Rachel At the Gym

Taking Stock--before I get started

2011-05-08T19:49:00.000-04:00

This is where I am at today:

on 300mg of Wellbutrin XL because I didn't want to try coming down in dose while going through the strains of a LDR
my lower back doesn't hurt, but I know it's not strong
long distance drives make my hips feel stiff and tired and my lower back feels irritated--but I do drive a 4-door sedan so the ergonomics of my seat configuration are not very conducive to long drives
I am tired after work most every day
have had some headaches here and there which feel like tension headaches
my shoulders and neck are usually tense and knotted
I'm pretty sure I don't get quality sleep often
at the end of February was experiencing heart palpitations which went unexplained since all the heart diagnostics available came back fine
crave sweets often
can't remember the last time I lifted weights
drink 1-2L of water a day with something added to it like Nestea packets

Let's leave it at that.

A year later....

2011-05-06T19:16:00.000-04:00

It's almost a year later and I'm now my 5th month into being 40 years old.

I've spent every day wanting to get back to the discipline and commitment of the lifestyle I was leading when I was going to the gym regularly. But, every day I have been tired after work and it has become routine to simply go home; my gym bag still packed from months ago.

I had gone up to 165lbs and was edging out of my favorite pants. I am a thrift store shopper, so it wasn't a big deal--just go get another couple pairs for $6 each.

A new relationship has begun and while presently it is long distance, it's only for another year and we'll be seeing each other throughout this year. Prior to meeting, I scrambled to lose whatever weight I could manage and my first choice was to go back on the Dr.Bernstein program for 8 weeks. I lost 14 pounds and was happy enough with myself when I met him to enjoy the visit thoroughly.

However, in a LDR, after that first visit, there's a bit of a low point I wasn't prepared for and of course, right around Easter and PMS time when chocolate was not only abundant, but craved. I have decided that Toblerone=Chocolate Crack , so need to stay away from that or any version of it. I gained back 7 pounds after going on a chocolate campaign.

It's 9 weeks out from our next visit and I want to see what I can accomplish on my own at the gym. I went to the gym for the first time in a LONG time yesterday and had a session with a personal trainer to assess where I was at. I'm going to need to start nearly from scratch.

I am glad that I kept my workout book from last summer, so that I can see what I was doing back then.

According to the measurements at the gym, I'm 29% body fat. So--here we go....9 weeks to see what I can do!

Analyzing the 8 Weeks Prior to my Lowest Weight in a Year

2010-05-16T15:10:00.000-04:00

I printed out some blank calendars from July - September, poured over all the foods I had logged, all the days I did cardio and how long, what training splits I was using and came to a conclusion about what were the most effective behaviors.

1. Logging all my food on FitDay.com helped me to see how many calories I took in as well as see that for the times that I logged the most consistently were the times I was focusing more heavily on my goals

2. An average of 1300-1400 calories per week seemed to be the most common of the "lower" calorie days, so if I aim for that range every day, I should be in a better position

3. No matter what the training split, I increased my cardio in the two weeks prior to weighing my lowest last year, typically doing about 30 mins every day (mostly after the weight training and around 6:30-7:00pm)

4. Overall, my protein intake was 100-150grams on average in the 4 weeks prior to my lowest weights and for most of August I was doing 2-Day splits working Upper and Lower body, switching to 3 day splits in the two weeks prior to my lowest weight

Insulin Resistant? Perhaps

2010-04-18T13:36:00.000-04:00

On the heels of my excited post about how I can eat 1900 calories, 50% of which can be carbs, and how I have been having low energy and heart palpitations and can't seem to motivate myself to get into the gym like I was motivated over the summer and fall, I ran into this article which reminded me of information I had already been exposed to before:

http://www.rheumatic.org/insulin.htm

I am going to adjust my food targets (not like I've actually been logging anything or sticking to any of it lately with all my carb enjoyment) to the following for weight loss:

1400-1600 cals per day

carbs (ideally 40%): 140g (560 cals) - 160g (640cals)
protein (40% - 45%) : 155g per day (620 cals)
fat (16% - 20%): 24g per day (220 cals) - 37g (340cals)

At this point, I am going to start reducing my carbohydrates, allowing for my morning All-Bran which has a low-glycemic index anyhow (doesn't spike the insulin so much) and my sweet potatoes every other day.

Average Workout, New Calorie Budget & Goal Date

2010-02-24T22:24:00.001-05:00

I just revisited an old post where I dissected BMR, foods I need to eat etc. and then took a look at what I feel I can realistically contain my eating habits to and what I'm doing to burn calories each week.

I log every single workout in a little tiny spiralbound notebook. I also use the Technogym USB key to log my workouts while at the gym and receive feedback on how many calories I burned. Based on what I recorded for the last 14 gym workouts (not including the mornings I did Turbo Jam or the volleyball games I play recreationally once a week), my average workout burns 460 calories combining weight training and treadmill cardio.

Since it takes burning off 3500 calories to take off a pound, by my average workout, it would take me 4.37 days to burn off 1 pound through exercise alone. However, since my body would be maintained if I ate 2147 cals a day, if I want to eat 1350 cals a day, I save 797 cals/day just through diet.

