The Most Valuable Weight Management Tool Available (imho)

I mentioned it in a previous post briefly, but I want to tell you more about an amazing FREE website called Fitday.  They have a paid version if you don't want to see the ads and be able to make custom reports, but I like the free version just fine.

What does fitday.com do?  It helps you keep track of your calories (burned and eaten), log your activities, weight goals, write a journal, see your nutrient breakdowns, create reports to see all kinds of graphs and charts that show your efforts and more.  I've captured some screen shots to give you an idea of what it looks like and a glimpse of how it works.

The principle behind this website is very basic.  If you don't keep track of your calories, you will probably have a difficult time losing or maintaining weight because it's hard to succeed in something you don't see.  You will lose weight if you burn more calories than you eat.  You will gain weight if you eat more calories than you burn.  Simple.  For me, this has been my only way I've successfully lost weight at a good and steady rate.  When you sign up you just follow the screen instructions on creating an account.  It will walk you through getting all your basic starting info in such as age, height, weight, etc.  Once you get started there are buttons along the top of the page to click around in different areas.  Let's start with the food log.  Just click on "Foods" on the top of the screen.  Each day you will enter in, either through your custom foods list or a food search.  Once you have a day or more done you can also choose your foods through the "View My Recent Foods" option on the left.  (That will allow to select foods you eat on a regular basis and will carryover the same amounts and everything to the new day.)  Here's what my daily food log is looking like for today. (click on it for a larger view)

You will see directly above the log a box for "Food Search".  That's best used to log things like fruits and vegetables or basic foods.  Here is an example of what a food search for Apple looks like:

If you click on the blue label with the magnifying glass it will open up another window where you can change the measurement.  I usually use either cups or ounces to give a more accurate measurement.  Then you can click on "Recalculate" and "Add to Food Log".

I suggest making Custom Foods for most other things.  Here is a quick pic of part of my custom foods list.

Notice when I add a custom food they all start with a capital letter, first of all.  I found out the hard way that if you put some with a capital and some without, it will make two separate alphabetical lists, one by caps and one without.  Dumb, I know.  Then I list by the main food, then I give a description, and then if it's not obvious I type in the serving size so I never forget how I measured it.  Doing it uniformly keeps your list nice and easy to find things.  Then, if you are selecting several things at one time you can go through the list and check the box on the left of everything you want to add.  At the bottom of the list is an "Add to Food Log" button.  If you just want to add one thing, you can click on the blue Add to Food Log button to the left of the item.  Here's what the "Create a Custom Food" screen looks like:

All you have to do is fill in the blanks and at the bottom click "Create Food".  Then it will give you the option to add it to your log.  It initially takes some time to create all your custom foods, but once you have them created you don't have to do it again, and the foods you eat often are already there.

Another thing you can do is track your activities.  Just do a search for the type of activity you want to add, and put it on your list with the amount of time you did it.  I always add "Sleeping" to my activities because it seems to give a more accurate calories burned number.  It will give you your calories burned for the day, which will guide you on how much you should eat that day.  To lose 1 lb a week, eat 500 calories less a day than you burn.  To lose 2 lbs a week, eat 1000 less a day.  But it is not advisable to eat less than 1200 calories a day.

Also with fitday.com you can run a ton of different reports.  My favorite are the ones where I can see graphs of my weight loss.  Here are some of the graphs:

This one tracks my goal weight.  I have how much I want to weight and when I want to lose it by.  Then the program will calculate a graph to reach that goal.  Every time you change your weight in your profile, it will add a point on the graph and will show you if you are keeping in line with your target.  Neat, huh?  Here is another one.  This one shows my weight change over the last 6 months.  lol the spike in March was our trip to Disneyland.  I definitely got off track there. :)

There is so much more the program will do, but you just have to really get in there and play around with it.  There is also a member forum with lots of support and information or opinions from the other members.

If you have any questions about the program, I will be more than happy to help you out.  I can be reached at happyfairylove@live.com.  I highly recommend starting to count your calories.  It's not the carbs that make you gain or lose weight, contrary to popular belief.  It is the amount of calories you consume that make your weight go up or down.

