Beware the Pizza

I haven't written that much about it, but I'm dieting at the moment. I am working with a fitness/diet coach. Every day I try to do at least 10,000 steps (including a 30 minute walk), some stretches, drink 64oz of water and to consume no more than 2000 calories. Since I started on Feb 20th I have dropped 18 pounds!

The walking and the water consumption have been a problem for me, the first few days it seemed like I was going to the restroom every few minutes! I think my bladder has finally gotten used to the fact that it has to do more work now. Fitting in time to walk has been tricky, I've gotten together a group of people to walk at lunchtime at work, but as the weather gets hotter I've found myself walking in the Mall more because of the ac!

I've been stuck on a weight plateau for a week now. Basically I haven't been eating enough calories, so my body has gone into 'lockdown' mode. It thinks it's starving so it holds onto the fat that it has stored and refuses to burn any in exercise. Well that's what I've read online and it seems to make sense to me :)

To counteract that I decided I needed to come off the diet (at least for one meal), so today I went with some friends to California Pizza Kitchen. I consumed one Jerk Chicken Pizza and drank water and when I looked up the nutrition had quite a shock.

That one pizza of yummy goodness contained the following:

1356 Calories
24g Saturated Fat - which is 90% of the recommended daily intake!
137g of Carbohydrates
4236g Sodium - which is a whopping 184% of the recommended daily intake!!!
74g of Protein
9g of Fibre

In the past with a meal like that I would have generally drank at least 3 Dr Peppers which would add about another 450 calories and 123g of sugar.

I would have eaten that without a second thought and no ill effects, and then consumed something equally unhealthy in the evening too.

Not today!!!

In the afternoon I had stomach pains, intestinal rumblings, and I actually felt a bit light headed and loopy as well. It's amazing what 7 weeks of healthy eating can do. My body now rejects what it used to crave. It made me realize that the scene in 'Super Size Me' where Morgan Spurlock throws up after eating nothing but McDonald's for three days straight is entirely plausible. He had a diet far healthier than mine before he started, and his descent into fatty carbohydrate hell was far more severe than mine

So this evening I have some green peppers and some tomatoes roasting in the oven with a drop of pesto, garlic and capers in each one. I will consume this with a small green salad, drizzled with some balsamic vinegar and a light dusting of parmesan cheese, and learn to listen to my body....

...and hope that the carbohydrate shock of lunch is enough to get my body losing weight again!

And if you see me walking fast in the Mall, come say hello!