Well, I keep a regular log on another fitness site so this is at the moment an 8 week journal tracking my metabolic repair process. I really like what I see on this site and loved reading Leigh's two books. the FLT wasn't new stuff to me but was a great refresher course. the metabolic repair manual was VERY NEW and somewhat mind blowing for me and thought immediately that I needed to implement it.
I was anorexic for a number of years in my teens and don't feel I have ever returned to a normal eating pattern. Sadly back then, I am 44, doctors had little understanding and just forced me to eat more so I put on fat very quickly after a couple of years I took drastic methods to get my weight down again. I would say that the last 20 years I have restricted my intake and been active but not overweight. I had maintained roughly 59kg and size 6(American) for many years, then three years ago I started to feel my clothes becoming tighter and I began a three year search about health/fitness etc. So for 3 years I have been weight training and running 6/7 days a week and trying to lose fat (having understood the disctinction between fat and weight) I have been on a slow recomp on around 1500 cals per day for 3 years (but eg I have been marathon training the past three months). I believe I was maintaining for years before that on around 1200 per day.
I am 5'6 and still weigh more or less the same 58.5kg but am down to a loose 4 rather than tight 6 so I have lost fat and gained muscle (my squat is up to 97kg and my DL up to 80kg and my bench is lagging at 40kg).... however I seem to have two unattainable goals
a) increase my metabolism
b) get lean legs (I understand this simply requires lowering one's BF %)
I am around 18%+/- BF with my legs being roughly twice the BF of my upper body...... I did get down to 55kg last summer and finally legs started to look good, using the anabolic diet (low carb with 24 hour carb per week) but as soon as I started eating carbs up to 100g per day and began marathon training again, I regained the fat. I had gotten to the point where I thought I would give up and just accept the status quo and restricted cals so I am very much hoping that following Leigh's metabolic repair manual I will start to see some success.
Clean eating is very natural to me as I have been avoiding procssed foods and sugar since age 16 and living in S France we have access to great fresh vegetables and fruits etc....eg fast food is not YET part of the culture. One of the big revolutions last year for me was to understand that there are good fats, as I have been on statins for 20 years and hence low fat, now I eat loads of good fats.......
I ran my marathon Sunday and was very pleased with the race and have started resting up. No pain at all just felt very fatigued. I plan on a couple more days of chilled eating (I always eat clean from habit, though have to say a glass of red wine occassionally is included in clean eating for me) and am bascially starting the repair this week.... it is the rest which will get to me as I, like so many, fear inactivity, but that is great as I want to find balance in all this, its one of my big goals, to not be exercising from fear but from pleasure.
Thus I plan to log my progress over the next 8 weeks. I, of course, value all input and comments, as this is how we learn and progress.
I shall try to post some photos tonight.
Nice to see you logging and get to know you better.
Congratulations on your marathon and good luck in raising your metabolism. Your weight actually seems low for your height (168cm or what?). What's the European equivalent of size 6?
And gosh, I didn't know (those evil) statins have been around for so long.
Nice to see you logging and get to know you better.
Congratulations on your marathon and good luck in raising your metabolism. Your weight actually seems low for your height (168cm or what?). What's the European equivalent of size 6?
And gosh, I didn't know (those evil) statins have been around for so long.
Hi Espi, thanks for dropping in, it's nice having people in the same time zone
I am 167m and 6 is 10 in the UK or a 38 in France, so now I am a french 36, not sure what it is in NL? My weight is fine for my height, I don't especially want to drop weight but would like to lose a little more bodyfat as I have surprsingly fatty legs for a very lean upper body.
I so hate taking statins and am not convinced it's helpful. low carb helps my levels a lot though, which is interesting. I regularly try coming off the medication to see but with medication I can get my LDL to 250 (which is high) and without it, it shoots immediately to 450!!! My doc is convinced I should stay on them
There's been quite the controversy over the importance of cholesterol for hearth health and I'm more or less in the 'alternative' camp saying it doesn't matter. What matters is homocysteine levels and trying to control heart health with low-carbing , higher intake of omega3s and some neat supps.
Trouble is: law prohibits food supplements to be 'healing' so pharmaceutical companies get all the freedom to 'claim' the effects of their meds on health, despite the negative effects. Granted, food supplements may not have such a profound effect, but they rarely have bad side-effects. That's something to take into account.
I've read a lot from the Eades & Anthony Colpo who wrote a good book about it. I think you should check out his diet book as well. Especially since he's one of the rare 'specimens' that are low-carbing but also extremely active as an endurance cyclist.
