Day 118: Your Comments

So, I received a comment yesterday from Scootergirl asking whether I stick tightly to the menus and portions of the Live the Life Diet.  She also asks how long I wait to eat between meals, how I get all my water in each day, and the exercising I do.  These are great questions, so I thought I would answer as post.  Since this will have to be a bit abbreviated, I will do an expanded post on each of these items later.

Do I Stick to the Menus and Portions Given in the Live the Life Diet?


The short answer to this question is yes.  My belief with a diet is that if you are going to pay to have someone help you, you should follow it to the absolute best of your ability.  This is for two reasons:  (1) if they are right that you will lose weight doing what they tell you to, then you have nothing to lose and (2) if they are wrong that you will lose weight doing what they tell you to, then you have something to complain to them about.

In this case, the Live the Life diet really does work.  It takes about two weeks to get used to the change, and of course every Saturday or Sunday is hard (that is when you have to make a week's worth of meals), but after that, it is totally easy.  You are just putting in all of the grunt work upfront, and then not doing any guessing for the rest of the week.

I have to admit, now that I am off the 12 weeks (I finished up the last week of December), I don't follow the menus as well.  That is because I am really trying to make the diet a lifestyle, which requires me to adapt periodically and to try new things out.

One last thing, if variety is the spice of life, Live the Life can start to lack in excitement near the end of each week (that is when, for the sixth or seventh day in a row, you are eating the same thing).  Live the Life's greatest weakness is not helping you prepare meat properly.  If you just eat chicken with no spices or flavorings, you are going to be very, very sad and your food will be very, very bland.  My suggestion is to spice things up.  One of my favorite recipes is to get ground turkey or chicken, add a Mexican spice blend, and have tacos.  If you aren't adding spices or other flavorings to your meat, you will never be happy.  Let me see if I can find a few recipes I use and I will post them.

How Long Do I Wait Between Eating Meals?


I get up very early in the morning, so, I usually eat my first meal at about 5:00 am (within an hour of waking up).  I then eat at 7:30, 10:00, 1:00, 3:30, and finish with dinner at about 6:00 or 6:30.  The real trick is not eating after dinner, which can be really, really hard (especially because I love chowing down on popcorn).   By the way, I follow this schedule almost with exactness.  It is rare that I don't keep pretty much right on this plan.  I don't think there is anything wrong with having meals as far as 3 hours apart, but I wouldn't go beyond that.  Also, it is good to start closer together during the morning (2 hours) and then stretch out in the afternoon (3 hours).  Don't do it the other way where you are packing in food a few hours before bedtime.

The Challenge of Water


Water can be a challenge, especially since you really should be drinking a lot of it all of the time.  The easiest way I have found to drink water is to have it with me pretty much all the time.  To do this, I have a goal of drinking one gallon of water every day.  I went to the store and bought a one-gallon plastic jug of water and a bunch of large, red plastic cups.  That jug goes with me in the car, to work, everywhere.  Whenever I think about being thirsty, I drink.  Usually, I drink everything, plus five or six additional cups of water a day.

The key is to have it with you all the time (okay, I think it is unnecessary to have it with you when you are shopping for clothes or going to church or a county council meeting or something, but always have it close).  I used to keep bottles of water in the refrigerator, but I found I never got off my chair and walked over to get them (I was "too busy," i.e., too lazy).  Now, with water right in front of me, I just pour it out and drink.  Sure, the people at work point, laugh, and make fun of me, but do I care?  Well, yes I do care, but I won't when I look like Jack LaLanne!

Daily Exercise


Though it is always important to not over do exercise (check with a doctor before doing anything too strenuous), I do recommend the exercises in Live the Life.  They are easy and relatively productive in a short period of time.  Now that I have gone through the 12-week program, I have just started the exercise program over again.  This is in part because I still have a decent amount to lose, but also because I really enjoy the workout routines.  They are hard, but well worth it.

So, there you have it.  Hope this helps Scootergirl.  Everyone, keep the comments coming and have a great weekend!