Around and Around I Go...

And where I stop, nobody knows!

image courtesy of appliedunificationism.com

Okay, so vegetarianism did not work for me. I like meat too much, and it was hard getting in enough protein to satisfy my wellness coach.

South Beach did not work for me. I had headaches, and was just plain grumpy. Food cravings, etc.

Now, I do believe that each person needs to find the approach that works for them, and if it takes some experimentation, fine! So what am I experimenting with now?

Carb cycling.

I've been watching some old episodes of Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition with Chris Powell, and so I looked up his books. I started with Choose to Lose, although I also have his Choose More, Lose More For Life on hold at the library. I like the fact that each journey (on the show) takes a full year, versus Biggest Loser (of which I also watch old episodes), where the contestants, who I think get about 6 months.

I started officially with the Classic Cycle on Monday, after allowing myself plenty of food on Sunday (I know, I know... so much of a "last meal" dieter mentality). So far, I've had two low carb days (Monday, Wednesday), and today is my second high carb day. Here's a brief run-down of a couple of days of meals (all breakfasts, by the way, have carbs, which is one of the things I love so far)...

Low Carb

Breakfast: Kashi GoLean Crisp with almond-coconut milk and vanilla protein powder; coffee w/milk; water with aloe and lemon

Snack: cottage cheese (2%) and celery sticks; water

Lunch: chopped cabbage salad with leftover grilled steak, Persian cucumber, and cilantro-avocado dressing; water

Snack: Strawberry cheesecake Quest bar; water

Dinner:  Baked tilapia w/a little Parmesan; roasted broccoli

High Carb

Breakfast: two pieces sprouted raisin bread toast w/cottage cheese; coffee w/milk; water with aloe and lemon

Snack: Greek yogurt w/a few raspberries, and a sprinkling of Kashi GoLean Crunch (honey-flaxseed); water

Lunch: Green salad with chicken, quinoa, black beans, Persian cucumber, and Bolthouse (yogurt-based) salsa ranch dressing; water

Snack: smoothie made with almond-coconut milk, a frozen banana, and chocolate whey protein powder

Dinner: Baked lemon-herb chicken; sweet potato w/lime juice and pepper; green salad

I'm also looking forward to Sunday. I weigh in first thing each Sunday for the weight loss challenge, and then I think I'll have a nice breakfast! I'm not planning on treating the day as a free-for-all, just a chance to work in a small treat or two.

Things I really like so far:

If I'm cravings carbs on a low carb day, I know I can have them the next day

Chris and Heidi's suggestions for eating within half an hour after waking up, eating every three hours, protein at every meal and snack, and drinking a gallon of water a day all completely mesh with my wellness coach's suggestions

Reward days

Carbs at breakfast. I love oatmeal, toast, some cereals, etc., so this makes it easier for me to get that first meal in!

And an update...

On the weight loss challenge. So far (as of last Sunday), I've lost 9.4 pounds, or 4.8% of my body weight! Not a ton of weight loss, but definitely a decent amount, and I've lost a lot of size too.

Pants that were much more "form-fitting" just 5-6 weeks ago!

Also, as of that weigh-in, I'm at 16th place out of 70+ challengers! I've lost a total of over 20 pounds since about January. And my coach says I am doing a fantastic job!!! 4 weeks to go after this one!

image courtesy of myperfectline.com