Saturday, September 3, 2011

An Unexpected Side Effect

It was recently stated that it doesn't seem like there are many veggies in my diet.   ALL Healthy Choice steamers include veggies, I had salad yesterday (lettuce, tomato, onion, olives), I had greek salad for the last three or four days in a row.  That's cucumbers, tomatoes, onions, garbanzo beans, and asparagus with chicken and vinegar.  On my chicken sub I had tomato, onion, cucumber, and olives.  When we had chinese food I ordered beef with broccoli.  And that's just in the last five posts (and yes I know tomatoes are a fruit because of their seeds but that is a technical distinction, nothing more).  For breakfast this morning I had a veggie and egg white omlette - mushrooms, onions, olives, tomatoes.

I have stuck with this blog, and will continue to do so, because it keeps me accountable on my food choices.  I've mentioned this before but when I feel the urge to eat something that I know I shouldn't I think 'I can't post this on my blog' and more often than not I don't eat it.  Sometimes I give in and when I do I post it and the feeling of having to do so helps me resist the next dozen or so urges to eat something bad again.

But blogging has had an unexpected side effect.  It seems many people in the world have an opinion and they like to share it, which is fine.  But all too often when I choose not to take someone's advice, or when someone offers advice based on incomplete information and I attempt to 'fill in the blanks' I tend to offend them.  Suffice it to say, in the end, I am going to ultimately make the decisions that I think are best - or that are available options for my personal situation.  It doesn't mean I'm not reading everyone's comments but I can't take everyone's advice because several of you are offering precisely opposite suggestions - I can't eat more and less at the same time so someone's advice must go unheeded.  Please try not to take it personally.

To recap: I am not starving myself.  I eat on a schedule on most days, I don't wait until I'm hungry, I don't allow myself to feel like I'm "starving".  If I do feel hungry outside of my schedule I compensate with a reasonable snack like peanut butter or sunflower seeds and I am open to suggestions if they are for things that are readily available and affordable and practical.  I don't mean to offend but sometimes I do get frustrated with having to repeat myself for new readers and sometimes that frustration comes out in a non-diplomatic way.  I would also like to invite all new readers to please take a moment to review the articles of faith post, permanently located in the upper left margin of this blog.  Some things have changed as I've progressed but the basic principles of my mission have remained the same.





Food:
102 oz of water
1 veggie and egg white omlette
2 slices wheat toast with pico (great jam substitute)
1 skinny cow ice cream
4 tbsps hummus
>>w/8 baby carrots
1 serving green tea and ginger ale
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Daily Caloric Intake: 862




Activity:
Grocery Shopping: 1 hour
Walking: (Distance unknown but about 30 - 45 minutes)

10 comments:

  1. I was offended because you put all your frustrations on me. Frustrations from several comments all landed in my lap. That was not fair. I had only previously posted that my mom can only loose on an 800 calorie diet. You seemed VERY unhappy, so I made the colossal mistake of suggesting that you could eat *more* as in addition to what you were already eating, and maybe not be so unhappy. I really meant no offense, and even apologized to you.

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  2. I'm glad you're taking the hard stance on this one. Yes people give advice, and it always amazes me how they get hurt if you/we don't take it.

    Well, there. You'll do what you think is best.

    But on the half of the well meaning biddys of the world, I'll warn you, we know you may ignore us, but it's so much human nature to give advice. . . so we'll probably keep doing it.

    In the mean time, you won't offend me if you never take it.

    Weight is a HARD struggle, and you are proving to have goals and drive (even if it struggles!) over the long haul. That is an awesome thing.

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  3. Angela: admittedly your post was the catalyst for me to vent my frustration but I didn't address you specifically. "you people" is plural. You took it as a personal attack on you but it was addressed to all.