Have fun with it!
Lisa

Information on the Big Carb or No Carb Debate

It all gets very confusing.  Low carb / high protein; low fat / low carb; counting calories; counting points; everything in moderation; and so on.  But which one is correct?  I'm all for the one which you can maintain for the long haul.  There are some things I'm kind of against, though, and I'll tell you why.

My doctor said for me to not have more than 20g carbs per day that aren't vegetables.  20g.  That's it.  My mouth just kind of dropped open as I stared at him blankly.  That's less than 2 pieces of regular sandwich bread (about 24g).  That's less than my 1/4 c oatmeal, 1/2 c milk and 2 tsp of stevia in the morning (which comes to just 23.5g).  I did Atkin's for a few months, and I lost a lot of weight on it at first, but it was absolutely impossible for me to maintain, which didn't do me any good.  For some people, like my doctor, it works very well.  For me, not so much.  And that's the key to this whole lifestyle change...what can you do now and maintain later?

And, his recommendation didn't jive at all with the research I had been doing on the internet about how many carbs I should be having a day for a diabetic and heart healthy lifestyle.  Actually, it was very different.  According to an article written by the Mayo Clinic (I try to use highly reputable sources for my information btw), carbs are essential to your body's function.  First, understand that carbs come from fiber, starch and sugar.  You should get your carbs mostly from fruits and vegetables, legumes and beans and low fat dairy.  You should get carbs from starches that are whole grain, such as brown rice.  And then you should limit those things with added or refined sugar.

Additionally in this article (link above), and also backed by the 2010 Dietary Guidelines for Americans, and here by the American Diabetes Association you should be eating 45-60g carbs PER MEAL, and your daily carbs should be about 45%-65% of your total calories.  As an example, if you eat 1500 calories per day, and each gram of carbs is 4 calories, then 50% of your carbs would be 187g carbs per day.  (1500 x 50% = 750 calories / 4 calories each g carb = 187g carbs)

When I finally got my nutritionist, who specializes in healthy diabetic lifestyles and is also a life-change coach, it matched with exactly what she told me...45g carbs per meal (men should have a little more at about 60 per meal) and 15g carbs per snack.  So if I have 3 meals a day (and you should distribute your carbs as evenly as possible between meals) and 3 snacks a day, that would be 180g carbs per day.

Why should you have that many carbs a day?  The article I referenced above by the Mayo Clinic goes into more detail, but it says that carbs are essential for many of your body's processes such as providing energy (especially to the brain and nervous system), protecting against diseases like cardiovascular problems, and healthy carbs can also help people maintain their weight. 

In the end, low carb diets are not more effective for weight loss than a diet monitoring calories.  A low carb diet will help you lose weight more quickly initially, but over the course of a year the weight loss evens out between the two. (Harvard School of Public Health)

For me, based on what my professional nutritionist advises and by highly reputable sources on the internet agreeing with the exact numbers she gave me, it is best that I have about 45%-65% of your total daily calories in carbs.  Not 20 like my doctor suggested.

As for counting points, I'm not that familiar with it personally.  I did do Weight Watchers briefly a long time ago, but I don't remember much about it.  I will have to do more research.

Along with keeping my carbs in check I count my calories.  After all, weight loss (and gain) comes down to a very simple fact...if you eat more calories than you burn, you will gain weight.  If you eat less calories than you burn you will lose weight.  I try to keep my calories around 1400 per day.  If I stick to it, it will give me a weight loss of about 1 lb per week.  More on this another day, but if you'd like to start counting calories more easily and get an idea of how many calories a day you are burning and should be eating, check out Fitday.com.  It is free to register and use and it is an awesome website.  I wouldn't have been able to lose my 46 pounds so far if I didn't have that tool.

So, if you decide to keep up with my blog, you will see that the recipes I post and products I review will probably have carbs in them.  But they are at a healthy level, and that's the key for me.  What is healthy and what can I maintain for the long term?

Thoughts, anyone?  If you'd like to reach me I am at happyfairylove@live.com.  Please don't send me hate mail though...I am not saying that people on a low carb diet are wrong or bad.  I'm saying that a diet with carbs is just as good, and maybe even better for many people because of the fact that it is easier to keep up with for a long time since it is less restrictive.

Be well,
Lisa

Houston, We Have a Problem!

