Weddingbee Blog

Seeing as how it is almost January, I want to share with you a few things I’ve learned in the last year about eating. Maybe I just want to refresh my memory because I’m slightly scared Julie and her partner Aldina are going to give me a hard dose of honesty at my next dress fitting. Anywho, last January I started Weight Watchers at work, which is a wonderful program. Look to see if your company has a contract because it seriously is worth the knowledge. I am by no means an expert. I’m just giving you some information on what worked for me. Also, as a disclaimer, (because I caught a lot of flack about being on WW in the first place) I am simply a woman who would like to improve her body. I am not fishing for compliments or sympathy. WW has a policy that one must have at least 5 pounds to lose in order to join (calculated by height). I am well over that limit. So with that formality crap out of the way, here are my easy tips to kickin’ a few pounds.

1. Sign up for the daily Hungry Girl newsletter emails. She has some great recipes and suggests wonderful low calorie/fat products you can switch from your higher fat/calorie items.
2. Everyone says it is all about diet and exercise, which is true…totally true. However, I’m lazy. You might be lazy too. Just go for a walk. Park your car a little further away. Let Jillian Michaels beat you up for 30 days. Whenever you can sneak an opportunity to Rock That Body, come on come on, Rock That Body, do it to it.
3. Increase your fruit and veggie intake. Salads are obviously your best friend but dang, those things don’t fill you up and keep you full. Eat a salad before your meal so you eat less of whatever is going to fill you up. For whatever reason, I will buy the fruit and veggies but I don’t ever actually eat them. Though I find that when I get home from the grocery store, I immediately chop up the strawberries or whatever and store them into snack sized zip-lock bags. It makes them easier to grab on the go which propels me to eat them more often.
4. Speaking of dividing food, go ahead and do that with your meats as well. You know that portion you eat now? Cut that in half. Men burn calories faster than women. I know when I sit down for a meal with Zeb, I eat more just because he eats more. I can do anything he can do better…except maintain my weight. Stupid Zeb. He literally hasn’t gained a pound since high school.
5. Avoid the BLT—Bites, Licks, and Tastes. It probably wouldn’t hurt to avoid BLT sandwiches, too. Make sure to plan when you eat and don’t let yourself get too hungry. I normally have three meals a day with three small snacks.
6. Don’t drink your calories! This one is obviously difficult for me because you know I enjoy alcoholic beverages. I started limiting myself to drinking only on the weekends.
7. Don’t beat yourself up. If you want a dang cookie, have one, and savor it. Don’t have one cookie every 10 minutes and tell yourself that walking back and forth to the break room is exercise. You’re only fooling yourself.
8. You know the stuff that’s not good for you. The sweets, the chips, the fast food—you love them. Don’t cut them. Just eat half as much of them half as often as you currently do and see how it goes.
9. Don’t buy it. If it’s not in the house, you aren’t going to miss it. If you do miss it, grab it and separate it into portions. Don’t let yourself eat more than one portion a day.
10. Water, water, everywhere, have some drops to drink.
11. VitaMuffins are my life! They are a tad expensive but they are loaded with fiber which keeps me full for a long time. I order the chocolate muffins and have them for breakfast with fruit every morning. I love starting my day with a little chocolate! They are so easy to pop in the microwave and um…cough…they er…keep me regular (if-ya-know-what-I’m-sayin’).

Sample Day:

• Breakfast: Vitamuffin with fruit (best with strawberries)
• Snack: low fat string cheese & can of V8
• Lunch: Arnold Sandwich Flats, turkey, mustard (I’m a hardcore mayo girl) & pretzels
• Snack: pickle or piece of fruit
• Dinner: whatever
• Snack: popcorn, or pickle

I find that as long as I follow a similar routine during the day, I can eat whatever for dinner as long as I cut my normal portion in half.

What are some of the weapons in your eating arsenal?