Guest Post: Nadia & Her Weight-Loss Mission

Hey guys! Please welcome Nadia’s ninth guest post! We’ve seen a lot of progress over the past nine weeks as she’s juggled major changes in her life with attempts at living more healthily. This week, Nia reaches a milestone and asks us what it means to start anew.
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Everyone needs a fresh start from time to time.

It’s tempting to wipe the slate clean every time we face a setback. We can just say, “ta-da!” and feel as though our lives have instantly changed forever. But we know better – change is gradual. It’s usually pretty brutal and requires a lot of patience and understanding. And it’s certainly no different when it comes to weight-loss.

It’s been over two months since I decided to make eating right and exercising a bigger part of my life. While I’ve had my ups and downs, I think there are lessons I have learned. I’ve grown, and as a result, I’ve changed a lot of the way I eat and work-out for the better. Let’s review:

• Drinking more water (staying hydrated is important for your body and for losing weight)
• Less coffee, more tea (tea has been shown to increase metabolism over time, as well as trick your body into making you feel more full)
• More vegetables by the pound (no, lettuce on a hamburger bun does not count as a serving!)
• More time spent outdoors (even walking around, climbing stairs, and leisurely strolls in public areas add up and keep you trim)
• Stay away from artificial flavors and preservatives (these things are made from nasty chemicals, not naturally good stuff, so why put it in my body?)

There are still plenty more lessons to learn, such as how not to overeat, how to snack properly, how to motivate myself to work-out more often, and so on. The point is, after two months, I’m beginning to see progress. And that, Cranky readers, is worth more than just starting over again.

How many times have you tried to reboot a diet or health-related plan?

Best Meal:

Gjelina’s in Venice: This restaurant that my friend recommended makes everything fresh from sustainable, organic farms nearby. As a result, we ordered three vegetables dishes: sweet corn, broccolini, and cauliflower, and all three were majorly excellent! Top it off with ricotta-stuffed raviolis that we shared and a butterscotch pudding with salted caramel that I devoured, and all in all this is one of the best meals I’ve eaten in a long time.

Worst Meal:

French fries: In a moment of weakness, I indulged myself. The thing is, I knew I would be dancing it off later. Not that this justifies it, but it does make it a little better, as I knew that the calories I consumed would be burned off.

Food I Didn’t Realize Would Be Bad:
[photo cred]
The Cranky One wants you to know that fast-food breakfast burritos typically have more than 30g of fat.

Breakfast burrito: Now, I’m sure many of you are thinking, “of course that’s bad!” But here was my logic: I figured, this is made with hash browns, eggs, avocado, cheese, and bacon. I will eat half of this right now, and save the other half for dinner – which I did. In retrospect though, if you have to save half of what you eat to spread the calories throughout the day, then perhaps you are eating the wrong thing. No more things stuffed into other things!

How I Worked Out:

More swimming, looooooong walks by the beach, and dancing!

What Did We Learn?:

Incorporating more fruits and veggies is simple, so long as you’re conscious of it. Some days, I got in more servings than others. However, knowing that I was trying to reach that goal pushed me to avoid eating certain foods and swapping them for healthier options.

This Week’s Goal:

As I continue to munch on more fruits and veggies, I’m going with another money-saving challenge: eating out the fridge!

I’ve bought a lot of groceries in the past, and while I normally have no problem eating everything in sight, I also know that I’m likely to pass over, say, a can of soup that’s been in my cabinet for a fresh meal out somewhere with friends. So this week, I’m challenging myself to eat as many meals as possible from within my kitchen, not outside of it. Let’s see what creative culinary creations I can come up with!

Start Weight According to Crappy Target Scale: 140.8

End Weight According to Crappy Target Scale: 140.2

Ask me and Ana questions on Twitter at @nahdeeeyah and at @feedmeimcranky1!

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You’ve lost a total of 10 pounds!!! And you seem to have mastered the ability to still eat the things you crave, drink moderately and dine-out with friends while not going overboard. That’s key in making your weight-loss long-term! Cool! I think you bring up an excellent question about “rebooting” a diet plan and starting anew. I think it’s actually a gift that we never really can start anew. Each time we re-attempt to achieve our health goals, we have the ability to draw from our previous experiences so as not to repeat mistakes and also so that we repeat the things that worked for us before. In that sense, jumping back on the wagon should get easier and easier. But it is about consistency, and the gap in time between one wagon and another certainly can make or break the effort. Things to think about!

To see Nadia’s first update, click here; her second, click here; her third, click here; her fourth, click here ; her fifth, click here; her sixth, click here; her seventh, click here; and/or her eighth, click here.

Can you relate to some of the lessons Nadia’s learned over these past 9 weeks?

<3,

The Cranky One

Tags: weight loss