Accountability and Hunger

Hello Readers -
It has been a great almost month back into the normal routine. My sisters and I have been checking-in weekly with each other. We set our own personal intentions/goals each month. This has been very helpful and necessary for me as I returned back to a more mindful way of eating and exercising following the holiday season.  Accountability with a capital A!

For next month my intentions will remain the same:

1. weekly check-ins with sisters
2. daily food log and weigh-ins
3. 1200 -1500 calories daily with an emphasis on vegetables and fruits and small to no portions of heavy/greasy "white" starches
4. 10 minutes of yoga 4 times a week (option to bank 10 of those minutes ie --one day of 20 minutes)
5. 2 - 25 + minute walks a day
6. 10,000 + steps a day

This past week I have had a lot of hunger which coincided with a week I was traveling and eating out. I'm not sure if the traveling added to the hunger or the hunger was because of the eating out or maybe the hunger was just inevitable--either way it was very evident. One night we went out to a Mexican restaurant with a very large party -- I was starving when we got there at 5:20 and the food did not come out until well after 7pm -- did I eat a lot of chips and salsa? yes yes yes, I did! --  You know you're truly hungry when after one glass of iced tea you have to switch to water bc you are feeling a serious buzz, lol. 

When I got home yesterday about 2:30 I was also very hungry, we had eaten lunch at a normal time. I ate lots of vegetables, I made a dip from low-fat yogurt and cooked a veggie burger, finally, I popped a snack size of microwave popcorn and put some cheese on it which finally satiated me. I think I needed that starch and fat for some reason. I was also craving chocolate so I also had a hot chocolate and a piece of chocolate. I am trying to lean into my hunger and enjoy it as a sign of life (I think I mentioned this before). 

I couldn't weigh-in for 3 mornings since I was away. This morning's weigh-in showed about 2 pounds decrease since Wednesday once again affirming that when I am hungry I should eat (within reason).

Bonus ponderings - why is it that when I walked on the hotel treadmill for 30 minutes I only had about 1000 steps as opposed to about 3000 steps that I daily clock for about a 40-minute walk--- is it the slight turning? the little sprints that occur when my dog MUST visit a certain tree? Additionally, while at a department store, I walked around the aisles exclusively for steps and the number slowly elevated, but when I was actually shopping they increased much faster? Hmmm...
Incidentally, later I saw a shirt that said: "shopping is my cardio" --#personaltruth

Thanks for reading --

Much love,

Amy B.