Petunia's Pursuit of Pleasant Plumplessness!

p2niak

p2niak

New member
My Newcomer Post :)

This is my 3rd day of "keeping track". According to fitday, for my weight/age/activity level, I burn about 2400 calories just being alive. I guess I'll just call that "Life Burn".

Day One:

Calories consumed: 1552
Life Burn: -2400
Tae Bo: -237
Daily total: -1085

Day Two:

Calories consumed: 1221
Life Burn: -2400
Tae Bo: -316
Daily total: -1495

Today:

Calories consumed: 1434
Life Burn: -2400
Swimming: -232
Elliptical: -260
Daily total: -1458

This is the first time I've ever tracked calories in - calories out. I'm just wondering if my "net loss" is too much? How big of a calorie deficit can someone maintain safely? I'm hoping I'm on the right track, but if I'm overdoing it I want to correct it ASAP. I eat plenty of food, and I never feel very hungry. I always have that nice satisfied feeling; when I do start to feel hunger pangs, I'll eat a little snack (berries, cereal, etc). I also make sure I drink plenty of fluids (mostly green tea - just plain steeped green tea; none of that sugared junk you find at the stores).

If I AM on the right track, then WOW. I could easily lose 3 or 4 pounds a week doing this (and this has been EASY so far)! Not bad!!!

:willy_nilly:
 
Miscalculation

I have just learned that what I call "Life Burn" is actually the BMR. Silly newbie me. My BMR is actually 2200, so my daily deficit is off by 200 calories. That still puts me at about 3 pounds a week, though.
 
Mmm, I just had the BEST dinner! Brown rice with a little bit of Smart Balance, broccoli cooked with LOTS of ginger & garlic, and a grilled chicken breast. I am STUFFED!

I eat better "on a diet" than I do when I'm not dieting, hahaha! Seriously, I think I'm eating more than usual, but what with "volumetrics", I'm eating more food for fewer calories! I love it!
 
Water aerobics

Water aerobics = awesome. I went to a class at my gym this morning and it was a great workout! I hate high-impact workouts (always have), so water aerobics is perfect. After that, a nice steam in the sauna, then I was STARVING when I got home!

Note to self: One bowl of Cheerios is inadequate before water aerobics.
 
Today I did water aerobics! :hurray: That was FUN. And way hard. I felt like a fish out of water... in water.

Calories & stuff:

Today:

Calories consumed: 1403
BMR: -2200
Water aerobics: -504
Daily total: -1301

So, as of Day 4, my total deficit is: 4,478

I had to make some adjustments for my BMR; one calculator said 2200, another said 2400. To be on the safe side, I'll just go with 2200.

Yahoo! At 2800 calories per pound, that's 1.5 pounds in 4 days! If I keep up this pace, I should lose about 12 pounds per month! At least 'til my BMR changes, at which point I'll have to modify things a bit.

Big fat nutritional FAIL of the day:

I have class Wednesday nights, which really interferes with my eating, hahaha! I ate my late lunch around 2:30 this afternoon, and nothing after that. I was on my way to class when I realized that I hadn't eaten recently! What could I do? I didn't have time to swing by the health food store for my favorite low-cal high-volume snack (banana + a couple packets of sesame toasted nori). Instead, I grabbed a coffee on campus with a couple tablespoons of half & half - no sugar. That seemed to keep the hungry at bay. After class I went to my friend's house (she watches my daughter for me), and she'd just made a couple loaves of gluten-free bread. I'd never tried it, so I had some. It was DEEEELICIOUS! She gave me half a loaf. I ate it all. :newangel:

I have no idea what the calorie count would be for something like that, but I'm hoping it wasn't TOO much. The ingredients are all things I'm not terribly familiar with, so I can't even guesstimate. I'd think it would be lower in calories than regular bread. Oh well. It was wonderful and worth it and now I can go to sleep hungry-free. Now that I'm eating limited calories, I tend to get hungry right before bed. The other night it even kept me up! I'm going to try drinking some sugar free metamucil & water right before bed. Hopefully the fiber will tide me over til morning.
 
p2niak said:
She gave me half a loaf. I ate it all. :newangel:
Click to expand...

It was TINY. I'd say the entire half loaf was about the size of a big muffin. I estimated the calories to be around 350, just so I had something to calculate. Even if it were more in the 750-1000 calorie range, I'm still running on a deficit today, so it's alright. I shouldn't make a habit out of it, haha, but it's not the end of the world ;)
 
:seeya:Hi there! You surely do sound committed to losing this weight. Where have you gone to find out how many calories you should be consuming daily? I made a big mistake by taking in too little combined with my daily exercise, and I have been on a plateau for the last 6 months! So make sure you're eating enough, and adjust it as you shrink.

Best wishes on your journey! :auto:
ABBA
 
Hi Abba!

