Shawngal's "Budging the Pudge" Journal

[shawngal]

Figured I'd probably better start one to keep me accountable and track my progress.

First off, a little about lil ol me: Hello, my name is Shawn and I'm a carb addict. : ) I'm 37, 4'10(yep, I'm a shortie, even my not quite 13 y.o DS is taller than me)and currently weigh 160.5 lbs. That is .5 lbs higher than I weighed when I gave birth.

I've battled my weight nearly all my life(as has everyone else in my family). Up until age 9, I was actually underweight and then I got painfully shy suddenly(a trait I still have and am trying to beat)and preferred sitting inside reading a book then being outside around other kids who made fun of me for being short and for having flaming red hair. I starting snacking while reading and it just snowballed from there. I continued gaining until my divorce(I married at 18, divorced when 21), when the stress caused me to lose nearly 30 pounds in less than 2 months. Le sigh, it didn't last long and soon I was packing on the pounds again. I gained and lost over the years until I had DS. Talk about hormones going nuts, I went into the hospital weighing 160 and less than a month later, I was at about 110(and that was with no exercising and no breast feeding). I got down to my lowest at 103 and maintained that for a year and then the stress on being a single parent working a crappy job got to me and I started packing it on again. I tried everything from starvation to Atkins and it wasn't until I quit the crappy stressful job and took a job working 3rd shift in a gas station that I lost weight again by doing a lot of moving around at my job and only eating one meal a day. That lasted until I took a desk job 6 months later and the weight has steadily increased over a 6 year period.

I've been in denial for a while about how much weight I've put on but I got a good look at myself naked in a full length mirror and that was my wakeup call. I'd avoided full length mirrors and seeing myself naked for a long time so while I knew I'd gained, seeing it all hanging out in all it's shamefulness was a shock! So I put myself on Atkins induction after seeing what great success my Mom and Dad have had(Mom has lost over 30 in less than 3 months w/ very little exercise, Dad has lost about 20)but quickly figured out that while Atkins works for some, it's not for me. I LOVE Bacon and Cheese and this just gave me an excuse to stuff myself. Once I start eating stuff like that, I cannot stop until I'm feeling sick. So I came here to seek out other options since I wanted to stay low carb and I found K/E and Kimkins! That's a program I can work with since I need a little strictness to budge the pudge!

So that's where I am now and here's the numbers in black and white:
Height: 4'10
Today's Weight: 160.5
Waist: 39 inches
Chest: 41 inches(and no, my boobs aren't that big since I'm barely a B cup, it's all back fat messing w/ the numbers)
Hips: 42 inches
Thighs: 24 inches
Calves: 15 inches
Upper Arms: 14 inches
Wrist: 6 inches around

Main goals are in my siggy but I do have mini goals and rewards:
Mini Goals:
Drink 100 oz or more of water per day for 30 days-Professional Manicure(my first!)

No Cheating for 30 days-A new blush or eyeshadow for fall

Halfway to Goal(30-35 lbs lost)-A pretty piece of jewelry

No Cheating for 45 days-As crazy as it sounds, 1 cheat meal consisting of IHOP Pancakes for breakfast and nothing but water for the rest of the day

Hit GOAL before my birthday: One pair of fairly high end pants or jeans

Maintain Goal: Shopping Trips to buy girlie underthings and some new clothes(since I did keep a lot of my "good and not cheap" pants and jeans in small sizes) in both Springfield and Chicago. Plus the knowledge that I have done what others said I couldn't and have provided a good example to my son.


Today's menu:
B-1 EAS low carb shake
L-1oz plain old tuna, 1 HB egg
D-2 97% lean hamburger patties, 1 tbsp. French's Mustard, no bun
Snack-1 hb egg, 1 deviled egg
5 cups black coffee, no sugar
6 20oz bottles of water
1 1 liter bottle of water

Also got in an upper body weight training workout, first time in a long time and man, I'm gonna feel it in the morning. DS worked out w/ me so it was a good bonding thing.

