AnnieP (respawned)

Today I felt like the bottomless pit. I'd eat, then be hungry in half an hour. I really think my body is just getting used to all the added fiber. I know before I started, I was getting 25 g of fiber a day on average. I'm not recording, measuring, or weighing my food for this month, so I don't know for sure, but I am fairly certain there are even more vegetables going in my mouth than before. I think the low-carb hangover is starting to hit. I was tired and cranky, and generally felt like I was dragging today. Hopefully, this stage will be over soon, because it's no fun trying to work at a physical job with no energy. I know I need to eat more fat, and then maybe I won't be hungry as much. Of course, I have also entertained the possibility that I just need to suck it up and not give in to my grumbling tummy as much. Honestly, I am not sure, so I've been feeding it enough to quiet the hunger, but not enough to feel overstuffed. I am thiking that this, too, shall pass.

Sugar is my greatest nemesis, so I can well appreciate the pull it can have on a person. But, one day "off the wagon" isn't the end of the world. Just get back up and keep moving forward in the right direction. You'll get there, whether by plane, train, or... wagon. Those three hours at the mall, though, sound like time well spent.

Day 1 report: The day went fairly well. I don't think I have ever eaten so many vegetables in my entire life. At least, not in one day. And I was hungry; I didn't expect that. Any protein I ate tasted like the single best thing I had ever eaten. Tomorrow, I will try to eat more. I'm not quite sure what to expect going forward. I can say that I see now how unprepared I was jumping blindly into this. Okay, not entirely unprepared. I have an endless supply of veggies and fruit in the Fridge thanks to the local co-op. But I was scrambling (no pun intended) for "legal" protein by mid-afternoon, and my choices were less than optimal. I boiled eggs to help fill in the gaps. I'll get some nuts tomorrow when I go in to work as well. Mistakes: 1)I discovered that almond butter has sugar in it. I should have known that, really, but i swallowed about half a teaspoon before I figured it out. I just munched the rest of the celery plain when I figured it out - only took one bite before I realized something was amiss. 2)Canned tuna contains soy. Yeah, I ate the whole can before I had any thoughts of looking. To be honest, my biggest mistake of the day was not paying enough attention. It's the first day, and I am already missed the point. All right. I've got 29 more days to get it right. I'll get there, I'm sure of it. New habits just take time.

Well, my Whole30 is off to a good, but shaky start. The toddler in my head is whining, I. Want. Cheeeesssseeee! The low carb hangover hasn't hit yet, but I know it is coming. Remind me again why I thought this would be a good idea... Oh yeah. I'm on a quest to slay the sugar demon. Today is my day off from work, but I managed to get a good walk in. I found a stopwatch app for my phone that lets me time intervals, so I was able to streamline my short bursts of running/jogging. I went out for a total of twenty minutes, and got in three 25 second intervals, five minutes apart. Yay! Guess that's a PR, since I was only able to do 20 seconds at a time before. I had hoped to make it 4 intervals, but I was wheezing by the end of the last one, so I just walked the rest of the time. I came back to the house and decided that since I was warmed up, I should try to get my BBWW in. My shoulder has been doing better, so I threw in some of the upper body moves this time as well: Push-ups -- did wall push-ups, as I was still a bit nervous about the shoulder. Plank -- made it to 10 seconds, my arms shaking the whole time. I wimped out on the dumbbell rows. My shoulder is still a bit twinge-y whenever I have to pick up something heavy at work, so I didn't want to push it. I made it through one round, total, then my body told me i was done. I had forced my legs to take more of the weight during the lunges (using a kitchen chair for balance, but not letting my arm do any of the work), so that may have been part of it. I had to "cheerlead" my way through them. Come on. That's ten. almost halfway done. It took forever, but I did them. Oddly enough, my shoulder felt fine until I got to the jumping jacks. It hurt to swing my arm up, so I did "half jacks" with my hands on my hips. My plan is to do another BBWW on Sunday, resting Saturday. Hopefully, I will be back on track next week. Have a great weekend everyone! Don't worry, I plan on posting here tomorrow, I just wanted you all to have a good weekend.

Hey, Welcome to the party! Your Plan of Attack looks good. I like that you signed and dated it. Good luck, and keep us posted about how you are doing.

