What Follows 28?

So, I've just completed 28 days following the Fast Metabolism Diet in strict adherence.  I reached my goal and I feel great. I am craving a cup of coffee with cream again. Can I drink it? What about the foods I avoided while following the 28 day regime? I don't want to lose the healthy glow I have or the energy I feel. What next?

Maintenance can sometimes be an unpopular activity. I know from all my previous weight loss journeys that it is often harder than the diet was.

Weight management wasn't an issue for me as a teen. I was a skinny little freckled face farm girl growing up. Even though I gained a TON of weight during both my pregnancies (60# with the first, 45# with the second) I managed to lose all of but 5# with in the first year of their births. And truly at the time, I needed that extra weight. I was too thin.

I didn't start having issues with unwanted weight gain until I was separated from my first husband. For the first time in my adult life I didn't have anyone controlling what I ate so, I ate whatever I wanted. (A lot of despair and anger was soothed by the midnight munchies, a lot of stifled aggression diverted by the drive thru window of Micky-D's) As a result I quickly packed on the pounds. Then life got more settled and calm, I was working a full time job and slowly the weight came back down.

I fell in love and we got married. Happy and content to play homemaker again I started banging out all kinds of wonderful in the kitchen. Aaaannnnnd, the weight crept back on. When one day I saw a picture of myself I knew I had reached the point of desperately needing to do something.

the picture that spurred me to change.

I joined Weight Watchers. I was successful with the program and by the end of the first year had reached my goal. I kept the weight off for several years, then slowly it started creeping back on. Maintenance wasn't going so well.

Next came Curves. Running my own business, working out every day, following the weight management program we promoted, I quickly lost weight. Then the stress of running my own business took it's toll and slowly but surely the weight snuck back on. It seems to be a never ending story with me! Lose it, Gain it. Lost it, Gain it. Aaaaaaghhhh!

The thing each of these weight loss stories have in common was the maintenance phase. Each time I reached a goal and started living out life in maintenance mode, it would only last for so long. Why? Because I had been counting calories or counting points or following specific meal plans and as soon as I returned to eating without counting, my body greedily grabbed hold of each morsel of caloric/ fat and stacked it back on. That is why this 28 Day Fast Metabolism Diet held such appeal. I wanted a metabolism that was on fire! I wanted my food to properly fuel me, to be my ally not my enemy.

So, back to my original question. Can I have my coffee with cream? After following specific phases of eating each week and avoiding certain foods, what do I do now?

Well, since wheat and gluten and corn were already on my "do not touch" list due to food allergies I have no issue with leaving them off for forever! I suspect dairy should not have a primary place in my eating anymore but in moderation I plan to explore that. Many of the things that were strictly OFF THE LIST, during the last month I have no problem leaving behind. And let's be honest, NO ONE can eat anything and everything and expect to stay fit and healthy. We all need to be sensible in our eating choices to be healthy.  But after following the plan that allowed my liver to heal and process food the way it was designed to and for my metabolism to be revved up, I should be able to navigate maintenance successfully. I'll post an update from time to time and let you know how it's going. Feel free to help hold me accountable. :)

28 Days Part Two

Winter isn't my finest time to begin with, given that S.A.D. (seasonal affective disorder) compounds my long term battle with depression. Add in some feeling pudgy and sluggish and you've got a major black cloud hanging over you.

So.. with the arrival of spring and thoughts of cute summer tops and capri's to wear, I went into a little bit of panic mode when I discovered the change in my body (thanks post-menopause) over the winter months meant those cute clothes just didn't fit right anymore. I knew I had to do something.

A few days later in a conversation with my daughter-in-law, she mentioned a diet that several ladies she knew were following. She said they were eating all the time and losing weight. But she said it was super strict, in that there were lots of things prohibited on the eating plan. Still, they were losing and liking it. I was intrigued and later that day I googled the title and did some research on the diet.

The Fast Metabolism Diet was the name of the book and author Haylie Pomroy assured readers that they could lose up to 20# in just 4 weeks through the fat burning power of food. I didn't feel I needed to lose that much but so much of what she wrote about resonated with me because of my prior days of owning my own fitness center. We taught a weight management program at Curves that espoused ways to raise your metabolism so you'd lose the weight and keep it off. (That eating plan didn't work so well for me once I realized I was wheat/ gluten --and to some degree, dairy- sensitive). I realized just a few chapters into the book that the main problem for me was that the restrictive calorie intake had messed big time with my metabolism. I also wasn't eating enough of the right kinds of foods and I needed some help to get me back on track.

