Thursday, December 11, 2008

So I started doing the 5 or 6 small meals a day thing, which helps me control my eating more. I'm less likely to eat impulsively if I have a small amount of food throughout the day, and my willpower is stronger. I know it's healthier, but I've never been able to pull it off because I'd be teaching classes all day, so it was HUGE breakfast, small fast midday meal, HUGE FATTENING and DESPERATELY LARGE AFTER WORK SNACK, and then supper. I could maintain this crappy eating style because I was on my feet all day. Now I'm on my butt all day.


So far, the scale hasn't budged. But I feel thinner. Maybe that's just hunger. Couple of things.

1) There are two required meetings that I go to each week and so far, everytime I've gone they've had some sort of food there. It's not, like, low-fat yogurt and granola. No, it's like muffins, or bagels and Shmear or birthday cake. Yikes. I've found that if I eat a quick snack before the meeting it's much easier to say, "No thanks," I'm tempted to say, if asked, for my birthday, I'd like a nice tofu salad and bowls so that everyone can share.

2) There are a distressing amount of people here with large bowls of candy on their desks. It's always a huge variety of candy, too, meaning that no matter how quickly I avert my eyes, they are bound to settle on something that I truly L-L-LOVE. Everytime I see one of these bowls, I want to throttle their owner.
DON'T YOU KNOW? Can't you tell? How poor my willpower is? PUT THIS AWAY!

Or, maybe I'll just put on my big girl panties and deal with it. It's temptation. When I'm not trying to cut 15 pounds for a 64K run I might try one now and then. Meanwhile, I have to learn that not everything that tastes good has to be eaten nowNOWNOW and, I can abstain.

3) The way the small meal thing works is that you don't skip the small meals. EVER. Yesterday I was to have lunch with a friend, and she was about an hour later than I expected. By the time she showed up, I was ready to gnaw on my arm. I felt sick and angry at the world and thinking to myself, Oh, so this is hunger. Hunger sucks.

4) I had SparkPeople to make a little quick strength routine for me, using my bodyweight. It includes exercises I have traditionally avoided, like lunges. So, on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays I shut the door for 15 minutes in the morning and again in the afternoon, and do them in my 6 x 12 office. Everything thinks the decorative rug I put down is just pretty, but what it is is very cushiony for doing floor exercises. I've arranged furniture to do this. The routine is simple, 2 sets of 12-15 reps:

  • Pushups, Plank (60 seconds hold, not reps), back extension, crunches, and crunches with a twist (morning)
  • Forward lunges, squats, Calf raises, then stretching (afternoon)
Tuesdays and Thursdays, I run during lunch. M-W-F I'm going to try to speedwalk during lunch. Sweet Baboo insists that I should be running more, but I'm also running Friday evenings and Sundays, so I'm okay, I think. Occasionally, I'll probably miss a workout, and once the days get longer and start heating up I'll have to switch running to the morning before work, I guess. For now, this works.

BTW, Sweet Baboo did get the promotion. Shhhhhh. It hasn't been formally announced yet.

I bought this new oatmeal that we found at the local grocery story, it's Kroger brand Active Lifestyle Oatmeal. It had a lot of fiber and was on sale and had enticing pictures on the front. Go ahead and skip it; it's fairly bland. I'll finish what we bought, but I like Quaker's Simple Harvest oatmeal much better.

I'm learning a lot about psychotic disorders and symptoms, and pretty soon they'll begin training me on doing neuropsychological assessment, which sounds very cool. Meanwhile, I accidentally left my door open about a foot today and SMILE! guy stopped and talked to me for nearly 20 minutes. Of all the skills I've learned so far, extricating myself from conversations for which I do not have time are not one of them. Need to study this.

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17 comments:

  1. Congrats to the hubby on the (still secret) promotion!

    I've found that one of the things that helps with willpower is to simply have an internal script, so to speak. I never "can't" have something, but there are a lot of things that I "don't" eat. IOW, I never see a dish of candy and think, "I wish I could have a Reese's," or "Damn, I can't have chocolate today." I think, "I don't eat candy."