Picked up Ketone strips and what do you know? I must be doing something right because I was mid way on the color chart. Hopefully by Wed., I'll be on the darker end of the color chart and majorly budging the pudge!

Have a good night ladies!

[indogia]

time to take your life back!!!


hugs


indy
xxxxxxxxxxx

[shawngal]

OOps! Sorry, I haven't kept up with this. I've got 2 other blogs and I belong to a couple of other message boards so I keep forgetting about this.

Today is day 5 on K/E and today's weight was 158.0. I'm a little discouraged since I was very strict(as you can see it my fitday)and thought for sure I'd lose a little more than 2 pounds. Not sure what happend but I think my being on TOM might be messing with the numbers a bit. I'll just have to see after TOM is over next Wed.

By day 3 I barely had an appetite and on Day 4 I had no appetite. Today started the copper penny taste in the mouth so I'm burning something. I'm still not sure on this "whoosh" thing but I can say that I spent a little time in the bathroom both this morning and yesterday morning(I know, TMI).

My clothes don't feel any loser but my body feels a little lighter. Today I have a touch of "induction" flu but it seems to be passing, otherwise, I had tons of energy, almost to the point of being hyper.

I'm debating whether or not to keep on K/E over the weeknd and start Kimkins on Monday or keep on K/E until TOM is over and then start Kimkins. I'm doing pretty well on K/E but I gotta admit, I miss my veggies!!

I've stared down PMS and Aunt Flo and the cravings they brought and I won! I've had tons of stress this week and instead of heading for Walmart for Ben and Jerry's, I just drank more water. I am so not known for my willpower so this was a breakthrough for me.

I've done a little readjusting on my goals:

Mini Goals:
Drink 100 oz or more of water per day for 30 days-A new blush or eyeliner for Fall
No Cheating for 30 days-A new workout DVD

Halfway to Goal(30-35 lbs lost)-A professional manicure

No Cheating for 45 days-As crazy as it sounds, 1 cheat meal consisting of IHOP Pancakes for breakfast and nothing but water for the rest of the day

Hit GOAL by Valentines Day: Some pretty girlie underthings

Still at Goal weight or lower on my birthday(April 22)-Shopping trip to Chicago

Maintain Goal weight or lower for 6 months: 1 pair of high end dress pants for work.

Still tweaking the exercise program. I got a pilates ring to ease me into Pilates and a resistance band set so I can do stuff at work instead of sitting on my behind. I'm still going to continue my weight training and I'm looking at Callenetics or t-Tapp for something different. I'd like to drop about 15 or 20 before I attempt any cardio and even then, it's gotta be low impact because of my knees. I'd love to join the Y but I don't think I or DS would use it enough to justify the cost. I've been toying with the idea of turning my small dining room into a workout room since we never eat in there(we eat in the living room and the dining table has now become a computer desk/catchall). If I moved the table to under the window, I would have room for a small flat bench and a treadmill and that would keep me going during bad weather and winter. I could put a treadmill in my bedroom but space is pretty tight in there now. The living room is out of the question since it barely holds the furniture I have now.

[shawngal]

Hello journal! Long time, no writing in.

Had a BAD carb day yesterday. Stayed low in calories but was wayyyyyyyyy over on carbs! GAve in to cravings and had raisins and a bowl of Captain Crunch PB cereal. UGH! I don't think I did too much damage but we'll see what the torture device(aka the scale) says in a couple of days. I kept it clean today and I still have no appetite so that's a good thing! All I've had today is 24 oz of black coffee(yep, I measured it out and I'm trying to cut down), 100 oz of water and 2 EAS Carb Control Shakes(1 for breakfast and 1 for lunch). I was planning on salad for dinner but I am seriously not hungry. I'm trying to really pay attention to body signals and if my stomach growls, that means feed it. But it has growled yet. : )

I also broke down and purchased the NV diet supplement and ordered NOW Brands CLA extreme and GLA and those should be arriving shortly. I'm also doing a supplement routine for my hair(trying to grow it out) so adding a few more pills to the mix isn't going to be that hard.