Thanks! I am super motivated!

I don't remember which site I found the calculator on; I did a google search for BMR and tried a couple different ones. I decided to go with the lower of the two calculations to be on the safe side.

By this point, having spent a few days logging EVERY trackable calorie I can think of, I do worry I may not be eating enough. It's funny; I gained the weight because I ate too much, and now I can't seem to eat enough! I need to spend more time coming up with a serious nutritional strategy. I do eat really well - primarily whole foods; cereal is my indulgence (Cheerios & Corn Chex especially!).

Thank you for your encouragement! Where are you at in your pursuits?
 
Jan 29

I was feeling very lazy this morning. I have been getting a lot of exercising and limiting my calories quite a bit, so that doesn't surprise me. This morning I decided I'd allow myself to skip the gym today. I could afford it, calorie-wise. Mid-afternoon, however, gym addiction kicked in. I just felt that I HAD to go, even if all I did was walk on the treadmill at 3 mph for half an hour, at least I'd be doing SOMETHING. When I walked into the gym, I immediately got psyched; I WANTED to work out. I ducked into the cardio theatre, found my favorite elliptical, and got to work. I set it for 45 minutes, at a relatively low level. The next thing I knew, I was practically sprinting. The calories were ticking away. I'd push it hard for about a minute, then kinda cruise for a couple minutes. I was loving it! The movie was pretty dull (I don't even remember the title - something with Morgan Freeman & Jack Nicholson), but I caught only the tail end. Then Dark Knight came on. I was on fire! I added another 15 minutes, and I didn't want to leave even then but I figured I'd done quite enough for one day, haha.

Food-wise, I was very good today. I always make sure to eat an adequate breakfast - today was a "scramble" of smoked pork (not ham; the smoked pork loins) that I'd diced up, red bell pepper, zucchini, mushroom, one large whole egg and two egg whites. It was substantial and yummy and only 250 calories. I had a big bowl of corn chex and a banana before hitting the gym. I didn't really eat dinner, as I had to attend a meeting up at the university. Instead I had a late "snack" of corn chex, followed by some chicken noodle soup. Normally I wouldn't eat chicken noodle soup - sodium bomb! - but I knew I needed more calories and I wasn't in any mood to cook.

Here's how the day ended up:

Calories consumed: 1426
BMR: -2200
Elliptical: -654
Daily total: -1428

I'm thinking that might be a bit TOO much, so I need to start working in some higher calorie foods. A lot of what I eat is high volume, low cal. Maybe tomorrow I'll roast a cornish hen and enjoy that with some yummy brown rice.

5 day total: -5,904

Two pounds! I've been reluctant to check the scale so early in the game, but I may just check it in the morning to see what it says :)
 
Hey Lisa!

Wow you are so motivated! Good Well wishes your way...

but I thought I would drop you a line, because your determination in making a healthier lifestyle is incredible.

I hope I dont sound wierd, intros are so wierd. But ... you seem like a positive person, and I would love to chat with positive peeps...

so I hope you dont mind if I check in on your diary once in a while.

kudos for you in the change. All these changes your making. I understand the weight gain. They say women generally gain weight in the beginning stages of any new relationship and through out the relationship. So that is probably why you gained. I did the same thing. But my fiance has become my coach.. its all good

well I hope you have a good day!!

laterz
Natsky:cheers2:
 
Hey Natsky!

Thanks :) Please do check in on my diary! It's great to make new buddies to help us stay motivated. You're right about weight gain during the early stages of a relationship, haha! Problem with me is, the "early stage" is lasting a really long time. It's hard for me to cut back on our normal eating/drinking; we're really really happy about life and always find SOME cause for celebration! That's a good thing - but not for the figure ;)

Thanks for dropping me a line! I hope to see you around!

:seeya:
 
Well. Yesterday was pretty much a total loss.

I was making my healthy breakfast (egg white veggie omelet), when I got a text message from a friend inviting me out to lunch. Tibetan food. Mmmm. I'd already made plans for the gym, but this is a friend I hadn't seen in MONTHS, so I couldn't pass on the opportunity. I told myself I'd use excellent restraint, and eat mostly salad and maybe 2 or 3 veggie momos (like samosas, only steamed instead of fried). The restaurant has a lunch buffet - DANGER! First I got just a tiny bit of the spicy potatoes, two momos, some veggies, and LOTS of salad. Then I got a little more potatoes, and a couple more momos. It was WAY more than I'd intended to eat. Worth it? Totally. Will I repeat it? No way.

I had a very low cal dinner (stir fry veggies - about 50 cal), miracle noodles (ZERO cal), cooked with a couple egg whites (34 cals), Braggs aminos & Pam spray. Then I had to take a finance quiz (it's an online class), which REALLY stressed me out. I then realized that I do tend to throw my diet out the window when I'm stressed. Last night I drowned my sorrows in blackberries and blueberries, and three slices of gluten free bread. The bread is SO good; I'm glad I don't have anymore!

