Neverending Transformation

I’ve spent some time reflecting and taking an honest look at why I’m not continuing to see movement on the scale. The answer: FOOD. I asked myself what I was doing differently a year ago when I dropped 25 lbs in 2 months. I asked myself what I’m REALLY consuming now. Staying free of gluten and dairy doesn’t mean I don’t have the opportunity to sneak in foods with a high calorie density, like potato chips. So it’s time for yet another reset. This time with the food I’m eating.

One thing I did when I started this journey was prep my meals for the week. It kept me from ordering in with coworkers, starving myself to the point of over-snacking, and reduced the opportunity for extra calories to sneak their way in.

This week I’m trying a new salad—kale & cabbage with cucumbers, onions, radicchio, pepitas and 3oz of grilled chicken. I’ll admit, I did find some GF croutons to add, but I’ll stick to the serving size and make the box last a month. Dressing is only 30 cal/tsp and nut-milk based. I’ll post a photo of it later once I confirm it’s not disgusting!

If you’re trying to lose weight and things have come to a screeching halt, I encourage you to do some honest self-reflecting and make adjustments as needed.

Look at that line representing my weight. HOLY SHIT. Each line on the x axis is 10 lbs so I’ve lost a total of approximately 165 lbs in 5 years. Point being, if I stuck with it, I would have been able to stop years ago. The good news is that I finally “get” this, and I’m no longer willing to waste efforts. We all know there are going to be fluctuations, but I will sound the alarm at 7 lbs and make quick adjustments. That’s what I had to do over the holidays, and it worked!

Today I started a new fitness journey with the Sweat app weight loss program. The app is super easy to use and guides you through each timed exercise. Since it’s on your phone, you can use it anywhere, which is great for me since I travel so frequently for work. I’ll be keeping you all posted on my progress, and I’m excited to have a new motivator.

I’m still doing intermittent fasting (M-F, 18:6), and I’m at my lowest weight in 5 years!

It’s been a while since I shared an amazing food discovery. Check out all the claims from Healthy Noodle—- fat free, dairy free, gluten free, sugar free, only 25 cal per serving!

We’ve been using them to make chicken stir fry with veggies (topped with a delicious homemade sauce, of course) and it’s SO GOOD! It feels like a cheat, but it’s far from it!

Summary of progress:

First day of intermittent fasting: 1/11

Total days fasting: 10 (2 days skipped)

Total weight loss since 1/11: 7 lbs

Last time I checked in it was with new commitments to myself in the new year. Little did I know that I was going to work 75+ hours every week due to complete insanity at work. It’s fair to say that has hindered my workout goal. Soooo, I decided it was a great time to really give intermittent fasting a whirl!

In the past, I’ve thrown in a fast here and there, but I’ve never done it frequently because I didn’t want to sacrifice any of my workouts. But if I’m working 15 hour days, why the hell not really test it out?

So how’s it going? So glad you asked!

I LOOOOVE IT!!!!!

I’ve been doing 18:6 and it’s been very manageable with my schedule. I typically eat dinner at 6:30pm, fast for 18 hours, and then eat lunch at 12:30pm the following day. I do find myself getting hungry around 10am, but this forces me to drink more water while I complete my 18 hour fast, so no complaints there!

I downloaded the Life fitness app which is VERY basic (like most fasting apps I tested), but it’s great for tracking fasts, seeing when you’re in ketosis, and having friends join your fasting circle so you can have accountability buddies.

I lost 5 lbs in the first 3 days (those pesky 5 that I gained and lost several times during the last 2 months of 2018), and I FEEL so much better! I’m also slowly transitioning to Keto, because Keto + intermittent fasting makes your body a fat-burning powerhouse.

I’m going to see what kind of results I can get my continuing this through Jan, and go from there. I’ll likely make this my M-F routine until I reach my goal weight. And yes, I’m still free of gluten, dairy, beef & pork!

How are y’all doin?

I woke up this morning and my husband cooked fried potatoes & onions with runny eggs. Ahhhh, the holidays. It’s been a month or two since I’ve let things slip. No gluten or dairy, but no calorie counting and waaaaay too many potatoes. I am so stoked for the new year, and as I sit here binge-watching Christmas movies with a very full (and flabby) belly, I am mentally gearing up to go hard on diet & exercise.

I’ll be honest. Mid-feb will be one year since I removed gluten & dairy, and I want nothing more than to be able to celebrate this accomplishment with a pizza. Yep. I WANT A PIZZA. But, I’ve slacked on the weight loss and have been up and down 5-7 lbs over the last month or so. Which means I slipped on my commitment to myself, and I will NOT reward myself until I’ve accomplished my goal.

So one week from now, it’s on. But for now I’m gonna watch Home Alone and be lazy as hell.

1. I joined a boot camp that starts Jan 2. Whether I’m ready or not, I’m committed to 2-3 sessions per week in addition to my gym routine. It’s time to really challenge myself (again).

