Goodbye 4HB, Hello Primal/Paleo!

I’ve become obsessed.  First I was obsessed with 4HB…I wanted to make sure I had all the details down and knew all that I had to do in order to lose 20 lbs in 30 days.  And although I didn’t lose 20 lbs in even 90 days, I wouldn’t change a thing.  4HB helped me take a good hard look at what I’ve been eating, it helped me make the leap to no carbs (which is still shocking to me) and eventually led me to my newest obsession…Primal/Paleo!

I’m not even sure how I started reading about Primal/Paleo…I have a few friends who have posted about it on FB.  I even found an article on Tim Ferriss’ blog about Paleo (check it out here)!  I’ve read the books Primal Blueprint and the Paleo Diet as well as countless websites, blogs, and forums.  (Some favorites include: marks daily apple, whole 9, and everyday paleo)  And it just makes sense.  It’s essentially what I’ve been doing – eating whole foods, protein, vegetables, no white stuff, no legumes, no potatoes, corn, peas, processed foods.  They encourage organic/grassfed/etc…and although I’m working on it, I’m not stressing about it too much either.  I’m still learning all the details but I think Primal/Paleo is the most logical next step for me.  My goal now is not about 20lbs of fatloss, it’s about being healthy and feeling good.  I don’t really care about what the scale says, I care more about what my buddha says!  (buddha = stomach).  I’ve found that beans don’t work for me…and turns out that legumes aren’t great for people with autoimmune diseases!  Who knew?  My body told me before I read about it.  When I eat 3 slices of cheesy pizza like I did on Saturday, even if it tastes super yummy (and it did!)…my body is not a fan of it (big buddha-ache!).  Not sure if it’s the cheese or the crust, probably both.  But I’m learning to listen to my body.

So this is my plan right now – eat protein and vegetables (in that order…for more info why, check out Athletic Greens’ email here and his follow-up email here), take athletic greens and fish oil every morning, some fruit (mostly berries)/dairy/wine on weekends only, not be concerned with 30g of protein within 30 minutes of waking, 1 cheat meal per week…and I’m going to try to stay gluten-free at this meal as well…wish me luck!

 

 

12 weeks + 4HB = 32″

Today marks the end of 12 weeks on the 4 Hour Body diet and my grand totals are (drumroll please….)

-8lbs

-32″ overall

• neck  -.5″
• shoulders  -5.5″
• chest  -3″
• left bicep  -1.75″, right bicep  -1.25″
• left forearm  -1″, right forearm  -1.5″
• waist  -2.5″
• hips  -3.25″
• left thigh  -4″, right thigh  -5″
• left calf  -1.25″, right calf  -1.5″

I admit, I got the book thinking that I was going to lose 20 lbs in 30 days.  I thought I had to lose 20 lbs in order to lose that many inches!!  In my opinion, the inches speak louder than any number on a scale.  And I was very careful to measure at the same spot every week.  But even if my measurements are off by several inches…the numbers are still an incredible accomplishment to me.  I am the smallest I’ve been in my adult life!  Even after years of working out with a personal trainer and running and biking and swimming in preparation for 3 different triathlons – I wasn’t wearing baggy size 8 jeans like I am now!  I am leaner today after 3 months of just changing my diet and eating a certain way.

The best part about all of this is that I FEEL good.  I sleep better than ever.  I have more energy.  I used to have migraine headaches twice a week.  I have not had a single migraine since starting this program.  That in itself is worth it to me.  Those were brutal and I didn’t think I had any control over them.  But now I do.

And that is something to celebrate…with a big bowl of fruit!

I Have A Confession…

I stopped eating beans.

There I said it.  It’s been a couple weeks, probably most of March.  I just started hating them.  Hate is a strong word, but I think it is aptly used here.  They made me want to throw up.  I just couldn’t do it anymore.  I’m glad I started out with beans.  I think it helped me stay on track in the first 2 months.  Kept me full from meal to meal.  But eventually I had a few meals without beans and my stomach just felt better.  I adjusted to eating protein and veggies.

Seeing as beans are such a huge proponent of the 4HB…I’ve wondered if I’m still “on plan”?  The answer is yes.  I’m on plan.  My plan.  And my plan is ever-evolving.  Looking back at this blog will illustrate just that.  I’ve tried being strict, I’ve tried being relaxed, I’ve tried cold therapy, I’ve tried kettlebells, I’ve tried drinking wine and not drinking wine during the week.  I’ve been constantly tweaking this program every week.  And this is just one more tweak.

