Love and Marriage, Horse and Carriage, Blogging and Snacking

TMI alert…

I’ve gained about eight pounds since I started blogging on January 1. And unfortunately it’s not eight pounds of muscle, the extra weight has settled all around my waist.

Now there’s probably a few things that could help account for the weight gain.

My exercise routine got thrown for a loop a few months ago with both knee and shoulder injuries. The injuries essentially stopped me from doing anything that involved either my upper or lower body, not leaving me with many options. Losing the ability to burn off a few hundred calories a day through exercise has certainly played a role in my weight gain.

My schedule has also been a little bit busier than usual, partly because of the extra time required for daily blogging, and so I ended up not putting much thought into many of my meal choices, just eating whatever was most convenient, which usually wasn’t the healthiest choice.

But I think by far the biggest reason for the weight gain is my blogging.

I’ve gotten into the habit of doing my blog at night (a habit I would like to change), and the first 30-60 minutes of the blogging process are spent staring at my computer trying to think of something to write. During that time, I keep standing up, walking over to the kitchen cabinets and grabbing something to eat. It could be a pretzel, a handful of nuts, or a few chips. I then sit back down, think for a few more moments, and then it’s back to the cabinets. I repeat this process several times before inspiration strikes.

Unfortunately, that’s not the end of my snacking. Once I start writing, I set little goals for myself, like writing 100 words. Once I reach 100 words, I reward myself with, you guessed it, more pretzels, chips, nuts, often all at the same time.

By the time I’ve finished my blog, many nights I’ve calculated that I’ve eaten close to 1,000 calories of pure junk food!

My discipline, usually something I consider a strength, is no match for the creative process. I even say to myself as I’m walking over to the cabinets to get more food that I’ve got to stop doing this, but I can’t.

There just seems to be something about trying to create something from scratch that requires some type of distraction, and for me, that seems to be food. Blogging and snacking seem to go hand in hand. I’m glad I don’t smoke or drink, because I’m sure I would find those to be useful distractions as well. I can’t imagine how many cigarettes and/or beers I would go through while trying to write a blog.

I’m hoping that writing this down and sharing it with the world (well, more like 8 people) will help me get the snacking under control. I am happy to report I have managed not to eat any snacks so far while putting this post together. I’ll keep my fingers crossed that I’ll make it to the end.

I’ve already thought of one solution. Two summers ago I got addicted to frozen grapes, and would snack on them constantly. I’m thinking of going to Whole Foods tomorrow and buying some grapes and freezing them. Then when it’s time to start blogging I’ll reach for the grapes, and not the salty snacks.

I’ve also started to get a little bit back into my exercise routine, which at least has helped to stop the weight gain and now I’m just holding steady. But holding steady is not good enough, I’ve got to get rid of this excess weight. My health and fitness is something I have always prided myself on, so it’s disappointing to me personally that I allowed this to happen to myself. I’m looking forward to slowly ramping up my workouts.

I’ve also thought about going on a 48-hour water fast to kick start the weight loss, but then I’d be worried I wouldn’t have the energy to get my blogging done later at night.

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Sorry, I had to step away for a moment to get something to drink. Of course, water wouldn’t do the trick, I had to get some lemonade. But at least I avoided the kitchen cabinets.

Anyway, I’ll give periodic updates on my progress towards losing eight pounds. My goal is May 11. That’s half a pound a day, which seems quite reasonable.

I’m starting to get some cravings, so I better end this post now and head on up to bed before I succumb to those cravings. I think dreaming of snack food is probably much better for me than actually eating it.