Why 1200? Because It's Working.

I have received a few comments about my goal of only eating 1200 calories per day. In answer to those comments I would like to explain why I feel this is an important premise of My Diet Plan. I will also explain how I intend to fend off "starvation mode".

Let me begin by stating the truth, I am an underachiever. I always fall short of my goals by rationalizing to myself why it is OK to fudge. This is across the board in my life with everything from dieting to laundry and banking. This is a known personality flaw. Therefore, if I set my goal to a higher calorie mark and I revert into my classic behavior, I will fall far short of my goal.

Late this winter I participated in a series of free healthy lifestyle seminars where I discovered to my amazement that I was regularly consuming over 3000 calories per day... and I wondered why I was gaining (insert sarcasm mark here). I also learned that I could easily reduce my intake to 2100 without feeling deprived or working very hard. Then I took that mark one step further and reduced my calories to 1800. I stayed at 1800 calories per day with lots of exercise (3-5 times per week both muscle building and fat burning) for 7 weeks. In 7 weeks time I lost 1/2 of ONE pound. I realize that I may have added muscle which is good. I also realize that weight loss takes time. But really now, I have to say that project ended in failure and of course led me to gain 10 extra pounds after I stopped.

I now fend off starvation mode by eating 4 meals per day. On a perfect day, I eat 300 calories at each meal and space those meals 4 hours apart. This is more than enough stimulation of my metabolism to keep my body from entering starvation mode.

More importantly, THIS IS WORKING! As you can see from My Food Log, I have been doing this since June 4, 2007. It has been almost two months. I have lost about 15 pounds by the scale and about 11 pounds by the log. My weight loss is constant but not too rapid. I am also making a lifestyle change. This is not just a diet. This is a way to retrain myself into healthy and achievable habits.

I have set my weight loss goal to 140 pounds. I am 5'6". That goal is in the acceptable and healthy range for a person of my height. The range is 115 to 154. I am even shooting for a goal that is on the higher end of that healthy range. When I reach my goal at my current level of activity I will be able to eat about 1400 calories per day to maintain that weight. Based on my current weight loss rate, it will take me until June 2008 to reach my goal. I think this entire reasonable and achievable.

I appreciate all of the comments I have received about this premise of my diet plan. I welcome further comments and would be happy to help outline a personal diet plan for anyone out there who is need of free but unlicensed help. Read more!

This Really Works (My Diet Plan)

The Long and Short of My Diet Plan (Short First). I am down 14 pounds since June 4, 2007!

The Short

1. 1200 calories daily
2. no more than 500 calories in 4 hours
3. 60 or less grams of fat daily
   
4. use the Food Pyramid
5. eat normal foods
6. eat recommended portions (or less)
7. stay hydrated
8. exercise
9. log calories, track progress
10. DO NOT GIVE UP!

The Long

My starting weight is 214 pounds. My goal weight is 140 pounds. I want to loose 74 pounds. I divided that goal into 2 major parts. I initially want to loose 34 pounds. This will put me at 180 pounds. Upon achieving this goal I will have to reevaluate my methodology as my body will no longer be burning the same amount of calories. The heavier you are, the more calories your body burns. The first premise of my diet is to reduce my daily caloric intake to 1200 per day. I also want to divide these calories into 4 meals. Ideally I would consume 300 calories at each meal. This is not always possible, especially when eating on-the-go or at a gathering. The second premise of my diet is to consume no more than 500 calories in any given 4 hour period. Any calories consumed over 500 at the same time are stored in the body as fat. Allowing up to 500 calories in one meal will give me flexibility when eating out or in a group. I will still remain at a daily total of 1200 calories. The third premise of my diet is to limit fat intake to 60 grams in one day. Eating more than 60 grams of fat in a day means that I have not eaten sufficient servings from all of the basic food groups or have neglected to eat from one or more of the groups altogether. Premise four of my diet is to be guided by the USDA Food Pyramid. I want to eat at least one serving from each of the basic food groups daily. I also want to allow for some treats (sugar) and consume some fats to ensure proper digestion. The fifth premise of my diet is to eat normal foods. I want to eat the same foods that I serve my family. I am sure to slowly incorporate healthier, more calorie conscious, and lower fat meals into menus for my family. The idea here is to not have to cook one meal for my family and a separate meal for myself. Premise six of my diet is that I want to eat the recommended serving size of the foods I eat. Eating less than the recommended serving size is also acceptable as often the nutrition label on a food package and the USDA Food Pyramid have different measurements for one serving of a particular food. Eating less than the recommended serving size is also useful when quelling a craving or considering what extra flavor punches to incorporate into a meal. The seventh premise of my diet is stay hydrated. This will be especially important after the first 10 pounds come off as poor hydration can lead to baggy, hanging skin. Consuming the proper amount of liquid daily will aid digestion and help keep the excretory system functioning properly. Premise eight of my diet is to incorporate exercise. Exercise burns calories and build muscle. Muscle burns more calories. This is essential in order for the second part of my weight loss goal to be achieved. Premise nine of my diet is to not rely on the scale as the sole progress indicator. The way my clothing fits and the notches on my belt will also be good indicators of success. Using My Food Log and the calculations for calories burned should be the main indicator of progress. The weight scale should only be used as a reminder of previous success and as a final marker for goal completion. The tenth premise of my diet is to not give up, no matter what! Should I discover that my stated plan is not effective then I will reevaluate and modify the plan. I will not be satisfied until my goal weight is achieved. I will not revert into bad habits and an unhealthy lifestyle upon reaching my goal. Read more!

