Motivation is Key!

Before (2012)

Motivation is everything. When you are motivated to do something, things are so much easier to do and to get into. I’ve been trying to eat better and to lose weight for the last couple of years. I’ve done really well at forming new habits for eating healthier food, cutting our processed foods, and eating less sugar. I’ve done well on losing weight and keeping it off but my weight has been stable (i.e. not moving at all) for about the last year. I’d really like to keep moving the needle and not just stay at this weight.

And as a result, I’ve joined a weight loss study at Stanford called One Size Does Not Fit All. They are putting groups of people on low carb or low fat diets and tracking them for a year. Last Monday night was my first class with a nutritionist and the rest of my cohort. We found out that we will be doing a low fat diet for the year. We were given specific instructions for what to do, what to follow, what to think about for the next 8 weeks. This initial period is really a period of resetting – expectations, shopping lists, what’s in your fridge or cupboards, eating habits, mindsets, etc.

I don’t do well at all with a deprivation mind set, i.e you can’t have any chocolate or wine or olive oil or avocados or nuts or red meat… etc. I do better on a diet of “eat more of this, less of this.” So this past week has been a huge struggle for me. I’ve tried to eat up the red meat and cheese in the fridge. I’ve tried to rethink how I can get down to 20 grams of fat for the next seven weeks. I’ve come to the conclusion that I need to eat whatever comes in my farm share, no matter what it is.

Chard anyone? Yuck, I’m not that into chard.

But what this week has taught me is that I need to be more creative in my approach to cooking and find recipes that work with these farm share foods.

I’m also supposed to eat one salad a day but without nuts or dressing (too much fat for the initial reset period). Hmm… herbs, lemon juice, vinegar, or other liquids are OK but not most dressings. I think there may be a lot more smoothies in my future as that is my favorite way to use kale and other greens.

As I look at what we are supposed to do for the next 7 weeks of the initial period, I am finding that my mind (and body) are craving, thinking about, obsessing about “fat” laden foods. What this is illuminating for me in no uncertain terms is that I need to find the motivation to follow the (low fat) diet my group has been given. So, I am sharing a motivation poem that was sent to me recently from my nutrition coach, Jennifer, at Retrofit.

Motivation for Weight Loss and Healthy Living:

M-make short term goals
O-out with the negative thoughts
T-think of why you want it
I-imagine how you will feel
V-visualize the future you
A-acknowledge your successes
T-treat yourself with respect
I-investigate new ideas and foods
O-observe your healthy lifestyle
N-never give up and never give in

In last week’s class, we had to introduce ourselves and say why we were interested in participating in the weight loss study. My motivation is two fold – to get off the yo-yo of weight loss and to lose weight and get past the plateau I have been on for the last year. It was clear that the low fat plan that we are assigned for this study will lay bare ALL of our bad habits, even the ones that we don’t think are bad for you… Starbuck’s on a daily basis, yeah, I think that one is going to need to change.