My Secret

For several months I have considered writing in my blog again.  I had stopped writing for many reasons. Catching everyone up has seemed overwhelming.   I figure I will just start today and gradually catch you up as I write. 

At the end of January I started a part time job working at a gym during which time they were beginning a 90-day weight loss challenge for it's members. I happened to mention to one of their personal trainers that I wished I could join in on the challenge but that the days/times they were meeting didn't work with my crazy schedule.  That conversation resulted in me agreeing to work with the trainer.  I was both excited and terrified.  Having been in good shape most of my life (up until my mid-twenties), I thought I knew what I was agreeing to and how hard the work would be.  As it turns out, I had no clue what I had actually agreed to and truly had no idea how hard it was going to be!!  My 20-year-old body is LONG gone and I now have to deal with my relationship with food and understand why I eat what I eat.  Its been a very different experience from being young with no real life experience, enjoying good metabolism, and having the time to be in the gym, as active as I wanted.  DUH.

Four months later I'm  frequently asked the question, “What are you doing to get such good results???”  

Ready for my secret????  Diet and Exercise.

Yup.  You read it right.  I meet with my trainer Jake three times a week for 30 minutes each session.  I workout on my own the other days.  No, I do not workout 7 days a week.  I don’t workout 6 days a week.  I'm with Jake the 3 days then I do my best to get back to the gym additional days as my schedule allows to do cardio.  No, I don’t spend hours working out.  When working out on my own, I do cardio for about 30 minutes occasionally some strength training.

During the first session with Jake he took my body measurements, figured out my body fat percentage and weighed me.  He calculated how many calories I needed to consume each day to function appropriately, fuel my body, and lose weight.  He also talked to me about my diet and what needed to change. The goal was set to lose 1-2 pounds a week. 

Plain and the simply I eat between 1,800 and 2,000 calories a day.  Not more and definitely not less (I have learned the hard way how much not eating enough calories can derail your progress).  I eat “clean”.  I basically cook at home as much as possible.  I don’t eat processed foods or full of sugars/preservatives.  I avoid drive-thrus and drinking my favorite soda (Coke).  In addition to our sessions, Jake continues to teach me about my diet.

There have been days where my calories have come from drive-thrus or old favorites and most of the time I have still been able to lose weight, not as much though.  When I don’t eat clean I feel like crap.  I bloat, ache, and working out is harder. I get tired and feel just plain icky.  When I eat the right foods I not only lose more weight  but I also have much more energy and feel really good (That is one of the best parts)!  I also sleep better at night, unless our dog Charlie wakes me to go out.  For the first time since age 22, I sleep without a sleep aid (prescription or over-the-counter drug).  Even when I was taking something to help me sleep back then, I could not sleep through the night.  Now I do.  I wake up in the morning easier and more energized.  My skin looks better.  I feel better.  Inside and out.  And my pants are baggy!!

Yesterday Jake took my four-month measurements…Check out my progress.  Who knew that diet and exercise would give such amazing results, inside and out?!?!?