Holy cow..... I have been in this program for nearly 3 months and the time has just flown by!
As of today I'm down 34 lbs and while I don't have specific inches for my overall loss I believe it's around 45 inches total. Not too shabby! My body fat is not really readable today because my hormones are again running amok. That is frustrating but I do know I have to be within 1% or so of normal! As I've already said before, the hormones are trapped in our fat (especially around our bellies) so as IP forces us into ketosis all those fat cells are releasing whatever they've got stored in there (including toxins, hormones, etc.) and it's very obvious I have a lot of them because I only had a 2 week break between cycles! I'm not feeling great (intestinal stuff) but I'm battling through this particular cycle. Hopefully, it'll be done in a day or so!
I never knew a program could change my life the way IP has. I'm losing weight at a steady pace which I've never been able to do before. That is what keeps (I think) most of us IP-ers motivated. What is harder to see because you're not inside our heads is that for the most part, we manage to eat very clean day-to-day without any real issues with carbs and other no-no's that are on this program. The cravings stop. They really do. Yes, there's issues during our 'times of the month' (or TOM as I like to call it) and I feel like I'm starving and want to pretty eat anything I can get my hands on. The good thing is that I'm not craving a pizza or hamburger like I used to. I really want to eat food. It's not the chocolate bar that's sitting in the freezer for Mark. Yes, occasionally I want cheese, a piece of toast or something breaded and fried but it's not dire and I can usually make do with something that is approved for the program.
At this point it becomes more about seasoning (especially salt for me) and texture. Crunchy is good. Other than that, I'm usually okay. Most of the IP products I buy are sweet, sweet/crunchy or crunchy/spicy. I like the chocolate and fruit flavored items. I love my strawberry wafer, which I eat for breakfast every morning with my coffee. I've discovered that the soups are kind of dull but I can enjoy the chicken noodle soup now and then. I'm really looking forward to the day I switch to Phase 2 when I get rid of the lunch packet and eat real protein again. I want to eat more real food soon. I think the time will come...hopefully within 6 to 8 weeks.
That's a trippy thing to say. Honestly, I have been on this program longer than I really wanted to be but I also know I was much heavier than I thought (I have avoided scales for many years) and my body fat and BMI were a lot higher so it's a temporary thing for me to eat this clean before moving into a permanent lifestyle change. I intend for us to be mostly gluten free and definitely sugar free (with exception to natural sugars in fruits and veggies) so neither of us have to deal with diabetes. Mark and I have both read pre-diabetic in our last physicals and I just don't want us going into full-blown diabetes. Luckily, we can reverse this trend with a dietary lifestyle change so that's what I'm doing as a foodie and home chef.
Phase 1 is a bit of a grind now because you can't have anything you want. You have to think and if you go out you have to be prepared to special order everything so you don't screw up your ketosis. I'm not saying that I don't appreciate this because I really do. The way I feel internally is absolutely amazing. I love what this program has done for me physically and emotionally. I feel healthy for the first time in years. I'm not even done with the fat loss portion yet! But I will be really happy to get to the first goal (90% of the weight loss goal) and switch to Phase 2 and 3.
I will definitely have to revisit Phase 1 every time I have a cheat day (IP encourages those so we can enjoy life!) but at least it will be once a week. I do want to enjoy a slice of pizza now and then and a really good dessert that is loaded with sugar. I just know it won't be a daily thing and I'm okay with that.
So what is my overall goal? I keep saying it's body fat percentage rather than poundage. I have a large frame plus am muscular by nature so I will always be heavier than most women. Luckily, that usually means I will also weigh 10-15 lbs more than those smaller framed gals at my height but it won't look that way. I still think I have a chance of making into a size 6 but I know for sure I'm going for the size 8. Wherever that lands me weight wise I think is where I'll stop if my body fat lands in the 25-27% range. I really don't want to be any higher than that body fat wise even though 34% is considered okay for my age group. I hate being on the high end of normal though because you're that much closer to being overweight or obese. So hopefully once my TOM finishes my BF percentage will stabilize again and I can see what it really is!
No comments:
Post a Comment