Counting calories is definitely not my forte. Almost a month ago, I had my monthly meeting with my trainer. I was due for a new metabolic test...which means said trainer made me run on the treadmill ruthlessly with a crazy mask on. This allows me to figure out what my zones are. I have mentioned before that my runs are dictated by my zones. These would be the zones I'm talking about.
Anywho, with all of the training I have done my zones should have improved. Improvement would mean that my zones would have gotten smaller and/or went up. That was not the case. My trainer stared at the computer screen with a "what the heck" look on her face.
Ok, back track to prior to the test. While setting up my trainer asked my how my nutrition had been. I stated that it had been a bad month. MONTH!, she exclaimed. Yup. I went on explaining to her that I ate great at breakfast and lunch and that by the end of the day I was ravenous and would eat pretty much anything in sight. Of course, she asked how many calories I was eating....and of course, I didn't have a clue. So, she grabbed my Heart Rate Monitor from me and looked through my last two weeks of workouts to see how many calories I had been burning each day. Averaged them out and WA-LA! That is how I started counting calories.
On average I am burning 500-600 calories extra a day. Which means I have to eat 2200 calories a day if I want to lose weight. Say WHAT? Yeah, that's how I felt too. And then the metabolic testing reiterated it by showing that my metabolism had slowed down. She attributed this to my nutrition. She explained that if you are not getting enough calories your body will go into starvation mode, hence no weight loss for muah! She was happy that we do this test every couple of months cause then we caught the 'overtraining' before it was too late. Over training, ha! I love it.
I'm sorry that I can not explain this concept as well as she did but I promise it made perfect sense. Anyway, back to calories. So the first week after that test I wrote down everything I ate and how many calories I was consuming. Wow, I never thought I would say this but I was having a hard time consuming 2200 (healthy) calories a day and that was with adding protein powder to random food. Once I got the general idea of what constituted a 2200 calorie day...I quit counting. Let's be honest that is hard work!
Good news! It is working. I have lost about three pounds since then. I am not feeling deprived. In fact it is quite the opposite. I feel like all I do is EAT! I find that if I don't get snacks in between meals I am scurrying at the end of the night to reach my calorie goal! I have noticed that I don't crave sweets as often. I think it is because I'm always eating so I'm always feeling full. No mindless eating, really.
I'm sorry this became very winded. I have been meaning to blog about it for awhile, hence the copious paragraphs and random tangents. I have about 6 other things I'd like to blog about but unfortunately I have already reached my procrastination quota for the evening.
XOXO,
NMO
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Friday, May 27, 2011
Back to School...
Two class sessions down and 21 to go! But who is counting?! That's just for the first summer session. I figure I should take it a term at a time ;)
There are nine other students in my cohort. Luckily, they all seem to be thinking the same way I am thinking...if we make it through this alive it will be a miracle! Our classes are 3 hours long, from 4 -7, yup right during dinner time. So my stomach generally growls the first hour or so of class. Thankfully, even though the signs say otherwise, the teachers are allowing us to have food in class. It also helps to keep me awake!
My History of Social Work class is going to be a piece of cake. Yeah, there are some annoying assignments but I'll get over it. My Research Methods class, on the other hand, is probably going to be the most challenging class I take all year. Just because research is not my thing. I was thanking God last night after class for giving my teacher for that class a sense of humor. Cause, seriously, a 30 page syllabus and on average we are supposed to read about 5 chapters for each class period, i'm going to be a little sarcastic! Shoot. Me. Now. Confession: I did not do all the assigned reading for the first class...but I found out I was not the only one. I am going to have to brush up on my skim reading!
Tee hee!
In other news, I am waiting for my breakfast to digest so I can go kick the gyms butt! I really don't want to go kick the gyms butt but I figure if I pretend I want to maybe it will actually happen. It's good for me. That's what I keep telling myself.
