Wendy's Transformation

[Victoria]

Ok, Wendy. I'm beginning my long and arduous task of visiting each and every one of the challenge logs, and yours is the very first on the list!

Major congrats on your weight loss so far. You are an inspiration, for sure. Good luck in Boston. You'll qualify and then some. And, you'll no doubt nail that chin-up by the time we are done with this program. I've been chasing that wiley thing for a while now.

And, I absolutely love the pics of you and your tool belt. You are such a goof!!!

Go get 'em, tiger!

[rayrae435]

The tool belt picks are so fun! Reading your log is helping me to figure out how I'm going to fit all my training in. I just finished NROL4W and I'm so excited to get started.

[fengshway]

thanks tracey, tracy and rachel! I will be putting the toolbelt to use again this weekend as a finish the master bathroom. decluttering and losing weight are related, I think!!

[Espi]

Good luck!

Have you got any idea how many kcals you're eating? You've got a really very intense training program! As much as I love training, it's been my experience that in order to create a deficit, it often helps more to cut back in volume rather than increase it if I want to lose weight. You'd not be the first one to not lose on a NROL fat loss program but stay at maintenance.

[fengshway]

I eat between 2200 and 2700 kcal a day, with an occasional day every couple of weeks with 3500 or so. mostly clean foods, but sometimes wine, dark chocolate and the occasional dessert. I have steadily lost 20 pounds over a year doing this.

over on john berardi's site, precisionnutrition.com, he talks about the concept of G-flux---basically still creating a small calorie deficit, but keeping your exercise volume pretty high, including a few interval workouts too (ie keeping some intensity in there, not just all low heartrate stuff)

which parts of my program would you recommend scaling back? I might consider doing that for a period of time to see what happens.

[fengshway]

oh, and espi, I forgot to tell you that the program I posted is actually less volume than my body is used to--I did the chicago marathon in october, and was putting in some pretty long runs in preparation, so my actual hours per week are less. but the intensity of my weight training and running is definitely higher.

[SpacecityPaula]

Originally Posted by fengshway

thanks tracey, tracy and rachel! I will be putting the toolbelt to use again this weekend as a finish the master bathroom. decluttering and losing weight are related, I think!!

Agreed!!!

[fengshway]

I am thinking I will post some after pics of the house in 6 months!

[Espi]

That's quite a neat intake!

Not here, but elsewhere I used to have a reference to the G-Flux in my sig.
However, there's a fine line between "eating enough to fuel a workout" versus either undereating or overeating. I've noticed that after a certain point, the body tends to overreact on a too high training volume by becoming insatiably hungry. Like you wrote in your first entry, training isn't the problem: keeping a decent deficit is. I'd get uncontrollable binges as soon as I'd increase volume too much. It can suddenly creep up on you.
Interesting you are (or were) a long-distance runner. Have you experienced the effect of DOH? Being so exhausted and/or wired from a training that you are simply not hungry at all but actually too hyper to eat? And then, the next day, or in my case when I'd cycle very long distances (over 200K) be hit by huge snack attacks 48hrs later and eat everything in sight?
I've noticed that scaling back on volume has actually even worked better for me in some ways. It enabled me to stick to my diet. Which generally works out to be around 30% carbs 30% protein and 40% fats when I'm eating at maintenance and training every other day. Can go up to 40% carbs when I'd do more cardio.

I've got no clue whatsoever what my intake was back in the days I was into endurance cycling. Truly wished I knew as I'd have very interesting data to look at. No longer do such crazy stuff anymore! Not the cycling, nore the undereating/starving part.

[fengshway]

absolutely espi. I definitely lost weight better in march, april, may, june of last year, before my long runs started ramping up. once my long runs ramped up, I maintained my losses, but did not lose further. I have definitely had the delayed hunger thing.

which is why I am opting to put the marathon training on hold until summer, when I should be leaned out and ready to run faster.

the runs that I posted for saturdays, 6-10-- is not really that long for my body. in the season, we do 20-28 mile runs on saturdays, so this is a serious cut down in volume for me. I do not find the 6-10 mile runs make me that hungry. when I lost weight early last year, I was running 10 miles every saturday as a base long run and lost steadily. once I start ramping up the mileage, though, I think my body goes into maintenance mode.

[Espi]

That's even more than a marathon that you used to run nearly every Saturday! I've got no idea how a run translates to cycling. I'd almost say it's a 1:10 relationship: cycling 10 K (or miles) takes as much energy as running 1K/mi .
Is there any truth to this assumption of mine?

[fengshway]

oh gosh, no not every saturday. I wasn't very clear on that above. every third saturday with 10 milers in between. lance armstrong himself said running requires more energy than cycling on a per minute basis, so I think you are correct, but just not sure of the exact ratios.

[fengshway]

yippeeee!

squats, 3 x10 @ 135!!!!!!!!! I just love getting stronger.

[Victoria]

[nutbar]

Originally Posted by fengshway

yippeeee!

squats, 3 x10 @ 135!!!!!!!!! I just love getting stronger.

Eek! I'm in awe of your thighs! Way to go!

[fengshway]

hey diane!!! it is cool getting stronger. I was a total sedentary couch potato 10 years ago, so 3 marathons, 14 triathlons and an assload of weights later, anything is possible!!

[LoriAnne]

Hi there! I love your photo and it sounds like you are doing some fantastic workouts! I'm glad we're in the same school of thought on the tasty diet of fine spirits and dark chocolate. Anti-oxidants, right?