it just helps me confirm that things aren't right...though they aren't terribly wrong either (like for some people
That is kind of how I think it will turn out for me. I think that things aren't right, but I feel like I am very lucky that they are not terribly wrong.
I still really want a gofit wear. I am just afraid that i will get it and then not wear it due to problems with skin. But I really like all the data you can get off of them. Wish they would make a nickel free one --- I would pay extra. Maybe I should suggest that to them.
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Peaches
The journey to health and fitness
Should be taken
Because you love yourself,
Not because you hate your body
The doctor does think my ailments sound like fibromyalgia. After all the reading I've done lately, it does seem to fall in place. Add in the fact that she tested me for RA a couple months back and the dermotologist for Celiac disease last summer, it just helps me confirm that things aren't right...though they aren't terribly wrong either (like for some people.)
Sorry to hear about the semi-diagnosis. But then again, it does put you in a place where you can figure out what you need to do to move forward, which you certainly are!
But yeah, definitely better to have just minor issues rather than major.
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Originally Posted by AnnetteW
She asked about sleep and I said I sleep like crap. I go to bed early most nights, get up early as I can't stay in bed longer, but toss and turn all night long (though I fall back asleep easily) due to discomfort. And now my GWF can tell me I was awake a lot.
This is last night.
Since I said I didn't want to take any meds, she said to start with sleep quality and did give me a med to help with that. So I'll see what happens.
Maybe I should start posting my sleep graphs--I have mentioned previously on my own log that I sincerely think I don't need as much sleep as most people--but I'm sure I'd still benefit from better sleep (I'm averaging around 6:15-6:30 actual sleep time, efficiency around 83-85%). I usually wake up around 2 or 3 in the morning for a pee break, and sometimes it takes me quite a bit of time to fall asleep again. I also don't want to take Rxs for it, though I have been trying supplements. What I should probably do is look into relaxation techniques.
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They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
Well, good news is that I definitely did not gain any water weight with my period this month. It started at 165.6 and ended at 165.2. Looking at my graph though, I do see that I increased my calories for a few days and also decreased my activity. But I still had a deficit. Obviously that excess water I've been drinking has helped a lot.
But since I've noticed that my deficit has dropped about 5% since this time last week, I think it's time I stepped things up a bit.
It's these cycles that I can tell my body likes. I can work hard for a few days to get my deficit up to a 45% average, then let it slide for a few days and get back down to 35%, though they were a bit lower actually.
It's the continuous deficit that is keeping me in line.
It I want a high burn though I better get my butt moving and go for a walk. Tonight is dance night too. Plus I want to do some weights today (my light pink dbs )
wide-grip straight leg deadlifts 45lbs 4 sets 12 reps (my butt is killing me now, I love that exercise) static lunges 6 per leg (ugh) side lunges 5 per leg
cable rows 40lbs 2sets 12reps
lat pulldowns 40lbs 2sets 12reps
(can do more and higher weight but trying not to disturb neck/back)
db shoulder presses 10lbs 2sets 10reps
(felt neck discomfort at 8th rep) various shoulder flies 5lbs 3total sets 10reps
Seriously, that's all I did and I hurt a lot today. This is crazy, and yes, I really know now that fibro diagnose is correct. I'm trashed after exercise.
Today's plan is lunch out with my "lady" friends. Depending on time I would like to go to the gym and do a nice long cardio workout on the ArcTrainer, though in a few moderate intervals.
I have to start forcing myself back into the gym on a regular basis. I've been getting stuck on my walks as my main source of exercise, and though I think walking is great, I need to vary things more as it's better for my muscles.
What I really need to do is start working a bit on that absolutely horrible Stepmill. Gawd I hate that thing, but it would be great for my quads since I'm not getting much muscle work done.
I went from 183 to 150 with walking as my exercise. I walked 4 to 5 miles per day, morning, lunch, afternoon and sometimes evening. But it wasn't until I worked with a trainer to do some serious core strengthening and some other weights thrown in, plus 1500 mg glucosamine per day, that my overall stiffness and back problems went away.
My experience would have me tell you to stay away from major pain-causing exercise as long as you are still dropping the weight. But make sure you are distinguishing regular workout muscle soreness (normal although annoying) from abnormal pain. I've had days when I couldn't walk down stairs because of quad pain, but it was normal.
