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Quit Dieting. Start Living.

Scale_TBR_low

I am so done with dieting. So done!

For the past couple of months, you were completely unaware—of course, I don’t tell you everything here—that I was frustrated about my ballooning weight. I couldn’t figure out why I was getting heavier when I was working out like a mad woman (double my usual training program since I added swimming) and eating much less, yet the numbers on the scale were going nowhere but up. To make matters worse, I got injured so no running and no gym only meant the numbers would soon get higher if I didn’t get answers to my questions.

Was I just getting old?

Did I have to eat even less than the little food I was eating?

Was I eating more than I actually thought I was? (Uhm, on some days I would say yes but what we don’t know—or admit—won’t hurt us, right?)

Did I have to add even more training hours to my already hectic sched?  (I welcome the idea of training more because I love it and it doesn’t feel like work to me, but I have a life too, you know!)

Was my body so used to running that I needed a new activity to jolt my metabolism?

Did I need to add more intense training?

Was lack of sleep and stress causing havoc in my system?

What do I do?!!!

I bugged so many experts and friends with all my questions. I asked my nutritionist friend Harvie de Baron of Hammer and he told me to eat more to lose more. I bumped into Coach Jim Saret of The Biggest Loser and asked him to reveal his secrets on dropping my extra weight.  He said I should intensify my training.  I even met with friend, nutritionist, and contributor of TBR Magazine, Mitch Felipe-Mendoza. She was so baffled with my weight gain that she even wrote an article about it on Philippine Daily Inquirer to answer all my queries…hah!  (Here’s the LINK)

Plateau

Last week, I said to myself: enough is enough. One should not spend this much time worrying about the calories and fat, especially not runners like me!   After all, one of the reasons why I fell in love with running was because it gave me freedom from the scale!  It allowed me to focus on my passion for running while fitness and weight loss were simply bonuses for me!  I thought: Life is too short for thinking about numbers on the scale when I should be savoring healthy, wholesome food, enjoying my long runs, and living life to the fullest!

So, last Sunday, I made a pact with myself to quit dieting and stressing over the scale. I made a promise to myself to eat healthy, train wisely, and enjoy life more. I started eating more (oh boy, a lot more!), show up for regular training, and stop weighing myself. I did this all alone and, much to my pleasant surprise (and relief!), I dropped 4 lbs! I’m sure most of it is water weight but allow me to say: Wooohooo!

I still have 4 more to go to reach my regular weight. (Yes, I gained a total of 8 lbs that wouldn’t budge since February)  I’m committed to sticking to my commitment to myself. It’s not a diet. It’s not a training or nutrition program.  I didn’t use a new product.  It’s simply a promise to myself to nourish my body and subsequently nurture my mind and soul.

So, yes, I started this alone and did it on my own. But, I thought, it could be so much more fun (and perhaps a whole lot easier) if we all did it together virtually. Just a group of us promising to each other that we’ve committed to living better.

Are you game?  I’m thinking we can try a 30-day Challenge to ourselves to simply eat better.  I’ll work out the details and post it tomorrow.  We can start on JULY 1, 2011, the start of the month. Use the time from now until then to let the idea sink in and let me know if you’re up to it!  How exciting!

Posted on 06.29.11 to 06 Food & Nutrition. Tags: , , , . Subscribe to follow comments on this post. 18 comments. Add your thoughts or trackback from your own site.

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18 Responses to “Quit Dieting. Start Living.”

  1. I can totally relate, Jamie and I am sure a lot of women (and men), too. It becomes tiring and frustrating being slaves to the scale. I am eagerly waiting for the details of your 30-day Challenge. Freedom from the frustration! =)

    runENT said on Jun 29 11 at 6:27 PM Reply

  2. I am so in!

    Bic said on Jun 29 11 at 8:20 PM Reply

  3. did yu have your fat % checked? with the extra swimming you may gained more muscle mass and muscle is heavier than fat. food for thought

    Dennis said on Jun 29 11 at 8:52 PM Reply

  4. i like that!!! i second!

    aquagirl said on Jun 29 11 at 9:51 PM Reply

  5. …. i’m in, actually I already started last week, my goal is to reach the same fitness level I had when I ran the TBR Marathon last march to prepare for the Milo at the end of the month( i’ll only be running 21k, the most i’ll be running after TBR marathon)

