Monday, June 23, 2008

Ego Over Matter 2008, Week 3 Weigh In and Semi-Random Thoughts

Well, here we are at the end of week three. This morning, I weighed in at 208 pounds, which pouts me three pounds down from last week, and 12 pounds down from when I started this. That works out to an average of three pounds per week, still a little on the aggressive side, but better than the last two weeks (note that when I say “better”, I mean losing weight in a way that’s actually sustainable; mush as I like seeing the weight drop off, I don’t want to take the hit to my metabolism and watch the weight creep back on. What’s the point of that?).

Some folks have asked me what my writing method looks like and how I do it. Here’s an example entry from a single day:

4:00 AM Orzo, Chicken, Mint pasta, 1 12/ cups (220 calories)
6:00 AM Lemon Herbal Tea (1/2 Gallon, consumed throughout the day (0 calories)
8:00 AM 5 Whole Roasted Peanuts (50 calories)
9:15 AM Italian Mixed Vegetables with tapatio Hot Sauce (70 calories)
1:15 PM Flour tortilla, mixed vegetables, shredded cheese, refried beans (400 calories)
3:30 PM 5 whole roasted peanuts (50 calories)
6:00 PM Whole wheat pasta, sun dried tomato paste, feta cheese (600 calories)

The idea is that each section is listed as a running tally, so I know whee4 I stand at any given point in the day. Since a pound of fat is equal to 3500 calories, a person needs to create a 3500 calorie deficit to burn through one pound of fat in a given week, 7000 calorie deficit to burn through two pounds. That means that 1000 calories each day needs to be removed from intake (or added to exertion and output, or a combination of the two) to meet that requirement. By doing some basic measurements (either through an electronic scale that can gauge your level of bodyfat, or using an older method like caliper measurements), you can get an idea as to where your baseline metabolism actually resides. Currently, I hover around 2500 calories per day, which means I have to make do on 1500 calories a day if I want to make that two pound a week goal consistently.

A couple comments on my eating habits… I genuinely can eat anything at any time of the day. Yes, I’m one of those weirdos that could eat a tri-tip first thing on waking up in the morning, or have waffles for dinner. I have no food hang-ups whatsoever, at least none that I’m aware of. That’s why you’ll see a breakfast of Orzo, and I’ll not even flinch. I think it comes from my crazy early morning hours. Oh, and the current buzz about eating a big breakfast being key to losing weight… in my experience, it’s true. I prefer a method of “backwards” eating, where I eat heartily early in the day, and decrease my consumption as the day goes on. Dinner becomes the smallest meal of the day. Oh, and what’s the deal with the 5 peanuts at regular intervals in the day? These are what I all a “blunt”, meaning that the act of just grabbing five peanuts (and yes, they need to be whole and yes I do count) gives my body just enough EFA’s to concentrate on and limit an insulin spike (it’s not diabetics that need to worry about insulin regulation; people who are dieting get an extra boost by helping keep the insulin receptors “offline”).

OK, that’s enough babble from me for now. I’ll see y’all again next week.

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