My neck pain was nearly gone when I woke up this morning. I slept much better last night as well. I did use my back massager before falling asleep. It was GLORIOUS! I was so very grateful for it last night and I think it helped me have a much better day today.
I woke up around the same time as yesterday morning. The weather was extra hot. But, I had a little more in me so I stayed out to walk/jog for an hour and 15 minutes. I also did a relaxing yoga routine after I cooled down a bit. I tried to drink a lot of water today, but I think I still didn't keep up with how much the heat and dry air is sucking me dry out here!
I weighed myself before heading out the door this morning and was down another pound since yesterday morning. Whahoo! I'm curious to see if I'll show any progress tomorrow morning, since the past 2 days I've been playing catch up from where I was before the trip I took last weekend.
I'm loving how satisfied I have been feeling though. I was punching in my calories to report on here again and was shocked (again) to see that I only had 1568 calories, leaving me at 720 net calories. Here is what I ate:
Breakfast:
The usual oatmeal banana berry bowl with flax seed and almond milk.
Lunch:
1/2 avocado spread on 2 slices of toast
1 cup of Quinoa & Brown Rice with Garlic
1 Corn on the Cob (steamed)
1 apple
Snack:
1 serving (38) Veggie Straws
Dinner:
2 bowls of Special K Cereal with Strawberries and Almond Milk
...Something I noticed yesterday that I didn't mention is that I started to break out a little bit. I didn't mention it because I thought it was due to the Noxema I used to wash my face with (I don't usually use Noxema). But, this morning I used my usual face wash and I noticed later today that I had a few more blemishes. Whether or not this is hormone related, I think it is linked to the dietary change. I'm curious to see if this is one of those things that will get worse before it gets better..or if this is just an interesting consequence of eating all starches. I'm really hoping this means that my complexion is just crapping out now because it's purging and changing and that my pores will magically get smaller and my skin tone will magically look younger. Wouldn't that be nice?
Friday, July 20, 2018
Thursday, July 19, 2018
The Starch Solution: Day 2
I am trying to reset my body clock to go to bed much earlier and getting up earlier so I'll be ready when school starts. I went to bed early last night. Therefore, it was a little difficult for me to fall asleep. I felt torn between sleep and going for a walk because I had energy to burn. I stayed in bed.
I woke up this morning with a very sore neck. I wonder if I slept funny once I finally did fall asleep or if the neck pain is related to my spinal stenosis in my C7 area and if the change in my diet over the past few days has anything to do with it. I did, after all, eat a lot of junk food over the weekend before I finished McDougall's book and started the 7-Day Challenge to go with the starch solution.
Despite my neck pain, I felt a tinge lighter so I had to check the scale. Down 1.6 lbs from yesterday. Sweet!
I went on my walk/run this morning. My joints felt a little stiff. Again, I wonder if it is due to the diet changes or how I slept or maybe it's because I had my first longer workout yesterday morning than I've had in almost 2 weeks.
Last night, while I couldn't sleep, I went ahead and punched in all of the food I ate yesterday into MyFitnessPal, just to see what it amounted to. I know I'm not supposed to concern myself with counting calories on this plan, but I just felt like it. I couldn't believe how satisfied I felt with only consuming 1619 calories (1200 net calories). And, I ate, what felt like, a lot.
Day 1
Breakfast:
I had my usual large bowl of oatmeal and flaxseed with blueberries, strawberries, almond milk, and banana
Lunch:
3 cups of O'rieda potatoes with Onions and Peppers with salsa and Tofu Ranch Dressing Dip
1 banana
Apple Jacks Cereal with almond milk
Snacks:
Strawberry Crunch Cereal with almond milk
Banana
Dinner:
Quinoa & Brown Rice with Garlic (Seeds of Change)
Frozen Mixed Vegetables
Honey Gram Cookies
Day 2
Breakfast:
My usual oatmeal banana berry bowl
Lunch:
Kale and Cabbage salad with Calorie Free Thousand Island Dressing
Red Lentil Rigatoni Pasta
Dinner:
Brown rice, mushroom, onion, and olives in a pressure cooker
Special K strawberry cereal with added blueberries and strawberries
My energy levels have been pretty steady as well. With this starch diet, I was half expecting to have peaks and valleys with my energy levels, but I haven't experienced that yet. I am also thrilled to not have so much anxiety about what to eat and when. This still seems to be simple. :)
I woke up this morning with a very sore neck. I wonder if I slept funny once I finally did fall asleep or if the neck pain is related to my spinal stenosis in my C7 area and if the change in my diet over the past few days has anything to do with it. I did, after all, eat a lot of junk food over the weekend before I finished McDougall's book and started the 7-Day Challenge to go with the starch solution.