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Moondust The older I get, the older old gets.
I had a lightbulb moment yesterday evening. I've been thinking lately that it's time for me to actually make a plan for my lifting and stick to it for awhile. I also know it can't be too hard. I did NROL4W for awhile before my neck issues were discovered and I'm not going there at this time.
I keep reading that the way to go is the full-body routine, yet everytime I would do a full body workout I couldn't move for almost a week.
The lightbulb moment came when I was reading how you only do 1 exercise for that bodypart, and work it in a different "plane" each session.
Like duh....how can I be so stupid.
These deadlifts are killing my ass which is a super duper good thing as I can feel the muscles in there at this time. But I seriously hurt for days and couldn't contemplate doing them again.
So now I'm going to work on developing a simple workout with only 1 exercise per bodypart, and come up with 3 different workouts/exercises, and just do that for the next 5-6 weeks till my 12 week diet phase is up.
Hey, I can do this. And I realize I can do this without killing my body and being in pain.
Oh, and to start I'm only going to do 2 sets of each exercise to make it even easier, and work in the 10-12 rep range. In another 2 weeks or so if/when I'm comfortable with this I will increase to 3 sets.
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So the last few days I've eaten at a lower deficit and I can feel the extra food in my gut. I do not want a week with no weightloss if at all possible, so I plan to try to keep my cals low for the next 3 days. I'm aiming for the 1200-1400 cal range...ugh....I hate going low. But then I can go a bit higher again next week.
Monday is my official weigh day, and also my monthly official weigh day will be next week also, and then I have to do measurements and all. Plus I want to do my "attempted" bodyfat measurements on the 1st of each month also (with measurements.)
Guess that means fill up with the water, aim for 1.5 gallons and watch out for those darn salted sunflower seeds (my nemesis.)
I need a change. It's not that I'm unhappy with the program. I really enjoy that I've gotten the weight training portion under my belt, and that I'm doing regular cardio. Those feel great. But I'm not feeling 100%. Things just aren't right with me.
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As far as the exercise goes.....this has always been a problem. I hate that it hurts to lift heavy. I know that the plan is to lift heavy, but my wrists hurt, my shoulders hurt, I get kinks in my neck. I go to a massage therapist, and she's constantly working out the crap I put right back in by a hard workout. I'm going to continue to lift heavy, but when it comes to chest and shoulder (and even some back, though I love doing back) I'm going to lighten up a bit. I want to cause less stress in those areas.
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I absolutely can't explain it, but is it possible that heavier weights aren't good for me? My joints start to hurt and I get pinched nerve thingies in my neck and back.
I'm progressing to Stage 3 today, just because...
Those are some things I wrote in my old log, when I was doing NROL4W when the book first came out. It was weird to read, I started at about 160 lbs (I started this time at 182...talk about scary.) I got down to about 154 when I had to stop.
As I read, I saw areas I was strong in, both in fitness and nutrition, and the weak areas too. Some are similar to now, some are different.
I got kind of choked up and sad as I saw the progression of pain related to my neck issues. The fact that muscles were strong but I couldn't use my hand to grip.
I'm starting to feel good again, my endurance has built back up, I'm contemplating an increase in weight workouts, but truthfully, I'm scared too. I'm not scared of hardwork, I'm scared of pain.
I don't know if I should attempt this or not. I know I could totally modify things if needed, I can't squat with a bar on my traps, but I could learn to do a front squat (will have to cross arms though.)
I don't think I can do max weights though.
I'm wondering if it's worthwhile to do a program at only 60%....if that's all I have to give. Logically I know it is.
The book got sold...lol...as I was so pissed off about exercise.
I think I'll buy a new one today.
Monday will be day 1 of a modified NROL4W, done at a low intensity.
Hey Annette- Thanks for posting on my log. I've been reading your's but I wasn't sure if I should jump in. It's hard to catch up on the entire logs when they are more than a few pages long.
Anyway, I just wanted to say good luck with your modified workout!
Couldn't find my log after Snarlla posted in it. I new it was a page back...lol.
So yesterday was a good day and I need to post about it before I forget, as I didn't track weights at the gym.
I went out and bought NROL4W (since I had gotten rid of my first copy) and read through it and decided to hit the gym.
