My husband laughs when I say this, but I'm going to say it anyway. My "Battle of the Bulge" sometimes feels as hopeless as JRR Tolkein pitting a bunch of ignorant Hobbits against all the evil of Mordor, including an army of daemon-like Oarks, an all seeing eye, and a wizard gone wrong. Don't get me wrong, I've had success on diets but do I really want to eat celery and flavorless, cardboard-like, rice snacks for the rest of my life? NO, especially considering the fact that I'm ever so fond of cooking.
Anyhow, lately my battle has become less of a battle and more of a passive resistance...really passive. I've considered going back on one of the plethora of diets I've tried, but I'm really not feeling it. So I've decided to try a different approach. Instead of focusing on losing weight, I'm going to focus on being healthier. Rather than making a temporary diet change that lasts six or seven months, I'm going to attempt to make a lifestyle change. I guess my focus is going to be less of, I want to lose weight, and more of I want to feel good about myself and feel healtier. The following idea isn't something I came up with, actually it's the way a friend of mine (a dietitian) eats. I think I'll give it a try:
1-I can eat what I like, as long as I meet the following criteria:
a. Eat a carbless Breakfast-Since school started I haven't been eating breakfast. This wouldn't be so awful if it weren't for the fact that by lunch time I'm famished and will eat anything I can get my hands on (which is typically something unhealthy). I mostly don't want to resort to bagels and muffins (hence the carbless), I need to find something a little healthier to start my day.
b. Eat five servings of fruit/vegetables a day. If it's eight o'clock at night, and I'm craving something sweet but I've only had two servings of veg for the day I'd better belly up to a nice big bowl of the green stuff! 'Cause I can't eat my ice cream till I've met my daily quota.
c. Drink three 24oz water bottles/day.
2- It's really difficult to find time to workout when I'm at work or school from eight-seven, so I'm going to keep things nice and easy. Continue my three days/week but up my workout time from 20 minutes to 25 minutes and incorporate some weights on my elliptical machine.
So that's it! Bring on the epic battle of the bulge, I'm anxious to see what happens with these few guidelines.
Lisha...I am excited for you!!! I understand the "Battle of the Bulge" dilemma REALLY well (unfortunately). I'll be keeping my eye on your blog to see what progress you've made. Let's see if a little accountability helps you muster down that bowl of greens instead of ice cream. j/k ;) But you do have a good point about the hobbits. If they can defeat Mordor...surely we can beat the bulge right!
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