What am I doing this week?

The following by Christopher Mohr, bodybuilding.com

"Admit it, you too have spent countless hours at the gym doing "low intensity" cardio to burn more body fat. C'mon, it's ok, we've all wasted hours on a treadmill..."

"It is important to note that fat requires oxygen to be burned as fuel, which is where the misconception about low intensity aerobics burning more fat comes into play. The thought is that if you have more oxygen available (e.g., you're not gasping for air because your intensity is so low), you'll be able to burn more fat."

"It is true that a greater percentage of calories burned will come from fat if exercising at a low intensity. However, because you're exercising at a lower intensity, you will burn fewer total calories.
On the contrary, if you do a harder, higher intensity activity, like sprinting on a track, or a bike, you'll burn an overall greater amount of calories."

"So even though a lower percentage of these calories will come from fat, a lower percentage of a higher number is still greater than a higher percentage of a much lower number. Make sense?"

McMaster University Study

Maybe you're less concerned about fat loss, but think that sprinting will negatively affect your endurance capacity. Well, looks like this isn't true either.

A study conducted at McMaster University in Ontario and published in the highly-regarded Journal of Applied Physiology suggested that short sprint interval training increased muscle oxidative potential and doubled endurance capacity during intense aerobic cycling in recreationally active individuals.

Subjects:
Sixteen healthy individuals participated in this study. Out of the 16, 8 subjects were in the experimental (sprint) group and 8 were in the control group (no training intervention).

Method:
The sprinting sessions consisted of six sessions of sprint interval training spread over a 14-day period (not quite every other day).

The sessions each consisted of a 30-second "all out" effort on a cycle. Subjects then rested 4 minutes between sets and either completely rested or performed light cycling with little resistance.

In this short, 2-week intervention, it was demonstrated that brief repeated bouts dramatically improves endurance capacity during a fixed workload. Moreover, it was shown that intense exercise can rapidly stimulate improvements in muscle oxidative potential comparable to or greater than that of standard aerobic based training. This basically means the capacity to perform aerobic work over time.

Moral of the story:
Sprinting is more effective for fat loss sprinting vs. low intensity walking or cycling for hours on end. It also frees up a lot of time to get home and recover.

Information from Bodybuilding.com http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/mohr102.htm

So what am I doing this week? In addition to weight training, I'll be sprinting.

In four minutes, the treadmill said I burned 140 calories (35 cals per minute) but that won't be accurate. The only way to track my calories burned is through a heart rate monitor, because the treadmill just gives an average output. So, since I'm under average weight, by quite a lot, I will burn way less calories.

But it also doesn't factor in what you are burning post exercise. The same is true with weight lifting, you have the "after burn effect", which will keep you in a state of increased fat burning long after the workout is over.

Reset

I've been doing a little back and forth chatting with an AMAZING woman. She is a figure competitor in her 50s and her physique is stunning. She would be amazing to have that body at 20 and to think she is 50 and looking that good is a just crazy awesome. There is a lot of hard work and dedication into looking like that. And she just recently took home a first place trophy at a figure competition! MUCH deserved.

I feel like I have put in a lot of hard work and dedication too (obviously not as much as she has) but I still don't feel like I have the body to show for all my efforts. Something I'm doing is not helping, but hindering the progress I feel like I should be making. So I decided to go out on a limb and contact this woman, tell her a bit about myself and my "problem" and see if she could help me. Pinpoint what I was doing wrong with training and/or diet and give me a few suggestions.

She graciously agreed to help me out, despite having a family, full time career and crazy training schedule herself. I felt guilty about asking so much of her. I hope that some day, I can return the favor somehow.

Anyway, she wanted to take a look at what my training schedule was, the workouts I did and what I was eating. Lucky for me, I track all that stuff so I was able to fill her in. One thing she said really sticks out in my mind:

"Cardio is not your friend."

As you know, I am a staunch advocate for weight training OVER cardio as the way to get the body you desire. Unless you desire to be "skinny fat". That's a term for skinny people who look soft. If that's your desired outcome, do tons of cardio!

