Weight: 159lbs (starting 166lbs)
My weigh loss seems to have stabilized at around 159lbs, which I'm happy with. My sister is visiting from Europe and said "oh you don't look much thinner" (you can always rely on family to be encouraging...) - but when I said I weighed 158-159 lbs, she was impressed, I could tell. For me, the greatest excitement is fitting into clothes that I used to wear before I got pregnant in 2006 and had three children in a row (and when I say in a row - my daughters are 10.5 months apart: you do the math...). There was a pair of Diesel jeans that I just loved which I thought I would never fit into again in this lifetime...and now, they fit! They're very tight, and I do need to lose a bit more if I really want to get back to my younger self's weight, but I can get them on and do up the button. Psychologically, that's huge.
I'm not going to list all my meals again until I get to China, I just have too much on until I fly on the 7th of February. Charlie already left a week ago, and clearing out the house, my office, everything is pretty full-on. Mostly, I'm eating repeats of previous days, but perhaps not quite so healthy as when I started off, eating only one vegetable instead of two, for example, at dinner. Last night, I had peppers filled with ground beef and with cheese on top. Plus spinach. That was pretty delicious, actually. But I'm having trouble eating enough vegetables during the day, and have got in the habit of having a cooked breakfast or lunch (sausages and eggs) which doesn't feel super healthy on its own. I keep reminding myself of Mark Sisson's saying (which I think one of you reminded me of): "vegetables are your friend". As a snack, I am eating a lot of almonds. I haven't looked up how good or bad that is, but it's better than licorice, is my guess. I'm also drinking quite a bit of wine in the evening, as a way to relax and indulge myself. Not every evening, but probably every other evening.
Generally, I've adjusted to not eating so many carbs. I no longer have the feeling I'm eating sawdust. I find it hard to think of snacks that I actually want (beef jerky - sorry, but no thanks), and will research this a bit more once things calm down, but other than that, I don't really mind being on this diet anymore. I am coming through to the other side! Also, once I get to China and see what's on offer, and the kids are in school all day (here they just go for 2.5 hours) I will have time to strategize a bit about eating more healthily, and how. I don't think it'll be hard - traditionally Chinese (northern, where I'll be) don't eat bread, they don't eat pasta, and they normally just have rice at the end of a meal on its own. Before that, you often get a spread of fish, meat and vegetable dishes, so it's just a question of skipping the rice at the end. It might actually be easier than following the diet here in the US: there are simply tons of restaurants in Beijing, spilling into the streets, along the sidewalks, and it's often as cheap as eating at home. From not minding this no-carb way of eating, hey, who knows, I might get truly excited about it.
I may not post again until I'm in Beijing and settled 10 days from now. But I am coming up with a list of pros and cons -- some of which I'm finding quite unexpected -- in my head, about this diet, which I'm hoping to share with you and get your input on.
As if Mark Sisson has been reading your blog, here's today's post. Assuming you're moving around enough, he doesn't seem to think it's that detrimental to your diet.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.marksdailyapple.com/the-asian-paradox-how-can-asians-eat-so-much-rice-and-not-gain-weight/
I hope your packing goes well and congrats on seeing a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.