Defeating the Purpose

[tamakun]

Over the past couple of weeks, I've been looking at myself and kinda thinking that I've gotten a little rounder-around-the-waist. I can't complain - I know the reason is due to me making all those delicious baked goods over the past 12 weeks! - but obviously I'd like to lose a little bit of this spare tire that I've packed on.

When I went out for lunch today, I decided to bypass the Wendy's Cheap Chicken Nuggets and went to Subway for a 6-grams-of-fat-or-less sub, and I was reminded of a Consumerist post, where an equally-calorie-conscious person had realized that by cutting the bread in half but retaining everything else i.e. a 6-inch rather than a footlong but double the meat, you can reduce your calories quite substantially, but was posed with a question of wasting bread as the half-size double-meat somehow cost more than the same amount of meat spread across a footlong. It was a math problem that I enjoyed pondering as I walked that extra distance to the Subway, and I didn't even realize the heat (heat and humidity warnings today!) was beaming down on me.

Anyways, I got in, and discovered that a 6-inch double-meat is actually less than a $5 footlong so I'm happy there (saving money is a secondary issue, I want to try for meals around $5-6), but I realized that doubling the meat probably isn't the best way to remove calories. :P Ah well, it's still better for me, and it was still a tasty sub. :) (I got a Double-Ham with lettuce, tomatoes, and green peppers with sweet onion sauce on Italian/"plain" bread.)

I found a simple Subway Calorie Calculator that even gives you a Nutrition Facts label for what you've eaten. My lunch was about 400 calories, and I'm pretty pleased with that!

Other things I've been doing in an attempt to skinnify myself:
- Keeping track of the amount of calories that I'm taking in daily, roughly (in groups of 100). For drinks like tea and such, I take a rough guess of how many calories in each cup and then just keep tabs on that. This was completely thrown out the window when I was at Anime North this weekend as none of the restaurants that we went to have labels on their plate, and I can't imagine the Buffalo Chicken Fajitas were really that calorie-saving. :P
- Drinking water. This has not been much of a conscious decision as of late but I seem to be drinking a LOT of bottled water recently, especially if it's in my line of sight. Best way to fill-up with no calories ever.
- Instead of taking the elevator, I'll spend the extra time and just take the stairs. I never do this in the mornings because I'm always late :P But when I come home, I have nothing time-critical, so I can take the extra 5-10 minutes. Since we're on the 11th floor, there's a goal right there - I have gotten as far as the 8th floor before getting winded (but I finish off the rest of the way). I wonder if I can manage to get myself fit enough (at least!) so that I can get up to the 11th floor without a problem.
- When I first got Dance Central, I was thinking about using that Workout Mode to get myself in shape. I fell out of that kinda quick since I can't do more than, like, 2 songs at any given time before I stop. :P But I should do that again, at least I'd be enjoying myself! :) And for further incentive, I want to unlock the ultimate dancing machine, ELIOT!
- Letting people know I'm trying to lose weight. The idea of peer pressure by letting others know is also a good motivator since I don't want to let them down. Thus, this post. :)

Have you been trying to lose weight? What tricks do you use?

Comments

[bassbeast.livejournal.com]

The biggest problem isn't just what you put in your mouth (though that does go a long way) but think about your job and your hobbies. Your (current) job has you sitting at a desk, stationary and sedentary. Your primary hobbies (anime and videogames) are all sedentary activities, save for some Dance Central.

Now that summer is upon us, definitely take advantage of that beautiful Earl Bales Park. Believe me, I'm quite jealous that it's right outside your door. It's a lifestyle thing.

For me losing weight, the big driver was going to the gym for that time. I haven't gone since Ian was born, but Ian is thankfully a great motivator to stay in shape. I have to tire HIM out, not the other way around. We go for big walks every day, and Erin gets to walk with him to a nice park every afternoon. For us, it was a big lifestyle change, but it has been totally worth it.

Another great motivator: find a fabulous piece of clothing (pants, shirt, suit, etc.) and buy it a little bit smaller than you are now. Make it your "goal" clothing, and continue to ensure you fit in it. The moment it starts to feel a bit snug, it's a good reminder to watch yourself. The Kenneth Cole jeans from the Outlet Mall we were in are those pants for me. They are a great metric to make sure I don't let myself go too much.

But my biggest piece of advice is do NOT look at the scale, but how your clothes fit. One of the biggest demotivating things when you start an exercise program is watching the scale not move - or even go up - for a long while. Muscle weighs about three times that of fat. So while you're probably burning lots of fat, you're also gaining muscle mass, which will wreak havoc on your BMI/weight measurements. So rather than celebrate a weight goal, celebrate a new notch in the belt, or that pair of pants that, yes, don't make your ass look half bad at all.

Above all else, have faith in yourself. It's a brave thing, to change something significant. We're cheering you all the way. Maybe we should go back to Vegas for some more huge walking? ^_^

[tamakun.livejournal.com]

Well, at some point you should come up to Earl Bales and we can wander the park! :) I have a lot of bread to feed the birds and squirrels with. ^^

As for the clothing, I think a few of the Vegas clothes are actually tighter-fitting than the other clothes that I typically wear, so they're a good indicator. When the pants I wear require a belt to keep them up, I'll definitely be doing something right. :D

ravenworks also mentioned not to stare at the scale! It's kicked under the bed right now and I sure as heck ain't gonna take a look for it. :P

[sunhawk.livejournal.com]

I would recommend getting yourself a nice reusable water bottle, it will save you tons of money compared to buying cases of bottled water :) This is a pet cause of mine, since bottled water is a wasteful and not-earth-friendly product created to fill a non-existent need.

Really excellent video on the subject: http://storyofstuff.org/bottledwater/

I'm trying to get in better shape myself! Back when I was working in an office, I used to use part of my lunch break to take a walk around the block, if the weather was decent :)

I also tend to not eat out very often, even at the healthier places like subway, overall you can make much more healthy and affordable food for yourself the night before :)

[tamakun.livejournal.com]

Oh, believe me, I'm not a fan of bottled water either, but I keep refilling a plastic bottle (like, on my bedside) and when I see it, I drink it. :P (I know that refilling plastic bottles is also not the best, but for now, it's working for me...)

I think that taking an extra few strolls would definitely help as well, considering how much I sit for work. With the weather holding up the way it is, I'm definitely planning on enjoying the non-air-conditioned space. :D

[sunhawk.livejournal.com]

That's cool, you just gotta be careful reusing them like that because they are meant for single-serving and can break down over time, especially if you freeze or heat them too much, and release carcinogenic bits into your water @_@

I also found that having a walk helped wake me up and combat the post-lunch food coma LOL