RESISTANCE MUSCLE MEMORY

Well, this is discouraging, especially in light of the difficulties I've been having lately with staying on track. It's not like we didn't already know that it's extremely difficult to keep weight off, for a variety of reasons; or that many people set completely unrealistic goals for themselves. But to hear that your weight can rise even if you haven't changed your eating or exercise habits is really unpleasant news. Really, the study just confirms a lot of what we already know: it's hard to lose and maintain weight loss; and to keep it off, you're going to have to switch it up every once in a while.

This week, I've been working hard to make good choices and practice my skills.  The other night we were out to a late dinner, and I was very hungry when we started, but I also knew I did not want to eat too much. There were a couple of items, like the garlic bread and the dessert, that just weren't special, so after a taste, I pushed them away and did not eat them. That was stupidly hard, but I MUST start practicing these skills religiously again. I stopped eating before I was full.  Yesterday, I was very careful about eating healthy and watching portion sizes, and I did a good hard hour on the elliptical, plus some yoga and walking. This morning, I resisted a fancy pastry at the coffee shop, and had oatmeal in my hotel room instead.

The funny thing is, although it's incredibly hard to begin making these choices again (and again and again), every time you do it gets a little bit easier. It really is similar to building up muscle memory.

I've decided that it's time to cut out carbs again. More than anything, they are what pack on the pounds for me. When I was in the initial stages of losing weight, I almost never ate bread, rice, cereal, potatoes, or pasta. These things have crept back into my diet, although in MUCH lower quantities than before ... but nevertheless, I think I am better off getting my carbs from fresh fruit and occasional servings of whole grains (I do like my oatmeal for breakfast, from time to time). A while back, there was a post on Food Renegade in which Kristen described being out to dinner with her family at The Monument Cafe (also one of my faves!). They have really terrific biscuits, and after her young son had one, he asked for another. Kristen gently told him that one was enough, because after all, it was sugar. She's right of course, and when tempted by bread products, this post often comes to my mind. It's helpful to remember that refined carbs are, for all intents and purposes, sugar. Yummy, yummy Fattening sugar.

I ate plenty of good food yesterday, and I even had snacks and drinks quite late, after the show (it was opening night). But this morning, I feel good. I don't feel heavy or sluggish, because I didn't eat too much and I ate (mostly) healthy things. This morning, I'm going to head off to the gym again for another hour on the elliptical --- I like to work out on performance days, gets my blood pumping --- and have a light, healthy lunch.

I've just found out that at my next gig, The Marriage of Figaro at Kentucky Opera, we will be housed in beautiful hotel suites that have fully outfitted kitchens and a nice in-house gym. Yaaay!

Meanwhile, there are two shows to go in my current gig, Gertrude in Romeo & Juliette at San Antonio Opera. There was a little local news story with a nice little clip, and you can see me (very very briefly!) at about :40 and 1:04 (don't blink or you'll miss it).

And now ... it's off to the gym! 

Comments

[Theresa K.]

Funny clip! It looks like a great show! Thanks for sharing it.

The article on weight loss was good, but I think it skirted around the issue of inflammation and the role of sugar in gaining and retaining weight. A low-carb diet, particularly the short-term really low carb diet that causes quick weight loss is naturally alkaline. I think you really have to be careful what kind of carbs you let back into your diet.

In January 2011, I abandoned my long-futile plans of weight loss for a different approach - weight training, cardio and reducing inflammation in my diet through what I consume. Beyond the increase muscle and endurance, the continual slow weight gain has finally stopped and I've lost about ten pounds. More importantly, the chronic pain I have from an injury is greatly reduced. As soon as I let sugar creep back into my diet, the pain flares up and I get that bloated feeling.

I'd love to know if anyone else has experienced this effect of sugar/acidic foods in your diet.

[RebeccaNYC]

Oh I love carbs. But they do not love me. My nutritionist would be very happy if I only ate lean protein and leafy greens. No fruit, no sugar, nothing raw, no yeast, nothing brewed, oh lord kill me now. She's right of course, and all the testing they did of every fluid in my body backs her up. Do I follow this diet and feel like a million bucks? No I do not. But I mean to, really I do. And thanks to you, I will continue to practice flexing my resistance muscle.

[Dalila Valentine]

I think it's good that you pushed away the food that didn't taste all that good. One thing that I've noticed as being a characteristic of naturally thin people (my partner is a perfect example) is that they are incredibly fussy about what they eat (contrary to what we think, they don't necessarily abstain from high calorie food) and unless something tastes juuuuuust right they seem to get really turned off.

Also I think cutting carbs sounds like a good idea. I have mostly cut out things like rice and potatoes (for me the issue is trying to build up my stamina for singing, not lose weight) and I find myself much less tired. You're right. All that starch just turns to sugar and doesn't do much for our health.

[H. Skippety]

re carbs --

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/saturated-fat/wheat-belly/