What is the very first step toward a healthy lifestyle?  Admitting you over eat!  Once you can fully grasp what is going into your mouth, the sooner you will be on the road to a new you.  My recommendation to you is to log (honestly and completely) what you put in your mouth for at least 1 full week, maybe even 2 to get a better picture.  It can be as simple as a little notebook, 1 page for each day.  To be very accurate you should list individual ingredients.  I would list the food, the amount, the calories and carbs for a start.  Now, one of the biggest problems people have is what "looks" like a cup.  Or what they "believe" is a serving.  You are almost never correct.  Believe me!  If you want to take your health seriously, I would highly suggest investing in a simple digital kitchen scale (mine can weigh in oz, g, kg and lbs).  Also for measuring, get ready to use your measuring cups and spoons.  Weigh and measure your foods to get a real good reality check.  Did you know that one serving of spaghetti is only 1/2 Cup?!  And how much do you really eat for dinner?

My digital scale, $20 from Wal-Mart.

What is the second step toward a healthy lifestyle?  Realizing that diets don't work!  A "diet" is perceived as a temporary thing.  Once people get to their desired weight, they usually start eating the way they did before, which inevitably leads to gaining all, and in most cases more than, of what you lost.  Another interesting thing about a "diet" is that it contains the word "die".  So for these reasons I do not consider myself on a diet.  It is not temporary, nor will it kill me.  Instead, I am on a "live-it" because that's what you have to do...live a new lifestyle.

Once you realize that diets don't work, then you can start making changes to your new live-it.  There are sooo many different eating plans out there.  I've been on Weight Watchers, the 6 Week Body Makeover, Atkins and plain old starvation.  Sure, they worked temporarily, like I said.  But obviously since I was 275 lbs just a few months ago they didn't work for the long term.  Don't get me wrong, and don't send me hate mail.  Some of these programs work very well for some people.  From what I have gathered, though, they don't work for many people for the long term.

I started my live-it instinctively and also from information all over the internet, and I decided to just change one thing at a time.  As it turns out, my nutritionist and life coach says that if you want to make permanent changes in your life, they need to be gradual.  Too many things all at once is too hard to manage.  Don't make it hard on yourself.  Look through your food journal and ask yourself, "Where can I make improvements?" 

For me, I knew I had to give up my addiction and abundant indulgence in Mountain Dew.  Oh my gosh...just hook me straight to the tap!  I realized I was drinking 9000 calories a week!  That right there is 2.5 lbs worth of calories that I don't need.  My doctor told me though that since I'm on a medication that has a side affect of making people crave carbs, switching to a non-sweet drink will spell instant doom on my efforts.  He suggested I switch to diet.  UGH!  Diet sucks!!!  I knew I had to do it though.  But for permanent, long-term change, I did it gradually.  I mixed my soda half regular and half diet.  Oh, Lordy was it awful.  But after a few days I got used to it.  Over the next week or so I gradually reduced the regular and increased the diet.  Now I exclusively drink diet, and i don't mind it!  But it has to be Fry's brand generic diet Mountain Dew or Lemon Lime.  I seriously can't stand diet Pepsi or Coke or anything like that.  I don't even like real diet Mountain Dew.  But I found something that works for me, and I can stick to it.

Thank Heaven for Diet Citrus Drop!!! I go through 6 2-liter bottles a week!

That's an example.  And another thing, because I just know some people out there are just fuming over me suggesting to drink the chemicals and sodium in diet soda (and as much as I drink it)...  A) It works for me.  B) It was also recommended by my doctor.  C)  There really isn't that much sodium in diet soda.  Just saying. 

So pinpoint the things you want to change.  Here are some other ideas:  Switch to olive or canola oil; switch to whole wheat pasta (Super Wal-Marts have a great selection of whole wheat pasta); buy whole grain breads; start getting in the habit of reading nutritional labels; start weighing and measuring your food; increase your fruits and vegetables; reduce your overall calories and carbs; start walking around the block; eat more protein; eat less snacks.  The list can go on and on, and the thing is there is no "correct" list.  It's a list that you come up with for yourself individually.  Sure, some of your things may be the same as some other people's, but not everyone needs to work on the same exact things.  BUT ONLY CHANGE ONE THING AT A TIME!  Get used to it, incorporate the change into your daily life comfortably.  Then change the next thing. 