I'm not planning on following it, too many things that are too difficult for me at this time, but it has good guidelines and exercises, so I will modify the concepts for myself.
I want to attempt a 3 day per week full-body program, each exercise hitting a different bodypart or part of a bodypart. I have some research ahead of me still.
This is what I did for my first workout:
(Oh, and I was experimenting, wanted to do front squats but the bar hurt my front shoulder, I think regular squats may be okay after all, the weight was very light though.)
So for my workout on Monday I want to do deadlifts, lat pulldowns, not sure for shoulders and chest yet, and I need to add a core type of exercise, like in the book.
Today, Sunday, is a full day off, though I might bike a bit or walk this evening.
I'm just happy that I started with my new weight plan. Oh, and I'm not in pain this morning, which is good. I feel my quads, but that's it, they are just mildly sore, and I hate being so sore that I can't move. My chest is a bit sore, but nothing feels kinked up.
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They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
Well, nothing too important to post about for the results of the past week. I did show a loss, nothing impressive, but a loss nonetheless. That's what I need to focus on. I also didn't show a gain before/during my period, and the small gain afterwards is nothing to complain about. I have continued to drink the 1 gallon of water a day, most days easily 1.5 gallons.
My body is feeling tighter. Sure I have lots of fat to lose still, a good 25+lbs, but the muscles are there. I can easily flex a tricep or bicep, the legs and glutes are firm (under the protective layer of bubblewrap.) I'm even feeling the obliques.
So I'm truly happy with my results so far.
My mind wanders constantly to what might be hidden. What are my possibilities and potential. What do I really want, and how hard would I work for it? Truthfully I don't want to work too hard, so I guess that limits me. I do know when my body is slim (lower bodyfat) I do want someone to be able to look at me and say "that girl works out" not just that I'm slim. Heck, I'd be happy with someone saying I'm "toned."
I've completed a full 7 weeks of wearing my GoWearFit and an actual 8 weeks of true dieting. That's an amazing accomplishment in itself. If I diet more than a few days, I'm in it for good that time around. So I don't see any signs of me giving up and throwing it all away.
I had gone back and read my old log when I started NROL4W a year and half ago, and I never got the dieting part down. I was trying to go by the book and eat the higher calories, but it wasn't the right thing for me to do.
It's very clear to me that I have to diet to lose the fat, but eat enough to be able to exercise. That's pretty simple and consise.
My diet was a bit more lax this past week, and I had less of a deficit. Not much less, but I also didn't show much of a loss. That's normal, I know.
I have a full 4 weeks of dieting ahead of me before I do a diet break (which scares the crap out of me...will I want to do it or not? I will though, I promise.) So now I wonder what can I do in these next 4 weeks, what am I able to accomplish?
I think I'll review OPT, and see what she has planned for those 4 weeks, and maybe I'll aim for it. The next 12 weeks of dieting I do hope to follow a plan a bit closer (unless I decide I'm doing fine as is.)
Physically I'm feeling pretty good. I've been reading up on fibromyalgia, and am doing the protocol from "What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Fibromyalgia." I'm doing 1x/week massages also. I'm not very good about the self-work though.
I love how a walk clears the mind and makes you focus so well (or was that the coffee I had prior?)
Well, I have a plan to attempt for the upcoming week. Me? A Plan? I don't plan well at all.
This is it though. First of all I know I'm a fat eater rather than a carb eater. I eat way more than I need though so I need to drop that somewhat (darn sunflower seeds.)
Calories - 1400-1500
Protein - 35% (122g to 131g)
Fat - 40% (62g to 67g)
Carbs - 25% (87g to 94g)
Obviously those ranges look really small, it's just what I calculated out and plugged into my Sparkpeople nutrition page as something to aim for.
Only way to get that much protein is to drink a shake, which I don't really enjoy.
Since I averaged 1650-1750 calories a day last week, I think the drop to 1400-1500 would be a good shock to my body for a week. It's also a good week to do it considering where I am in my menstrual cycle. That might be something to pay attention to on a normal basis anyways.
Double your portions of chicken & fish and then it's not hard to get in enough protein.
The hard part is to do so while calories are low so you have to bring down fats (or carbs)
Two days down of my lower-carb eating plan and I stuck to my ranges. I haven't stepped on a scale though, but it's tempting. My pants feel looser everyday and my shirts are hanging on me. It's not a pretty site.
