Trusting the Process

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  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    Ok, it's at the end of my day and I feel and look like I'm 9 months pregnant. I know I could not have ate enough to gain 4 pounds today. But this "fat as a tick" feeling sucks.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    When I start my workout I can choose what type of workout I do on my Apple Watch. I choose strength training with I lift weights. I choose yoga when I do yoga. Outside walk when I went for walks outside, etc. I am constantly moving with the yoga and the weight lifting. Both workouts last 45-60 minutes. I understand that the tracking may be off some due to different things in my day. I don't think there is any other way to enter info in on a watch. I have MFP calorie goal set at 2,300. That has been my Apple Watch average over the last month. I have increased my workouts since Jan 1. So that calorie count will need to be a bit different as I move forward.

    I haven't examined the Apple Watch specifically - but every other device, those selections for a workout is merely for a text label on the workout so you can review it later with meaning - it has no bearing on calculating calories differently.
    If it uses HR, then same formula is used.
    If it uses steps, then same formula is used.

    I've not heard of one where you can manually enter it on the watch/device - it's done later when manually logging a workout - and I remember seeing that be done on an Apple commercial when they were looking at their stats post-workout. On the phone display though, not the watch. They were putting in a workout name like 567 stairs. Sadly no rail to slide back down!

    Adjustments to TDEE will always happen - a rolling 4 week average is good idea, that takes into account seasonal changes too.

  • zanyzana
    zanyzana Posts: 248 Member
    Ok, it's at the end of my day and I feel and look like I'm 9 months pregnant. I know I could not have ate enough to gain 4 pounds today. But this "fat as a tick" feeling sucks.

    Are you drinking water? As it's cold over there, I imagine it would be more difficult to chug it down. Have you had any medical tests to see if you are sensitive to foods or substances? Have you had children? Maybe you have that condition after child birth where the ab muscles are ripped and/or separated. (I can't remember how to write it - dialysis recti or something like that.... nah, that's not it. But it's a real condition!). Does it bother you enough to seek medical help?
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    @zanyzana thanks for the thoughts. I have looked into the ab muscle issue and I don't have that. I'm gluten sensitive so I try to limit that. I think that day I had too much wheat products compiled with trying to increase my calorie intake. And I ate later than usual. I think I just ate too much of the wrong things. Boy, you can feel miserable when you do that. I have not been drinking as much as I usually do. (I changed cups and noticed it wasn't user friendly as my old one,) so I have increased back to 64+ ounces a day and I lost 3 pounds over night. I really appreciate the thoughts and concerns. If I keep up with eating fresh raw fruits and veggies, the gluten issue is very minimal. Seems like the raw fruit and veggies helps decrease the boating, nausea symptoms from too much gluten. I usually limit wheat products to pasta only. I either don't eat it or I use spelt products where I can. Thank you so much for your input. I do appreciate it
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    If doing a specific workout over and over no longer is a workout for the body. And if massage is a workout for the therapist, does it become a non exercise for me? And not so much a calorie burn? And I don't count it as such? I just count it as standing/step numbers
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Your body adapts from workouts by getting broken down, and then repairing stronger.

    What is meant by it's no longer a workout, is it no longer is a stress to your body, so no need for your body to repair to get stronger.

    Say you start exercising and walking a certain pace at 200 lbs - your body will show it was a workout - elevated HR, sore the next day, ect.

    You keep doing that pace and route and time, and stay 200 lbs - you will still burn the same calories moving the same mass, but your body has gotten better at it, HR doesn't need to go as high, not sore.

    It's no longer a challenge or stress for your body - nothing to require improvement from.

    It is no longer a workout in that sense. Still a calorie burner of the same amount, perhaps stress reliever - but no improvement from it.

    That's why walking as an example workout - becomes ineffective if you are losing weight, because it becomes easier and easier as weight goes down, burning less calories, requiring less effort.
    Now - normally pace would go faster, so for awhile you can burn the same calories by going faster, and make it harder. Or people do it for longer now.
    But eventually, you can only walk so fast, unless you add incline or weighted vest or such.

    If you literally kept the same pace and made no changes after losing weight - you'd actually lose fitness conditioning, because it's even less work than it used to be before.

    Same thing with anything - doing massage could be a real workout (insert any active job) at first, but eventually you've strengthened muscles, and what you do doesn't require any more now.
    So it's no longer a workout for you. You are still burning the same amount of calories though, just feels easier.

    That's why lifting is good. How do you keep making it a workout?
    Add weight to the bar, or reps, or sets.
    If you keep doing pink 3 lb dumbbells exactly same - need for improvement stops - you are maintaining what you've got - which could be fine.
  • zanyzana
    zanyzana Posts: 248 Member
    My wife tracked her steps for ages and found that she was taking 15000+ every day at work. She's done the same job for over 20 years. This is part of her body's NEAT (non-exercise activity thermogenesis). It would be equivalent to your physicality as a massage therapist. To lose weight, she reduced calories and added cycling as her body had not adapted this activity. Are you asking because you are wondering what your TDEE is? Or trying work out the mystery of the belly fat??.
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    And what would be different and better with cycling than the job - the ability to increase intensity.

