Maximize Metabolism

Christina2009
do0rdiet.blogspot.com

I reset my metabolism and my baby boy is not a baby anymore. He turned two on Friday. Click through to read about the metabolic reset.

Last Monday I had a bad weigh-in. It was unexplained. I followed my plan to a "T". I had only one day of actual cheating and even on that day I did not consume more calories than I burn in a day with a resting metabolic rate. By all rights, I should have lost another pound. I was stressed about my sons upcoming birthday and the weigh in led to depression. I made the conscious decision to take a week off from my plan.
Of course the first thing I did was go out to eat. I ate French bread with butter, a vegetable and cheese calzone, and real ranch dressing on a salad. I followed that up with 2 candy bars. The rest of the week I stopped by Burger King every morning and got a Chicken Biscuit meal with a large hash rounds and a large coke. Because I was getting ready for my son's party, I skipped lunch except for a piece of fruit on a couple of days.
The birthday meal was fried chicken, mac-n-cheese, chicken livers, chips, coke, and a cup cake. I of course ate left-overs all weekend. I finished my time off with a pint and half of Ben & Jerry's I fully expected to have another bad weigh-in this week. To my surprise I was wrong. I've actually lost .6 pounds, that's point six for you guys who aren't wearing your reading glasses. How is this possible?
The best answer I can come up with is two fold. For one, I was eating a huge breakfast, albeit an incredibly unhealthy one. I've always heard this old saying, "Eat like a King for breakfast, a Prince for lunch, and a Pauper for dinner." Well, I didn't exactly eat like a Pauper for dinner, or a Prince for lunch for that matter, but I had the breakfast part right. It's possible that I raised my metabolic rate for the day by having such big breakfast.
The second part of the answer has to do with the dreaded "starvation mode." I have always heard about this as a warning for not staving yourself. I have not been starving myself. Based on my plan, I have been eating 3 to 4 times a day. But, I think over the course of 3 weeks, my metabolism gradually shut off.
So, what to do? Watch my weigh-ins. If I see another increase where there really shouldn't be one, then it will be time to reset again. I could definitely skip the candy bars and the Ben & Jerry's, but I think all-in-all taking a week off was the right thing to do. Perhaps I don't need a full week to reset. That's something I will experiment with should this situation arise again.
One other note, my husband believes that the weight gain was due to water retention. I mention it as a real possibility though I think it is unlikely because it wasn't "time" for me to retain water. As always, here's to us. I will not quit! We can do this!

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Wait! Wait! Water Weight?

do0rdiet.blogspot.com
by Christina_2009

Did you know the average person's body weight will fluctuate about 3 pounds from day to day? This is due to water retention or release. This is one reason people who are dieting should NOT get on the scale everyday.

There are varying opinions of how often one should weight. I think Bob Greene suggests weighing at the end of a 3 month period. I try not to weigh more than once a month. Some folks do it once a week. And then there are those who are addicted to the scale, they weigh everyday and sometimes more than once a day. This type of obsession with the scale is only a set up for failure. There really is very little you can do to prevent this 3 pound fluctuation and ladies... it's worse for us than the men.
Some things that can influence water retention include:
hormones
amount of salt or sodium in even just one serving of a particular food
the body's general level of hydration
amount of sleep you get (in one night or on a regular basis)
how much exercise you are doing
type of exercise you are doing
how long you stay in the bath
amount of fiber in your diet
your diet in general.
In other words, there are too many factors to control to count on eliminating that daily fluctuation. Sure you could take steps to minimize this fluctuation, but I think your energy would be better spent developing your healthy eating habits and exercising more. Bottom line... stay off the scale as much as possible. Work on changing your menu, eating habits, and incorporate more physical activity. Don't worry about what the scale says. Focus on your habits. You WILL see positive changes.
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