For the last several weeks, I have been super diligent about logging my food and activity during the week. I have been shooting for 750-1000 calorie deficits per day and succeeding! I did not log on Saturday or Sunday with the thought that I was roughly breaking even on those days. After further review (and two weeks in a row of less than a pound weight loss), I discovered that is SO not the case.
I lie to myself.
I honest to God thought I had gotten past this. I find comfort in the fact that I really don't think I was doing it on purpose. Let's review the week, shall we?
| Burned | Eaten | Deficit | |
| Monday | 2,590 | 1,329 | 1,261 |
| Tuesday | 2,521 | 1,120 | 1,401 |
| Wednesday | 2,217 | 2,361 | (144) |
| Thursday | 2,644 | 1,529 | 1,115 |
| Friday | 2,262 | 2,660 | (398) |
| Saturday | 2,552 | 2,843 | (291) |
| Sunday | 2,062 | 2,270 | (208) |
| 16,848 | 14,112 | 2,736 |
Let's evaluate... Obviously, Monday and Tuesday were great. Both days I went to CrossFit and also worked out at lunch. I also averaged about 1200 calories which is my goal.
Wednesday was BFF's birthday. I only worked out in the morning AND I was significantly higher on calories. I will say that I didn't have nutrition information for my meals out that day, but I did try to log conservatively. In looking back at my food log, the one thing that stands out is that I had a cupcake and ice cream that afternoon for over 500 calories. Even if I would have just cut out the ice cream, that would have made a difference and it would have put me at a calorie deficit for the day.
Thursday I worked out at lunch and went to Jazzercise, so the calories burned was great! I was 300 higher on my calories than I would like, but honestly, most everything on the menu that day was good calories. Happy there.
Friday. Oh, Friday. I did go to CrossFit, but honestly, CrossFit isn't great cardio and doesn't burn a lot of calories (however, it does build muscle to help you burn more calories throughout the day, so I'm not complaining!) But obviously, my problem here was calories. We had a catered lunch and looking at my food diary, the only thing that I probably should have changed was the bread. I had given up bread for a while, but the dinner roll looked so good (and it was!) that I ate it. If I would have cut that out, my lunch would have been fine. But the big no-no was the piece of chocolate cake I had. Don't get me wrong, it was delicious. But I should have at least cut it in half.
For dinner we went to Joe's Crab Shack. I thought I was doing well getting a steampot, but that sucker had over 1000 calories!! WOW!! Okay, well, lesson learned there. Looking back at my food diary, I wish I would have cut the roll and the cake in half. That would have left me close to breakeven for the day.
Saturday I went to Jazzercise so my calories burned was good. But in a week moment, I let myself buy Ritz chips at the store. It had been a long time since I had gotten them. But just like Nutella, I cannot ration Ritz chips. I can tell myself I will. But I won't. I CAN'T BUT THESE ANYMORE. Period. Full Stop. If I would have made a different choice, I feel confident I would have saved at least 500 calories for the day. I can't ignore that.
Sunday is almost always my rest day. My issue with food on this day is that I had the chips & guacamole at Chipotle. If I would have cut the chips in half I would have been under breakeven.
This analysis helped me see that just a few tweaks (not starvation, not banning all treats) would have changed my calorie intake by over 1,500 which is close to 1/2 pound. These are the choices I need to focus on.
I know that my detailed analysis of food intake is probably not fun reading, but this exercise was very helpful to me.
Goals for the week:
8 work outs
750-1000 calorie deficits M-Th
Make good choices while on vacation F-M.
All in all, the scale is going in the right direction and I'm feeling so very good! That is the most important thing.
Hugs!
3 comments:
Interesting post for me. I don't look @ my deficits, I try to stay in my specific calorie range & try to do my workouts. I plan to look @ that more closely now.
I loved this blog post and it really hits home with me. I too lie to myself. Thanks for taking the time to post this. I know I'm not the only one who will benefit from this exercise! /heart u
My calories get away in a second if I dont pre plan everything. Today I told my friend that I had to only eat at home until I reached goal (which is silly but true) since I can't find my will power when Im in a social setting - ahh! But you're doing awesome and the chart is a great idea and I'll have to steal it. thanks ;P ps Love the new pic!
Post a Comment