10-week challenge

ellie78

My logging went out the window over the weekend and I just made really bad food choices and with TOM impending I am not expecting to see any weight improvement for several days.

On the up side I did log a .3% body fat decrease last week, its not much but its moving in the right direction!

I decided to drop down to 2 workouts per week for stage 2 for a number of reasons I won't bore everyone with, but it freed up time to get in some other types of exercise and I was really feeling good going into the weekend. This just might be a better way for me to go for the rest of the program, we'll see I guess.

Beeps2011

Hmmmmm, ellie, I'm kind of wondering the same thing, for me. I'm still going to do strength-training for 3 days a week through May, but thought I might dial it back for June, July and August so that I can spend "some" time outdoors (walking, whatever - just GETTING OUTSIDE) - 2 days a week might be a good fit. So, I'll look forward to your posts on your progress.

I did NOT end up having a "lower-calorie" day, yesterday. Boo. So, if I'm really going to focus on zig-zagging, then today HAS to be a "Lower Calorie" day. Unfortunately, for me, in order to get LOWER calories in, I end up eating MORE protein bars (because they make me feel full)....which isn't really my long-term goal. I'd rather keep away from the processed stuff.

Anyway, Happy May 1st!! That means there is 2 months left in this challenge. Keep it up, ladies!

lizlee8

Lost 1lb! yeah! at last!
Still struggling on upping the protein and lowering the carbs - anybody any suggestions, my diary is open.
Cheers.

mstawnya

I'm doing great on adding beans each day, but the 11 pm bedtime has been pushed to midnight the last few nights. Ugh. I'm dragging and feeling it.

Beeps2011

Yeah for the 1 lb lost, emck - that's awesome!

And, congrats on adding "beans" each day, mstawnya....also very good.

I quickly measured my natural waist, belly-button waist and hips, today....and, #&%)@*%&(Q my measurements are EXACTLY the same as at the end of March.

wtf???????????????

Man, that p*isses me off. No, I'm not losing any weight. And, now I'm not losing anymore inches, either.

I am a faithful lifter. what gives??????????????

(This is just a vent. Ignore it and I'll be in a better mood in 10 minutes, don't worry....)

jrditt

1. Eat more clean and cook more
2. Do cardio on my non-lifting days
3. Get my ratios to where they should be
4. Loose weight and inches and tone up!

hammycakes

Well, I just found this challenge, but I think I can follow along since I have been pretty faithful to my goals since starting Nrol4w on April 18th. My measurements have not really changed yet, but I sort of feel like I'm looking better if you know what I mean?

My goals:

Goal 1. 1700 cals on non lifting days & up to 2000 on lifting days.
I have been eating between 1600-1700 since January and lost about 6-8 lbs, but since I started lifting I've gained about 2 lbs.
I've noticed I don't have nearly as much energy for my other work outs, but I go mostly for the endorphins anyway ( zumba) so I'm ok with that. I would really like to lose weight- I have about 40 lbs to lose, but I read that a lot of folks on this program don't lose a ton, so I'm not sure what a realistic expectation for weight loss or bf reduction is. Just trying to focus on the clothes fitting better and the getting stronger and not get frustrated by the scale.

Goal 2. Complete stage 1 of the program by the end of the challenge. So far so good. I like seeing my progress with the weights go up, and now one of my girlfriends has started lifting with me so we are egging each other on.

sbrBirdy

Bumping for now... need to think about what I want to accomplish.

Helgazon

Hi all, joining late but I'll jump in! My goal for the end of June (8 weeks) is to lose 5 lbs (reach 135 or 6).

My final goal is to lose 10lbs and maintain for at least six months at the new weight of 130lbs. If I can get halfway there
by end June and have awesome abs I'll be very pleased with progress!

To do this I will:

--Track food and exercise daily
--Stick to calorie goal (1300) including eating back calories
--Continue NROL4W 3x week
--Do cardio 3x/ week.

ellie78

Well so far I haven't lost any weight, but I am down .6% in body fat so something is moving in the right direction at least! I've been really good with my logging this week and I'm going to try really hard not to fall off track like I did last weekend.

Happy Friday!

Beeps2011

That's a great thing, ellie....I'll take the loss in body fat, anyday!

I'm actually thinking of ditching NOT ONLY the scale, but ALSO the tape measure - buying one of those hand-held body fat % calculators and then measuring every single day.

(I'm told a rolling 30-day average will actually be fairly accurate - so, you can't rely on the device day-to-day, but over 30 days, the average will help me determine if it is moving in a downward direction....)

jenniet04

I did pretty well on eating at my conference all week. I was no where near the 1800 that I wanted to be, but I got quite a bit of cardio in to offset that. When I weighed in this moring, I was the same as when I left, so pretty happy about that.

Looks like everyone is doing well so far.

Beeps - I really like the Omron hand held BF% monitor. I want to use it a bit more often than I do, but am afraid I'll get hooked on it like I do the scale. I use it about every 2 weeks.

