Counting calories is my way of keeping score. How else could you be precise about how much you are eating? Well, I have watched thin people and they have a few different ways of doing it. Some eat the same amounts of the same things every day. Some portion out their meals every week. Some restrict what kinds of foods they can eat (carrots, or fruit, and vegetables) during the day, and then do some calorie counting of “fun” foods at dinner. I have seen people blend these approaches. But there appear to be a few who just don’t eat very much food. This is the kind of person who orders in a restaurant, eats seven bites, and just abandons the rest on their plate, usually more than half the serving. Maybe those people count their bites, maybe they are very in tune with the feeling that they have eaten enough – I have not figured that out.
With counting calories, I don’t have to rely on that. I just use the kitchen scale!
My food intake and calorie count
Breakfast – half slice Costco pepperoni pizza (355)
- 355 calories
Lunch – beans on toast (350); bread and hummus (250);
- 600 calories
Dinner – 7.5 ounces Shepherd’s pie and 7.5 ounces mashed potatoes (685);
- 685 calories
Snacking – tea with half and half (120); cookie (95);
- 215 calories
Total for the day: 1855 calories (limit 1800 + 500 bonus from swimming, total 2300)
Time for a good week ahead
Next week I have a chance to have a good diet week. It’s a chance to get everything right. This past week of weight control didn’t start so well, but I steadied down by the end of the week.
Today was a swim day, and that was fun. I am not sure if exercise is a necessary component of losing weight, or is just helpful. It does burn calories, but it also makes you feel hungry. That can be good, because food tastes best when you are hungry. And I did enjoy dinner tonight, after swimming. It was cold and windy outside, but I had Shepherd’s pie to keep me warm.
Interestingly, the recipe calls for a small amount of beer, and I used a wheat beer called Konig Ludwig, which is one of the few beers I like. It made the recipe very tasty. Last week I made a beef Carbonnade, which also calls for beer. In that case I used 3/4 cup of a super expensive Belgian beer – 17 dollars for a 750mL bottle. It was a very good beer, but not worth $17. I will stick with Konig Ludwig for most purposes. But cooking with beer is not my usual approach and I only have the two recipes I have tried. I have read about something called beer can chicken, where the chicken is mounted on an open beer can and grilled, but I just don’t like the taste of most beers enough for that to be appetizing.
But I am learning what does motivate and interest me, in terms of food. I can use that knowledge to keep myself happy while eating measured portions. It does work.
-The Doctor