Daily (and hopefully this makes sense because math was never my forte):

Diet (797) + Average Work (460) = 1257 saved per day.
3500 calories / 1257 calories saved = 2.78 days to lose 1 lb.

20lbs x 2.78 days = 56 days to lose this weight

New goal date: April 28th (because I like milestone dates)

Navy Circumference Calculation of Body Fat

2009-10-06T07:53:00.004-04:00

I found this site: http://www.bblex.de/en/calc/navy.php which gives you instructions on measuring your body fat % the way the U.S. Navy does it.

My stats are:

Neck: 12.8"
Waist: 27.75"
Widest part of hips: 39.5"
Height: 65"

Plugging this information in gives me a body fat percentage of 27.6% which is far better than my Tanita scale which measures me at 34%!

I am still learning to use calipers, so decided to try this method first, then see what the calipers say.

Thoughts on a Treadmill

2009-10-02T18:47:00.003-04:00

This is my treadmill stream of consciousness:

...Madonna is so awesome, the hair on the back of my neck is standing up watching this dvd concert....this thing better not reset again.....I wonder if anyone's checked me out at all since I have been working out..probably not there's far hotter girls in here, I'm the geeky girl in glasses and a tank top...but it would be nice to know my efforts are being noticed and appreciated....time for some Public Enemy!....this time going up to 10% grade....pant/pant/pant....decreasing grade...I am breathing so hard I wonder if anyone's thinking I am hyperventilating...time to bring it down and have some fun with Model Walking.....it's hard to walk in a straight line with your arms swinging side to side like models do, my inner quads are getting a nice workout and my abs feel good and tight doing this...I wonder if anyone else has fun like this on the treadmill....time to finish it up with Space Frog.....I see the mountain top! Follow Me!....I wonder if I'll actually someday be in a contest....that seems so unreal, but how cool would that be? .... I can get through this stress in my life.....I will be okay.

My Madonna Inspiration and other thoughts

2009-09-06T13:17:00.005-04:00

I have always admired Madonna.

When I get on a treadmill, I watch her Confessions Tour and the hair on the back of my neck stands up because she is so freaking awesome. I have a handful of her best, most recent videos and watch them during my cardio.

On a few levels I can relate to Madonna. Here is a woman who has had to find her own way, make her own choices and mistakes and keeps forging onward. She explores characters, personae and when photographed lately, seems to be wearing things that almost appear as costume.

She has invested a lot in herself-her brand- but now seems to be investing in her health and in reaching her potential. She had children late in life and continues not to "settle" for anything that doesn't meet her standards.

I enjoy the idea of dressing up to be someone or something else (so Halloween and the World's Largest Disco are my favorite annual events!), I too feel like I've had to figure much out for myself, have yet to really want children and feel like I'm discovering a love for myself late in life.

Anyhow---Madonna truly inspires me on the treadmill because I am there, reaching higher, pushing onward in life towards the next great thing, learning about my strengths rather than focusing on the weaknesses and failings I know all too well.

Banana Cream Pie Protein Pudding

2009-09-02T07:13:00.003-04:00

1 box of Jell-O Fat Free (also sugar-free) White Chocolate pudding mix
2 cups 1% milk
ground flax seed
2 scoops of your favorite vanilla type protein powder...for this recipe I used the "Whey Isolate Protein Powder" by Kaizen (sold at Costco)--2 scoops ...if you want to tell me what protein powder you end up using, I can tell you the new nutritional info. Make sure to get a protein powder low on carbs. Usually they are artificially sweetened if low on carbs.

5 little snack sized containers
artificial banana flavoring (sold in the baking section where you get vanilla)

Directions:

Blend the pudding powder, milk and protein powder for 2 minutes on low. Once you have it blended or even started blending it, add in about 3 little caps full of banana flavoring.

Get your 5 little snack sized containers out on your counter and spoon a tbsp of ground flax seed into each giving a little shake to get it to settle evenly.

GENTLY start ladelling a little bit of the mix into each cup so that it doesn't disturb the ground flaxseed too much (this is going to act like your graham cracker pie crust like in real banana cream pie). Pour the rest into each cup. Refrigerate until it's got a nice thick consistency and enjoy!

Using my protein powder, nutritional info per serving is:

149cals
0.72g fat
11.6g carb
1.6g fiber
18.72g protein

1st Quarter Summary

2009-08-29T21:53:00.005-04:00

It's been nearly 3 months since I started going to the gym.

I have added definition to my upper body and overall strength by continually moving up to the next weight on the stack or the next dumbbell to see if I can handle it. I started out going 3x a week for a habit, then started doing a more programmed routine 3x a week, then stepped it up for the last 3 weeks to do 2-day splits. It now takes me about 1.5 hrs to do my weight routine and 30 minutes to do cardio. I got out of bed 3 days in a row to make it to the gym for 5 a.m. (to see if I could do it). I have pinned down a new selection of routine food staples that I eat just about every day.