2. I downloaded the premium version of the Fabulous app, and after 2 days I’m in love. I have a major problem with routine. I find them draining and boring. I’m extremely unpredictable (Will she eat dinner tonight or paint a canvas instead? Will she go to the gym this morning or get up and clean the entire house? Will she wash her hair at all this week??? You get the idea). Anyways, this app focuses on forming healthy habits (routines) which encourage us to be healthier, more grateful, mindful, successful, etc. They start simple and add goals as you go. While working on these small goals (for example: my current goal is to drink water first thing every morning, and after 3 days the goal of daily exercise will be added), you have access to coaching/training modules such as yoga, meditation, etc. The reminders are unique and peaceful and accompanied by visually stimulating illustrations. It’s totally legit, created by some Duke University decision (I’d be more precise but my memory is atrocious). SO, I know it sounds like I get a cut for promoting the app but I’m really not that special, I just like to share things that I think are amazeballs. Check it out. Could be a good Christmas gift, and at only $50 a year, the return on investment could be huge.

Okay. Shit. Let’s do this damn thing. Finally & again.

I’ve been busy. Work is inane. We were in the Virgin Islands for a week (I know, poor me). We are overcomitting socially. I decided to dive back into my photography and have been printing, framing, posting, etc. I’ve been distracted, and diet has taken a backseat. And this has once again proven, for about the 40th time in my life, that it just won’t work if you don’t make it THE priority above all else.

I’ve gained 5 lbs. Blinked twice and boom. Weight gain. So it’s time for a reset. I’m starting a 3-4 day fast tomorrow. Gym routine will be downgraded to slow walking on the treadmill for an hour each morning. Water & green tea only!

So that’s that. Anyone with me?

Or perhaps, both can work in harmony?

Anyone out there have proven results from intermittent fasting that didn’t result in loss of muscle or fitness motivation?

I wanted to fast tomorrow & Thu (specifically, no eating from the previous night’s dinner until dinner 24 hours later), but everything I’ve read says not to workout on fasting days. That bugs me. I was religiously going to the gym 5 days a week before all my work travel started, and now that it’s finally slowing down, I want to get back in the gym routine. I went this morning and it felt great! So here I am already bumming out about not being able to go tomorrow.

It feels like all I do is push the limits and reset these days. But what can I say? Life doesn’t stop because we’re dieting. Work doesn’t stop. Social commitments don’t stop. And these damn holidays don’t stop!

I’ve been playing with fire. I’ve learned exactly how close I can get without completely burning myself. But dammit that is NOT going to allow me to lose any weight! This week I’ll really be shaking things up with intermittent fasting, Keto shakes, and low-carb dinners.

This week’s plan:

Mon: gym, Keto shakes for breakfast & lunch, turkey bacon, eggs & guac for dinner

Tue: fast until dinner (same dinner all week)

Wed: gym, reasonable lunch & dinner repeated

Thu: fast until dinner & same dinner

Fri: gym, Keto shakes, poke for dinner

Sat: hike + lunch (TBD, but reasonable...same for dinner)

Since my last update I’ve come off Keto. And I wasn’t really doing keto...more like less than 10 carbs a day and barely any fat. It was good for blasting through a plateau, but it’s just not for me. I am starting to read about intermittent fasting...because why not TRY EVERYTHING???

I haven’t quite gotten back into the daily gym routine, but the work travel is slowing down (for now), so that should resume next week. In the meantime, I’ve gotten a group of friends together who are interested in going hiking a couple of times a month AND I bought a bike! I woke up this morning at 5, contemplated being lazy, but instead decided to go for a bike ride. I only got in 3 miles, but I did get my heart rate up!

I had my 6 month check-up Thursday to see if my thyroid is now functioning normally on the medication I’ve been prescribed (it was determined earlier this year that I have an under active thyroid, which was doubly supported by an RMR that showed my metabolism is 23% lower than it should be). The doctor was super excited about the weight loss. FYI- the weight loss is not attributed to the thyroid. While the regulation of the thyroid is key, the medication just gets it functioning normally. It would have to be OVERACTIVE to cut through years of fat.

I’m rambling, but the point of this post is that I’m adding new activities to my routine, and will be returning to a daily gym visit as of Monday. I’m not killing myself over calories or carbs, but am still avoiding gluten & dairy, boosting the physical activity, and letting the weight come off slowly.

Dare I set a new goal? Yes, I dare!! I’m currently 29 lbs from my target weight. I think I should be able to get there by 2/16. That’s 2 lbs a week with a little extra room for the inevitable plateaus ahead.

I just laughed to myself considering that my original goal was 50 lbs in 90 days, and here I am 7 months later, finally reaching 45 lbs.

BUT, the reality is that I work 50 hours a week, I like to socialize and have fun, I like to travel. What inspired me to set such an aggressive goal was one of those shows on TV where the people have a celebrity trainer and (apparently) no other responsibilities.

I’ve gone through a weight loss journey several times. What is different this time is that I haven’t really beat myself up if I didn’t achieve an aggressive goal. Instead, I just kept going. I didn’t give up if the scale didn’t move for 2 weeks, I just tried something different. And I didn’t let a couple of slips do me in, I just got right back on track.

I owe this last 7 lbs of weight loss to changing things up. I HAD gotten a little stuck. I WAS adhering to my diet, buuuut I stopped paying so much attention to calories. Potatoes became an almost daily staple. They are GF ya know! 🤣 Anyways, I hopped on the low-carb kick Monday and got rid of a few lbs I had gained plus more!