A vicious cycle
I blame it on the caramel apples.
You see, that’s where it starts. Once I see the Honey Crisp apples in my grocery store I’m soon yearning to jab popsicle sticks into them and coat them with a gooey layer of melted Kraft caramel. As far as sweets go, they’re not too bad. They have relatively little fat, and you’re getting at least one serving of fruit (more like two given the size of apples these days). But so starts the slippery slope.
By mid-October the Halloween candies start appearing, and I just HAVE to have me some candy corn. Yes, they’re sickly sweet, but they’re my once-a-year guilty pleasure. Normally I can avoid most of the “fun size” candy bars since I no longer work in an office, but many of my clients will have bowls of them out, taunting me. Of course, whatever doesn’t go into trick-or-treaters hands on All Hallows Eve somehow manages to makes its way down my gullet. But this year my darling and I will dining at the Herbfarm, so we won’t be handing out treats.
After Halloween there’s my birthday on Nov. 12, which I’ve always used as an excuse to indulge (it typically ends up being a week-long orgy). Then it’s Thanksgiving with the pies and the wine and the mashed potatoes and the wine and the turkey & gravy and the wine and the stuffing and yet more wine. Early in December you’ll typically find me in my kitchen whipping up batches upon batches of cookies and “Texas Trash” to give as client gifts (but of course there are leftovers for us to eat), then I’ll gorge myself silly at the Christmas Eve feast. While New Year’s tends to be a subdued affair, you can pretty much guarantee there’ll be a champagne glass in my hand.
This is all a long-winded way of saying I tend to gain weight this time of year.
I had such high hopes last year when Pieces of Me issued the Holiday Weight Loss Challenge. I started the challenge Oct. 29 weighing 166.4, hoping to get down to 155 by the Feb. 1 deadline. Holiday indulgences kept my weight pretty steady (I was just down a pound by Dec. 31), but managed to lose a couple more pounds by Feb. 1, weighing in at 163.8. By then I had decided to train in earnest to qualify for Boston, which included maintaining a more healthy diet (more whole grains, fruits and vegetables, french fries & potato chips only on occasion).
My strategy worked, as my weight finally dipped below 160 at the end of March. Losing even a few pounds had a dramatic effect on my running — I was getting faster! (Although I’m sure my increased training also played a large part). My original goal was to get down to a “fighting weight” of 150 by the North Olympic Discovery Marathon (my first BQ attempt), but I was still pleased to see 154 on the scale race day morning (besides, a few people thought I was starting to look TOO skinny).
I’ve pretty much maintained my weight since then, fluctuating between 155-158 (my weight this morning was 158.2). But I’m determined NOT to gain those holiday pounds this year. I’m training for the Goofy Challenge again, so the mileage should burn off most of the extra calories. But I know I’ll also need to show some restraint when it comes to my eating drinking habits. Celebrating my birthday with a martini = good. Knocking back four or five martinis = not so good.
(This post was part of Amy & Tom’s Take it and Run Thursday).
October 24th, 2008 at 4:27 pm
great blog – I am in envy of you running Boston! I can’t even finish my first marathon (which was last Saturday in Newport, RI – I quit at 4 hours (mile 21) – insanity – virtual. Thanks for keepiing me reading and laughing/enjoying! Love it ~Jen
October 24th, 2008 at 4:38 pm
Thanks for stopping by Jen! And don’t beat yourself up too much about having to stop. Running a marathon is tough!
October 24th, 2008 at 11:39 pm
That sounds like a familiar problem. The weather getting worse and the foods getting sweeter is usually a bad combination. The shops in my area are filled with all sorts of sweets, such as chocolate letters (usually 200 + grams), Pepernoten and marzipan in all shapes, sizes and colours – you do not want to be around the average kid at this time of the year).
It is all just TOO good…
Stay strong.
October 25th, 2008 at 7:31 pm
Oh, Halloween…this year I’m putting off the candy buying until Thursday, but the three kid parties I’ve been to, the “treats” at work, the various sports pot lucks? I’ve just started trying to reign my caloric spending in again this week.
Go YOU, Marathon Maniac! I’m just getting in to gear to run my first. I so admire those of you who trot through them on a regular basis!
October 28th, 2008 at 7:25 am
I love sending the kids out to gather candy for me to eat after they go to bed and leave their bags unprotected. They usually want to quit trick or treating after an hour but I make them stay out because they haven’t begged enough yet for my voracious appetite.
October 28th, 2008 at 7:40 am
Nitmos — I’m surprised you don’t pull the “hey kids, that candy may be laced with razor blades and/or arsenic. Hand it over and let me make sure it’s safe” trick!
October 31st, 2008 at 11:04 am
Ugh it is so hard to stay trim this time of year!