She looked at my workouts and told me I was doing too much cardio. Which was shocking because I really didn't think I did all that much. I had recently ramped it up in the final stages of a timeline to goal, as prescribed by my latest road to fat loss guru. But that was only 20 minutes after weight training plus a couple of HIIT sessions on off days. Typically, the only cardio I would do in the past would be 3 sessions, 20 minutes each, of high intensity interval training (HIIT) per week in addition to weight training. That's only an hour a week. HIIT has never proven to be a super effective way to burn fat off my body either. I like to do it for the cardiovascular benefit more than anything.

Also, she didn't think that I was eating enough calories. It always seemed strange to me that eating less calories and being in a deficit never produced fat loss. Sure, it did when I had lots of weight to lose, but the smaller I became, the more impossible it was to shed fat. I'm probably at a point where I need to just eat. And eat enough calories and do enough heavy weight training to gain as much muscle as I possibly can. That's the only way my shape will improve and look the way I want it to look.

Right now, I'm skinny fat (although my family tries desperately to convince me it's just skinny....I know the reality). Because either I would be solely training with weights (yet eat like a dieter, trying to lose fat) or I would go through periods where I thought I needed more cardio because the weight training on it's own wasn't working. So I would start running daily. But all those years I spent weight training and dieting at the same time, I wasn't adding much muscle and the muscle I might have added got wasted away when I decided to add cardio to the picture. Of course I wasn't improving! I've been spinning my wheels and driving myself insane trying this, that and the other thing because I feel like nothing works for me. All this time, I just needed to eat and GAIN.

For the past two weeks I've let a lot slide. I haven't been killing myself in the gym and I haven't been sticking to any sort of diet. My family seems to be a lot happier about it. But I am not. My stomach hates me. It tells me daily. But I'm just giving myself a break from it all. A break from the obsession. A break from the constant worrying if what I'm doing is right or wrong. I am trying to live like a "normal" person until I figure out what my next goal is and how I'm going to achieve it. With the help of one terrific lady. If you happen to read this, you know who you are. And you have NO IDEA how grateful I am to you for trying to help me out.

So, while I will not have my perfect bikini body YET AGAIN for summer, I will not give up. I'm done with fat loss, I'm done with my timeline, I'm just going to switch it all off. Reset.

Part 3: Why all that cardio isn't helping you lose fat

Here's something I stumbled upon. If you are a cardio lover looking to lose fat, you might want read this:

"Excessive cardio, like a hurricane wind, blows out the fat burning flame because it causes the body's hormones to "bottom out" and metabolism goes south. This response is even more severe if you "go on a diet" and the same time. Most people fail because they focus on burning calories. Who cares about burning calories? We want to burn fat, not calories.


Here's why Eat Less + Increase Activity DOES NOT EQUAL Weight Loss:

1. Phantom weight loss: some fat burning yes, but more muscle wasting and dehydration.
2. Weight loss plateau after 2-3 weeks due to your body developing a tolerance to what you are doing.
3. You gain all the weight back plus more once you quit due to a depressed metabolism."

The more you cardio yourself to death every day, the more you are setting yourself up for future fat gain. Hey, it happened to me. (see part 2)

But cardio is so good for us, it must mean the more the better....right? Nope.

"Some years ago I met Clinical Nutritionist Mark Smith who is a health expert and a PhD from an accredited university. He explained to me that doing one minute burst training instead of lengthy cardio exercise would turn my life around. As an example – he suggested that instead of jogging on the treadmill for one hour, [and he presented evidence to back up his statement], I should sprint as fast as I could for one minute, four times a day, three days a week. He explained that this practice would burn more fat than one hour of cardio a day, seven days a week. He was right!"

"Research in exercise science has shown that growth hormone levels in the body rise with burst training and also with hard high intensity weight lifting."

"If you want to go on the path of accelerated aging do lots of cardio. You will age faster by joining a spin class. Look at the faces of long duration cardio kings and queens, old and dried up. It’s no joke. Raise stress hormones and age fast....."

I am SO going to try that! Imagine it....burning more fat in 12 minutes a week than you can doing 7 hours of boring steady state cardio in the same time frame!

