I can't help but notice I've not been posting that much in this space. There's "an elephant in the room" and I'm trying to avoid talking about it. Pretending it isn't there isn't working, so . . . here goes!

Back in the winter when I posted about building my "box," there was something I didn't say. About that time, I'd had a revelation that my overweight was tied to sin and then, later, that it was about rebellion and vulnerability. This was a progressive revelation that I came to understand more fully over a period of weeks.

As often is the case with me, seeing the root cause of my issue set me into a flurry of rebellious activity.  I had a couple of weeks of strong commitment and actual progress followed by several weeks of off-and-on compliance followed by days of sticking my head in the sand. It has gotten so bad that on Sunday as I was standing in my closet, I actually convinced myself that trying to lose weight was pointless and that because my health risks are low I should just accept that this is my weight and learn to live with it.

Fortunately a half hour later I was sitting in church in front of a priest I'd never met (and still haven't) and he somehow brought the whole issue full circle back to sin. He said, "The devil is real and has a trick and I'm going to let you in on his secret. Satan's big trick is planting a seed of doubt." I immediately realized that I had experienced that very thing in my closet epiphany. At this point I realized it wasn't an epiphany at all, but in fact the opposite.

It strikes me as really funny that the opposite of "epiphany" is secret. What do you do if you want to keep something secret? You keep it in the closet! So "closet epiphany" is a bit of an oxymoron, don't you think?

The revelation was pounded home last night by, of all people, Jillian Michaels as I watched Biggest Loser. "This is unacceptable," she screamed at the contestants. "You have this amazing opportunity and you are just phoning it in."

And there you have it. I'm "phoning it in." So I am going to stop writing now, plan my calories for the day, look at how I can get in my exercise and get off my bottom.  How about you?

Setting a Caloric Goal

I've certainly posted on this topic before, but it's what I'm thinking about and reviewing for myself right now.  Most people approach caloric intake in one of two ways:  They pick a number for any number of reasons; this number is usually a very low number like 1000 or 1200 calories.  Others do what I call "backward math."  They calculate the number of calories needed to maintain their current weight (basically, your BMR), and then subtract from that the caloric deficit needed to affect a pound (or two) a week weight loss.

The first idea is just a bad one.  It's arbitrary, does not account for height or weight or age or activity and just plain is a set-up for yo-yo dieting.  Some people can maintain very low calorie diets but they use special supplements designed to keep them feeling full.

The second idea is better than the first, for sure, but still leaves something to acknowledge.  If you have 100 pounds to lose, you can sure lose a pound or two a week but if you have 10 pounds to lose, maybe not. In addition, it's a bit arbitrary; why would the calendar dictate a choice about the number of calories you need to sustain you?

Many years ago on Fat2Fit Radio, I heard that the best way to set your caloric goal is to set it at the weight you need to maintain your goal weight.  For example, I am 5'11" and 53 years old.  A healthy weight for me would be 155.  Using the BMR math, that puts my maintenance calories at 1660.  Therefore, if I eat only 1660 calories a day, I will lose weight and when I get to my goal weight, I will already be used to maintaining.  It makes so much sense, doesn't it?

Using "goal weight math," I have set my daily caloric range at 1500-1660 calories.  I like to have a range because it keeps me from eating one more thing to make my goal if I'm not really hungry.  It also gives me a little wiggle room for any BLTS (bites, licks or tastes) I may forget to record.

I have been eating at this range for about 3 weeks (with a couple of exceptions) and I have not really been hungry.  I'm eating very well out of my "box" and that is certainly helping me feel full. I have had more bread recently than my plan calls for but will just forgo it in the coming weeks.

There have been two side benefits to this out of the box eating:  First, I am not having those insulin spikes I get when I eat a lot of refined carbs or sugar.  No more post-dessert nap taking!  Secondly, I notice that my personal focus on fruit and vegetables has rubbed off on the older girls and they are snacking more on these items as well.  Have you built your box yet?

Try setting your calorie range from your goal weight maintenance calories and let me know how it works out for you!