So, I am making a push until Easter. Tess once said that the best time to make a diet and exercise push is from New Years to Easter. I wholeheartedly agree. There's not much on the calendar that is celebratory in nature that comes with a lot of social eating. Let's use that to our advantage and make some positive and lasting changes. I am going to run consecutive 10-day phases, even if they don't start on Monday :) Easter is on April 20th. In 14 weeks and 4 days, or 101 days. That means we will be going through 10 10-day cycles. Brace yourself.
Today is Day 1 of a Fresh 10 Days.
I have been getting health-related emails since December, most about what to watch for and what will be big in 2014. Some of these things caught my eye. I will share them with you over the next couple months, but this 10 days I wanted to focus on this little gem:
"Adopting a plant-based diet could help tip the scales in your favor. A five-year study of 71,751 adults published in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics found that vegetarians tend to be slimmer than meat-eaters even though both groups eat about the same number of calories daily. Researchers say it may be because carnivores consume more fatty acids and fewer weight-loss promoting nutrients, like fiber, than herbivores do."
I am not going to be a vegetarian. I like meat and I like what it does for my body and my appetite. But I can see the advantages of eating more plants.
The first challenge this 10 Days will be to eat 3 servings of veggies & 2 servings of fruit each day.
That makes even me feel a little panicked. My diet is bread-centric. And I dislike cold foods in the cold weather. But I'll manage. Here's some ideas of how to do it:
- make a green smoothie with one cup of spinach - 1 serving
- eat a cup of carrot & celery sticks (sans ranch, please) - 1 serving
- eat a cereal bowl of salad with veggies on top (1 tbps or less of olive oil for dressing) - 2 servings plus a bonus of 1 healthy fat serving
- top your morning oatmeal with 1/2 cup berries - 1 serving
- eat a banana, apple, or orange - 1 serving
- any 1/2 cup serving FRESH fruit - 1 serving
- fruit juice or concentrate - 1/2 cup (we've been over this, but juice is so concentrated and sugary and lacks all the fibrous benefits of fresh fruit)
- drink exception: 8 oz of V8 tomato or fruit blend - 1 serving
See, not so bad.
The second challenge is to eat 1400 calories per day. We have done this before. We can do it again. Remember that fruits and veggies and protein are energy-dense foods, while breads, sugars and processed foods are calorie-dense. Energy-dense foods help you feel full, lose fat, and provide nutrients.
The third challenge is to exercise every day for a minimum of 30 minutes. We are going to increase the minimum exercise time next challenge, but for this 10 Days 30 minutes is the bare minimum. Do more if you are feeling like a rock star. If you are like me and took a huge portion of December off, and you worked out hard yesterday to kick your rear into gear, and are paying for it in soreness today...30 minutes is PLENTY. Use the things we've already learned: mix cardio up with weights, get outside, and do something with a group or partner occasionally.
The fourth and last challenge is to eat no sugar. The giant tin of almond roca is not helping my situation any, but I did have the gumption to chuck all the other Christmas candy and treats. All I have left is a big bowl full of nuts, in the shell, which will end up being a great snack. It will take time to pry them out of their stubborn shells, and they are full of healthy fat and proteins. It will become my new afternoon ritual. I personally am going to commit to indulging in sugar only once in 10 days.
The last thing about losing weight that I want to discuss today is your personal incentive, goals, or base reasons to lose weight. Some ideas are:
- Put your money where your mouth is. Websites like dietbet or healthywage let you make a goal, pay monthly, and pay you when you meet your goal. I like that! People on healthywage have won $1000 for meeting their goal weight over a 6 month period. The more lbs the more money you get. WOW!
- Don't obsess about a number on the scale. Focus instead on how you feel, how fast you run, a specific area of your body, or an item of clothing you would like to (realistically, of course) fit. Not the 1-size-smaller-than-you-have-ever-worn-in-your-life jeans that you bought on sale and hung up to remind you of how skinny you'll never be. I've never done that. Nope, not me.
- Make a goal and visualize yourself there. The more you visualize yourself exercising and being fit the more likely you will be to get out and exercise. Make a notebook with magazine pictures and positive reinforcement statements about your ability to be where you want to be. Research shows this is a powerful tool in achieving goals and people who do this are successful in their ambitions. I like to look at the Athleta catalog. It makes me want to look like that: strong and healthy, not skinny and underfed. I also want to be able to stand on my hands with my feet almost touching the ground behind me. Unrealistic? Maybe a little.
- Divide your goal in to smaller short-term goals. Want to lose 10 lbs? Set a goal to lose 1 lb per week, 4% of your total body weight in 30 days, or 1% of your body fat in 2 weeks. These are all realistic and healthy goals that help you focus on the smaller less overwhelming task to get to your overall goal. I am terrible at this: I set my weight loss goal and put it off, convincing myself that I can do it all in the last 10 weeks of my time period. Classic fail technique. Works every time.
- Reward yourself. If you work out all 10 Days this time, buy a new piece of exercise clothing or other clothing item. If you're like me, new exercise clothes always make me excited to work out.
- Set activity-based goals. Run a half-marathon, ride 100 miles, hike to the top of Mt. Timpanogos, do a triathlon, go to Hawaii (jealous). Having an activity with a set date will encourage you to get fit enough to accomplish this activity in an enjoyable manner: no walking the marathon, or taking 20 hours to summit, or wearing a mu-mu on the beach. Know it's coming and OWN IT! I entered a lottery for the Little Red 100 mile bike event on June 7. I hope I get chosen...and if I do, I'll be ready! If I don't, I'll need someone to be support while I ride 100 miles on my own...somewhere. This also means I need to start riding my bike downstairs. Ugh.
- Do it for your right reasons. We've discussed this before in this post, but make sure you are making this journey for a good reason, one you and your family can all support, and that mentally will help you become a better person for you. Doing this for the right reasons will help you stick to your goals. My reasons are that I want to reach my personal best. I have always wanted to reach that best and stay there. My goal is to be lighter so everything in my life is easier: hiking, walking, running, and playing. I want to be healthy so I can keep pace with my teen-aged daughters, my amazing Mom (who did a ninja course at a trampoline park at 60...NINJA!) and, eventually (heaven help us all) my grandchildren. Also to set a good example for my daughters of a healthy lifestyle and eating habits, so they can avoid problems such as anorexia or bulimia which affect so many young girls and women today.
Are you ready? I am! So I'll end this ridiculously long and blathering post with this inspirational and thought-provoking quote...and then I'm going to work out. I'm already in my workout clothes. Half the battle is already won.
Be Committed!
And Kathryn, we love you. Your dad was, and is, a great and kind person. Having seven daughters, he had the patience of Job, and he passed on his best qualities to you. You and your family are in our prayers.
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