I've been working on an exercise plan since, even though I can tell I've lost inches, I need to lose more and firm things up(aging and gravity are a you know what). I think I've got a workable one that I can also do with DS.

Mon-WATP before work(since I've been getting up earlier on the WOE, might as well take advantage of it)
20 minute walk after dinner w/ DS and the Pug Princess
Upper Body Workout(following the BFL schedule)

Tues- AM WATP
PM-Callentics or T-Tapp(since I'm breaking down and getting it)

Wed.-Same AM
PM-20 minute walk w/ DS; Lower Body Workout(BFL)

Thurs.-Same as Tuesday

Fri-Same as Monday

Sat-WATP, Ab work

Sun-Pilates or Yoga, maybe WATP; Housework(that burns calories, right?)

I'm also thinking of getting the 10 minute solutions Carb and Calorie burner for when I'm ready to move up in the cardio. My time can get kinda crunched so I like things that can be done quickly yet effectively.

I cannot explain this change I feel going on inside. Even though I haven't lost that much, I feel 20 lbs. lighter and my confidence is growing. I feel strong and sexy and alive, for the first time in a very long time. It's amazing what a few little changes and taking charge of my life has done for me. And this is only the beginning!

[shawngal]

Well, after a planned cheat day on Friday(had pancakes w/ syrup), my body revolted and I lost all energy and gained 2 pounds!!!!! Lesson learned: My body cannot handle large amounts of carbs.

I went back to K/E over the weekend and am back to Kimkins this morning. I'm back down to 152, which is down .2 before my cheat.

I have a new ultimate goal: To fit into my son's Packers jersey(it's a size 14/16 in boys). He's already outgrown it and that way, I don't have to pay the outrageous amount that they want for a woman's-that's one good thing about being a shortie, once I get thin again, I can wear kids clothes.

I'm off to register DS for middle school this morning and then to work in the afternoon. While I'm home this morning, I'm going to cook up a pork loin and throw a blade steak(that's been marinating in Dale's since last night) on the Foreman. That will pretty much take care of dinners/lunches for most of the week since I already have salad mixes. Also have shrimp thawing in the fridge so that might be for dinner tonight.

Also rethought my mini goals:

Drink 120+ oz. of water every day for 30 days-A new eyeliner from Clinique

Stay on workout plan for 30 days: a new workout DVD

Stay on workout plan for 60 days: New workout clothes

Drink 120+ oz. of water for 60 days: New skincare

No cheats for 30 days(beginning today)-A new pair of shoes



Off to get something accomplished!

[shawngal]

Oh joy!!! I am losing inches!!!! In a little over 2 weeks(see 1st entry for numbers), I've lost 1.5 inches off my waist, 2 inches off my chest, a half inch off the hips(damn you breeding hips), 3 inches off my thighs and an inch each off my calfs and upper arms!!! I'm sure it's mostly Kimkins but also partly because I started the GLA/CLA stack. I think next month I'm going to add R-ALA to the mix to see what that does.

Still trying to figure out where to put cardio in the mix. I need to do it if I'm going to budge inches and body fat but it's just where to fit it into my day. I'm so not a morning person plus with my back being a pain in the well, back in the mornings lately, AM workouts are out. PM I do my weight training and between the kid and the dog, there isn't enough time or privacy to do that and cardio in the evenings. I think I'm just going to have to suck up the pain and workout in the mornings. I hate getting up earlier but if I want to have the body I want, I gotta do what I gotta do!

