Fresh Arugula
Check out my other blog! Some of my random ramblinz about life and my experiences along the way.

Friday, May 31, 2013

A Little Sprout!

Went a month without suppers, then life got busy and I got lazy, so now I'm back to no suppers. This time around though, it's not as difficult. I don't find myself waiting to go to bed so I won't hear my stomach grumbling. Very grateful for that! It also helps that I'm not being as strict about my oil intake, so that helps me to feel full longer.

Am slowly working towards being a full vegan. It's something I know is best for my health, best for the animals, and I really don't mind eating this way. The challenge is when I either can't be bothered, I find my favourite childhood snack, or I'm eating out. Then I forget, and by the time I remember it's too late. I mean, who wants to bother reading every single label to be sure there isn't any dairy in there?

Oh yes, am growing herbs. At this point I have two tiny sprouts, one of cress and one of basil, but am hoping the other pots of dirt that I have faithfully been watering will yield some greenery as well! It really isn't my thing to garden, at least I didn't grow up doing it so I have absolutely no clue what I'm doing, but I'm always up for an adventure, and it would be awfully nice to have herbs readily available instead of having to drive 30 minutes to the store to buy exorbitantly priced bunches that go bad in three days!

Lest you think this city girl is completely changing, don't worry, I'm still me. Only now I'm figuring out how to be a healthier me, and so far I'm enjoying the results! Am really learning that a lot of it comes about through experimenting to see what works and what doesn't. No suppers didn't work for me before, but after readjusting my blood sugar levels through weight loss and healthier foods, no suppers now works. So to all your experimenting, keep at it and enjoy the experience!

Friday, May 10, 2013

Tada!

Okay, so here's the big secret I've been hiding for more than a month now! It's something so simple and yet because of it, I have been able to see serious results!
  • Lost an inch around the waist
  • Lost 10 pounds
  • Sleep deeper at night
  • Less hungry at breakfast
  • Blood sugar dropped 10 points 
  • Feel better about myself
Want to know what I did? Cut out suppers. So I'll be honest and admit, it actually wasn't that simple to do. The first 3 weeks my stomach set up a grumbling group that went around picketing from about 6 pm til 10 pm when I would go to bed. I drank a lot of hot chocolate during that time and spent a lot of time trying to figure out what foods to eat for breakfast that would keep me full throughout the day. Lunch I already knew how to eat, but breakfast was a bit more challenging.

I decided to do it for just a month. I knew I wasn't losing any weight, eating supper in the evening took up too much time, plus suppers were my binge time. I really have a hard time binge eating for breakfast because it's way too early in the day to eat a large meal anyhow, and at lunch time I'm pretty good about having a balanced hot meal with veggies and protein and carbs. But suppers were just doing me in! I'd come home, be tired, not want to prepare anything healthy but just grab whatever was convenient, and I craved carbs and sugar. So I figured, since I couldn't do portion control and just eat a bowl of fruit in the evening (believe me, I've tried, I just can't do it), I would just cut out suppers altogether. I knew theoretically it would be good for me, but realistically I wasn't convinced. Until I did it.

Going to 2 meals a day has helped me in all those ways I listed above and I'm sure more that I'm not aware of yet. I am learning that even on 2 meals a day you can put on weight, even if you're vegan you can put on weight, so I'm trying to eat as healthily as I can. I still go out to eat, but I'm excited because now I have a friend who is also trying to be vegan so it's easier to pick restaurants that are vegan friendly. I'm also careful about my portions because that can be a major pitfall.

I still have 8 pounds to go to reach my 2nd weight loss goal. The plan is to continue with the 2 meals, keep sugar and oil on the down-low, and prioritize the exercise. When I reach that goal, I have a 3rd goal that is a weight I'm not sure I've ever seen. At least not while I've been obsessively recording my weight these past 15+ years! So I'm excited! Here's to better health!