It worked! As a means of cutting calories while staying satisfied, Drummond cut down her sugar intake dramatically, opting instead for more filling foods. However, she says that the occasional treat is still on the menu. I'm The Pioneer Woman and I love food!
But the piece of cake was the size of Rhode Island instead of Texas, and it wasn't an everyday thing," she says.
As a means of both cutting calories and adopting healthier habits in terms of her exercise and eating, Drummond drank no alcohol during the first four months of her weight loss journey. While Drummond says she's "back to having an occasional grown-up beverage again," she now opts for tequila with Topo Chico sparkling mineral water and fresh lime juice instead of more caloric drinks. To stay on track with her weight loss, Drummond relied on the Happy Scale app, which helps illustrate how many pounds you've lost and the rate at which you're losing.
Since Drummond was writing a cookbook while trying to lose weight, she opted for a standing desk to ensure she didn't spend the whole day sitting. It was a simple shift in mindset, but it was important! Her favorite ways to get moving? Walking, using a rowing machine, and Pilates. One of Ree's fitness goals included muscles, so she started building strength training into her workout routine.
Ladd her husband helped her come up with a rotation of exercises that targeted Ree's legs and butt. Once she was comfortable with her calorie deficit, Ree also started tracking how much protein she was eating. Some of her favorite new high-protein foods are low fat plain Greek yogurt, low fat cottage cheese, lean meats, fish, egg whites, and almonds. Ree wanted to get the most out of the foods she was eating. She still treated herself to a slice of cake every once in a while, "but the piece of cake was the size of Rhode Island instead of Texas.
That's right: Ree went dry. She lists a few reasons for going booze-free. Alcohol is a bunch of empty calories, she reasoned and Ree wanted to give her body a break from drinking while she ramped up her daily exercise. Now, she still drinks occasionally, but she steers clear of high-calorie cocktails.
Ree also used Happy Scale, a weight-loss-tracking app that shows you your progress toward your goal weight. She says Happy Scale was a big part of her motivation. As part of her plan to make exercise part of her daily routine, Ree set up a standing desk. She says the desk helped remind her to take more breaks and move around throughout the day.
Fun fact: Ree was writing another cookbook while losing the weight. Ree says her journey won't be ending any time soon. And speaking of eye opening—it really woke me up to the portions I had grown accustomed to eating! As with calories, I had completely lost sight of the volume I was eating—so it was an education in those first few weeks.
Note: I still ate good food. I just ate less of it, and I valued the calories more and made sure I ate things that offered more nutritional bang for the buck. And today, while I still weigh food occasionally if I'm curious or unsure, I'm not as meticulous as I was since I now have an overall sense of portion sizes and corresponding general calorie count. This was all about "calories out" but it was also about just wanting to move my bod more and not feel so out of shape. I made exercise a regular part of my day, whether I walked with the dogs or did the rowing machine which is in our living room!
I learned that making time each day to exercise simply had to be done—because, just like having a baby, there's never a good time. I'd gotten so accustomed to excusing myself from working out because of my work schedule or travel schedule It was a simple shift in mindset, but it was important! As for what exercise I did: I walked 2 to 3 miles, or did the rowing machine, or did Pilates—but not with traditional Pilates machines!
I used to do a floor version of Pilates Winsor Pilates from the early 's, can I get an amen? So for the rower and Pilates, I was able to do it in the house, usually while Ladd and I were watching a spy thriller or some other weird movie. Whatever exercise I do has to happen on the ranch, because I don't like to go places.
I exercised 6 days a week, sometimes twice a day morning walk, evening rowing machine , sometimes just once. I hit a major weight loss plateau about six weeks in, just after Ladd's accident. For a straight week-plus, even though I hadn't changed a thing, I abruptly stopped losing weight.
Rather than get frustrated okay, I was a little frustrated. Okay, I was mad , I Googled and researched and ultimately determined that I needed to build more muscle mass since muscle burns more calories than fat. Until that time, I hadn't done much except some measly bicep curls with five pound hand weights. So here was the kicker: I asked Ladd, "How do I build more muscle, anyway? But Ladd responded, "If you really want to build more muscle in order to burn calories, you need to build them in your legs and your butt—since those muscles are much bigger than your arm muscles.
I was 52 years old and had never once considered that concept. Also, I had no idea how to build muscle in my legs and my butt! So Ladd, while stuck in his neck brace, by the way, showed me how to do lunges, squats, straight-leg deadlifts, and calf raises. And guess what? I was absolutely pitiful when I started. I am a former ballerina but literally could not do a proper lunge without toppling over. I had zero strength in my lower body and my legs trembled and gave out.
But I still did it, about four days a week to start, and laughed at my uncoordinated clumsiness every time. And I couldn't walk for the first few days! I wailed and complained, but since I had a husband with a broken neck, I mostly kept it to myself.
Today, a few months later, I am just now able to do a real lunge all the way to the ground. I can do squats! And I'm not talking lots of weight, either.
I usually use either 5 pound or 8 pound hand weights. And started using 5 pound ankle weights when I do Pilates. It's exciting! And most importantly, I now have palpable muscles in my legs and my butt. It feels good as someone who isn't a spring chicken to actually see and feel new muscles in my bod.
I thought I was washed up and on the road to nowhere, muscle tone wise. But now, poor Ladd is actually tired of me asking him to squeeze my thighs and comment on their current firmness and taking his hand and putting it on my glute so he can feel me flex it. Another piece of information I gleaned during my weight loss plateau research was that many people successfully push through by upping the daily percentage of protein they consume.
It made sense, though admittedly, I'd never thought to track my protein consumption before. Since I was already tracking my calories, it wasn't a stretch to also make note of the protein of the things I was eating on a daily basis. It worked! Long story short: Between the muscle building and the protein increase, I pushed through my plateau just a few days later and another plateau a few weeks later Eating more protein also made me feel more satisfied and gave me more energy , so it was a good move for many reasons.
I love it all! Then to fill in the blanks, lots of spinach raw or cooked , an apple a day, kale, carrots This is a no-brainer, but it all boiled down to the eternal calorie-counting question: "If I am eating X calories today, do I want to blow of those calories on a doughnut?
Or do I instead want to spend 50 of them on a piece of good dark chocolate to get my fix, then keep eating things with more nutritive content?
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