Watching What I Eat

In my last post I talked about how horrible my eating habits are.
How I'll just keep eating and eating until I'm going to explode or if something is sitting in front of me I'll eat it, even if I'm not hungry.

So, not only am I going to have to eat better foods, I'm also going to have to watch my intake of those foods.

SOLUTION???

This is not just going to be a notebook filled with page after page of what I ate, when I ate it, how much I ate, how many calories I consumed...granted, all that information is going to be in there, but I don't want it looking like a spreadsheet. That's no fun.

I've come across so many different ways to keep a Food Diary or Weight Loss Journal or whatever YOU feel comfortable calling it.

I've seen 3-Ring Binders with the pretty colored printouts.

This one and many more available here.

A few girls I work with have had a LOT of success with the MyFitnessPal app and website.

Some simply use the "Notes" feature on their iPhones. 

It's all up to you. However you want to handle it.

Me? I'm extremely crafty and like putting my own spin on things. So what am I going with?
A COMPOSITION BOOK!!!! Yeah, that's right. The black and white speckled ones that were always used in high school. 

Yep! One of these babies!

"But Hobbit," you say. "You said you were crafty and wanted to put a spin on it!"

Oh not to worry. I've been printing out motivational quotes and such like crazy!
You just have to cut them out, glue them on, slap on a coat of Mod Podge to keep them from peeling off and...

BOOM!!!!!!!

Front Cover

Back Cover

Inside Front Cover

Now remember...A journal is not going to work if you don't write anything down.

And write. Down. Everything! Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Snacks, that handful of chips you grabbed out of the pantry, the piece of candy from the dish on your co-workers desk. All of these little bits add up.

IF YOU BITE IT...WRITE IT!!!

Now like I said before...Don't just make it some boring old spreadsheet. Add in goals, and add your triumphs, record your weight and measurements so you can go back to them occasionally and see your results. 

• Keep it with you. You can't very will record what you're eating if you leave your journal at home.

• Don't forget! It can be super easy to forget to write down that candy bar you grabbed at the gas station, or the cup of coffee you grabbed on the way to a meeting. That could add up to a couple hundred missed calories.

• Be Honest. No one has to see your journal unless you decide to show it to them. If you had a second brownie for dessert, write it down. This way, you will actually see the holes and hiccups in your eating habits, and can make changes accordingly.

• Take AND record measurements. It's not enough to write down that you ate spaghetti with meat sauce for dinner. Mark down how MUCH spaghetti and how much sauce. If a 1/2 cup serving of sauce is 90 calories but you had 3/4 of a cup, it makes a difference. 

• Go back to it often. You might notice a pattern. For instance, I always crave sweets at around 2:30 in the afternoon. By noticing patterns like this, you'll be able to recognize when your willpower isn't its strongest and be more mindful of what you eat. 

• If you're really serious about getting healthy and getting your body in tip top shape, show your journal to your doctor. They ARE trained to notice nutritional deficiencies, disordered eating patterns, or any road blocks to your weight loss after all.

I also plan on adding healthy recipes, any fantastic tips I find along my way, and charts to record my weight and measurements every so often.

I'll post more pictures so you can see what all I have going on along the way, don't you worry about that. If you have any questions or tips for me, please feel free to comment! =)

"May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks."

-Hobbit

Eating Habits - Portion Control

Ok...So, over the weekend I realized something about myself:
My eating habits are atrocious (Mom would be proud, that's one of her favorite words).
I never thought they were all that bad, but then I really started paying attention this weekend.
Oh...My...God...

If I love what I'm eating and it's one of those things that just. tastes. so. good! I will continue shoving it into my mouth until I'm so full I want to curl up in a ball and die. Not just full. Uncomfortably full.
Also, if something is sitting in front of me, I will eat it. Even if I'm not hungry.
Case in point, a bag of Lindor truffles I got from a friend for Christmas. Gone, yesterday, the whole bag. Wow, I have a problem.

In light of this, I think getting my diet back on track is going to be the first thing I tackle. After all, you can't out-exercise a bad diet.

See! Told ya!

