There is a principle that says the act of observing something will change its behavior.  That is somewhat a goal I have in this project.  I am sure I drank less because I didn't want to look like an alcoholic.  I am sure I stopped at the end of the day thinking "I don't want to load any more photos so I'm just going to stop eating"  Mu hu hu ha ha ha my nefarious plans are working. It wasn't exactly an active month for me.  Usually I find time for yoga and for walking to work, maybe occasionally I get to hike in the woods... not so this month.  January was full of a lot of sedentary work.  I did freeze my ass off in a San Francisco costume shop for a few weeks, but I don't think the shivering accounted for enough calorie burning to make up for my lack of downward dogs.

Stats from January;

Coffee; 34 coffees in 31 days

Tea; 13 teas (it is winter)

Vegetarian meals*: 27 plus 13 salads (some of which had bacon)

Alcoholic drinks 8

*Vegetarian in this project means no meat or egg, only full meals are counted in this stat, not snacks.

Measurement difference; bust -1/2", waist (same), hip -1/2"

(weight loss unknown due to my lack of a bathroom scale)

What I learned this month;

I love oranges.

I love cabbage.

I eat way too many cookies.

Mornings that I ate protein and fiber in combination left me satisfied for longer.  So days that I had breakfast with yogurt AND fruit or kale AND meat set me up for a better day all over. Oatmeal sadly left me hungry very quickly, perhaps I should try eating some sausage with it...

I was pleased to see that I do indeed only eat meat as a flavoring (90% of the time) as I had claimed, however I was shocked to see how much sugar I've been consuming.  Sugar also seems like a difficult thing to eat in moderation; just a little makes you want a little more and then suddenly I've got four photos of cookies staring back at me.

Goals for February;

Limit of one baked good and one sweet per day. 

Protein/Fiber breakfast combos every day. 

Vary the diet a little more, there are a lot of the same things being eaten over and over.  I think I need to go find some new vegetables to learn about.

Ok that's it for now.  Onward into the shortest month, we shall see if I can't whittle a wee bit off the waist in the next four weeks. 

Be Well!

I cheat at solitaire.  Is it a weakness of character?  Is it just that I don't want to reshuffle the deck in the middle of the game?  Who cares if I flip one card rather than three? In cards, it truly doesn't matter... in health, it does.  When I was younger and feeding myself for the first time (college) I didn't know how to eat.  I didn't understand calories or the value of unprocessed foods. I ate too many carbs, not enough veggies. I didn't know about the ways I screwed up my metabolism.  Unsuprisingly I graduated college significantly heavier than I graduated high school. 

Since then I've learned yoga. I've read books about nutrition and the food industry.  I've seen countless documentaries about diet.  I've educated myself.  I've cut out all fast food and soda, I've cut out most processed foods and corn syrups.  I've seen a near elemination of depression, I *feel* healthier, my joints work better.  I dropped a good 20lbs after college graduation... and yet (we get to the crux of it) I remain heavier than I should be.  

I've tried keeping track of my diet and it is a pain in the ass.  I don't have time to measure everything and enter calories into calculators.  If I eat something that is made of many ingredients it is too much trouble to break it all down... I lose motivation.  This is my fresh attempt.  This is my accountability... this is me not allowing myself to flip the cards in the wrong way.

I suspect I have been my worst enemy.  I am eating good foods but I've been eating too much, I've been sneaking too many extra bites, too many little cheats.  New rule; if I eat it I need to take a photo of it and that photo goes on the internet. That is it.  No measurments, no calories counted but I need to be held accountable.  If I am too lazy to take a photo or if I am too ashamed to put it online I cannot eat it. I will not be tracking water, but everything else I will.  In the best scenario I will magically guilt myself thinner, in the worst I will remain my current weight but I'll have a good documentation to discuss with my doctor.  Either way it sounds like a useful project.

Here goes... wish me luck.