August 1, 2018 – Diet.
On July 16th I started a diet. It’s not the first diet I’ve started and probably won’t be the last. It’s been almost 3 weeks and I’ve lost 15 pounds. I’m psyched and the rapid weight loss is a great motivator.
I’ve been living on high protein shakes, protein bars, and yogurt. When I’m feeling hungry I eat some grape tomatoes. And I’ve been drinking water! I now crave water. WARNING: Water in = water out! I haven’t peed so much!
It’s not easy but it’s not hard either. It’s not easy giving up take out and drive thru and junk food – those quick solutions. It’s not hard because you really don’t have much menu planning to do. I have 3 shakes a day. I eat a protein bar when I’m hungry. I also eat an Oikos Triple 0 yogurt as a snack. I figure I’m eating about 900 calories a day and about 90g of protein.
I started out with Vega+Greens and I lost 7 pounds in 5 days. Granted, I haven’t been on a diet in over 3 years. I didn’t own a scale. So I had to guess what my starting weight was. I’ve been that heavy before – knew how my clothes were fitting. I weighed myself on the first Friday. I was with my mom and her doctor appointment. She asked the nurse if I could get weighed. The nurse responded “Sure. Does she want to get weighed?” I happily jumped on the scale and couldn’t believe I had lost 7 pounds.
We bought a scale that day so I could measure my progress. Mom and I had a good laugh. When we first used it, it was measuring in kilos. So you had to do the math. The third day I jumped on it, it had switched to pounds. At first glance, I didn’t realize it had switched. I stood in shock – thinking that my kilo weight had doubled! What the hell? Then I realized it was pounds and drew a sigh of relief.
After the first week I switched to Kaizen Whey protein. I happened to be at my mom’s pharmacist and they promote lots of healthy options. The pharmacist was talking about the superiority of the Kaizen product. So I thought I’d take a chance. It’s quite nice. It mixes better than the Vega and even the lumps that don’t mix are nice. After 2 weeks I had lost 15 pounds!
I’ve had one lapse so far. I ordered pizza on Sunday. I ate 2 slices of a medium pizza. I “wanted it”. I couldn’t stop thinking about pizza with crispy pepperoni all day. I tried everything to take my mind off of it. I eventually gave in. I told my mom I was ordering pizza. As I waited I started feeling regret. Why was I doing this? Why was I sabotaging all that I had done? When the doorbell rang, I opened it with excitement and sadness. Then I pushed those feelings aside as the smell filled the house. It felt great while I was eating it. It tasted great in my mouth. But as soon as I was finished I felt awful. I wished I could take it back. It sat in my stomach all night – like a rock – a constant reminder of my “cheating ways”. It was a long night of regret. The next day I jumped on the scale and I had gained 1/2 pound. Oh my!
I’ve realized a lot in these 3 short weeks. I’ve realized how the bulk of my eating was out of boredom or emotional eating. That’s been the hardest part – coming to terms with why I eat. It’s not to satisfy hunger or provide nutrition to my body. It’s to fill the time or to find comfort in a stressful time. I’m not saying that’s a bad thing but stopping and analyzing why you want to eat is a bit fascinating (to me anyway). Mind you, I don’t get too deep into analysis about the emotional eating. I do recognize what it is and then tell myself that I’m not hungry. I’m listening to my stomach. It’s full. So I don’t “need” the food. I want it. Big difference.
Diary of a DOW 