[shawngal]

After much contemplation and research, I think I'm jumping off the Kimkins wagon at least for the time being. While I love the quick weight loss, the WOE is playing havoc w/ my attitude and body. I think that I am going to back to a plan that worked really well for me when I lost all my baby weight after DS was born almost 13 years ago. Amazingly, it was very similar to BFFM. I was hitting the gym and hard and I loved it! It wasn't until I started doing weights again that I remembered how much I love weight training. I don't want to bulk up but I do want a tad bit of muscle and to tone what I already have. Since my upper body is smaller than my lower body(I *think* that makes me a pear), most of my concentration w/ weights will be on the upper body to make things more even. I'm still sticking w/ the GLA/CLA combo and as soon as finances allow, I'm going to add R-ALA to the mix as well as green tea extract. I've been thrilled w/ the results of the GLA/CLA combo and I don't think I could ever give that up.

Probably next week, I'll order the BFFM e-book and print it out at work so I can read up and learn. I've already gotten a pretty good starting idea from reading Tashi's and Watch me Shrink's journals and Tashi(unknown to her) has become my role model since we are about the same height(she's got an inch on me) and if she can do it, I can do it. If she can work out with being a SAHM and a busy life, I can surely do it. I'm going to have to start slow w/ both cardio and diet since I've been slacking off and I'm afraid of adding too many carbs/cals all at once. I think if I can get over my shyness, I'll PM Tashi for some advice since she also did Kimkins at one point. Cardio will be the hardest, just trying to find time to do it, weights, work and be a single mom plus sleep is proving to be challenging.

I've got a wishlist that I hope to whittle down as finances permit. A couple of unplanned for expenses will be putting a crimp in my monthly budget and I'm trying to save up for a new computer and a shopping trip to Chicago in April(my reward for losing the weight)so I'll have to take things as they come and pare down. I can do without clothes(I've got tubs full of my smaller sized stuff to keep me going as I lose), I don't drink or go out and I can give up buying makeup and hair stuff. What I can't give up is cable tv(it's my entertainment since I don't go out plus I'm a CNN junkie and DS is an ESPN junkie), I can't give me my supplements since losing weight and getting healthy is my top priority and I can't give up driving across town/into the next town since I have to work. But I'll do what I can when I can.

Shawn's Getting to Goal Wishlist
R-ALA
Whey Protein powder(I bought a full tub of PVL Peanut butter chocolate and let's just say, it's nasty and a total waste of money. Should've got another flavor)
T-Tapp!!!!!!!!!!
Smaller Stability ball(I've got a 60 inch and this shortie needs a 55 inch or smaller)
Lift Weights to Lose Weight DVD
10 Minute Solutions Carb and Calorie Burner DVD
Body Bar Workout DVD's
10, 15, 20 lb weights
Incline/Decline Bench
Treadmill or Y Membership
A second pair of cross trainers to keep at work


I can say that I've lost inches even if I haven't lost weight. I've even lost some of the "girls", going from a 42C to a 38NB(yep, that's nearly B). I thought losing some of the girls might be sad, but it's really not. I feel daintier so my ultimate goal there will be to get to a 34 or 36B and just firm and tone. I'm also losing in the hips since a formerly tight size 12 pant was still a tad snug in the waist but loose on the hips. My hips are the bane of my existance so it was good to see some loss on that area.

[shawngal]

Ok, so a quick crunch of the numbers has gotten me this:

1457 calories to maintain current weight
Need to subtract 291 cals for fat loss which gives me a total of 1166 calories per day for my low cal/low carb days

466 cals for protein=117g protein daily or 23.4 g per meal(5 meals daily)
466 cals for carbs=117g carbs daily or 23.4 g per meal(5 meals daily)
233 cals for fat=25g fat daily or 5g per meal(5 meals daily)

On high cal/high carb days:
1311 calories
524 cals for protein=131g or 26.2 g per meal
524 cals for carbs=131g or 26.2 g per meal
262 cals for fat = 29g or 5.8 g per meal

Now here's where it gets fun. Since I'm coming from Kimkins where I did low fat/low carb(less than 20g per day)/low cal, I'm sure I'm going to have to gradually increase as not to shock my system. The question is how and when.