And, another tidbit fer ya:

"Studies have shown that too much, long-duration cardio raises cortisol levels (cortisol is a catabolic, tissue destroying, steroid) and therefore, hinder the natural anabolic hormones. The human heart is made of muscle. Smooth muscle, unlike our biceps and quads which are striated muscle, but can still be affected by catabolic processes."


To be fair, I did want to add that cortisol is released during intense weight training also. Which is why strength athletes reach a plateau. Continuing on with the quote...


"After reading sport medicine journals and exercise physiology journals I was floored to read the science behind it all. Go to your local library and ask for "Strength/endurance training vs. endurance training in congestive heart failure. Delagardelle, et al. Med Sci Sports Exerc. Dec, 2002."

Wow, I want to check that out! My dad had congestive heart failure. When it's in the family, I think there is a responsibility there to be on the preventative side.

Ever heard of Jim Fixx? Fixx wrote“The Complete Book of Running” and it was credited for helping fuel the running boom of the 1980’s. Fixx died of a heart attack while running. He was 53. Not that running caused his death, but he was obviously an avid runner, having written a book about it and all. Yet he still had elevated blood cholesterol and blockage in his coronary arteries.

You can help prevent elevated blood cholesterol, however, with proper nutrient timing, as I am learning in my new book that I'm reading. What you eat before and after you workout, whether you are an endurance athelete or a strength athelete is VERY important to your performance and your health!!

Look, I'm not saying, stop doing cardio or you'll die. There are people who (gulp) LOVE it. I would love to eat chocolate as steady state, long duration sport. That doesn't mean it's good for me or is going to get me the body I crave. My point to this spiel is this, if you want to look muscular and tight, the best way NOT to get it is to be a cardio junkie. Chances are, if you are reading a fitness blog, you have some interest in improving yourself by either looking better, feeling better, or being healthier. Or, you just stumbled across my page while looking up cheese on the internet.

And here's more of what I think (in case you're still reading):

I think cardio is the first choice for some people because it's easier. [Unless you are training many long hours for marathons....holy crap, nothing easy about that!!] Let's face it, it doesn't require a lot to watch the clock sloooolwy ticking while on a treadmill. And if you can read a magazine while exercising, it probably isn't hard work. You'd be surprised by how many people actually do this at the gym. Or maybe you wouldn't. I was.

When I'm on cardio equipment, it gives me too much time to think: about EVERYTHING. I think about how much stuff I need to get done today, how much stuff I didn't finish yesterday, how much I'd rather be doing anything else in the world than be on this treadmill....thinking, thinking, thinking.....it drives me crazy!

With weight training, you don't have time to think about anything except the muscle you are training, the moment you are training it. Catching your breath, and moving on to the next exercise, where you will again be so focused on your form, your breathing, and the muscle, that you don't have time to stress about everything else. And it's hard. Your muscles burn. You feel like you are accomplishing something. Because you are! You are building and defining muscle. You are strengthening your bones. You are becoming stronger and healthier.

I would say 'anyone can do cardio' but that isn't true. My mom can't. But she can lift weights! Get out of your comfort zone. Pick up some dumbbells.

Cha-cha-cha-changes

Went through some old binders of mine and found some interesting photos of myself circa 2005. I was doing this 6 week workout regimen called "Slim in 6" and I had taken some before pictures. Here's one of them:

I was totally grossed out by this picture when I saw it. I still had a pretty thin upper body but certainly no abs. And look at those hips! According to measurements back then, my thighs are each 3 inches smaller now.
You should see the backside view.
¡Ay, caramba!

Here is a current photo:

What a difference!!

BAZINGA!

Do I think I've lost any fat yet?

Yes, yes I do.

Compared to this picture, taken a few weeks ago:

I think I look leaner.

 9 and 1/2 more weeks to go!

Interesting information

I came across some interesting information the other day. A figure competitor I follow had posted something on Facebook that intrigued me. She said that she had her bodyfat percentage measured with this thing called the Bod Pod.

