Originally Posted by
CJ C
wholy s*@&!!!!!!!!!!!
that is 100% grade A awesome.
more details on eating changes and biggest hurdles please.
Most of my details are in my blog, (linked in my signature line). I'll add more details tonight when I can.
The biggest eating change was staying in the calorie budget. There were days when I really wanted that double cheeseburger and fries but knowing what it would do to the budget I held off. The other big change for me was reducing the portion size, I was always one of those, "There's still room on my plate type guys" and my portions tended to be fairly large.
What I ate changed also. Being a diabetic my wife and I have moved away from a lot of the processed foods. We've moved to a lot of fresh veggies, fruits and lean meats. This means that my wife ends up doing a lot more meal planning and cooking which is a good thing. It's also helped us change our kids diets from junk to healthy.
The two biggest hurdles for me was time management and going cold turkey stopping a 3-5 diet coke a day habit.
The time management issue really involves my exercise routine. It's hard to take an entire Saturday away from the family to go ride 125+ miles but I do it. Fortunately my wife rides and my kids are wanting to run so the exercise is something we are all involved in. As the kids get older and better on their bikes it will be something that we can incorporate as an entire family. Right now, my wife and I alternate our ride nights, that way we both get rides in during the week. The nights we aren't riding, were either taking the kids for a walk or a run.
Kicking Diet Coke has been by far the hardest, right about now, I'd dang near kill for a Diet Coke. I could slide back into that habit in a heart beat. I won't let myself though cause I saw measureable weight loss and a drop in my fasting blood sugar when I kicked the soda habit.
The thing that has really made this work for me is goal setting. I am very goal orientated and have been able to break everything down into a series of small goals leading to my big goals. The scary part of that though is when I start hitting my cycling goals what is going to come next. I've done the century, I've now done a brevet, (200 kilometers / 125 miles), and am aiming for a double century. What happens when I nail my double? The local randonneurs are already suggesting 400k, 600k and 1200k rides...
Semper Fi