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I hate counting calories. I know that it can be a useful tool to create an awareness of what and how much you really eat, but there are so many misconceptions about calorie counting (a calorie is a calorie, you gain weight by eating more calories than what you burn, etc). I remember when I was 19 and eating a McDonald’s salad (with grilled chicken) a coworker told me, “Did you know that when you eat that salad with the dressing it has more calories than a Big Mac?” -_____- Really?? Ok, but does that make the Big Mac the healthier option? Of course not! A big ass salad is going to be calorically dense, but it’s also going to be so nutrient dense. Those nutrients from the vegetables and olive/avocado oil are going to distribute differently than those from a less healthy, but lower calorie meal. The healthy fats with also keep you satiated longer and will hopefully keep you from snacking on something out of a box.
Per the OTF Transformation Challenge, I’ve been logging my food in My Fitness Pal. The food logs are voluntary and are to be turned in on Fridays for evaluation. I turned in my Monday-Thursday log and I am quite curious as to what feedback I’ll receive. There were days where I was “over” on calories, and days where I was under. I don’t subscribe to looking at calories from a day-to-day perspective, but instead prefer to look at them in the context of a week. It makes sense that way. If I eat a caloric dense meal, I’m probably going to skip the next meal or go light for a few meals after.
Yesterday logging my food was SO ANNOYING. I say this because I ate a lot of food and don’t want to be shamed for it! I ate a giant breakfast (an egg on toast (from Base Culture a local paleo company), sauteed zucchini & onion, root vegetable hash (yukon gold potatoes, sweet potatoes, and carrots), and crispy pork belly. For lunch I made myself a chicken sandwich with a leftover chicken thigh and some crispy pickle chips. Also had a handful of actual potato chips. I then had a rum drink with 1.5 ounces of rum and 1/4 cup of passion fruit juice. At this point I was at -204 calories!! Late afternoon I had another rum drink and for dinner I ate a gluten free pizza from a shop down the road. I ended with the day with -1,073 calories. That’s pretty insane, and not a normal eating day.
Needless to say that this morning I was not hungry at all so I didn’t eat breakfast– just had my coffee and almond/cashew “milk.” Didn’t even think about food until I came home from church at 11:40. I probably would have waited longer to eat but my husband was starving so we made bacon sandwiches– he had a BL sandwich, and I had a “BLE” sandwich (bacon, lettuce, egg). We’re out of tomatoes.
All this being said, food logging itself is cool because it can help you if you’re aiming to achieve specific macros. The app or program you use does all the calculations for you. I do have to admit that I like seeing the pie chart of my macros at the end of each day and am mostly pleased with my ratios.
On a side note– I wore a pair of pants this morning that did not fit me last month!! I tried them on earlier in June and though they buttoned up, they were way too tonight. Like the button was going to bust off and the seam was all up in my shit. Not cool, not even with a long shirt because of muffin top spillage. It was bad. This morning they buttoned comfortably and although I’m still thicker than I would like to be, there was no muffin top!! My hip/waist fat was not spilling over at all. Yes, they were still a tad bit snug but they were tolerable. I’m happy with myself.
Looking forward to Week 2 of the Transformation Challenge!
