Taking Charge: The Challenges

Moving towards a healthier lifestyle has its challenges: there are days when I don’t feel like exercising, eating healthily, where I’m feeling demotivated… I can deal with these but I have found that my biggest challenge is eating enough protein.

I know, right? I can just see your looks of puzzlement and surprise. How can I, a self-confessed carnivore, have a problem eating enough protein? Well, it’s harder than you think. With my new eating plan I’ve had no problems reducing my carb intake, but eating protein has proven a challenge especially as I have high cholesterol. It has been out with fatty meats - not that I ever ate much because I prefer lean meat but I do miss bacon! Red meat is a rarity as I only like the good cuts (read pricey and out of my budget) and I’ve therefore been eating a lot of chicken and fish. And then I went of chicken (it just tastes weird).

So what options am I left with? Not much it turns out. Beans and pulses are not an option for me because they are very starchy. Tofu is revolting and belongs in the same category as brussel sprouts and beetroot. I don’t eat eggs and there is only so much cottage cheese or ricotta anyone can eat. When my dietician told me how much cottage cheese I should eat in a sitting I thought she must be mad: a quarter to half a tub!

I’m starting to think that my disinterest in meat may be due to the fact that I am tired of cooking. There is nothing more demotivating than cooking for one person. No wonder single people live off ready-made meals. Woolworths knows what it’s doing.

On a positive note though: I’ve reached an incredible achievement in that I do not actually beat myself up or feel guilty if I don’t stick 100% to my eating plan, or if I decide to not go to gym on a gym day. I think that not feeling guilty is not only good for the soul but it can help me achieve more because I do not view the slippages as failures any more. For someone with ingrain guilt complex, that’s major.

Now to get my taste buds back into gear.

The Inconceivable

I plead guilty

The inconceivable has happened.

A few months ago I was going on about how I felt that so many of my friends were pregnant. That I really wasn’t fond of babies and that I didn’t know how I was going to adjust to this new environment.

Well, it’s been a few months since that post and I have met the new arrivals.

Now I can’t say much about newborns (sorry Nads), but, I have to admit, that slightly older babies can be quite cute (as long as I can give them back to their parents. THAT much has not changed). But yes, you heard right. Babies. Can. Be. Cute.

There. I’ve said it. Cute.

Newborns I am still wary of. They don’t look quite “right”. After 2 or so months they start looking like mini-humans and I can start relating to them then. The personality starts poking through and they become more interactive. That’s fine with me. Mini-human versus mini-mini humanoid.

Now please don’t go shoving babies in my face every 5 seconds or I’ll scream at you. But, I am OK around them (when they are all gurgly and stuff. Wailing babies still make me want to bolt for the door).

Interesting fact: Babies in the first few months look more like their fathers than their mothers. This is because it enables the fathers to accept that the baby is theirs and not someone else’s (this came from way back in our early evolutionary days and stayed). Kinda nifty of Mother Nature, don’t you think? When I look at Dave and Wanja’s son Connor he is a mini Dave. Quite amazing!

So to my newly parental friends (and slightly older): I’m OK with your kids. I accept the responsibility of crazy Auntie (but DO NOT blame me for what your kid might learn through me).

As for me having kids of my own? HELL NO! Not yet anyway.

Fitness and Weight Loss Challenge: Week 8

I have not blogged much regarding the challenge this month. Why? Well, there is nothing to report really. I lost 1 kg at the start of the month (I am now down to 92kg) and I have not lost a gram since.

I have hit my first plateau and it just SUCKS! It’s utterly demotivating to be eating really healthily and exercising and not having anything to show for it. I am at a loss of how to get past it. I do a variety of exercises at gym to prevent my body from getting used to routine. I’m following the Weigh-Less eating plan as closely as possible, but I just cannot eat the quantities of veggies that I should (400-700g/day). I get full so quickly. So I try and eat “heavier” veggies to hit 200g in one sitting, but that is not always possible. I was logging what I was eating on MyFitnessPal, and it clearly showed that I am under their recommended calories for weight-loss. It’s possible my body is rebelling against me and hoarding fat. So I’m working really hard at eating more, but the quantities just make me feel nauseous.

