Reality check: Counting calories page 59

[Paleobird]

Thanks for checking in with your stats, Kelda.

I've been keeping to the plan with the exception of Saturday night when I went to a party and did too much munchie grazing. I am really seeing the wisdom in confining your eating to mealtimes. For me it seems like if I graze here and there, my body doesn't really remember it as having Eaten so it wants to keep on grazing. Somebody brought wasabi coated almonds to the party which were just too yummy plus I indulged in some cheese and salami. The next day it showed on the scale. Probably just bloat weight from extra salt and processed stuff like the salami but it was a good reminder to give up the snackage.

[Kelda]

Thanks for checking in with your stats, Kelda.

I've been keeping to the plan with the exception of Saturday night when I went to a party and did too much munchie grazing. I am really seeing the wisdom in confining your eating to mealtimes. For me it seems like if I graze here and there, my body doesn't really remember it as having Eaten so it wants to keep on grazing. Somebody brought wasabi coated almonds to the party which were just too yummy plus I indulged in some cheese and salami. The next day it showed on the scale. Probably just bloat weight from extra salt and processed stuff like the salami but it was a good reminder to give up the snackage.

Indeed, snacking is my downfall, the day before I was fine, a big breakfast and could have waited till after 6 pm to be honest and then felt full with my earlish dinner. Today not so good, not helped by poor sleep and ad hoc mercy runs which threw my planning. Just checked in to add 150 calories as I needed to eat more so finished off the liver with my chicken and now feel good again. So the totals for today are

1764 cals as 60%/9%/31 (134 g of protein!) %

I will keep the checking in going till Sunday when I'll weigh myself and we'll see what difference it's made! My own fault today didn't feel so good, but it is far from deprevation LOL! Now off to the Depression thread (there is no connection - I feel fine LOL!).

Tomorrow will be a little different as I have to factor in a long bike ride - will be interesting :-)

[Dragonfly]

Will be interested to see how easy it is for folks to maintain after counting for fat loss.

I counted for 6 weeks. 1500 calories. Was losing nicely, but I was getting bored, lol! I only had 5 lbs left to lose (approx--I don't weigh myself!)

So I read the LeanSaloon blog over my vacation and decided to drop a meal. I was IFing 14-15 hours already, so I just adjusted my eating window from 12-8 pm. Worked really well and got a flat belly, even with lots of eating out!

2 weeks later and it looks like I have about 3 lbs left to lose, so I am guessing I maintained my fat loss at about 1 lb a week.

IFing is a lot more fun than counting! However, counting definitely helped me to get a grip on portions/calories and learn not to gorge.

[Paleobird]

I counted for 6 weeks. 1500 calories. Was losing nicely, but I was getting bored, lol! I only had 5 lbs left to lose (approx--I don't weigh myself!)

So I read the LeanSaloon blog over my vacation and decided to drop a meal. I was IFing 14-15 hours already, so I just adjusted my eating window from 12-8 pm. Worked really well and got a flat belly, even with lots of eating out!

2 weeks later and it looks like I have about 3 lbs left to lose, so I am guessing I maintained my fat loss at about 1 lb a week.

IFing is a lot more fun than counting! However, counting definitely helped me to get a grip on portions/calories and learn not to gorge.

I just naturally seem to only eat two meals a day and often the a.m. one is more of a small something, not a full meal. Some people would call that IFing, but I just find it normal. I actually find the counting to be fun, not tedious. Maybe it just appeals to my academic geekiness. I like playing with numbers. I think a lot of people have so much negativity tied up with calorie counting in their heads due to years of CW deprivation diets and all the frustration and failure that inevitably follow. This is so different.

[Dragonfly]

I just naturally seem to only eat two meals a day and often the a.m. one is more of a small something, not a full meal. Some people would call that IFing, but I just find it normal. I actually find the counting to be fun, not tedious. Maybe it just appeals to my academic geekiness. I like playing with numbers. I think a lot of people have so much negativity tied up with calorie counting in their heads due to years of CW deprivation diets and all the frustration and failure that inevitably follow. This is so different.

Sure, but are you happy to count for the rest of your life? It was getting too repetitive for me, though it was fun for the first month. No negativity, just boredom.

