Wiccan Whirlpool

So, those of you who have known me for a while know that after my daughter was born I lost some weight and then gained a bunch more.  It didn’t bug me too much, I’d just had a baby after-all, until I saw the photos from a friend’s “re-wedding.” at which I officiated.  There was my big fat pale head floating above all that black suit.  Even my hands looked fat.  It totally killed the shopping buz I got from buying the beautiful blouses (with BUTTONS!) at Lane Bryant, which actually fit me and looked nice.

It wasn’t much of a shock that I’d packed on some weight.  I was under stress at work and I was under stress at home.  I was medicating that stress with a daily cheese-stick-and-hot-wing ritual right before bed, and caffinating myself with all the Cokes and mocha lates I could drink in the morning.  PLUS, it was Christmas and New Years.  Customers brought us cookies and candy and cookies and candy…The first week on my diet I lost about seven pounds.  That was just diet–no exercise.  I figured I had cut about 12,000 calories from my *regular* diet that week, and I had also started eating about 1200-1400 calories a day instead of a normal 2200, so that was another 7000.  Add to that the water I stopped retaining due to a drastic reduction in sodium, and there you have it.  I started in mid-January.  It worked so well that by the end of May I had lost 27 pounds and trimmed 6 1/2 inches from my waist.  My thighs and calves were about an inch larger in diameter from the weight training and bicycling I started doing mid-February.  I felt awesome!

Then I got a little lazy, and then we went on vacation for July 4th, and then I was totally spastic at work.  We’d been robbed, my manager was unbearable, and I had this trainee who had never used a computer and could not in any way deal with numbers–in a BANK.  I ate.   I put on 15 pounds by Christmas but held my own until this fall, when I put on another 12.  Add that up with me…right back where I started.

So Sunday I went grocery shopping and put myself and my husband back on my diet.  I also went to the gym Tuesday and tonight, and since Tuesday I’ve lost 1.5 pounds.  In a couple of weeks I’ll probably lower my caloric intake a little more as I step-up the exercise routine.  I plan on being a size 6 and in mountain-climbing shape again by June.

Here’s my situation and my routine, if anyone is curious.  I am of solid Germanic-Slavic descent, so my weight comes on right at my waist, which is short to begin with.  When I sit down my last rib practically rests on my hip bones.  I have broad shoulders, a short neck, a big bossom, and teeny tiny little wrists and ankles–and absolutely no butt.  At about 30 over I pretty much look like I’m expecting.  It sucks.  If I could only gain weight like a normal person…
Anyway, my goal is to lose fat, I couldn’t much care about what I weigh when my measurements are good.  I started out with the change in diet.  My method was to drastically cut my fat intake.  On average I probably ate 20 grams of TOTAL fat or less every day.  Saturated fat was maybe 4-5 grams of that.  I limited over-processed carbohydrates, ie pasta and white bread.  I ate TONS of salads out of a mixing bowl–the equivalent of at least one full bag of salad at a go.  My greens were baby spinach and either field greens or romaine mixes.  I topped that with red bell pepper, tomato, fat free cheese, fat free dressing, maybe some broccoli or a few olives, and chicken breast or baby shrimp.  I ate one of those almost every day, usually for dinner.  Lunch was a Lean Cuisine, snack was an apple or other small piece of fruit and some whole grain low fat crackers, and breakfast was either a TBS of peanut butter on whole wheat, and egg and a piece of whole wheat toast, or a bowl of whole grain cereal made with Super Skim.

I was at the gym four to five days a week, but usually four.  Once I was into it I would do about 45 minutes of stretching and weights and a full hour of cardio, typically on the bike.  When I started I was walking 3.5 mph with no incline for 30 minutes and doing only one rep of 15 with REALLY LOW weights on all of the machines.  I was biking at three levels higher for a solid hour and lifting about 10-25 lbs more per rep in at least two sets depending on whether it was my arms or legs.  It was awesome!

Now I’m back to 35 minutes on the bike, but net week I’ll bump it 5 minutes, maybe 10 by the end of the week.  Weights are low again so I don’t murder myself.  See, the secret isn’t to go in and beat the crap out of yourself and hurt so much you can’t move for two days.  It’s to ease into an excercise routine that you actually like, and being able to do it often enough that you can call it a routine.  Once you’re established it starts to get fun to make yourself hurt the next day

Here’s to being able to feel my abs again…cheers!