It’s really hard to remain motivated at a time like this. Now of course this week my body is screaming blue murder for all the things I should not eat. Thanks PMS. I love you too. So it’s a double challenge: to stay motivated and to not reach for food for that instant comfort.

We’ll see in two Saturday’s time what my cholesterol levels are up to. I was supposed to go this Saturday but the clinic is only open every second Saturday. I admit I am nervous. It should have dropped. I have lost some weight, exercising regularly and eating healthy. But with my luck nothing will have happened.

So yes, feeling utterly miserable right now. Sorry for the whine and whinge.

Then again, as I am learning in the "Living Your Potential" course (more on that in another blog): THIS TOO SHALL PASS. I just need to be patient.

Weight Loss & Fitness Challenge: Week 1

So I'm one week into the challenge and so far so good. I've managed to shed the 3kg that crept on during the holiday, which makes me very happy. I’m down to 96 this morning.

I've also been to gym 3 times and had my pilates session. I was talking with my next door neighbour (KM) and she informed me that the Planet Fitness next to home has NIA classes on a Thursday afternoon. I love dancing and it’s something I’ve been wanting to do for a while. I can’t wait to try it out. KM and I are also planning on walking twice a week. My other friend Bee also wants to get back on track with Weigh-Less so once a week we’ll meet up for a weigh-in and healthy lunch.

I think doing this challenge with friends will help me stay on track. That has been the hardest part in the past. I’m also mentally in the right space to be doing this. I think trying to be healthy when one is depressed does not work.

Funnily enough I haven't got any chocolate cravings...yet. That's a good sign. The hardest part was giving up coffee. One more week and I can have my morning cuppa again. Rooibos just does not have the same effect as a good cup of coffee.

On the not so great part. I went to have blood tests done. My fasting glucose levels are fine and good. My cholesterol on the other hand, not so much. They’re sitting at 6.9mmol/l. They should be less than 5. So I've been told to take lots of Omega3 and eat healthy and exercise. Funny how that's just what I've started doing. In 6 weeks time I need to go back and if the levels are still high then we know it's genetic and I'll have to take meds. Keep fingers crossed that my health regime will be the cure!

Glue and Sushi

Every year we make resolutions and every year we break them. So how can one stick to them like glue? I thought for a while about it and realised that trying to lose weight solo is not fun, that it would be easier with a friend. My friend Lownstar was moaning that he’s become too fat and unfit and that is when the light bulb of Eureka popped over my head: I challenged him to a Weight Loss and Fitness Challenge. 

This is how it will work. We have set monthly goals for which we get points if we achieve them and loose points if we don’t. The monthly winner gets taken out for sushi. I can’t think of a better motivation than free sushi. The reason I’ve chosen my friend as a sparring partner is that he is very stubborn and the least likely person to flake out on me. His addiction to sushi and stubbornness will force me to be diligent about going to gym and sticking to my Weigh-Less eating plan.

My monthly goals: Gym 3 times a week, Pilates once a week, 2kg weight loss/month and not exceeding my Weigh-Less eating plan. If I lose more weight or go to the gym more often I get points for that too. Goals not achieved will result in a point loss. The system still needs to be figured out in more detail, as it needs to be fair both ways.

My current stats:

Weight: 99kg at the start of the week (beached whale anyone). I’ve somehow already managed to ditch 2kgs. I am happy. And I have already earned my point for that. MWAHAHAH! Keep fingers crossed that there will be more by the end of the month.
Waist circumference: 90cm. I aim to get to 80cm and less, and to fit in a size 34 again.
Hip circumference: 126cm. Reduce reduce!
Thigh circumference: 78cm. This is my biggest problem area. I would like to get down to a size 38 or 36 even.
Arm circumference: 40cm. Bye bye bingo wings. I mean it!

By the end of the year I hope to be presentable in a bathing suit.