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Quest for Skinny Erika - Week 8

Posted By: Erika Mitchell on 03/29/2011

Quest for Skinny Erika: Week 8. 

I've obviously talked about the role of exercise in my weight loss journey and how I've come to the completely revolutionary conclusion that moving more helps me lose weight.

What I haven't written about much is the role of nutrition. What does a person like me eat every day? Am I gnawing on bland pieces of celery, giving cinnamon rolls the crazy eyes while I lock myself in the produce section of the grocery store each week?

Nope. I'm eating 1,530 calories per day, and there's a surprising amount of wiggle room in those calories.

For example, I was craving chocolate like no one's business this week. This craving Would. Not. Go. Away. So I saved my calories and had a piece of chocolate. A 70 calorie piece of chocolate, which I managed to nibble on for fifteen minutes. It was glorious.

Did it ruin my ability to lose weight? Nope. Because I've found that a little bit of a good thing can go a long way, and I don't have to inhale a bag of chocolate chips in order to satiate a chocolate craving. (Yes, in case you're wondering, I have eaten an entire bag of chocolate chips before. It was a really productive afternoon.)

Now, a typical day involves wheat toast with peanut butter and an apple for breakfast, a small snack, a lunch of salad with a little chicken or cheese for protein, and a small dinner. It definitely took me awhile to get used to eating reasonable portions, but I'm glad I did it.

And what I've learned about reasonable portions is this: You serve yourself something that you think looks reasonable. And then you cut it in half. And maybe don't finish it.

By this I mean, I was a champion over-eater before I learned how to approach nutrition differently. It is really freaking hard to learn to eat less and be happy about it. But it's possible. And it's so worth it when you see those numbers go down on the scale!

Here are my stats for this week!

Weight: 193.4 lbs (14 lbs lost over 2 month period).

Waist: 39.25 inches (4 inches lost over 2 month period).