Day 2.10: Finish Strong!

It's the LAST day of our SECOND challenge!  This is HUGE!  

If you complete today, you will have eaten clean and avoided sugar for 20 days.  That is amazing!  You should be so proud of all the good habits you've embraced and the bad habits you've put aside.  Even if it's just one habit, it's a move in the right direction.

Don't let up, get that workout in today before you get distracted today with all the shopping, house cleaning, laundry, and party preparation...make time for yourself.

I saw this really great article today from Shape magazine.  It is 11 ways to burn more calories naturally. Do I have your attention?  This just reinforces a few of the things we've discussed over the last two challenges, including drinking water and increasing your protein intake. Check it out: http://www.shape.com/weight-loss/weight-maintenance/11-ways-rev-your-metabolism?utm_source=LifestyleNewsletter&utm_medium=Newsletter&utm_term=AllNLsubscribers&utm_campaign=LifestyleNewsletter121113&utm_content=B

Things to do today:

• Measure & weigh yourself today (or tomorrow).
• Eat some low-sugar Greek Yogurt today.
• Cook with some olive oil or drizzle it on a salad.
• Post in the comments if you've lost any weight or BF%.  Be accountable for the changes that are (or aren't) happening.  Be truthful with yourself and you'll know what you need to do to reach your goal.

Here's some recipes that use greek yogurt.  Try one:  http://www.shape.com/healthy-eating/meal-ideas/10-delicious-greek-yogurt-recipes-you%E2%80%99ve-never-seen

Make today count & finish strong!

Day 2.2: Carbs - Not All Are Created Equal, but I need them so badly!

Wow.  I did horrible yesterday.  Not good at all after 4 pm.  Today's a new day.

We gave our chickens away to a new home.  They will be bug-catchers down by Utah Lake.  I hope they are very happy with their new chicken friends.  I will say I was slightly sad, and felt like I was abandoning them.  In a kennel.  By a mailbox.  But their new owner said thank you, so I feel better.

Each 10 days I've written into the meal plans "complex carbs".  What exactly does this mean, you ask?  Let's discuss.

Carbohydrates all have 4 calories per gram.  They are classified as simple carbs or complex carbs.  (FYI: protein=4cal/gram; fat=9cal/gram)

Simple carbs are made up of one or two simple sugars.  These are absorbed quickly into our bloodstream, and raise blood sugar quickly and dramatically, leading to spikes and lows.

Complex carbs are made up of 3 or more sugars linked in a chain and are full of fiber.  Because of their complex nature they take longer to absorb, even out our blood sugar, and are our main fuel for energy production.

Complex Carbs are also classed as "fibrous" or "starchy", "natural" & "refined".  The best type of carbs are natural, fibrous & starchy.

Here is a list of Natural Fibrous Carbs.  These are great because they have low calorie density (meaning less calories compared to the same volume of other foods) and are high in fiber, which make them the ultimate health and weight loss foods.  When you see a calorie count for a food that says "net carbs" it means the grams of carbs minus the grams of fiber, as fiber is a flusher. Is is nearly impossible to overeat on these foods so go hog-wild:

artichokes
asparagus
green beans
broccoli
brussel sprouts
cauliflower
spinach
zucchini
lettuce
squash
tomato
green/red peppers
mushrooms
cucumbers
celery
carrots
bamboo shoots
alfalfa sprouts
cabbage
eggplant
collard greens
onions
salad vegetables
kale
okra
leeks

Here are the Natural Starchy Carbs.  These food are more calorie dense than the fibrous carbs, and should be eaten in moderation, Eat these after you've filled up on your fibrous carbs and proteins, or first thing in the morning for breakfast.  These are a healthy way to carb load if you are training hard or preparing for a long hard workout:

yams
oatmeal
barley
cream of wheat
cream of rye
brown rice
corn
sweet potatoes
white potatoes
red potoates
rye
lentils
chick peas
black eye peas
green peas
millet
legumes
butter beans
pinto beans
kidney beans
garbanzo beans
white beans
lima beans

(tips for beans: boiling them and soaking them help eliminate the gassy effect they have)

