Consistency is the KEY!!

[jhardy]

Here is my journal. I will keep track of my workouts and diet. Hopefully, people will provide me with feedback to keep me on track and increase the chance of my success. I am tired of trying over and over and starting new programs only to quit.

[GinnyLou]

Hi there!
Glad you are in this challenge. I just had to come and tell you that I have that exact bathing suit! I got mine at Target and it is actually my favorite. It's a good thing my bottoms seem to be missing since the beach or we would have been twinkies!

[jhardy]

GinnyLou, I responded to you in your log. That is so funny that you have the same suit. For my sake, I am glad you couldn't find your bottoms . You would put me to shame in it.

[jhardy]

My biggest challenge is consistency. I will stick to a program for a very short time and then quit, gaining any weight I may have lost.

I am going to follow the diet in Leigh Peele's OPT program and also the principles in Precision Nutrition as closely as possible.

Diet:
Calories--1300-1500
Carbs--20-40%
Protein--35-50%
Fat--25-30%

Getting adequate protein will be one of my biggest challenge so hopefully I will be able to at least get 1 gram/pound of bodyweight. Also, I may need to adjust my diet to ensure that I am getting adequate calories to give me enough energy to run. Since I have started to run, I have actually gained about 5 pounds because I am very hungry. Whenever I cut back too much, I don't have the energy to run.

I am training for my first marathon in October (Nike women's). I am an extremely slow runner, but this has been a life-long goal that I want to accomplish.

Training:
Run--3-4x/week
Strength (Circuits, Kettlebells, etc)--1-2x/week
Callanetics/Bar Method/Fluidity--3-4x/week; this may seem crazy to some, but I really like how these workouts seem to stretch me out and pull me in. I haven't done them for a while and thought they would be a great compliment to running.

I will be changing my training program after the marathon in October.

Stats:
Age--35
Weight--143
Chest--38 1/2"
Waist--31 1/2"
Hips--37 1/2"
Thigh--21"
Bicep--11 3/4
Bodyfat--30% based upon Tanita, but it is probably at least 34%.

Goals:
1) Complete marathon!
2) Lose about 20 pounds. More importantly, I want to lose bodyfat. After I lose the fat, I will work on increasing lean body
mass.

In order for me to accomplish this, I need to
3) Be consistent in my diet and training. I will log everything in my journal.

Please help keep me accountable!!

Jen

[jhardy]

Although I had a couple of fruit roll-ups (I know, they are bad, but I loooove them) and didn't get enough protein, I am pleased with how I did today.

Weight--142
Calories--1291
Fat--38%
Carbs--38%
Protein--24%

4 mile run in and out of canyon--50 minutes

[jhardy]

Didn't have a great day today. Today was my first back to work after summer vacation and I am exhausted and starving. I started out eating well, but of course, by 4:00 I was looking for anything and everything to eat. I definitely need to eat more frequently, but it can be difficult to do because my job often doesn't provide very consistent "breaks". Oh, well, I guess I can continue to work towards improvement. Fortunately, while my afternoon food choices weren't great, I didn't binge and go over too much on calories.

Weight--141
Calories--1591
Fat--44%
Carbs--37%
Protein--21%

No exercise.

[jhardy]

Well, I have been keeping my written exercise/diet log but have been slacking keeping up here. I have done fairly well staying away from the junk, but I still am not getting adequate protein. Fortunately, my carbs have been mainly in fruits, vegetables, and high fiber starches.

My weight has remained fairly constant, but I can say that I am feeling less fluffy. I am trying to remember that this needs to be a lifestyle and that the progress will be slow, but I will eventually get there. If I lose control, I may undue several days of hard work.

I am getting bodpod testing done on Friday and am excited, although I know the results will be much higher than my other %fat readings. I think it will give me a very accurate starting place that I can work towards improving (since I am sure that I will have at least 20% bodyfat to lose)

August 7
Weight--140.2
Calories--1240
Fat--30%
Carbs--44%
Protein--28%

5 mile run/intervals

August 8
Weight--141
Couldn't calculate macro's. Ate out at a friends, but ate in moderation

4 mile run/interals

August 9
Weight--142
Calories--1444
Fat--45%
Carbs--26%
Protein--28%

August 10
Weight--141
Calories--1709
Fat--26%
Carbs--52%
Protein--22%

11 mile run

Higher carbs because of run. I can tell that when I have some carbs during my run, I feel much better and enjoy the run.

August 11
Weight--140.6
Calories--1445
Ate pizza, but in much more moderation than normal. I was a little grumpy about it, however.

