Wow. This morning I hit my first century and triple digit day on MFP. So, in
keeping with my promise to blog whenever I felt the urge, I've decided to share
some things I found that have helped me reach this date without feeling
deprived, hungry, or resentful....
Now, there is a quick caveat... I don't eat clean, I'm a conscientious omnivore, I eat a handful of gummy bears almost every day, and yet I've lost 13 1/2 pounds in 14 weeks. So, take my advice with a grain of salt. But not more than that because I'm a stickler for sodium....
So here are my tips, for what they are worth:
1). Don't call it a diet. MFP provides you with information, but no one dictates what you can or can't eat. DIET is a 4-letter word. Diet means you're not allowed to eat things or have to only eat others. MFP is more like a bank account. You have a daily balance to achieve between calories in and weight loss goals. Don't get yourself stuck in a diet mentality.
2) Don't give up your social life. MFP has a HUGE food database for all kinds of restaurants. We know you don't want to give your life up or not be able to go out with friends. So go. And enjoy! But so you can be aware of what you're doing, just log it.
3) Do log your food. Whether you go over or you stay under, if you want to get the big picture on a weekly basis (and remember we record weekly weight), you need to keep track even on the days when it looks ugly as we look back on it. The truth is you need to reduce your caloric intake by 3500 calories a week (some may disagree but that's what I've been told and it's working for me so far) in order to lose a pound a week. So maybe you went over one day by 500 calories.... just balance it out over the rest of your week and you've not lost any ground.
4) Do use measurements to monitor your loss. Don't just rely on the scale. Remember the scale is only one measurement of the changes your body is making. Don't put too much power in those numbers to make you feel like you are ONLY doing well if you lose or you've failed if you gained. Just be sure you understand why either way. And measure your body. Even if you're not losing pounds, you may be losing inches and that counts tremendously.
5) Buy low-calorie snacks that you can enjoy and savor them. For me, those Special K Sour Cream & Onion cracker chips are absolutely heaven sent. I love them instead of fried anythings. I know how big a serving is and can sit down with them and enjoy them.... for 110 calories. To me, that's a treat. And one that I can afford.
6) Cook simply and in bulk. I have found that my crock pot and a lean cut of turkey or beef with just a little bit of no salt seasoning and some no-salt canned veggies can become a soup or a meal that I can eat for days. I've invested in some single serve Ziploc containers I can use to make and freeze a weeks worth of lunches in a single meal... and I save some $$ that way too.
7) If you don't really want it and you're not loving it... don't eat it. Calories are too precious to waste on something you don't really want but that you are eating just because it's there. Promise yourself something you do want. Log it so you can see the cost. Think of it as shoes. Those ugly cowbell slippers might only be $5.99 at your local ShoesRUs, but if you spent that $5.99 there, you might miss out on the Stuart Weitzmann pumps that were on sale at FancyShoes for $55.99 because you're
just $5.99 short. Does that even make sense?
8) Log into MFP every day. Even when you feel cruddy, or when you're bloated, or when youdon't want to because you know darn well you've gained. Log in because the support and love is here. Log in because you have friends that will cheer you on. Log in because it does count. If I hadn't logged in every one of those 100 days, I wouldn't BE at 100 days.
9) Track your sodium. I don't remember anymore if that's one of the standard things MFP includes in the daily diary, but if it's not, customize yours and add it. Sodium is a hidden weight loss land mine. Most of the folks who I've noticed get stuck on a plateau or find themselves not losing are not watching their sodium... and it adds up FAST.
Now, there is a quick caveat... I don't eat clean, I'm a conscientious omnivore, I eat a handful of gummy bears almost every day, and yet I've lost 13 1/2 pounds in 14 weeks. So, take my advice with a grain of salt. But not more than that because I'm a stickler for sodium....
So here are my tips, for what they are worth:
1). Don't call it a diet. MFP provides you with information, but no one dictates what you can or can't eat. DIET is a 4-letter word. Diet means you're not allowed to eat things or have to only eat others. MFP is more like a bank account. You have a daily balance to achieve between calories in and weight loss goals. Don't get yourself stuck in a diet mentality.
2) Don't give up your social life. MFP has a HUGE food database for all kinds of restaurants. We know you don't want to give your life up or not be able to go out with friends. So go. And enjoy! But so you can be aware of what you're doing, just log it.
3) Do log your food. Whether you go over or you stay under, if you want to get the big picture on a weekly basis (and remember we record weekly weight), you need to keep track even on the days when it looks ugly as we look back on it. The truth is you need to reduce your caloric intake by 3500 calories a week (some may disagree but that's what I've been told and it's working for me so far) in order to lose a pound a week. So maybe you went over one day by 500 calories.... just balance it out over the rest of your week and you've not lost any ground.
4) Do use measurements to monitor your loss. Don't just rely on the scale. Remember the scale is only one measurement of the changes your body is making. Don't put too much power in those numbers to make you feel like you are ONLY doing well if you lose or you've failed if you gained. Just be sure you understand why either way. And measure your body. Even if you're not losing pounds, you may be losing inches and that counts tremendously.
5) Buy low-calorie snacks that you can enjoy and savor them. For me, those Special K Sour Cream & Onion cracker chips are absolutely heaven sent. I love them instead of fried anythings. I know how big a serving is and can sit down with them and enjoy them.... for 110 calories. To me, that's a treat. And one that I can afford.
6) Cook simply and in bulk. I have found that my crock pot and a lean cut of turkey or beef with just a little bit of no salt seasoning and some no-salt canned veggies can become a soup or a meal that I can eat for days. I've invested in some single serve Ziploc containers I can use to make and freeze a weeks worth of lunches in a single meal... and I save some $$ that way too.
7) If you don't really want it and you're not loving it... don't eat it. Calories are too precious to waste on something you don't really want but that you are eating just because it's there. Promise yourself something you do want. Log it so you can see the cost. Think of it as shoes. Those ugly cowbell slippers might only be $5.99 at your local ShoesRUs, but if you spent that $5.99 there, you might miss out on the Stuart Weitzmann pumps that were on sale at FancyShoes for $55.99 because you're
just $5.99 short. Does that even make sense?
8) Log into MFP every day. Even when you feel cruddy, or when you're bloated, or when youdon't want to because you know darn well you've gained. Log in because the support and love is here. Log in because you have friends that will cheer you on. Log in because it does count. If I hadn't logged in every one of those 100 days, I wouldn't BE at 100 days.
9) Track your sodium. I don't remember anymore if that's one of the standard things MFP includes in the daily diary, but if it's not, customize yours and add it. Sodium is a hidden weight loss land mine. Most of the folks who I've noticed get stuck on a plateau or find themselves not losing are not watching their sodium... and it adds up FAST.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.