There's my recommendations for you today.  Admit you have a problem, get a reality check on what you really consume, realize "diets" don't work, and make a list of things you want to improve.  Then start slowly making those changes.  That's a good start.

Feel free to email me at happyfairylove@live.com or comment here.  Again, I am not trying to say there is one correct way to make your lifestyle changes.  The important thing is "what works for you".  So don't beat me up, k? :)

Take Care,
Lisa

My History, My Diagnosis, My Goals

A little bit about me.  Growing up I almost always struggled with my weight.  I definitely did not have the perfect supermodel body.  Nope.  I am short (5'2" at my tallest, now shrunk to 5'nothin'), and I've got a large frame.  I never was, nor will I ever be, a size 0, 2, or even a 4 for that matter.  I remember as a kid wearing long pants to hide my legs, because even then I was self-conscious of my legs, big calves and thighs.  And my brothers didn't help much by nick-naming me "Bubble Butt".

There was a point, when I was 15, that I got fed up with my weight problems.  So I did what a lot of teenage girls do...I starved myself.  I never ate breakfast.  I ate diet caramel "candies" for lunch to take away the hunger, but they still gave me the feeling of eating candy. And I barely ate anything for dinner.  To increase my weight loss I started working out with weights several times a week and also played racquetball almost every day.  I got down to 115 pounds, and I wore a size 5.  But you know what?  It looked terrible on my frame.  You could see my ribs in my back...ick.  Even then, though, I still thought I was fat.

I managed to stay at a reasonable 125ish for quite a few years.  Up until I married Jeff in 1994 and started having more kids.  Then I couldn't keep from gaining.  Speed up a few years, and my weight troubles got even worse when I started taking some medications that made me absolutely ravenous.  I couldn't eat enough.  And, to top it off, (although I didn't find this out until just a few months ago from my new doctor) one of my medications is also used to give to anorexic patients to MAKE them crave sugary foods to gain weight.  No wonder I've ballooned up to where I'm at!

I went to a new general physician in February, 2012 to try to get a handle on my health, which I have sorely neglected for quite a long time.  Denial, really.  It was a real eye opener when he told me if I don't lose weight he's going to be telling me soon that I'm diabetic.  I told him about my frustrations.  It didn't seem like I ate that much, but I kept gaining and gaining and gaining for over 5 years.  It was a life-changing moment when he handed me a pamphlet on the lap-band surgery.  I almost burst into tears right then.  Has my situation become so desperate, I thought, that my only option was to have major surgery to force me to stop eating?

Sure enough, when my blood tests came back I had Type 2 diabetes with an A1C of 6.5, my blood pressure was out the roof, and all my cholesterol levels were bad.  Not good.  After I cried a few times over a few weeks, I started to get my resolve back.  I am NOT going to let this get the better of me.  I am NOT going to be on Metformin and Victoza for diabetes forever, nor am I going to be on Simvastatin for cholesterol problems forever.  Being bi-polar does sometimes work to my advantage.  I get manic and super-focused.  My new hobby became my health.  I am NOT going to get beat by all the problems my weight has caused.  Google became my best friend.

I am really embarrassed to admit this to the world, but when I first started seeing my doctor in Februrary, I weighed in at 275 pounds!!!  How did I let it get so out of control?  My goal is to get to 135 pounds by my huband's birthday next year...8/24/13.  I need to lose 140 pounds...that's more than some adults weigh.  I need to lose an ENTIRE person!  140 pounds is also equivalent to 560 sticks of butter!  Imagine all that ooey, gooey, greasy butter sitting in a big pile.  Yep.  Lovely thought, huh? It is also my goal to have an A1C of 5.5...without the help of medications.


What I would like to share with you through my journey are the things I have discovered (and am continuing to discover) from my endless hours of searching the 'net for information on diabetes, diets, recipes, etc.  I now also have a professional  nutritionist and life-change coach that my insurance actually pays for.  So I consult with her once a month.  In addition to that I am now going to my doctor on a regular basis, about every 2 months or so.  My A1C is being monitored, along with my daily glucose readings at home.

Feel free to leave comments here...I will answer you back personally if you have reply enabled to your email, otherwise I will just comment back here.  If you'd like to contact me directly, please feel free at happyfairylove@live.com. 

Best wishes,
Lisa