Thursday, February 19, 2009

Calorie restriction and exercise

I am new to exercise, it was my goal to lose most of my weight then exercise. I wanted to get used to how many calories I should be eating and also to be more comfortable in my skin before I ventured out into the gym world.
Track calories burned
I have been 14 times now so I am very much a novice and have no clue what to expect. I do know it is a lot easier than I expected.
I finally learned how to track how many calories I am burning during the workout. Monday I did 312 in 30 minutes, I thought that was pretty good and started multiplying and figuring out how long it would take to burn one pound. Well, Wednesday came and I got it up to 452, so new math figures jumped in my head.
I am now going to try and get it to 500 even tomorrow and keep it there.
Of course I am very concerned that this burning 500 calories(1500 in one week) will make me want to eat more. One of the reasons I didn't want to exercise to lose weight in the first place.
Just thinking about it, hey I worked off 500 today I can splurge tonight, keeps entering my mind. Plus my body really needs the calories I am giving it. I don't give it extra calories to work out and I don't want to.
Man this exercise stuff defeats my calorie restriction.
I am exercising to gain strength and improve muscle tone. I am not worried about metabolism, slow or fast doesn't worry me.
I did notice that I ate over my calorie count for two days now. Is this a new eating pattern starting to emerge now I am working out? Crap there is always something sabotaging me.
Vloging
I am busy putting together a series of vlogs about my food choices and why.
I don't eat grains, milk, or many starches. The why has taken me into more research. I am very glad I did it. I knew they were bad for me but didn't know just how bad.
Watch for the series. Hopefully I will have them done in a week.
Learning stuff
Learning new editing software, lighting set up and writing a dumb script sure takes time.
The software is Final Cut Express. I am still not completely comfortable with it. I have two books and neither of them take me far enough. They say they are for beginner to intermediate. Where the heck is advanced?
The lighting is new too. I bought a soft box. Darn thing is huge but hopefully it will help solve my lighting problems. I need a few other lights for fill and that should be ready to go.
A script, well that is hard to do. I want it to look and sound better than what I have been doing. I write a script and camera shot locations then turn the camera on and forget what I was supposed to say, get pissed and wing it. Then all the editing to take out my dumb parts and ah's and deep breaths and cuss words.
Life is fun!

Thursday, February 12, 2009

Calorie Restriction and looking fit

I was leaving the gym Wednesday when a lady stopped me to say "Your sure look fit". Well, I was very shocked, me fit, I know I feel fit but look fit. I have been in the gym 7 times. It sure isn't the gym that made me look fit. It has to be food choices and counting calories, it can not be anything but. Whatever, it sure made my day. From fatty to fit without exercising. Yea!
I am now exercising to tone and for strength, still not to lose weight.
Tomorrow I get weighed and measured at the gym. Lets see if they do a better job of it this time. The young pretty helper there measured my waist and tummy at 32. Way off. Tummy to small waist to big. She did manage to get the rest of me right. (my waist is actually almost 27, tummy more like 35). I have a very, very flat ugly ass and that is why I have 38 hips.

I bought some plain full milk yogurt this week. Thinking is might be a nice change from cottage cheese, wrong, boy was I wrong. In comparing the two I found that cottage cheese has more protein, a lot more, and less sugar. Plus it just tastes better. I can make it savory or sweet.
If I want something sweet I add some Stevia, pineapple, and a bit of vanilla. Wow, what a treat.
This is 1000 times better than yogurt.
For the yogurt I get only 1/4 cup, cottage cheese 1/2 cup. So, no more yogurt. I sure wish more people would realize what they are getting in yogurt with fruit already in it. What a waste of calories and way to much sugar. Good advertisement is all I can think of why it is so popular, sure can't be because it is good for us. I don't use other milk products either. Me and impulse buying. I have to stop doing that. I bought that darn yogurt because I was seeing so many people saying how much they love it and how it fills them for breakfast. I sure can't see it as a good breakfast, to darn much sugar in it.

I had a fabulous protein day and the lowest in carbs in a long time. Giving up my blackberries or giving up 4 cups of them, has really helped me. I have lost a pound already and hope to be out of the 140's tomorrow. I was 140 even this morning. 139 sounds so much better.

My calorie restriction is still going strong, I couldn't be happier with it and the life it has given me.