Getting Started: Shock Week

When I was deliberating how to start this whole life-changing process, kind of like testing the water with my toes, I did my fair share of research. I'd never dieted, I'd never been great at keeping momentum over a long period of time, and my biggest problem was that I wasn't sure where to start.

But what a lot of different diet regimes have in common is something I've labeled, "shock week".  Once you've decided when you'll begin (and for me it's easier to start out at the first of the week), then you need to commit to following through for seven days. Short enough for our first commitment, but for the diet-beginner it will seem like a long time half-way into your first day when your cravings kick in. This means checking nutrutional labels, it means no more junk-food gorging, this means soda-prohibition, this means eating the healthiest you've ever eaten in your life. 

SHOCK WEEK:

Stay under 1000 calories each day, and under 10 grams of processed and natural sugar. Low fat, low carbs, low sodium, gluten-free if possible. Increase your water intake to 12 cups. 

(Remember, this is only recommended for the first week, after which you need to maintain a healthy calorie-intake for your size and weight. Use the calculator at everydayhealth.com to find out what yours is. Starting shock week is a promise that you will continue to improve eating habits from this point on. It is very unhealthy to shock diet for an extended period of time and then resume your old eating habits. That typically results in more weight gain. Shock week is meant to jump-start your routine and wean you off all those extra calories that your body does not need.) 

In short, you'll be eating things like egg whites, tuna, chicken or turkey breast, salad, oatmeal, vegetables and go very easy on the fruits just for this week. No frying allowed! You'll be snacking on things like raw almonds and air-popped popcorn and celery. Low-sugar yogurt and Quakes were a real treat for me on shock week. I'd count out ten mini rice cakes and make them last all day - so whenever a craving hit I'd eat one or two. Also, gum saved my life. 

Try to mind your calories as well as you can and keep your intake small and somewhat bland. Being the food lover that I am, and someone who seasons almost everything, that was the hardest part for me. But I made up for the cravings by using lemon pepper on my meats, honey or stevia and cinnamon in my oatmeal, banana peppers or vinegar on my salad, calorie/sugar-free sprinkled seasonings on my popcorn, and things like that. 

During shock week, not only is your mind starting to differentiate between hunger-eating and boredom/stress eating, but your stomach is being trained to want less food, and your palate is being trained not to crave unhealthy foods, particularly sweets, on a regular basis.

At the end of the week, feel proud! Even if you caved in here and there, feel proud - and make sure to reward yourself with a little something yummy. During the rest of your weight-loss dieting you will be able to eat more calories per day...but it's funny, you won't want to go back to gorging because at the end of the week you will feel different. Better. I know I did.

Keep powering through and keep a good attitude. Your hard work will payoff.    

   

Getting Started

Attitude: You want to be fit and healthy? Great! Only you can do this for yourself, no one will do it for you. So take a big breath, a shot of determination and jump on in. It may get harder at first, and cravings will most likely be fierce, but if you stick with it things will get easier. It will become second-nature, it might even become an obsession but as long as you're using all that motivation to better yourself, I say bring it on! And most of all, if you really want this - don't give up. So you messed up and ate like a pig this weekend; who cares? You know that's not how you want to roll any more and you can give it a better shot tomorrow. Have a good attitude about healthy eating and exercise, be open to change and don't be afraid to try something new. This is within your power to achieve, and with the right attitude I know you can do it!

Grocery List: It's a good idea to start here. On your next big grocery trip, take that list of things you need to get and strike out anything that's going to be a challenge for you. Also strike anything that can be substituted with a healthier alternative, such as: soda, white bread, fatty dairy milk, snacks, sweets, flour tortillas, processed foods, fruit juices, etc. Add things like unsweetened almond milk, whole wheat or whole grain bread, wheat or corn tortillas, oatmeal, lite salad dressing, dark greens, sweet potatoes, lemon pepper, chicken and fish, whey protein powder, flax, low-sugar yogurt, raw almonds, a scale, etc. Fill your home and pantry with healthy foods, and not only will your diet have more success, but the entire family will benefit from it.

Keep It Handy:  Say you had a bowl full of M&M's on the kitchen counter all day, chances are that by the end of the day they'd be gone. The same principle applies with healthy snacks. If you had a de-boned rotisserie chicken and celery sticks at-the-ready in your refrigerator, and being mindful that you want to change, chances are that you'd reach for something healthy and handy over a handful of chips or candy. Keep your healthy snacks ready-to-eat because when those cravings hit, I know, things get crazy. Instead of caving, try reaching for a handful of air-popped popcorn, a stick of sugar-free gum - and chase that snack down with a full 8 ounces of water! Keeping water handy not only increases you chances of getting that "8 cups per day" recommendation, but it tricks your stomach and decreases appetite.

Track It: I have had a lot of success tracking my calories online and I would highly recommend everydayhealth.com. There's not always time in a day to fill in all my foods and beverages ingested - but it's eye-opening and it keeps you mindful, both of what you eat and how fattening/healthy it is for you. If you're too busy to track your calories with a caloric calculator, at least start paying attention to calories, fat and (the biggie) sugar. Scribble notes about your eating patterns and how you're feeling - all this knowledge will only help you achieve your goals.

Be Healthy:  Because that's what it's all about, right? Sure, we all want to be skinny, but loss of longevity and health is no substitution for cheating your way to being thin. Eat healthy foods, eat when your hungry (not when your bored - which was a biggie for me) because hunger comes from your body's need for food! We all know what's good for our bodies and what's bad, so use your knowledge as a roadmap and try to stay on course. Make your muscles work, make your heart pound, sweat - feel alive. This is what your body was made for, so make dieting and fitness decisions based on what's best for you and don't get too extreme about it.

Treat Yourself: I would absolutely die if I could never have a slice of cheesecake again because I'm now a healthy-eater. Lol. It's okay to treat yourself, it's okay to cave in - even when dieting! While I don't believe in having a "free-day" each week like some regimes justify, but I think there's no harm in having a little of what you love if you really, really want it. Not every day and not in massive portions, of course, if you're trying to lose weight or trying to train your palate - but once in a while it's okay to give in to a craving. Don't beat yourself up, just take it for what it is - enjoy every moment of that small indulgence and then move forward.

Be Happy: Celebrate those small victories! Did you come in under your sugar and calorie limit? Awesome! Tell someone about it! Did you weigh-in .4 pounds less than yesterday? Sweet! That's a change for the better, even if it is small. It's proof that something's working, and it's motivating to no end! Be happy that you are taking control of your life, changing your habits and becoming a better you!