On top of my excessive consumption, I did NOT make it to the gym. I actually ended up about 200 calories OVER my BMR.

Yesterday:

Calories consumed: 2402
BMR: -2200
Daily total: 202 - FAIL

5 day total: -5,702

Weekends are tough! I just need to be more focused and not fall prey to the "I haven't had Tibetan food in years so what the hell I'm gonna splurge" mentality.
 
Hi! I'm just skimming through your journal and I wanted to let you know that I think you're sooo cute! Do you wear scarves a lot? It looks like a scarf in your photo a few posts up! I LOVEEE scarves in the winter/spring. So cute for layering.

Also, it's fine to overindulge every once in a while - especially if you're out with a friend you don't get to see every day! :)

PS WHATS THIS MIRACLE NOODLE you're talking about? I want some!!!!! Did you have to buy it online?

THANKS! :)
 
Aww, thanks oLUX :)

Yep, I wear scarves a LOT. My fiance works in India 6 months out of the year, so he's always bringing back a nice scarf or pashmina for me. I'm spoiled, hehe.

Miracle Noodles are great! I bought mine online, but some Asian groceries have them. Miracle Noodles is a brand; they also go by shirataki. They're made of a certain kind of starch that your body doesn't absorb, so their net calorie count is zero. No carbs, gluten free. Kind of a funky texture, so I don't use them as noodles so much. I chop them up into little bits like rice and put it in my stir fry. I know WLF has a policy against links in siggies & posts, but if you google it you'll find them.

Thanks for the encouragement. Yesterday's lunch was so totally worth it.
 
YES! Back on track!

I wasn't really planning on exercising today. The daycare at Golds is closed on Sundays, and while we do have a little fitness room here at my apartment complex, I don't really like to bring my little girl with me because she wants to play with the equipment. That's quite unsafe.

After a quick grocery run (to replenish my fave egg white veggie omelet supplies), I REALLY wanted to work out. My little girl is 6, so I figured she might do okay now that she's a bit older. We packed up her Nintendo DS, some markers, paper & a couple Barbies, and headed over. NO SWEAT! She just sat there and colored the entire hour I was on the elliptical! It was great - I was able to burn off...

*drumroll please*

614 calories

Woohoo! :hurray: I'm totally psyched about that.

That number's probably even lower than it should be too. The elliptical I used doesn't ask for weight, so it probably calculates calorie consumption based on an "average" weight. I weigh a bit more than average, I probably burned closer to 650. Freaking awesome. Time to celebrate with a bowl of corn Chex!
 
Splurge!!!!!

I did SO good today, I allowed myself a splurge. Have you seen those teeny little containers of Ben & Jerry's? SO cute! I'm presently savoring every bit of my 200 calorie Cherry Garcia. I earned it.

Today's "score":

Calories consumed: 1116 (yep, that's including the ice cream!)
BMR: -2200
Elliptical: -614
Daily total: -1698 W00T!

5 day total: -7,400

I love counting calories!!! :beating:
 
One of my classes has been really stressing me out lately, so I'm feeling pretty blah right now. Nothing a good sleep won't fix, though!

Today:

Calories consumed: 1727
BMR: -2200
Elliptical: -550
Swimming: -150
Sauna: -75
Walking around campus: -300
Daily total: -1548

5 day total: -8,948

I give up trying to figure out how many pounds I *should* have lost, based on my total deficit. The formula is far more complicated than "3500 calories = 1 pound"

All I know is that my scale shows me about 5 pounds lighter than I was when I started last week.
 
Tuesday

No update last night - was a bit of a crazy day. I did NOT get to the gym, which I'm not proud of. I love to go every day if I can. Oh well. Still, not a BAD day yesterday:

Calories consumed: 1775
BMR: -2200
Daily total: -425

Not the big whopping deficit I'm accustomed to; but every little bit helps :)

To date: -9,373
 
Hey hun! Just stopping in to say hi. I ended up finding those noodles at the ASIAN SUPERMARKET in this area so I can't wait to try it! :) I'm so glad I ran across your journal!

ALSO, I think it's great that you're doing a total calorie deficit from when you first started your journey. That's such an awesome way to compare it back to your actual weight lost. FUN! I wish I had started doing that when I first started working out. I think once I hit an even # like.. 150 pounds or something, I'm going to try that and see how accurate my weight loss is in comparison to my calories burnt! :)

Anyway, hope your week is going amazingly! :)

ANDD It's totally ok to not go to the gym every once in a while. I know how you feel as I liek to go to the gym everyyy day. However, sometimes LIFE happens to us and we can't make it. That's ok! :)
 
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