I’m coming up on the end of 12 weeks (!!!) on the 4HB and have started thinking about how I’m going to tweak it for the next month.  I’ve been learning more about Primal/Paleo diets lately.  And although they include fruits and sometimes even some dairy in their plans, protein and vegetables are the main ingredients.  It seems like a logical next step for me.  I’m still working out all the differences between the programs and will most likely do some sort of combination of the three.  There are things I like about 4HB and there are things I like about Primal Blueprint and there are things I like about the Paleo diet.  I’m picking and choosing what works for me.  Like I have all along.  :)

 

Double Cheats & a Free Week!

Ahhhh…..what a nice relaxing week of not worrying too much if I’m doing this whole 4HB diet to a “T”!  Last week I had a double cheat weekend followed by a week of eating sensibly but with a few freebies every day and this weekend is turning out to be a double cheat as well.  In addition to eating well, lots of protein and veggies, here is a list of my “cheats”:

Last Saturday (which is typically a Free Day for me) – hash browns, english muffin, pizza, cheese, bread, a few vodka tonics, top ramen

Sunday – hash browns, one pancake, sushi, a mini pie which I like to call a pie-lette (actual size is smaller than the palm of my hand), mac & cheese cup

Monday – 1/2 of a small yam, blueberries

Tuesday – greek yogurt with honey, gummi bears (a lot)

Wednesday – cheese on chipotle bowl, 1/2 of a small yam, blueberries

Thursday – banana, 1/2 of a chocolate bar

Friday – two 6″ corn tortillas, a little cheese/sour cream (I made chicken enchiladas for dinner), 1/2 of a chocolate bar

Saturday (TODAY!) – banana, granola w/ milk

I would also like to add that I had at least one or two glasses of red wine EVERY day – normally I may have one or two glasses in a week, the occasional diet coke – which I usually don’t have at all, and quite a bit of cottage cheese for protein – which I never really had before.  I cut out the protein shakes in the am and stuck with whole foods (hence the cottage cheese).  I went to the Bar Method 3 times but did zero kettlebells or ab work outside of class.  I did take a couple short walks this week, but that is the extent of my exercising.

I did sneak a weigh-in yesterday – c’mon….I was so curious to see if I’ve gained a ton of weight for suddenly eating fruit and all the other off-plan items!  I’m happy to report that I weigh exactly the same as the last time I weighed in.  And I even managed to lose 1/2 inch this week.  So all in all, I would say this week was a SUCCESS!!

I’m not planning on going full-out Free Day today.  And tomorrow we have a family brunch to go to and we are bringing the mimosas.  I’m not going to miss out on that!  So this weekend will be a half-assed Free Weekend.  Monday will be the start of a new week and I am going to try to be super strict with food and up the exercise…for REAL this time!  :)  FYI, rebounding isn’t my thing.  Looks fun, wasn’t so bad the first couple times, but I need a serious sports bra to keep the girls happy.  I think I’ll stick with walking.  And with the 70*+ days we’ve been having, getting some vitamin D might not be a bad idea either.

At Least It’s Not Zero

This was the least amount of inches I’ve lost during any week since I started.  ONE.  A half inch off my waist (I’m all for any loss there!!) and a quarter inch off each thigh.  Hey, I’ll take what I can get.  And I’ll admit, I sneaked the scale on Wednesday – but it didn’t do anything for me.  No weight gain since the Saturday before and no weight loss.  So I’ve put it away for real this time.  Not weighing til March 26th.

This week I will say that I wasn’t great with the water (even with my reduced amount) and I only went to the Bar Method twice and I did no kettlebells or ab work.  During the week I kept telling myself that because I got my hair done on Monday and due to the color and the keratin I wasn’t supposed to wash my hair or get sweaty during the week.  Excuses, excuses.  The fact is, I could’ve done something and I just didn’t.  Ever have one of those weeks?

All I can do is move onwards and upwards (er, downwards for the inches?)…next week is a new week and although I’m still planning on some relaxed menus, I’m not going to blow it on ice cream every night.  And it’s back to the Bar Method and kettlebells and I’m going to start walking even if it’s just around the neighborhood for 30 min a few times this week.  Let’s do this!

Planned Cheating

I cheated tonight.  It was an unplanned cheat.  Several spoonfuls of delicious coffee ice cream.  Which isn’t even my favorite.  But it was leftover from when the kids were here.  And I loved every bite.

I don’t think a couple spoonfuls of ice cream counts as drastically off-track.  And I think with the exception of the week I had strep throat, this was probably my first unplanned cheat in 10 weeks.  It made me wonder what would happen if I did go off-track?  What would happen if I ate a few “forbidden” foods one week?  I’m not talking a 7 day Free Week of pancakes and pasta.  I just mean, a few berries here, maybe a yogurt, or a piece of chocolate sometime during the week.