The main trouble with advocates of low-carb diets is that they well.. tend to be relative couch potatoes or when they are active, be moderately active. You can still lift heavy and be on a LC-diet but you can not sustain a very low-carb diet and still be on an intense endurance training program. Eventually you will crash.. either your health, your performance or your metabolism.. or all 3 of them. What you want = optimizing your carb/calorie intake so the carbs will help you to increase your absolute performance and speed up recovery.
I'm quite curious what cues you got from MRM that you are going to implement now?
Oh, and on sizes.. I'm literally clue-less. It's actually something I dread about losing weight as shopping for clothes is easily my least favourite pass-time.. my SO drags me into stores and sometimes even buys clothes for me. Quite the opposite of what most couples do.
There's been quite the controversy over the importance of cholesterol for hearth health and I'm more or less in the 'alternative' camp saying it doesn't matter. What matters is homocysteine levels and trying to control heart health with low-carbing , higher intake of omega3s and some neat supps.
Trouble is: law prohibits food supplements to be 'healing' so pharmaceutical companies get all the freedom to 'claim' the effects of their meds on health, despite the negative effects. Granted, food supplements may not have such a profound effect, but they rarely have bad side-effects. That's something to take into account.
I've read a lot from the Eades & Anthony Colpo who wrote a good book about it. I think you should check out his diet book as well. Especially since he's one of the rare 'specimens' that are low-carbing but also extremely active as an endurance cyclist.
The main trouble with advocates of low-carb diets is that they well.. tend to be relative couch potatoes or when they are active, be moderately active. You can still lift heavy and be on a LC-diet but you can not sustain a very low-carb diet and still be on an intense endurance training program. Eventually you will crash.. either your health, your performance or your metabolism.. or all 3 of them. What you want = optimizing your carb/calorie intake so the carbs will help you to increase your absolute performance and speed up recovery.
I'm quite curious what cues you got from MRM that you are going to implement now?
Oh, and on sizes.. I'm literally clue-less. It's actually something I dread about losing weight as shopping for clothes is easily my least favourite pass-time.. my SO drags me into stores and sometimes even buys clothes for me. Quite the opposite of what most couples do.
I think that the big question for me is exactly that, if I have no other predictors of heart issues is a very raised LDL level such a dangerous thing? I haven't read any Colpo so thanks for the tip..... I certainly had no problems adapting to low carb and doing heavy weight training and short runs of 10km or so. The reason I don't like keeping carbs really low (30gr per day) is simply social. Here we occasionally eat in restaurants, where its easy to pick low carb, but most socialising is done around the dinner table with great homemade food and I do not want to spend my time telling my friends I can't eat their healthy food because it isn't low carb. I prefer more moderate carbs of around 100/120 gr per day.
I am also thinking of giving up endurance running as the more I read the more I am convinced that it isn't good for the body. I also found long distance running working aainst fatloss for me. I will probably stick to hiking/snowshoeing/sprints/squ ash and tennis for cardio with some running thrown in
Like you I rarely go clothes shopping
As for MRM I think the only way to give it a chance is to follow it to the letter to be honest.... so althouh I am counting this as week one, I shall start weighing and measuring my macros on Thursday as I have taken these first days post marathon to chill and eat in a relaxed way; though not excessively
I've already given up on endurance cycling and my body likes me so much better for it. Even though it was great when I did it (the atmosphere and the friends you make), in the end health is more important. All it did for me is increase my central obesity (big pot belly I had).
And YES yes & yes about not being able to socialize anymore on too strict LC. Oh well, you can still chat but sampling the foods is also about socializing. A more moderate approach will still work for most people. Even just going to an average 100g of carbs allows for a lot of everyday joy. Especially when you just take small samples of the good foods.
Starting weight : 58.5kg
Starting BF% 17.5% (I don't take this very seriously as the tanita fluctuates by as much as 4% but i will note it and taking a rolling average)
Cals for first two weeks 1287 45%P, 25% F, 30%C (main diff to now is my F has been higher and P lower)
Rest: it will be Ok for this week as I am happy recuprating from the marathon but I know the weeks after that choosing not to exercise will be REAL hard.
water is easy and sodium I will need to increase a bit.
sleep should be fine as I aim for 8-9 hours a night.
sticking to the plan of 1287 give or take a calorie, not very good on getting 3000mg of sodium as I eat pretty much all freesh produce and never add salt, going to have to start adding again.
