Friday, March 12, 2010

Friday Already?

This week dragged by for me, except for the fact that I made it all the way through Thursday and totally bailed on my weigh-in post for this blog.

Oops.

Anyway, yesterday I used up some of the few steps I am allotted (I swear I've only got about 20 good ones in me per day, and I use those up before I even hit the office), got on my parents' scale, and the news was good:

159.75

I am officially not overweight, by one quarter of a pound. That's about 2.25 pounds down from last week, and is a much more reasonable loss than the four pound loss I experienced then. It's potentially sustainable, even... for a few weeks. Maybe. All depends on my metabolism.

Speaking of which, I spent part of yesterday figuring out my BMR and my minimal caloric intake assuming sedentary lifestyle for various weights: my current weight (I used 160 just to avoid the stupid decimal points), my goal weight (130) and my minimum healthy weight (123). What cracked me up is that even at the absolute lowest weight, to sustain that weight with minimal activity would still require more calories than the upper end of my 1200 - 1550 calorie range for losing weight! Now granted, it's only about ten calories more, but still...

I can do this. I can lose the weight I need to lose, and I can maintain it. I knew it academically, but it really clicked when I looked at those numbers. It's all about lifestyle, and balance. Yesterday my father and I took my boys and my nephew out to dinner. We ended up at Longhorn Steakhouse, which was nice for a change although not on my list of "safe" eateries for obvious reasons. But I'd just had a good weigh-in and I didn't want to screw it up by plunging my head into the trough (plus I knew my plans for this weekend included another restaurant meal and a date with Choreboy to see Alice), so I scanned the menu carefully.

I also knew that I really wanted some fries. Red meat wouldn't go amiss either.

I ended up ordering a cheeseburger with fries, and a side of seasonal vegetables. I don't have an internet connection on my cell phone (I'm cheap), so I couldn't look up how many calories there were in the burger, but I knew that sucker was huge (and that even extra-lean ground beef runs 70 calories per ounce). So when it arrived, I immediately cut the burger in half. I ate half the burger, 1/3 of the fries, and all of the vegetables.

When I got home, I went to my Spark People Nutrition Tracker (I seriously love that thing) and lo and behold, some other kind members had gone to the trouble of finding out how many calories were in that burger!!

1040. I am so glad I only ate half.

My fries were around 100 calories -- remember, I only ate 1/3 of the serving -- and the vegetables hit 90. So the meal's total was 706 calories, as opposed to the 1200+ it could have been.

I was so psyched. I did it! I actually was faced with fatty, deep-fried goodness and I enjoyed myself, but within reason. And it didn't kill me, either!

I'm the famine queen, so being faced with food and boxing it up rather than sucking it down is huge for me. Instead I made the right choices and ended up still within my calorie range yesterday in spite of eating out twice.

Oh, I didn't mention lunch, did I? I went to Subway. It's my weigh-in day treat. Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday I eat soup and a piece of fruit for lunch. Now it's a TON of soup -- about 2 cups -- but by Thursday I want food I can chew. So I got a 6" sweet onion chicken teriyaki on wheat, with double tomatoes. And because at that time I wasn't planning on eating out for dinner, I splurged with the chips and got a bag of real chips rather than the baked to the tune of 200 calories.

They were jalapeno-flavored, and worth every bite.

We'll see how today goes. I'm at home actually, with two sick little boys. And as the morning wears on I'm noticing that I don't feel that hot myself, so it worked out for the best. Looking at the weather outside, I'm not brokenhearted I didn't have to drive in this. Bummer that I used up a sick day, but it could have been worse.

I ate my normal breakfast of an egg and fruit, and the boys are all excited that I'm talking about making some vegetable soup for lunch, so it looks hopeful.

Happy Friday, everyone!

4 comments:

Patsy said...

Just discovered your blog and love your style/sense of humour! Will be following from now on and back for a 'proper' read when I get more time a little later. :o)

Amanda said...

Hi Patsy -- thanks, and welcome!

Unknown said...

See, now just do that every day and you'll hit your goal in no time!
Yeah, I know - if only it were that easy. But you're doing great! Congrats on the loss!!!

Amanda said...

Thanks, Jenn! And yeah, if it were only that easy LOL. It's that simple, but it's sure not easy!

If it were, I'd be a size 6 :P