Back again, 3rd time

OK, I'm back at eating more again. Yes for the third time, but this time it'll stick. Why? Because I started to see results in the area that i wanted them in. Realized the only way was because I was eating more. Doing Ashley Horner's Charlie Mike 5 days a week eating 1600-1700 calories was not cutting it for me, especially when I almost passed out. Actually in fact for the past year I was eating about that and working out hard.

The last couple times that I started to eat more, I saw a gain on the scale but never did I measure. So I turned away from it, and decreased my calories. So should have measured myself instead of relying on the scale. Now I only rely on the numbers on the scale to calculate my body fat % instead. This time I feel im on the right path and that I will stick to it!
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Replies

  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Good for you.

    Educate yourself about all the totally valid and expected reasons why you'd gain fast water weight eating more than minimum while getting good workouts - and perhaps start viewing the scale as important a figure as your height marked on a door frame.

    Oh, you don't have your height marked on a door frame and compare frequently .....

    And watch the changes from that workout have a better effect.

    Also always do the math for weight changes in case you think they are fat, since fat is not fast lost or gained.
    When you attempted eating more those few times - how much weight gained in how much time did you see?
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    heybales wrote: »
    Good for you.

    Educate yourself about all the totally valid and expected reasons why you'd gain fast water weight eating more than minimum while getting good workouts - and perhaps start viewing the scale as important a figure as your height marked on a door frame.

    Oh, you don't have your height marked on a door frame and compare frequently .....

    And watch the changes from that workout have a better effect.

    Also always do the math for weight changes in case you think they are fat, since fat is not fast lost or gained.
    When you attempted eating more those few times - how much weight gained in how much time did you see?

    I saw a gain within a week, usually a few pounds or so, but my mentality was a lot different than it is now. I also weigh and measure pretty much everything that i eat and take weekly measurements of myself. I never did that when i gave this a go the other 2 times before. This time when I saw a gain on the scale and 4 inches were lost I smiled.
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    edited May 2016
    Inches lost are way better than pounds lost! Great job on eating more again! Fuel your body, get your workouts in, sleep, drink water and the results will come. Check the stick annoucements of this forum or www.eatmore2weighless.com for questions and support on eating more for fat loss.
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    Wow!!!! I don't even know were to begin on how much I love this update! Nope, the number on the scale does not define you, it's just a number. New PR's, feeling good and loving how you look now, that's what I'm talking about!

    WTG!

    Tereza
    Team EM2WL
  • Jennifer_Lynn_1982
    Jennifer_Lynn_1982 Posts: 567 Member
    I love this thread....way to go @beastmode_kitty!
  • Raynn1
    Raynn1 Posts: 1,164 Member
    Well i've done it! I've been at 2000+ calories now for over a month and have not looked back. I love how I've been feeling and looking these days. I'm setting new PR's almost every week now, and love how strong both mentally and physically that I have become!

    I used to always be so skeptical about increasing calories, as I associated it with gaining weight. The number on the scale doesn't define you or your hard work. All it is, is a number! And I've learnt that now. Took me a damn long time, but I finally have done it. So for anyone that think that they can't increase calories, well I got news for ya, you can! Don't be scared. Let go of the stigma, and do it gradually like I did. The results will only work in your favor!

    May I take this to share with the Fam as a NSV?:)
    Good job!! So glad you are embracing it all!!
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Well i've done it! I've been at 2000+ calories now for over a month and have not looked back. I love how I've been feeling and looking these days. I'm setting new PR's almost every week now, and love how strong both mentally and physically that I have become!

    I used to always be so skeptical about increasing calories, as I associated it with gaining weight. The number on the scale doesn't define you or your hard work. All it is, is a number! And I've learnt that now. Took me a damn long time, but I finally have done it. So for anyone that think that they can't increase calories, well I got news for ya, you can! Don't be scared. Let go of the stigma, and do it gradually like I did. The results will only work in your favor!

    Great job on mental aspect.

    And see, this ability to have really great workouts and energy level, beyond just transforming the body, does increase your daily burn, and it's probably higher than estimated TDEE (which could be problem when time to maintain or bulk) - but it also gives you the chance to now actually lose some fat weight you don't want.

    But you gotta start with a healthy body first no matter where it's at, then take reasonable deficit from there to maintain that healthy body.

    And having the better mental attitude about it allows you to confirm that is happening.

    Compare that to people that start extreme diet with extreme increase in workouts - they have no idea how good their workouts could likely be.

    You now know how it feels though - and will want to keep that probably.
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    I told you this was an awesome NSV, @beastmode_kitty! I'm waiting for you story!

    Tereza
    Team EM2WL
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    Raynn1 wrote: »
    Well i've done it! I've been at 2000+ calories now for over a month and have not looked back. I love how I've been feeling and looking these days. I'm setting new PR's almost every week now, and love how strong both mentally and physically that I have become!

    I used to always be so skeptical about increasing calories, as I associated it with gaining weight. The number on the scale doesn't define you or your hard work. All it is, is a number! And I've learnt that now. Took me a damn long time, but I finally have done it. So for anyone that think that they can't increase calories, well I got news for ya, you can! Don't be scared. Let go of the stigma, and do it gradually like I did. The results will only work in your favor!

    May I take this to share with the Fam as a NSV?:)
    Good job!! So glad you are embracing it all!!

