Green.T’s Journey

So for the last 5 years I’ve gained & dropped the same 10lbs scale weight. I know now that scale weight is different than body fat… In the last few months I’ve been monitoring my bf% along with measurements & scale weight. I seem to lose 1-3 lbs off the scale, then with a night or 2 I can easily gain it back… so I’ve been consistently staying around 149, with occasional drop down to 146 or increase 150.

However, my bf% has been dropping & my measurements seem to be slowly giving way (sometimes seems like its snail pace).

Is my body efficient, in a way, at replacing fat with muscle & therefore my scale just doesn’t reflect much? I don’t think this entirely true cause I’d be ripped by now…

Keep in mind that my jeans are fitting the same though… well not as tight these days.

My rant is I’m frustrated that I’m not shrinking much… I’d like to get to fit into single digit jean sizes. Makes me wonder if I should kick up the cardio more & perhaps keep the same lifting schedule or even drop it down…

Acknowledging the progress I have made though… I do see it in my progress photos. However, I get fixated on that scale & those smaller sizes of jeans.

My new short term goal:

Drop from 149lbs to 139lb (-10 lbs)

Drop down a size or two in jeans

Uncover my muscle from the body fat

All by 9/11 (7weeks from now)

 Suggestions, opinions, rants as always welcome

Thanks for listening!

Muscles growing, definition starting to show, lost 2.5lbs & 2" off the waist. Basically things are going well & I’m feeling great.

 Biggest issue discovered: I stress snack during my study session the night before an exam. So trying to find ways around this now… low carb suggestions would be helpful.

Just got back from my week vacation. Had a great much-needed time off trip. Now it’s a new class/work schedule, and therefore training schedule. Also I’m getting back on track with my diet as well. Hopefully the next 12 weeks will get me to the goal line!!

So a few weeks back I emailed them for directions in my training. Surprisingly the plan was designed to specifics to my daily schedule. So far I’ve been right on track because it works into my daily life so well.

However, I am leaving for vacation in a week, so it’s not the best idea to try to commit to this 12 week plan until I get back. I know this sounds like total cop out, but I want to commit 110% & realistically a vacation/travel is not going to allow that. So up until that time I will follow the plan, but won’t start reporting in & documenting progress until I get back & start ‘officially’.

I’m extremely stoked about this, as I’m already feeling results from 1.5 weeks on plan. I guess I just needed a little personalized redirection… Basics of my new plan: low-carb & antagonistic training 4 days (added 30min cardio) as well as with 2 HIIT mornings.

So the last 1.5 weeks have been good. I am now getting into the habit of doing at least 30 mins cardio (HIIT or Stair/hill program), making all of my weight training, and diet is as clean as it’s ever been. I’m starting to feel it.. in the good way.

Sample weekday:

7am Cardio  20oz of water

8:15am Power Oatmeal (kashi oatmeal + 1/2 scoop of protein & fiber powder) 20 oz of water

12: Low fat yogurt & 1/2 grapefruit

3: Tilapia & veggies

6: Chicken & veggies

IF I start the day with a HIIT program, then I seem to be pretty hungry after all that, so I’ll have a healthy snack like almonds.

If I’m not slammed with study/homework, then I’ll fit another cardio session in late PM. 6-8 hours of sleep a night is definitely needed for my workload.

 Keep tuned, as I’m hoping for great strides this time next week.

With the helpful advice I’ve received, as well as the encouragement, over the weekend has got the gears turning. The conclusion… my diet still has plenty of wiggle room to improve & I’ll be pushing myself even more to lift as heavy as safety permits.

Plan: 5-6 meals a day

Breakfast: Kashi Oatmeal with 1/2 scoop of protein & fiber supplement

Snack: Yogurt & 1/2 a grapefruit (I need the vit C)

Lunch: Chicken/Fish with Broccoli/asparagus (interchangable to avoid burnout combos)

Snack: 1/4c plain almonds & other 1/2 of grapefruit

Dinner: Chicken/fish with Broccoli/asparagus

Drinking lot’s of water lately. My secret found was adding a lemon slice to it.

