Strategy for Cravings

While looking through my backed up folder full of The Buzz from Bikini Bootcamp newsletters, I found this one that I thought I would share:

"'Cravings Begone!'

Q: I've never been one for self-control, especially these days — I can't seem to get a handle on my cravings! Every time I feel like eating ice cream or — my newest favorite — those microwavable potato puffs that are about a thousand calories apiece, I resist for a minute or two, but eventually I give in. If I'm going to be bikini-ready, I really need your help!

A: To beat your cravings, the key is to formulate a plan. Come up with a list of at least 15 things you can do when you feel a craving coming on, and jot them down in your journal. For instance, you might decide to call a friend, do your nails, walk the dog, catch up on e-mails, or work on a fun, do-it-yourself project. Then, if you find yourself reaching for food when you're not really hungry, choose one of the alternatives from your list. You'll probably find that once you're swept up in the activity, you'll forget you had a craving to begin with! Remember to also use your new tools: Yoga, walking, pranayamas (breathing techniques), and the other workouts you've learned to keep you out of the kitchen in between meals. "

I thought this was a great tip, and decided to share it here. I'm also going to have to come up with some strategies to help me stop any cravings I might have (this isn't a really big problem that I have, but like everyone I get cravings sometimes!) which I will eventually post here.

Concluding Remarks for "No Crap for a Week" Week

I believe that this "No Crap for a Week" Week was a bit more of a success than the last time I attempted it. I got through four days successfully (the first three and day 5). I started off really strong, but definitely lagged as the week drew to a close. Part of this was due to what was happening at the end of the week; the group I help out with usually has some unhealthy things and I know I eat things that are in front of me mindlessly. Plus it is the weekend, which for some reason seems to signal that it's time to eat unhealthily. But I know that I've also been super tired lately, working on papers, so I've found myself eating for the energy (which isn't a good thing).

So I think that I need to try to remain mindful of what I'm eating. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to accomplish that at this moment (I've tried food logs, but I lose interest in keeping them), but that will definitely be my food goal for the next while.

Day 7 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

Well, today was the last day of "No Crap for a Week" Week. Day 7 started out alright. I ate rather healthily all day until supper time. We had company, and someone brought an extremely good cheesecake that I couldn't pass up...I also had a Mike's Hard, which was unnecessary (but good!) Oh yeah, and then I ended it all with some Mini Eggs at a friend's house. Definitely not the healthiest day this week!

Day 6 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

Well, I'm now at the very end of "No Crap for a Week" Week with only one more day to go! Day 6 started off relatively well. I had breakfast, then ran off to help out with a group I volunteer with where I was going to have lunch. Things started off really good; I ate a sandwich, grapes and yogurt. But when I was helping to clean up, I ate a couple of the desserts that were left over! I think what sort of happened was I was feeling tired (late night last night) and I sort of grabbed one without thinking. I'm going to have to try to be more mindful whenever there are instances such as this.

Other than this one incident, the day went smoothly.

Day 5 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

There wasn't anything really exciting to report about Day 5. I had a really nice meal of Greek food. Didn't have a whole lot of fruit, but overall the day was a healthy one eating wise anyway - I had school and then didn't really do anything last night. I didn't even do a short workout, which, in hind sight, I probably should have.

Day 4 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

Well, Day 4 of "No Crap for a Week" Week was a dismal failure. Everything started out alright until I went to my grandmother's for supper. I had a wonderful meal, but then dessert was brought out. Amongst the fruit, there were fresh hot cross buns (which I had to try - I had half of one) and poppy seed loaf. Poppy seed loaf is so incredibly delicious, that I wasn't able to pass it up. And then after dinner, I ended up at a friend's place, where I had a bit of chocolate as well.

So as I said, Day 4 was a failure. I did eat some stuff that wasn't good for me. Hopefully I will do better over the rest of the week!

End of Sensor 1

My first sensor ended earlier today. It lasted for the full three days. I'll be getting the information from my pump sometime tomorrow. I'm rather excited to see the information I will be getting from the pump (there's one time of the day that I might need to fix my basal rate - I'll find out for sure tomorrow!), but I am also excited to be able to compare it to the other sensor reports that I will be getting this month!

