Sunday, September 19, 2010

Trying Something New

After nine months of working at my weight loss I was feeling so unmotivated. I just couldn't get back on the wagon and those five pounds up five pounds down were leaving me frustrated.

A friend who had lost 50lbs using weight watchers had hit a similar point earlier in the summer. She decided to try something new and then lost another 17lbs in six weeks and is feeling better than ever. She convinced me to give her program a try.

At first I felt like a bit of a failure by even considering something new. Diet hopping is such a no-no, but I needed to feel motivated again.

I am now trying to Harcombe Diet and am having quite the success with it! This diet focuses on whole foods, curbing cravings, getting a person off of all processed foods and sugar. It sure isn't easy though. While I don't have to count calories, I do have to put a lot of thought into what I eat now.

I never knew I could survive without condiments. Now I cannot have any of them since they are all full of sugar or other chemicals. It has been 10 days since my last taste of ketchup and I am still alive!!

I have lost eight pounds in the last ten days for a total of 45lbs in 2010. And there have been other perks:
  • Foods are tasting good again
  • I am no longer snacking all day
  • I have energy like I haven't had in years
  • I am sleeping like a dream
  • And most importantly... My motivation is back!
In ten days I have followed this new plan to a T, minus two instances. While make banana bread en mass I had one mini muffin. Usually once I start eating banana bread I cannot stop and before you know it half a loaf will be gone. This time after just one, I didn't go back for more. And then for some reason the next day I had a wicked binge on cookies and drank about a third of a diet pepsi. But after not having wheat, sugar or pop for over a week I paid the price. I was so sick and had an upset system for the rest of the day.

From the cookies incident, I am realizing that I may be either suffering from Candida yeast or some food intolerance which this diet plan is geared towards dealing with.

I love that this plan is getting me off of all processes foods. Of course the bonus of me trying this diet is that everyone in the family benefits. Sure the guys are still eating sugar and ketchup, but the meals are always getting better.

So I guess I am not a failure, I am just trying to find what suits my needs and right now this plan is it.

10 comments:

Megan said...

You were never a failure. You were just looking for the thing that would be right for you. It sounds like you're doing great.

Carole said...

What? Failure? It sounds like you're far from that. You're finding your way through a plethora of information having to sort out what's true and what isn't, and most importantly, what's right for you. Sometimes something new is just what's needed to get motivated. So, good on ya! And when that doesn't work, try something else. As long as it's healthy*, I say go for it.

*If you're eating from all the food groups, I say it's healthy. If the focus is whole-grain and non-processed, then that's even healthier! Just don't starve yourself; now, that's a no-no!

Matt, Kara, Hunter and Cavan said...

Definitely healthy! I am avoiding wheat right now because I am finding it irritates my system, but I am eating lots of other grains to make up for it.

And no way I could ever starve myself! I like food way too much for that! heheheh

Erica said...

As one of the unexpected beneficiaries of your experimenting (namely, you stumbled on to the diet I am supposed to be following), I agree with the others - I don't see it as failure in any way. We're always looking for the thing that will work - and sometimes the thing that worked at the beginning isn't the thing that will work in the middle or at the end. (As I said when I was coming up North, if I knew what I was looking for, it would be so much easier to look for it ^_^)

jozien said...

Kara!! I am so happy for you.
You might have guessed i am smoking again, not much, but still.
Tomorrow:) i don't think of myself as a failure, i am just plain 'bad'
Anyway tomorrow, i will look into a new method for me to stop my 'bad' habit
ps I love your new header!

Tammy said...

Yay! I've been waiting for this post :) The whole banana bread / cookies thing is a good lesson learned, I think. What happened is exactly what they tell us will happen. If you give into your body and give it the sugar etc it craves, it will be harder to resist the next time. The banana muffin is what caused the cookie binge. Amazing isn't it?

I mean it's not good that it happened, but it IS good in a way because it shows that there is a lot of truth to what this diet is about. Now you know :)

You are doing so great. You were NEVER a failure, neither of us were. Sometimes it takes trying a few different things to find out what works right for you. So glad you are overcoming the cravings and are so happy with it!

Megan said...

If you end up going wheat-free, let me know. I have some excellent recipes.

Fine, they're only "excellent" to people on gluten-free diets. Regular folks wouldn't be impressed, because they do not know the PAIN OF THE GLUTEN-FREE KITCHEN.

Trish said...

You are not a failure, instead you followed through with NOT being insane. As in:
The definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.
It wasn't working for you, so instead of trying again and again for something that originally helped get you going but got you as far as it could you looked for another method. Way to go Kara!

Morena said...

Yay you! What's up with failure? Not a chance. Like you said, you're just finding out what works. Keep us posted on the progress, we're all very proud!

Fawn said...

Kara, even if you had plateaued forever (not the ideal situation, obviously, but even still) you still would not be a failure. You were 37 lbs successful! I clicked through to say exactly what Trish said -- it it ain't working anymore, find a different way. Congratulations on cleaning up your eating! You should really come over here for supper next time you're in Whitehorse. Ain't nothin' here but good, clean, wheat-, dairy-, gluten-, egg-, and beef-free food. And I guarantee you won't miss any of those things. :)