Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Just When You Think You've Got This Whole Thing Figured Out....

Well, I don't have this whole thing (maintenance) figured out :)

I maintained between 120-124 all last year (with a blip up to 127/128 for about a week or so in February). And here I am, second week in January, at 127! Up about 4 pounds from my "comfortable" higher weight of 123.

And I can do nothing but own it. I made several choices in the last few months to eat off plan and to drink alcohol (alcohol is really a big contributor to my weight gain... I can eat off plan and not gain, but once I add alcohol to the mix, my weight shoots up. I don't react well to it and it lowers my inhibitions, causing me to eat more than normal).

Strangely enough, I actually have a pretty positive view of my body right now - if you've been reading for a while, you know I struggle with body image a lot. But I think because of all the working out I've been doing lately (walking at least 4 miles a day, weekend bootcamp class, lots of at home yoga and strength 20 minute workouts) I'm standing taller, looking tighter, and feeling better about myself in general.

So that's a good thing!

But, despite having a generally positive feeling towards my body, I do know this extra few pounds came from alcohol and grains. So I will still work towards getting that off. When I am eating my cleanest and fueling my body totally properly, I weigh closer to 122/123, so I know I will get lose a few pounds if I treat my body right.

Plans:

No more alcohol this month, at all.

Continue to workout at the pace I have been.

No more social grain/dairy indulgences for the foreseeable future!

Back to at-home eating for the foreseeable future, as well.

We've done a lot of food prep at home, so we are all set up with paleo meals and snacks for the week. And THANK GOODNESS, we have no plans this weekend, and it is a LONG weekend :D so we can spend a lot of time focusing on our health and happiness. It is also Chris' birthday this weekend, and of course, my outdoorsy guy wants to go hiking for his birthday (which is way more beneficial to us than going out to eat or something!).

So there we have it - weight gain from not following Paleo strictly. It is a conscious decision I make and so I can't be too upset about the consequences!

But it's definitely a wake up call to get back on track.

I used to have these "blips" of weight gain during maintenance every couple of months before I went Paleo. Now, I seem to have them about once or twice a year. Ideally, I will get to a place where I don't really have them anymore. Getting back to weight loss mode isn't really my idea of a fun time. Though I don't calorie count anymore, I know I need to drop my daily caloric intake when I want to lose some weight - and I calorie counted for long enough, I know what that looks like (it means skipping a snack or reducing meal portions, etc).

But I told you all I would weight in today, and I did. It is important to check in on my weight, even when I know I won't like the number. If I just put blinders on and didn't look at the scale, I might give myself permission to be a little more lax with food. But I got the data and I have to act to correct what went wrong.

I definitely don't want to KEEP gaining. I'm still at a really healthy weight at 127, so that's a plus. But I'd like to get back to where I was.

Hope everyone has a good week. I'm still a little tired from the weekend, as I didn't sleep much in order to stay up late around the fire with friends both nights! Sleep deprivation definitely doesn't help my health, either, so getting back to a normal schedule will be lovely :)

Namaste, friends <3

6 comments:

  1. So I found a terrific resource that I though you and Gwen might like called www.nerdfitness.com. It's all about the Paleo way of eating as well as real world fitness. They have tons of blog posts and videos that have been motivating me the past week or so. This site may be old news and you've already heard of it, but I don't remember seeing it mentioned on either of your blogs before so I thought I'd suggest it.

    Your goals are doable and will definitely get results. Happy Tuesday :)

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  2. I wanted to add one more reason to stop drinking alcohol, hope it's not too personal to post in the comments...I know you mentioned before that you and your husband are trying for a baby. I know at least two women who had been drinking for a couple months before they realized they were pregnant. Their babies turned out fine, but it caused them a lot of unnecessary guilt and stress during their pregnancies. :(

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    1. I didn't want to make a whole blog post about it, but I did officially JUST start "trying" (meaning we aren't actively preventing it anymore) this week - so post-alcohol consumption. I definitely plan to not drink at all unless I know for sure I am not pregnant this year (taking a test, actively menstruating, etc). This past weekend was sort of my last "I am DEFINITELY not pregnant" party sort of weekend, which might be another reason why I kind of indulged a little more than normal :)

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  3. Heal up your gut. Then go from there. This might be your normal weight maintence range. May have to deal with it. It also may be a better preconception range, too

    On the other hand, your fat cells have a whole endocrine system. Your body. Will try to go back. For several years or more. It's not about "being weak". It's molecular genetics , hormonal response, prior exposure to the grains.

    No failure, just biology. I like Refuse to Regain's 90 day opt out. 90 days not eating proceeded crap, no grains , no S foods. It will change that cellular hormonal signaling.

    Onward.

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    1. I definitely got a little loose with the holiday season. I definitely think I need to PURPOSELY choose just as long of a period of time (3ish months) of getting back to the template I know is best for me in order to get out of the habit!

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  4. Hey, I'm seven months removed from my 8-9 lbs. July vacations gain and STILL working it off. But I'm a lot older, so I'm sure you will have this off relatively quickly.

    I am glad you are going alcohol free as you actively begin trying to get pregnant.

    Re the weight itself, I've been at this whole damned thing long enough to know that if I eat as close to 100% natural as possible, my body will find it's own balanced weight. It may or may not be where I want it to be. I just need to consistently eat natural only foods (with a tiny bit of BBQ sauce and Ranch dressing allowed occasionally for 'indulgence' purposes)...and let my weight land will it where. I'm hoping that is mid to low 120's, but if it's right here slightly above 130, so be it. That number is so arbitrary, as long as our health (and resulting BMI) are considered normal. :)

    Good luck, sweet girl! :)

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