Despite my neck pain, I felt a tinge lighter so I had to check the scale. Down 1.6 lbs from yesterday. Sweet!
I went on my walk/run this morning. My joints felt a little stiff. Again, I wonder if it is due to the diet changes or how I slept or maybe it's because I had my first longer workout yesterday morning than I've had in almost 2 weeks.
Last night, while I couldn't sleep, I went ahead and punched in all of the food I ate yesterday into MyFitnessPal, just to see what it amounted to. I know I'm not supposed to concern myself with counting calories on this plan, but I just felt like it. I couldn't believe how satisfied I felt with only consuming 1619 calories (1200 net calories). And, I ate, what felt like, a lot.
Day 1
Breakfast:
I had my usual large bowl of oatmeal and flaxseed with blueberries, strawberries, almond milk, and banana
Lunch:
3 cups of O'rieda potatoes with Onions and Peppers with salsa and Tofu Ranch Dressing Dip
1 banana
Apple Jacks Cereal with almond milk
Snacks:
Strawberry Crunch Cereal with almond milk
Banana
Dinner:
Quinoa & Brown Rice with Garlic (Seeds of Change)
Frozen Mixed Vegetables
Honey Gram Cookies
Day 2
Breakfast:
My usual oatmeal banana berry bowl
Lunch:
Kale and Cabbage salad with Calorie Free Thousand Island Dressing
Red Lentil Rigatoni Pasta
Dinner:
Brown rice, mushroom, onion, and olives in a pressure cooker
Special K strawberry cereal with added blueberries and strawberries
My energy levels have been pretty steady as well. With this starch diet, I was half expecting to have peaks and valleys with my energy levels, but I haven't experienced that yet. I am also thrilled to not have so much anxiety about what to eat and when. This still seems to be simple. :)
Wednesday, July 18, 2018
Is it really this simple?
Well Hello Blogger....I am sorry to tell you this, but I completely forgot about you. The past few years have been nothing short of busy. So, my new goal is to SIMPLIFY. I'm laughing at myself right now as I see I've bolded the word and just past my laptop screen, I see 3 different types of calendars tacked to my wall. I have one monthly calendar dedicated to my workout regimen, one large whiteboard weekly calendar dedicated to my meal planning, and one smaller month whiteboard calendar for my meetings and events.
I really put a lot into those calendars because I had so much anxiety about achieving my weight loss goals. Desperate; is the word I would use to describe my feelings in regards to my health.
If you were to sum up what I've explained in previous blogs, I have been obese since the age of 5. I have usually had a desire for exercise. I am ambitious and driven. Yet, still overweight. I've tried the Curves diet, Jenny Craig, MyFitnessPal, and Whole30 (paleo). I've tried the "run it off" approach. That only works while you're young and is still ineffective because of a hormone called cortisol (stress from overly elevated heart rate) and a thing called inflammation; which causes your joints and muscles to stiffen and creates lots of pain. I've finally made it a matter of daily prayer.
I know low carb, high-fat diets work great for many people. But, let me tell you; it makes my heart feel sluggish and it does not make me want to go running and hiking; the 2 of my most favorite "healthy" things! Plus, it just seems excessive; to be eating like that. Something about it never sat well with me and I think it's because I know it's against the Word of Wisdom. We've been counseled in the church doctrine to eat meat sparingly. So, in my quest for the truth about what I should be eating, I stumbled on a youtube video. The part at the end of it had me almost in tears. As Dr. Lim poured water into this dark brown glass of coke and the brown started to clear out, I started to feel some real hope for me. This is the video I'm referring to for anyone interested:WHY I QUIT PALEO KETOGENIC DIET & WENT PLANT-BASED - Dr. Lim
I was so inspired, by his words and his examples of health but I didn't know where to start and was honestly pretty overwhelmed. I decided to keep watching and listening to different things that could help me understand what I should be eating and be motivated to ditch some of the foods that I love. I discovered High Carb Hannah, Mic the Vegan, and Plant-based news. I eventually learned about nutritarianism and read Dr. Furhman's book, Eat to Live. Of course, I was even more excited about the results I was hearing about but still struggled to implement. It took months of being primarily vegetarian and then finally cutting out dairy a few weeks ago. It's so funny how much I struggled at first to come to terms with labeling myself nutritarian or vegan. But, now I find it's easier if I just tell people I'm trying to eat Whole Food Plant-Based, and if they look confused I tell them I'm leaning towards being vegan. And, if they still look confused, I just tell them I'm avoiding dairy and animal products. It's easier if I tell people so they won't expect me to eat something they've prepared. But, I haven't gone all facebook post happy about it or anything. Maybe I will announce it when the school year starts or something just so no-one brings me a dairy-filled "treat."
