Losing Weight

Writing down what you eat everyday is not a new concept. Counting calories goes back, like, forever but I remember it as something attached to Weight Watchers and is not a discipline I have every really given a shot at.

Last year, I spent time going Atkins and reducing my carbs, increasing the proteins, etc. It certainly worked but for someone who has a working relationship with grains of every description, after a month, it was getting to me. I lost a little and gained it straight back.

Just before she returned to her life after Christmas, my daughter listened politely to me moaning about all the running not dropping a pound from my body. This was whined about over breakfast, I might add. The next day we ran together at Bogue Chitto State Park; it was a 10 Mile Trail Race/Run and very hilly and occasionally wet and rather treacherous in places. It's a trail!

The track was a 5 mile loop and after the first, I had had enough. My feet were aching and the 10 milers were already looping us to completion.  If we had gone around again, the organizers would have to hang around another 2 hours. But, I felt defeated by de feet and age and weight. So I did what I do best and whined about it some more. Over breakfast.

And my daughter said, "Well, I have say you are probably eating WAY more than you need to to maintain a healthy weight. A woman your age doesn't need more than 1600 calories."

"    "  That silence was from me. I wasn't happy hearing this at all. I could've sworn I need at least 2400 calories. I can only suppose my silence emboldened her to continue.

"Immediately after breakfast yesterday, you ate a piece of chocolate."

This was true. I did it without thinking. And this brings me to my point. I eat a lot without even thinking! The sewing room is directly off the kitchen and I pass through it a hundred times a day when I am home so it is easy to reach out and grab a handful of chips or the odd Halloween mini-bars and say to myself, it's just one. And they all add up over time.

So I logged on to Livestrong where they had this MyPlate program which allows me to track every single morsel that passes the lips. I plunked in my height and weight, how much I wish to lose and by what date and it tells me how many calories I can consume in one day to achieve the goal I set for myself.

As I eat, I enter the what and how much and when, and it then calculates how many calories, carbs, proteins, etc I accumulate and tells me how many I left to consume that day. And I have to be HONEST for this to work. I' mean, otherwise, what is the point!

So far, one week, no bread, lost 2.5 lbs.

Thanks Rach!