Day 3 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

Well, Day 3 has come and gone and I'm still doing alright. I had more soup for breakfast, a homemade banana muffin for snack, and another homemade dinner. I think the worst thing I had today (other than the soup) was the cookies I had after dinner (as a snack). Oh yeah, and the 1 Mike's Hard (whoops!) But the cookies were the Lifestyle shortcakes, so they're a lot better for me than most. A little questionable maybe, but I think I'm still doing alright. (Well, other than the Mike's Hard). Hopefully this will continue - I've (reaonably) successfully made it to the half way point in my week!

Day 2 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

So far so good with "No Crap for a Week" Week! Day 2 continues to be a success. Lunch was soup (which might not have been the best choice, as it was canned soup, not home made), crackers and an orange. Dinner was leftovers from the last couple of nights and a nice juicy pear. Then for snack, I had a bowl of Cheerios, milk, a banana and a bit of peanut butter. All in all, I think I had a pretty good day food wise. The next couple of nights might be a bit challenging though - I'll probably end up at a friend's house where I normally eat some junk food, plus I'm going to be having supper at my grandmother's house, so that might not be the most healthy meal either. Wish me luck!

Day 1 of "No Crap for a Week" Week

Well, this time "No Crap for a Week" Week is off to a good start! I think the worst things that I ate all day were two slices of Ukrainian Easter Bread (bobka) for breakfest and five baked cheetohs for snack. Otherwise, I've been trying to snack on healthy things like oranges and nuts. I was writing an essay all night, and I kept finding myself going off to snack on things (and I wanted unhealthy things). I think next time, I'll have to have a study break where I do yoga or something.

Sensor Update

Well, so far so good! My sensor has lasted almost 24 hours. I find that once you can get past that, you're generally good to go until the sensor ends when it is three days (72 hours) old. Well, I'm generally good to go unless I do something like DDR, where I get sweaty and the tegaderm (which is what I use to hold everything in place) comes off. So the first of the five sensors should be giving me two more days of valuable information. (This one is really good timing - my period started yesterday, so I will get some good info from the first few days of my period).

Another "No Crap for a Week" Week

Last night, a couple of friends and I went out to an open mic event at the school. We stayed for about an hour, but then decided to leave as we had heard a bunch of this stuff at the last event. My one friend was hungry, as he hadn't eaten supper yet. My other friend and I decided to run to a corner store while the first friend was buying a sub sandwich; we ended up buying chips and dip. We had a fun evening, but after I got home, my stomach was bugging me a bit from the chips (and from some egg rolls we also had). As I've been eating rather badly as of late, I decided today that I was going to attempt to have another "No Crap for a Week" Week. The last time I attempted such a thing was in July 2007, and it sort of failed. I'm hoping that this time things will turn out better (and that I'll actually make it the full seven days without eating crap, rather than just six). I've done fairly well today, but I am going to make the week officially start tomorrow. I'm hoping to get online to check in daily (but I don't usually do very well with such a thing, so we'll see how that goes!) Wish me luck!

Sensors!

I had forgotten about a few sensors that I have. They've been in my fridge since the New Year, and expire in just over a month. So I'm going to be running them all before their expiry date (which happens to be the end of April). I started one today, and will most likely be running one weekly until they're all used up. I'm hoping to gain some very valuable information from this "Month of Sensors" as I am terming it!

What's Been Going on Lately

I know, I know, I haven't posted here or on Fitness Reviews in awhile. This has been due to two things over the last few weeks. First of all, I got sick. I don't know what exactly I had, but it didn't want to go away. I slept a lot over the few days when things were really bad. By the weekend, I decided to try DDR, but couldn't breathe (it felt like a lung was full of phelgm or something). So I avoided exercising for awhile. Today I finally went for a walk, and other than having to breathe through my mouth because my nose was runny, I was fine. I was also really lucky - my glucose levels remained fine throughout everything!

The other reason is due to school. Yes, it is crunch time once again! I have one book left on my reading list, two essays coming due in the next few weeks, and two exams. Thankfully my final exam is on April 8th, so I just have to get through about 3 weeks and I am free once again! (And I am going to celebrate by going to Toronto!!!!)

I've also had some good news: I was accepted into one of the MA programs I have applied to!!!!! I'm extremely excited - I will be working towards something next year that will actually get me somewhere!!!!! I'm still waiting to hear back from a few places, so it will be a bit before I know where I am off to next year.