Working on my Fitness, Part Two

by Mandy Weger on June 30, 2011

So.  The goal is to get back to my 17 year old body.

To do this, I will have to climb in my time machine lose about 40 more pounds.

My Eating Habits

  • I eat mainly organic, unprocessed, whole, natural foods: Fruits, veggies, eggs, meats, whole grain bread etc.
  • I like to take those organic items and sprinkle (local, organic) cheeses over them. I also looove me some quality olive oils.
  • I have a wicked sweet tooth and get pretty intense chocolate cravings after dinner. Sometimes I’ll drink coffee to help curb the craving.
  • We’re trying to eat out less often, but when we do go out, it’s usually for sushi or to our favorite wine, beer and cheese cafe, Tria.
  • Oh, did I mention that I like wine? I drink 1/2-1 bottle a week depending on the week. Lately, I’ve been on the low end of the spectrum and Mike and I will share a bottle of wine one night a week.
  • I go through nearly 1.5 gallons of skim milk a week by myself (Mike drinks the other .5).  God, I LOVE MILK. Trying to cut back on this with more water.

So basically, I’m not on the deprivation train here.  I don’t overeat, but the things that I do eat have a fair amount of calories in them.  I limit the sweet stuff as much as I can, I eat vegetables as much as possible, but I’m not going to limit myself to celery sticks.  It’s not realistic for me.  Especially as we’re about to embark on our adventure to Spain:  There will be meat, there will be cheese, there will be wine.  It would be stupid of me to cut it all out of my diet if I truly want to embrace the Spanish culture.

Plus, I’m just not so good at “forbidding” items in my diet. My parents have done incredibly well with a low carb lifestyle–they both have lost an amazing amount of weight and look fantastic.  It’s a lifestyle for them though, not really a diet anymore. It works for them, and I’ve tried it, but I just can’t do it!

I’m also not good at counting calories.  I did the Loseit.com thing for a few weeks, but oh my GOD was it time consuming just to figure out how many calories are in my whole wheat pizza with nothing but organic fresh ingredients.  I know the difference between a healthy food item and an unhealthy food item. My pizza is a pretty good, healthy choice with veggies, whole wheat, a little local cheese…there are worse things in the world, right?  Why on Earth do I need to spend time figuring out how many calories were in the 1.5 slices I ate??

So counting calories and carbs are out.  Mainly, I stick to the “I eat when I’m hungry and I try not to go crazy with the high calorie stuff” plan.

So far, it looks like I’m on the right path…completely ignoring diets and calorie counting and pretty much eating whatever I want…the right path for everything to stay the same, right??  Meh.  I think I eat much better than most Americans in the sense that I’m eating REAL food and I’m conscious of where my ingredients come from and how they affect our Earth.  If I refuse to eat partially hydrogenated soy bean oil and opt for a nice drizzle of olive oil instead, so be it.  The best I can do is be conscious of my portion sizes (which I am) and try not to cave to chocolate cravings very often.

I guess my game plan will have to come in some form of exercise…Next I’ll talk about that!

What are your eating habits like? What works for you?

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  • http://homesweethopkins.blogspot.com Jill

    Sounds like you’re doing it the right way. I am not a big dieter but I’ve noticed as I’m creeping up to my mid 30′s that the fat is appearing in places I don’t want it (hello, eternal wave). My husband and I have turned to smaller meals throughout the day. It’s hard to maintain because you have to plan a lot, but it works to keep you from eating an enormous meal once or twice a day. We try to keep each meal, 4 or 5 of them a day under 400 calories. Obviously my 150lb frame and his 250lb frame need different calorie amounts so we just try to modify – he gets more food in general. We do find we have to work out even with a change to our caloric intake. I’ve been trying to think of some less stressful workouts for your sweating issue – keeping a cool towel on your head/neck. I was wondering if you have considered swimming?

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  • http://highheelscitystreets.blogspot.com Kim

    I think your method is great! I have similar eating habits to you – no one comes between me and my cheese and wine . . . they key is moderation, and if you don’t deprive yourself, you are less likely to cave. Good luck :)

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  • Ali

    I have a few diet tweaks that could really help with your weight loss while not completely changing your lifestyle.

    1. Cut out some dairy. Dairy contains hormones that can promote fat STORAGE, even skim milk. So pick between cheese and milk. And if you pick cheese (which I bet you will ;) ) try to limit the intake.

    2. Instead of “eating when you’re hungry”, try eating 6 small, evenly portioned meals a day. Think of it more like snacking all day. Or have one larger meal (dinner?) and keep the rest small. Spacing of meals is important because if you’re continually fueling your body, your blood sugar will stay stable which will keep your metabolism stable. Over time this will cause an increase in metabolism, which we both know is always a good thing! :)

    If you let your body get to the point of hunger all the time, it’s most likely going to store most of what you eat since it’s going into “starvation mode”. It’s a natural reaction, but one that we can avoid.

    It sounds like you’re on the right track though! Let me know if you have any questions and maybe I can help :)

    Ali

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  • http://www.loveandrenovations.com Amanda

    Your eating habits sound great – much much better than most people I know (including myself!) I think you’re definitely on the right track!

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  • http://www.marriedupwithwine.com Mandy

    @Kim: I have considered swimming!! I think I would really love it, but I don’t belong to a gym/swim club or anything, and I don’t know how dedicated I’d be to go on a regular basis since I’m used to just going down to the basement/getting on my bike and going out the door! I’ll definitely think about it more though!

    @Ali: Thanks so much for the tips!! I didn’t know skim milk was that bad! I suppose I should know since I’ve been doing more research on the antibiotics/hormones in foods that made me switch to organic, but it’s good to know!

    Also, great tips on eating throughout the day! Now that I’m at home most of the day, this will probably be more possible and I’ll give it a try!

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  • http://www.nodakademic.com Nodakademic

    When I decide I’ve gotten too heavy, I tend to drastically cut down on everything until I lose the desired weight, and then fall back in to my old habits once my pants fit again. Obviously this is like, SO healthy, right? Yet I’m doing it right now….go figure.

    I think your ideas sound good. I have been really trying to internalize the idea of moderation. We can eat the foods we love…if we just don’t need to eat so MUCH. (Cheese, wine, sushi, chocolate, girl–you sound just like me!!)

    I can vouch for the swimming; I was a swimmer in high school and Mr. N and I both swam every day for 3 months before our Jamaica honeymoon–we looked pretty great by the time we went!!

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  • http://rufflesandtruffles.com Katie

    I totally agree with Ali on the point of eating 6 times a day. We are actually supposed to “graze,” if you will, instead of eating 3 meals a day…but our culture has kind of led us to believe that you eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner…and then we tend to overeat because of that. I just went to the doctor the other day, and she always asks me about my eating habits. I’m always surprised (and happy) when she praises me for being a grazer…because I tend to get criticized for it at times by others.

    Personally, I eat 6 times a day. I eat oatmeal for breakfast (usually), bring two different snacks to work with me (typically a banana/fruit and a granola bar…), I eat a bigger snack when I get home (s/a hummus and vegetables, a small omelette…etc), eat a larger dinner (always lots of veggies, of course), and dessert every night (scoop of ice cream or a cup of Greek yogurt). I try not to let myself get too hungry. It was kind of hard to adopt this strategy at first, but I am realllly used to it now. Sometimes on weekends I will switch up the “big” meal to lunch…I’m wild…haha.

    Anyway, it sounds like you are on the right track with the healthy ingredients – that is definitely better than what the average person has in stock in their kitchen, I think!

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  • Maloke

    Although Ali makes a great point about dairy, please remember calcium is extremely important and your body requires it.

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