egg thief

Before we started using Bionicgym in an attempt to lose weight, I wanted a baseline of what my estimated body composition was. Here are the results from my Composition ID Dexa scan. As i suspected, I gained 7 pounds from January. Yikes!

Being stuck at the house during state lockdowns, not being able to workout at OrangeTheory or RTR Pilates, and worsening bad habits during the Covid crisis all contributed to the weight gain. Hopefully with BionicGym and a more controlled eating pattern, we’ll lose weight!

In 2017, I backed bionicgym on indiegogo to secure an interesting electro stimulation device that you place on your thighs, turn on, and shake your way to weight loss.

[that was pretty reductive. but if you’re reading this blog, it’s quite possible you already know the full details having read their website and probably many other posts about BG so let’s not repeat, yea?]

There was a lot of activity in facebook groups and reddit as time went on. Some comments were very harsh and critical. Can’t really blame them. We paid a lot of money but nothing to show for it for years. [many are still waiting]

Yes, it was crowd funded.

Yes, crowd funded means no guarantees.

Yes, startups have growing pains.

But, please remember :

lotttttta money x thousands of backers = certain level of expectation.

No one wants to feel like they’ve been duped.

In 2019, despite the negativity and doubt, we double downed and this time, my partner purchased a set too and I ordered extra wraps at a discount. We believed in Louis and Tuoyo and believed in their research and outcomes posted by beta testers. We decided to be patient.

When devices finally started shipping - it was amazing news! I even received a shipping label! However, time passed and nothing happened. We eventually learned that we unfortunately got skipped [a couple times] and that original label eventually canceled. We waited some more as the pounds continued to creep on, lol. Thanks covid.

Finally.

June 22, 2020.

It arrived.

Honestly, I think the bionicgym sets would have arrived a couple days sooner if I hadn’t diverted the package to a UPS access point. We were concerned the shipment would get lost or “accidentally” refused [which happened to us before] so we just wanted to be sure. After picking it up later that afternoon, we started charging it, read through all the instructions, watched all the videos, and took turns helping each other placing on the pads.

And then,

we got to shaking.

Wow, time flies. Originally this blog was called dropthatfat and tracked Modius as a method to a leaner body. My weight has gone up and down since then.

I’m not sure if I can say that Modius was the ultimate reason but when I was on it and doing macros and exercise, I *did* have a better body composition. Then I gained weight and restarted macro counting without Modius but yes to sporadic exercise I lost weight but it seemed slower and harder. Was that because of low exercise or because of no Modius?

Anyway, I gained weight again. Surprise surprise. So this time, I’ll do Modius, macros, and exercise. Since macros involves a sick amount of eggs for me, I changed the blog name to eggthief.

I didn’t have any abdominal pain or bloating this morning like I did yesterday so that’s good.  It probably wasn’t Modius.  

Last night, I plopped on the headset - it looks like a tiara - and stuck the electrodes on.  I wish Modius would be a little more detailed in their quick start guide about where to place the electrodes.  

“the bony part behind your ear”

If you think about it, the majority of your skull is pretty hard and bony.  So, depending on where you stick it, you could be directing the shocks towards the temporal bone, the mastoid part of the temporal bone, or even your jaw (everyone’s ear anatomy is different).  

Also, I’m wondering if the angle in which you apply the electrode could inadvertently change the direction of the electric shock as well.  For example, I’m touching the bony part, and then I apply the pad where I believe it is, and then it seems that it points towards the fleshy part between the bone and the ear.  would the shock reach the hard part that way?  

I think yesterday that might have been the case.  Because today, I repositioned the electrodes to be more angled flatly against a hard bone and I felt the shocks more consistently.  I still didn’t feel it too much on the left side so I will try repositioning that side a little more tonight.  

I felt terrible this morning with abdominal pain and bloating.  But, it could be from a new restaurant I ate at last night, a couple drinks that I had, staying up late but not eating, the friendly monthly cycle, or, it could have been a Modius after effect.

Modius Unboxing

I finally received my Modius Headset !!! 

In September 2017, I happened to read an online article about an IndieGoGo campaign for a device that could cause you to lose fat.  It is a headset that looks like something out of Star Trek with electrodes that attach to the bony areas behind your ears.  A specific type of electrical impulse on a specific frequency is transmitted over this area for 60 minutes a day with the intention of “reprogramming” your hypothalamus section of the brain which can lead to fat loss.  I was genuinely (okay, obsessively) intrigued.  Could this device actually work?  