I'm mid-challenge, and it's Friday. Sounds like the perfect time to start a Whole30 eating plan, right? Right! Okay. I'm coming from a semi-paleo eating history, so some things will be harder than others. I'm already off sodas (regular and diet) and artificial sweeteners, though I was using stevia. So, no more stevia. Or refined sugars, which are my nemesis and the real reason I've decided to do the Whole30. Time to slay the sugar demon. I've been gluten and grain-free for about a month. The cravings are still there, but they aren't as intense as they were at first. Honestly, it was harder giving up soda than it was to give up the bread. The Whole30 doesn't allow quinoa or buckwheat -- not really grains, but close enough, apparently -- so those are off the menu for the next month as well. I will be leaving it in my pantry (rather than tossing it), as the gluten free stuff is expensive. I don't think I'll have that much of a problem with temptation on that front. (Any other famous last words?) Yeah. I'm doing the Whole30 with quinoa pasta in my pantry. Moving on. My next big hurdle is dairy. I've been drinking almond and coconut milks instead of cow milk since January. But the cheese and sour cream. And the cheese. Did I mention I will be giving up cheese? *takes a deep breath* Okay. I can do this. It's only a month, right? Thirty little days. I should mention that my roommate, while supportive, is NOT giving up cheese or dairy. There is cheese in the 'fridge now. My cheese monster complains loudly when I neglect it. I am fully aware that cheese is an addiction for me. Fully. Aware. But I am stronger than congealed milk. And I'm stubborn. And I am not going to cheat on my Whole30 with cheese or cream or any of it. Okay then. Let's do this! Edit: I wanted to embed a video of Ze Frank's Invocation for Beginnings, but the still picture that displays is NSFW due to a printed F-bomb. So, you can look it up on YouTube (It's NSFW due to some language), but I can't put it here.

Looks like you are doing great so far. I understand wanting to do more exercise than your joints will allow. You made a good decision, by not overworking your joints now you can actually go farther in your strength training later. I like the idea of baking your own bread as a goal. You know every ingredient that went in it. Plus, it tastes better than the stuff you buy from the grocery store. Keep the updates coming. You're doing awesome!

You're doing great! How's it going this week?

Looks like a good start to a great adventure. Just curious, what's a windshield wiper?

@Silverwitch: Thanks, I will definitely come to you with questions. Honestly, I'm most nervous about suspending my food logging for a month. As for Seth, the vet said the problem was the food he was eating. Hmmm. Seems to be a running theme. Well, new diet for me, and a new diet for Seth.

You are neither boring nor annoying. So happy to see you crushing your goals! That being said, there is definitely something to be said for not overdoing it in the midst of your enthusiasm. I have found, in my experience, that joints can hold a grudge. If your knees are protesting, then backing off a bit might just be for the best. Here's to a great weekend!

Hey, thanks everyone. Sorry I missed my last few updates, my life kind of fell apart for a few days. I have a sick kitty who's been in and out of the vet's office and I got caught up worrying about him. @Nuala: Yes, they were almond and coconut flour cookies. My roommate and I agreed not to make them anytime soon, as neither of us have any self control around them. @Skeoke: A writing challenge sounds great. Right now, I'd settle for writing every day. For some reason, I keep wanting to put it off. Okay. This week so far, I walked Monday and Tuesday. I jogged for 3 twenty second intervals on Monday, 2 on Tuesday. Seth (my kitty) was in obvious distress Wednesday morning, so I had to put off my morning walk so I could take him to the vet. I never made it up later, and figured I'd do better today (the next day). I got up early this morning with the idea of doing my BBWW routine before work, but the universe had other plans. I ended up taking Seth back to the vet as an emergency instead. He's... okay. My exercise routine is in an uproar, but at least I still managed not to wreck my diet completely. No stress eating -- how I managed that, I am not sure. My carbs were actually pretty decent, and I even managed to avoid sugar. I've been re-thinking my goal of 175carbs. Just dropping to that point has made me tired and irritable. I'm thinking that I should "rip the band aid off" and just do it already. You mentioned that might be better, Silverwitch, and you were right. Starting tomorrow, I'm going to start a Whole 30. My roommate thinks I'm out of my mind, and I may be, but I think it will be the most effective way to get where I am going. I let things kind of unravel this week, but I'm not counting it as a total loss just yet. Promise I'll post again tomorrow.

Sounds like a great week. You totally own those stairs!