Bod Pod

Anyway, I guess it very accurately measures your bodyfat. I had never heard of this thing before! According to the Bod Pod, her bodyfat percentage was at 22% and she was blown away because her gym's calipers said she was at 16%. And she came to find out that she had been eating too few net calories (net calories are calories consumed minus calories burned) and if she goes too low below her RMR then losing body fat will be impossible. (RMR is resting metabolic rate)

Interesting....

I'd NEVER read that information ANYWHERE. And I've read a TON about this stuff over the past 5-6 years, trust me. First of all, I hadn't ever heard of RMR (I had heard of BMR) and I wanted to know what the difference was and why you won't lose fat if you eat fewer calories than your RMR.

According to this website I found, RMR, or resting metabolic rate, is the calories you would burn if you did nothing but rest for 24 hours. And per their calculator, my RMR is 1223. So if I did nothing for 24 hours, my body would require 1223 calories for energy.

Now this woman says that if you go below this number, it is impossible to lose fat. I would assume that since your body is using all it's resources for keeping you alive and functioning, it's not wasting any to help you lose fat at that point.

So, if for instance if I ate 1500 calories today, then burned off 400 calories at the gym, my net calories is 1100 (which is 123 calories under my RMR). So while it looks fantastic from a calorie deficit perspective, if I continually do this, I will not lose fat.

If I eat too much, I won't lose fat. If I eat too little, I won't lose fat. And how can I eat within that perfect range of calories required for fat loss long enough to actually see a loss in fat??

Another thing I was confused about was that to take the RMR calculation further, and factor in activity level, that drives the RMR number up. For me, it goes somewhere between 1600 and 1800. Then which number am I supposed to take note of when making sure not to go below it: the one factoring in exercise or not? Because there is a big difference between 1223 calories and 1896 calories.

It's food for thought though. Interesting theory indeed. Wouldn't it be cool if we could be implanted with some sort of chip that sent us data like how many calories we need, how many we actually burn and how many we actually consume on a daily basis?? If I were a scientist, this is what my life's ambition would be. Will someone please invent this? It would make my life infinitely easier ;)

SUCCESS!

One week has past since I first took my "official" measurements and decided to try carb cycling & increasing cardio. Well, that was the golden ticket for me because my plateau is officially BUSTED! Check it out:

3/21/2010:
weight: 117.6
hips: 37"
thighs: 21"
waist: 25"
belly button: 27"

3/28/2010:
weight: 115.4
hips: 36.5"
thighs: 20.5
waist: 25"
belly button: 26"

How's THAT for progress!! I am totally stoked! Plugging my stats into the equations given in the Burn the Fat Feed the Muscle book, it shows more of a lean body mass loss than a fat loss (which is typically bad), that's okay for the first week. He says that tends to happen at first (probably because more water is lost at first). But, I need to watch it, and if the trend is a steady decrease in lean body mass I'll need to eat more on my high carb days.

Anyway, you can't argue with the tape measure. Half an inch off the hips! I am feeling total bliss today. And it's just fueling me to work just as hard (if not harder) to reach my goal. Because I know it is attainable. Naysayers, EAT THAT!

This past weekend was off days as far as weight training was concerned. But I did cardio both days - 30 minutes Saturday & 45 minutes Sunday. Then I had my first cheat meal that week. It consisted of french fries and a crispy chicken sandwich from Space Aliens. It was good but I was SO dehydrated afterwards. I must have drank a gallon of water. I think it served as a good reminder of why I don't eat that crap anymore! It just makes you feel so lousy. Next time, I'm going to go for a big chocolate covered donut instead :)

I'm one step closer to my goal! Awesome! I wish you all the same great results with your fitness endeavors!

New idea

But first, the exercise log...

Lower Body #1
BB Squat 3 x 10 @ 60lbs
Stiff-legged Deadlift 3 x 10 @ 60lbs
Leg Extensions 3 x 10 @ 60lbs
Standing Calf Raise 3 x 10 @ 60lbs
Lying Ball Raise 3 X 12
Ball Crunch 3 x 10

So I happened to stumble across this website www.leangains.com

The content is about Intermittent Fasting for Strength Training and Fat Loss.

