New Year, New Me

Happy New Year!  Can you believe it's 2016 already?  Time flies.  This year, I'm determined to make it a great one.  Since finding out I had hypothyroidism, I gained a few extra pounds despite going to the gym 4 or 5 days a week.  I tried to eat healthier but I still wasn't losing any weight.  At least I didn't really gain much, only 4 pounds over the holidays.  I lost inches from working out even though my weight stayed even.

This is crazy!  At least I only gained 4 pounds.

Over the holiday break, I decided that I was going to make a lifestyle change.  I've never weighed this much, so I need to make a change.  I've gained about 30 pounds in the last two years.  Thanks to working out, at least I lost some inches despite the scale not changing.  Well they said losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise.  I have the exercise down thanks to having a personal trainer for the last year.  My contract ran out the end of December but I know what I need to be doing in the gym now.  I'll just have to push myself harder than I normally would on my own.  Maybe I can find myself a gym buddy to keep me motivated!


I'm going to exercise at least 3 times a week, hopefully more than that.  I'm also going mostly paleo or some may say primal, at least for now.  I've done a lot of research about hypothyroidism and because it's also associated with autoimmune diseases, many people have felt better and lost weight on gluten-free diets.  I decided to go paleo to kick start my diet.  I'll eventually allow some gluten-free grains back into my diet, but I want to see some results before I do that.

I started my lifestyle change on January 4th, 2016.  So far I've lost some of my holiday weight gain and I've had no grains whatsoever.  I think I could have lost more, but I had many lattes from Starbucks last week (I know - not so healthy).  This week I'm cutting out all dairy products to see what the effects will be.  I had many salads last week from Salata, Chick-fil-a, and Chipotle.  I learned how to make seared Ahi Tuna at home - so good!  I had apples or banana chips as snacks....but I had quite a bit of peanut butter with my apple.  I know the peanut butter isn't paleo, but it was so good.  I'm cutting out the peanut butter this week too.  I'm kind of playing trial and error with this diet.  That's why I said I'm doing mostly paleo.  I want to see how my body responds to different foods and adjust accordingly.

Last week's menu (1/4/16)
Breakfast - apples and peanut butter OR Advocare White Chocolate Peppermint Shake (not paleo)
Lunch - salads from Salata, Chipotle, Chickfila (no cheese, no croutons, no sour cream) OR Chicken Protein Plate from Zoe's Kitchen (no slaw sub roasted veggies).
Dinner - Seared Ahi Tuna, arugula mix, avocado, and sweet potato fries.
Snacks - apples (sometimes with peanut butter), banana chips, lots of 2 pump whole milk Chestnut Praline Grande lattes no whip no topping from Starbucks
Dessert (if needed) - dark chocolate, Dibs (almond milk ice cream covered in chocolate)

This week's menu (1/11/16)
Breakfast - Cantaloupe, hard boiled egg, apples
Lunch - not sure yet.  probably similar to last week.
Dinner - Chicken, side of homemade bbq sauce (for light dipping only), green beans and sweet potatoes. OR soft boiled eggs, paleo granola with almond milk.
Snacks - Cantaloupe, apples, banana chips, carrots

I'm on a mission to be in the best shape of my life and I will find a way to make it happen.

So for those of you who may just be starting or looking into a paleo/primal lifestyle or gluten free lifestyle, here's some information that may help you.

http://primalpalate.com/menus/30-day-paleomeal-plan/

I found the following information on SavingDinner.com

• Similarities between paleo and primal lifestyles include:
• • Eating tons of veggies
• • Eating lots of protein
• • Avoiding grains
• • Eliminating gluten
• • Doing away with corn
• • Avoiding high fructose corn syrup
• • Avoiding sugar
• • Eliminating processed foods
• • Enjoying the occasional wine and beer
• • Exercising regularly

I am by no means an expert, nor am I strictly following any of these diets.  My purpose is to find a lifestyle in which I feel my best and I'm at my idea weight.  In December, before the holidays, my BMI was 32.8, which categorizes me as Obese.  Ugh.  Hate that word.  "Normal Weight" BMI is 18.5-24.9.  So my goal is to hit in between those numbers.