Saturday Weigh-In: Tis The Season
What a week! Two holiday parties for work and a big lunch out with DH on our day off yesterday and somehow the scale still reflected a loss this morning, albeit a tiny one. I lost about a half of a pound – 323.2. On one hand, I’m a little upset because last week I was really trying to keep my calories to 1200 per day (after exercise) and I thought the pounds would just come flying off. Granted, I’m sure I overindulged during our special lunches this week but tried to make up for it with little/no dinner and exercise. Oh well, a loss is a loss, right?
DH and I were talking last night about one of my favorite conundrums – what matters the most, carbs or calories. The part of me that enjoys crackers and cheese and peanut butter on whole grain English muffins wants to believe that it is just the calories and that if you eat few enough, and burn off enough with exercise, you’ll lose weight. But unfortunately, it seems our brief stint on the South Beach Diet plan gives us evidence to the contrary – or at least shows that you lose weight faster if you restrict your carb intake. I’m sure the real truth is that it is a matter of both. I’d be hard pressed to believe that someone on the SBD could really eat 3,000 calories a day and not gain weight. When we were in Phase 1 of the SBD there were some days that I didn’t have more than 1,000 calories – I think once you cut out all of those carbs it is hard to find high calorie things that you could eat a lot of in one sitting. So I guess the jury is still out – we’re just trying to get through the holidays and will then think a little more about how we want to move forward – low-carb or not.
This should be a pretty busy weekend, which is good because when I’m busy I don’t snack! Of course when I’m baking (which I still have a lot of to do today) I have a bad habit of tasting everything. Except for a new recipe I tried for pecan tassies – they were like crack so I’ve had 3 of them since Thursday. First thing I’m going to bake today are these little peanut butter cup cookies and since they’re my favorite, I’m going to have to work like hell to resist their delicious allure.
What is your favorite cookie?
slowlylosing 
I’m always confused about the carbs vs calories thing. I think I do better without carbohydrates (even just at night) but I LOVE them so much… and sometimes – as you said – they offer lower calorie options than alternatives.
Good luck in working it all out…
Deb
Thanks – don’t you just wish someone out there had the perfect answer? I suppose we all react to things differently as well; like I suspect that I am very sensitive to carbs, yet I have a brother-in-law who could eat them all day and still remain a stick.
I think ultimately you have to find something that works for you. It has to become a lifestyle, something you can sustain. If you are only cutting carbs to lose weight then you have to consider what will happen once you reintroduce them into your diet. Whole grains are essential to our diet. I have a tendency to eat more carbs than I should so I do try to measure my portions when I can.
Congratulations on the half pound loss! You should be proud of yourself. Own those losses!!
That’s very true. I know that low carb lifestyle isn’t something I’ve been able to maintain, so maybe I am doing the smart thing even though it means slower progress. I do eat more carbs than I should, so setting a goal, along with an overall calorie goal, might be something I can consider doing 🙂
It’s calories all the way 🙂
Cheers from Australia
Liz N (exercise phys)
Thanks Liz – it is good to see a professional’s opinion!