Weight gain crisis averted - Carbs the Culprit!

I was mildly annoyed when I put on a few pounds

Some of my friends teased me about my "Life Isn't Fair" posting of last week, where I lamented the fact that I had put on 4 or 5 pounds despite my, shall we say, rigorous work out schedule.  "Have a cookie," one sarcastic "friend" said.  I had splurged on turkey chili with melted cheddar cheese for lunch over the weekend and had some bread.  But when I really took a look back I remembered that I had pasta for dinner for several nights in a row. 

How do I love thee?

Clearly, I could have pasta for dinner every night.  I thought it was ok to have a pasta binge because of my workout schedule and because I have plain marinara or even grilled tomatoes, garlic and onions as a sauce.  I wasn't eating meat, which is a lynchpin of my skinny gourmet plan for dropping lbs or staying thin.  I forgot that carbs can sneak up on you and cause you to put on weight.



Despite the big workout schedule, carbs took their toll

 Now, I'm not advocating the Atkins diet.  When I was struggling with my weight I went on the Atkins diet and, sure enough, I lost weight - and quickly.  But you can't be on the Atkins diet forever, and when I started eating carbs again I gained all the weight back - and then some - quickly.  So, it's about finding the right balance.  Plus you have to enjoy life, and if pasta is part of what makes you happy, I say go for it.  But, maybe just once a week.  I actually allowed myself some rigatoni over this past weekend.  But I skipped the garlic bread.  Otherwise, I've tried to limit carbs as much as possible over the past week.  As of this morning I am back to 145 lbs.  And, like everyone, my weight fluctuates.  Who knows?  Maybe tomorrow I'll be up to 147 lbs.  BTW - I'm 5'1O".

Opt for soup and salad over a sandwich

See where you can limit carbs in your diet and watch for the results.  Have soup and salad for lunch instead of that foot long Subway sandwich for lunch.  That's what I do, but I reward myself by having sandwiches for lunch on the weekends.  And I'll try to limit pasta to once a week - and I'll have garlic bread with it.  Just not 4 or 5 times a week!

From now on I'm going to take my own advice and have fish for the majority of my dinners.  This experience underscores the importance of weighing yourself frequently - at least once a week.  It may not be pleasant, but if you want to lose weight you can't be in denial.  Frequent weighing will help you nip any weight gain episodes in the bud.

I kept track of the calories I burned over the week.  Except for taking spin on Friday morning instead of Pilates, this is my usual routine.

Friday

Spin with Linda (1 hour) 608 calories burned

Saturday

Abs with Jonathan (I didn't wear my heart rate moniter)

2 spin class with Jonathan (1.5 hours) - 1074 calories burned

Sunday

Spin with Court

Boot Camp with Jonathan (1 hour)  - 994 calories burned

Monday

Spin with Alex (45 minutes) 504 calories burned

Tuesday

Boot camp with Jonathan (1 hour) - didn't wear heart rate monitor)

Wednesday (this morning)

Yoga with Jason (45 minutes) - didn't wear monitor

Spin with Linda (45 minutes) - 472 calories burned.

Note: I only wear the heart rate monitor for acardio classes like spin. thonitor for cardio classes like spin.