Mission Statement Explanation

I will in general eat healthy. The tools and products to develop healthy eating are already available to me. My idea of eating healthy is largely based on the USDA Food Pyramid. A person of my height should eat at the lower range of serving sizes mentioned on the Food Pyramid. I should eat from each of the five basic food groups. I differ from the USDA suggestions in that I believe that it is not necessary to eat from each of the food groups every day. Eating from each group at least once every 2 or 3 days is sufficient to maintain proper health provided that the right multi-vitamin is taken on a daily basis. This variance from the USDA suggestions is an acceptable way to control my total daily caloric intake.

...eat "normal" food. In order to make a lifestyle change I need to migrate away from my bad habits but towards a realistic diet. In other words, something I can live with. I consider "normal" food to be foods that are readily available at the grocery store. Some "diet" foods are OK but the idea here is to avoid foods like diet bars and diet shakes. Foods labeled "lite", "low-fat", "low-calorie", "zero calorie" and "zero fat" are acceptable choices provided that the tastes are not so altered that my family will not eat them. Also, foods with those labels should not have so many unpronounceable ingredients (chemicals) that I would not give them to my toddler to eat.

...without gimmicks. I will not use a gimmick-style diet, i.e. eat nothing but watermelon for a day or eat as much steak as desired but no carbohydrates on Tuesdays. This also includes popular diets such as The Grapefruit Diet and The Cookie Diet.

...pills. I will not take diet pills, appetite suppressants, or any other artificial weight loss supplements. I will take a daily multi-vitamin. I do not consider taking a multi-vitamin to be in contradiction with the premise of not taking pills.

...surgery. I will not have any kind of bariatric or plastic surgery (i.e. liposuction) to facilitate weight loss. I am not in general opposed to the practice of stomach reduction surgery but I do not feel that it is the right choice for me or my family.

...trademarked diets. I will not use any diet plan that is for sale including but not limited to Jenny Craig, Weight Watchers, Dr. Atkins, NutraSystem, Slim Fast, Bob Greene, and The South Beach Diet. My diet plan may unintentionally be in line with some commercial diets. The only trademarked diet I have ever done is Atkins. I do not think that all commercial diets are bad or that they do not work. I do believe that at least temporary success may be achieved with just about any diet. My diet plan is just that, my own ideas based on bits and pieces of knowledge that I have acquired through nutrition classes, seminars, other blogs, and research. It is a diet in terms of an account of what I actually consume. It is a plan, a plan of action for what I believe is realistically attainable.

I will log all calories consumed. I will keep track of everything I eat or drink that contains calories. I will do my best to notate portion size, calorie and fat content. I will do this on a daily basis. I will use Google applications whenever possible to do the logging.

...and estimate calories burned on a daily basis. I have an idea of how many calories my body will burn during an average day using information generally found through Internet research. I will also use the same methodology to estimate how many calories I burn doing out of the ordinary activity (such as exercise) until such activities become part of my average day. I will keep track of calories burned on an average day. I will log extra activities as often as they occur. Extra activities will not be included in daily calories burned totals until they become part of my daily routine.

I will then be able to track my progress. Using the log I will have a clear system for tracking progress by each meal, day, week, month and year. This log will act as an indicator for success and highlight areas for improvement.

...and estimate arrival time to my goals through the calorie log. Unfortunately weight loss using my methodology will not be at a constant rate. The log will enable me to calculate and estimate the time it will take to reach each goal. Calculations and formulas will be reset upon arrival at each goal. This is in order to keep my goals and estimated time to achieve each goal realistic. This system will also highlight any periods where my goals were reached ahead of schedule. Having a record can serve as both a reminder and motivator during the tough times.

I will also develop non-food rewards for reaching my goals. Special recognition of success is important. I know one reward will be buying a new wardrobe, although I can't afford to do that for every reward. I am VERY open to suggestion in this area.

...knowing that reaching each goal is a reward in-and-of itself. My body, mind, and spirit will certainly reap the rewards of reaching each goal, without external recognition. It is also satisfying to know that my toddler will have a positive influence and example for leading a healthy lifestyle.

I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up. I will not give up.

I know that I will not be perfect. If I hold myself to a standard of absolute perfection I am only setting myself up to fail. I will not fail this time.

...but that I am making a permanent lifestyle change. It becomes less of a chore, less of something I don't want to work for if I look at my diet plan this way. Eventually, this diet will be my lifestyle and vice versa.

The good days will out-number the bad days. As I said before, there will be bad days, however, overall, the good days will be more prevalent and frequent than the bad days. The calorie log will help insure this remains the case.

I will not give up I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! I will not give up! Read more!