@Hazard: Hmmm. Yeah. Wow. So, I went back through MFP, 'cause you asked what food I'd been eating. And I saw it. All the sugar in the evenings. How I could have missed it when I was logging it in, is incomprehensible. Selective amnesia perhaps? Anyway. To answer your question, on the days I go way over - about 3 out of 7 days, apparently - I eat junk. As in cookies and other nefarious items that have no business going in my mouth. All right. I feel dumb now. :/ I'm glad I posted here, or I never would have thought to look at what I was eating, had you not asked. I looked back over the whole month. It's not just once, but every time I went over. The rest of the day(s) looks fairly decent. Fruit, vegetables, meat. I still eat cheese and legumes and the occasional potato. I will eat processed food if my budget is tight - not the best, I know. I just really need to stop sabotaging myself and pay more attention to what I am doing.

@Silverwitch: You are awesome. I hope you know that. Well, one week down, and I will give myself a "B" on the exercise goals. I did two of the BBWW, which was my goal. I even managed a little more the second time around. Yay! Does a happy dance count as exercise? *dances around the room* I walked 4 days (instead of 5), but I saw improvements there as well. I'm happy even if I wasn't perfect. I am actually struggling a bit with my life goal of writing on my story every day. I've got about 500 words in, where it should be at least 1400. I'm just going to keep at it. I know the words will come, sometimes on their own terms. I think I need to work on minimizing distractions and/or finding a better time and place to do it. Sitting in front of the TV with my laptop late at night is probably not the best venue for literary endeavors... One issue I have been noticing, is that I have been eating more, calorie-wise, despite my best efforts. I had been trying to keep at or below 2050, and was losing weight in the neighborhood of a pound a week. I know that increased exercise will increase the calorie burn, but I find myself eating 300-400 extra calories on most days. My carbs are hovering around 175 (my goal). I don't know if I should let it go, or stick to my original calorie target (and ignore my body's insistence that I am sooooo hungry). It hasn't been long enough for me to know if it is affecting the scale one way or the other, though I haven't gained any weight, as far as I know. For now, I am not going to panic. I will keep an eye on it, and maybe limit myself to 250-300 extra -- but only if I think I might start chewing on the upholstery. I feel as though I'm trying to walk the fine line between listening to my body and giving in to it's every whim.

Well, my rest day on Thursday was followed by a spring cleaning day on Friday. It was a lot of work, but not exercise, per se. So, today I made it my goal to get my second BBWW workout of the week in. I wanted to try to get my walk in as well. I'm not sure how I did it, but I got up early enough to exercise before work (I am not a morning person). I got a warm up, as well as a round of the BBWW (lower body only) in, I even managed 5-6 reps of round two in as well. I got to work about a half hour before I had to punch in and went for a twenty minute walk. I was so happy, that I rewarded myself with a brief foray (is there such a thing?) into the TV Tropes website on my lunch break. Yay! Now if every day could be like that, I'd be happy.

@Silverwitch Yeah, I know I'm too hard on myself. I guess I spent so long making excuses for myself, that I sometimes go too far in the other direction. Just gotta find that middle ground. I've actually been working my way into a paleo diet. I had a series of concussions a couple of years back (I honestly don't recommend it, btw) and my symptoms have been pushing me in that direction. As of now, I am off all grain, artificial sweeteners (gak! they make me super spacey), soda, and dairy milk. Well okay, most milk. It gets added to vegetable soups in my house (half canned skim milk and half plain almond milk) and I still eat cheese. I know the cheese is an addiction, but I am just not up to that fight yet. :/ I know I should go low carb. The last time I tried it cold turkey, the carb withdrawal symptoms were more than I could handle -- was willing to handle, truth be told. Stepping down seems like a silly concession, but I suppose I'll get there eventually. As for temptation, I don't really have any junk food in the house for that very reason but... I work in a drugstore/convenience store. Eight plus hours of exposure plus an employee discount. The baked goods I can pretty much ignore now. I just pull up the memory of how awful gluten and grains make me feel (including one particularly bad incident) and the thought of eating any of it makes me nauseous. Guess I should try to do the same thing with refined sugar, except it just makes me tired and lethargic. Apparently, that's not strong enough of a motivation to drown out the sugar demon entirely. But I can be pretty stubborn when I want to, so I know I will get there eventually. Thanks for the encouragement. Sorry I rambled on a bit there. Have a fantastic day!