This is a very rare photo of my legs looking good, the other 18 are not as flattering on lower body but may post a couple more.
This is my 5th day without exercise and has been feeling odd thouh I am pretty sure my NEAT is increasing subconsciously.
Not total rest this weekend but the weather was so amazing that we spontaneously went up to the mountains for the weekend and did a Via Ferrata Saturday and a short easy hike Sunday.
actually I DO! and the first time I did a via ferrata about 4 years ago I was absolutely terrified the entire time.... It has helped me overcome some of my fear, now it is when I do the tyrolean that I am still mega scared
Wt 59.5kg, BF 18.8% some very weird fluctuations here and haven't seen these high numbers all year, very strange. in the MRM it suggests you won't gain weight in the first weeks and may well lose, but my body rarely responds as others would predict.
need to work on more protein.. I am basically used to lowish carb+ high fat (which I feel great on) and need to decrease fat and increase protein. Have been so busy that I have hardly missed my workouts.
re: cholesterol, I have an instructor who helped design some company's brochure for medical professionals - the company does testing that isn't the simple HDL/LDL levels but takes into account the sizes/kinds of HDL cholesterol, finding that there's differences and someone with high HDL but not the big kind (or something like that) are really not at risk, and people with "low" HDL can be at risk if their HDLs are the kind that seem to be higher risk.
Basically, it's a change from the more entrenched, not terribly helpful testing out there.
So, that has led me to somewhat understand it's not just about numbers but kinds of cholesterols (not just HDL/LDL) and therefore…
I guess what I'm saying is if that's something you haven't looked at, you may want to.
But, at the moment I'm drawing a blank as to what that company was and how prevalent this information is. I can find out more.
And, um, if you already know all this, then sorry for the completely scattered and incoherent rambling.
Well, I'm sorry either way.
Jedi, that's something where nearly everyone has trouble with when they don't track.
It's not really bad when you just want to maintain weight and aren't as interested in getting all muscular but when you lift weights, protein requirements can go up towards 3g/kg BW. Im eating a minimum of 3g/kg LBM (2g/kg BW) now but used to eat 3g/kg BW (or 4g/kg LBM). I feel better on the minimum of 2g/kg BW as it allows for more carbs/fats. This is actually not uncommon.
re: cholesterol, I have an instructor who helped design some company's brochure for medical professionals - the company does testing that isn't the simple HDL/LDL levels but takes into account the sizes/kinds of HDL cholesterol, finding that there's differences and someone with high HDL but not the big kind (or something like that) are really not at risk, and people with "low" HDL can be at risk if their HDLs are the kind that seem to be higher risk.
Basically, it's a change from the more entrenched, not terribly helpful testing out there.
So, that has led me to somewhat understand it's not just about numbers but kinds of cholesterols (not just HDL/LDL) and therefore…
I guess what I'm saying is if that's something you haven't looked at, you may want to.
But, at the moment I'm drawing a blank as to what that company was and how prevalent this information is. I can find out more.
And, um, if you already know all this, then sorry for the completely scattered and incoherent rambling.
Well, I'm sorry either way.
Thanks for dropping in and I agree the ideal would be more detailed testing to see if I really am at risk despite having REALLY HIGH LDL readings.... I suspect I need to change doctors as mine just is not open to this and insistant that I need meds
Quote:
Originally Posted by Espi
Jedi, that's something where nearly everyone has trouble with when they don't track.
It's not really bad when you just want to maintain weight and aren't as interested in getting all muscular but when you lift weights, protein requirements can go up towards 3g/kg BW. Im eating a minimum of 3g/kg LBM (2g/kg BW) now but used to eat 3g/kg BW (or 4g/kg LBM). I feel better on the minimum of 2g/kg BW as it allows for more carbs/fats. This is actually not uncommon.
it is not so much a tracking thing with me as I track but after a couple of years of high protein, the past year or so I have been on a more low carb/high fat and then IF/intuitive eating mode so got out of he habit of high protein and felt better that way so I need to get back in the habit.... I also can't bring myself to eat just egg whites and throw away the yolk I have managed to gain muscle on low cals and not high protein before also will post compliancy later, am off to a conference for work today.
Amen sistah.. both on hating to throw out yolks and feeling better on somewhat lower protein.
It's even as if the lower protein is more effective for me when the other circumstances are optimized rather than trying to aim for really high protein, but needing to drop either carbs or fats as a result. Intuitive eating is very dear to my heart: it's also a book , mostly aimed towards healing ED/eating disorders. I fell into 'chaotic' eating.
