Making changes

It's never easy to make changes. Maybe that's why people who diet seem to fail so often. I know, because I've been one of them. Over the past few years, I have made small, subtle changes in my habits, diet, and activity level, and overall I have lost weight without a definitive plan. However, one thing that I've never done and never thought I would do is write down what I eat.

Last week, when I started the 50 in 50 challenge, I decided that if I was really going to do this, then it would be vital to take everything down so I can track what I'm putting into my body. Writing everything down seems so boring and tedious that I have avoided it for so long.

This week I changed my thinking and decided that I had to. Thanks to Natalie's heads up about sparkpeople.com, I have an easy, quick way to track my eating and with their huge database, I can even find out the calorie counts in some of the Korean foods that I was clueless about. Now that I have a recommended amount of calories I should be eating, it has become much easier to make better choices for snacks and meals. Seeing it all laid out for me like that has actually made it easier on me, not more stressful like I assumed it would. And it keeps me honest.

I have also realized that I have been limiting myself to about a half cup or less of rice at lunch, assuming that all the carbs in it must be horrible for me, but it turns out that I can help myself to a full cup, which helps me stay fuller longer and keeps me away from the office candy bowl when I get the mid-afternoon hunger pangs.

Small changes like this have made the week a very successful one, not to mention all the time I put in at the gym, and when I step on that scale on Wednesday, I am almost certain that I am going to see some great results, and I am actually looking forward to weighing myself for the first time in awhile!