    It helps, for some reason. My script won't work for everyone, but you may want to see if a new one will work for you. :-)

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  2. Hey I love the 6 meal a day thing. I've been doing it since august. The key is never to go hungry. If i actually get hungry, i've gained weight the next time i step on the scale.

    i use portion control too. at a restaurant for lunch, i'll get a sandwich and chips and put half in a to-go box. that's the afternoon snack. it's worked pretty well, i've lost 4 inches off the waist!

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  3. I just ate a small piece of chocolate and thought, "hey, chocolate tastes better when you only have a small bite once a day instead of 12 handfuls of M&Ms everyday." We've cut back the chocolate supply at work to help save our jobs...saves lbs too!

    I really like Nature's Path Optimum Power oatmeal. I bring it to work and add a little hot water from the water cooler.

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  4. The only benefit of my years in eating disorder hell is that I have no trouble resisting food at meetings or candy from bowls. I spent years not being able to eat a bite in front of anyone. Now I am able not only to eat, but to enjoy eating with others (sometimes even in front of strangers - gasp). And it feels nice to say "no thanks" to random noshibles from a place of health! I'd share that ease with you if I could do so without sharing the icky part that came first! Good luck with your six meal plan!

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  5. i, too, have been eating multiple smaller meals and am finding myself less hungry throughout the day. i'm glad they are working for you so far, and the scale will catch on to it soon too!

    so true about co-workers' candy bowls and food at meetings! it is so hard to resist even if eat before hand.

    love that you are getting in workouts in your office! keep it up!

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  6. If you ever figure out the willpower thingy, let me know the secret. I have never met a candy that I could pass up. Just looking at that picture makes me salivate.

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  7. You've got all the right mental tricks going. And planks. PLANKS!! OMG - I did 2 1 minute planks once and hurt for days. I haven't had the courage to do them again.

    Your scale will move soon - I know it will but not possibly before your clothes fit better. Sometimes it just works like that and honestly which is better - number or fit?

    Congrats to SB - yay!

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  8. I really have to learn that "I don't have to eat nice things just b/c they're there" thing. Good point.
    Congratulations on SBs great news (unofficially of course)

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  9. Tell me that this is a random picture downloaded off the internet and not an ACTUAL picture of the ACTUAL candy! That is an irresistible mix...

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  10. Thanks for the info about SharkPeople.com It looks like a really cool site.

    Extracting yourself from long conversations? I wish I knew how to do that too.

    Stay tuned...

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  11. I so suck at this eating thing. You are doing so much better than me.

    Congrats to Baboo!!

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  12. Oy vey. 6 small meals for me quickly becomes a free-for all and I turn it into 17 meals (or however many hours I happen to be awake that day).

    And yet here I am trying again.

    As for the candy bowls, I have to not take any of it. If I can just do that I'm OK, but once I start -- I can't stop. I'm an all or nothing kind of gal, I guess.

    (Silent wags for Baboo)

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  13. I just started doing the 5-6 meals thing. What a difference it makes in my energy level!

    It's been easier to resist the office treats too.

    But today I was busy and got behind and by lunchtime I was STARVING!!! I can totally relate.

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  15. I used to be a teacher, too, and those episodes of shoveling food into my mouth at 400mph have taken their toll. Good luck on the 6 meals a day plan - it sounds like it is working for you!

    Note to self: be on time to lunch with people who are trying to lose weight.

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  16. Hi, Just found your blog from chicks on bikes. Very funny. I feel the same way about chocolate, etc laying around. I can't resist it. Also agree with you on the eat 6 meals a day, I really do better if I get that many meals in during the day. I teach phys ed during the day, so sometimes, I forget to eat and then eat the kitchen counter when I get home.
    Adding you to my blogroll!

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  17. HUGE breakfast, small fast midday meal, HUGE FATTENING and DESPERATELY LARGE AFTER WORK SNACK, and then supper

    Man, that must be in the teacher handbook because it sounds EXACTLY like what I used to do and what I continually battle against.

    I am so excited to read bout your upcoming ultra. I will have to live vicariously through you and SB for ultra running.

    I have been banned from training for an ultra until I get my biking and swimming act together for CdA.

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