Friday, January 28, 2011

Katie: Week 57 Confessions and A Re-Start

Ok, so I'm posting a little late this week.  And--oh my...

Current weight (Week 55): 138 pounds
Last week's weight (Week 51): 135 pounds
Total weight loss: 32 pounds


Part 1: The Confession:

Hello.  My name is Katie.  And I am addicted to food.  Especially sweets.

I know, I know, we all joke about using a line like that.  But, for the most part here, I'm being serious.  

Some of you may already know this, but my husband and I are also addicted to West Wing.  It's a TV show from the 90's about the inter workings of the west wing of the White House.  Neither of us watched an episode when it aired on television, but we now own the first four seasons on DVD.  And it's actually kind of funny that Bryan and I are so into this show because it's super political and neither of us are really all that into politics.  But it also happens to be very well written and--most of the time--pretty funny.  So anyway, we watch a lot of West Wing.


And there's this one episode where one of the characters is talking about his addiction to alcohol.  And he says something like, "I don't understand people who can just have one drink.  I can't understand why anyone wouldn't want to keep feeling this way.  It's not a matter of smart and stupid.  I'm addicted."  (And for those of us with morals out there, I'll just add that he doesn't say this to justify continuing his habit.  He just says it when he's trying to explain how he used to be.)  

Anyway, back to what he said.  When I watched this episode for the first time I couldn't help but think, "That's how I feel about brownies!"  And then, the moment after I'd had that thought, I recoiled.  Really?  That's how I feel about brownies?  It startled me, but it's true.  I really can't understand people who just want one brownie.  Or one cookie.  Or one helping of a dinner that tastes so good.  Even if I know my body doesn't need anymore, I just want to keep tasting that good food.

Then, when I was at my in-laws' house for Christmas I was reading a copy of Prevention magazine and it was talking about a study that somebody had done recently to prove that people really can be addicted to sugar the same way that people can be addicted to other things.  And, reading this, my initial thoughts from that episode of West Wing came back to me.  Is it true?  Am I really addicted to food, especially sugary foods?  Yes, I think so.




Part 2: The Re-Start


I had let myself relax on my health goals over the holidays.  And I guess I just kept thinking that I would automatically feel motivated to jump right back into my goals again the moment we got back home.  But I didn't.  And I kept waiting to feel motivated.  And I haven't.  

Even my sad attempt at doing something (making homemade meals) last week didn't really pan out to be all that helpful.  Mainly because I kept making sweets and meals with a lot of meat.  No good, no good.


So, last night as I was getting ready for bed and thinking about how my tummy just keeps getting bigger and how I do not want to completely regress, I decided it was time to get back into the swing of things even thought I still don't really feel all that motivated.  So, last night, I wrote down some things on the old goals chart again.  And I wrote down some goals.  And this morning I started entering everything into MyFitnessPal.com again.  Sigh.


I know that these are good things, but I think I've been having a harder time getting super motivated this time around because it's beginning to set in more and more (especially with my recent weight gain just in the past week) that if I'm really going to reach and maintain my goal weight, I'm going to have to make permanent life changes, and not just stick with things for a few months.  


Anyway,  my goals are super exciting, but one other thing I wanted to mention was that in the article I was reading in that Prevention magazine it talked about ways to combat sugar addiction.  And one thing it said is that, when we eat something sugary, our bodies want more of that.  But if we hold off on sugar for a few days, it gets out of our blood stream and then we don't want it so badly.  And I know that entering everything into MyFitnessPal is always a sure way to get me to majorly cut down on treats, so I'm going to be cutting way back on the sweets.  


And I had a friend mention to me the other day that she's made a lot of progress in her fitness goals simply by cutting out dairy (she's lactose intolerant anyway, she says) and red meat.  I don't think I'm ready to fully cut out either, but I have been thinking a lot since my conversation with  my friend about not eating so much red meat.  And, to help with that, I bought some chicken breasts on a great sale the other day.  

But... uhh... here's the thing.  I don't really have any great (and healthy) chicken recipes up my sleeve.  Any great ideas?  (Easy ones, please?  Especially crock pot meals?)


Anyway, I'm still feeling pretty blah, but I do want to move forward rather than backward.  Any encouragement you have to offer would be much appreciated.  Thanks everyone.

7 comments:

Lisa Lou said...

Oh man. Yes. I hear you. Addicted to sweets, salty foods, sodas, anything. I know it. BUT, I also hate how I feel after I eat a ton of sweets or salty foods.
Anyway. I have a recipe for an easy delicious chicken crockpot meal. We made it last week for dinner and it was so easy and delicious.

Kathy Haynie said...

