Sorry this post has taken so long. I wrote it, realized it was too long, tried to edit, got overwhelmed and then deleted and started over again. Now I am a full week late. I read a book this week that I felt strongly about and I tried to write a post about my philosophies. Then I realized that this is not a blog about philosophies on health and fitness. It is a blog to document my own journey to my goal and to help others with this goal to reach theirs. That goal, if anyone has forgotten, is to lose body fat.
So what I found was that I was letting a bunch of philosophies on overall health overshadow the basic goal of this blog. Obviously I would like to live a long and healthy life. I would like that for all of you too. The last post that I kept deleting was all about the ideal lifestyle for a long, disease-free life. The problem, however, is that no one actually knows that formula. We have a basic idea: more fruits/ veggies, less 'junk food' (though the definition of what 'junk' is changes all the time), get to a healthy weight/ body fat percentage, and exercise more. We tend to argue, though, over the specifics: what is 'junk' (gluten, carbs, sugar, etc), ratios of macronutrients, ratios of food groups, etc.
I ended up coming to the conclusion that it is kind of pointless for me to dwell on specific ideals for perfect health when I know I am so far from perfect it isn't even funny. I realized that, that kind of thinking has consistently contributed to my problem. I am an ALL OR NOTHING fat loser. I want to get to my goal and I am going to do it perfectly. When I don't, I tend to go off the wagon for the rest of the week until I can start again on Monday. I can't make this week perfect so I have to wait to start again on Monday so next week can be perfect.
I shared my thoughts about this with my husband this past week. I told him that it was silly of me to try to be perfect when the smartest people in the industry, the people conducting thousands of really expensive studies have absolutely no idea and can't agree on what 'perfect' is. He quoted Voltaire by saying, "Don't let perfect be the enemy of good."
So the main point of what I am trying to say is: We don't know what perfect is. Focus on what you can do right now. For me it is simply staying at a calorie deficit every single day. Some days I hit my maintenance calories but I have not had a surplus in 36 days. Just focusing on calories (which is something that I can do REALLY well) I can get much closer to my goal much faster than trying to be perfect, failing, going off the handle, and then ending up with more ground to make up than I had in the first place. Find something that will get you closer to your goal. Something that you can do really well right now. Make that your main focus and add to it little by little.
You may have heard that, those who reach their goals more slowly tend to stay at their goals longer. Well that may be a little misleading. Many of us know of and have tried programs that promise to get us to our goals faster. The problem is that we end up getting close without actually finishing. So really, switching to a focus on little changes made over a longer period of time may, in reality be a faster course to a goal because the habits set during that course may actually get you to your goal. Period.
I know many of you are frustrated. I am too. But hang in there. The holidays are coming up and so many of us give up this time of year thinking that somehow the New Year will magically be easier. Focus on what you can do now. If it isn't a calorie deficit, maybe it is simply keeping a record of your calories. No matter what or how much you eat, log it all. That will make a huge difference in and of itself. Or find something else that works for you and that you can focus on. You know what you can do. My job is to believe you can do it!
My Progress:
Weight: 169.1 lbs
Successes: I went on my 2-year wedding anniversary trip this weekend and didn't overeat! I ate exactly what I wanted at the Old Spaghetti Factory with bread and spumoni. People, if you haven't figured it out yet, logging is a beautiful thing. It honestly and truthfully sets you free.
Confession: I may have been able to keep my deficit this week but I definitely did not do well this whole weekend with meal frequencies or overall health or macronutrient balance of the foods that I ate. I am excited to get back to a normal day tomorrow.
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