Next week is the 3rd week of the month which in the past 2 months has been a zero weight loss week for me thanks to Mother Nature.  So I’m thinking I might experiment a little…especially since I’m not weighing myself anyway!  The basics will remain the same – veggie, protein.  I’ve almost completely cut legumes at this point anyway.  But I might try a banana in the morning with my protein shake or sprinkle some cheese on my salad.  Gettin crazy up in here!  Then I’ll go back for the last week of the month and go hard-core 4HB!  Maybe it will shock some weight out of my system.  Maybe it won’t.  But I will have enjoyed a week of not worrying about it.  And then we’ll see where April leads…

Putting the Scale Away

Not much to report today.  I lost .2 lbs and 2.5″.  One of the things that really keeps me going are all of the support groups on Facebook.  I check them religiously and I’m constantly learning from this tight-knit community of people.  Today there was a post from Four Hour Body Participants administrator:

REMEMBER – the scales are not measuring what you are losing. Inches and scans are where it is at. If you are discouraged by no drop in weight then STOP weighing yourself.

And so, I think I will put my scale away for the rest of the month!  Usually I weigh myself at least once or twice during the week and then officially on Saturday mornings.  The next 2 weeks will be pre and during my period so the numbers won’t be pretty anyway.  So why be disappointed!  I will keep checking inches on Saturdays which his a better indicator of my progress.

I’m already enjoying my Free Day – I’ve had a protein shake, a bowl of granola with almond milk and sliced banana, a greek yogurt with honey and some strawberries.  I know that doesn’t sound too extravagant but it was soooo yummy.  I think we are taking the kids to a movie today and I will feast on some popcorn and diet coke!  For dinner we are having brown rice pasta (the little one is still having some gluten senstivities…otherwise we would have white pasta) and spaghetti sauce and garlic bread and ice cream for dessert!  Happy Free Day!

 

Life Lessons…found in the parking lot

As we were getting out of the car to go to dinner the other night, I saw this:

Great reminders for my March goals!

I’ve had a big ol salad with protein for lunch every day and fish and veggies for dinner every night.  Here was one of my dinners…

Mmmmm….veggies!

Time to Kick it Up a Notch!

I got a Bodpod scan today and it was very educational!  I am 39.1% fat?!?!  I’m just this side of “risky” the highest end of the spectrum – yikes!  I am in the “excess fat” category.  You’d think they could come up with more pleasant category names.  I think my expectations were skewed because I had been fooled by caliper readings when I was working with a personal trainer oh so many years ago.  My best number via calipers was around 18% which would be considered “ultra lean/elite athlete” (wouldn’t that be nice?).  Needless to say, calipers are not very accurate.  The Bodpod is.  I wish I had gotten it done when I started and I wonder what it will be in a month or two?

Best way to lower it is pick up the cardio and exercises…and that is my focus for March!

This month I’m committing to:

• Going to the Bar Method at a minimum 3 x’s per week, and strive for 4 or 5 times.
• kettlebells 3 x’s per week (instead of 2)
• rebounding 3 x’s per week for 30 minutes each time.  I’ve read that 30 minutes of rebounding is equivalent to 30 minutes of running.  As I’ve mentioned before, I don’t really care for running.  And since we have a rebounder in our house, there’s no excuse for not getting to the gym.
• I’m going to add in a 4th meal…which will most likely be a protein shake.
• I started Athletic Greens last week and LOVE them and will keep it goin.
• I’ve been adding 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon in my shake this last week…not sure if it does anything (supposed to help with fat loss), but it does taste yummy!
• I’m going to cut back the water intake.  Last month I averaged 125-150 oz per day.  I had already decided to cut back but today at my Bodpod reading, I was told that ideally one should have 70% of your lean weight (lbs) of water.  That means I should be averaging 67 oz of water!  WHOO HOO!!!!  I’m going to strive for 75-100 oz.  She said to drink more if you lose a lot of water sweating…which with my increased activity, I plan to do.
• For now I’m cutting the cold therapy.  I’m not sure it did anything for me.
• I’m adding fish oil – massive amounts of fish oil.  I’ve read so many great things about fish oil that it deserves it’s own post.  To be continued…
• And finally, I’m cutting back on beans and doing more veggies and protein.  I will try for 1/4-1/2 cup beans at lunch, but none at dinner.  Again, at my Bodpod reading today, I was told that ideally for weight loss and muscle gain I should have 1.5 the amount of lean lbs in grams of protein.  By my calculations, that means I should have 145g of protein per day!  WHOA.  That is a LOT.  The Bodpod person said she has 100-130g per day.  My goal is going to be 100-125g – which is still way more than I’ve been doing.

The 4 Hour Body really is an experiment in finding what works for your own body.  There are so many different ways to “hack” the system.  But knowing what I am working with (via the Bodpod) will definitely help me figure out what is best for me.  And the magic answer is good ol diet and exercise.  I’m tweaking the diet…which isn’t really a diet anymore, just the way I eat.  And now I’m kicking up the exercise!