The other part of the equation is exercise. My plan is to do a full body weight training 2x a week w/ an added day of upper body, all in the evenings after dinner. I need to do cardio and my plan is to either do 20 minutes in the morning(and work up from there) or 20 minutes at lunch time(working up from there) and it will be walking to begin with. I'd like to start out at 3x a week for the cardio and work up to 5 or 6 x a week for optimal fat loss. I also plan on doing pilates or callenetics(or T-Tapp when I can afford it) at least 2x a week. Now I just have to figure out what to eat pre and post workout. I plan on doing fasted cardio in the am so I'm not too worried about what to eat before that.

I think I've got myself stocked for at least the next week, now it's just a matter of planning the meals out.

[shawngal]

Since I'm a dummy when it comes to math:

Ok, w/ my new numbers

BMR=1202.68
TDEE=1202.68 * 1.2=1443.21 meaning 1443.21 cals to maintain current weight

Cals for fat loss=.20 * 1443=288.64 or 1154.57 cals per day for low cal/low carb 3 day cycle; 1300 cals for the 1 day high carb/high cal
For low carb 3 day cycle:
.40 * 1154.57=461.828 cals for protein
.40 * 1154.57=461.828 cals for carbs
.20 * 1154.57=230.91 cals for fat

461.828/4=115.457 grams carbs
461.828/4=115.457 grams protein
230.91/9=25.656 grams fat
For high carb one day cycle:
.40 *1300=520 cals for protein
.40 *1300=520 cals for carbs
.20 *1300=260 cals for fats

520/4=130grams carbs
520/4=130 grams protein
260/9=29g fat


New workout plan:

Cardio-Min. of 3 days, max of 6 days. Start out w/ 20 minutes fasting cardio in the am and work up to 30 minutes by end of September. If the weather is bad, use WATP DVD

Weight training-2 days full body + 1 additional day of upper body weight training using 5lb dumbbells, 9lb body bar, resistance bands and adjustable
ankle/wrist weights. Work up to 10 lb dumbbells by end of September

Pilates or Callenetics-1-2 days per week; T-Tapp when I can afford the DVD's

Ab work-2 - 3 days per week

now i just have to figure out how and when to add back the carbs to get me where I need to be and plan meals around workout schedule, work schedule and home schedule.

[shawngal]

Busy day for me since we have our board meeting this afternoon. Day did not start off great since I didn't get up in time to do a cardio workout. Me thinks I am going to have to plan on doing weights and cardio at night after dinner since I cannot seem to get to bed earlier nor get up earlier.

Trying to wing the BFFM until I have $ to get the e-book. Fundage is pretty tight this month and I need to order more CLA so I may have to wait until the end of the month to get the book. Having a darn hard time figuring out meals and timing, this is going to take some work.

Meal 1:1/2 cup 2% cottage cheese, 24oz of black coffee and 1 slice Sara Lee Multi grain bread(45 calories, 9grams of carbs). 6:30 am

meal #2 carb freedom yogurt and 2 hb egg whites. 9:30 am

Meal 3 will be at the board meeting so I ordered a grilled chicken salad w/ no dressing. I'll take my Wishbone w/ me and just eat half of the salad. 12:30 pm

Meal 4:Should be at 3:30 Not sure yet what I'll have

Meal 5: Will be at 5:30 Not sure what I'll have yet. Plan on doing full body weight training right after dinner.

[shawngal]

Oh vey, this BFFM thing is hard! I am so not a math whiz and now I have numbers spinning around in my head.

Aunt Flo's husband, Peter Michael Scott(known as PMS) is here and yesterday I gave in to munchies and ate 2 low carb tortilla's after dinner. That put everything all outta whack. But despite that, I got on the scale this morning to a one pound drop! Not sure how I managed that one.

Today has been off as far as getting everything in. I actually got busy around what was supposed to be meal 3 and couldn't eat so dinner ended up being meal 3. I'm going to get in a protein shake or something before I head to bed(I gotta be in bed early tonight since I have to be up extra early for work stuff) so I get my numbers up. Tomorrow is going to be even worse since part of the day I'll be in a place where I can't eat so things are going to be outta whack. I'll be able to get back on track Friday which will also be my first carb up day.

