Pudge Nudge: Week 1

So a bit more about Operation Pudge Nudge. I had started writing about this and then work and freelance gigs sort of imploded on me and time was definitely at a premium.

My overall goal via OPN is to lose 60 pounds by the end of 2006. That's what I'm going with for now. I may only need to lose 40, but given my research and my height, etc, 60 pounds seems about right so I'll see how it goes. Part and parcel of this project is learning to invest more time in myself overall and develop good habits that will help me maintain a healthy weight for the rest of my life.

I'm in my mid-30's and I suppose it's the age where you really and truly stop feeling like a kid in many ways. It's resulted in a lot of introspection for me, a lot of talking to myself about the direction I want my life to go in. Last year my big investment was in a new job, so this year the investment is in my physical health. Next year the investment may be in a jacuzzi. Who the hell knows?

Anyway, OPN is also about losing weight healthfully. I don't want to end up like looking like parchment paper on a stick. I was at Ragdoll's house Thursday night for an evening of good food, good company and trashy television and I remarked at how unhealthy all the actresses looked. The only exception was Coronation Street. Seriously, it's bobblehead central on the tube right now. All the women look like Madonna: gaunt and unmoisturized. Not for me thanks. The world needs the power and fury of my booty so I will lose only that which is necessary.

Anyway, it was a rather successful first week for my Pudge Nudge initiative. I went an entire week without a snickers bar or chocolate almonds which is quite an accomplishment for me. Funny thing was I didn't really have a sense of what an accomplishment it would be until I started paying more attention to what I'm eating when. I'm not a big eater; never have been. But I think my food choices can leave much to be desired, because I either eat things I'm allergic to or I eat things that are not the healthiest in higher quantities than I originally thought.

I'm focusing first on removing a lot of refined sugar from my diet. I'm actually not much of a sweet freak. I'm more of an old salty. But refined sugar well and truly does a number on me, so that has been the first thing to get under control. I still allow myself a couple of teaspoons of brown sugar with my coffee if I want some, but that's pretty much it.

I'm deliberately being more attentive to my body so that I am truly eating chocolate because I feel like a treat and not for other reasons. I did find the lack of snickers hard going, only because, well, they work. When I hit that 3 pm wall, it's just the thing to keep me going another three hours. But interestingly enough, I did find that by Friday, my energy wasn't dipping as much towards the end of the day.

As for chocolate almonds, well I've made a deal with myself that I will get them because a girl's gotta live a little. My only caveat is that I purchase 1 200g bag a week, and when they're gone, that's it until a week later. I can eat the whole damn bag at once, or parcel them out day-by-day, but it's one per week no matter what. This seems to be working well, in that it lets me have a treat, but I do not go overboard when I'm tired or PMS'ing or bored. Strange thing was though, I didn't get almonds this week because I genuinely didn't feel like any.

Results? Well, I'm definitely sleeping a little better and my blouse and pants were definitely less snug by the end of the week.

Next week I am beginning my regular work outs at the rec centre by my house. It won't be anything fancy, just hitting the treadmill for an hour to start. I'm going to do this three times a week and see where things go. I've been reading a lot of weight loss success stories to stay inspired, and not surprisingly, many people say that exercise is key.

But I think what it does take people time to get their heads around, is the concept of exercise as being good to yourself. So often we have "being good to yourself" presented to us as a favourite food, or a long hot bath, or getting a manicure. But exercise is the same, even if the actual act of exercising feels like a living hell at the time, its results are what being good to yourself is about. I suppose that's the perception I needed to change. Because exercise didn't feel good, I didn't see it as being good to myself.

So I plan to just work through it. I'm pretty much reconciled to the fact that once I up my activity level, I'm going to feel like ass for about 3 weeks. That seems to be the average time your body needs to adjust before you start to find exercising easier. The important thing will be not to go overboard.

I do need to watch it because I found myself fighting off a cold as of last night and the battle wages on today. Thank "tha Lawd" for Neo Citran. But I'm going to forge on anyway and not delay my workouts for some pesky virus.

If I may paraphrase Yazmar, my immune system "will regulate on that bug's ass"