I was fascinated to say the least. At first I sort of cringed when I read the word "fasting", because I'm not one to enjoy missing meals. But as I delved further into the blog, I realized that it doesn't seem a whole lot like fasting when a majority of it is done while you sleep!

This idea (referred to as IF - intermittent fasting), spoke to me because I have been like a hamster in a wheel, spinning and spinning without getting anywhere!

Einstein said "The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again expecting a different result." --My husband reminded me of this quote, and I saw it again that night as I read the leangains blog, I HAD to find out more!

Surprisingly, what he says in this blog (backed up by scientific research and testing, of course) is that eating frequently has no more of a beneficial effect on your metabolism than eating 3 bigger meals a day. WHAT? You mean ALL this time I have been timing my meals to eat every 2-3 hours, and it hasn't done a thing to stoke my "metabolic fire"??

The basics of IF are: you fast for 16 hours, then feed for 8 hours (for women though, the "sweet spot", as he says, is fasting for 14 hours rather than 16). My example would be to break the fast at 10am and my feeding window would be from 10am to 8pm, in which I would eat 3 bigger meals. I tried it yesterday, I didn't eat breakfast until 10am, I ate lunch at around 1:30pm after my weight training session, then ate dinner at 5pm and was done for the night by 6pm. Now, technically I could have eaten until 8pm but I was so satisfied that I didn't want to!

It wasn't surprising to find out that getting to eat 3 good sized meals, instead of 5-6 mini meals that always left me wanting more, made me feel incredibly satisfied. All while staying within the perfect calorie range! No kidding, after my second meal, I still had 1 whopping 1000 calories left to consume!! HELLO pasta dinner!

I really think that this is worth giving a try. For me, anyway. My problem these days is that I'm pretty lean, yet I had those stubborn areas where fat loves to hang on, no matter how hard I try to get rid of it. And I'm human, so no matter how good I do at eating pretty "clean", I manage to slip now and then. So, I am at a point where I've been eating not enough calories to build lean muscle and not few enough to lose fat. Hamster in a wheel.

It was time to try something new and this fell into my lap. So I am giving it a go. One day down and I'm really excited that it seems to work very well for me. Eating big meals keeps me from being hungry and snacking in between, therefore, resulting in fewer unnecessary calories. And being I will be eating most of my calories after my workout, my muscles (hopefully) won't suffer. I am going to find out if the elusive "lose fat while gaining lean muscle" holy grail of fitness, is attainable ;)

Please, if you get a chance, check out the website www.leangains.com. There is so much more to IF that I cannot mention. He gives all the details, how it works and how to implement it. Worth the read!

Day 11, Wednesday

LOW DAY

Breakfast: Fiber One Cereal, 1% milk

WORKOUT: 30 Day Shred, 20 minute walk at incline

AM Snack: 1 whole egg, 4 whites omelet w/ havarti cheese & salsa

Lunch: 1 slice WW bread with natural peanut butter

PM Snack: Fiber One Cereal

Dinner: 3 small ribs, 1 twice baked potato half, cauliflower w/ cheese sauce, salad, glass red wine

Dessert: chocolate cake w/ frosting

OVERALL: OK, I know this was NOT a high carb/calorie day BUT we were going to have guests over for dinner, and sometimes to save myself the embarrassment of explaining why I'm eating something completely different from the rest of the group, I just eat what's there (in moderation). See, whenever I try to explain to anyone my system of calorie zig zagging, or that I'm not eating carbs past 3pm, or that I'm trying to "lean out", I get the same response. "WHY?? You are already so skinny!!"

Well, this may seem like an awesome compliment but it actually embarrasses me. See, most everyone has body issues, even swimsuit models! While I am at a very healthy weight and I am quite lean, there are problem areas I feel could use some improvement. For instance, my backside and my thighs are nowhere near swim suit ready. I am sick and tired of missing out on going to the beach and the pool with my kids because I am ashamed of my legs.