The next carb group is Refined Starchy Carbs.  Eat these in moderation, and only if you really must. These products can be slightly processed and are calorie dense.  These foods do not help you lose weight.  Rather they are substitutions for your current full-fat or full-processed foods you are eating today.  If you are a junk-food eating couch potato, eating these instead will help you lose weight.  For most of us, this does not apply, so avoid these:

Bread, whole grain (max two slices per day)
Bagels, whole grain (max one per day instead of bread)
pasta
boxed whole grain cereals
white rice
muffins, whole grain, low fat
whole grain pretzels
low fat, low sugar breakfast bars
low fat, sugar free cookies
low fat potato chips
low fat tortilla chips
low fat crackers
cream of rice
grits

Simple Carbs come in two groups: Natural and Refined.

It is much better to reach for a piece of fruit than a piece of candy or dessert.  That being said, Natural Simple Carbs are also sugars, and should be eaten in moderation for weight loss.  Keep consumption to before mid-afternoon to give your body time to be active and burn off the quick acting sugar.  Fruit is fibrous and has a high water content, making them a great way to get vitamins and nutrients.  However, keep quantities of dried fruit and fruit juice, however natural, to a minimum.  Dried and juiced fruit are calorie-dense, and the sugar content is higher per serving because you've eliminated that healthy fiber and water:

Fruit (fructose)
Dailry (lactose)

As the worst choice carbs of the lot, Refined Simple Carbs are on the "avoid at all cost unless you are going to kill someone" list.  This is the sugar we are avoiding as one of our goals for the 10 day periods.  These are calorie-dense and completely empty, or devoid of nutritional value.  These spike your blood sugar like a Six Flags roller coaster and cause us to crash and feel burned out.

white sugar (sucrose)
corn syrup
high fructose corn syrup
brown sugar
honey
molasses
agave nectar
invert sugar
maple syrup
dextrose
rice syrup
levulose
turbinado sugar
beet sugar
cane sugar
confectioner's sugar
white bread & flour
sweetened box cereal
sweetened oatmeal and hot cereals

A note about sugar substitutes:  I use a sprinkling of a sugar substitute in my oatmeal and cereals.  I haven't reached the point where a mashed banana cuts it.  I have taste buds with a spidey-sense for fake sugar and so I have not embraced them in my baking; I believe in going all-out if you're going to go to all that effort.  As the jury is still out about what these substitutes do to us, I'm not going to weigh in either way.  I have found that a little Stevia, which is a natural plant sugar substitute, works for me.  A good place to be would be not to need it at all, but I'm not there yet.

I hope this helps you make good food choices today.  Choose low density high fiber foods and you will burn fat and feed your muscles!

Be a fat-burner today!

Day 1.4: Truth In Numbers - Daily Caloric Needs

Happy Thursday!  Are you spending as much time in the little girls' room as I am?  Whew.  Every time I increase my water intake, I feel like  the "gotta go right now" commercial.  Your skin is thanking you for all the clean, hydrating water you're drinking.  Just don't drink after dinner if you don't wanna be up all night.  Ugh.  Fear not, keep drinking and your body will adjust to all the extra fluids.  Drinking water also burns fat, ta-da!  I worked my abs, thanks to Kathryn, and I'm pretty much sore all over. Sweet!

I love fitness data.  I love seeing what my BMI is.  I love putting in my goal weight and seeing what my BMI would be, if only I had some self control.  Sigh.  I love scales that read body fat percentage.  I love heart rate monitors and GPS distance devices that tell me mileage and speed.  I pretty much love any form of fitness data.  I'm a junkie.  Why?  Because numbers don't lie.  It's not for everyone, but it can be very useful in your journey.



Information is power.

Here are some terms you should know:

BMR: Basal Metabolic Rate is how many calories you burn just living.

BMI: Body Mass Index is your weight to height ratio.

TDEE: Daily calorie needs, based on BMR, age, current weight, and activity levels.  This is where you start, then reduce calories to a weight loss level.  Another method is based on body weight alone.

