Breaking Through a Symbolic Weight Target

I finally went just a fraction of a pound below a long-sought weight target I last broke by late 2013 and in 2011 when I lost over 40 pounds while on Nutrisystem. Whether the whoosh will continue or I see a week or two of fluctuating around the weight target, I don't know, but I'm encouraged that I managed to lose weight over a holiday weekend where many, if anything, add a pound or two.

Just a few notes over the weekend:

• I noted a couple of interesting things in Walmart's bread aisle yesterday: non-gluten wraps and sprouted wheat bread. Actually, the Orowheat product has sprouted wheat flour as the second ingredient, i.e., it's not like it's 100% sprouted grain. You have to be very careful, e.g., there's a difference between "whole wheat" bread and "100% whole wheat". 
• I am a very avid Amazon.com customer, but there are some things where you can buy cheaper directly from the vendor or another outlet: for example, bread or wraps. In some cases, shipping costs can be almost as expensive as the  product itself. You might want to consider a vendor like Netrition or Vitacost. In some cases, I've even seen the direct vendor waive shipping costs with a purchase total of $100 or so dollars.
• What is the deal with paleo wraps? I've seen the cost being up to $2 or more for a single (often coconut flour) wrap. You can get a package of flatbreads like Flatout  for less than $3 a package that will last a week.
• This is probably a limited-time offer, but Quest Nutrition was offering 12-pack boxes of "crunchless" vanilla almond bars for $10, plus shipping, over the holiday weekend. Many of Quest's boxes run in the mid-$20's range. I'm a repeat purchaser.

Slow Bouncing To New Lows

Another annual low, although just a half pound less than my last low a week or so back, another frustrating bounce back up 3-4 lbs. and working it back down. (I've been obsessively checking my weight hoping to crash through the resistance level; it looks like the whoosh won't continue tomorrow.)

It's very frustrating on Thanksgiving to stick to the diet. My thoughts go back to family Thanksgivings through my UH graduate studies: the usual roasted turkey, mashed potatoes, giblet gravy, Dad's turkey stuffing, rutabagas, various side dishes, and pies (particularly pumpkin). I tend to prefer the dark meat, a lot of drumsticks over the years. My Mom is a very good, self-taught cook, but Dad took an active interest in grilling and cooking (he owned a lot of cookbooks). He particularly was involved with the stuffing and rutabagas (which I absolutely loved). And turkey is probably my favorite thing to eat; despite being a bachelor, I've probably roasted a good dozen turkeys on my own (and would be eating turkey every meal for a good week or two each bird--which will temper even the turkey lover in me). I have never really been a dessert eater; when I went home for Christmas, I may have had a thin slice of pumpkin pie and a few cookies but if you examined my grocery receipts over the last few years, you would find no cookies, pies, doughnuts, cakes or other sweets. It's been years since I've bought a carton of ice cream. I haven't totally abstained; I might buy an occasional ice cream if I'm waiting between flights or a vending machine candy bar if I'm driving or waiting during auto service waits, but it's not a habit. To give an example, when I went on a business trip to Orlando several weeks back, there was a Ruby Tuesday's within a half mile of my hotel and I went there a few times. They had a promotion where they bundled the salad bar and a selection from 2 or 3 desserts with certain entrees. I did eat dessert with these deals (but the salad bar was the motivating factor). But my meals were all within per diem limits and I could have easily ordered more food or desserts and didn't.

I remember stopping to gas up and eat at an exit maybe an hour east of El Paso during my relocation from SC, and I ordered a 6-inch sub at Subway. I overheard the line worker mumbling I was an idiot for not getting the foot-long sub for just a buck or two more. But my appetite was satiated with the six-inch, and I don't care what other people think of my choices. Granted, I could have saved the other half to eat later. I take some pride in self-discipline, like when my co-workers recently shared a couple of large pizzas, and I stuck to my protein bars. Believe me, I love pizza (well, I have some exceptions, like I like my pizza spicy and/or with a good tomato sauce and don't particularly care for chicken or pineapple).