    Just today yet another reader accused me of starving myself, and suggested I eat more and exercise and let the weight come off slowly. I can't understand this. For months now I have been eating more and exercising and getting absolutely nowhere. It seems so many readers base their perspective of an entire 10 month blog on the 1 - 5 most recent posts. Therein lies my frustrations. It's like they think I haven't tried their ideas just because I haven't tried them in the last week. I've been at this for almost 300 days and I've been stalled for months despite varying my intakes, exercises, and food choices. I'm frustrated in general, maybe more with my own body than anything else. It's maddening to lose 60 lbs almost easily and then stop dead no matter how hard I try.

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  4. Have you tried dropping your calories down a little more? That may get the weight moving.

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  5. Anonymous: I shudder to think of the hell I would catch from every other reader except you if I went below 800 two or three days in a row. lol But you're right. Even a short, dramatic intake change just to get something going - like breaking the ice. Not a permanent starvation diet but certainly a week of either low calories or extremely intense workouts to punch through this wall. I am totally with you. I mean I'm taking prenatal vitamins so it's not like I'm going to suffer malnutrition if I go on a two or three day fruit fast or something right? That's so not a half bad idea. Maybe next time we go shopping I'll stock up on veggies and fruits and do three or four days of nothing but roughage .... I like it!


    Quick side note: Just found a comment in my SPAM folder suggesting that if I am going to allow comments on my blog I need to "suck it up" and accept that people will offer advice. I had every intention of publishing it but the links are small and close together on the iPad and it got deleted by mistake (c'mon, if I had deleted it on purpose I wouldn't even bother to mention it right?)

    I wanted to publish it so that I could reply to it in order to clarify, I'm fine with ya'll offering advice but don't get all offended if I don't take it. I frequently open this blog up to advice and suggestions and some of the BEST advice and suggestions have come from you, the readers. I have no problem with your suggestions, it just sucks that some people take offense if I don't take advice or if I try to explain that I've already tried something and it didn't work. That's all I'm saying.

    The anonymous commenter suggested that he/she shouldn't have to read the entire blog before making a suggestion. Fair enough. But then don't take it personal if your suggestion gets a "been there, done that" response.

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  6. I am the one who commented. I think you should chill out a little when it comes to comments. People are not out to get you just "offer" some sound advice, you have the choice to either take it or leave it.
    I went back and scanned your entries from the beginning and I saw 1 mistake. You started off eating too few calories to begin with and that is why you have had to lower to 800 to keep losing.
    I feel really bad for you, I weigh exactly the same as you and I am losing consistently on 2000-2500 calories a day, plus exercise.
    Anyway, I wanted to share this link with you I found it very interesting.

    http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/core_march_8.htm

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  7. Haha, so in other words you're going to punch me in the face for commenting on your Sept 6th abt the calories? LOL I got to that one in my news feed before I got to this one. I don't know that I'd commented on the calorie count before, but had never seen it under 900 either when I was paying attention. Overall, I think you just have to do what is best for you. You know your body. I can go some days and have 700 calories, when I log them in I think there's no way and try to remember if I ate more than what I recorded, but nope. 700 it is and that's fine.

    I have read through SOME of your past stuff, but not all. I think you are doing good, your progress is just wonderful and the pics really are worth a million words - just stay true to yourself. Best wishes!

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  8. Kristin: Again, you're missing the point. My point isn't that I mind your comments it's that people who get all butt hurt if I don't heed their comments are the ones that need to chill out. My post wasn't for people to stop commenting it was for people to stop taking offense if I choose to ignore their comments. Congrats on being able to eat what is considered standard maintenance level calories and still lose weight, clearly your metabolism is A LOT higher than most people's. That must be nice for you.

    April: Aw nah I don't punch people, especially not in the face. ;)

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  9. BTW, you look great!

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  10. Kristine: Thanks! And I apologize for misspelling your name in my previous response, I really need to stop blogging with my iPad lol. Waaay too many typo's. Every time I try to say "Snackers" it tries to change it to Snickers ... probably also an appropriate nickname for him though. lol

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