Learning new things
Tuesday afternoon. More running around at work. More down-to-the-wire product releases. Still love my team and my job although not entirely thrilled with what it does to my holidays. Enough about that.
TCB is at my condo (or is supposed to be) doing little "to do" items today. He's got a seminar in San Diego tomorrow so he's going to stay overnight, which is very rare, so it will be nice to have company tonight. Of course, he will get to watch me do another 20 minute workout tonight (deck repairman came over this morning so I didn't get it done then), which ought to be interesting. He'll also get to watch me eat one of my healthy, prepared meals and that will be interesting, too. I'm not going out to dinner and will happily help him order take out from Chilis or Outback if that's what he'd like for dinner himself.
So, what am I doing for a food plan? Well, I'm giving up on dieting. Before you panic, read on. I've been reading a great deal from The Overcoming Bulimia Workbook, which was recommended to me by my therapist, and one of the things they recommend for recovery is to give up the idea of dieting. Restricting food is one of the most common triggers for symptoms of bulimia (and binge eating disorder, which is basically bulimia stopped at the binge portion of the disease) and that's certainly something I've seen in my own life.
The theory is that everyone has a setpoint weight...a weight that your body will naturally gravitate to if you eat in a reasonable manner (1800-2200 calories a day for women and 2400-2800 for men) and put some planned physical activity into your day. I know that, the last two times I've lost over 100 pounds, weight has dropped off of me while I ate between 1800 and 2000 calories, so this should really work well for me. I must give up the idea that I'm "dieting", though, and I must also make sure that I'm not feeling physically hungry, as that can trigger the binge urge. The sample meal plans they provide look a lot like what I'm doing now with the addition of a mid-morning snack, mid-afternoon snack, and (potentially) an after-dinner snack. Each of these snacks would be between 100 and 250 calories and could include things like a nonfat, decaf, sugar-free hazelnut latte or a Campbell's Soup at Hand or a nonfat yogurt or some cheese and crackers.
Another important concept is the idea of very regimented eating, at least for a while, so that you don't have the chance to get hungry (and then make poor choices in response). In essence, I set up regular meal and snack times and stick to them even if I'm not necessarily hungry. For me, that's going to look something like:
7am - Cinnamon apple french toast with apple juice, two strawberries (500 calories)
9:45 - latte (210 calories at S'bucks)
12:30 - Ants on a Log (3), Veggie Sticks, Deviled Egg and Apple Slices with Caramel Dip (400 calories)
3:15 - Soup at Hand (between 60 and 180 calories)
6pm - Mexican lasagna with carrots and rice pudding (450 calories)
8:15pm (optional, if hungry) - cup of herbal tea with a Nilla wafer
(That happens to be today's menu, in case you're wondering.)
Oops, I've got a meeting to run to, but I'll be back later with more info about The Plan.
TCB is at my condo (or is supposed to be) doing little "to do" items today. He's got a seminar in San Diego tomorrow so he's going to stay overnight, which is very rare, so it will be nice to have company tonight. Of course, he will get to watch me do another 20 minute workout tonight (deck repairman came over this morning so I didn't get it done then), which ought to be interesting. He'll also get to watch me eat one of my healthy, prepared meals and that will be interesting, too. I'm not going out to dinner and will happily help him order take out from Chilis or Outback if that's what he'd like for dinner himself.
So, what am I doing for a food plan? Well, I'm giving up on dieting. Before you panic, read on. I've been reading a great deal from The Overcoming Bulimia Workbook, which was recommended to me by my therapist, and one of the things they recommend for recovery is to give up the idea of dieting. Restricting food is one of the most common triggers for symptoms of bulimia (and binge eating disorder, which is basically bulimia stopped at the binge portion of the disease) and that's certainly something I've seen in my own life.
The theory is that everyone has a setpoint weight...a weight that your body will naturally gravitate to if you eat in a reasonable manner (1800-2200 calories a day for women and 2400-2800 for men) and put some planned physical activity into your day. I know that, the last two times I've lost over 100 pounds, weight has dropped off of me while I ate between 1800 and 2000 calories, so this should really work well for me. I must give up the idea that I'm "dieting", though, and I must also make sure that I'm not feeling physically hungry, as that can trigger the binge urge. The sample meal plans they provide look a lot like what I'm doing now with the addition of a mid-morning snack, mid-afternoon snack, and (potentially) an after-dinner snack. Each of these snacks would be between 100 and 250 calories and could include things like a nonfat, decaf, sugar-free hazelnut latte or a Campbell's Soup at Hand or a nonfat yogurt or some cheese and crackers.
Another important concept is the idea of very regimented eating, at least for a while, so that you don't have the chance to get hungry (and then make poor choices in response). In essence, I set up regular meal and snack times and stick to them even if I'm not necessarily hungry. For me, that's going to look something like:
7am - Cinnamon apple french toast with apple juice, two strawberries (500 calories)
9:45 - latte (210 calories at S'bucks)
12:30 - Ants on a Log (3), Veggie Sticks, Deviled Egg and Apple Slices with Caramel Dip (400 calories)
3:15 - Soup at Hand (between 60 and 180 calories)
6pm - Mexican lasagna with carrots and rice pudding (450 calories)
8:15pm (optional, if hungry) - cup of herbal tea with a Nilla wafer
(That happens to be today's menu, in case you're wondering.)
Oops, I've got a meeting to run to, but I'll be back later with more info about The Plan.
Comments
Sounds like a good plan, though.
I like how you sound lately, makes me smile :)
Yum!
Good luck Denise!
Kristin