295.6 lb. I hit that number today. After my last whine-fest on here, it was clear to me that I wasn't even trying anymore. (Or just discouraged or something. Dunno.) I updated that post and also provide this new one.
Today is Day 1 of the Tamara Coffey "The Scale says WHAT?! If it's not lying, I must be slowly dying!" health improvement venture. Not Atkins, per se. Just cutting out processed sugars and other simple carbs. You will not hear about my daily or weekly progress after Week 2. You will only hear about certain breakthroughs. Promise!
Please encourage the Tama with "Atta-girls" and "You can do its!" Please do NOT feed the Tama! (Unless it is un-breaded meat, non-starchy vegetables, real fats or REALLY dark chocolate! The four food groups, right?)
Cuddles,
Tamara
With over 100 pounds to lose, PCOS rearing its ugly head, and tons of other possible health problems, I've decided to share my progress, one scale shot at a time. I share my weight, opinions, recipes, plans and progress here and on my Facebook page.
Tuesday, March 20, 2012
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
What's wrong with me???
I neglected this blog for weeks so I could finish my novel and get it published. I have also eaten nothing but fast food and convenience foods since my last post. As a result, I've hit my highest weight in recent history: 287.0 lb. I don't consider myself a food addict. When I'm project-focused, I'm just a convenience addict.
What a waste of all my effort for an entire year! To be this fat again really irks me. It was preventable. Something had to slide to make time for the novel, but not slide THIS MUCH! I could cite reasons and excuses, but I'm not a big fan of either. Besides, they're all based on what I did or didn't do: I was lazy. I was unfocused. I went through the drive-thru rather than cooking at home. I could also blame others, but that's silly: I don't have anyone to support me. I have no one invested in diet and exercise with me, really, consistently. It's silly because health improvement pacts at work are passing whims. Sad, pathetic promises we all sweep under the rug when our fragile willpower caves to a candy-bar. So what if no one I know wants to dedicate themselves to being healthier? They must have better things to do. I'll not blame them for my failure.
The gloves are off. I'm done. I'm killing myself with food. This is suicide. I either need to stop and get healthier, or give up and die my early death with a plate piled high with junk-food and medications to counteract that junk-food's effect on my bloated, miserable body.
You know what works? Effort. Honest-to-goodness effort to make something happen. Don't pray to win the lottery if you're not willing to buy a ticket. So when I've put in effort, when I've made actual progress, I'll post again. Until then, I won't waste your time with my failures.
UPDATE: What a whiny, emo spiel! Let's see... Translation: "I got lazy and unmotivated. I acknowledge I am on my own and must improve my health. I'll try harder, putting my effort into worthy pursuits, and only update following my next breakthrough." There. Less annoying! LOL
Cuddles,
Tamara
What a waste of all my effort for an entire year! To be this fat again really irks me. It was preventable. Something had to slide to make time for the novel, but not slide THIS MUCH! I could cite reasons and excuses, but I'm not a big fan of either. Besides, they're all based on what I did or didn't do: I was lazy. I was unfocused. I went through the drive-thru rather than cooking at home. I could also blame others, but that's silly: I don't have anyone to support me. I have no one invested in diet and exercise with me, really, consistently. It's silly because health improvement pacts at work are passing whims. Sad, pathetic promises we all sweep under the rug when our fragile willpower caves to a candy-bar. So what if no one I know wants to dedicate themselves to being healthier? They must have better things to do. I'll not blame them for my failure.
The gloves are off. I'm done. I'm killing myself with food. This is suicide. I either need to stop and get healthier, or give up and die my early death with a plate piled high with junk-food and medications to counteract that junk-food's effect on my bloated, miserable body.
You know what works? Effort. Honest-to-goodness effort to make something happen. Don't pray to win the lottery if you're not willing to buy a ticket. So when I've put in effort, when I've made actual progress, I'll post again. Until then, I won't waste your time with my failures.
UPDATE: What a whiny, emo spiel! Let's see... Translation: "I got lazy and unmotivated. I acknowledge I am on my own and must improve my health. I'll try harder, putting my effort into worthy pursuits, and only update following my next breakthrough." There. Less annoying! LOL
Cuddles,
Tamara
Tuesday, January 24, 2012
Week 8: The Carb Trap 2
As I mentioned in my last post, I've fallen into the carb trap this week. And as I predicted, I DID gain back all the water weight from week 7. And as I assumed, I've taken a morale hit from said weight gain. AND as I know myself, this will not be the last time I mess up a diet. I mean a lifelong eating adjustment. But I'm trying diligently to climb back up in the saddle and ride off on the dusty, lonely trail of dieting in the household of a skinny hubby.
