Hmmm, do diets really work

During my years of weight loss adventures I have tried many, many things. I have done almost every diet there is, and I have done some counseling as well. There seem to be a couple of different approaches to the whole idea of lean for life. There is the school of thought that says move more, eat less, all good!! Way too simple! From this way of thinking every diet and workout plan known to man has emerged. And they still keep coming. Do you ever wonder why that is? Is it maybe because the whole premiss is wrong and so they have never found the perfect eat less move more plan??
I know for me the hardest part of losing weight and getting lean is staying there. When I use the eat less move more principle there comes a time when I simply can't eat any less or move much more and yet I still haven't achieved my goal. Plateaus kill me! Every time that I have hit one it challenges the principle. There has to be more to the story.
I think my thoughts and more specifically my thinking habits have so much more power than they ever get credit for. I can be 5 pounds from my goal weight, have one bad day and feel like I have gained 20 pounds. The worst part about this is i start thinking like I'm a fat person, instead Of the lean person I am and that I want to be. Guess what happens next? I become the fat girl I think I am and quickly lose all the ground I have gained. Ugh.
So what about the other schools of thought? At this time I'm more inclined to believe that I need to work on my head space more than anything else. If I truly want to be lean for life then I truly need to change the way I think. The way I think about myself, about food, about what I want and about what is achievable.
What do you think??

Day 3 Dukan

Well, this protein diet is pretty interesting! I am finding that I'm not hungry. Wild! I am eating way fewer calories than normal but with no cravings. I have experienced this when eliminating grain products from my diet. I think the protein makes for stable blood sugar and therefore less cravings. I know that thus way of eating is temporary though. If you try to extend this too long the energy levels dip an the cravings will be fierce. My workout yesterday was fine but I am
finding that today's energy is quite low. I am only doing this for 5-7 days though and then we introduce vegetables again. Can't wait! Lol let's see how tomorrow's workouts go,
Talk soon,
Loretta

Emotional eating be damned!!

Today is my first day doing the attack phase of the Dukan diet. I am just back from holidays where I was having way too much fun! I don't know about you but I love working out when I am on vacation. The new environment makes me so curious. On this trip to Kelowna the weather was beautiful and doing outdoor workouts was the perfect way to enjoy it. Now that I am home again it's time to do some serious training. The run for the cure is less than 2 months away and I need to lean out to get my speed up. I find that getting back into routine is easier when I do a jump start with no carbs, no sugar. It feels like a cleanse for my body. Day 1 of just protein was really good, very few cravings and felt surprisingly full!
Day 2 should be just as good, and will add in a workout as today was my recovery.
Talk more tomorrow!!

A New Challenge

The new challenge I have started today is to lose 10 pounds by July 31. No small task given that the next two weeks are insane!! This is a real chance to test the plan! And here it is:
Chalene extreme 3x per week. With each extreme workout I will do a turbo fire hiit workout. On the non weight training days I will do longer steady state cardio for a minimum of 45 minutes. Thus could be a turbo fire workout, a run, or an interval walk/ jog. I also will add 3 extra evening cardio workouts and a yoga workout on Sunday.
I know this sounds like a lot but u want to make sure I create a bigger calorie deficit. Along with this I am following a lower carb diet with plenty of vegetables and lean protein. The bigger
Challenge for me is going to be eliminating my evening snacking! Whenever I see a real low calorie count by that time of day, I seem to feel like I need to eat all the extras!!
Today I got all my workouts in, and had a great day with food.,so excited that this goal is going to become a reality!!

Day 2 what do I really want??

Today the question I am trying to answer is why? Why do I eat when I'm not hungry? Is it simply bad habit? Is it my way of dealing with anxiety? What drives that habit? How so I change it?
I am starting to read the book Unlimited by Jillian Michaels. It will help with the why I think. Until I get to the bottom of this I seem to just move in circles.
The fitness journey is one that I continue to enjoy. Getting back on the saddle is a little rough but I know I am stronger than I think:)

Ups and downs

Well, today turned out to be quite the
Mixed bag. Great exercise, not so good on the snacking. It seems like there is a part of me that needs so desperately be like everyone else. And the false belief that everyone else eats whenever and whatever they want is so hurting me!!! Such a ridiculous belief!! One I need to change, the new belief needs to be a valid one. Whatever choices each individual makes they have to deal with the consequences, I have to make my choices because they make me!!! Fit people choose their food for fuel. I am a fit person and I choose my food for fuel!!!

Day 1

Well, here it goes!

I have been working on a healthy lifestyle fairly consistently for the last 5 years. I have had my ups and my downs and by sharing them on the net I am hopeful that I can inspire others to do the same. Becoming fit and healthy is not a one shot deal. It's not a short term goal, its a marathon, not a sprint!! lol. I am finally realizing that bby being in it for the long haul means that things won't go perfectly all the time. There can be mis-steps and it's not the end of the world.
Everyday I will share with you my successes, failures (there will be some!) and hopefully what I have learned along the way.
My goal at the moment is to get back to my best fitness level. I have had to recently take some time off as a result of leg procedures. So I have been stuck to walking for fitness, which is fine, but I need to be able to run 5k in October so we are back to some serious training!! Yay!
Today started with a biggest loser workout. The goal is to do weight training 3 times per week and cardio 6 times per week. I also have a calorie goal of 1600 calories per day. Everyday I will check in with the results of the day.
Here we go!!!