Tuesday, September 30, 2008
Birthday Repercussions
Thursday will be a month since I started, and I'll be getting measured again. I'll post my updated measurements then.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Quick Update
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Second Weigh-In and Starting Phase 2
Sunday, September 14, 2008
How to Eat Well While Dieting (Recipes Included)
Seasoned Grilled Veggies
2 large or 3 small zucchini
2 large or 3 small summer squash
1 lb whole mushrooms (button or baby bella)
1 large sweet onion
olive oil
garlic powder
mixed Italian herb seasoning
Wash and cut up the zucchini and summer squash into 1-inch pieces. Clean the mushrooms and halve or quarter them, depending on size. Peel the onion and cut into chunks. Put the cut vegetables into a large plastic container. Add just enough olive oil to coat the veggies and season to taste with the garlic powder and Italian seasoning. Heat a grill wok over a gas or charcoal grill. Spray the wok with non-stick spray, add the veggies, and allow them to cook, stirring occasionally, until the squash is tender but not mushy. NOTE: if you do not have a grill wok or some other way of cooking cut veggies on the grill, you could saute the veggies on the stove or roast them in the oven under the broiler.
Chickpea and Artichoke Salad
1 large can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (Cannelini beans could also be used)
1 can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
1 red or orange sweet pepper, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1/4 cup wine vinegar (red or white)
mixed Italian herb seasoning
salt (optional)
honey (optional)
Combine chickpeas (or Cannelini beans) and veggies. Mix together the oil and vinegar and season to taste with the Italian seasoning and salt (I usually use about 1/2 tsp of the seasoning and a dash of salt); if the dressing is too sharp, add a little honey to mellow the flavor (no more than 1/4 tsp.) Pour the dressing over the beans and veggies and mix well (you may not need all the dressing -- store any unused dressing in a container in the fridge.) Salad may be eaten as is, but for a real taste treat, try this: Rinse and dry a large, crisp, Romaine leaf. Spread 1 wedge of Laughing Cow Light Garlic & Herb cheese on the Romaine and top with 1/2 cup of the salad.
Quick Spinach Egg-Drop Soup
1 can light chicken or vegetable broth
1 generous handful of fresh spinach, washed & trimmed (chop it if you feel the need to do so)
1 or 2 eggs, beaten, or an equivalent amount of egg substitute
Combine the broth and spinach in a saucepan and cook until the broth is heated through. Just before serving, stir in the beaten egg and cook for approximately 30 seconds. NOTE: For a heartier version, break up 1 package of Ramen noodles and cook them in the broth with the spinach (throw away the seasoning packet from the noodles -- Ramen noodle seasonings are loaded with sodium!) Add the eggs once the noodles are done. This version is not South Beach friendly, but it's very nice when you have a cold.
Roasted Garlic Beans
1 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 can Great Northern beans (or any other small white beans), drained but not rinsed
1 cup light chicken or vegetable broth
1-2 tbsp roasted garlic puree
mixed Italian herb seasoning
salt (optional)
red pepper flakes (optional)
In a heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat and saute the onion until soft. Add the beans, broth, and roasted garlic puree. Allow the liquid to boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the liquid is reduced. Season to taste with the Italian herbs and salt; for a little kick, add red pepper flakes.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
First Weigh-In (Drumroll Please!)
I feel like I've eaten very well this first week and I haven't really felt deprived at all. That's one of the reasons I like the South Beach diet -- even though the list of "allowed" foods is relatively small (especially on Phase 1), you can pretty much eat your fill of them, especially vegetables and legumes. I've been trying to find new and interesting ways to prepare these foods, whether it's seasoning summer squash with garlic and grilling it, or sauteing eggplant and onions in curry powder, or cooking lentils and spinach together with cumin. I even made a salad of chickpeas, artichoke hearts, red pepper, and green onions which I ate in lettuce leaves with some garlic & herb soft cheese. Yum! I really love food (how else could I have reached 405 lbs?) and being able to eat well while dieting will definitely help me stick with it longer and NOT CHEAT (cheating is one of the two main things that has sidetracked all my previous diets; lack of willpower was the other. Wait, aren't they pretty much the same thing?) Don't get me wrong, I'm not claiming that I will be a saint. Nobody could deny themselves indefinitely. I will splurge from time to time, but this time when I splurge I will plan my splurges and then get right back on the eating plan. For example, my birthday is coming up at the end of the month, and I am going to have cake on my birthday. I will eat right for the rest of the day, I will have my cake, I will send any leftover cake home with my sister and brother-in-law so it won't be in the house (very important detail), and the next day I will go back on Phase 1 for a week to counteract any damage. See? I can totally do this. ;-)
Thursday, September 4, 2008
Water, Water Everywhere
As most of you probably know, one of the basics tenets of any weight-loss program is to drink lots of water. The general rule for good health is to drink six to eight 8-ounce glasses a day. That works out to between 48 and 64 ounces. That's just for a normal, healthy person to stay properly hydrated. For weight loss purposes, you need to increase your water intake. I've seen different recommendations in different books, including one book which said that you should drink as many ounces of water each day as half your weight in pounds. So let's see, I currently weigh 405 lbs, so I should be drinking 202.5 ounces of water daily? I don't think so. Over the past couple of days I've averaged 140 ounces a day, which means I'm peeing at least once an hour, if not more often (this morning I peed five times in the first four hours I was awake.) It also means that I can't sleep through the night as I'm getting up to pee every two to three hours. The fact that my blood pressure medication contains a diuretic doesn't help matters any. If I'm peeing this much on 140 ounces a day, I can only imagine what would happen if I was drinking 200 ounces -- I'd probably never get out of the bathroom! Well, that's all for now -- I have to go pee again!
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
We Have Liftoff!
To the left you see my lovely "before" picture. (To those of you who think I should be smiling: I smiled in the picture that was taken before this one. It looked really goofy.) Here are my current stats:
Weight: 405 lbs; Bust: 60.5 inches; Waist: 60.5 inches; Abdomen: 64.5 inches; Hips: 64.5 inches; Thigh: 32.5 inches; Upper Arm: 18 inches; Body Mass Index (BMI): 61.6.
Weight will be updated every Tuesday, body measurements and BMI will be updated on a monthly basis.
Where I Want To Be
According to those charts that tell you what your ideal weight should be based on your height and gender, my ideal weight is 130 lbs. Highly unlikely. I think the last time I weighed 130 was when I was in 6th grade. So I'm setting my ultimate goal weight at 160 lbs, which is definitely doable. So that means I have to lose 245 lbs all told. However, I'm going to set mini-goals for myself (after all, 245 lbs is a very big number) of 40 lbs at a time -- 10% of my current weight.
How I'm Going To Get There
I am following the South Beach Diet eating plan and will be adding some of the nutritional and lifestyle concepts of the Fiber35 Diet (supplements, metabolism boosts, detoxing.) I am also following the Curves Smart fitness plan. This week I am also doing an herbal cleansing detox to give me a bit of a boost.
Why I Am Doing This
This section is as much for myself as for everyone else: at some point in every diet, there comes a time when I'll get frustrated and will need a reminder of why I'm working so hard at losing weight when it's so much easier, and usually more pleasurable, to dive face-first into a chocolate cake. At that point, I can come back here and read this list.
I am trying to lose weight because:
- I want to get healthy
- I want to travel more, but it's difficult to fit in an airplane at this size; also, when I do travel, I want to be able to walk around and explore the sights
- I want to be able to go to the movies, a show, or a concert without worrying whether I'll fit in the theater seat
- clothes shopping will be much easier when I'm a smaller size
- if I don't do it now, it will just keep getting harder to do
So I guess that's it for now. Check back for regular updates, and keep me in your thoughts!