Carb Cutback: Week 1

It's day 5 of my recent carb cutback. So far it's been pretty manageable. There have certainly been a few obstacles, but I already feel great and I've noticed how quickly this change has affected my weight.

I began last Saturday when I counted my carbs for the whole day (in grams, subtracting fiber). At the end of the day, I added up that number, divided it by 2, and got my goal for this week.

Every day I have tried to make small changes to help me reach that goal. The first day was hard-- I felt like I couldn't eat anything! By Wednesday I figured out how to plan my meals out for the whole day so that I could meet my goal AND satisfy my appetite and cravings. I was thrown completely off track yesterday, as Eric and I had planned to make homemade pizzas and we had a moscato wine cake for dessert for Valentine's Day. (What can I say, I'm in love!) Today I'm back on track.

Some things I've learned/changed so far to help me meet my goal:
1. I eat a scrambled egg for my breakfast on days when I want a sandwich for lunch or pasta for dinner. Otherwise I stick with my oatmeal, which does a lot for my digestive health and keeps me full all morning. Planning my meals like this helps me stay on track, while eating what I like!
2. I plan to switch out my pasta for veggie substitutes; this week I'm trying out thinly sliced zucchini with sauce instead of spaghetti.
3. Drinking water throughout the day helps me to keep from feeling hungry or getting cravings that will throw me off track (I usually drink 5-6 glasses a day anyway, but I've been especially diligent about it this week).

It feels great to be taking this one step at a time. Cutting carbs in half has been very manageable and has kept me from having to completely change my diet. Instead, I'm making small changes that make a big impact and keep me sane. Moderation has worked best for me so far when it comes to weight loss, and I plan to stick with it!

For week 2 I'm sticking with the same goal number. I want to meet that goal every day before I try to cut back more.