Amen sistah.. both on hating to throw out yolks and feeling better on somewhat lower protein.
It's even as if the lower protein is more effective for me when the other circumstances are optimized rather than trying to aim for really high protein, but needing to drop either carbs or fats as a result. Intuitive eating is very dear to my heart: it's also a book , mostly aimed towards healing ED/eating disorders. I fell into 'chaotic' eating.
we seem to have loads in common aside being European
Thursday 290th
Compliance : NO ... Food poisoning, spent afternoon sessions of conference vomitting, incl bile
My partner has been sick at home for several days with a very stiff neck (barely able to move it) and then had very bad D .. turned out the sausages he had last Fri on a skating event, were improperly heated.. my intestines were only rumbling a bit, but then I didn't have the sausage .. only pea soup (which also has some sausage in it). Would you imagine that a completely stiff neck was caused by food poisoning (mostly stress actually)
My partner has been sick at home for several days with a very stiff neck (barely able to move it) and then had very bad D .. turned out the sausages he had last Fri on a skating event, were improperly heated.. my intestines were only rumbling a bit, but then I didn't have the sausage .. only pea soup (which also has some sausage in it). Would you imagine that a completely stiff neck was caused by food poisoning (mostly stress actually)
Mine was mushrooms at lunch. You partner had it worse than me for sure! So ended up with 20 hours of no food or liquid as i vomitted back up even water. But though feeling weak this morning I was able to drink a herbal tea and eat a little.
Wt 58.7kg, BF 17.2% (Wt was down 1.5kg yesterday after all the vomitting but back up again today)
Compliance for Friday 21st
Calories : YES
Protein : NO
Water : YES
Rest : YES
Sleep : YES
Had food all planned then a friend asked me if I wanted to go to th cinema in half an hour so no time to cook chicken and get enough protein... will try harder today.
Stomach not 100% as I tried coffee this morning and it was unhappy about that.
One nice thing about drinking less water is sleeping through the night
Cals : NO (over by 100 from hazlenuts at a friends)
Protein : NO (getting 35%P and 35% F instead of 40P and 30 F)
Rest : YES
Water : YES
Sleep : YES
I reread the MRM yesterday and find it a bit disconcerting that I am already up 1.2kg/2.3lbs as with the examples given and according to what Leigh says in the Manual, you should stay the same or lose, I even checked out some oher journals here and don't seem to find people who have gained during the first two weeks? it doesn't bode well for me. The very reason people like me stick to low calories is we fear and have experienced rapid weigth gain on more calroies. Stomach still not 100%.
My compliance has been very good for these first two weeks except not getting quite enough protein.
Plan for Week 3 : Eat
Cals 1415
Protein 40% 141g
Carbs 30% 106g (30% starch)
Fat 30% 47g
Didn't Etana gain too? Or was it she first lost and then gained.
If you really ate very few calories, it is normal to expect a weight gain. The best thing is just to convince yourself to not obsess over it.. much harder to do than to say.
No unusual changes in routines either?
Didn't Etana gain too? Or was it she first lost and then gained.
If you really ate very few calories, it is normal to expect a weight gain. The best thing is just to convince yourself to not obsess over it.. much harder to do than to say.
No unusual changes in routines either?
I think Etana lost then gained a couple of pounds right at the end not the beginning. No changes in routine no. I hear what you say but I guess with the examples Leigh gives in ber book and what she says, she doesn't expect people to gain at the beginning I know I have to suck it up and ignore it, and I did anticipate gaining some but not so much immediately, it makes it much harder to stick to plan psychologically as one continues to increase calories each week. I haven't given up though and will continue. thanks for commenting
Just realised I wasn't as low as I thought on protein as when I added whey to my Dietpower dictionary I didn't add in protein grams . DOH!
I don't really understand why it is said you wouldn't gain.. I'd actually expect the reverse: gain at first, especially since you are now eating way carbs (glycogen = higher = more water retenion!). Perhaps she's thinking about the women that ate higher carbs and for those, the repair plan would mean a lower carb intake than usual = a water wt drop and then perhaps a small gain after calories are bumped upwards.
For you it's the reverse, so a water wt gain is entirely logical.