Overweight people never understand this. They laugh at me and tell me how ridiculous it sounds. But I have a goal for myself, and I'm just not going to be satisfied until I reach it. I am ashamed to be seen in a swim suit because I feel like people are looking at my jiggly lumpy thighs in disgust. They probably are shocked to see someone at my weight have such terribly unattractive legs.

I blame it on my 20's. I always used to be able to eat whatever, whenever and still maintain a stick figure. (I will mention though that I was never happy with my thighs, even as a teenager) Then I turned 21 and discovered alcohol. I liked it....too much. I was in college and living in a town where places like McDonalds and Hardees were available to me whenever I felt the urge. Unlike growing up where the nearest fast food place was 30 minutes away. I went crazy! I was careless. I gained weight. Well, I gained FAT. I just wish that I could have started my passion for health and exercise a little sooner.

Anyway (I'm getting windy here) my point is, sometimes your diet doesn't always go as planned. And you have to expect that. I knew I was going to be "naughty" and have ribs and a potato at 6pm and even cake. But I'm OK with that, the little indulges now and then are fine. It doesn't derail me from my goal, I don't just throw in the towel and say, "well, I blew the day, might as well blow the rest of the week too". NO WAY! I'm going to be diligent and consistent. And that is what is going help me acheive my goal!

p.s. that cake was great!

Tuesday, Day 10

LOW DAY

Breakfast: Fiber One cereal

AM Snack: little popcorn, 2 whole eggs, 3 whites, Nature Valley Sweet & Salty bar

WORKOUT: 30 Day Shred, 20 minute walk at incline

Lunch: 5 Boca meatless nuggets, sweet potato fries

PM Snack: Nature Valley Sweet & Salty bar

Dinner: Lentil Soup

Pre-bed snack: Fiber One cottage cheese, 1 tsp Natural Peanut Butter

OVERALL: could have done without 2 of the sweet and salty bars since they have 11 grams of sugar...that was a bad. But still, the day could have been worse. In fact, when I'm not consciously watching my calorie intake, I am positive that it looks much worse. I should actually write down what I eat on one of my "don't give a S*#t" days in the future (hopefully it's WAY into the future) just to compare. I think I'm used to eating a lot.

WEDNESDAY MORNING....

I weighed myself this morning. I try to weigh myself once a week, preferably the 3rd morning after a high carb day. I wasn't overly enthused about the result of over a week of pretty restricted diet and daily exercise but it is going in the right direction so I guess I shouldn't complain. I was down almost a pound. After the Christmas gorge and barf-o-rama fiasco I weighed 115.8 and this morning I was a solid 115.

I don't really have a weight loss goal, but I do have a fat loss goal. And if I lose fat, I'm assuming the scale will go down. I don't expect to be adding muscle with the puny 3 and 5 lb dumbbells I'm using with 30 Day Shred. (that comes next month!!) My goal isn't about weight, it's about measurements. I would LOVE to shave an inch off my thighs. An inch of fat of my thighs would TOTALLY make me happy :)

Day 9, Monday

LOW DAY

Breakfast: 2 egg whites, 1 whole egg, 1 slice havarti cheese, oatmeal (couldn't finish it though)

WORKOUT: 30 Day Shred, 20 minute walk at an incline

AM Snack: Protein shake w/ oatmeal and strawberries

Lunch: Lentil Soup, popcorn

PM Snack: Fiber One cereal

Dinner: Salad, 6 Large Sea Scallops

OVERALL: My motivation is still pretty high but today was a day where I had to REALLY fight to not cheat. I think my emotions play a part. Huh, never thought of myself as an emotional eater. Anyway, food choices were pretty ok. Exercise is going amazingly well. Have not gotten off goal (which is to continue 30 day shred until the last day of January) and I think that is the key for me. Before, I was making all these long term goals and I was never reaching them. Making shorter term goals like a month out is better. When I reach it I will feel elated I'm sure.

