Droppin' it like it's hot (the weight that is)

This past Thursday I went for my weekly weigh in and to my great surprise I lost 1...2...3...4 pounds! It made feel me great :)

I should have lost that much, though, considering the cardboard diet I'm on. Those fiber "crackers" just don't get tasty no matter what you do to them - I tried mashing them into my oh so delicious plain oatmeal, using them as croutons on my filling two cups of lettuce, dipping it in my "rich chocolate" protein shake and force feeding it to myself with big gulps of water. But hey, at least it's doing its job, even if it tastes like saw dust.

I'm not hungry on the diet, but I still have cravings. It gets a little old eating the same thing for breakfast, am snack, lunch, pm snack and dinner. I was flipping through a magazine with delicious pictures of pasta, steak and cheesecake. My mouth started watering for the flavorful food so much that I felt like my dog begging for chicken at the dinner table. I was ready to eat the picture, BUT that would be a calorie that I can't afford.

This week is the "tone up" phase in which I am to start strength training. I was ready to be using weight machines, but little did I know that strength training was considered timing myself doing jumping jacks and wall sits in my living room. The dog watches me like I'm an idiot while I jump around the room from one exercise to the next - the dog can judge me all it wants as long as these pounds keep melting off.

Even though the diet is not the most tantalizing taste wise, I am so thankful that I am participating in it. I had plateaued and didn't know how to continue my hike downward with my weight. Sometimes I feel frustrated that the weight has taken so long to come off, but when I sit back and look at it, 36.5 lbs lost in six and a half months is not bad. 6.5 of those lbs being in ten days on this diet - that really is incredible. Going through this program helps me realize that I really can accomplish anything that I put mind to.

"Be not afraid of going slowly, be only afraid of standing still." - Chinese Proverb

The deadly craving

One minute you're going about your day, minding your own business, and the next your mind is consumed by the thought of some delicious food: chocolate, ice cream, french fries, a burrito, pasta or maybe a cup cake. It takes over your mind and you feel like you won't be able to think straight again until you get your hands on whatever food you're craving. I've been there and sometimes given in - haven't we all?

Here are a few things I did to get control:

• Raid your cabinets, pull out the foods that are bad for you and give them or throw them away
• Tell yourself to wait it out 10 - 15 minutes. A lot of times cravings will pass
• Distract yourself - pick up the phone and call a friend, Facebook stalk people, put on some music and sing along, make plans for the weekend, or anything else that will actively engage your mind. Eventually, you'll stop thinking about food.
• Eat a healthy snack that has qualities of the food you are craving. For example if you want Doritos find a healthy salty food or if you're craving chocolate grab a chocolate flavored light yogurt.
• And finally, if you just can't seem to calm that craving, give in, but only A LITTLE. If you want ice cream take a BITE and the same with all other food. Most of the time just getting the satisfaction of tasting the food can finally cure the craving.

This is a good article on how to battle emotional eating: http://bit.ly/9K2sU8