twinkletoes' weight loss diary

twinkletoes

twinkletoes

New member
I'm basically new to the forum, but I thought I'd start keeping a weight loss diary here.

My story: I've always been chunky-to-overweight. My battle with excess weight started at the ripe old age of 6. I've mostly managed to keep it under control (still overweight, but just a little chunky) until about 5 years ago. That's when I started grad school.

Part of the grad school process entailed long days and high levels of stress. Unfortunately, my response to coping with that was emotional eating and relying on junk/fast food for "nutrition." That's an oxymoron within itself. I gradually stopped cooking and started eating out every day. Not a good idea. Then there was a time when I wouldn't eat all day and then just eat a massive calorically-dense meal with dessert for once per day.

As a result, I gained approximately 50 pounds in about 5 years. Not good for someone who was starting off at 5'9" and 215 pounds in the first place.

I'll have to update with my official stats tomorrow, but I'm starting today at near 260-ish. I hope to get down to an eventual goal weight of 150 pounds. I'm giving myself 12 months to accomplish this goal.

Official beginning stats: 263.0 pounds
Measurements:
chest = 48 inches
waist (natural waist) = 39.5
waist (measured around belly button) = 47.75 inches
hips (measured around widest part of my hips) = 49.5 inches
thigh (mid-thigh length) = 27 inches
 
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My plan of attack?

I'm following the guidelines of the Belly Fat Cure. I've looked around and haven't seen anyone else following it. After trying a host of eating plans, I think this one works best for me because:

1. it isn't restrictive
In other words, I can choose from a variety of good, nutritious foods rather than a food list. I've never been able to make one of those kinds of eating plans work for me.

2. i'm controlling my blood sugar to prevent snack attacks/overeating
One of the guidelines is to eat <15 grams of sugar/day. Then you are allowed up to 6 servings of carbs. 1 serving = 5-20 grams of carbs. Anything less than 5 grams of carbs = free food. And when I do eat carbs, they are usually fiber-rich and nutrient-dense.

3.hit the gym at least 4 days/week
I'm splitting my time between weight training and cardio. I cannot stand cardio, but it needs to be done. For starters, I'm warming up, doing a full body circuit every other day (machines using multiple body groups), and following up with 20 minutes of cardio. On the off-days, that's 45 mins-1 hour of cardio.

I'm expecting great things. :) If anyone else has tried BFC (you can google "Belly Fat Cure" or "Jorge Cruise" for more information), definitely let me know. It would be good to form a support group on here.

I've done Atkins and it was too restrictive in the Induction phase. I was really miserable. WW is good, but the way I was eating still allowed for those surges of blood sugar which I'm trying to avoid. I tried out BFC for a few weeks and my appetite is at an even keel. I'm not hungry. And when I am, I eat. I'll also be tracking my meals over at Fitnesspal for the time-being.

I've technically already started. This is the end of Day Two. So I'll just keep the momentum rolling.
 
I won't be posting meals every day, but this is what I ate today:

Breakfast
Dannon Light & Fit Carb Control yogurt (strawberry)
2 turkey sausage patties
2 boiled eggs

Snack
Atkins Advantage Protein Shake

Lunch
Steamed broccoli w/ tad bit of butter for flavor
Turkey burger pattie

Snack
Atkins Advantage Protein Shake
Polly-O 2% Cheese Stick

Dinner
String Beans
Linguine (made with Dreamfield's low-carb pasta) with scallops in lemon butter sauce

Total: ~1550 calories

Anytime I eat veggies, I make sure the portion size is half of my plate. The rest is my protein and/or carbs.

I did cardio & weights at the gym today as well. According to Fitnessdaypal, I need to eat ~500 more calories today to hit the mark of losing 1 pound per week. And actually, I'm estimating calories. I may eaten more than that with the butter I used to cook with, so I'll leave the rest of those calories for wiggle room. I'm going to do some investigating for healthier alternatives here. I'm sure butter has lots of saturated fat, which I am trying to avoid.

I am absolutely full anyway. There is no way I'm gonna be able to eat anymore today. Never thought I would be able to say that. Anyone else experience this when switching to a healthier eating regimen?
 
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So I was reading... and it said a good thing is to make small, mini-measurable goals. My very first mini-measurable goal, I'd like to hit by August 10th. That's 10 days from now. I have an event to attend and I would like to be down 5 pounds. I think that's realistic and do-able. That will officially put me out of the 260s and into the 250s, which I haven't seen in about 1 year.
 
Ugh, totally disgusted. I was looking at a couple of boxes of cereal I used to eat, thinking I was eating healthy. Raisin Bran and Honey Nut Cheerios. Looooooooaaaaded with sugar. No wonder I wasn't taking off any weight.

Being on BFC has forced me to eat less processed foods, which is a good thing. Coincidentally, I just finished reading the South Beach Diet book, and BFC operates on a lot of similar principles. Well, minus the really strict "induction"-type phase. I think I read somewhere in there not to buy anything that has more than 4 grams of sugar/serving, which fits right along with this plan. And actually South Beach sounds really do-able and sustainable over the long haul as well.

I think I'm gonna head out to Whole Foods to stock up on some healthy snacks. There's this chicken salad that I love... I eat it over a bed of mixed greens. Heavenly. I want some almonds to snack on. Zevia, which is a "diet" soda sweetened with Stevia (which, by the way, I don't know what to make of claims that aspartame and Splenda are toxic. What say you?). Jay Robb protein powder. I like to make a protein shake before I head to the gym.
 
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I really like the original fiber one cereal. I don't even use milk with it. I just measure out a half cup and eat it like nuts. It satisfies the crunch factor too.

Anyway, welcome to the forums and best of luck to you :)
 
ymcachick said:
I really like the original fiber one cereal. I don't even use milk with it. I just measure out a half cup and eat it like nuts. It satisfies the crunch factor too.

Anyway, welcome to the forums and best of luck to you :)
Click to expand...

I've never tried Fiber One. If it's low-sugar, I might give it a whirl for a snack.
 
down 1.5 lbs!!!

I'm not planning on weighing myself everyday, but I did this morning to make sure I'm headed in the right direction. The scale registered a 1.5 pound loss! *does happy dance* Now I do realize that it's probably water weight, which is fine with me. I haven't seen than number on the scale in well over 1 year, so I'm ecstatic.

For the most part, I've been eating something every 2-3 hours to keep my blood sugar on an even keel. More fiber-rich carbs, eliminated all junk carbs (full of sugar), filling in the rest with lean proteins and heart-healthy fats for satiety. I went pretty hard in the gym for 45 minutes yesterday on the elliptical machine. I felt like I had a workout. I had had eggs, turkey sausage, low-carb yogurt, and a protein shake before heading out there. Notice very little carbs. I'm trying to work the angle that in the absence of carbs, your body pulls from fat stores. Burn baby burn!!!!

You do have to make sure to eat plenty of food beforehand to fuel your workout though.

I'm looking forward to keeping up this momentum! Let's get it!!!
 
Gotta love water weight!

I have fallen temptation to weighing myself everyday. :leaving:

I know you're not supposed to do it, but I'm like extra paranoid about being on the right track. Oh well.

Weight's been up and down.

Day 1: 263
Day 2: 261.5
Day 3: 263.5
Day 4: 262.5

Regardless, it looks like we're on a downward trend. I can live with that.

I'm sucking down a protein shake right now and then I'm headed to the gym. Today is my dreaded cardio day. Ugh, I hate it, but you do what you gotta do, right? :banghead:
 
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