    Haste said on Jun 29 11 at 10:59 PM Reply

  6. If you starve yourself your metabolism slows down. Eat more of the unprocessed food. List the food you eat. 20% exercise 80% nutrition. Does not matter how you exercise, if you don’t get the right fuel. Chronic cardio can make you crave the wrong carbs. Good luck. Jaymies number 1 fan. :) Toni

    Running Medic said on Jun 30 11 at 5:04 AM Reply

    • You sound just like Harvie! :)

      thebullrunner said on Jun 30 11 at 5:31 AM Reply

    • Agree. If you starve yourself your body will think there’s a “famine” and the more it will hold on to fats to conserve fuel. And not only exercise, but diet plays a big factor in getting that toned body. By diet I don’t mean starving yourself, but rather, eat right. I’m happy to say I never had to diet, I eat anything but I avoid processed foods as much as possible. I used to be a potato chip junkie, so hard to wean myself from it. But after a few weeks I don’t crave it anymore. I still eat once in a while but in small amounts, I just eat a few then I’m already satisfied.

      AtalantaRunning said on Jul 02 11 at 4:37 AM Reply

  7. Bakit yung sinusulat mo sa blog ay iyon din ang pinagdadaanan ko? :) Sali ako sa 30 day challenge.

    sherry said on Jun 30 11 at 7:44 AM Reply

  8. I’ve also reached a weight loss plateau, even with running 3-4x a week!!

    I’m in!

    Roelle said on Jun 30 11 at 8:48 AM Reply

  9. count me in! been trying to lost weight for almost 1 month now. lost about 3-4 pounds. and i think it just stopped there. :( running for 2x/3x a wk. swim once a wk. now thinking if i should stop swimming because they said can build muscle. also, eating less and less.

    looking forward to your next post. :)

    dache L said on Jun 30 11 at 9:34 AM Reply

  10. count me in! been trying to *lose weight for almost 1 month now. lost about 3-4 pounds. and i think it just stopped there. running for 2x/3x a wk. swim once a wk. now thinking if i should stop swimming because they said it can build muscle. also, eating less and less.

    looking forward to your next post.

    dache L said on Jun 30 11 at 9:41 AM Reply

  11. im also in! :)

    mej moncada said on Jun 30 11 at 1:20 PM Reply

  12. hi jaymie. this is abet your 50year old runner friend, ‘member? i gained some 5 lbs when i started “training” for marathons — i eventually learned i gained a lot of muscle here in my “appendages” and upper back and some on my abs…same attitude, said what the heck, as long as im eating & living healthily (and kept running!!!) i shouldnt worry anymore about not being as lean as i want to be.

    abet ocampo said on Jun 30 11 at 1:52 PM Reply

  13. when I read Mitch’s article, i got the (praning) feeling she was talking to me. I guess many of us in her TBR weight mgmt might have felt that way. I still need to lose a few more but I seem stuck on the same number for nearly 3 months now. Sana may TBR Batch 2 marathon again this year like around November – - kahit no fanfare but just another 42k to serve as a goal.

    miriam said on Jun 30 11 at 4:31 PM Reply

  14. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Racing-Weight-Matt-Fitzgerald/dp/1934030511

    Paolo Manuel said on Jun 30 11 at 6:18 PM Reply

  15. Hi, don’t get obsessed by the scales. Maybe you have gained muscles, this could cause weight gain also. Just eat clean, drink lots of water. Five small meals a day. And those last few pounds are the ones that are hard to come off, HIIT (high intensity interval training) should take care of it. Check out bodyrock.tv my favorite website, she has different whole body workouts everyday, only 12 mins long. This will confuse your muscles and so you won’t hit a plateau. The trick is to do these short workouts at your MAXIMUM effort. I love this site because it actually helped me to get rid of my love handles that I gained when I stopped training for some months. I got toned, but not once did I need to go to the gym, no equipment either except skipping rope and stability ball. Its mostly bodyweight exercises but it sure is kick ass! :-)

    AtalantaRunning said on Jul 02 11 at 4:18 AM Reply

  16. perhaps the reason why you’re gaining weight is because more muscles in your body are developing. muscle tissue is more dense than fat tissues. it’s impossible to gain more weight due to fat if you’ve doubled your training. you’re getting more toned and if you notice, parts of your body such as the legs, thighs, arms, are getting firmer. :) as you’ve said, don’t worry about the numbers :)

    edz mendoza said on Jul 06 11 at 10:58 PM Reply

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