There have been many failed attempts. I could list reasons why, but to save time, think of every excuse you've ever heard and pretend I just wrote them.
On Monday I very publicly announced (Facebook) that I was committed to losing the first 10 pounds of my 45 pound goal by the end of March. I invited people to encourage or be mean or otherwise hold me accountable. I mean it when I say that if you see me eating something terrible, I would like you to throw rocks at me. See me drinking a soda? Kick me in the shins. Maybe that's the only way I'll learn.
It's only been a few days since I decided to get serious and I'm doing what I should be doing. There isn't really anything to report in terms of actual progress, nor should there be. I'm ok with that. Sort of.
Since weight loss is on my mind though, I thought I'd share a few things with you that I found out this week.
My travel mug of coffee is about 35 calories. One pound is equivalent to 3500 calories. Every time I look at my travel mug of coffee with it's 3 tablespoons of fat free half and half, all I can think is that it represents 1/100th of a pound. My cup of tea is only about 5 calories, or 1/700th of a pound. I would have to cut out 700 cups of tea or 100 mugs of coffee to lose a pound. So like a day's worth. I'm kidding. 2 days.
It takes more energy for the human body to deal with cold water than warm water. I have heard that before and I found out from a very reputable source (Google) that this is true. I read that one can burn anywhere from 30-70 calories by drinking an 8 oz. glass of ice water. I will now drink much water.
I also read (same reputable source!) that standing burns about twice as many calories as sitting and that walking burns three to four times as many. Seriously, how much sitting does one have to do? I must find a way to sleep standing up.
And, I also read that we burn 3-7% more calories burning cold air versus warm air. I think I'm going to go outside and breathe later. But I won't sit down.
I should not here that I'm fully aware that Google itself is not a "source" of information but rather links one to sources.
I was reading up on the Cabbage Soup Diet today. I remember my mother doing this diet back in the 80s and she lost a lot of weight. I also remember that you could smell the soup from about 2 blocks away. Basically this lovely concoction is permitted in unlimited quantities during the 7-day diet and each day you're assigned what you can eat in addition to the soup. There's a fruit day, vegetable day, fruit AND vegetable day (crazy, right?), banana and skim milk day, beef and tomato day, beef and vegetable day and brown rice and veggie day. Sounds great.
The diet claims you can lose 10 pounds in 7 days. I have to admit that I like those numbers. The diet warns you must not do this longer than 7 days and some people experience weakness and light-headedness, but really, is that so bad? I was thinking maybe I'd give it a try. NOT because I really want to lose weight fast and not because I think fad diets with super weight loss claims are a good idea. Certainly not. But I think maybe someone that you can trust should try it out and let you know the real scoop on this. I'll let you know what I decide. I suspect I will be terribly unpleasant within 3 hours of starting, so there is a very good chance you will know right away which way I went.
Finally, I read today that one can burn up to 400 calories per day by fidgeting. But I definitely won't be fidgeting at my desk tomorrow. Definitely not.
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