August 12
Weight--140
Calories--1490
Fat--28%
Carbs--40%
Protein--27%

4 mile run

August 13
Weight--140
Calories--1675
Fat--48%
Carbs--27%
Protein--25%

Ate out 2 times today and did fairly well. I had a lot of fat from salmon, steak, and salad dressing, but I stayed away from the rolls (my favorite) and baked potatoes with butter, sour cream.

I am getting my 4 runs in each week, but am struggling to find time/motivation to get in my strength and stretching workouts, which I know are critical. I have been back to school for about a week, but it is going to get much busier next week when kids come back to school and I am worried that I am going to struggle to get my workouts in.

[vweers]

Just try to work into your schedule that time. i know it is hard but if you don't, it won't happen. Trust me I know. You can do it!!

[karenmc6]

hi jen - i admire anyone who even thinks about running a marathon! don't sweat the little things, they tend to work themselves out over time.

[Bev77]

Originally Posted by jhardy

My biggest challenge is consistency. I will stick to a program for a very short time and then quit, gaining any weight I may have lost.

I am going to follow the diet in Leigh Peele's OPT program and also the principles in Precision Nutrition as closely as possible.

Jen

This is me to the T! You are not alone! I am also following the same nutrition plan as you with Leigh and PN. I will stop in occasionally and check on you. It does help to have this forum and a great bunch of gals to help keep accountable! I love this place.
How have you been doing?

P.S. Welcome to the challenge. Best of luck!

[vweers]

Keep at it. You can do it.

[Chloe2]

I just sent you a PM.

[karenmc6]

hi jen - how's it going?

[jhardy]

For all of those offering support, thanks so much. I am doing a terrible job keeping up with this log, but it is so nice to see how everyone else is doing and getting feedback from others. You are all so nice. Thanks! Keep up the great work. The 1 month pictures look great!

[jhardy]

The Definition of "Insanity" -
Doing What You Always Do - And Expecting A Different Result

This definitely seems to be me. I have great intentions, a great plan, but my follow through is often inconsistent. I will keep working at it and slowly but surely, meet my goals.

Stats:
Age--35
Weight--143; 139.8 (-3.2)
Chest--38 1/2"; 37 1/2" (-1")
Waist--31 1/2"; 30 1/2" (-1")
Hips--37 1/2"; 36 3/4" (-3/4")
Thigh--21"; 20 1/4" (-3/4")
Bicep--11 3/4"; 11 1/2" (-1/4")
Bodyfat--30% based upon Tanita, but it is probably at least 34%;
I actually got my bodyfat tested by the Bodpod in the middle of August and it was 27%. This is lower that I expected, and may be a bit off, but I am excited to continue on in this challenge and hopefully get my bodyfat down to approximately 20-22%

Goals:
1) Complete marathon! Still a goal. Only 7 more weeks. Once I complete the marathon, I am going to focus on losing bodyfat until the end of November and then switch to increasing muscle mass.
2) Lose about 20 pounds. Since I am training for a marathon, this cannot be a focus. Hopefully, I can continue to lose a few pounds by eating healthy, but I know that I cannot force a deficit with such a focus on endurance training.


In order for me to accomplish this, I need to
3) Be consistent in my diet and training. I will log everything in my journal. I have been terrible keeping up my journal. I need to log everything. I typically do this on paper (which I have been slacking on, but have a hard time keeping up on my online journal

Nice job to everyone for continuing on. I know that some are doing great (congratulations!) and others who may not have made much progress (at least in their eyes), but I think consistency is what is important and the continuous reminder to get back on track to reach our goals.


"Nobody can choose to be perfect, but all of us can choose to be better. So what's your choice?" The New Rules of Lifting for Women.

[ceebee]

You are doing great. You have a full plate with your marathon training (pun intended, sorry) and you still lost 3 pounds and several inches. Are you enjoying your training?

[jhardy]

Thanks so much for posting on my log. I actually am enjoying the training, even though I don't always look forward to it. It seems that I am so busy with my kids that I dread leaving them to go run and it is sometimes very difficult to find the time. However, when I get out there, I am enjoying it. It is becoming easier. This week I went on a 15 mile run in the mountains where we were camping. I got up earlier than anyone else and managed to get in my run before many were even up. It was a great feeling when I was finished. I can see how running can get addictive, but I also have found that it is such a mental game. There are some days that I cannot seem to get into the run and cannot imagine running more than a few miles. While this training is time consuming and isn't causing much fat loss, it is nice to stick with something over a period of time.