Courage! Yes, I am still struggling with the commitment to lifetime change, but it's easier now than it was a few years ago. I think as we keep practicing good habits and educating our bodies and minds that we improve.

Sometimes I ask myself if I am really hungry for that sweet? Or if it's my mouth wanting the taste. So often it's about my mouth, which is such a tiny part of my body. Why should the mouth get to boss the rest of the body around like that? So sometimes I just tell my mouth "no, you don't get to choose this time." Goofy, but it helps me.

Nicole said...

I totally feel the same way. I never understood why a person would only want one brownie. That's why I rarely make them anymore unless I have somewhere to bring the extras. :) As for Chicken recipes. One i use a lot is slow cooker salsa chicken. You can find it here http://recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detail.asp?recipe=672711

I serve it over rice (I like brown, but we usually do white since it's what my family likes.) Also, I let everyone mix in their own sour cream since my husband doesn't eat much dairy. Hope you like it. It's easy and cheap.

Anonymous said...

I completely agree. When I worked for the family in Pac Heights, SF, I noticed I craved less sugar as I cooked from Williams Sonoma low fat cookbook. I made chocolate mouse with tofu, and I made interesting substitutions that I liked. I still love to bake and most days I enjoy giving it away to my neighbors. That is my secret diet plan. I give myself permission to eat sweets with no restrictions on the holidays and my birthday. Then after Valentines Day, I indulge in my low calorie favorites often: stawberries and yogurt, thumbprint brownies and cookies that are miniature size, chocolate milk, tea with agave with a stir spoon of chocoale or peppermint stick. I think I will have some now. Cheers Katie, you are my inspiration!

alee said...

i have a good chicken and rice crock pot recipe i will find and email to you...

alee said...

Hey- I just saw Dr. Oz on Good Morning America today and his whole segment was about how we are addicted to sugar and how to detox. Maybe you should check out his website and see if any of his ideas would work for you.

And I SO know about being addicted to food...I was so mentally snacky in the hospital despite them bringing delicious and nutritious meals three times a day. It's all in the head- nuts!

Steve and Nicole said...

Katie, first I think you are so amazing!

I have some good recipes for you! We just made chili the other night and it's super easy and really good (and filling)
http://www.topsecretrecipes.com/Wendys-Chili-Recipe.html
I halved the whole recipe, or you can freeze some of it. I also only used half of the ground beef it tells you too, and added no salt (maybe a few shakes).

http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/2009/10/crispy-southwest-wraps-vegetarian.html
this recipe is also amazinggg! really, it's super good.

http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/2009/10/crispy-southwest-wraps-vegetarian.html
these are a good snack too! And I make them with whole wheat tortilla so that'll give you some protein and fiber.

Popcorn is my favorite go to snack. Seriously though, it's an awesome snack too. Low calorie, whole grain, lots of fiber too. And it's yummy! Every day I pop myself a giant bowl and eat the whole thing.


Do you like sweet potatoes?
http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/2009/10/crispy-southwest-wraps-vegetarian.html
These are yummy! But if you like sweet potatoes they are really healthy for you and a good side dish.

For chicken you can use herbs to get lots of flavoring.

Every once and awhile we have a big salad with chicken, green peppers, hard boiled eggs, cheese, tomatoes, olives...(anything you want really). It's good! And Steve likes it too....it fills him up even though it's just a salad :)

http://sisterscafe.blogspot.com/2011/01/breakfast-burrito-vegetarian-and-oh-so.html
We had this last week and it was so good we had it twice! When I cook with eggs I use the egg whites a lot so you'll cut down on calories. So if you are using 8 eggs, I'd use 3 full eggs and 5 egg whites. You don't have to do this but it's just a suggestion.

And something else I like to do is have a LOT of fruits and vegetables around. We use a lot of canned ones now too because of the price (just don't get the ones that are in heavy syrup). Anyways when I'm hungry or get a snack I get the snack I want (usually crackers) and get a whole bowl of carrots. Most of the time I just want something to chew on and I'm not really hungry so if the carrots are already out in the bowl in front of me I'm more likely to eat them than keep grabbing crackers. Does that make sense? ha ha And when we have dinner I always serve a salad, two fruits and one or two vegetables on the table. Fruits and vegetables are really good filler foods, low calorie and WAY good for you!

Don't go hungry...you're more likely to overeat later.

Some other foods I like are oatmeal and nuts. And water!!

Sorry if this was too much! I miss work and school and talking nutrition all the time :)

We'd love to hear from you!

Want to write a guest post for The Skinny? E-mail Katie at kathleenann08 (at) gmail (dot) com.