Weight last week: 271.8 (ish)
Weight this week: 279.8
GAIN of 8 lb.
I feel like the Stay-Puft Marshmallow Man today. That is all! :)
Cuddles,
Tamara
Saturday, January 21, 2012
The Carb Trap
I was wondering why it usually takes me a month to get in the habit of consistently staying in ketosis. My first week of Atkins was perfect... no major screw ups and a moderate testing for ketones. This week, I've had three off days (but only the three evening meals across those three days) and I'm completely negative for ketones. I shudder to think what the scale will tell me. I've probably loaded back on all that crazy water weight from last week.
So, as usual, I'm back at square one today. I hate this pattern, especially since Atkins is stupidly easy to follow, if a little challenging in the variety department. I may not get back to last week's weight by the Tuesday weigh in, but I'm going to try hard to eliminate carbs. I don't really think it's much of a let down, considering I've struggled with staying on every eating plan I've adopted. But this is the one diet where I know I feel better. I know I can succeed. I've proven success. And I just let my willpower whistle and look away as I sabotage it.
I've told Brandon I'm not having dinner with him (when I get off work and he's on lunch) unless we choose a place I can eat Atkins-friendly. Not many choices in this town, but better than NO choices.
Since this isn't a diet as much as a lifelong-lifestyle-changing-eating-plan, I know it takes an adjustment. And if I can make it past the two weeks of Induction, it's smooth sailing from there on out (barring the inevitable, occasional plateau). So here I go again on my own. Going down the only road I've ever known... :D
Cuddles,
Tamara
Monday, January 16, 2012
PROGRESS: Week 7, Hello Ketosis!
The Franken-Diet is what I call the Frankenstein's monster of diet parts and pieces that work for me.
Now I'm in the low carb stage of the Franken-Diet. Ketones are the byproducts released as the body burns primarily fat instead of carbohydrates. The ketones are purged through urine, saliva, and probably through every other gland. Testing high for ketosis is bad if you're not trying to make it happen through dieting. But I'm trying...
I'm testing Moderate for ketosis, finally. For the first week or two of low-carb eating (via Atkins Induction), I purge water weight rapidly, due to the diuretic effect of ketosis. After that, weight loss slows to a normal, "healthy" rate as I increase my carb intake by measured increments. This initial stage of the diet fools the body into thinking it's starving (no/low carbs= starving) even though you're cramming food into it (mostly protein). As a results, hunger is suppressed. Blood sugar is incredibly stable. My stomach is nice and calm. The food is rich and satisfying. The cravings and food addictions subside. And your body is forced to mobilize fat because you're not giving it any carbs!
Go to the official Atkins site for more information: http://www.atkins.com/Program/Phase-1.aspx .
Weight 1 Week Ago: 280 (From the "Crap, I didn't lose weight because I didn't focus" files!)
Weight This Week: 271.8
8.2 Pounds Lost!
Now, don't get me wrong. I'm not suggesting a wonder diet. The science behind low-carb is sound. I also eat more naturally on this diet than any other. (Seriously-- God may have made sugar, but He only facilitated the production of Twinkies with that creation...) This is only a "diet" if you have no intention of changing your habits for the long term. The Lifetime Maintenance on Atkins is full of vegetables, occasional fruit, and some dairy. And regardless of the avoidable minor inconveniences, I'm going on how I feel, which is awesome!
Good Things That I Ate:
1. Breakfast: Eggs with Bacon Pieces. A bit of Mexene Chili Powder (my favorite egg-topper!)
2. Lunch: Lean Hamburgers with Mayo and Ketchup
3. Alternate Lunch: Chicken Salad (made with canned chicken breast, dill relish and mayo)
4. Dinners: 20 Carb Avocado Salad, Plain Salad with Ranch (bleh!), 20 Carb Taco Salad, McD's side salad with 2 Chicken Grill Patties and Ranch,
 |
| 20 Carb Taco Salad |
 |
| 20 Carb Guacamole Salad |
Low Carb Snacks:
1. Mac's BBQ Pork Rinds (like no other! *sigh*)
2. Portioned beef jerky
3. Cream cheese (sometimes WITH the pork rinds. Don't knock it til you tried it!)
4. An occasional spoonful of peanut butter (I think I had one all week)
Here Are Some Things I Did:
1. Saved almost all of my allotted carbohydrates (20g/day) for dinner. I will continue to do this because if I veer off the all-protein path during the day, I'll screw up at night. It feels like splurging when I wait! And for each of these "splurge" dinners, I ate a SALAD!