Beeps2011

jenthomas - yep, that's the BF% monitor I want. Mind you, I was also told, by a trusted colleague, that the "reason" to use it every single morning is BECAUSE it can be THAT far off, on a daily/hourly/minute basis....but, if you do it everyday, and then just calculate your 30-day average, that will be useful data.

PS - I just ate 3 x Reese's peanut butter cups. They were very good.

manic4titans

Well, I haven't been doing so good. Adding cardio in with lifting leaves me exhausted. Stage 1 completed as of Wednesday. I rested yesterday and did a mixture of cardio today. It feels good. My bottom and legs are feeling the workout. I just realized I didn't stretch afterwards. :ohwell: gonna be sore tomorrow.

Also, I am trying to cut my calories. It seems on the days I lift, I am not as hungry . The non days I can eat what isn't nailed down and even then I gnaw around that.

Beeps2011

We're full-blown into this 10-week challenge, now, ladies.

And, I am going FULL-BORE into "diet" mode. I am simply TOO FLUFFY and I don't really know how to dump the weight without the good ol' fashioned DIET.

So, I'll keep my protein high, but will cut calories (no fewer than 1,400 - 1,600 per day) and am going to desperately fit in some cardio, somewhere. This week is a rest week from heavy lifting, so I'm going to BANG OUT THE CARDIO HARD - and hopefully will have a "SWOOSH" on the scale this week.

Then, when I move back into heavy-lifting next week, I'm going to REALLY try and get outside, every evening, for a 45-minute walk. 1. Because I want to get outside now that spring has arrived; and 2. because ALL of the "competitive weight-training" ladies I am friends with on mfp say I have to increase my cardio if I want to dump my fat.

So, there you have it.

I did my body fat % calculator on Friday and it had me at 26.9% - which is better than where I started, but is far from where I want to be. To get to 20% body fat, I have to ditch about 12 more lbs. (of fat - while preserving my muscle) and I don't think I can do that by the end of June, but maybe by the end of July.

I won't be very pleasant to be around this week - because I'll be hungry. But, after this week, I figure my body will regulate it out and that scale better start moving!!!

jenniet04

Beeps - thanks for the info on the BF% tester. I may have to do that because it's all over the place. When I started lfing in March it was pretty consistently around 23.8%, then after Stage 1 it was down to 22.8 - 23% pretty consistently, then this morning it was 23.2 - 23.5%. I usually do it 3 times in a row just to see what the variance will be.

I need to cut the fat as well and am hoping I can stick with 1800 calories a day, lifting and non lifting days. I have a really hard time getting below that. I have not been doing well with the eating since being out of town and then my mom was in town this weekend and I'm traveling again Wed thru Friday. I can't wait to really get back on schedule!

lizlee8

Gained 2lbs :frown: that's what I get for not logging sat and sun! I'm on it this week, focus focus focus! :bigsmile:

ellie78

I had not heard that about the BF monitor either, good to know. I was just planning on doing every Friday morning which is what I had done the last 2 weeks. I suppose either way if it is still down by the end of a month that would still be good. I'm also a bit of a scale addict so I would be concerned I would start obsessing over the BF% as well.

So as of this morning I am officially down 1 entire pound! Cutting back to two lifting sessions per week and adding in more cardio seems to be doing the trick. My calories are still pretty high, grossing 2000-2400 a day. I've been pretty good with my logging too, but I always seem to slack a bit on the weekends.

Jessica1274

I bought a BF monitor. It came yesterday. This morning I used it and it was 2.2% HIGHER than when it was done at the gym over a month ago! WTH? I'm so mad right now. Guess that's why my measurements haven't changed. >:-(


Someone tell me, why am I doing all this crap again?!

jenniet04

Jessica - I would try what Beeps suggested and test every day, even if just for a week. There are a lot of factors that can affect the numbers. Just remember this is your lifestyle now, not just a quick fix.

I've been doing pretty good on my goals. I went a bit over in calories this weekend with my mom in town, but not too overboard. I'm going out of town for work again this afternoon thru friday, so will try my best to keep things under control. Thankfully my weight is not moving much, but hoping I can stay off the scale now for the next couple weeks.

Beeps2011

Yeah, Jessica, I just do NOT think body fat % calculators are a good measure when you use them as a "snap-shot". They aren't accurate (enough). So, instead, I think it is best if you use it at the same time, everyday, and under the same conditions (i.e. don't use it one day BEFORE you eat and one day AFTER you eat...). And then, chart your results. Take the average over 30 days. And THAT would be a (more) accurate measure of your body fat %.

So, don't panic....like I said, the "snap-shot" will leave you frustrated because it won't be accurate, imho.

I'm doing AWESOME this week, I believe. I didn't have a headache, yesterday, and maybe I'm already over the carb induction flu - which would be really good. I've done enough research on what I'm doing to likely allow for myself to eat at maintenance 1 DAY PER WEEK. For this week, I will choose Sunday - Mother's Day, because we have a supper out.

