The Battle of the Bulge

Started to post in the low-carb thread, but this is about more than diet, so I'll start a new one.

If I have to plan or count too much, or cut out certain foods, I won't stick with a plan. So I'm taking a different approach.

Don't have scales, so I can't tell how much I weigh. I'll go on how my clothes fit. Muscle weighs more than fat, & I intend to build muscle. I was recently weighed at my doctor's office, & have another appointment in September; so I'll check weights for both dates next time to have another gauge of how I'm doing.

Where I am now: a little flab in the upper arms & torso; way too thick & flabby in the waist/stomach area; somewhat flabby in the butt & upper thighs. Might measure, might not; don't think it's a big a deal. If I wear pants that fit comfortably in the hip & thighs, I need a 12. For comfort in the waist, I need a 14 or 16. I deal with this by wearing 12s in low-cut pants & wearing long tops to cover the gross overhang. Yikes!

My goal: to look balanced for my height & build & to feel my best, I should get down to about a size 10-12 waist, size 8-10 hips. If I can be comfortable in a 10, I'll consider that ideal. My top size--about 12--won't likely change because of my shoulder width & arm length. How I look is honestly more of a motivator than health issues, but both matter.

My plan, since I now have regular hours & can be more consistent than I've been in ages:

1--Take Jorge Cruise's advice on diet. For a meal on a 9" dinner plate, make it about half vegetables, a quarter complex carb, a quarter meat. If I choose not to have meat for a meal, I'll split the last quarter between the other 2 or make it all veggie. Eat fruit or drink juice for at least one snack. Drink water between & with meals. Control snack portions by always counting or measuring it out before I sit down with it--NEVER sit down with the whole bag of chips, etc. I won't deny myself things I really love, but I will severely limit the naughty stuff--no more than 1 tiny serving in a single day. I'm not usually bad about snacking on fatty or sweet stuff a lot anyway, so I'll probably wind up having no more than 2-3 small naughty snacks per week. I won't make a special effort to buy "diet" foods, but will focus on "healthy" & fresh foods. No artificial sweeteners. Sodas are a huge weakness, so I'll limit myself to 2 a week at most. I hope to eventually acquire a taste for other stuff that will let me cut them out & not miss them, since they're so awful health-wise anyway.

2--Include some advice from the book French Women Don't Get Fat: Don't eat on the run. Make each meal or snack a sensual experience by taking it slowly, savoring the flavor, & (more often than not) including considerations like the atmosphere. Eat less & enjoy it more.

3--Don't have the exercise fully planned yet, but to start I'll focus on the abs (my main problem area) for a couple of weeks while I decide what I'll add. I have an ab exerciser for crunches. It helps you keep the proper form, & time yourself so that you work the abs thoroughly with resistance. Makes crunches more efficient & easier on the back. Takes about 10-15 minutes to do a decent workout on uppers, lowers, & obliques.

I'm posting this for myself, & will post my progress here, along with comments on how this routine affects how I feel, for myself & anyone else who's interested. I welcome everyone's input, comments, & comparisons.

Official start date: Sunday 8/13.

 

Good for you sista!

I think it's cool you have such a well thought out plan and you are realistic about it which will help you succeed. Keep us posted, and I'm sending you the best vibes.

 

you could throw on a pair of walking shoes and hit the pavement AK. build up your distance and quicken your pace weekly. let your body tell you how far to push but you cant be too whimpy either. work up a good sweat, get your heart rate up and make your lungs burn. there will be times when you dread doing this but make yourself go anyway. you'll push past the laziness in a few minutes and feel better both physically and mentally afterwards. I DID IT! I CAN DO THIS! JUST WATCH! it doesnt take up that much time anyway. you make time for it. its as important as anything else you do. heck, if you can fathom the idea of weight training, it will help to burn more calories and give you and overall sleeker body type. girls wont get bulky, just toned. get some 10 lb. dumb bells and do minor lifting and squats (lunges will sculpt your upper thighs like nothing else), incorprorate them in with your ab work. and dont over-do the abs, a set or two is all you need if you work til exhaustion (muscle fatigue). i only do one set of 100 crunches every time i go in the gym. good luck

 

Actually I enjoy working with weights, & I'm sure I'll work that in eventually. Probably the walking, too. I'd enjoy dance more than walking, but will have to save a bit & find out where the classes are. This is a great area for walking--nice parks, lots to see. I hate walking without either having a place to go or something interesting to look at--just for the sake of the walking itself. I have some ankle weights to wear when I'm walking too for that extra little oomph

The main reason I'm giving myself a couple of weeks before adding anything to the ab work is to 1--avoid overwhelming myself at first & not wanting to stick with it, & 2--give myself a little time to decide what I want to do & when to do it each day. I have to make it a habit at a certain time of day so I won't find myself always saying, "I'll do it later."

 

A good cardio/fat burning workout is ESSENTIAL to not only losing the weight, but also keeping it off. You need to make this a priority in your plan.

And I would do without the leg weights.... They put added stress on the joints, and aren't really necessary. But that's just my

 

Thanks for posting your plan..maybe it will inspire me.
Good luck with it.

 

First week ended Saturday night

& the only exercise I did was the ab work. I'm getting to where I can do a couple more of each one each time. Eating better, but still snacked on a bag of chips or pretzels a couple nights at work.

The most difficult thing has been the Cokes so far. I work 10-hour shifts & start dragging a bit by lunchtime. I've cut it to only 1 a day though (used to be 2 or more). I don't care for coffee too often, & only with lots of cream & sugar. I am at least drinking more water. I need to find a substitute for the Coke to give me a little lift at work--maybe one of those health-food supplements with some juice.

Haven't had any fast food except Friday when I took the grandkids out. Taking my lunch to work faithfully.

Results thus far: same size pants (12), but they're not cutting into my waist.

Small victory. Slow but sure.

Doctor's appointment 9/5. I'll compare the weight from my first visit to my weight & that one.

Will try to improve my activity & food habits a little more each week. In the past I've always gotten discouraged when I didn't stick strictly to the plan the first week, & gave up too soon. Now I'm just telling myself a little work is better than none