If you've been following my blog for awhile, then you know I frequently go on kicks of trying new things. At first I thought this was a major problem of mine- that I couldn't just stick to doing one thing. Now I think of it as experimentation that leads to evolution. For all I knew, "going Paleo" was one of those kicks. It ended up sticking. CrossFit was one of those kicks, it ended up sticking. How could I possibly know that I'm doing the absolute best for me unless I keep testing new things?!?!?! That would be like if I held on to my Razr cell phone forever (hey, it was the sh*t when it came out) while everyone else is walking around with iPhones!
So, before I go into the details of the latest kick I've been thinking of going on, I will update you on my most recent ones. Eating a recovery snack after a workout, and two cheat meals/week:
Recovery- Going great. I have been sure to pack a post-workout snack with me, and despite odd looks I get from gym buddies when I'm chomping on a chicken leg post-WOD, I will continue. The hardest part about this is that I'm never hungry after a workout. So, convincing myself to try and eat something seems counter-intuitive...especially in the weight loss sense of things when the prevailing word is never eat when you aren't hungry! But...one thing I have noticed is that when I do eat something protein packed immediately after a workout, when I'm not hungry, it actually prevents that whole 1 hour later RAVENOUS thing I usually get. So my dinner when I do get around to making/eating it is waayyy lighter. Have I mentioned that in general, I always feel better when I eat less? That is a bonus, and perhaps the reason why all the experts recommend a recovery snack? As far as reductions in soreness, gaining progress quicker, and fat loss, I'm not sure how I would measure that, so I don't have any comment on that yet. Its also only been 2 weeks? So way to early to tell.
Two cheat meals/week:
I think I'm going to go down to one cheat meal/week (two is too (ha) many). I'm also not going to start the cheat meals till I've had 3 weeks or so of clean eating (no cheats) or once I know I'm in Ketosis- remember how I said I always know when my body "flips that switch?" Well, the switch is in need of flipping again, so once that happens, I will proceed with the allowed once a week cheat. It is not fair of me to try and attempt to give myself cheat meals when I have not fully flushed the offending items out of my body yet. In the past few weeks I've had a few too many celebratory drinks and meals (birthday week). Once that stuff is out of my system, I don't even want to eat items that may look tempting right now.
I've found a handy explanation to this pattern of mine in which I'm really good for a period of time, then I justify eating something I'm "not supposed to" (I've been good for a week, I deserve this!) which leads to more justification (well, I've already screwed up, soo...), and more bad decisions. One of my favorite blogs: http://www.health-act.net/ just did a post on self-justification in order to avoid cognitive dissonance. I self-justify the actions to avoid the cognitive dissonace of eating something I know does not align with my fat-loss goals. My brain fools my brain in order to prevent my brain from fooling itself. Wow. That is some crazy sh*t. So, the idea is I need to stop the fooling of myself, just allow myself without any guilt to eat or drink something that might be viewed as bad once a week. By allowing this once a week guilt free action, I eliminate the need for justifications, which apparently, are just as addicting as carbs.
Drum roll please....
Now for my newest idea/kick/thought- ready for it? Ok, here I go:
I want a stand-up desk. There seems to be a lot of recent chatter on this topic, and after reading this article:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/17/magazine/mag-17sitting-t.html?_r=1&ref=magazine
I decided I'm going to start speaking with the powers at be here in the office to make this happen. I feel I have been here long enough that this request won't be viewed as "weird needy new girl wants WHAT?" The best part of this plan is the even newer girl that got hired 2 months ago is a "health and wellness advisor" or some other stupid title (ok, if you can't tell, she annoys me with her peppyness and optimism) and she is so eager to shake things up- which is ironic because most of the information I overhear her saying is stupid. In her defense, I guess it sort of goes with her territory that random folks pop into her cubicle and ask how to get "healthy." Anyway...I'm going to take advantage of her eagerness and see if I can't be some sort of test subject. I have a feeling this proposal will be right up her alley, and hey, if it gets me what I want, and works for her, WIN WIN. I took the liberty of printing the NY Times Magazine article for her to peruse...now to strike up a conversation with her that doesn't seem like I'm trying to hard...
Stay tuned!
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