One week done, three pounds gone

I'm smart enough not to say they're gone forever, since they've been gone forever before. Many times, just for the record. The three pounds last week are in addition to three pounds lost just counting calories the first 10 days of January. To sum up, since New Year's Day I've lost six pounds, half of that last week following the South Beach plan.

It's a miracle! Or a fluke, only time will tell.

It helps to be busy doing Other Stuff. My brain's go-to default is "let's eat!" so having a knitting project or a freelance design gig or some other compelling time-suck really helps, and if I have to create them, I'm going to.

The clog knitting isn't done yet, and there's not much football left. (If you're new here, I like to knit watching sports. It's difficult for me to do one without the other. They go together like South Beach-friendly ham and eggs. Heh.) I like college ball much better than pro, especially this year when my man Peyton had to sit out. (The Colts won ONE game all year, shouldn't Peyton Manning be the MVP? Clearly he is Indy's most valuable player!)

But little bro Eli made it to the championship series, so maybe there will be enough football left to complete the last two pair. I'm working on my husband's now, with one nearly done. The last pair, of course, will be mine, because I'm like the shoemaker: My footwear has holes in it, but I'm too busy making footwear for other people.

It hurts like hell to sit and knit, though, because of the hip pain. The loveseat in our little TV room is waaaay less comfortable than working on the laptop at the dining room table. Which is where you would have found me yesterday, designing a logo for a new client. (He loved it, I'm always happy when my vision matches the client's.) I need to do a little clean-up and formatting and that job will be out the door.

I have a couple little craft projects on the agenda. Actually if you saw my Pinterest Crafty board I have enough DIY ideas to get me to my goal weight. This is the one I'm doing as soon as the clogs are finished.

All in all, I'm doing pretty well following the plan. Eating more protein really does curb hunger. South Beach doesn't limit the number of carbs you can eat, but my research indicates that I might have an easier time releasing weight if I were to keep them around 30 per day. I'm averaging around 40; prior to SB I was eating about 175 carbs/day. And I'm NOT complaining about losing three pounds the first week.

The most difficult part has been honoring my commitment to eat real, whole foods, particularly when I'm looking for something sweet. I don't want to get sucked back into using artificial sweeteners, but there are few alternatives. (And because I don't like to waste anything, I'm determined to use that bag of Splenda before I try stevia.) The last time I went sugar-free it took about three weeks for the sugar cravings to subside, so I just need to be patient and wait this out.

My husband is totally on board with me doing South Beach, and hasn't even asked for a baked potato or hamburger bun to supplement his meals. He's really making it a lot easier for me, remind me to thank him. Again. And thank you for being patient with me as I slog through a South Beach post. I promise I won't make this a habit.