Gut-Bustin’ 101

Is cheating helping me lose fat? Have to post this cuz it’s really freakin’ me out. So for the past 5+ months I’ve been eating pretty clean nutritionally - 6 meals a day, clean foods, plenty of water, and only one weekend dessert (not even a full cheat meal.) Saw consistent results in the form of inches off my waist up until late July- early August, when my waist measurement hit a plateau. Kept eating well, but not much has happened since then, even with pretty consistent workouts, and cardio 3 - 4 times a week.

The thing that’s weird is that recently, after about a week of "slipping" a bit (it was bithday week after all!) - less water than I was used to (only 2-3 liters instead of a gallon or more), SEVERAL cheat meals and a few days where I only ate 4-5 meals instead of 6, my waist measurement has started to move down again. What’s up with that?

I noticed this phenomenon a few other times during the past several months, where I would see improved (or greater) waist-loss results after a night of adding an extra late-night meal, or indulging in a little more dessert or simple carbs than normal. I’m racking my brain trying to figure out why this happens. Could I not be getting enough calories, and my body sees these extra calories as a sign that it’s not starving, so it’s burning more fat? I’ve heard about the "re-feed" concept, could that be related? Could adding in some different foods (as opposed to the same food I’ve been eating for over 5 months straight) maybe confuse my body and get things moving again? Has this ever happened to anyone else here? Will I ever stop asking so many questions?

*whew* Well, guess there’s not much left to do but head to the kitchen for some late-night snacking lol

A few people have contacted me wondering what my nutrition is like. Wow, I’m flattered - thanks for asking! So far my nutrition has helped me drop over 3 inches off my waist in the past several months.

A typical day consists of 6 small-to-moderate-sized meals though I’ve just started playing around with my meal numbers - I’m trying something out of curiosity: 6 meals on workout days (4 days), 5 meals on non-workout days (3 days). Kinda throwing in a little confusion so my body doesn’t get used to the same ol’ all the time. I’ve been eating 6 meals a day, every day, for the past 4 monthsand have had pretty good results. We’ll see if this change makes any kind of difference either way.

I drink at least a gallon of water every day, and have since late March ‘08. Usually more in the daytime, tapering off a bit at night since getting up several times a night to pee isn’t my idea of fun. I have two water bottles I alternate, that way I always have an ice cold bottle ready to go. They say ice water can burn extra calories, so what the heck.

A typical day:

Meal 1
(right after waking up): Whey Protein shake mixed in water, sometimes I add a piece of fruit into the shake like a banana or some strawberries, etc.

Meal 2
6-8 egg whites, plain, sometimes cooked in olive oil with some garlic and tomatos, with 1/2-to-3/4 cup of plain oatmeal topped with some kinda fruit, usu. blueberries or whatever’s in-season. I also add a few almonds or walnuts to the mix, and have started adding a half grapefruit as a substitute for the other fruits to see if that helps with any fat burning. Hey- at this point I’ll try anything

Meal 3
1 slice of wheat bread with 1 tbsp. natural, zero-sodium peanut butter and maybe some cottage cheese (low fat), and a piece of fruit if I’m feeling hungrier

Meal 4
This can be usually a turkey sandwich on wheat bread, or grilled skinless chicken with green beans and maybe a half of a yam now and then

Meal 5
Either more chicken, or a fish meal (I like orange roughy) with a salad, no dressing. (I squeeze a lime on top of the salad and that gives it a nice flavor without adding any extra crap). If I’m doing extra carbs I might add in some black beans too, but I usually cut the complex carbs out of the last two meals if my stomach lets me!

Meal 6
Usually a small salad with leafy greens, cucumbers, nuts, a few of those sweet grape tomatos, and for protein maybe some cottage cheese or turkey on top of the salad.

ZERO salt, ZERO sugar, ZERO sugar substitutes (unless that sucralose crap is in my protein shakes then I can’t avoid it). I rarely if ever drink milk, and have only recently added lofat cottage cheese to the mix as an extra source of protein. But that gets the boot if my fat burning suffers because of it.

Coffee? Yeah - but only about 2 small cups a week now, and it’s black, nothing in it. Though I’m thinking I might experiment with drinking a small cup about half an hour before I do cardio to see if that has any effect on my fat loss. I’d rather do that than take a supplement - I want to go as natural as possible.

Once in a while - and I assume this is because I haven’t eaten enough good carbs during the day - I’ll get to around 8pm and have this massive carb craving. that’s when I start eyeing my daughter’s Oreos in the cabinet hahaha  But I keep a box of lo-fat graham crackers handy instead, and usually one or two "sheets" of those will satisfy me without blowing the food plan. I try to also eat a little protein with them if I’m gonna do that so my insulin doesn’t spike too badly from the simple carbs.

Do I cheat? Yup. But it’s only once on the weekends, and when I do it’s usually just a dessert to have with my black coffee. If it’s a holiday? Sure, I’ll enjoy a burger (no bun!) or maybe a small slice of cake on someone’s birthday, but that’s very rare, and I’m proud of myself for that.

Supplements? A whey protein shake. Vitamin C, Vitamin E, and a Multi. Just starting to add in EFA’s. That’s it.

That’s about it. I’m trying to add in a little more variety so my body doesn’t get too used to the same foods all the time. So far, I think I’m eating pretty clean. Hope this satisfies those of you who asked! If you have any questions, fire away - I’m happy to help!

*whew* Tomorrow is pretty much booked solid with a pre-school field trip for my little kiddo (to a local kids’ pizza joint no less!) plus projects and work that’ll have me away from "home base" for a good part of the day. So I’ll be spending about an hour or two tonight cooking food and getting it all packed up & ready just so I don’t miss a meal during the craziness tomorrow.

Am I worried about temptation getting the better of me and burying my face in a pepperoni pie? nahh… Have you TASTED the pizza at these places? ‘course I’m part Italian so I might be a *little* too picky when it comes to my pizza!  I was just thinking - how funny would it be for me to "smuggle" in a healthy meal to the pizza place and chow down while the kids are playing? Anybody ever done that? lol Think they’d ‘cuff me and toss me to the curb? "Sorry sir - unless the food’s loaded with fat and causes your face to break out in pimples, it ain’t allowed in here." Actually, I’m planning to eat right before we go, so I won’t have to worry about another meal until we leave the place a couple hours later. Might pack a protein bar just in case.

Believe me, I’d rather be spending two hours tonight roaming around here on bodybulding.com, or even better, burning calories the fun way! But it makes me feel pretty good that I’m actually taking the time to do this nutrition stuff right. Nope, it isn’t easy, but the energy and the health and confidence it brings is worth every minute.

Just got back from taking my little girl out for some ice cream. Maybe only a parent could understand this, but watching her enjoy her gargantuan waffle-cone dipped in chocolate, laced with sprinkles and filled to the brim with strawberry Ben & Jerry’s had me mesmerized!  It’s amazing if you think about it - a child focused 110% on that ice cream cone - savoring every bite, making the experience last as long as possible… nothing else exists for them at that moment in time. I thought to myself that’s how it should be when I work out:  110% on each rep, feeling the muscle contract and expand, noticing the sensation of blood rushing through my veins, visualizing the end results sharply in my mind… nothing else should exist for me at that moment but the movement, the weights, the power.

Amazing what you can take away from just sharing an ice cream with your child! Yeah, I had to partake myself: just one small scoop of coffee ice cream. Because in the grand scheme of things, spending those moments with my daughter, sharing laughter and a darn good treat, means so much more than saying "no" to the occassional cheat and potentially missing out on memories that can last forever. I’ll just do some extra cardio in the morning