Jennifer Pitt

Exercise, Nachos, & the Dreaded Weigh-In

A few months ago, I committed to increasing my levels of exercise and changing my diet for the health of my family. I hired a personal trainer for 8 sessions, to teach me how to use the machines at our gym, and to teach me how to use my body’s own weight to work specific muscle groups.

I am enjoying the way working out makes me feel *after*, because really, if you enjoy the actual workout, well….not sure we can be friends.

What does all this have to do with nachos, you ask?

I am a recovering carbohydrate addict, and chips and nachos (among other salty/savoury snacks) are my cheats of choice. Since I started working out, though, I have not put either in my mouth because I don’t know how to snack properly yet.

If you have ever dieted, you know how much that hurts, and how much that snack denial can demotivate you and make you want to quit.

That is exactly what I have been struggling with; because I am in a weight loss “challenge” at my gym, we have to weigh in every week, so having a “cheat day” is not feasible for me. There are times, of course, that I have had a small indulgence (a plain hamburger on a whole grain flatbread bun with salad, instead of just salad), but I am too leery of the scale to own a whole DAY of cheating.

Even though I have made some pretty big changes in my activity levels and my food intake, and despite the fact that I have a pair of pants that can now be pulled down without being unbuttoned, the numbers still will not go down.

Food Intake is Everything

When I talked to my trainer, she told me to track my food for a week and bring it to her. I was pretty proud of how much I had cut out of my diet, but boy was I wrong. Not only was I not eating enough, but all of the foods I was eating, while healthy, were not giving me the caloric intake I needed to be able to sustain my activity levels. Thus, my body thought we were starving and held onto every ounce of whatever I ate.

Boom. I was doing it all wrong.

I am learning that there are healthier alternatives to just about everything I could possibly want to eat. Craving chili? Take out the lean beef and add ground turkey, drain the fat, don’t use veggies from a can. How simple is that?? Poutine? While not ideal ( and not for more than once  a month or so!), substitute sweet potatoes and use a low-fat cheese, and make your own gravy to control the fat.

The signs all over my gym are right: I CAN do it all in my lifetime.

And this video below? This is what I am doing tonight. Thanks for the amazing recipe, Delish!

 

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