Now, you might think I'd know how to eat right but I'll admit right now, in the last few years I've gotten lazy in the kitchen. My cooking had gotten into a rut and I'd been going for fast, easy and cheap when it came to food purchases and prep. And because I am wheat/gluten and semi-dairy sensitive, it's a challenge to find food I can eat sometimes. I needed a meal map to point me in the right direction. Fortunately The Fast Metabolism Diet was full of maps and pointers. A kind of GPS for my tummy!

The diet is strict: NO wheat, corn, soy, dairy, sugar, artificial sweeteners, fruit juice, alcohol and, (the biggest one for me) NO COFFEE!! (I almost said "I can't do this" when I read that part. In fact I negotiated with myself thinking I could give up all of it but the coffee but once I finished the book I decided if I was going to commit to doing this, I needed to commit fully and give it my all)
And that's what  I did. I began to wean myself off the caffeine. I sat down and wrote out a meal map of my own, using some of the books recipes and suggestions, substituting some foods with ones I liked better (but that were still on the approved foods list) I prepared a shopping list. Best of all, my husband said he wanted to do this with me!

While the diet is strict, and with that list, you think "well, what's left to eat?" but honestly, I've never eaten better! Fresh fruit, veggies by the bushel full, lean meats--organic and nitrate free whenever possible, healthy fats like almonds and cashews, hummus and  avocados. Yes, I've missed my coffee and cream but it's not for forever. It's 28 days of eating strategically, designed to light your metabolism on fire! I've not felt deprived or starving and when I'm hungry it's because it's time to eat not because I've had to skip a meal to try and justify calorie intake.

 I feel better than I have in years! I have energy and stamina. My digestive issues have settled down to almost nothing. I've had only one bad day of fibromyalgia symptoms and I know it was related to snacking on some questionable food items at a party. I've lost inches all over and definitely seen a reduction in that troublesome tummy area! And weight loss? As of this morning I've dropped 10 lbs and am at the lowest weight I've been since... I can't remember when! (hubby reports he's lost about 5 lbs and definitely feels better and really loves and appreciates the wholesome goodness of the meals)

Bottom line is... it works.

coming next.... What follows 28? 

28 Days; Part One

About 4 weeks ago I embarked on a journey of eating to lose some weight and heal my metabolism. Yes, eating.

You may know that 2 years ago I decided to get serious about losing 20# that just really needed to go. It took me 5 months to reach that goal and I did it by counting calories, exercise and perseverance. The outcome was that I lost 25#, felt good about it and had reestablished a fitness pattern that kept me walking just about every day, rain or shine. I had earned some bragging rights.

from Sept. 2013, when I reached my goal of losing 20#

But the downside of losing weight through counting calories (and not very many of them since it was a 1200 calorie diet) is that when I reached my goal and went into 'maintenance' the struggle to keep it off was harder than the diet. But, again, exercise and perseverance paid off and I kept the weight off for a year. Then... last summer, I relaxed a little... I didn't count calories every day and I didn't pay attention to what I was stuffing in my mouth quite as much. Because, frankly, who wants to live that way every day for the rest of your life? Apparently, those who wish to remain skinny, because in just a few short weeks, with a couple of vacation/road trips thrown in, 5# had re-attached themselves to me, mostly in the most unattractive place possible for a woman-- my gut!!

Now, granted five pounds doesn't sound so bad and I justified it by saying I was still within my goal weight range (remember, I started out just wanting to lose 20) but I think we all know we prefer to see the pointer on the scale be on that side of the number rather than the other side. And I could see the pointer creeping, wavering, teetering the wrong direction. Like creeping affluence, if I didn't get this in check I'd be back where I was before the diet!  Add to this, I just felt sluggish, tired, bloated and, well, just not so great anymore. And because the majority of it seemed settled in my mid-section, it felt difficult to disguise it or ignore it.

Over the winter I tried numerous times to shake it off. Every Monday morning I'd start with best intentions but by around 3 pm I'd be scooping peanut butter out of the jar and slathering it on a granola bar or a banana. Every night as I laid in bed, I'd reprimand myself and lay out a plan for the next day. "No cream in my coffee. If I just give up cream in my coffee I bet I'd lose some weight over time." or "no more butter. or peanut butter." and every day I'd fail. After a few weeks of this I'd shake my head and say "oh well, whatever" and pull out another loose fitting top to wear to hide my muffin-top.

As spring rolled around and I started the process of rotating spring and summer wear to the front and putting heavy sweaters and such in the back, the thought occurred to me that a lot of my cute summer wear might not fit as well.... but I was wrong. They didn't really fit AT ALL. I wasn't just dealing with some extra weight, I was dealing with inches, rolls, of unwanted fat! Maybe the weight gain was a measly five (okay, now 6) pounds but my body (thank you post-menopause) had really changed in shape. It was kind of depressing. Who am I kidding? It was all kinds of Yuck! Something had to change. Something had to give.

to be continued...