I have not seen much fat loss though, and I use scales that weigh in pounds and provide body fat %. I have weighed at the gym in the evening and at home in the morning and still no real changes.

At this point, it comes down to food.

I'm not entirely sure what caloric balance will work for me and have gone on the guidance of the personal trainer I've seen 4 times and still nothing.

I found this site this evening and determined the following:

Basal Metabolic Rate:
370 + (21.6 x 47kg) <--the 47kg is the lean body weight since I know my body fat % from the scales.
370 + 1015
= 1385

Total Dietary Energy Expenditure:
Using the Moderately active multiplier = BMR X 1.55 (moderate exercise/sports 3-5 days/wk)
1385 x 1.55
=2146.75 (this is the number of calories I would need to eat in order to maintain my weight)

To lose 2lbs a week:
(each pound of fat is 3500 calories...)
3500 x 2 = 7000
need to cut back 1000 calories per day
2146.75-1000 = 1146.75

It starts to be detrimental to metabolism when you go below 1200 calories per day so...will need to bring calories down to 1200 per day.

NEW EXERCISE PLAN:

For the next 3 months, I am going to follow Kris Gethin's 12-week transformation .

NEW EATING PLAN:

The Drawing Board....

Since I would need 1g of protein per pound of body fat in order to build muscle (to increase metabolism and hotness) and a gram of protein has 4 calories:
4 calories x 152lbs = 608 (51% calories from protein)

Since I need a good amount of fiber each day, I have a cup of All-bran and have 1% milk, blueberries, plain yogurt and a few other things that have a carb count in them, and since carbohydrates have 4 calories per gram and I would likely be having around 111g of carbs a day based on my eating trend, I would want to build into my food plan 37% calories from carbohydrates.

That leaves 12% for fats. Since that is probably a bit unrealistic with all the chicken, natural almonds and other protein sources that come with fat, I'm going to have to cut back on carbohydrates by about 10%. So.....

Final draft:
51% calories from protein (612 calories)
27% calories from carbohydrates (324 calories)
22% calories from fats (264 calories)

As well, I will need to eliminate cheat meals each week and go to 1 cheat "treat" every other week to keep me going. Maybe I will have a feature Cheat Treat 'O' the Month! It's a toss-up between the big Cadbury Fruit & Nut bar or something like a Dairy Queen Blizzard!

Nothing sucks more than working super hard at the gym not to at least start to see some fat coming off. Even 5 lbs would've been nice, but generally I'm flyin' solo on this mission and I'm trying to get the information I need to yield the right results.

To execute this plan effectively WILL require menu pre-planning. That's where FitDay.com comes in for me.

My Newbie Goals

2009-06-22T13:35:00.001-04:00

I have been following a ketogenic diet for what seems like a long time. If I haven't been "on the diet", I have been "off the diet, trying to get back on". I have been faithful to the Dr.Bernstein program really believing that it has been my saving grace. I have been fortunate that my last and present health benefits plan has reimbursed 85%-100% of the cost of the program, otherwise I wouldn't be sitting here today weighing around 145lbs and wearing a size medium or 9/10.

While it is certainly wonderful to fit into clothes at that size and opens up so many clothing options at cheaper prices at this size, because of the super strict nature of the plan I've been successful on, I am now tiring of it and have found that it is really hard to lose those last 5-10lbs. Mostly because I already look in the mirror and am generally happy with the clothing size and because it's a diet that is very isolating and requires a great deal of discipline and focus.

I have never been a gym person. Mostly because the only gyms that are available in the area just don't seem like places I would want to spend much time in. However, recently a Gold's Gym opened and I signed up for it. I'm actually enjoying the amenities, the atmosphere and can see myself going regularly.

Last week I went 3 times. That hardly ever happened in the past!

I've also been feeling like I need a new direction in life. For the last several months I have been coming to terms with where I am financially and it seems like it will be another 5 years or so before my credit report is sparkling clean. At 38 years old, it just feels like I am resigned to this financial situation and that it is weighty enough to prevent me from enjoying other aspects of life. Mainly children...do I want them? When I do want them, can I afford to have them? When I can afford to have them...will I be able to have them? What if I miss that boat entirely because I spend the next 3-4 years waiting for my financial fitness to improve and biology has made the decision for me??.....my mind has been spinning about it and at this point, I need to look at what I can do to put my mind towards something less stressful.

I've never really worked out consistently.
I am easily stressed and worry excessively.
Without the confines of the diet I've been or been trying to follow, I am scared because I don't know how to eat that will not make me gain weight.

With this in mind, I recently was exploring a website called TMuscle.com . After just trying to figure out what would make a productive routine at the gym, I started checking out the areas devoted to "figure athletes". The loftiest goal I could think of would be in good enough shape that I could be a figure athlete.

My realistic goal which is important for me right now would be to start building muscle so that I can increase my metabolism so that I can afford to follow some semblance of 'normal eating' and feel confident that I can keep my weight loss down.

Also, I have a Tanita scale which currently shows my body fat percentage at 34% and if that's accurate, I need to lose some body fat.

I have come a long way from 231 lbs 9 years ago.

So, today I will go to the gym and report later what I did.