A Sigh of Satisfaction

I  found an article on the Fox News website a few days ago about a lady, a celebrity, who has lost about 60 pounds.  In the article she shared that her niece had helped her learn how to eat mindfully, recognizing her body's 'full' signal, and then knowing its time to push her plate away and stop eating.  This was interesting me because conscious/mindful eating has been the focus of my plan for losing weight.
An involuntary sigh is your body's indicator for fullness, she stated.  Hmmmm. An involuntary sigh. I had never heard that before. However, after a little research, there are some articles about our bodies giving us the 'I'm full" signal by letting out a sigh of satisfaction. So I'm going to begin paying attention more to my body when I eat and see if that's true. A sigh of satisfaction. 

Best Bloodwork Ever!

I had my annual wellness visit with my doctor today.  She was very pleased with the results of my bloodwork. My cholorestrol  and triglyceride numbers were all low and my ldl number was high. Everything was well within normal ranges. My blood sugar levels and A1C was all great. This is the best bloodwork I have had in years! Eating like a thin person has benefits! More winning by losing!

Sharpen the Weight Loss Edge Once Again

It has been a while since I posted to this blog. My last post was about my eating experience during my husband's health crisis.  I was able to walk through that difficult time without the stress induced overeating that has been characteristic of my life.  I am so thankful that I was able to emerge from that challenging experience maintaining my conscious eating dietary style.

Since that time, however, I lost some of my edge.  I have not gained weight, but I haven't lost any either.  I've stalled out at a certain weight and been there for about three months. 

I've been thinking about why this may be and decided on one main reason.

Instead of 'eating only till I was full', I began putting on my plate the amount of food I thought I would need to eat.  Then I would continue to eat till it was gone, letting that be my signal for ending my meal rather than the 'full feeling' signal that has been my guide for several months.

I lost sight of the main reason for my success with losing weight thus far.  I took my eyes off the key requirement to conscious eating - paying attention to the full feeling that comes when I eat and letting that be my cue, my signal for ending my meal. 

So I have resolved once again to 'sharpen my edge', and get back into the weight loss battle. One snack, one meal, one day at a time.

No Stress Eating Here....Not This Time!

It has been a few weeks since I last posted.  All is still going well with me, but my husband has been through some difficult and somewhat scary medical situations.  He is fine now, well, almost fine. Soon he will be back up to speed and probably even better than before everything went awry.

A medical crisis for my husband meant a huge amount of stress for me.  When I began this style of eating (conscious eating; stopping when I get full), I wondered if I would be able to maintain it during times of crisis, because historically I have been a huge stress eater.  I would eat everything I could to deal with stress and emotion.  The buzz phrase right now is "eating my feelings". Yep. That would be me. So, how would I handle conscious eating when my stress hormones and emotions are through the roof?

Well, good news. I had no problems, well, almost no problems, eating consciously during this time.  I simply ate till I was full then stopped.  The difficult time came between meals, because I would want to nibble even though I wasn't hungry.  I remember one day when I went to the kitchen pantry, opened the door and stood there about to reach for 'nibbling' food.  I had to say to myself in a rather firm mental voice, "Get out of the kitchen. You are not hungry!"  Yep. And it worked. I left the kitchen and didn't return till it was time to prepare the next meal.

This is working for me. Every day. In every way.  I plan to continue.  Till next time, friends, Remember, if you are full, stop eating. Save the left overs for another meal, or throw them in the trash!

Shopping In My Own Closet - A Big Win

It was pure fun.  It had been years since I had even thought about trying on those clothes.  You know which ones.  The ones gathering dust in my closet because they have been too small. Too tight to button, zip, pull up, or pull over.  You might have some of those types of clothes also.  I have called them my "hope so" clothes, but a year ago I began to think of them as my "probably not" clothes.  Now they are my "more than likely" clothes.  Some of them are currently my "hip! hip! hooray! They fit!" clothes.

Trying them on was loads of fun. Especially making trip after trip to the room where my husband was sitting to model yet another outfit that once again fits great and is to be moved into my current wardrobe. 

Yea! Another win that I am enjoying because I have lost.

It All Worked Out Just Fine

So today my husband and I went to an Italian restaurant after church. This restaurant serves absolutely delicious meals. We decided to order a pizza - meat lovers with black olives and mushrooms. Yum.

While we were waiting, our server brought us some soft, warm, to-die-for, garlic bread. Two servings of them. Oh my. I knew if I ate the bread, I would not be hungry for pizza, and I really, really wanted to enjoy eating the pizza.

What to do? What to do? I knew if I took that first bite of the bread, there would no stopping until I had eaten the whole thing. Well, I did it. I took one bite and then another and another. I nibbled till it was gone. Yep. I did.  That first bite.......was at the same time too many and not enough.

When the pizza came, I honestly didn’t know how much I would be able to eat.  It looked and smelled wonderful. I chose the smallest slice of pizza on the tray, and started eating. Oh my, the flavor did not disappoint. It was great. Oh, man. After a few bites, I realized that I was already getting full. I ate about three quarters of my slice and moved my plate to the end of the table.

We asked for a ‘to go’ box, and as soon as my husband finished eating, we put the left over pizza in it. Enough pizza for at least two meals.

Yeah! Victory! I ate my bread and some pizza too, without the guilt feelings of overeating.

Just Throw It Away

I was raised with the 'starving children in China'.  Can anyone else relate? Were you made to feel ashamed if you didn't eat everything on your plate? Oh my. If you didn't "clean your plate", then your leftovers will have to be tossed into the trashcan, thereby, causing some child in China to be denied food. Yes. That was me. My wonderful well meaning grandfather that I love dearly was the one who guilted me into eating and eating until my plate was empty and my stomach was too full.

It's understandable, and I don't fault him for it at all. He was a raised in a very poor household, and he was a young father during the depression, trying to care for a wife and small child.  Wasting food, or anything for that matter was considered sinful.  He managed to bestow that same value (for better or worse) on his oldest granddaughter (me).

Therefore, when I go to a restaurant, because I know that I will not be able to eat all of the food I order, I tend to order only things that I can easily carry home to save for later.  For example, I don't order sandwiches because I know that if I have to take part of it home for a later meal, the bread on a sandwich will get soggy. Yuck.

What naturally thin people know is that the starving children in China are not nourished by our leftovers, and throwing away food is not a sin.  They can just do it and attach no emotion whatsoever. They Just Throw It Away.