IP Journey: Day 9
Just making myself very accountable here.... I tend to get very gung ho when I start a project, i.e., hobby, class, diet, workout, show, etc. I have lots of plans and hopes at the beginning of these ventures which I'm totally happy about since it shows I am more of an optimist than I give myself credit for.
I just get concerned because I always say "I'm going to do 'this" and then my inherent nature is to give up, get distracted, take on too much so I'm too tired, etc., etc. You know the drill, right? I do take on too much stuff. Even now, I am a walking billboard for taking on too much. My mind needs to be on so many projects - why can't I say NO to some of them? Ugh......
Anyway, I'm really planning to stick this new lifestyle & diet out for the rest of my life. I cannot believe how my cravings for sugar are gone. Granted, the pre-packaged items that come on the diet include sweets (including the yummy chocolate caramel nut bar I had this morning for breakfast!) but the difference is you don't want more after you finish. It's the strangest thing. I eat it and I'm done. I'm drinking so much water (well, mine is infused either with fruits or pre-approved flavor enhancing drops or powders) that I'm not really ever hungry until 3-4 hours later.
Here's some other changes:
1) I made a promise to drink only 2 cups of coffee a day. I've managed all the days but one these past 8 days but at least I'm not using dairy creamer (I'm using a homemade coconut creamer that's fabulous!) or sweetener. IF I absolutely need a drink later in the day it's okay but nothing in it except a little Stevia. That will be interesting to see how I handle black coffee! I think I'll try to completely switch to green tea in the afternoon/evenings if needed.
2) I am drinking at least 64 oz of water a day. The actual formula is to divide your current weight in half and drink that number of ounces. I'm managing so far!
3) NO regular or diet soda. Granted, I haven't had a regular soda (except for ginger ale) in years but my addiction to Diet Pepsi was well known. I'd managed to cut it out several times but I've always come back to it. Not with the same vengeance as before but I still could feel the addictive fix. Well, now that I've read all the horrible things diet soda can do I think I'm going to avoid it forever. I may slip now and then once I finish Phase 1 of the diet but for now, it's completely off limits. And oddly enough, I am A-ok with it.
4) I eat vegetables! I've always loved them but I'm eating them and really savoring them now, even without butter or goopy sauces! Yesterday, I had a bowl filled with raw bell pepper strips and chunks of cucumber and I was eating it like it was candy! That is a HUGE change!
5) I am not eating any bread, rice, potatoes, quinoa, pasta. Granted, this is a Phase 1 requirement but the amazingly cool thing is I am not craving it! Now I will see a recipe pop up on my Pinterest, FB or on the Food Network and my mouth will start salivating because I can actually imagine the taste but I am NOT craving it! This is such a big deal to me! I love crusty, artisan breads, Japanese rice, potatoes in any form, and my pasta with my homemade Bolognese sauce! But it's okay for me to not have them right now. Really!
6) NO alcohol. This is super easy as I rarely drink (except at my cousin's wedding when I had 2 cocktails and 6 glasses of wine between 4:30 - 10pm! Can you believe it?) I love wine....seriously, I worked in the industry and I LOVED it. I would actually like to get back into the business, I love it so much. BUT.... no alcohol for now. Even once I go into maintenance I have to religiously avoid it. I'll have it now and then but I pay the price for it the next day or two with a strict Phase 1 diet to help my body (specifically my liver and pancreas) adjust back to being normal again.
I know a lot of people poo-poo this particular program, especially because of the expense. I know I did! It is definitely something you have to budget/plan for when on a tight budget (which we are right now). I will say though, I feel so different. I feel good inside and have had very little problems with IBS (which I have a mild case of). My first week unofficial results are good. I'll look forward to stepping on the scale at the office this Saturday so I can get a real readout and see if I've managed to burn off any fat and inches. That's the interesting thing about this program. You may lose weight every week or you may not but you will lose fat or inches or all 3 if you're doing this program 100%. Men tend to lose the weight 2x faster than us women but there are some women who lose quickly. My friend Alicia was one of those. Granted, she didn't stay on the plan for months but she got the weight off that she wanted and it was fast. I'm crossing my fingers that I'll end up being one of them but if not, so be it. I would like a consistent, steady loss and need to plan for plateaus so I don't get frustrated. I am the least patient person I know so this is again a great practice for me.
So unofficially (at least according to my crazy scale at home) I'm 9 lbs down as of this morning. That's a pretty darn good result!!! I know the numbers will slow down a little more especially since the body is now trying to burn my fat reserves (of which there is WAY too much) and it takes more time to do that. The only other reason we lose quickly on this plan is if you're very heavy and/or male. Guys can lose 40 lbs in 2 months! Makes me crazy but I can't let that sabotage me! Besides, I've lost almost 10 lbs which means only have about 30-35 to go! Now that feels great!