Saturday, Day 7

Saturday 1/9/10

LOW DAY

Breakfast:
1 whole egg, 3 whites (omelet) w/
1 head broccoli, 4 scallions, 1/4 C. cheese

WORKOUT:
30 Day Shred
20 minute brisk walk

AM Snack:
Protein shake w/ muscle milk, oatmeal, frozen strawberries

Lunch:
small Philly Cheese Steak Pita from Pita Extreme
a few Pita Chips (could have done without these)

PM Snack:
1/2 C. Fiber One Cottage Cheese
1 TBSP All Natural Peanut Butter

Dinner:
tiny amount of chicken stir fry (I wasn't hungry at all!)
1 glass red wine

Evening treat:
1 tiny square cappuccino chocolate

OVERALL: I think the day was good again, which makes it an entire week of near perfect eating and exercise behind me! I am so proud of myself! I feel strong, enpowered and successful. And that is just the motivation I need to keep at it!

I have decided that I am going to stick with the calorie cycling and cardio for the month of January to see if I can't get some stubborn fat off. Then, starting in February, I will begin with hardcore weight training again, only doing cardio a few days a week. I will also be bumping up my calorie intake so I can FEED my muscles and hopefully get them to grow and show their beatiful curves!! I think by the end of May, this plan should produce some good results for me.

Days 16 & 17

Yesterday G-ma walked for 17 minutes although she didn't hardly move at all after that.

Today she walked 20 minutes!! That was my goal for her so I am happy she has reached it. Now if she can just keep it at 20 every day I would be happy.

Day 15 - WEIGH IN

Here are the stats as of today:

~ Body fat percentage is unchanged from the previous week
~ Weight is up 2 lbs which is more than likely water weight from reintroducing carbs back into the diet (since body fat is unchanged)
~ Waist is 1 1/2 inches SMALLER
~ Stomach measured around belly button is 1 inch SMALLER
~ The....um....derriere is 1/2 inch SMALLER
~ All other measured points were unchanged

Now, she was a bit discouraged to step onto the scale and find she was up two pounds but after we measured her and discovered she is losing inches, it wasn't so bad after all :)

Plus, I assured her that the ups and downs will happen (just look at how they go up and down on The Biggest Loser, for instance) but you still keep plugging away. Giving up won't produce results either.

Way to lose those inches, Super G!!!!!

Days 9 & 10

Yesterday there was not much activity on G-ma's part. She did walk but only for 11 and 1/2 minutes. She said she just couldn't go any longer. She is complaining a lot of her back hurting off to one side and is thinking it may be something more than just a regular backache. But I keep hoping that the more weight she loses, the easier on her body walking will be.

Today, right now actually, she is walking on the treadmill. I want her to do AT LEAST 15 minutes (since she was able to do that two days ago) but again she says "we'll see". I think the initial excitment is starting to wear off. She is fighting more and more about how much walking she does. I don't wait on her either. When she wants water, or has forgotten something she needs in a different room, I make her get up and get it herself. Which usually works great until the kids get home from school!

But, her diet is still perfect. She really has no other choice than to eat what I give her so that part is easy. We really need to work on making her more active during the day....that's the hardest part. She is too used to being completely sedentary, due to pain. The more she moves, the more calories she'll burn.

Give her a shout out! She needs support!

Day 8 WEIGH IN DAY

Well, sorry I didn't post anything for days 6 & 7 but life sneaks up on you and you know how it goes.

I will report that G-ma's walking is still improving slowly every day. She walked 12 1/2 minutes yesterday (up from her 5 minutes the first day) and she was at a pace of 1.8 for a bit.

Now, for the moment of truth. Has her diet and exercise plan been enough to help her lose any fat????

The answer to that is....YES!!! 5 pounds gone this first week! She is 5 pounds lighter, her bodyfat went down by 1%, and she is 1/2 inch smaller in all her measurement points (which include hips, thigh, belly and arm). WAY TO GO!!!!!!!

It's a great moment for her. She needs this motivation to fuel her fat burning fire. Now she knows it IS WORKING and if she keeps it up, she could be 20 pounds lighter by the time we come home!!

Day 5

G-ma walked 11:30 on the treadmill this morning.

I really slacked in the "Sarge" department since I didn't make her walk in the evening. I was having a bad day myself and my motivation for ANYTHING was low.

Her diet has been impeccable this entire week so far. Not one slip up. Not even one single nibble of anything outside the confines of her diet. I am really proud of her! (more than I can say for myself) And on that note....