Will add 40 mins of cardio to each day, even strength training days. On the weight days my diet plan will have the addition of a protein shake directly following the gym.

Black & white enough… hopefully. I would really love to be rocking a lower fat body by my vacation (3 weeks).

As always input is welcomed… I try to incorporate it into my busy student schedule.

Take care & let’s rip it up

-Tessa

So been at this for a while now… one would think that I would have at least once hit goal… but nope still right where I was years ago. I don’t get it!! I guess that’s not entirely accurate, as I do believe that I put on muscle & dropped some body fat. I also feel healthier.

However, I seem to always hit this same wall. 150lbs, not dropping to under a size 10, high 20’s body fat percentage. I’ve tried it all, except starving myself, eating healthy, low carb, low fat, counted calories, & weight watchers. I lift heavy, & actually can build muscle fairly easily, but my complaint is this 1-2" of fat insulation. As a result of that insulation the muscle remains hidden.

Well this is the summer that I want to see it & feel it. I’ve added morning fasted cardio 30 mins, oatmeal & protein to my mornings, increased my protein intake in general, remain to strength train 3 days a week.

Ok, so any & all that read this… my question is what am I forgetting? Not doing? Not understanding? I’m tired of not hitting goal or even heading in that direction… I’m even willing to increase the workload, maybe cut down the food..

 Venting was needed. Thanks for hearing me out.

-Tess

So now that I’ve got 3-4 weeks in of eating right. I figure it would be a good time to change up my training & take it up a notch. My body sure loves this 150lb mark. I would be fine with that if I could uncover the muscle gained from the fat insulation. I’ve been researching & reading other profiles on here & it sounds like there is no way out of cardio for me. I hate cardio.

Well I moved the stairstepper into my bedroom, mere 4 ft from my bed… thinking ok so this should be easy. Convincing myself to roll out of bed an hour earlier than usual is not so easy. My question is to you AM people… how did you break into AM training? Motivating ideas & what nots?

I managed this morning cause it was a late start class schedule & boy I feel better for it. I’ll weight train after work tonight to get an additional strength day in. I’m sure this will be an exhausting schedule, but I’m just not making the sort of progress I was hoping for. Any advice is of course always welcome. Thanks!

So today was weigh in day… very surprised to find that I was down to 146.5lbs this morning. I haven’t seen that since last summer. I hope to continue on & FINALLY reach my goal 130lbs.

Started off with 20 mins stairstepper & 10 mins high rep weights.

Meal 1: Nectar Protein shake

Meal 2: 1/4c almonds, 1 cheese stick

Meal 3: tuna, mayo, green onion, & cheese with a hard boiled egg

Meal 4: Hard boiled egg, 1 string cheese, & grande Skinny van. latte

Meal 5: 5oz potroast, 2c cauliflower, tbsp can’t believe it’s not butter

Meal 6: 3 oreos (night slip up)

=1579 cal, 86.7 fat, 261.8 protein, 43 Net carbs <200 cal activity>

Meal 1: 2 scoop protein shake

Meal 2: 1/4 cup Non-salted Almonds

Meal 3: 4oz rib tenderloin, 1/2tbs BBQ sauce, 1/2c Broccoli, 2 mozzerella sticks, Diet Pepsi

Meal 4: (scramble) 2 Whole eggs, 2 egg whites, 2 tbsp shredded cheddar, 4 mushrooms, 2 green onions, 3oz leftover pot roast, & 1 slice of bacon

hydroxycut, 3 fiber tablets, 52 oz H2O

= 1166 Cal, 50.3 fat, 229.23 Protein, & 24NC

 Not a lot of calories, but felt really full all day. This week my energy levels are back to normal, so when they say by the 3rd week your body adapts. Feeling good to go! Back down to 149.5lbs… gotta keep this ball rolling. : )