Finally got up Nerve to Weigh Myself

I finally stepped on the scale today after avoiding it for several months. The good news is that I did not gain weight over the holidays. The bad news is that I am still just shy of 150 lbs. I weigh 148 lbs. I'd really like to be 140. 

Don't get me wrong. I'm happy with the way I look and my jeans fit me. That's really the important thing. The only reason I want to get below 140 is to help me in my quest to run faster in my 10k races!

Here's my formula for weight management:

I use the Calorie Needs Calculator to find my Basal Metabolic Rate. That's my base level of calorie needs per day.

Then figure out how many calories I've burned in workouts using Caloriesperhour.com. I only count REAL workouts like biking and running, not walking the dog or doing the dishes.

Add the above two numbers together. That's how many calories I allow myself to eat that day in order to maintain my weight. I write everything I eat down in a small notebook. That works for me. It leaves me a little hungry sometimes, like between lunch and dinner, or between bedtime and breakfast. This is doable, and worth the effort because I don't want to gain all my weight back.

If I want to lose weight, I only add HALF the number of calories I burn to my base calories. That leaves me really hungry alot. I did this in the summer of 2006, and got down to 134 (from 144). It took me 6 months of being really hungry alot to lose 10 pounds.

I’m revising the above paragraph. When I am working out about 1 hour per day, cutting the calories burned via exercise in half is fine, because that leaves me with a deficit of about 300 calories per day. That’s just right for losing 1 pound of fat every week or two. But, sometimes I work out 2-3 hours in a given day, and that formula will leave me with a huge calorie deficit. (That explains why I was always so hungry when I lost weight in 2006). So, what I’ll do is add my base calories to my calories burned, then subtract 300 calories to get my goal for the day.

I eat roughly according to the South Beach diet. Limited healthy carbs, lean meats, lots of veggies, healthy oils such as nuts, olive oil, etc. I avoid sugary crappy foods. The only time I eat pure carbs is during or after my workouts.

I try to make sure I eat at least 100 grams of protein per day. I like Whey Powder smoothies to supplement my lean protein intake, because I don't like fish and chicken all that much (I prefer the fattening meats like hamburgers and BBQ pork). Whey shakes are just 100 calories for 21 grams of quality protein. The best tasting brand is ON (Optimum Nutrition) Gold Whey powder. You can buy it at GNC, Vitamin Shoppe. Best price is Vitacost.com.

Ways to count calories: Nutrition labels, The Calorie Counter, Restaurant Websites, and this Book.

I'm in a crabby mood right now because I've decided to try an lose those 10 pounds to get back under 140 lbs….and I'm starving hungry!

Time for a cup of hot tea. That's what I have when I'm starving hungry while awaiting the next meal.

Here's a page from my calorie counting journal…click image to enlarge: