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August 23, 2011

Well on my way to cube butt

In the past few weeks my eating habits have dramatically changed. When I was unemployed I typically had "brunch" of a fried egg on an English muffin at 10:30 or so, a handful of soynuts in the afternoon, and dinner of spaghetti with tomatoes, basil and olive oil or a bowlful of edamame. I also tried to take a 20-30 minute walk at least once a day.

Since I've started working I've had breakfast at 7 a.m. and am starving by the time 10:00 rolls around. I'm starving again at noon, feel like I'm about to nod off from 2-3:30, starving once more at 3:30, and start grazing as soon as I plop back on my couch at 6:00. It doesn't help that I've been fraternizing in restaurants and bars all over St. Paul, and chowing down on chips and fries like it's my job. I'm tired all the time and I've gone from the low end of my "normal" weight range to its very peak. In two weeks.

Obvi, I'm doing this wrong and need to adjust my habits to my new lifestyle.

Exercise will be a big piece of it, once we move and enroll in the neighborhood gym. My new health insurance gives me a break on gym membership if I go at least three times a week, which is a grand incentive to get ovah there. I'm thinking that increased exercise will also give me the energy I've been missing. One thing I've started this week that seems to work really well is bringing my breakfast to work and eating it here at 9:00 or so, which precludes the need for the morning snack. I've also begun telling my tummy, "You're full of lies! You're just bored!" when it starts to grumble in earnest.

Do you have any other tips to boost energy and sate rabid workday hunger so as to avoid the flattened derriere so popular with today's office workers? 




10 comments:

  1. I know what you mean...I have a really early day, too, so sometimes I will eat breakfast as late as possible to just sustain energy. I will have a smoothie or oatmeal once I'm at school (or sip a smoothie throughout a class). I have the fortune of being fully distracted all the time, and it could be hard to avoid snacking when you are alone. I also work out RIGHT after school. It actually boosts energy, although that seems backward. I promise! I also try and have my smallest meal be supper. I'm hungriest at lunch, so that's when I bring low carb wraps, fresh fruit, Pop Chips, popcorn...I dunno. Hope that helps :)

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  2. You ask, I deliver. Because honest-to-God, this is the only thing that keeps me from trying to eat everything in sight.

    6 AM - Bfast
    9 AM - Tea
    10 AM - Banana
    11 AM - Green Tea
    12 PM - Lunch
    2 PM - Sometimes Tea
    3 PM - Snack
    4 PM - Pre-Run Bite
    7 PM - Dinner

    I mean, my snacks are only between 50-100 calories, but if I don't keep eating or drinking something all day I get bored and start a grazing rampage.

    I also exercise after work and find that it kills a lot of the post-work snacking urge.

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  3. Water or tea are a good snack alternative. It's okay to snack often, actually, there's been studies that show it boosts your metabolism. The trick is to keep the snacks low-cal. I really enjoy protein bars (not diet bars) right before I hit the gym. And, for breakfast I find that a Slimfast shake keeps me feeling full longer than food. (Just don't expect to lose weight if you use whole milk. Clearly, I'm not the brightest cookie...)

    I have a calorie counter app on my phone that really helped me too. I thought twice about everything I put in my mouth because I'd have to enter it in my phone. (I'm lazy.) It also helped me to get a better grip on the calorie values of food so I could pace myself better and keep from over eating.

    When I really want to avoid eating though I brush my teeth, floss, and rinse with a tasty mouthwash. I'm so fond of the clean feeling and minty taste that I don't want to eat. That, and if the mouthwash is the right flavor food tastes awful.

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  4. GUM. Seriously. Get one of those tubs of it from Walgreens and keep it at your desk and pop it in in the afternoon or morning or whenever you want a snack. It lets you chew something and actually often makes your hunger go away. Oh wait. Do you not like gum? I think you might not like gum. In that case, mints or fruit or veggies would work too.

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  5. Kali's right. Multiple, low-cal snacks. Lots of fruit and veggies. Water, water, water. Try to get in 10,000 steps (a pedometer helps).

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  6. As for the flat-butt: these exercises should do the trick.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4L9uZCJQQ0&feature=related

    I am SO not kidding about this workout. I do it almost everyday because, let's face it, I suffer from baby-got-backitis and my rear end could use an extra oomph to it. :-P

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  7. One great thing that our lovely pal Devon taught me is to start with a protein breakfast. If you start with carbs and sugars (think; toast, cereal, shakes with added sugar, etc) your body starts burning and craving those things leading to hunger just a bit later on, and then much more throughout the day. Instead, start with a strong protein breakfast like: eggs and beans, bacon and peanut butter, etc. It can be different to not have a sweeter breakfast, but go savory and go protein and your body will thank you!

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  8. To get more activity throughout the day, you could pick a bus stop farther from your start/end stops, find a bathroom that is across the building or on a different floor, or get up and do jumping jacks when no one is looking.

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  9. oh, and clif mini bars that you can get in the health/diet/diabetic snack section at target are awesome for snacks. 18 bars for $10 isn't the best of deals, but they're pretty tasty (and healthful) snacks.

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  10. I just wrote SUCH a long response, full of enlightening suggestions which were deleted by the gods of the internet, which I suppose means they didn't approve. Alas, all I have the courage to rewrite for the moment is: lowfat plain yogurt with oat bran in it for breakfast is the high-protein, high fiber way to get your day kickstarted and your metabolism rarin', as they say in these parts. More later...

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