A man, a plan

Two years ago I did well and got down to a weight I was happy with, even if I wouldn't have minded losing a bit more. About a year ago I noticed that I was starting to gain some back. I'm not surprised. Work stress ramped up, and I gradually broke the good habits I had adopted.

I thought the Wii Fit might help with my motivation. It did for awhile and was encouraged by the results. Then I discovered that the balance board wasn't going all the way down. I'm sure I lost weight, but the problem was that with an accurate measurement, I weighed more than where I started. Frustrated, I blew the good routine I had renewed.

The new year provides a convenient excuse to commit to everyone's favorite resolution to lose weight and so I have. The opportunity to exercise is going to be difficult during this season--I prefer to walk or run outside rather than use a treadmill--but significant changes in diet should jumpstart my effort.

Last time I didn't follow a specific diet or plan, but it worked for me. Here's what I'm doing to drop pounds:

-Make my own meals as much as possible.

Failing to do this is one of the biggest reasons why I regained weight. I resist laying out a menu for the week, especially because cooking for one already produces more than I need. I got a Crock Pot for Christmas, so I'm employing it to make something that will last several meals. Sure, I've already had pot roast and vegetables four times this week and still have some left over, but it's taken the guesswork and temptation at lunchtime. I've also had something else partially prepared for the other lunches or dinners, so it's easy and relatively quick. The challenge will be keeping this up and not getting bored.

-Lay off dessert.

I'm not going to cut them out completely. It isn't realistic long term and doesn't work. The idea is changing habits, not stopping eating some things.

-Drink pop no more than one or two times a week.

I would like to avoid soda during the week and indulge once or twice on the weekend. Drinking more water is something I need to do anyway. Coffee in the morning and tea later in the day keep it mixed up enough hopefully.

-Graze.

There's the potential for this strategy to backfire, but I'm trying to keep portion size down at meals and eat something healthy when snacking. Bananas have been good to have on hand when I get hungry between meals.

-Don't weigh myself.

I can tell if I'm losing weight without weighing myself. It may seem like a weird item to put here, but I find more motivation in losing the weight until I feel right about it, not by aiming for a number.

Exercise needs to enter the equation, but until I figure out where to sneak it into my schedule, we'll see if this routine will be effective.

So what does this have to do with knitting? Very little, really, although if the desired results are achieved, then I should be willing to try knitting a sweater.