A Diet is Forever

I tried to read Skinny Bitch. Many trusted friends swore by it. “It will change your life!” “You will never look at meat the same way!” The title was appealing. Skinny Bitch. Isn’t that what every woman says to herself when passing a supermodel on the sidewalk? Or whispers as a tiny waist-ed co-worker saunters past in impossibly tall heels?

I made an earnest effort, even bought the book because I thought it would be a keeper. I get it – the conversational prose, the ‘no-bull’ tactics to nutrition, the fear mongering to turn omnivores to a vegans … but do you have to talk down to me to get your point across?

In record time the book found its way back to a Borders (RIP) the same day it came home. Mistake number one: Buying a book without ever opening the cover. Mistake number two: thinking a diet book would magically make me skinny. An apology should be issued here for my lovers of this book: I’m sorry. It’s just not for me.

If you’re looking for a book about food and diet that is honest and aware, pick up Michael Pollan’s Omivores Dillema. I’m working through it right now. Also, watch the documentary Food, Inc. As a consumer of food you should increase your knowledge about the food industry and understand how what you consume is not what it appears to be.

My last two rants from my soapbox: 

(1) I hate hate HATE when people say to me, “I am on a diet!” Images of cabbage soup and slim fast shakes fill my head. The first definition of the word “diet”: a : food and drink regularly provided or consumed – fourth on the list d : a regimen of eating and drinking sparingly so as to reduce one's weight.

I could expound on this all day. Everyone is on a diet. You may be on a gluten-free diet, a vegan diet… as long as you are putting food in your mouth, you are on a diet. If you want to use definition four, see to it that you are modifying your diet to be nutritious and sustainable. Make meaningful decisions to eat fresher and purer foods and develop healthy habits for life.

(2) Just because you are trying to maintain a healthy weight and lifestyle does not mean you must end your love affair with food. I listened to this interview with author Jane McClaren. Pick up a copy of her book Honest Eating. I’m going to do it, you should too.

Fall off this planet

My last entry splashed at the end of January, 6 months ago. Between then, I'd wrestled down weight that I gained in conjunction with stress and anxiety. I hiked 50+ miles in Yosemite National Park. I began biking regularly on the Katy Trail. I placed third in a workplace walk-a-thon (81.3 miles in 8 weeks to be exact).

Not much has changed, but one thing does stand out - it's a lot harder to stay focused on exercise when I don't have a goal.

A goal? That's right. A goal. When I started this blog, my goal was to lose weight for my wedding (in the months after our engagement I ballooned up to the most I had ever weighed in my life... who knew Chipotle, Buffalo Wild Wings and beer weren't part of a healthy diet? I kid.) And the weight loss came easy - four days at the gym, two days of outdoor activities. It was a simple challenge and I enjoyed it, I was convinced I'd keep it going for good.

But as life tends to do, I was thrown a curve ball. Stress and anxiety began piling on. What was once a healthy routine became a chore. Depression set in. I didn't like the idea of admitting this, but I went to see my doctor anyway and the numbers were confirmed - I had put on nearly 10 lbs in 6 weeks and it wasn't my thyroid. Though it didn't look like it, I felt it all over - the slugishness, the bloating the tiredness.

Why would I want to blog about my un-fitness? Isn't that a little, well, antithetical? I fell off the face of the blogosphere with as much notice as a dribbling drop. I haven't made a big enough splash to leave any audiences pining.

After reading an inspring story from a co-worker on how she overcame her fear of running, I decided to sign up for my first 5k. My husband runs a 5k as his workout, so for me to run a race would invovle some serious training (note: my preferred method of pedestrian transport is walking). So I've hooked up with a running coach and I've got a workout plan in place. Here's to picking up my feet and keeping the blog up to date... I'm 62 days away from running a race!

(holy crap)

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!  I hope that you finished off 2010 as strong as I did!  It is the 28th of January and that means there's been 28 days to start a new habit. 

We're coming down from the holidays and the wicked winter weather has packed the gym! I picked up a new weekly planner to keep track of my progress.  We're going on an active vacation this year, involving backpacking, hiking up and down rough terrain and camping in a National Forest.  I've never done any of these things consecutively and to keep myself motivated, I want to train properly. Like my marathoner friends, I plan to log my training efforts and highlight any major accomplishments in fitness schedule.

In my journal, for each day I do something active I write down the activity with some notes (ex. Hike - 5.5 miles various terrain; Cardio 35min/Circuit 25 minutes; Power Yoga 90 min) and that helps me see if I've been active enough for that week.  I also started using each day's space to journal my food so I can be aware of what I'm eating... and that's much harder than working out!

As for a big change in our household, we got rid of our microwave to make way for a rice cooker/steamer.  We're hoping that elimnating our microwave will keep many prepared foods out of our kitchen.  I've taken to baking things like cookies and empanadas and then freezing them so they're not so easily accessible but still around for company or if you just need one sweet bite.  And to keep an eye on our budget, we're trying to up our veggie and fruit intake - even in the winter, eating produce seems to be easier on the budget than anything else.

So my three big things that I imagine lots of other people are trying to do in 2011:
1) Exercise even more - and have a goal in mind
2) Keep track and be aware of what I'm eating
3) Eat more colorful foods!

Last thought of the day... I found this article on CNN and thought it best to include it here... I love strength training and you should too (it yields much faster results than just standing on the elliptical)
http://www.cnn.com/2011/HEALTH/01/28/exercise.reboot/index.html?hpt=P1&iref=NS1