Since I managed to lose a pound, Tashi(who has been wonderful in helping me figure this all out) and I think that I need to go ahead and up the cals a little quicker. Now I just have to refigure everything.

[shawngal]

Gee, you think with all this food, I'd be able to come up w/ some sort of eating plan:

Canned Green Beans, Spinach
Whole Wheat Pasta
Unsweetened Cocoa
Irish Oatmeal, Quaker Weight Control Oatmeal, Kashi Heart to Heart oatmeal
Cream of Wheat
Skippy Natural Peanut Butter
SF maple flavored syrup
Canned 100% pumpkin
br. rice
banana's
PVL Whey Gourmet PB choc protein powder(yucky stuff, too rich for me but I gotta do something with it so not to waste it.)
Body Fortress Whey Protein Powder Packets in Vanilla, Chocolate
Frozen broc., frozen sweet potatoes
Frozen Chix breasts, frozen lean hamburger, frozen shrimp, frozen scallops, frozen fish, frozen Bubba burgers, veggie burgers
Lean ham steak, ham slices, roast beef slices
LC yogurt
Pepperjack cheese
Hebrew National beef franks
FF plain yogurt
2% cottage cheese
Lite sour cream
eggs
lc tortillas
SF strawberry preserves
Strawberries, Apples
Spinach, Salad Mix
All Bran Extra Fiber Cereal

Now why can't I come up w/ anything?

[shawngal]

Oh vey! Got the BFFM book and now I have a lot of reading to do.

Still having trouble w/ meals and timing and getting enough food in. I think I'm still in Kimkins mode and it's been difficult. My goal for today was to have 1300 calories(supposed to be a high day) and I'm at 935. I'm full(almost stuffed) and I ate plenty so I'm not sure how to fit it all in. I'm taking the weekend to figure things out and come up w/ meals for the week and start Monday off fresh w/ 1200 calories w/ mod. carbs. I'll do that for 3 days and then do a 1300 cal/higher carbs day.

Also going to start sucking it up and getting up early to do cardio. Gotta start out slow / this since the arthritis and the weight gain has kept me from undertaking cardio. I think I'll start out w/ a 20 minute walk, at least 5 days a week with the goal of making it up to 30 minutes by the end of September. I'm hoping to increase my endurance so that when my folks go to Florida in November and I get to use their treadmill during lunch, I can start doing some time of intereval training on the treadmill to kick things up a notch.

Gotta think of goals and rewards since I need all the motivation I can get. Having pictures up of my body ideal isn't going to cut it, I need goals!!!!

[shawngal]

BFFM Goals:

Ultimate Long Term Goal:
I look better at 40 than I did at 30, will be at less than 20% body fat and be an example and an inspiration to my son and to others. I am running no less than 10 miles a week.

12 Month Goal:
I am at 20% body fat, have reached my goal measurements of 34-25-34, my goal weight of 115 pounds, am running no less than 5 miles a week and DS's Dad's jaws are hitting his chest because he said I couldn't do it and I did it.

90 Day Goal:
I have lost 6% body fat, weigh 130 pounds and am celebrating Christmas by wearing my size 10 jeans and my f. me black boots.

Weekly Goals:
I am waking up every morning at 5:30 to fit in cardio and my first meal before 7 and I am a morning person instead of a night owl.

I do 3 full body weight workouts a week and do pilates/yoga/callentics twice a week.

Daily Goals:
I drink a gallon of water
I eat 5 meals w/ the proper ratios
I drink 2 to 3 cups of green tea
I take all of my vitamins/supplemets
I spend quality time w/ DS and the Pug Princess
I take 10 minutes to visualize my ultimate goal

[shawngal]

Ok, even though I've only been doing BFFM for a week, what the heck, I'll give my totals. Started w/ K/E on 8/7/06, did that for 5 days, then Kimkins for a week then back to K/E for a bit then came to BFFM

Date: 8/7/06
Weight: 160.5
Waist: 39
Chest: 41
Thighs: 24
Calves: 15
Upper Arm: 14
Wrist: 6

Date: 9/14/06
Weight: 147.6
Waist:37
Chest: 39
Thighs: 23.5
Calves:14
Upper Arm:13
Wrist: 5 3/4


So, something is working, right?

