharp cheddar cheese. Delicious! YES, you can eat this kind of food on this eating lifestyle (in the book, she said to eliminate the word d-i-e-t from our vocabulary).
I would appreciate it if you all could pray that God will give me diligence and discipline to stick with this plan and become a healthier, happier person.
I feel good about what I ate today and I feel like I've been doing well lately but I still have the most terrible self-confidence. I know I'm made in the image of God, meaning that he values and loves me for who I am right now but I can't understand that. How can he do something so marvelous like that? It's just crazy. My friends say I'm beautiful but every time I see my reflection, I see otherwise. What do they see that I don't?
I need to exercise more.
Here's what I ate for today:
PB&J
Wrap (with turkey, cheese, etc.)
Banana
Some chips and salsa
Wrap (again for dinner)
Applesauce
Banana
2 Pop Tarts
"So, how far along are you?"
"What do you mean? How far along am I in my work day or what?"
"No, I mean, how far along are you in your pregnancy?"
"I'm not pregnant. Register 7 is available to help you."
"Oh! Well, it must have been your shirt or something." Holy cow. Someone just thought I was pregnant. I felt like I was going to throw up. I wanted and needed to puke. I felt my upper body burn as my blood rushed to my face. I tried to keep my plastic smile on my face as I continued to direct people to registers. I needed to dissapear. I needed to melt into the floorboards. I needed to go home and cry but I still had 8 hours left to work.
That was one of the worst days ever. I thought that if someone ever said anything like that to me, I'd be continually and instantly motivated and committed to lose weight. Yeah, right.
I'm really tired of noticing my face become fuller and rounder; and my fat jeans become tighter; and my large t-shirts feel smaller. I'm so tired. You would think that I would be motivated but that's easier said than done. I'm tired of being myself and then seeing my reflection in a mirror or window and cringing at myself. Isn't half of America tired of being overweight? You think we would have figured out what to do by now.
I would appreciate your prayers as I'm struggling with staying motivated to exercise every day and eat healthy.
I'm hoping to walk for 60 minutes a day and limit what I eat to healthier foods such as salad and soup. We'll see. Again, I'd appreciate your prayers.
So this weekend has been a major dissapoinment. I am too ashamed to say all that I ate but I did eat a magnaminous amount of junk. I think I ate a few carrots this weekend but not even close to enough vegetables I need for each day...let's just say I say myself like I was a week ago and I am not happy. Last week when I was blogging and watching what I ate but not obsessing...I was happy. I wasn't worried. I still ate what I wanted but I only ate when I was hungry and stopped when I wasn't hungry anymore. I felt liberated....I remember eating a cinnamin bun but I wasn't regretful...This weekend I ate everything from crackers and cheese to those miny wieners and M&Ms and cereal and chips and biscuits and gravy and the list goes on and on forever....I mean, I don't think I've eaten one single Christmas cookie and it's not what I ate but how much of it I ate and how I felt afterwards and how annoying it is that I had stepped on the scale Friday night and saw that it said 175 and I still ate like a pig the whole weekend.....I don't even understand. Well, after overeating to the extreme....I felt constipated and I had a stomache ache....I felt lazy and fat and overemotional....let's not do that again. Tomorrow...or should I say, today....is not only another day, it is going to be a better day. Talk to you later.
So although I didn't get much sleep last night I did well today...I had a bowl of cereal and a cinnamin bun for brunch and then I had two slices of pizza for dinner. I had a banana for desert and everyone around me has been snacking on M&Ms and cookies and all I had was 2 crackers and 2 pieces of cheese. Plus both my sisters, one of their boyfriends, and even my dad had ice cream and I didn't even want any....
Plus, I got to go to work earlier and get off earlier so I was able to go home sooner than expected. Which was nice because I was really tired. Mentally and physically. I finished my papers last night about 3AM and I had to wake up around 9AM for my last exam. I'm just tired....and hungry.
I kinda want to weigh myself to see if I made any progress this week...but then I don't want to at the same time....Oh, well. We'll just wait and see.
Today I had a salad, grilled cheese, and brownie for lunch and some cheese ahc cracker for dinner...I had a lot of juice today also.
So, yesterday I had a bowl of cereal after I had that pizza and salad when I knew I was full. I need to make sure I don't eat so much. I hate that feeling in the pit of my stomach and the back of my throat that tells me that I ate too much....and then the remorse starts to push it's way up my throat under the lump.......and sometimes I get so lonely I can't breath and this emptiness rises from the pit of my stomach and pushes the sobs into my throat and I just cry. And I can't stop. Sometimes I look in the mirror and I think there might be someone there who is beautiful but then I grimace at myself....you know when you are with friends that make you smile and laugh and be yourself...and then for a moment I think to myself that if I looked in the mirror at that moment, I would be attractive but then all I see if the fat around my middle and I'm sad.
I haven't seen my best friends in a long time and my good friend just moved out of the dorms to move closer to the FAB and now I have no one to talk with or to laugh with....*sigh*
I bet all women feel or have felt the same lonliness that I do now....but...I don't know....the idea that I've never been kissed, asked out, or anything makes me think...am I even lovable?
I just want to go home but I have another exam tomorrow and my final paper to write and turn in and I have to work...I'm so tired.
Holy cow...this is depressing.
Goodnight.
Hello...
