About a month ago, I was feeling pretty bad about how I looked in the mirror. I had been snacking a lot, going for fast food a lot, and was definitely having meals that were too big. I have a bad habit of eating too fast (which I'm still trying to work on) and while I do try to exercise it's very inconsistent. I deal with depression that makes me apathetic - like, won't-do-laundry-for-a-month apathetic. It also doesn't help that I work a basic desk job and I just don't go out much.
There were a few pairs of pants I stopped wearing because of how tight they were around my belly and how much of a muffin top they gave me. I was wearing loose clothing when I could because my gut was very obvious to me. It had actually been a long while since I felt really 'good' in any particular outfit, so I decided I would try calorie counting.
Now, I don't know why I thought calorie counting was difficult. I had looked into apps that would help you, and was always off-put by having to search and guess how many calories were in something. I also didn't like the pressure of having to keep up with it every day to log my progress. I thought I'd have to start meal-planning, researching what I was going to get before stepping in the grocery store; I thought I would need to buy a scale to measure food/liquids; I thought I would have to give up eating so many things. And if you've ever experienced apathy - none of that sounded like something I could stick with.
But I wanted to change and I knew I wasn't going to magically start enjoying exercising enough to get where I wanted. So I decided, "Ok, let's just do this my way." I googled how many calories I should eat in a day. Found the typical answer most people will find- 1500 a day to lose a pound a week, 2000 to maintain. For the record I'm 26F, wearing size medium/large clothing.
I started up a Google spreadsheet on my phone. I set up one column to plug numbers into. I set up the bottom cell to total those up for me. I made the cell next to it take 1500 minus that total so I'd know how much I had left to "spend". And one column next to the numbers for a description of what I was eating, if I cared to fill that bit out.
That's it. I didn't keep record of my progress. I didn't keep a log of how many calories I consumed through the week. I just cleared the numbers column at the start of each day. I wanted it to be as low-effort as possible. And here I am, still using it, and... it's SO EASY.
I still don't really know why I thought it would be so complicated. Most everything you buy these days will give you a calorie count/serving size. I don't have to plan out anything. I have girl scout cookies, microwave cup macaroni and cheese, milk, frozen waffles, ice cream... all of that is in my apartment. I'm just checking out the calories now before I consume things, and making the choice about whether or not I have the calories to spend on it, and how much of it I can eat.
Now, of course there is SOME planning involved, but it's so minimal. It's like having $100 to spend at the mall and deciding what's worth it and what's not. But even when it comes to making meals - I add up the calories of everything I'm putting into it, let's say, chicken and rice. Then I just decide roughly how many portions I'll get out of it, divide the total calories by that, and boom. If I dont like how many calories that gives me per meal, I decide on smaller portions.
I've been doing this for about a month now and the difference is VISIBLE. It's such a confidence boost. Those pants I was afraid to try on? They fit again. Some of the stretchy pants I had purchased are now loose. I've always had a weird thing against tracking how much I weigh, for fear of getting too worried about such an unsteady number, so I can't say how much weight I've lost. But the muffin top has disappeared. Looking in the mirror, I'm about halfway to what I consider my "goal". Just a little more belly to be rid of. But I already feel so much sexier.
There have been other side effects as well! I've been saving money since I'm not going out for fast food (some of the calorie contents in things like a McDonalds shake or burger... my god it shook me once i cared enough to look). Since I've been avoiding fast food, when I do decide I want it... it's not even as good. My body is clearly thriving without it, as I get a little tummy ache when I eat it now. Same thing with other high calorie things like bread, or juice, or hostess cakes of any kind (my weakness). Too much and I just dont feel GOOD anymore after consuming it/too much of it. Being hungry isn't triggering me to overeat anymore either - I've realized that ITS OKAY to just be hungry sometimes, and I've been drinking water to stave it off. I used to hardly drink water throughout the day, even if I felt thirsty, a bad habit I developed from school sports. Now I finish off at least 20oz each day, and I'm still improving on that. I've also started automatically buying smarter - I dont jump on snack items or unhealthy items as much because I know i still have treats I need to finish off in my cupboard. And I'm consciously buying things with lower calorie counts so I have room to treat myself when I do want to.
I've even started to enjoy cooking. I like cooking up chicken and finding different ways to season it so I have something satisfying for the next few days (I like to cook a lot at one time and refrigerate leftovers). Last night I tried making my own meatballs! Made a huge batch of spaghetti and meatballs that overall came out to like 2000+ calories combined, but roughly divided up into the portions I'll have, its only like 250 per serving.
One last thing I'll mention: I am not strict with myself. I already know how easy it can be to develop a disordered relationship with food and weight. Like I said, I intentionally do not monitor exactly how much I weigh. So I also intentionally don't worry about hitting my calorie goals to a T. I try to stay at or under 1500 per day, but if I go over, i dont beat myself up. After all, as long as I'm around 2000, I'm maintaining and not gaining. Which is good! And once you start counting calories, ~600 calories to play with feels like so much. I absolutely still get to eat what I want.
So that's all! I wrote this post hoping it might inspire some people who felt like me - that they didn't have the time or energy or patience to eat better. It takes willpower to NOT snack too much, and to NOT eat more than you need. Especially if you turn to food for comfort or out of boredom (or due to the munchies...). So it's not "easy", it still requires work and requires you to follow the rules you set for yourself. But it is so, so doable, and it doesnt need to take over your life.
Thank you for reading :)
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