Now, I don't just want to jump into this all at once. I would be setting myself up for failure. So I'm going to take it one step at a time. That way I won't get crazy overwhelmed and give up.

I think that's why a lot of people's New Years Resolutions don't pan out. Don't get me wrong, it's great that they want to start dieting and exercising and getting healthy. But if you go from eating whatever you want to eating "rabbit food" for every meal AND go from being a couch potato to working out 5+ days a week at the same time, I don't care who you are, it's going to suck.

FIRST STEP!

• Portion control 
• Actually paying attention to what I eat.

But what ACTUALLY comes first? Research!!!!

I combed through website after website looking for the best portion control tips and products. Here is what I found:

***I see a lot of buzz about the 21-Day Fix program that's available through Beachbody. The same company that gave us P90X and INSANITY.

It's the one with the little color coded containers for your portion control, DVD's for your workouts, an eating plan, the whole works.

This sounds like an amazing plan and I may try it sometime in the future. However, in the spirit of not making too many changes to fast, I think I'm going to pass on it for now.

***Another thing that seems to be coming up a lot is the Meal Measure Portion Control Plate

It's a great concept and it looks like it would work wonderfully, but at the same time, it's not quite what I'm looking for. 

***There are always the divided plates, as long as you're not looking for something subtle.

***But there are dishes available for when you ARE trying to be subtle about it.

These are so gorgeous while at the same time being perfect for portion control! I may have to get these eventually too!

---BUT---

The product I found that is perfect for what I need right now is....*Drumroll*....

THE BLENDERBOTTLE GOSTAK!!!

• They are adorable
• They lock together so no fumbling around a lunch bag trying to find anything.
• Mix and Match
• Comes with a handle - Yay for Portability!
• Easy to take back and forth to work or when I'm out and about
• Multiple sizes, perfect for snack combos! (i.e. Big one for baby carrots, smallest for hummus)

Well, I went and placed an order for a Starter Pak (In Pink)

I'm so excited for it to come!! I'll totally post again when it's here to let you know how I like it.

WOW - This post is getting quite lengthy so I'm going to cut it off here and I'll do another post for the  "Actually paying attention to what I eat" section.

Out for now!

"May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks."
-Hobbit

And so it begins...

In a hole in the ground, there lived a hobbit.....

WAIT. Time out. That's a different story...
But this blog DOES involve a hobbit. ME!


Hi there! My name is Heather, or Hobbit (I'll answer to either), and I'm starting this blog to use as a tool in my journey to become fit and healthy, (and hopefully inspire others to as well).

My 27th birthday is coming up here on January 5th and I've really started looking at my life and future.  I'm not getting any younger and I'm slowly starting to creep up on *gulp* 30. *eeeeek*

During these reflections, I realized that there are a LOT of health problems in my family: asthma, diabetes, heart problems, joint problems, back problems, (you name it, I've got it on one side of the family or the other) and I want to try and stay as healthy as I can for as long as I can. I need to get my body in tip top shape.

I've noticed that I don't feel -right- anymore. It's very hard to explain unless you've felt it as well. It's kind of a 'blah' feeling, and my body just doesn't seem to function like it should (I think its something called....getting older....).

Currently I live a rather sedentary life. A typical day usually goes something like this:

• Wake up and get ready for work

• 1/2 hour commute to work

• Sit at my desk for 8 1/2 hours

• 1/2 hour commute home

• Cook dinner - Usually something quick and easy

• Clean up

• Plop down on the couch for some video game time with Dave (My boyfriend)

• OR our friends come over for Dungeons and Dragons (If you read my profile, I TOLD you I'm a nerd lol)

• Bedtime

So you can see where the major problem is. Between trying to get my 8-9 hours of sleep a night (I get SERIOUSLY grouchy if I don't), plus approximately 11 hours sitting throughout the day...I don't really get to move around much.

-SO-

I'm going to try and change that AND start eating healthier as well.

I'm hoping that this blog will hold me accountable and motivate me to keep going so I can look back at this post a year from now and be like "HA! That's NOT me anymore! I did it!!!"

But I'm out for now guys, I'll post again soon.


"May the wind under your wings bear you where the sun sails and the moon walks."
-Hobbit