It’s Been 21 Days…I’ve Broken My Bad Eating Habits or Have I?

For as long as I can remember, I have heard it said that it takes 21 days to make create or break a habit but I’ve never really bought into that theory.  Maybe to create a new habit, it might work.  For example maybe if I decided to walk every day for 21 days I might start seeing the benefits and logically think I should continue.  And, I do believe that if I did it long enough it would become instinctual and I would automatically do it without giving it a second thought.  But for getting rid of bad habits, I just don’t believe 21 days will do it.   I mean, after all, I did not form my bad eating habits in 21 days; it was a lifetime of choosing my favorite foods over my not so favorite foods.  Choosing hamburgers over fish, chips over vegetables and cheese over EVERYTHING.

So I asked myself, after 21 days have I changed my bad eating habits?  No, not yet.  But I continue to think about my food choices, choosing fish over hamburger, vegetables over chips and no cheese on ANYTHING.  I have to admit, it hasn’t been easy.  And, as I sat watching my networking group eat bacon, eggs, oatmeal, croissants, fruit and more it made me want to give into some of my bad eating habits.  (For the record, I did not give in.  I drank my Mango protein drink and was just fine!  Still 100% compliant with the program.)

The great part is that I realize I am not giving up those things FOREVER, I am readjusting my metabolism and in a few months I will be making healthy food choices without having to consciously think about what I should choose as opposed to what I want to choose.

Most importantly…in 21 days I’ve lost 10 pounds and 7-1/2” and people are starting to notice.  It’s nice to have people not only notice but show their support…now THAT’S a habit I could enjoy and I bet it wouldn’t take me 21 days to get into that one!

Until next time…

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If I Can’t Cry Over Spilled Milk, Is it Okay if I Cry Over a Broken Jar of Pickles?

I had a near disaster  this week. 😦   Remember the saying “Don’t cry over spilled milk?” My question:  “Is it okay to cry over a broken jar of dill pickles?”  I walked through the door right from the grocery store and BAM, dropped the plastic bag with the jar of pickles on the kitchen floor.  Glass, pickles and juice everywhere.  So not only did I not get to each the pickles, I had to smell pickle juice for the rest of the day.  Why was this so bad you ask, it’s only pickles…may only be pickles for you but I LOVE dill pickles almost as much as I LOVE cheese and they are approved on the diet program.  Plus it meant going back to the grocery store…not my best day.

Ever have the feeling that you’ve just not done your best?  Well, that’s how I felt when I went to get weighed and measured on Thursday.   I had just finished my second week and I was hoping that I had at least dropped one pound and the last thing I wanted to do was step on the scale.  I will tell you that while 100% compliant with the program, I sorta screw up last week.  Not big time, but I am supposed to be eating 2 cups raw veggies and 2 cups cooked veggies a day.  So, what happens when you don’t read the instructions carefully???  You eat 4 cups of cooked veggies most days and very little raw (but hey we’re not rabbits right?)  I did find out that it wasn’t a horrible mistake, it just means that you probably won’t lose the weight as fast.

However, I am becoming very creative in the kitchen.  For a girl that believes cheese is a major food group that can only be improved by combining it with something deep fried, it’s been interesting to stretch my German cooking skills to include baking fish, using ground turkey and lean meat instead of frying everything.

So, back to my Thursday weigh in…how bad was my screw up?  I lost 5 pounds and 3 inches!  Not bad at all :-).   My total at the end of two weeks:  9 pounds and 6-1/2 inches.  I realize the weight lost probably isn’t going to continue at this rate but it sure is good to see a little change in my face and in the way my clothes fit!

Until next time…

One Week Down…I Did it!

Well, I did it!  One week down in my journey to a new, healthy body.  Before I began, I made the decision that if I was going to take on this mission to lose weight and get healthy, I would work the program the way it was designed.  For a girl that LOVES, LOVES, LOVES salty chips and creamy dips and could eat cheese morning, noon and night, the thought of giving up dairy and chips for awhile is like those horrible dreams where you are free falling to your death and suddenly awaken sit straight up in bed heart pounding, sweating profusely and taking deep breaths.  You’re thankful that you made it out alive but things feel a little off kilter and shaky.  But I’ve made it for one whole week, no shaking, no heart pounding and no profuse sweating.  It looks like I am going to make it.

I was surprised that once I got into the rhythm of grocery shopping for lots of veggies (which was not on my usual grocery list, who needs veggies when you have cheese?), it wasn’t nearly as difficult as I would have thought.  The foods from RenuU are pretty tasty so combined with lots of water, veggies and one cooked meal a day, I haven’t even been hungry.  Now when I say lots of water, most people are required to drink at least 64oz. a day…my husband’s question to me was “how are you going to reduce your water intake that low?”  The truth is, I drink anywhere from 96-120oz a day and have for years.  So, if you’re not a water drinker, you might need to pretend you’re in the desert and water is your life saving nectar.

I’ve been super lucky; I didn’t suffer from the withdrawal of sugar.  No headaches, no nausea and no cravings but I know that others have a tougher time during the first week.  Must be a sign that I’m doing the right thing!

So on to what you want to know. ..the results for this week.  Besides the fact that for the first time in a long time, I was able to zip my jeans WITHOUT sucking in, I lost 4 pounds and 3-1/2 inches in 7 days!  A great start, now onto the next goal…going down a jean size.

Today is the first day of the rest of your life…

The saying goes, “Today is the first day of the rest of your life”, so I have decided to make this first day count!  For years I’ve lost weight, gained weight, lost weight and then gained more than I lost.  Over the past year I managed to lose 14 pounds and keep it off.  However, a couple of months ago I was diagnosed with diabetes and I suddenly realized that it was now or never, I needed to make some life changes…for the better.

That being said, it’s not always easy to take that first step.  As I said, it was months ago when I was diagnosed and it took me that long to make my decision to work on my new lifestyle. Knowing the holidays were right around the corner, I decided to wait until after I was faced with parties, drinking, eating and celebrating…why set myself up for failure at the very beginning!

I did do the right thing, got my baseline blood work and discussed my new program with my doctor.  We set up an appointment for 2 months from now to retest my blood work and see how I’m doing following the plan.

I know there will be challenges along the way, moments of weakness but that’s why I have a diet coach to call on if I have a question about my food choices or keep me on track and a group of girlfriends that I can call at any time for support or to just wallow in self-pity momentarily before they tell me to suck it up J

But the thing I’m most proud of for today???? I met a business acquaintance for coffee/lunch.  I had water with lemon and coffee.  He had chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, collard greens, cream gravy, a roll and cornbread. And, I wasn’t even tempted!

I decided that one of the best things I could do for myself was to blog to keep myself on track and honest.  I invite you to follow along, comment and share your successes (or setbacks) and let’s support each other in a healthier, happier life!

P.S.  I’ll post photos along the way…as soon as I can find the “perfect” ones to share 😉