Alright, I'm off like a dirty shirt ;)
XOXO,
NMO
There are nine other students in my cohort. Luckily, they all seem to be thinking the same way I am thinking...if we make it through this alive it will be a miracle! Our classes are 3 hours long, from 4 -7, yup right during dinner time. So my stomach generally growls the first hour or so of class. Thankfully, even though the signs say otherwise, the teachers are allowing us to have food in class. It also helps to keep me awake!
My History of Social Work class is going to be a piece of cake. Yeah, there are some annoying assignments but I'll get over it. My Research Methods class, on the other hand, is probably going to be the most challenging class I take all year. Just because research is not my thing. I was thanking God last night after class for giving my teacher for that class a sense of humor. Cause, seriously, a 30 page syllabus and on average we are supposed to read about 5 chapters for each class period, i'm going to be a little sarcastic! Shoot. Me. Now. Confession: I did not do all the assigned reading for the first class...but I found out I was not the only one. I am going to have to brush up on my skim reading!
In other news, I am waiting for my breakfast to digest so I can go kick the gyms butt! I really don't want to go kick the gyms butt but I figure if I pretend I want to maybe it will actually happen. It's good for me. That's what I keep telling myself.
Alright, I'm off like a dirty shirt ;)
XOXO,
NMO
Monday, May 23, 2011
Blessed...
I have been absent as of late...sorry! All of a sudden, my not so busy life got busy! The last month has been filled with visits to friends, from friends, hanging out with old friends, and making new friends. A family get-together for Mother's Day...random but fun. Interviews. Workouts. Orientations. All I have to say is God is good.
Yesterday I found out where I would be interning. There was a lot of apprehension as I opened the e-mail. Silent prayers have been sent copiously the last month. I've been asking for contentedness. Is that a word? Anyway, the Lord is so good. I was very excited to read that I would be interning at the VA Medical Center!!! I have dreamed about working there since graduating with my undergrad. I will be working in the Medical Intensive Care Unit. The umbrella it is under is Primary Care - we provide inpatient and outpatient services. The internship starts around the last week of August/beginning of September. I still need to contact my field instructor for more details. Not only do I have this awesome opportunity but I will also be able to shadow some other social workers in different areas, attend CEUs for free, and this internship is a PAID internship. GASP! I know. I could really care less about that part but the money will definitely come in handy. The Lord sure knows what he is doing.
With that being said, I should really try to get some sleep. School starts on Wednesday and we already have an assignment. Go figure. I feel like I'm behind already and we haven't even started! Oh, and in case you were wondering...I almost had a heart attack today when I purchased my books. $826.10. Yup, no lie. The lady who rang me up was so nice to comment that this was probably the largest transaction she has ever rang up. Thanks. Makes me feel a whole lot better. One year. One year. That may become my new mantra.
Alright, Night y'all.
XOXO,
NMO
Yesterday I found out where I would be interning. There was a lot of apprehension as I opened the e-mail. Silent prayers have been sent copiously the last month. I've been asking for contentedness. Is that a word? Anyway, the Lord is so good. I was very excited to read that I would be interning at the VA Medical Center!!! I have dreamed about working there since graduating with my undergrad. I will be working in the Medical Intensive Care Unit. The umbrella it is under is Primary Care - we provide inpatient and outpatient services. The internship starts around the last week of August/beginning of September. I still need to contact my field instructor for more details. Not only do I have this awesome opportunity but I will also be able to shadow some other social workers in different areas, attend CEUs for free, and this internship is a PAID internship. GASP! I know. I could really care less about that part but the money will definitely come in handy. The Lord sure knows what he is doing.
With that being said, I should really try to get some sleep. School starts on Wednesday and we already have an assignment. Go figure. I feel like I'm behind already and we haven't even started! Oh, and in case you were wondering...I almost had a heart attack today when I purchased my books. $826.10. Yup, no lie. The lady who rang me up was so nice to comment that this was probably the largest transaction she has ever rang up. Thanks. Makes me feel a whole lot better. One year. One year. That may become my new mantra.
Alright, Night y'all.
XOXO,
NMO
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