I think part of it is that I've been taking the GLA/CLA combo. Makes a huge difference in totals since I'm not doing any cardio(yet). I added Acetyl-L-Carnitine to my combo today and I'll be adding Green Tea Extract and R-ALA next week. I'll also be committing 100% to doing cardio, come hell or high water. I think I'm going to set my 1st mini goal at 140 and my reward will be to get T-Tapp. I think I'm also going to pick up the Every Calorie Counts cookbook so I can get a tad more creative w/ meals. There's only so much grilled chicken I or DS can eat. I'm trying to not cook two different meals so I have to find stuff that will fit my BFFM plan and that DS will eat.

Also reworking my eating and workout plans. Since I've lost a bit, I am going to take the calories up to 1250-1300 on my low days and up to 1454 on my high days. Since I don't have a lot of room to play w/ I think I'm going to just do two high days a week(probably Tuesdays and Saturdays which are also 2 of my 3 lift days) and 5 days of low cals. I'll still cycle a bit so things will probably look like this:

M-1250
T-1454
W-1250
Th-1300
Fri-1300
Sat-1454
Sun-1250

I'm still working the 40c/40P/20F baseline but will adjust if I need to. I tend to do well w/ a bit higher protein and more moderate carbs so this will be an experiement. I can say I've been enjoying eating oatmeal and cream of wheat again. It's been nice on the cold mornings we've been having.

I'm also going to stick to the following workout schedule:
Monday-20 minutes cardio in the morning
Tuesday-20 minutes cardio in the morning; Full body weights in the evening
Wed-same as Monday
Thur-Same as Tuesday
Fri-same as Mon
Sat-same as Tues
Sun-Callenetics or Pilates

I'm trying to work up to 30 minutes of cardio w/ the ultimate goal in mind of being able to start running once I get about 10-15 lbs from goal.

[shawngal]

Here I am! I guess my journal is still here, just buried.

Still not feeling quite 100% since my cold and allergies are kicking my butt so I've taken this week off from any exercising and not really keeping up w/ BFFM. I've had little appetite and it's been a struggle just to eat.

I'm still struggling between wanting this weight/fat gone NOW and doing the right thing. According to BFFM, to do accelerated fat loss, I'd be eating way below my BMR and I'm not sure that's a good thing. Then again, since I'm not really working out, that might not be a bad thing, at least until I ramp up my exercise. Right now, it's a struggle to eat 5-6x a day and eat the right things. Some days, I'm really forcing myself to eat. There's got to be a happy medium somewhere, I'm not sure where. I guess I just gotta suck it up and do it.

I'm thinking that I'm just going to go back to basics and stick w/ a baseline and not worry about carb/calorie cycling quite yet. Once I get a handle on that and see what my progress is, then I can worry about cycling. I'm losing inches, which I think is part BFFM and part my GLA/CLA/R-ALA stack. But I still see a lot of fat when I look in the mirror and I have a muffin top when I wear certain pants and that's just not good. It's darn discouraging!

Once I get my cable internet hooked up and my other laptop back in working order, I'll probably post a "before" pic, if for nothing else to keep me in line and remind me of what I'm tired of looking like. I'm also going to revive my "extreme makeover" blog to chart my progress and goals on the other aspects of what I'm doing to makeover myself. BFFM/Diet/Fitness is just part of my makeover, I'm totally making over everything about me, my body, my looks, my life. I'm almost 40 and I'm tired of letting life pass me by. It's time for me to take control!

