Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Cutting Out the Crap

Since my post in June about losing weight and toning up, I've lost about 20 lbs on a good day, 15 on a bad day. What I've done is cut my calories to about 1200-1500 per day and kept up with my work out routine. My problem now is not eating the right stuff. I know full well what I should be eating, but that doesn't always happen. For example, after my 6-10 PM class gets out (after a day of work) I race to the nearest fast food place instead of going home to cook myself a healthy meal. Who wants to do that at 11 PM? Not me. An article I found this morning served as my wake-up call on consuming fast food, specifically, my poison of choice, McDonalds. Take in this shocking fact: in the chicken nuggets and fries meal, there are 10 grams of trans fat used in the US; in Spain there are 3, and in Denmark 0.33. Yes, you read that correctly. US McDonalds restaurants use significantly more Trans fats than other countries. Being a former pre-med student, I know that consuming Trans fats increase your chances of Coronary Heart Disease and that the body is not able to fully metabolize/remove trans fat.
I've decided that enough is enough. It's time to focus on preparing healthy meals BEFORE my long day of work/school and sticking to it. Instead of letting my mixed green salad and other vegetables wilt in the fridge, I'm going to start using them. Hopefully I will finally start using my "meal planner" which I have failed at using in the past and my new Clean Food: A Seasonal Guide to Eating Close to the Source cookbook. I'll keep you updated on that along with healthy recipes that I like. Have any of you had similar issues? How do you make yourself successful at sticking to a healthy/clean diet? If any of you have recipe suggestions that you'd like to share, please send them my way!

8 comments:

  1. Ugh, that's my problem. It's so easy to eat fast food. I just want to lose 10 lbs. which is so doable, but I'm just too lazy to do it! I saw you're a new follower/reader on my blog, and wanted to stop by and say hello=)

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  2. First off, congrats for losing 20 lbs already! That's awesome!
    I used to love going to eat out (Wendy's was my restaurant of choice) and then the past month I've tried going meat free. I haven't been out to eat once because they don't offer any good vegetarian options so I don't bother wasting my time there. It was harder at the beginning to come up with food ideas, but now I keep pre-cut veggies and tatziki dip in my fridge for when I want something to munch on. It takes a bit of time to prepare them a few times a week, but after that they are the perfect snack!
    Good luck with your journey! xo em

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  3. girlfriend, I have this same problem. I usually work through dinner without a break and by the time I get off at 10 or 11pm, I'm dying for some food and the easiest thing is to breeze thru the drive-thru on my way home.

    My first suggestion: The break up diet. 45+ pounds in about 2 months. Ok, ok... so probably not for everyone and I would NEVER wish or suggest this to anyone... just making light of a bad situation on my part. ;)

    Now being serious: if you absolutely HAVE to make it through that drive through- think smaller portions. 90% of the time when dining out, I order off the kids menu. I have an appropriate portion size in front of me and am not tempted to overeat. Also, many FF chains are offering healthier side items for the kids- things like apple slices or a fruit cup. Satisfies the crave, easy on the figure and wallet. Even if you go with fries though, it's about 200-300 calories for the kids portion of fries.

    Also, make sure you're drinking TONS of water. 99% of the time, you aren't hungry, just thirsty. This can help a lot. And if you're dying for something before bed, have a glass of milk. It provides a little substance and is also proven to help you sleep better.

    hmm... so sorry for the long-arse comment. Just giving you a few tricks that I use. ;)

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  4. Oh my gosh, I wish you could see the look on my face.. that is just awesome. Wow, 20 pounds. I can't motivate myself enough to lose 5. I honestly like food too much! haha :) Congratulations!

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  5. Awesome job losing the weight. I've been going through this for a year now. I lost 35 lbs and now that I put on 10 of it, it's like I know what I need to do but it's so hard sticking with it.

    Preparing your meals will not only help you stay healthy by being aware of what you're putting in your body but also saves you money! I packed a lunch everyday this week and that saved me about 20 to 25 dollars!

    Good luck!

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  6. I just found your blog and I love it. I too am on a weight loss journey and I know how difficult it can be with eating after being at work and class all day. I pack my breakfast, lunch and dinner every single day. I am that person who eats in class, but I don't care. I think it is important to plan ahead, that way you can stay on track and not want to make the pit stop at McDonald's..althought every now and again is fine.

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  7. I wish I had any sort of self control when it comes to this stuff! Though I must give myself credit for cutting the soda and fast food.

    I just don't cut the junk food at home, and I really should. Maybe I'll make it a mission to start doing this!

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  8. Well, I think you are off to a good start by coming to grips with it and wanting to eat healthy! It is super hard to do, my advice is to take baby steps and don't be hard on yourself if you mess up time and again. You can't cut everything at once - it is hard to do. Just take one step at a time and just learn what is healthy and what is not. Then your body gets used to the healthy stuff and over time won't crave the bad stuff as much. A good book is the The Fat Flush, sounds bad but is really good with good suggestions of food to eat! Hope you enjoy the holidays!

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