Yesterday's exercise was 60 min on the ArcTrainer doing what I call "song intervals." I have my music playlist, and some songs are faster, some a tad slower, some super fast. I alter the incline and speed for each song and alter my HR in a range of 70-85% MHR. It's my favorite way to workout on the ArcTrainer. I can literally zone out to the music, and also watch people workout.
I had a massage in the afternoon, and then a 50 min walk in the evening.
I'm still contemplating the weight workouts, my body isn't totally happy with them, so my new plan is only 2x a week, on Monday and Thursday.
Tonight is dancing which burns a lot of calories, so I think I'll also walk here in a bit.
My daily burn is a bit lower right now, but I haven't been doing as much housework lately (waiting for the kids to all get out of the house.)
A busy weekend ahead as two kids move into apartments and I have to help another one move into a new apartment (2 will live together.) I'll be doing lots of driving, and will attempt to do the weekend without eating out. At least that's my plan.
Yesterday's exercise was 60 min on the ArcTrainer doing what I call "song intervals." I have my music playlist, and some songs are faster, some a tad slower, some super fast. I alter the incline and speed for each song and alter my HR in a range of 70-85% MHR. It's my favorite way to workout on the ArcTrainer. I can literally zone out to the music, and also watch people workout.
Way to go in keeping with your planned nutritional ranges. As for the "song intervals", I do the same thing on our recumbent bike when I do a longer ride (45+ minutes). It makes the time go that much faster, since I usually don't have much of anything to watch in the basement.
Stayed pretty much within my calorie range. I hit 1509, range this week is 1400-1500, but let's not even talk about macros...lol. It really is true if you don't eat on time you mess yourself up. It wasn't till almost 3 pm till I could eat lunch. Started off great with tuna on sourdough, but then I started in on the sunflower seeds and couldn't stop. They ended up being my dinner.
Went dancing last night to a place that sucked (as far as a high dancing caloric burn goes.) I had a gin and tonic, and someone gave me two hershey kisses which were divine. I'm not a chocoholic in any way, and I ate them with pleasure. It's still 50 calories though, plus the 200 or so in the drink....totally wasted calories. I'm realizing how unimportant some calories are now.
Isn't that an amazing revelation though, and hopefully one I can take with me into my slimmer future.
My butt is looking good. Sorry, I can't share pics, it's still fat, but I have a definite divide between my hamstring and butt. I've always had decent muscles in my legs (guess that started with soccer in HighSchool.) And I've been doing lots of deadlifts lately, well, not lots but some, and butt lifts. I don't use much weight yet as I don't want to feel it in my back yet, still building that up. I will keep up with it though. Oh, and all that walking has to be helping too.
Who knows, maybe my butt sucks still...it just feels better to me and others in the family say it's an obvious change.
Goals today: Weights at gym, morning walk. Stay in calorie range and attempt macros I have set out.
I'm thinking after this one week of my lower carb experiment I might just try the BW*11 thing and go from there. I'd have a smaller deficit, but whatever. It's not like the weight is dropping quickly right now.
Oh, something else I want to do is graph my caloric burns to see how much they might have dropped, or if they are staying stable, whatever. Or compare them with my caloric input. I'm not very good with graphing though, so who knows what I'll come up with.
Okay, was just playing with my GWF Excel file and graphed what I wanted to graph, my Average Burn for these 12 weeks.
To explain what it is exactly, the first data point is actually an average of seven days of calorie burn. Each data point follows in that manner. At the end where you see a big drop, that's because there are less than 7 days in each piece of data, until there is 0 data. That will continue to fill out till the end of the 7 weeks.
It's really fun to change the graph size, you can really see the trend better or worse, depending on how you resize the chart. This showed a fairly obvious decline in my Caloric Burn.
Now the question is....what do I do with the information? Do I try to burn more, or just pay attention to the trend?
Now the question is....what do I do with the information? Do I try to burn more, or just pay attention to the trend?
Annette, as a visual person, I love all your charts and graphs.
You bought Leigh's FLTS package, didn't you? Or have you just been reading her sites?