[Paleobird]

Sure, but are you happy to count for the rest of your life? It was getting too repetitive for me, though it was fun for the first month. No negatitivity, just boredom.

I don't think I'll need to count forever, just until I reach my goal and get a good homeostasis point going. Yes, it could get boring long term.

[Kelda]

I don't think I'll need to count forever, just until I reach my goal and get a good homeostasis point going. Yes, it could get boring long term.

I love stats and figures (that was part of my degree background) and play with numbers just for fun. However, I would quickly tire of doing Fitday every day! BUT what this process has shown me is what certain portions actually weigh as opposed to what I kinda of guessed they might! LOL! I'm probably out by a factor of 50% with some foods - thinking portions are smaller than they really are so I've been eating more than I thought (probably some psychological kidology going on there!).

What I have found really helpful is playing about with different food options and seeing the effect it has on the macros - getting the balance between protein and fat better has really made a difference with feeling satisfied and not finding myself on the hunt for more food and exceeding what I really need.

The funny thing is that I know from years of 'successful - and there's a whole new thread brewing on that one (!)' endurance racing my body is an uber-efficient fat burner so if I'd stopped to think about it piling in fat was likely to lead to gain at some point (particularly when I'm less active) because my body is so efficient! And a very useful thing I can take away from this whole experiment is that when I'm doing some endurance events (note the word event, not race!) - like my Pyrenean traverse this summer, the way to fuel it without bankrupting myself in restaurants will be simple - be more liberal with the olive oil and pack a bag of nuts :-)

[Kelda]

Today's eating ...

Eggs and bacon with cherry tomatoes and mushrooms for breakfast 6:30
2 x Nakd bars on bike
Chicken and shrimp BAS plus 85% with coffee and a little cream 13:45 after bike ride and yoga stretch
Aberdeen Angus Fillet steak, mushrooms and leeks sauteed

Training - 3:15 ride on bike outside, very windy, varied route including hills 44 miles, 20 minutes of yoga stretching on return

Total calories - 2,030 calories - 130 g fat/60.5 g carbs/154 g protein - 57%/12%/31% - adding some camembert so another 145 calories 17 g of fat and 11 g of protein - that's a lot of protein today!

More carbs and calories today as that's a long bike ride - not fully satisfied though so need to go get some more calories - cheese - and I will be IFing till lunch tomorrow to allow for early swim and yoga - think I'll probably use Primal Fuel though after my swim or I'll be running too low!

Been a difficult day, my friend was confirmed as having had a heart attack yesterday, how he managed to get himself home on his bike I have no idea. Will have to have a stent fitted, no cholesterol issues or heart disease probably a congenital problem waiting to happen when heart under strain (he's been racing for 20 years), it has really made me think.

[lil_earthmomma]

I don't think I'll need to count forever, just until I reach my goal and get a good homeostasis point going. Yes, it could get boring long term.

I agree. I can eat to satiety and tons of cals as long as it's primal and lowish carb (below 75) and maintain my weight. To drop it, I need to lower the calories!

I've been losing weight again (5 lbs so far) but I'm definitely restricting my calories, which means avoiding tons of heavy cream, coconut products etc. I'm not going low fat, but I'm not consuming fat like it's candy! lol BUT if I am craving fat, I definitely am listening to my body.

Seems to be working so far!!!

[winencandy]

Today's Food
L – “protein salad”: 2 chicken thighs, 2 hard-boiled eggs, 5 slices of “Ready Crisp” bacon, 1 tsp of bacon fat, and garlic.



It was too dry. It needed something else…more fat maybe?
550 Calories, 47 g Protein, 2 g Carb, 38 g Fat.

D – bone-in ham, scalloped potatoes, (about 1 C of each) 1 vanilla coconut heart

CRONoMeter #s:
Cal: 1036
Protein: 69 g (28%)
Carbs: 26 g (10%)
Fat: 60 g (52%)
Alcohol: 10%

I am full. I don’t see HOW I could eat more any protein without becoming a Zero Carber…and I'm not about to do that!


(I made Coconut Hearts again. This time I thought I’d try adding some pure vanilla. Not a good idea. It changed the consistency. It lost the creaminess and became “crumbly”. Don’t try it. )