Big Weight Loss Goal – Day 1

I divided my measly calories/day into 3 meals and a snack and started measuring at breakfast. 300 calories for breakfast was satisfying, and I was amazed at how much more I was used to eating then. Then I went to the gym and stayed on the elliptical machine until 400 calories were burned. Only 37 minutes, compared to my usual 30 minutes. Not bad. By the time I got home at noon, I was starving and looking forward to lunch. My leftover chicken & rice dish had 350 calories, leaving me 50 more calories to consume in a few bites of veggies and fruit. So far so good.

About an hour later I was starving! It was going to be a long afternoon! I was preparing dinner in the slow cooker, and it’s always hard to be surrounded by food when you can’t eat! But then I remembered that I’d planned a snack into my day, so I only had to wait a couple hours until snack-time. I drank water; I chewed gum; I did anything I could to convince my stomach I wasn’t hungry. It didn’t help that I was planning meals, menus and grocery lists for the week! Finally, at 3:15 I decided to have my 100 calorie snack. But I was smart and thought about it: what would make me feel the most satisfied at 100 calories? Protein always makes people feel more satisfied, so I ate ½ cup cottage cheese. Mmm, creamy, cheesy, protein. I tried to eat slowly; I almost resorted to a kiddy spoon. I felt satisfied afterwards. Good. Half an hour later, I was starving again! When’s dinner?

I guess what it comes down to is that it’s supposed to be hard. I was doing it the easy way before and not seeing any results. (pep-talk to self:) I need to change my lifestyle if I want to see results. It’ll get easier in a few days as my body adjusts to the change. Besides, it’s designed to fail: Losing 10 lb. in a month is unrealistic; eating 1200 calories/day while exercising off 400 cal/day is extreme. The plan is designed with a cheating function: I can eat an extra 600 calories/day (that’s another meal!) and still lose the 5 lb. I actually want to lose.