That BBWW is harder than it looks, isn't it? Just keep doing what you are doing (you're doing great!) and maybe your husband will join in, once he realizes this isn't just a passing fad.

That sounds like an awesome app! I am a sucker for a good story. My biggest problem with walking motivation comes from the fact that I do so much of it every day at work already. I've added it to my exercise routine because I need to increase my endurance and speed, more than anything else. Well, today went better than I thought. I walked for 20 minutes (Yay!) and managed to get in three 20 second jogging intervals (double yay!) After that, I actually made it through one round of the BBWW (lower body only). I've never done lunges of any sort before, but managed it with the help of a chair (for balance). Holy good gravy, I am seriously out of shape, if that is any indication. My legs are sore in places I never realized had muscles. Next time I will try for a second set of five reps each, with the aim of working up to a full 3 sets. So, overall pretty good on the exercise front. Carbs were at 154 grams today -- decent, until you see that includes a dark chocolate Reese's. So not in my plan for a healthier diet. All right. My game plan is to have my lunch packed with enough food for tomorrow, including fruit in case I absolutely have to have sugar. That was my mistake today -- I left packing my lunch until the very last moment and ended up throwing in a few random items in as I scrambled for the door in my "got to get to work" frenzy. Having to buy lunch sucks when you are trying to eat better. My life goal of writing 200 words was a total miss today. I won't bore you with excuses; there really are none. I had Scrivener (my writing app) open and... yeah. It wasn't pretty. Overall, I'll give myself a C. No words for my story; I ate a darn candy bar... I also tried the new bodyweight routine and walked for twenty minutes. I jogged for 20 seconds longer than last time. And I did stick within my carb allowance... Yeah, okay. C. C minus. I can do better. Much better. Tomorrow is a rest day (from exercise), mostly because it's truck day, and I will probably get a good workout just doing my job. Have a great day everyone! I'll post again in a couple of days about my progress.

@Xanjra: Thanks for the encouragement. I actually do count calories as well. It's just that I've got a handle on that aspect (more or less) so I thought I should focus on making my calories a bit healthier. Namely, eat something other than a candy bar, even though my calories will allow it, type of thing. Sugar is my big "boss fight".

Being a procrastinator myself, I am inspired by your enthusiasm. XD Looks like you are off to a good start. Good luck, and keep posting!

I hear you on letting a long commute become an excuse for not having enough time to exercise. But it looks like you have made the right first step by cleaning up your diet. Good luck with your fitness goals. Glad to see that there are some older nerds on here like me.

Okay, it's my day 2, and I'm doing somewhat okay. I got 20 minutes of walking in yesterday. And my carbs were at 111. It was a day off of work, so I was happy that I managed that much. Somehow, I have much less discipline when I am not at work. I eeked out 217 words in my writing, so I'll call that a pass, but barely. Today, I got up with the intention of not only walking for longer than twenty minutes, but fitting in my BBWW as well. It's only half the routine, after all, thanks to my shoulder injury, but it just didn't happen. It's got to be tomorrow if I am going to fit two in this week with a rest in between. I just have to make myself do it. I got 17 minutes of brisk walking in -- I'll call that a B- since I also managed 2 twenty second intervals of jogging in there as well. I had planned on using the time before work (I often get there an hour early due to the bus schedule) to get my walk in, but I procrastinated until there was almost no time left. I decided to do what I could, figuring something was better than nothing. The idea was to go from 20 minutes walking (albeit briskly) to 30 minutes jogging. Then running, eventually. Two days in, and I feel as if I am going in the wrong direction. At least I got another 230 words in, although I had to work my brain out pretty hard to get there. It feels like I am trying to wring water out of a dry sponge. My carbs were right at 100, so no worries there. Oh well. Tomorrow i is another day. Tomorrow I will rise to the challenve and get not only my walking done for the full time (at least 20 minutes), but will get my bodyweight exercise in as wa. The carbs seem to be coming down just fine on their own, so I'll monitor that situation, but I think it will be the easiest part -- as opposed to the hardest, like I had assume it would be. I'll check back in either tomorrow or the next day to let you all know how it went.

Hello from yet another late starter. Looks like you are doing well on your first week in. Keep us posted!

Just read through this thread, and wanted to tell you that You. Are. Awesome.