Well, last night (meaning Tuesday night) I stayed out until 2AM in my school's library studying for exams...and that day I think I ate an omlette mid-afternoon with a bagel and then I worked from 2-7PM again....I was tired. But I bought three pillows that were 75% off for my sister's graduation present plus I got another 10% discount because I work there! Yeah! The next time I ate was around 7:30 when my friend and I went to the dining hall...I got a salad and then ate a bowl of cereal....and then I ate a pb sandwich on pumpernickel bread (that was good) around 2AM....before I went to sleep around 3AM...no worries though, I woke up around 11 so I got 8 hours of sleep...and I think I did well on my exam.
Then today (or yesterday....which would be Wednesday), I had a salad for lunch around 1PM and then I went home and did some laundry and studied...my parents had a work party in our house a few weekends ago, so we have an excess of chips, dip, cheese, crackers, cookies, and more! Well, I wasn't tempted by anything!! I was so proud of myself! I ate a chocolate-chip sliver of cake that my mom made and that was amazing!! and then I had some crakers and cheese and didn't eat dinner until 9PM when I went to my school's dining hall and ate a salad and a slice of pizza and a taste of cereal....now I want a peanut butter sandwich and some juice.....
So, for today, I'm proud of myself for the fact that I didn't fall into temptation for the chips or cookies or m&ms or the mountain of other things!! Plus, I only had a very small piece of that chocolate chip cake and I wasn't tempted for anything else. That makes me happy. And I decided that I'll hold off on exercise until next week when I'll start my running/walking idea...I will run for two minutes and then walk for two minutes and then begin again....for about an hour.
Well, here's Rachel signing off for now....I have to work on my paper and study for my next exam! Thanks for the support so far, it is much appreciated and it makes me even more motivated!!!
So, thankfully I didn't have any exams today but I've only eaten twice today...The first time was around 11:30 when I had an omelet and a bagel and then around 8PM when I had a salad, some cereal, a poppy-seed muffin, one serving of grapes, and half an omelet. Wow....that's a lot.
Well, at 11:30AM my dining hall ran out of salad so I got an omelett instead....and then around 8PM I figured I should get something extra to eat since I'm pulling an all-nighter tonight but I guess I got carried away.
I worked from 2-7PM without a break...my legs are sore from all that standing and I would like to exercise but I need to study for my exam tomorrow and I also need to write those papers....so much to do!!!
Well, I better get to it!!
So, now that I've done some venting, here are some goals I want to have (please tell me if I'm overdoing it or need to challenge myself more):
1. Memorize a new Bible verse each month encouraging me to persevere.
2. Weigh-in at the first Sunday of each month.
3. Measure my body (neck, stomach, thighs, etc.) at the first Sunday of each month as well.
4. Blog once a day before I go to sleep describing how I felt about the day's activities, etc.
5. Respond to at least one other person's blog daily, encouraging them in their endeavors.
6. Post a picture of my progress every two months (wearing the same outfit each time).
7. Reward myself with a non-food item at the beginning of each month when I meet a goal.
Now for exercise goals:
1. Exercise 5 times a week for 1 hour each day beginning with walking/running (moving on to weight training later).
2. Once I get to weight training (after a month or so), lift weights 3 times a week.
And finally eating goals:
1. At lunch and dinner, eat a plate of salad before eating anything else.
2. Desert = fruit (like grapes, canteloupe, banana, honeydew, etc.)...and have at least 2 servings of fruit a day.
3. When eating, drink at least 2 glasses of water.
4. Never eat later than 10PM.
5. Don't eat anything unless hungry...and don't use hunger as an excuse to eat everything in sight.
6. Indulge a sugar craving (brownie, pudding, etc.) once a week and then write about it in a blog.
So....that's a lot of stuff to follow....especially with exams and winter break coming up but I'll try my best. I could always use exercise as a study break...or something. Any suggestions as to how to stay focused during exam week (3 papers and 4 exams)? Should I just focus on my eating habits this week and then work on exercise next week when I have more time? Suggestions would be great! Thanks!
This is a little weird. I'm not exactly sure what to say.
Well, I guess I should talk about why I'm here. Okay, let's start at the beginning: I am eighteen years old. I weigh 185 pounds and I am 5 foot 7 inches. I carry most of my weight in my stomach and my inner thighs.
I hate trying on clothes because when I try clothes on that are stylish, they do not flatter my lack of figure. All I see is my bulging abdomen. Shopping is a very frustrating experience. I am also frustrated with how magazines and television advertise weight loss like it is so fast and easy...like buying a new hairbrush. You walk into the store, look at the hairbrushes, choose one, pay for it, and walk out of the store satisfied. Nothing is that simple (unless you are actually buying a hairbrush), so why should weight loss always be advertised that way?
I don't like to exercise. My college has a gym that allows students to attend for free but I don't like exercising with all the skinny girls and bulky guys....it makes me very self-conscience. It's hard enough to find jeans that fit me, how am I supposed to find exercise pants that don't ride up, chafe, or make me look like a cow? Exercise = not fun. I just don't enjoy doing it. Who likes to get all sweaty and smelly and disgusting....and who doesn't look funny running?
Plus, I have another problem. I mostly eat the right things but I just eat too much of it. Up until the last week or so, I never ate sweets and I had salad and soup almost everyday. Unfortunately, it extremley tempting to just stuff my face with pizza or curly fries when I'm in a dining hall full of skinny girls with high metabolisms and nothing to loose.
I don't know how all of this works....if someone responds and encourages me or gives me some ideas...I don't know. I don't know. That's me in a nutshell.