My most recent and exciting discovery is Dr. McDougall's book, The Starch Solution. It's so simple! I love it! This is so much easier than the Nutritarian plan. So, today is day 1 of the 7-day challenge.
Here are the 10 Rules of the 7 Day Starch Challenge:
Whole starches include beans, potatoes, and rice. It's so simple! It's so cheap! I hope this really does work! I weighed myself this morning and will weigh myself again next week. So far, I'm surprised just how filling these foods have been. So long as I'm not dehydrated, I'm feeling pretty content thus far....
I really put a lot into those calendars because I had so much anxiety about achieving my weight loss goals. Desperate; is the word I would use to describe my feelings in regards to my health.
If you were to sum up what I've explained in previous blogs, I have been obese since the age of 5. I have usually had a desire for exercise. I am ambitious and driven. Yet, still overweight. I've tried the Curves diet, Jenny Craig, MyFitnessPal, and Whole30 (paleo). I've tried the "run it off" approach. That only works while you're young and is still ineffective because of a hormone called cortisol (stress from overly elevated heart rate) and a thing called inflammation; which causes your joints and muscles to stiffen and creates lots of pain. I've finally made it a matter of daily prayer.
I know low carb, high-fat diets work great for many people. But, let me tell you; it makes my heart feel sluggish and it does not make me want to go running and hiking; the 2 of my most favorite "healthy" things! Plus, it just seems excessive; to be eating like that. Something about it never sat well with me and I think it's because I know it's against the Word of Wisdom. We've been counseled in the church doctrine to eat meat sparingly. So, in my quest for the truth about what I should be eating, I stumbled on a youtube video. The part at the end of it had me almost in tears. As Dr. Lim poured water into this dark brown glass of coke and the brown started to clear out, I started to feel some real hope for me. This is the video I'm referring to for anyone interested:WHY I QUIT PALEO KETOGENIC DIET & WENT PLANT-BASED - Dr. Lim
I was so inspired, by his words and his examples of health but I didn't know where to start and was honestly pretty overwhelmed. I decided to keep watching and listening to different things that could help me understand what I should be eating and be motivated to ditch some of the foods that I love. I discovered High Carb Hannah, Mic the Vegan, and Plant-based news. I eventually learned about nutritarianism and read Dr. Furhman's book, Eat to Live. Of course, I was even more excited about the results I was hearing about but still struggled to implement. It took months of being primarily vegetarian and then finally cutting out dairy a few weeks ago. It's so funny how much I struggled at first to come to terms with labeling myself nutritarian or vegan. But, now I find it's easier if I just tell people I'm trying to eat Whole Food Plant-Based, and if they look confused I tell them I'm leaning towards being vegan. And, if they still look confused, I just tell them I'm avoiding dairy and animal products. It's easier if I tell people so they won't expect me to eat something they've prepared. But, I haven't gone all facebook post happy about it or anything. Maybe I will announce it when the school year starts or something just so no-one brings me a dairy-filled "treat."
My most recent and exciting discovery is Dr. McDougall's book, The Starch Solution. It's so simple! I love it! This is so much easier than the Nutritarian plan. So, today is day 1 of the 7-day challenge.
Here are the 10 Rules of the 7 Day Starch Challenge:
- Eat more starch
- Eat as much as you want
- Don't go hungry
- "Eat when you're hungry. Stop when you're full."
- Choose the least processed starch as possible
- Example: Brown rice; not White rice
- Eat plenty of vegetables and fruits
- Eliminate animal foods from your diet
- NO meat
- NO dairy
- Keep your fat intake as low as possible
- Enjoy nuts, seeds, avocados, coconut sparingly, and only occasionally
- Avoid any added fats and oils
- Skip highly processed soy foods and enjoy minimally processed soy foods
- Enjoy tofu, edamame, soymilk infrequently
- These foods are richer than you think!
- Go easy on sugar and salt but don't sweat the small stuff.
- They're usually the scapegoat, not the problem
- Only put on the surface of the food -don't mix in while preparing
- Avoid temptation and discard tempting foods from home and work
- Keep your fridge and cupboards stocked with GOOD foods
Whole starches include beans, potatoes, and rice. It's so simple! It's so cheap! I hope this really does work! I weighed myself this morning and will weigh myself again next week. So far, I'm surprised just how filling these foods have been. So long as I'm not dehydrated, I'm feeling pretty content thus far....
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