When I renewed my dedication to cycling back in November, I was coming off a busier-than-normal busy season with work. I wasn't getting out on my bike more than one or two days a month, I was travelling back and forth to North Carolina for work, and my weight was up to 197.8 pounds, which was flirting dangerously close to the weight we dare not say alloud.
The first few pounds came off quickly, as I knew they would, then I plateued at 190. It was a few more weeks before I finally went sub-190. Once I did, I stopped including my weight loss in my weekly numbers posts because it wasn't changing. I was stuck between 186 and 188 for nearly two months. I weigh myself most every morning, if I remember, and nearly every time I did since early February, the number has been in the upper 180's. I was really glad to not see a 190+ weight even once during this time, but dammit, I'm riding a lot, and I've cut back my beer consumption to an unhealthy, masochistic level of un-imbibery .I want to see some savings!
Finally, today, I broke through the second plateau in my quest and weighed in at 183.8 pounds -- 14 pounds less than where I was this time 5 months ago. It took a while, I've burned a lot of calories, and biked over 2,000 miles since then. But I also eat a ton of food too. And I eat whatever I want -- Oreos dipped in coffee are my weakness. I'm not "dieting" at all. If anything, I'm eating more now than ever, although I do admit to sometimes buying the baked Tostitos instead of the normal ones and yes, I will occasionally reach for fruit or boil up some edamame instead of chowing down on chips or cookies.
My goal was to get back to 175 by the time TransRockies comes along. I lost 9 pounds in one day during Mountains to Sound last year and, for the first time in 4 years, went sub-180 on the scale... for less than 24 hours. I think this year I might actually get there a bit more healthily and, better still, stay there.
3 comments:
It's good that you don't "diet". The body actually functions better (and maintains its weight better) when it gets a little of everything--since diets typically cut out some portion of the nutrition spectrum, most people lose weight initially, but ultimately do more harm than good. Plateaus are a good sign, even if it's at a weight you're not ecstatic about. Probably all you need is a slight decline in overall calorie intake, and perhaps some more water drinking. (I've dabbled a little in nutrition studies ;-))
Thanks for posting Jackie. Being that you've dabbled in nutrition studies, I have a question to ask. Is it okay if the extra water I drink is first filtered through coffe, hops, barley, or a combination thereof?
;-)
Hope you're doing well. Thanks for writing.
hahaha Well, in addition to my interest in nutrition, I also believe in enjoying life including eating and drinking well (hence my tremendous passion for cooking). So, my answer to your question would be "yes"...or, at least in part. :-)
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