It is almost crazy how much my own weight gain is nearly only related to
- fiber , esp legumes make me retain a lot of water & err volume stuff
- soy/wheat & other stuff
- salt & water intake: high salt & low water = retention.. this smoothens out again
- hormones: esp ovulation gives crazy fast bump /drop and then slow gains towards menstruation
There's 1 big advantage to a somewhat higher carb intake.. no crazy bath room visits.. it was like 10 times or more a day back to say 5x/day.
I don't really understand why it is said you wouldn't gain.. I'd actually expect the reverse: gain at first, especially since you are now eating way carbs (glycogen = higher = more water retenion!). Perhaps she's thinking about the women that ate higher carbs and for those, the repair plan would mean a lower carb intake than usual = a water wt drop and then perhaps a small gain after calories are bumped upwards.
For you it's the reverse, so a water wt gain is entirely logical.
It is almost crazy how much my own weight gain is nearly only related to
- fiber , esp legumes make me retain a lot of water & err volume stuff
- soy/wheat & other stuff
- salt & water intake: high salt & low water = retention.. this smoothens out again
- hormones: esp ovulation gives crazy fast bump /drop and then slow gains towards menstruation
There's 1 big advantage to a somewhat higher carb intake.. no crazy bath room visits.. it was like 10 times or more a day back to say 5x/day.
Well actually I have been getting around the same amount of carbs, c 90g as before though, this time there are a few more starchy ones but not many as 20% of 30% I am drinking less water, however, BUT then again I am exercising less too, so I do not understand the weight gain really I have no clear relationship on weight gain during my monthly cycle, either, unlike you. I do react to sodium but I am thinking I have been restricting it too much and sometimes I bloat with carbs and sometimes not!
Monday Day 15, Beginning of week 3
Wt 59.4kg, BF 18.2% BF is up on average 2-3% in past 2 weeks
Compliance for Sunday
Cals : YES
Protein : YES
Rest : YES
Sleep : YES
Water : YES
COMPLIANCE FOR MONDAY
Cals : YES
Protein : YES
Water : YES
Rest : YES
Sleep : YES
Tuesday 25th Nov
Wt 59.7kg, BF 17.1%
This is proving very hard for me. It took me 6 months this year to go from 60kg to 58.5kg and it is coming back on so quickly. Sleep is deeper I feel (though I have never neglected getting enough sleep) but I am more bloated and have less regular bowels since being on MRM It really is taking a lot of discipline to keep going according to plan. The whole goal of going low on cals and relatively low on carbs, at least starchy ones, at the beginning, and then progressing slowly, is to prevent or minimise weight gain... This is the theory....
Yay for sleep .. it's so so so incredibly important for recovery and increasing metabolism, yet we tend to neglect it too much.
Give it all you have and then re-assess at the end. See it like an experiment and yourself as a guinea pig/lab rat. It's hard to obsess over details and yet be emotionally 'detached' (is that the word?) but that is how you can 'survive' and not get stuck in beating yourself up over it..
At least there's 1 advantage here.. you ca't blame yourself when you've stuck to the plan nearly 100% and it would fail.
I'm working on not letting daily bf% fluctuations get to me.. while I know that 30d avg values are the only trustworthy ones, one still can't help but see the today's value and notice the trend...
I'm working on not letting daily bf% fluctuations get to me.. while I know that 30d avg values are the only trustworthy ones, one still can't help but see the today's value and notice the trend...
me too! Why don't you put the BF stats in your table?
COMPLIANCE FOR TUESDAY
Cals : YES
Protein : YES
Water : YES
Rest : YES
Sleep : YES
Wt 59.8kg, BF 17.8 % Wt and BF still creeping up. Seems impossible on such low cals but I can see the fat gain now. I have not been over 61kg in 25+ years and don't think I can psychologically... I hope it doesn't get to that. In the book there were examples more extreme, I thought, than me for whom this programme was succesful (I understand of course the failures won't get into the book )
I am feeling hungrier, which is apparently a good sign.
Metabolic Repair, is it really possible?
) and am bascially starting the repair this week.... it is the rest which will get to me as I, like so many, fear inactivity, but that is great as I want to find balance in all this, its one of my big goals, to not be exercising from fear but from pleasure. 
and the first time I did a via ferrata about 4 years ago I was absolutely terrified the entire time.... It has helped me overcome some of my fear, now it is when I do the tyrolean that I am still mega scared
I have no clear relationship on weight gain during my monthly cycle, either, unlike you. I do react to sodium but I am thinking I have been restricting it too much and sometimes I bloat with carbs and sometimes not! 
)
Linear Mode