I just get concerned because I always say "I'm going to do 'this" and then my inherent nature is to give up, get distracted, take on too much so I'm too tired, etc., etc. You know the drill, right? I do take on too much stuff. Even now, I am a walking billboard for taking on too much. My mind needs to be on so many projects - why can't I say NO to some of them? Ugh......
Anyway, I'm really planning to stick this new lifestyle & diet out for the rest of my life. I cannot believe how my cravings for sugar are gone. Granted, the pre-packaged items that come on the diet include sweets (including the yummy chocolate caramel nut bar I had this morning for breakfast!) but the difference is you don't want more after you finish. It's the strangest thing. I eat it and I'm done. I'm drinking so much water (well, mine is infused either with fruits or pre-approved flavor enhancing drops or powders) that I'm not really ever hungry until 3-4 hours later.
Here's some other changes:
1) I made a promise to drink only 2 cups of coffee a day. I've managed all the days but one these past 8 days but at least I'm not using dairy creamer (I'm using a homemade coconut creamer that's fabulous!) or sweetener. IF I absolutely need a drink later in the day it's okay but nothing in it except a little Stevia. That will be interesting to see how I handle black coffee! I think I'll try to completely switch to green tea in the afternoon/evenings if needed.
2) I am drinking at least 64 oz of water a day. The actual formula is to divide your current weight in half and drink that number of ounces. I'm managing so far!
3) NO regular or diet soda. Granted, I haven't had a regular soda (except for ginger ale) in years but my addiction to Diet Pepsi was well known. I'd managed to cut it out several times but I've always come back to it. Not with the same vengeance as before but I still could feel the addictive fix. Well, now that I've read all the horrible things diet soda can do I think I'm going to avoid it forever. I may slip now and then once I finish Phase 1 of the diet but for now, it's completely off limits. And oddly enough, I am A-ok with it.
4) I eat vegetables! I've always loved them but I'm eating them and really savoring them now, even without butter or goopy sauces! Yesterday, I had a bowl filled with raw bell pepper strips and chunks of cucumber and I was eating it like it was candy! That is a HUGE change!
5) I am not eating any bread, rice, potatoes, quinoa, pasta. Granted, this is a Phase 1 requirement but the amazingly cool thing is I am not craving it! Now I will see a recipe pop up on my Pinterest, FB or on the Food Network and my mouth will start salivating because I can actually imagine the taste but I am NOT craving it! This is such a big deal to me! I love crusty, artisan breads, Japanese rice, potatoes in any form, and my pasta with my homemade Bolognese sauce! But it's okay for me to not have them right now. Really!
6) NO alcohol. This is super easy as I rarely drink (except at my cousin's wedding when I had 2 cocktails and 6 glasses of wine between 4:30 - 10pm! Can you believe it?) I love wine....seriously, I worked in the industry and I LOVED it. I would actually like to get back into the business, I love it so much. BUT.... no alcohol for now. Even once I go into maintenance I have to religiously avoid it. I'll have it now and then but I pay the price for it the next day or two with a strict Phase 1 diet to help my body (specifically my liver and pancreas) adjust back to being normal again.
I know a lot of people poo-poo this particular program, especially because of the expense. I know I did! It is definitely something you have to budget/plan for when on a tight budget (which we are right now). I will say though, I feel so different. I feel good inside and have had very little problems with IBS (which I have a mild case of). My first week unofficial results are good. I'll look forward to stepping on the scale at the office this Saturday so I can get a real readout and see if I've managed to burn off any fat and inches. That's the interesting thing about this program. You may lose weight every week or you may not but you will lose fat or inches or all 3 if you're doing this program 100%. Men tend to lose the weight 2x faster than us women but there are some women who lose quickly. My friend Alicia was one of those. Granted, she didn't stay on the plan for months but she got the weight off that she wanted and it was fast. I'm crossing my fingers that I'll end up being one of them but if not, so be it. I would like a consistent, steady loss and need to plan for plateaus so I don't get frustrated. I am the least patient person I know so this is again a great practice for me.
So unofficially (at least according to my crazy scale at home) I'm 9 lbs down as of this morning. That's a pretty darn good result!!! I know the numbers will slow down a little more especially since the body is now trying to burn my fat reserves (of which there is WAY too much) and it takes more time to do that. The only other reason we lose quickly on this plan is if you're very heavy and/or male. Guys can lose 40 lbs in 2 months! Makes me crazy but I can't let that sabotage me! Besides, I've lost almost 10 lbs which means only have about 30-35 to go! Now that feels great!
Comments