[shawngal]

New BFFM Goals:
Daily Goals:
I drink at least 2 liters of water a day
I eat 5 meals a day w/ the proper ratios at the end of the day(6 meals a day on weight training days w/ the 6th meal being a protein shake)
I take all of my vitamins/supplements
I am getting to sleep at a decent hour
I spend quality time w/ DS and the Pug Princess
I take 10 minutes daily to visualize my goals

Weekly Goals:
I am doing 2 20 minute cardio sessions at least 5 days a week
I am doing 3 full body weight workouts a week
I am doing pilates/callentics twice a week

1st mini goal(Oct. 12)
I am at least 145 pounds and in a size 12 w/ room to spare, having lost at least 1 inch off both my waist and hips

2nd mini goal(Nov.23)
I am at 135 pounds and have lost at least another inch off my hips and waist

90 day goal(Dec. 24)
I have lost 6% body fat, weigh 130 or less and am celebrating Christmas by wearing a size 10 or smaller pair of jeans and my black spike heel boots.

7 month goal(April 22-My 38th Birthday)
I am at my goal measurements of 34-25-34
I am running no less than 5 miles per week
I am wearing a size 4 pant
I have joined the Y
I have totally made myself over

12 month Goal:
I am at less than 20% body fat
I am running no less than 15 miles a week
I am running in the Shoreline Classic

Ultimate Long Term Goal:
I look better at 40 than I did at 30
I am running no less than 20 miles per week
I am running in the Chicago Marathon
I am an example and inspiration to others, especially my son

[shawngal]

Change in plan-Kickstarting the fat loss with a bang and getting back on track.

Not messing around with calorie/carb cycling for now, just going straight on cals and keeping my macros straight.

1172 calories per day; 50P/25C/25F
146.5g Protein
73.25g Carbs
73.25g Fat

Now to work on meal planning!

[shawngal]

Time to dig out the old journal!

When last we left off, I was doing BFFM. Well, that didn't go so well so I gave up for a while.

Then I decided earlier this year that I was going to get serious about losing and found my way to the site that shall not be mentioned. From March until July, I went from 160 pounds to 123 pounds, primarily following K/E and my own tweaks. So I didn't full on do Kimkins, but rather what I call Shawnkins.

But as a single Mom on a tight budget, I could afford to keep having to buy new pants every couple of weeks so I slacked off and slowed down. Plus, I'd been having a couple of nasty bouts w/ vertigo that at the time I put down to my exercise routine and the heat. Now I know it was my very low cal WOE.

I didn't find out about this whole KK fraud until a couple of weeks ago when I decided it was time to lose the last 20 once and for all and am now among the banned from Kimkins! Oh well!!

So I'm kinda starting from scratch again. I'm doing another round of K/E for the next couple of days and then easing into Atkins 72 my way, which is not quite as fatty and a bit lower cal since at 4'10, I don't need that many calories. I'm not taking things as low as I did on Kimkins but I know that at my current activity level(basically zilch since I have a back injury currently), if I went to 1200 calories, I'd just maintain the weight I am now or even gain a few. Once I'm cleared to exercise, I'll up the calories to where someone my height/weights needs to be to lose. It's going to be a numbers game again and I really hate math.

Now, for the current stats:
Height: 4'10
Weight: 128
Chest: 35.5 inches
Waist: 33.5
Hips: 37 inches
Thighs: 21 inches
Arms: 12 inches
Calves: 12.5 inches

Here's where my stats were when I started KK in March:
Height: 4'10
Weight: 160.5
Waist: 39 inches
Chest: 41 inches
Hips: 42 inches
Thighs: 24 inches
Calves: 15 inches
Upper Arms: 14 inches

Obviously something I did worked and the current numbers reflect my 7 pound gain from being off KK. Part of the loss was diet/exercise and part was taking the GLA/CLA combo, which I started back on yesterday.

Crossing my fingers that I can get back on track easily and get rid of the last 20 pounds. I've set my goal at 110 and I'll see where I'm at body shape wise to see if I need to adjust that 110 downward.