Sometimes, it's best to begin anew

[Artemis]

So, I'm giving myself 20 minutes to type this so I can't over edit my thoughts.  Apologies for the resulting typos.

 

I'm a young 20-year-old woman who weighs roughly 200lbs and is dissatisfied with her current life.      Now, I could come up with excuses, but I don't really have any.  I've wanted to change things for a while and have managed to make some changes, however it's not enough.  For the last couple of years I've tried on and off to change things, but the motivation hasn't really been there.  When I was 17 I lost a lot of weight through clean eating, but when I reached a point I was happy with I started eating the SAD diet again and ballooned right back up past my previous weight.  College and the dorm diet only made this worse.  I never want to do that again.  I want to be fit, and strong, and lean.  I want to set myself up to be truly healthy on a permanent basis.

 

Last week I moved back to university and into an apartment for the first time.  This lets me get off the dorm diet and into my own kitchen.  It's been expensive to outfit a basic kitchen, but well worth it.  I have set aside plenty of time this weekend to meal prep for the week in order to avoid any unhealthy snacking.  

 

This weekend is also going to be a time for me to set up my schedule for the semester.  I've finally got my class schedule finalized and my work schedule is mostly set up.  Still waiting on club activities, but I can start penciling in gym time, meal prep time etc.  If you can't tell, I live to plan.    Seriously though, if I don't plan it out it's not going to happen by itself.  At least, not until my new changes become habits.  

 

I also have to succeed in balancing these changes with my heavy course schedule (18 credits), club activities, starting my capstonee, and my current costume project - Mandalorian armor (TFA is coming!).  The armor is part of my motivation for losing weight as it gives me a deadline and a more tangible goal than a number.  Ideally I want to look good in the plates, so I'm hoping to lose roughly 30 lbs by December, though closer to 40 would be better.  Nevertheless, I set my goal at 30 and if I manage more, great.  An eventual weight of 150-160 after weightloss would be good (I'm 5' 9" so I don't expect to ever weight 120lbs or anything).  After I manage that, I want to start building some muscle, but that's a goal that is a little ways down the road.

 

To achieve the weight loss - I am going to be participating in the next 6-week challenge (starting as soon as this current challenge ends).  This time I will see it through, though I could maybe use some help on that end.  If anyone wants to pipe in and say hi, be an accountabili buddy, or something like that I would appreciate it.  It helps me stay motivated if I have people to discuss my obstacles and successes with and I think that's been a large part of the reason behind my recent failures.  I've been trying to go it alone and it's not working.  My solution is to find some friends on NF and try even harder.

 

For now: participate in the 6-week challenge (with daily updates); hit the gym 2-3 times a week; eat 90% paleo.

 

Those are my resolutions.  Here's to new beginings.

 

 

-tips, tricks, recipies, etc would be appreciated.

   

 

[Raincloak]

What kind of meals are you prepping?

[Artemis]

I'm making a bit of everything really; last week was primarily sausage with sauteed veggies and a light coating of marinara sauce.  I got pretty lucky with my shopping and found some Aidells sausage on a steep discount (cheapest and healthiest sausage in the store) and a big jar of Italian marinara.  Breakfast is generally just a piece of fruit (apple/banana) on my way out the door.  Snack/side dishes were generally more veggies - oven roasted broccoli and carrots.  I also had fruit smoothies twice for breakfast/lunch last week.  If needed, I'm willing to cut back on my fruit intake, but for now it's helping with the carb cravings/headaches.  I'll probably also return to keeping a food journal to track my progress and keep myself honest.      

 

This weekend is being dedicated to cooking so that I can minimize the time commitment during the school week.  Quite a bit of this is going to be frozen and  I'll reheat as needed. 

 

What I've got lined up for food: 

-Yesterday I broke in my new crock pot and made this beef stew at 1.5x recipe: http://www.nerdfitness.com/blog/2014/12/15/how-to-make-paleo-beef-stew/

I have a 5-quart slow cooker which equates to about a metric ton of stew.  If I make this again I think I may sub in chicken broth for the stock.  The stock I managed to find is high in sodium and my local grocery store carried some healthier broths that I think could work as replacements.

-Hardboiled a half-dozen eggs for breakfast/snacks

-Oven roasted a head of broccoli for side dish/snack

-I've also found this recipe and picked up the ingredients:  http://paleonewbie.com/paleo-crockpot-chili-recipe/    

-Stir-fry ingredients (chicken breasts, bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, mushroom, carrots)

-Oven roast leftover carrots/veggies

[Robkashikoi]

Welcome back Vod, I to am trying this again.  I look forward to your progress.

[Artemis]

Thanks Rob!  Good to have another Mando around

[Raincloak]

sounds good. By the way, when you're making a long slow stew, using stock is optional; you can also use plain water and the flavor won't be damaged much, because the ingredients of the stew will flavor the liquid. (If the eventual stew comes out bland, you can add sauces to liven it up and next time change the ingredients.)

If you're going to use stock or broth as an ingredient, for practical purposes they're the same, so buy whichever suits you better. (Ask me some time about the day I challenged a supermarket employee to tell me the difference between the identical bottles of "apple juice" and "apple cider" they were selling...)

If you have a pressure cooker, or you're willing to leave the stove on low heat overnight, you can make your own stock, but consider how much room is in your fridge/freezer/patience first I love homemade broths but I only make them every few weeks when the weather's cold.

I see lots of veggies in your list, but I'm not seeing as much fat as one would hope if you are going paleo. Maybe you could add some guacamole or olive oil here and there.

[Artemis]

Stock is optional, good to know.  I'd rather use water and add in more veggies, spices, etc. anyways.  If I think it's needed for a recipe, I'll sub the broth in since my local supermarket carries a much healthier version of that.  I'd go the homemade route, but I think my roommates might kill me if I left the stove on overnight.  It's also ridiculously hot in the apartment right now.  Our university doesn't think air conditioning is needed since it cools down in late September/early October.  We get to bake alive for a few weeks. Yay!

 

The fat intake might be an issue; good point.  I'm on the hunt for a less processed bacon and am going to try Trader Joe's or Wegmans next weekend (have you ever tried bacon wrapped chicken thighs?  I'm pretty sure they're magical).  I wish I could afford avocado's but right now they're over $2 a piece.  Once I figure out a weekly average for my grocery bill, I might be able to work it in, but right now I'm very broke after outfitting my new kitchen and buying textbooks.  Avocado's will happen soon though, I love them and have a killer family guacamole recipe that I'm dying to use.  Aside from bacon and avocados, what do you recommend?  I'm not a huge fish eater, but I could add some nuts or olives in as a snack food.  

 

 

 (Ask me some time about the day I challenged a supermarket employee to tell me the difference between the identical bottles of "apple juice" and "apple cider" they were selling...)
 

Do tell! Sounds entertaining. 

 

Thanks for all of  your input.  I really appreciate it.