Still, I brewed some pumpkin spice coffee ordered through Amazon and thoroughly enjoyed my indulgence.  I put 3 small turkey drumsticks into my crockpot yesterday and ate one of them for lunch. I put some chicken breasts into the crockpot today and tried a Sriracha BBQ sauce on one today (just 10 carbs and 40 calories a serving)

The Last Month Has Been a Difficult Slog

After a long consolidation which saw me fill the gap of last month's 6-pound whoosh, I finally reached yesterday (just barely) a new annual low, just to see me zag up about 0.4 lbs this morning (which might be the difference of a bathroom break). My favorite Taylor scale seemed to hint at an additional drop of 3-4 lbs. (below a highly symbolic threshold goal), but I always confirm my morning reading. I've sometimes had digital scales that vary pounds between readings or shift with a minor change in scale location. The Taylor scale (up to 0.2 lb precision) I have is probably the best I've owned over the past several years; it tends to be highly consistent and reliable; I don't simply log the lowest reading, unless it's confirmed.  But I have had what I call teaser readings below my short-term target; usually this is suggestive of an imminent whoosh, but I had one earlier this year that took weeks to realize. I'll sometimes do a late night reading; if it is lower than my morning weigh-in, it's usually a good sign; last night it was the same, so I wasn't surprised by a small zag this morning. It wouldn't surprise me if the consolidation period holds for a few more days. I always get concerned about holiday pounds, with Thanksgiving and Christmas coming up. But I don't really have the time or budget to fly home for the holidays; I may buy turkey legs and stick them in a crockpot.

One of my idiosyncracies is purchasing inexpensive digital copies of diet and recipe books on Amazon.com. The reality is that I often cook very simply; for example, I recently cooked one of those chuck roasts (listed below) in a crockpot, maybe a dash or so of sea salt, and thoroughly enjoyed it. (Maybe because I haven't had a roast in a while, but I really appreciate the taste of grass-fed versus conventionally finished meat; I still buy and consume some conventional meats, but like grains, I'm slowly phasing them out. I'm also looking to phase more organ meats into my diet.)

Shopping list lately (including Internet purchased):

• chicken breasts
• thick-sliced bacon
• varied salads (spinach, romaine, cabbage)
• Roma tomatoes
• various nuts (almonds, cashews, pistachio) 
• coffee (blueberry flavored, pumpkin spice)
• grass-fed chuck roast (I found at WalMart in 2-lb packs for roughly $8/lb)
• Perky Jerky (Facebook promotion)
• tins of sardines, herring, and oysters
• ThinSlim Foods sampler pack

I see Mark Sisson (as in Mark's Daily Apple) has a new edition of Primal Blueprint out, available at Amazon; Quest Nutrition has also introduced "beyond cereal" bars.

The Tedious Nature of Consolidation Periods

I hit a yearly low this morning but by less than a pound; I remain maybe 1.5 pounds over a symbolic weight target. I could take it out if the new whoosh sustains another couple of days; the good news is my recent bounce highs are a couple of pounds off a long-time low. This year has been a struggle; I keep my daily weigh-ins on a spreadsheet, and I'm only down about 16 pounds since late February. While that's good, it's still a drop in the bucket when I need to drop another 100 pounds. Since Oct. 18, I've had a couple of bounces up maybe 2-3 pounds off the new low; the current drop is after 3 days of peaking off the latest bounce; I'll probably know in my informal late evening weigh-in if the whoosh will continue. If I'm down off my morning weigh-in, chances are it'll stick overnight. It's not a guarantee; I've been eating a late snack off my swing shift (lately, it's been sardines and a handful of nuts; other times I've sometimes make a soup using leftover chicken breasts with some shirataki noodles); I carry one or 2 protein bars during my work shift.

I think one of the most discouraging things is that I haven't lost enough for others to note specifically. There are slight changes in clothing I've noticed--I've had to tight my belt one or 2 notches and shirts I bought earlier this year seem to be a little looser around the shoulders.

I know I need to upgrade my exercise regimen. To be fair, I do climb the stairs up and down to the second-floor facility where I work. I've occasionally walked to and from another work facility a few hundred yards down the road. The temperature has cooled down from 3-digit daily summer highs (like 114-120). I'm getting ready to join a gym again, but I need to buy new workout gear, plus I need to study for a major certification exam soon.

I'm very skeptical, short of a food allergy or similar health condition, of banning foods from one's diet, e.g., the paleo diet's prohibition of wheat/gluten and legumes. What I do do is limit my consumption of said foods and usually combine them with other foods, like protein. I have developed some recent dietary habits like a teaspoon of coconut oil in my morning coffee and a dash of apple cider vinegar in my low-calorie beverages.