Why I’m not going to reach my weight goal
Lets just start by saying, I’m not giving up on my life style change. I’m still eating great, exercising, and following a my basic program. However, I’m no longer trying to reach my goal of 165 pounds. Having said that, I am hovering around 167 lbs most days. I’ll explain why, and how I’m maintaining my weight.
Back in November, when I started this journey, I set an ideal weight goal, for myself, of 165 pounds. I didn’t just randomly come up with this goal. I researched my size, body shape, and desired body fat ratio. The goal of 165 seemed both reasonable and accurate. I started at 232, and realized that losing 67 pounds was going to take a dramatic life style change. I’ve already documented what I did in order to start this process. About a month ago, I reached the 167 pound mark, and had every intention of continuing to 165. Yet, 165 never came. I reached 166 for a few days, but naturally gravitated back to 167 pounds. It was at this same time that I started eating a “regular” diet again, not a calorie deprived diet. I wanted to start to balance out my food intake, so I could see how my body would react to consuming 2200-2400 calories a day again. I began this process when I reached the 175 mark, and continued to lose weight, down to a daily average of 167.
So, what have I learned? My body wants to weigh 167 pounds based on my muscle to fat ratio. As you can probably tell from the picture, my fat ratio is pretty much down to nothing. I still have some fat on my lower abs, but that will come with time, and more targeted exercise. Losing weight is not going to get rid of this area, at least not in the amount I need.
The question I get asked a lot is, “what are you eating in order to lose all this weight?” The answer usually really surprised people, mainly because they believe they’d get bored eating the same things, or because they can’t believe how much food I actually eat. I have pretty much the same thing for breakfast and lunch every day. I do have a different lunch on the weekend. My breakfast is a smoothie with 4 servings of fruit, yogurt and orange juice (50+ calcium). I also have a boiled egg (whites only), and a piece of whole wheat toast with 1/2 a tablespoon of honey. It’s that simple, and no it doesn’t get boring. During the week, I have a snack at 10 AM, cereal, though I usually don’t have this on the weekend. My lunch is huge, when you really think about everything that’s in it. I have 75g of turkey, very low sodium and no fat version, deli sliced. A salad with 4 cups of spring mix and spinach combined, 1/2 cup of broccoli, 1/4 of carrots, a handful of mushrooms, a hard boiled egg (whites only), 3 tablespoons of fresh salsa (low sodium and calories), handful of red onions, and 5 tablespoons of raspberry vinaigrette (fat free, no sodium, only 25 calories total). My dinners are huge, lots of veggies, lots of protein (fish, chicken, egg betters), and red potatoes (some nights). I also use lots spices. I rarely have a beer (though some days I do have one), but I usually have either 9 oz of wine or 3 oz of scotch. I also have been enjoying a cadbury egg each night for the last month or so. Only a couple more boxes left.
The weekends are very different. We eat out on Friday night, Saturday night and sometimes on Sunday night. I pretty much eat whatever I want those nights, but continue to eat my standard meals during the day. I also usually have 1/2 a bottle of wine, or more on Saturday, with dinner. We also usually go out for some form of “treat” on Saturday or Sunday with the kids. As you can tell, I eat a lot of food. On the weekends, I usually gain 2-4 pounds, which is gone by Tuesday morning, without fail. That means I hover between 166-170 throughout the week/weekend.
My exercise routine has changed a bit, due to the girls’ soccer practices and games. I workout Saturday and Sunday morning, early in the morning, and late afternoon on Monday and Wednesday. I walk the dog 2.25 miles Monday, Wednesday, and if possible on Tuesday and Thursday (depending on soccer practice). I walk the dog 3.5 miles on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
So, I’m no longer trying to reach my goal of 165 pounds, but I’m fine with that. I only missed it by 2 pounds, and 167 pounds seems to be what my body wants me to weigh. I’m sure when I cut out the chocolate egg each night, I might see a little drop, but I’ll start eating a handful of almonds each night again to offset the lack of fat I’m taking in each day.
