I really would prefer not to estimate my calories but that’s the compromise I make to live a relatively ‘normal’ life. I love doing CR but I don’t want it to dominate my life to the point where it interferes with my social relationships and general ability to be spontaneous and enjoy living in the moment.
Plus I love food too much and especially being in a foreign country I savor the experiences of trying new foods. Hey, anytime I love having new or just wonderful food experiences. And there is no need to give that up with a CRON lifestyle. Anything can be built into the plan as long as the total intake is balanced.
So the way that my life was yesterday I had to estimate most of my intake, but I’ve had a lot of experience with this so I think I am pretty good at it. Most of the time I tend to overestimate so if there are times I underestimate it should balance out okay.
Yesterday morning we had sweet potato with rice, grated coconut and date sugar syrup. I only had half of my serve and combined it with 4 ounces of cottage cheese to balance out the macronutrients and added a tablespoon of brewer’s yeast for the B vitamins. I also had a tablespoon of bee pollen.
Lunch was pretty well measured – 2 cups of cucumber and 2 tablespoons of mustard. Pretty simple. And because it was so low calorie I was able to relax about dinner.
I went for a walk with my husband into the center of town and we had dinner at a very cheap local place. The whole meal for both of us was just $3 and as it often is here in Bali these are the tastiest meals you find and with very fresh ingredients. I had tofu cooked with chayote in coconut milk, crispy sweet tempeh, spinach with mung bean sprouts and stir fried carrot, cauliflower, cabbage. I also had just a little red rice (about 3 tablespoons) which is a variety of brown rice with a really nutty flavor. A really healthy veggie meal which made me feel okay about having a glass of white wine after our walk home.
Total estimated intake for the day was 1143 with 88% vitamins and 92% minerals.
I’ve been having a much higher calorie intake this week – around 1200 – and while I think my energy has improved I often have the feeling that I am not really doing CR. I personally enjoy the feeling of lightness and mental clarity that I have with the lower intakes.
I thought about maybe incorporating some lower calorie days and mixing it up a bit. I think this is one possible approach to CRON. But I am not really sure about the feasibility of this method, particularly in terms of ensuring adequate nutrition especially in regard to water soluble vitamins. If anyone has experimented with this I would be very interested to hear of your experiences.
One way I have proceeded in the past was to have a lower calorie intake on weekdays and a higher intake on weekends beginning on Friday evening. This worked very well for me psychologically because I had the experience of lightness and discipline alternating with the feeling of freedom and being able to socialize normally on weekends. I also think having a higher calorie goal on weekends allows for inclusion of foods that would normally be avoided so this may improve nutritional status by increased variety of foods.
I am always seeking balance it seems. Yes I am thinking about my health in the long term. Obviously because why else would I spend so much time learning about nutrition and analyzing my intake? I would just eat low calorie foods and be done with it. This would be so much easier.
In order for this to be a lifestyle that I can sustain I need to be healthy and be able to maintain my energy or else what’s the point?
To be honest my major motivation for undertaking CRON is for the shorter term benefits and my increased quality of life here and now! Of course the two things are inseparable. Quality nutrition long term promotes improved life quality.
And this comes back to finding the balance between measurement and estimation; planning and spontaneity. CRON can provide so much freedom in ways that can only be experienced. Ironically structure and discipline within itself can promote a feeling of freedom; perhaps by leading to a perception of integrity because of overcoming challenges continually and finding the internal strength to continue to do what we have decided is right for us.
Everyone has to find their own way but personally I need to experience both sides of the spectrum. The times I have spent on detox diets and very low calorie diets I believe have enriched me immensely and contributed to my growth as a person. But my life experience would not be complete without a little bit of the opposite as well and for me that means being able to enjoy a good meal and a couple of glasses of wine every now and then, and sometimes even dessert.
Some people call that having your cake and eating it – well I say we can!
Plus I love food too much and especially being in a foreign country I savor the experiences of trying new foods. Hey, anytime I love having new or just wonderful food experiences. And there is no need to give that up with a CRON lifestyle. Anything can be built into the plan as long as the total intake is balanced.
So the way that my life was yesterday I had to estimate most of my intake, but I’ve had a lot of experience with this so I think I am pretty good at it. Most of the time I tend to overestimate so if there are times I underestimate it should balance out okay.
Yesterday morning we had sweet potato with rice, grated coconut and date sugar syrup. I only had half of my serve and combined it with 4 ounces of cottage cheese to balance out the macronutrients and added a tablespoon of brewer’s yeast for the B vitamins. I also had a tablespoon of bee pollen.
Lunch was pretty well measured – 2 cups of cucumber and 2 tablespoons of mustard. Pretty simple. And because it was so low calorie I was able to relax about dinner.
I went for a walk with my husband into the center of town and we had dinner at a very cheap local place. The whole meal for both of us was just $3 and as it often is here in Bali these are the tastiest meals you find and with very fresh ingredients. I had tofu cooked with chayote in coconut milk, crispy sweet tempeh, spinach with mung bean sprouts and stir fried carrot, cauliflower, cabbage. I also had just a little red rice (about 3 tablespoons) which is a variety of brown rice with a really nutty flavor. A really healthy veggie meal which made me feel okay about having a glass of white wine after our walk home.
Total estimated intake for the day was 1143 with 88% vitamins and 92% minerals.
I’ve been having a much higher calorie intake this week – around 1200 – and while I think my energy has improved I often have the feeling that I am not really doing CR. I personally enjoy the feeling of lightness and mental clarity that I have with the lower intakes.
I thought about maybe incorporating some lower calorie days and mixing it up a bit. I think this is one possible approach to CRON. But I am not really sure about the feasibility of this method, particularly in terms of ensuring adequate nutrition especially in regard to water soluble vitamins. If anyone has experimented with this I would be very interested to hear of your experiences.
One way I have proceeded in the past was to have a lower calorie intake on weekdays and a higher intake on weekends beginning on Friday evening. This worked very well for me psychologically because I had the experience of lightness and discipline alternating with the feeling of freedom and being able to socialize normally on weekends. I also think having a higher calorie goal on weekends allows for inclusion of foods that would normally be avoided so this may improve nutritional status by increased variety of foods.
I am always seeking balance it seems. Yes I am thinking about my health in the long term. Obviously because why else would I spend so much time learning about nutrition and analyzing my intake? I would just eat low calorie foods and be done with it. This would be so much easier.
In order for this to be a lifestyle that I can sustain I need to be healthy and be able to maintain my energy or else what’s the point?
To be honest my major motivation for undertaking CRON is for the shorter term benefits and my increased quality of life here and now! Of course the two things are inseparable. Quality nutrition long term promotes improved life quality.
And this comes back to finding the balance between measurement and estimation; planning and spontaneity. CRON can provide so much freedom in ways that can only be experienced. Ironically structure and discipline within itself can promote a feeling of freedom; perhaps by leading to a perception of integrity because of overcoming challenges continually and finding the internal strength to continue to do what we have decided is right for us.
Everyone has to find their own way but personally I need to experience both sides of the spectrum. The times I have spent on detox diets and very low calorie diets I believe have enriched me immensely and contributed to my growth as a person. But my life experience would not be complete without a little bit of the opposite as well and for me that means being able to enjoy a good meal and a couple of glasses of wine every now and then, and sometimes even dessert.
Some people call that having your cake and eating it – well I say we can!