I caved yesterday afternoon and had carbs. This first week was supposed to be just proteins, fats and veggies and we will slowly introduce carbs back into the diet next week. But I was feeling crappy because my mood was foul and I was SO SORE from training hard the past two days. Mom convinced me that I needed a little extra to replenish myself cuz I WORKED HARD DARN IT!! I said I wanted to stick by her side thru this, eating the same diet and giving her support. But she assured me she was OK and so I had a peanut butter sandwich.....and then pizza....and chocolate cereal.....and some white chocolate.....and some bread with cheese......oh dear. I'm a failure.

But, I don't give up. I had a moment (or an entire afternoon) of weakness and I just have to put it behind me. At least I had a flawless 3 day run with no carbs. This little bump in my calorie intake could actually benefit me. It is what professionals call "calorie or carb cycling". One way to do it is go 3 days low calorie/low carb, which is just long enough to somewhat deprive your body, but then right before the starvation response kicks in (which is the body's survival mechanism that holds tight to the fat you've got in case there is a famine ahead), just before that happens, you bump up your calorie intake (usually through carbs). Then, the next day, you start back on the 3 day low cycle again. It's a continuous zig-zag pattern that seems to work well with fitness models and the like. So well in fact that I have read they can actually lose weight too quickly. Sheesh! If only everyone could do that! I usually have a good run with the cycle until a Friday or Saturday hits. I ALWAYS seem to fall off the wagon on the weekends. But while mom is here we aren't buying any goodies (can't have that stuff laying around while dieting!!! what torture!!) and hopefully that will help a lot.

So, lets give her a shout out people!!! WAY TO GO, JAN!!! Keep on keeping on!!

Day 4

G-ma didn't think she could make it to 10 minutes this morning......so I made her go 11. HAHAHAHAHA! I don't think she'll EVER learn NOT to say negative things cuz I just make her push harder.

The words "I can't" don't belong here!

Right after her 11 minute walk she went into strength training. Her workout is as follows:

The bridge - 8 reps, 4 sec hold
Ab leg lowering - 5 reps
Crunches - 8 reps, 2 sec hold
Lotus - 8 reps, 2 sec hold
Leg raises (on knees) - 8 reps, 2 sec hold
Standing leg kickbacks - 8 reps, 2 sec hold
Squats (to chair) - 8 reps
Dead lifts - 8 reps, 10 lb dumbbells
Sitting quad raise - 8 reps, 2 sec hold
Military Press - 8 reps, 5 lb dumbbells
Bicep curls - 4 reps @ 5 lb, 8 reps @ 10 lb dumbbells
Tricep kickbacks - 8 reps, 3 lb dumbbells
DB Row - 8 reps, 12 lb dumbbells
Lat. raises - 8 reps, 3 lb dumbbells

This workout pretty much kicked her butt so I only made her do 1 set.

On a slightly different note: I tried a new metabolic circuit yesterday. KICKED MY BUTT!! Between that and weights the day before....my hamstrings and glutes (and for some reason my triceps) are HURT-ING TO-DAY!!!!!! love it

Day 3

This morning, G-ma walked for the full 10 minutes, despite being sick and in bed ALL day yesterday. AND, she walked with me to the store and back before lunch. I'm so glad she got right back into it. We still need to add a strength training session in sometime today (right now she is off to rest) and then an evening walk as well.

It is my belief that she will be able to sustain a 20 minute walk (at a fairly good pace) before we leave Denmark.

Seeing progress daily

Yesterday she was up to 7:30 minutes and then she made the mistake of saying, "It didn't even hurt my back or anything".

Today, I'm going to make her go as long as possible PAST 8 minutes.

She keeps saying, "Oooooh, I am going to be crabby next week. I NEEEED my chocolate!"

Seriously, I don't think I've ever seen the woman happier than she is while eating chocolate. But unless she feels like walking to the store (after finding somewhere to exchange her American money) and buying it on her own.....she won't be seeing any for quite some time. MUUUUUAHAHAHAHAHHAAHA!!!!