2. Measured and counted everything with carbs! Grippo's Powder is now on my list of no-nos. It has 4 carbs in just one teaspoon. So I made a couple mistakes early in the week.
3. I had an avocado a day for over half the week. 15 carbs, well worth the scrounging and saving of carb grams. Oh, and something about Omega something-something good for me...
4. Did at least one full day of burnout sessions with the exercise bands at work. I did a different routine between each call until I was a tired little puddle. I spent about 5 hours (minus call time) playing with those rubber bands, not realizing how sore I would be today! I shall call it Chair-Fu Calisthenics and Rubber-Band Boxing!
And I'm trying to do more of the same for this upcoming week! I just realized I can make my baked salmon and avocado recipe! Mmmmmmm....
Cuddles,
Tamara
Monday, January 9, 2012
Week 6: The Punchline
This week, four overall statements can be made.
1. Between restaurant food, visiting, snacking, and stress, I only ate Power Foods for about a third of each day.
2. My featured dieter Donna did pretty dang good this week, with only a couple oopsies along the way. :)
3. I did not lose weight this week.
4. I'm feeling the wooziness of some blood-glucose issue, which I intend to remedy with Atkins Induction.
I grocery shopped yesterday, tired of the slim pickins at the house that were anything but slimming. And as I shopped, I gravitated toward Atkins-friendly food. I know I said I'd transition over to a pseudo-Atkins diet in time, but I'm trying it a month or so earlier than I planned. The Franken-Diet twist is that I'll have lean beef, chicken, fish, and eggs with pure fats (lean meat instead of ANY meat I want). I bought some salad things and avocados for veggies, and some low-carb snacks (pork rinds and jerky) which I already portioned out into serving sizes. I'll have eggs for breakfast, snacks at work, a hamburger or chicken salad for lunch, a salad with avocado and pepperoni for dinner. I used my buddy Ryan's grill-n-freeze method for fresh tasting hamburgers without having to make 'em each day. I'm counting portions and carbs, and only eating when I'm hungry. I'll be keeping my daily carb count at 20g or below and testing for ketosis at the end of the week. Ketosis has been my Achilles' heel. If I can get in, I'll be fine. I'm sure I was just screwin' up the last time I tried this version of the Franken-Diet.
The real challenge of any low-carb diet is the first two weeks, when the rules are more stringent. Other than very limited food options (a plus for lazy me!), you've got the carb and caffeine withdrawal. And you've got the higher cost of so-called "real" food that is eaten in larger quantities.
So this week's diet felt more like a bad joke. The punchline? Feeling sick AND disgusted with myself are surefire ways to make me go low-carb. :) (Oh, come on. The punchline to a bad joke isn't SUPPOSED to be funny!)
Cuddles,
Tamara
1. Between restaurant food, visiting, snacking, and stress, I only ate Power Foods for about a third of each day.
2. My featured dieter Donna did pretty dang good this week, with only a couple oopsies along the way. :)
3. I did not lose weight this week.
4. I'm feeling the wooziness of some blood-glucose issue, which I intend to remedy with Atkins Induction.
I grocery shopped yesterday, tired of the slim pickins at the house that were anything but slimming. And as I shopped, I gravitated toward Atkins-friendly food. I know I said I'd transition over to a pseudo-Atkins diet in time, but I'm trying it a month or so earlier than I planned. The Franken-Diet twist is that I'll have lean beef, chicken, fish, and eggs with pure fats (lean meat instead of ANY meat I want). I bought some salad things and avocados for veggies, and some low-carb snacks (pork rinds and jerky) which I already portioned out into serving sizes. I'll have eggs for breakfast, snacks at work, a hamburger or chicken salad for lunch, a salad with avocado and pepperoni for dinner. I used my buddy Ryan's grill-n-freeze method for fresh tasting hamburgers without having to make 'em each day. I'm counting portions and carbs, and only eating when I'm hungry. I'll be keeping my daily carb count at 20g or below and testing for ketosis at the end of the week. Ketosis has been my Achilles' heel. If I can get in, I'll be fine. I'm sure I was just screwin' up the last time I tried this version of the Franken-Diet.
The real challenge of any low-carb diet is the first two weeks, when the rules are more stringent. Other than very limited food options (a plus for lazy me!), you've got the carb and caffeine withdrawal. And you've got the higher cost of so-called "real" food that is eaten in larger quantities.
So this week's diet felt more like a bad joke. The punchline? Feeling sick AND disgusted with myself are surefire ways to make me go low-carb. :) (Oh, come on. The punchline to a bad joke isn't SUPPOSED to be funny!)
