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| Watch out for those slips! |
Here are her responses below, which I am posting so a.) I remember and b.) they may be of great use to Optifasters in maintenance:
Why might you experience seasonal weight changes?
There is very little research about seasonal weight changes, although there is some about changes during the day, during the month, especially for women, and throughout life-time. Here are some lifestyle ideas about why you might GAIN weight during summer:
· With increasing heat, you run chronically dehydrated. As a result, your body shifts hormones to hold onto water.
· With summer, you change your diet to a higher-fat mode, such as grilling high-fat meats more, along with associated foods that go with grilling (cheese-topped burgers, large buns, etc.)
· With summer, you consume more high-sodium foods (marinades, sauces, etc.)
· You have allergies/asthma issues that keep you indoors, decreasing your physical activity.
Your 2-3 pound weight gain:
· Even without having periods, many women continue to demonstrate “cyclical” water retention even into menopause. Could you be in a temporary pseudo-menstrual water-retention cycle for 5-7 days?
· Have you eaten anything with high sodium within the last 4 days? Even pizza within-calorie bounds, or Chinese food, has enough sodium to cause your body to retain water for up to 7 days.
· Is it possible that with your increased physical activity, you have added lean body mass, especially if you’re doing weight-resistance exercises?
· Sometimes the most vigilant person can begin to slip around the edges. As you think about your food intake, is there any area that may have begun to slide a bit----cream instead of milk, poured cereal without measuring, etc?
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I know I can expect to get my period soon, so that's a check on water retention. Yes, I did eat something VERY high in sodium last weekend. After the cheese and crackers incident, we ordered food and I ate a huge gyro. Duh, Melissa. Extra sodium intake. Addition of lean body mass might be an issue, but Millie really opened my eyes with the fourth point: slipping around the edges.
If I really, really think about this, I see now that I have been slipping. It's not that I have been abandoning measuring, using butter and cream, etc. What I have been doing is asking my husband for small "bites" of his food. Two recent incidents come to mind: On Sunday, he purchased a very rich chocolate "Easter egg" from the high-end chocolate/coffee shop in the neighborhood. It was on sale, of course. This was at closing time, so he had to bring it home. I of course asked for a bite. And he hesitated, but I really started pleading. So he let me. And this played out again Monday night.
Last night (Wednesday), we had our weekly dinner out and I had my safe salad. He ordered a sub sandwich. I started watching him eating it, quite intently, and said, "Can I have a little bite?" He said no, then I started pouting. Yes, pouting! Finally, he capitulated. What choice did he have? And I took a big bite, making sure it counted. Oh dear readers, I see now, I see. The slippage has started.
Some may want to criticize my husband, but I just cannot put strict parameters around him because I am having cravings, because I have the food obsession. It is up to me to manage this. Sure, it helps if he doesn't wave this fattening stuff in my face, and actually, he doesn't. What I need to do is step up to the plate and tighten things back up. I thought I was being super-vigilant, but these "little bites" clearly show otherwise. So address this I will.
Today is a new day, and forward I go. Thanks Millie, for helping me see the light.
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