In any case, in FLTS she shows some BodyBugg graphs (this was pre-GWF) of one of her clients before training (think it was around 2000) then with training (maybe 2500), then after being in a deficit for awhile training while in a deficit for a long while (2250, maybe). Of course the burn went down; it will when in a deficit. And of course burn goes down simply b/c of decreased BW.
But then she showed the client's graph after making the client aware of NEAT. The average burn exceeded the initial training, to about 3000.
So my longwinded explanation is sure, go ahead and increase your burn if you want, but it'd be wisest to do it through NEAT rather than more training, I think.
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They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
Amanda, I do have FLTS, but I've used it for information so far, not to follow her plan. She specifically says if what you are doing is working, stick with it...and I'm losing weight.
Down to 163 this morning from a high of 182 about 8 weeks ago (yea!!! GO ME!!!)
You're right though, something I have forgotten about, which is actually the most important part of all. I am in a deficit...duh. So I naturally will move less, unless I force myself to move more, and when I force the extra move, then I eat more too...lol...the vicious cycle.
I know NEAT has decreased, because I've been feeling a bit lazy. It's been super hot (though now it's cooled down.) But this weekend I have 2 girls leaving the house, moving out. Because of that I've done less, thinking I'll do more next week once they are gone. Seems like silly reasoning, but it's what's going on in my head.
Housework burns craploads of calories. I should go into the business and NEAT will never be an issue.
Glad to know you like my pictures. It's fun to play with too.
Wow you have done great. Twenty pounds in 8 weeks. That is unbelievable.
Good for you!
Thanks, but it's actually since June 1 and it's only 19 lbs...but who's being so anal?
Today starts the beginning of a weird weekend with a lot happening and no idea exactly what is happening.
Two of my daughters are moving out of the house. One that is already out is moving to a new apartment (one of my other girls is moving in with her.) Their apartment is about 1 hour away. The other is here in town and dad will help with her moving.
Today someone will come up with a truck to help move big items that can't be fit into a car, but they can't move in till Saturday at 4 pm. Then Sunday early my one daughter has to leave for weaving studio in Maine, so I'll be driving back and forth, here and there, moving this and that, spending who know how much on necessities.
I'm feeling a wee bit overwhelmed, and overwhelmed and deficit do not go well together.
So I'm trying to get my mind wrapped around it all.
I have to stick to my diet, not eat out (that's definitely the killer as far as calorie counting goes.) I have no planned exercise scheduled for today, though I do have dancing tonight. I will get a long walk in tomorrow, and no plans for Sunday. I'm still aiming for 1400-1500 calories through Sunday. And I had a good weight workout yesterday (so that's out of the picture till Monday, phew.)
One good thing about these past weeks of deficit, and especially of this past week of lower carbs, I don't have a big appetite, and my food reaction to stress doesn't seem to be strong right now.
That is so important to me, something I want to have control of always and forever. I've become very aware of the fact that the quality of food controls my feelings of hunger (binges.) The better my nutrition the stronger my body's reaction to stress.
So that's my ramble for the day.
Oh, and tomorrow is the first of August, time to whip out the trusty measuring tape and take those measurements. I'm kind of excited. I will also do my bodyfat like I did last month (I know it's not accurate) on both my Tanita scale and Omron handheld. It looks like 9.4 lb loss for July, tomorrow will be the official weigh in unless it's lower than 163. I will take it!!!
I've become very aware of the fact that the quality of food controls my feelings of hunger (binges.) The better my nutrition the stronger my body's reaction to stress.
Same for me. I think in generally I do tend to do better on a lower carbs--my mind is sharper and I'm less prone to get sick. By lower carbs I should say I mean grains, breads in particular. If I focus on eating fruits and veggies I generally seem fine.
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Originally Posted by AnnetteW
Oh, and tomorrow is the first of August, time to whip out the trusty measuring tape and take those measurements. I'm kind of excited. I will also do my bodyfat like I did last month (I know it's not accurate) on both my Tanita scale and Omron handheld. It looks like 9.4 lb loss for July, tomorrow will be the official weigh in unless it's lower than 163. I will take it!!!
I'm sure you'll have awesome results!
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They call me Amanda, that being my real name, and "They" being people who know me in person as I don't go around introducing myself in real life as "scribess." 'Cause that would just be strange.
Sorry to hear about the semi-diagnosis. But then again, it does put you in a place where you can figure out what you need to do to move forward, which you certainly are! 
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