    Absolutely you can!!
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    Yay! What an incredible update!
    So happy for you especially as your mental results are just as good as your physical. Isn't it liberating?
    Keep going! If you feel this good after a month, imagine after 6 months, or a year?!?!?!
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    Yay! What an incredible update!
    So happy for you especially as your mental results are just as good as your physical. Isn't it liberating?
    Keep going! If you feel this good after a month, imagine after 6 months, or a year?!?!?!

    You're right!! Was tired of feeling tired and depressed all the time. Its nice to finally break free of all that and just be happy with everything I have accomplished. No more mental fogginess :)
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    And it just gets better! No looking back into eating as a bird with working out as a fiend just to look skinny fat, feel tired and "hangry"all the time! It's nice to have that fog lifted. For me besides being tired and depressed, as I got older it would get harder to the point that I would just give up, lose the faith in myself and settle for less in everything. It's not just the food or how we look, this journey is way more powerful than that, it reflects in all aspects of our life, from out moods to self confidence.

    Btw, the Team EM2WL loved your journey story and will feature you on the site. You are an amazing inspiration for us and all the followers of EM2WL lifestyle!
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    And it just gets better! No looking back into eating as a bird with working out as a fiend just to look skinny fat, feel tired and "hangry"all the time! It's nice to have that fog lifted. For me besides being tired and depressed, as I got older it would get harder to the point that I would just give up, lose the faith in myself and settle for less in everything. It's not just the food or how we look, this journey is way more powerful than that, it reflects in all aspects of our life, from out moods to self confidence.

    Btw, the Team EM2WL loved your journey story and will feature you on the site. You are an amazing inspiration for us and all the followers of EM2WL lifestyle!

    My biggest struggle would be learning to let the scale go. I started a no weigh june movement and have a few people following me now. Going to work hard this whole month and see where I end up at on June 30th. Looking to lower my body fat % so I'll check it then at the gym that I go to.

    I'm really happy to hear that you guys will be featuring me and I am excited to see it up on the site. If you ever need someone to join your team I would love to do so!
  • jerilynconn
    jerilynconn Posts: 524 Member
    Yay! What an incredible update!
    So happy for you especially as your mental results are just as good as your physical. Isn't it liberating?
    Keep going! If you feel this good after a month, imagine after 6 months, or a year?!?!?!

    You're right!! Was tired of feeling tired and depressed all the time. Its nice to finally break free of all that and just be happy with everything I have accomplished. No more mental fogginess :)

    ^ this is me right now. So tired. But when eating more I was not making any progress. I cannot be bursting out of my jeans forever. It's so uncomfortable for me to carry around this much fat (mostly belly!) Feel like it's a real catch22!

    Are your inches still decreasing?
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    @saranharm i havent really measured inches in awhile. Not really sure how to be honest. But my clothes are feeling looser.
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    @terezatoledo yes!! Nice head rest for a kitty. I actually hid my scale away so im not tempted to use it.
  • Raynn1
    Raynn1 Posts: 1,164 Member
    edited June 2016
    saranharm wrote: »
    Yay! What an incredible update!
    So happy for you especially as your mental results are just as good as your physical. Isn't it liberating?
    Keep going! If you feel this good after a month, imagine after 6 months, or a year?!?!?!

    You're right!! Was tired of feeling tired and depressed all the time. Its nice to finally break free of all that and just be happy with everything I have accomplished. No more mental fogginess :)

    ^ this is me right now. So tired. But when eating more I was not making any progress. I cannot be bursting out of my jeans forever. It's so uncomfortable for me to carry around this much fat (mostly belly!) Feel like it's a real catch22!

    Are your inches still decreasing?

    Speaking for someone who burst out of my jeans three different times, It does level out, especially when you finally find your TDEE. When I originally jumped in cals, I jumped up in size a tiny bit..but it wasnt TDEE.. Then I went higher to what I *thought* was TDEE, and the inches gained but plateaued... And then I went even higher now, to what should be pretty darn on my TDEE and once more jumped up in sizes. I have levelled out now after sitting at TDEE for about 3 months.

    Its not easy to gain weight purposefully. I had to remind myself that when I lost the weight originally, it was doing low cal crash diets.. I lost a ton of muscle.. So this whole rebuilding has been gaining back my muscle. Yes fat has come along for the time being, but its a short term pain, for long term gain.. I dont want to mess up and not be eating as high as I should be, and have to struggle once again down the line for being too low on cals. Personally, Ive learned more about myself in this past 18 months of really letting go. Progress is painfully slow sometimes, but that doesnt mean there isnt any. So even though you dont think there is any progress by eating more, I promise you the progress WILL show up in the end. But you have to be willing to give it everything, and sometimes that means increasing in size to gain back your lost muscle.


    I totally understand where you are coming from. When I first went up in size, I cried for weeks. I never wanted to see these sizes again, so it was mentally draining to wear them. But after a while, I realized that size means nothing. I know when my time has come to cut properly, the inches will fall away, and the fat will vanish.. and my muscles will show how hard I worked at my progress. The mental game is sometimes a lot harder to win than the Scale game.

    Kelly
    Team EM2WL
  • beastmode_kitty
    beastmode_kitty Posts: 844 Member
    I agree with @Raynn1

    So far ive seen changes in body composition. Things starting to tighten up. But in terms of pants size not so much. Im guessing because i was so low for so long that eating 2000 now is more or less closer to my TDEE. Eventually i will increase it more but im quite happy with the gainz i have in strength eating where im at now. Its all trial and error.