Calories In, Calories Out... Is it really that simple?

You hear it all the time.... "its as simple as calories in and calories out!" Well, that is half true. It IS that simple.... but it also about the TYPE of calories you are putting in. When people ask what I am doing to lose this weight, I say that I am counting calories and working out. Most people cringe and say, "ugh that doesn't sound fun!!" Well, its not. But neither is being fat. So.... choose your hard people!!!!

The In
I use a site called "My Food Diary" (www.myfooddiary.com) to track the calories I am putting into my body every day. Yes.... EVERY DAY. It costs me $9 a month, but it is the best money I spend every month!!!! It allows me to create recipes and put in serving numbers and it spits out the nutritional info. It has a section to include exercise and it gives you an average of calories burned based off your info. It has a body tracker so you can track weight loss and your measurements. Quite a nifty tool. Of course, you can do it the old fashioned way and use a calorie book to figure it all out. Probably in the near future that is what I will move towards as I now make good choices without having to REALLY think about it. Save the $9 a month and put it towards some cute SHOES! (On a side note, one of the things I have noticed is that my feet were apparently fat. Yes.... fat feet. I though that maybe my feet had just gotten flatter and that is why I went from a 7.5 to an 8.... NOPE! Now I am back to a 7.5! At least you can look forward to some SHOE SHOPPING!)It is true that a cookie may be the same calories as a chicken breast with a cup of broccoli, but is it the right choice? (You should be telling yourself "no" right about now.) Keep in mind that your body is a machine now.... you need to feed it what it needs to thrive. NOT what just tastes good but has little to no nutritional value! Whichever way you choose to track your calories.... stick with it and BE HONEST!!! You are not doing anyone any favors by leaving off the brownie you had in the office meeting! Fess up to it MOVE FORWARD! Do not let that one thing completely derail your progress!!!!

The Outtie
The other part of this process is tracking what you BURN! As mentioned above, I have used My Food Diary to track calories burn. But 4 months into my diet when I started REALLY working out I started wanting to know what I was burning more accurately. I went to a local sporting goods store and purchased the Polar FT4 Heart Rate Monitor. I was so excited to get this thing on that I cannot describe it! Not only does it monitor my heart rate, but it tells me my ACTUAL calorie burn based on my personal info that I input into it! HOW COOL IS THAT?!?!?! I have a strap that I put around my chest and a watch that I wear and each week when I weigh in I update my weight info. It is AMAZING! I refuse to leave the gym until I have burned 500 calories but my goal is 750 each day. On hard workouts I can break 1000. Now... as with anything... you need to do what works for you!!!

Mine is easy to use and allows you to update your info as often as you want. This also allows you to use the website (for FREE!) to track your info. The watch stores your info for several days and allows you go back and view previous days. It is quite simply AWESOME! Even if you do not get this one.... I highly suggest getting a heart rate monitor with a calorie tracker!

No matter the choices you make.... always remember that it is a CHOICE that you HAVE to make. You CHOOSE to eat right and you CHOOSE to workout! You can DO THIS! Stay positive and work hard! Remember that choosing to be fit is not an easy journey.... but it will provide you with rewards like you could not have EVER imagined!!!!

What changed?

So I was just catching up with an old friend from High School (God love Facebook!) and she said, "what made you actually finally start and stick to it?" My answer? "I really just got tired of being fat." Simple enough. I know I have said it a million times... and undoubtedly if you are reading this you probably are on your own personal weight loss journey. (Or you REALLY love me... so thanks regardless of the reason!) But losing weight is a choice and that is the hardest part of all. Once you have made the commitment it is not that difficult, but there are mental and physical obstacles that you need to overcome too.

I dieted before... and that is what it was.... a diet. There was no lifestyle changes involved whatsoever! I would make better choices. Not good ones.... just BETTER. But that is quite simply just not good enough. Looking at a bucket of fried chicken and saying, I will have a breast instead of a breast and a drumstick is NOT a good choice. A good choice is deciding to have a grilled chicken breast instead. The GOOD choices are never EASY. So brace yourself for that!!! It may mean bringing food where you go. I am constantly armed with pistachios, an apple, some granola bars, and sugar free gum. These are choices that I actively make every day. To plan ahead. I do not want to put myself in a position where I will make the wrong choice and then either feel ill or be mad at myself. I remember a time when I would eat at Chick fil a because I thought it was a better option than other fast food places. And in all reality.... it probably is! BUT... it is not a GOOD choice! And my body KNEW it a couple months ago when I had 4 chicken strips! I might as well have swallowed a whole brick. Your body learns very quickly what it wants and needs.

I honestly cannot tell you what changed. When I set my original goal it was 81.5 lbs from where I started. I set an unrealistic goal. I never in a million years thought that things would finally change this time! But now I see the goal.... I am within 15 lbs of it! I CAN DO THIS! Now I feel like not only can I reach this goal.... but I can re-evaluate and possibly start again once I am there and aim to lose 10 more lbs! I am making the right choices.... my body is becoming lean and tone. I still have a ways to go.... but I am on the right path. I am a living breathing lifestyle change.