Spring has finally
Sprung and my heart is warmed by a 8lb
weight loss. I’m about to start Month #16 of this Healthy Evolution Journey
and I’m so excited about this year and all the changes that are in process. My
snacking was a super challenge during January and February and even early
March. But I put a strategy in place this past month that’s working! I started “Snack Free Day” which has not only
cut my snacking in half, but I also notice I’m snacking much less on Snack
Days. So all in all this has been a super successful strategy. For this
upcoming month I’ve decided to only make a minor tweak to the strategy – I’ll make
a genuine effort to limit my snacks to just one on Snack Days. This isn’t a
goal - it’s something I to aspire do. I lost 8lbs – which is a little more
than I’m comfortable with. I want to be at 4-6lbs so I’m not looking to
increase snacking by any means, I’m also not looking to make major caloric
reductions. So, if I do have 2 or 3 snacks on Snack Day then I’m okay with
that. No harm done. This is simply an aspiration – something I would like to
do, but I won’t feel bad or punish myself if I don’t always do it. It’s not a
bad thing. The idea is to keep this as lighthearted as possible rather than making
it a noose around my neck. So let’s all watch and see how it goes.
Another big change I made
during this past month was becoming a vegetarian. Another word I’ve seen used a
lot is flexitarian or semi-vegetarian. Basically I’ve stopped
eating meat. But I’m still eating dairy products so I’m not fully vegetarian.
And that’s the way I want it for now. There’s no way I can give up meat and
dairy products at the same time – it would be too overwhelming. So I’m doing
this slowly. Meat is the easiest thing for me to give up so that’s first. Next,
I won’t give up all dairy at the same time, I’ll do one thing at a time – and
as I conquer one thing I’ll move on to the next. I recently started using
almond milk for my coffee. Once I start using it in my cereal I can officially
remove milk from my list which moves me one step closer to being fully
vegetarian. But again I’m in no rush – this will be a long, slow process. I
want it to unfold naturally over the coming months. I’m doing this for health
purposes. I believe that eating meat is unhealthy for me. I can’t speak for anyone else, just for myself. I have
wanted to be a vegetarian for long time – and now it’s starting and I’m very
happy. If you’ve been following my blog then you’ve no doubt seen countless
weeks where I’ve observed ‘Meatless Mondays’. You also know that I’ve tried to limit
meat intake to every other day for the past few months and so this is just a
natural progression. Oh yes, I’m also watching my protein intake very closely.
They say woman should consume 40-65 grams per day. One of the problems
vegetarians seem to face is not getting enough protein. I’ve decided it’s best
to record the total grams of protein for each meal as well as daily totals at
the bottom of the tracker (under total steps / calories). Complete protein can
come only from meat, poultry, fish, dairy, eggs and soy. Complete refers to the
full range of amino acids which are essential to have. So I will be sure to
monitor this as well.
Finally, you would
have also noticed on my blog that my exercise for the past month increased dramatically – more than twice the
previous month. This is why I lost 8lbs. I’m not only walking twice as much,
but I’m stretching regularly and I’m in the gym now doing cardio and soon I’ll start
‘light’ strength training. The coming months are going to be all about strength
and toning. I have always proclaimed that this journey is about getting healthy
rather than ‘weight-loss’. I believe if
I do all the right things, my body will shed the excess pounds as a natural
part of the process. It’s a phenomenal evolution to exceptional health and
fitness that will ultimately result in a healthy weight. This is going to be a
year full of changes. My entire life is going to change dramatically in 2015– all
for the best. I can’t wait for the months to unfold. So exciting!
For now, back to the business at hand…
Next Weigh-In: May 13
| DATE | WEIGHT |
| 2/13/2014 | 351 |
| 3/13/2014 | 343 |
| 4/9/2014 | 336 |
| 5/7/2014 | 327 |
| 6/4/2014 | 321 |
| 6/30/2014 | 307 |
| 7/30/2014 | 301 |
| 8/27/2014 | 295 |
| 9/24/2014 | 290 |
| 10/22/2014 | 283 |
| 11/19/2014 | 279 |
| 12/17/2014 | 275 |
| 1/14/2015 | 279 |
| 2/11/2015 | 273 |
| 3/18/2015 | 271 |
| 4/15/2015 | 263 |
| Total Lost: | 82 |
Month #16 GOAL SUMMARY:
Daily Calories: 1750 (new)
Protein: 45 grams (min)
Monthly Weight Loss: 4-6lbs.
Exercise: Strength Training – Daily
Walking: Daily
Goal Update for Month #16
Dinners – basically light –
breakfast type foods
Snack Free Day – every other day
Snack Free Day – every other day
[Stretching]
– 3x per week – full body. 10 minutes minimum
Exercise: Walking – Daily – recording steps on tracker
Exercise: Strength Training 3x per week
Vegetarian: No Meat, limited Milk
Exercise: Walking – Daily – recording steps on tracker
Exercise: Strength Training 3x per week
Vegetarian: No Meat, limited Milk
A Look Back at 29 Days:
| Date | Avg. Daily Calories | ||
| 3/18/2015 | 1750 | ||
| 3/19/2015 | 2040 | ||
| 3/20/2015 | 2090 | ||
| 3/21/2015 | 2165 | ||
| 3/22/2015 | 2010 | ||
| 3/23/2015 | 1887 | ||
| 3/24/2015 | 2000 | ||
| 3/25/2015 | 2265 | ||
| 3/26/2015 | 2040 | ||
| 3/27/2015 | 1770 | ||
| 3/28/2015 | 2260 | ||
| 3/29/2015 | 1855 | ||
| 3/30/2015 | 2005 | ||
| 3/31/2015 | 1900 | ||
| 4/1/2015 | 2010 | ||
| 4/2/2015 | 1575 | ||
| 4/3/2015 | 2080 | ||
| 4/4/2015 | 2420 | ||
| 4/5/2015 | 1615 | ||
| 4/6/2015 | 2120 | ||
| 4/7/2015 | 2110 | ||
| 4/8/2015 | 1860 | ||
| 4/9/2015 | 1830 | ||
| 4/10/2015 | 1875 | ||
| 4/11/2015 | 1865 | ||
| 4/12/2015 | 1840 | ||
| 4/13/2015 | 1835 | ||
| 4/14/2015 | 1945 | ||
| 1964.8929 | |||
Let’s begin Month 16!!!!!