Cuddles,
Tamara
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
FEATURED: Donna's Path
Meet my coworker Donna. She's a real sweetheart who gave her permission for me to do an ongoing feature on her in Tamara Henson's Health Overhaul. I have permission to display, GASP, her REAL WEIGHT!!! I'll give updates on her progress periodically.
You see, I've suckered her into getting healthy with me, following my very simple plan. Now, I'm not a doctor and she knows it. :D But she can't deny that the simple mishmash known as the Franken-Diet will at least be easy to follow, if a challenge to continue. We suffer from the same pitfalls of cravings, so I really understand where she's coming from. So here's my interview with her, to get us started:
1. What health problems do you have?
"Asthma & Bronchitis, Bulging disc and arthritis in my spine due to a fall in 2008"
2. Why do you want to lose weight?
"To better my health and and view of myself. To make a better me!"
3. What is your food poison?
"Chocolate!" (Yeah, Donna. Me too!)
4. What are your current eating habits?
"1-2 times a day, whatever I want" Includes regular Mountain Dew, various sugary snacks, highly processed convenience foods, fast food, and the candies!
DONNA'S HEALTH PROFILE:
Height: 5'6"
Age: 33
Highest weight: 357 pounds
Current Weight: 357 pounds
GOAL 1: 300lb (Timeframe, unknown)
GOAL 2: 275lb (25 pound mini-increments)
ULTIMATE GOAL: 200lb
PROCESS: Donna begins her diet today, using my Simply Filling Power Foods list and also my recipes.
This is what I told her:
"1. Eat whenever you're hungry, as often as necessary, for these first few days
2. Eat as much of the approved foods as you want until you're no longer hungry
3. Eat at LEAST 3 times a day, whether your meals are small or large. Or two meals and a snack. Every time you put Power Foods in your mouth, you rev up your metabolism.
4. Measure servings of everything, even if you eat multiple portions!
Because you're used to high calories in smaller meals, you'll want to eat more low-calorie foods to make up for it, so you don't get faint and end up sick from changing your eating habits too quickly."
I'm excited for Donna!
If you want a feature on my blog, and you're ready to do your own Health Overhaul, copy and answer all the questions and profile items and send them to tamaravmhenson (at) gmail (dot) com. Attach a photo, if I don't already know you through Facebook (where I can snatch my own pic). And if you freak out about the world knowing your weight, just enter pounds you want to lose! :)
Cuddles,
Tamara
You see, I've suckered her into getting healthy with me, following my very simple plan. Now, I'm not a doctor and she knows it. :D But she can't deny that the simple mishmash known as the Franken-Diet will at least be easy to follow, if a challenge to continue. We suffer from the same pitfalls of cravings, so I really understand where she's coming from. So here's my interview with her, to get us started:
1. What health problems do you have?
"Asthma & Bronchitis, Bulging disc and arthritis in my spine due to a fall in 2008"
2. Why do you want to lose weight?
"To better my health and and view of myself. To make a better me!"
3. What is your food poison?
"Chocolate!" (Yeah, Donna. Me too!)
4. What are your current eating habits?
"1-2 times a day, whatever I want" Includes regular Mountain Dew, various sugary snacks, highly processed convenience foods, fast food, and the candies!
DONNA'S HEALTH PROFILE:
Height: 5'6"
Age: 33
Highest weight: 357 pounds
Current Weight: 357 pounds
GOAL 1: 300lb (Timeframe, unknown)
GOAL 2: 275lb (25 pound mini-increments)
ULTIMATE GOAL: 200lb
PROCESS: Donna begins her diet today, using my Simply Filling Power Foods list and also my recipes.
This is what I told her:
"1. Eat whenever you're hungry, as often as necessary, for these first few days
2. Eat as much of the approved foods as you want until you're no longer hungry
3. Eat at LEAST 3 times a day, whether your meals are small or large. Or two meals and a snack. Every time you put Power Foods in your mouth, you rev up your metabolism.
4. Measure servings of everything, even if you eat multiple portions!
Because you're used to high calories in smaller meals, you'll want to eat more low-calorie foods to make up for it, so you don't get faint and end up sick from changing your eating habits too quickly."
I'm excited for Donna!
If you want a feature on my blog, and you're ready to do your own Health Overhaul, copy and answer all the questions and profile items and send them to tamaravmhenson (at) gmail (dot) com. Attach a photo, if I don't already know you through Facebook (where I can snatch my own pic). And if you freak out about the world knowing your weight, just enter pounds you want to lose! :)
Cuddles,
Tamara
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