On a Diet

The last few weeks weren't pretty. I know I've put on some pounds, and I feel flabby. Gotta get those back off. So here's the plan:

6 days a week I'll shoot for ~1400-1500 calories a day, with a good balance of lean proteins (fish, chicken, tofu-- NOT corned beef!), complex carbs (brown rice, whole wheat pasta, oatmeal-- NOT asiago cheese bagels!), and try to keep the fats low and focused on the good kinds of fats (from nuts, seeds, avocados-- NOT chocolate chip cookies), and I'll keep well hydrated (with water, decaf coffee, and tea-- NOT beer and diet Coke). One day a week I can splurge a little (choose to have EITHER a few beers OR dessert, but NOT BOTH!)

It's not going to be easy at first. I've reverted back to some of my old gobble-it-up-now, worry-about-it-later habits. Well, it's now "later." My first race of the season is coming up in just under 3 weeks, and I really don't need to be hauling these extra pounds down the trail with me. But I do need to make sure I'm getting enough calories to keep me well-fueled and keep my energy high. So to help with that, I'm going back to my old trick of using Fitday to help me track my intake and output. Here's what I'm doing today:

INPUT:
Breakfast-- oatmeal w/ protein powder, craisins, slivered almonds, and flax seeds (350 cal)
Snack-- apple w/ 1 Tbs peanut butter (180 cal)
Lunch-- mixed greens salad w/ 1 tsp olive oil & vinegar (60 cal); 1 can Progresso light southwestern vegetable soup (120 cal)
Snack-- 2 Wasa whole-wheat flatbread crackers (90 cal)
Dinner-- 1/4 cup (raw amount) quinoa (160 cal); 1 cup steamed broccoli (20 cal); 7 oz broiled salmon* w/ cilantro-chili-lime marinade (350 cal)
Dessert-- cup of hot tea w/ 1 tsp honey (30 cal)
Other-- 1/2 cup skim milk (in my coffee and tea; 40 cal)
TOTAL INPUT= 1400 cal

OUTPUT:
basal metabolic rate= 1420 cal
brisk walk to Target at lunchtime (10 min either way): 60 cal
run from work to gym via circuitous route (25 min, easy pace): 200 cal
cycling (30 min indoors, high revs plus some hills): 210 cal
strength training (45 min-- legs, arms, core): 90 cal
run back to work via direct route (10 min, easy): 80 cal
Total= 2040 cal spent, 640 of which from exercise

Fitday actually tacks on an extra 260 calories for "lifestyle." What this is getting at, I think, is the fact that you move around some during the day, getting coffee, walking up the stairs to your house, washing dishes, etc. These are added to the basal metabolic rate, which is the calories you'd burn if you just stayed in bed all day. So if I add on the lifestyle calories, I come up with 2320 calories burned for the day.
TOTAL OUTPUT: 2320 cal

Okay, so if we take the OUTPUT (2320 cal) minus the INPUT (1400 cal), I've come up with a 900 calorie deficit for the day. That kind of a deficit will be okay for a few days to jump-start my metabolism into a burning mode again, but for longer-term sustainability I'll try to shoot for a 500 calorie daily deficit-- that should keep my energy high enough, but also allow me to lose about 1 lb per week.

So that's the plan. Help me stick with it!