We've started with a basic 1400 calorie diet in the First 10 Days.  As our eating habits improve and our activity levels increase, we can adjust to find the right caloric intake to lose weight but feel energized enough to keep moving, and work harder.

BMR:  Follow this link to find out how many calories you burn just living.  http://www.myfitnesspal.com/tools/bmr-calculator

BMI: Follow this link to find out what your BMI is.
http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/guidelines/obesity/BMI/bmicalc.htm
The National Heart Lung and Blood Institute (gross) has set up a weight range that is healthy for your height.  Play with it enterting different higher and lower weights and notice the broad range for your height.  Somewhere in that range you will find your happy weight, or personally sustainable weight.  You know when you are too heavy, even if it falls into the acceptable healthy weight category on NHLBI.  The reason for the broad weight ranges is to account for the fact that muscle weighs more than fat.  My healthy weight range is 115-154 lbs. (what the?!)  NOT HEALTHY on either side of the range if I am 40% body fat.  I wouldn't worry about being at the high end if I'm muscular and under 20% body fat.

Ok.

Daily Caloric Needs:  Get ready for some serious math, girls. There are six components that determine how many calories you need each day: BMR, activity level, weight, lean body mass (muscle, or LBM), age and gender.

Math 101 version:
to achieve Fat loss = 12-13 calories per pound of body weight (140 lbs x 12=1680 cal per day)
to Maintain (TDEE) = 15-16 calories per pound of body weight (140 lbs x 15 = 2100 cal per day)
to Gain Weight  = 18-20+ calories per pound of body weight (140 lbs x 18 = 2520 cal per day)

Math 401 version: (get a pencil and paper, a TI-84 calculator, and your junior high student)
Women: BMR = 655 + (9.6 x weight in KG) + (1.8 x height in CM) - (4.7 x age in years)
This is a link to a metric conversion calculator: http://www.metric-conversions.org/

1. Convert your height in inches to centimeters, and your weight in pounds to kilograms.  Write these two numbers down.
2.  Write out the above equation filling in the two metric numbers you converted, IN THE CORRECT PLACE.
3.  Remember the order of operations and do the math inside the parentheses first.
4.  Now do the whole equation.
5.  Congratulations!  You now know your BMR, the basic number of calories you need to live.

Deep breath, and no weeping.  If you're arguing with your junior high student over methods, separate, please.  One more step.

TDEE:

Take your BMR that you just figured out.  Then use the following table to adjust for your activity level to find your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure):

Activity Factor:
Sedentery = BMR x 1.2
Lightly Active = BMR x 1.375
Moderately Active = BMR x 1.55
Very Active = BMR x 1.725
Extremety Active = BMR x 1.9

Be honest.  Walking up and down the stairs 20 times per day does not make you Very Active.  Neither does cleaning house, chasing kids (unless you are sprinting), or standing at the sink doing dishes.  I'm always looking for an excuse to eat more calories, because I need to stay alive, right?  Overestimating your activity level will just sabotage your fat loss efforts.

For me, it ended up like this:

BMR = 655 + (9.6 x 62kg)   + (1.8 x 167.64cm) - (4.7 x 37 years)
BMR = 655 + 595.2 + 301.75 - 173.9
BMR = 1378 calories per day to be a functioning body

Now I multiply by my activity factor, which I would say is Moderately Active 9 (yesterday, if I'm honest, sedentary) , and I get to eat 2136 calories per day to maintain my current weight.  If I see the scale stubbornly staying at 138 I KNOW I am eating this many calories.  Fact.

Notice how the age portion of the equation indicates that the older we are the more calories we are subtracting from our daily total needs.  The older you are the less you burn so the less you need.  Boohoo.

Another Fact: if you want to lose weight you have to eat less than your TDEE.   Eat 500 calories or 15-20% less calories than TDEE to lose weight and not move into starvation mode.  Myfitnesspal suggests that the minimum daily caloric intake for a woman is 1200 calories.  Lower than that and you are not doing yourself any favors: you'll be hungry, your body will store fat, you won't be able to exercise effectively or efficiently,  you will lose muscle instead of build it.

And forgive me; you know how I adore math.


Information is power, ladies.  Use it to kill it today!