The rest of the time, I'm eating at a deficit and I feel pretty confident in this 10-week-challenge, at this point.

karensoxfan

Jessica - that happened to me too, when I first joined the gym and did all cardio, all the time. I was planning to measure monthly, and I'd been feeling pretty confident that with a month of lifting with cardio only on non-lifting days, the body fat % would HAVE to go down, but I'll find out for sure next week.

I like the idea of the 30-day rolling average, but I don't want to buy one for fear I'll become obsessive about it too. It's bad enough I still weigh near daily. I can handle subtle fluctuations, but I think body fat % fluctuations might make me nutty.

I'm also re-evaluating whether my goal of losing 10 lb. in 10 weeks was reasonable or not. The scale has come to a (fluctuating) standstill at 190. It reads 189 occasionally, but most often reads bet. 190-193.

I do fit into size 14 jeans now though, both Lee & Levis. The Levis are still a little snug though, so I'd like those to be more comfortable by the end of 10 weeks.

And I'm OK with being patient with the scale if I really am building muscle and burning fat. I'm happy with the changes I see in the mirror, even if I'm not so happy with the pictures I (finally) had my husband take. But it's frustrating to not know HOW patient I need to be before I start seeing the scale move again.

I'm tempted to call my Dr., who advised losing weight to drop my cholesterol, and asking him whether my BMI or BF% is more important for that purpose...

Beeps2011

karen, I think it is a TOTALLY appropriate goal to focus on "fitting better into your jeans". That is *perfect*. (and, at xmas-time, that WAS my goal, and I've MET that goal - so I'm onto the NEXT goal...)

I used to be obsessive about the scale, but not anymore. And, if I ever do get a body fat % calculator (which I would like to - but it seems TOO STRANGE to ask for it for a "mother's day" gift, lol!), I think I can 100% separate the charting out from the emotion of it. Wake up. Do body fat %. Chart number. Get on with day. (Because, on a daily basis, the number isn't MEANINGFUL, at all.)

But, that's me.

Oh, and I *did* step on the scale, today, and I'm down 3 (or 4?) lbs from the weekend. So, yes, I'm sure it is water weight, but I don't care. If I stay consistent with what I am doing, I'm going to KILL THIS 10-WEEK-CHALLENGE!

(And, that's kind of the *point*, right?? If it weren't "challenging", it wouldn't be called a "challenge"....)

mstawnya

Holding steady with my beans each afternoon. Bedtime is still a challenge. I've been averaging 11:30ish and even went to bed at 9:30 one night. A little better than last week.

ellie78

Jessica, don't get too worried about it. Just pick a steady time of day to take your BF% and consider it starting from square one. You will start seeing the progress. Admittedly I've only seen minimal progress but I was plateaued for 8 months, gained 8 lbs over xmas and then plateaued again until just these last couple weeks. And I use the word plateau simply to reflect that my weight wasn't changing, by no means was I following any type of healthy plan until just this last 10 weeks when I upped calories and started lifting but even that took a lot of time for me. You will get there!

Beeps2011

How's everyone doing, today?? I hope you are thinking (and planning!) about how you can successfully maneuver through this upcoming weekend. Especially with "Mother's Day", that may be tough on many of the Mom's out there!

For me, I've got a supper out on Saturday night AND on Sunday night. So, I've determined that Saturday night will have to be the fish entree, plus veggies ONLY. (No bread. No dessert. No booze.) Sunday night, will be my "maintenance day", so I can probably have the steak entree, and maybe even some salad dressing on my salad - still no bread, no dessert and no booze.

So, I'm ready (I think).

karensoxfan

I've got a brunch and dinner on Mother's day. But I might try to get to the gym for a workout (lifting or not will depend on if I lift Saturday), so I'll get some extra calories if I can be done & dressed before brunch (my gym doesn't open until 8:00 am).

Beeps2011

I had an excellent day, today, challenge-wise. I think I'm getting the hang of this and I'm just keeping on....

Jessica1274

I had a meltdown today. Walmart has gotten to the point it nearly gives me an anxiety attack. I HATE that place. More than words can ever say. After I left there, I had to rush to my appt to have my armpits tortured (laser hair removal). Thats when the meltdown occurred. I went to Olive Garden. It could have been WAY worse, but I really wanted a glass of wine and tiramisu. So....


I'll only be having a light snack tonight.

ellie78

Does that hurt much, the laser hair removal? I've seriously been considering it but I don't know anyone who has actually done it. And I would say we all need a glass of wine and tiramisu sometimes...

Mother's day is a lucky break for me. My mom is a vegan so if we do actually go anywhere to eat it will be to a place that you would really have to try to find something really unhealthy, but she doesn't like to go out to eat since so many places can't accommodate her diet so we probably won't anyways! She told me she wants to go get and plant a rose bush in honor of my grandma who passed away a year and half ago so we will probably have a bit of an active day. Should be nice. Oh, and I am not yet a mom so no worries there.