I admit that the first thing that popped into my brain was an infomercial where Arnold Schwarzeneggar was tapping on a stone age computer while electric shocks caused his breast muscles to twitch up and down.  The ultimate workout to get huge pec muscles without lifting a finger !!!  

And, I’ll admit that the second thing that popped into my brain was whether I’d be been sitting on a fat loss goldmine by letting my TENS unit gather dust in the closet.  After all, it sends electric shocks to whatever muscle is sore that day.  Zap Zap Nation !!!

But, after reading through the numerous articles, blogs, interviews, and even preliminary research data, I’m thinking this device may actually work.  

There are several ways to measure your body fat content like fat calipers that pinch your fat pouches in key areas, water displacement technology, air displacement technology, and also electromagnetic fields.  But one of the more accurate ways to find out just how much of your body is bones vs muscle vs fat, is to undergo a DEXA scan.  

DEXA technology has been around for decades.  Physicians (like me) use DEXA scanners to determine the bone density of men and women in order to screen, diagnose, monitor, and manage osteoporosis or osteopenia.  More recently, the technology has been adapted to help consumers use this information in a different way, to determine their body fat composition.  With that information, you could determine whether certain lifestyle changes like a change in your diet, or a change in your fitness routine, is really working the way you want it to.  Are you losing or gaining muscle?  Are you losing or gaining fat?  It’s better than the number on your scale.  It doesn’t hurt to get it done.  It’s quick as get out.  And there is only a 1-2% error rate!  

Back in September 2017, I had my first one done as a baseline.  You can see the numbers in the 2nd photo from the September visit and the January 2018 visit.  As you can see, my weight didn’t really change.  I gained half a pound!  But, look at the fat and lean pounds.  I dropped 1.5 pounds of fat and gained 2 pounds of lean muscle!  To me, this is great because I’m shedding the fat like I wanted and am building more muscle which will help burn fat!  

Also, I feel a little healthier.  

Case in point, about 2 years ago, I walked 3 miles to the Capital and back to my friends place.  Then, the next day I sprinted...across the intersection...and hurt both of my knees chronically.  The doctor essentially said my leg muscles were too weak to support the load on my knees and it caused an inflammatory process.  It took months to heal and even now I still feel like they ache from time to time.  

Then, on Christmas Eve, my girlfriend and I were in NYC to celebrate the holidays.  That day, we walked 10.11 miles!!!  Over the Williamsburg bridge, around ChinaTown, to Gramercy Park, shopping just a smidge, then back over the bridge to our cute airbnb.  I couldn’t believe the final tally when she told me.  I was sore the next couple days but happily sore and not injured sore.  

During the past 4 months, after my first DEXA scan at Composition ID, I made a couple dietary changes and a couple fitness changes.  For diet, I stopped eating frozen foods or fast foods during lunch at work.  Instead, I ordered from Vegetable & Butcher, a husband and wife team in the Ivy City section of DC who cook delicious, healthy, properly proportioned paleo dishes Monday to Thursday.  I tried to cut back on eating too much for dinner and less snacks in the house.  (The less snacks bit might not have been too successful.)  I also juiced 2 times, each 5 days long, a couple months apart.  For fitness, I went to FlyWheel sporadically, Solidcore twice, and my at home pullup bar daily.

Could these little changes have been the reason for my fat loss and muscle gain?  I believe it!

Have you made a new years resolution, goal, or intention for 2018?  Mine is fat loss.  Yes, you read that right.  Fat loss.  Not weight loss.  Why?

Weight can fluctuate based on several variables - like the time of day, hormones, salt intake, water intake, your muscles, and of course your fat.  This year, I’d like to know exactly how I’m doing regarding my intention to lose fat.  If I build muscle for example, my weight may stay the same or increase and that could derail my confidence.  Conversely, if I lose fat and I lose muscle to shed pounds, then I’m actually getting weaker and that’s not healthy either.  

Back in September, I went to Composition ID and did a scan to detail the exact percentage breakdown of my body’s fat, tissue, bone, and muscle mass.  I made some small changes in my diet and exercise routine.  Then, I did one again on Saturday. After four months, there were some small changes which was expected given that I wasn’t really diligent the past four months.  

I’ll be using Composition ID over the next few months to document my body’s changes as I undergo different fat loss strategies over time.  What I’m really excited for is the Modius headset.  Preliminary studies and user experiences have been positive for losing fat.  More about that soon.  

Here are before photos.  I hope you’ll join me on this journey to a leaner, healthier body!  Cheers to 2018!