    Because of course you can get more efficient with cycling, the movement aspect, and then get more aerobically fit, so while burning the same calories it no longer asks for improvement.

    But, increase the intensity (speed, resistance, ect) - and you just made it a workout again. And you can keep doing that forever - eventually you'll be tapped out and can't make improvements with same style of workouts, without making changes to the workout to keep improving.

    I do recall someone once mentioned they tried to make their supervisor job in warehouse mainly walking, more intense by walking faster and swinging their arms around more - they said they just distracted the workers making them laugh!
    So had to stop.
  • tj0861
    tj0861 Posts: 48 Member
    I'm doing the "trust, trust, trust" mantra right now. I have to keep reminding myself that body comp is what we're working on here. And frankly, I'm not sure I'm at TDEE yet, so I'm going to try adding 100 for the next week and see what that does for me. This really is an ongoing process. I've been on EM2WL since June 2016, and I'd be willing to bet I haven't hit maintenance TDEE. Feeling good since adding the lifting, even though it's not HEAVY lifting like some of you folks do. But I feel stronger, and a huge plus is that my diabetic couch-tater hubby has teamed up with me on the weights. So I'm going to trust, trust, trust, and see where I can tweak for improvements.
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    @tj0861 so glad your hubby is working out with you!!!!! I started September 2016, I'm up to 2300 calories a day for about half the time. Trying to get consistent with intake. It's hard as I get full and don't want to force eat. Hang in there, small changes make a big compound effect. (By the way, that's also the title of a great book. The Compound Effect.)
  • Raynn1
    Raynn1 Posts: 1,164 Member
    tj0861 wrote: »
    I'm doing the "trust, trust, trust" mantra right now. I have to keep reminding myself that body comp is what we're working on here. And frankly, I'm not sure I'm at TDEE yet, so I'm going to try adding 100 for the next week and see what that does for me. This really is an ongoing process. I've been on EM2WL since June 2016, and I'd be willing to bet I haven't hit maintenance TDEE. Feeling good since adding the lifting, even though it's not HEAVY lifting like some of you folks do. But I feel stronger, and a huge plus is that my diabetic couch-tater hubby has teamed up with me on the weights. So I'm going to trust, trust, trust, and see where I can tweak for improvements.

    Read the post I just did a few days about about heavy lifting:)

    You are doing awesome. Your progress is right where it should be. Sometimes we think that the body should change faster, but in reality, its the mindset that has to change first. And learning to accept ourselves in ALL aspects of the journey is important:)

    The Compound Effect is a great read for sure:)

    Kelly
    Team EM2WL
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    @tj0861 How awesome that you are already having a ripple effect and positively influencing your husband.
    A couple that lifts together stays together. Well, that's my version of the phrase anyway! ;)
    Ichel
    Team EM2WL
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    @beverlyriley900
    I love that your doctor is so supportive. You are doing great. I'm sure you encourage lots of people on here.
    Ichel
    Team EM2WL
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    Just wondering how's everything going, @beverlyriley900 . Update when you can ;)

    Tereza
    Team EM2WL Trainer
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    I have my ups and downs. I trying to be consistent with 2300 cal a day. I know I get them in, just not in the right proportions. I could say I have been busy, but that's not compelty true. I'm very bored with eating and cooking. I eat to get food in, not much enjoyment with eating. I need to find some new things to cook/try. I want to stay away from grains, most sea food and some of the veggies like guacamole. I do look around on my food network app but I work until 5 or 6 most days and 8 one night a week. Hubby and son have a wide pallet for taste. My 3 year old loves asperugus, capers, fish, all fruits, most veggies. Won't eat lettuce, and he and hubby don't do spicy things. So I can choose different things. I'm in a slump, thus bad choices. Fast food, but no fries, low sodium soups from a can. Things like that. Stayed away from most sweets but did binge the other day. I would love to find a way to type in our favorite foods and hit a button and out pops a month long meal plan for evening meals. Would t that be great. I just don't seem to get meal planning done. I do hate doing that. I'll cook, as long as hubby tells me what he wants. He isn't so good at that either. We get into the slump of "what do you want to eat? No, what do YOU want to eat?" Kinda thing. Breakfast is always a done deal, protein shake with almond milk and flax seed, fried egg and spelt toast. Lunch bag usually is a meat, veggie, fruit, yogurt with granola types of things. Then there is dinner
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    It lost half my post!!! Take 2:
    I am doing meso 1 over. I didn't think I put a full effort into it. Once I'm done with meso 3 I'll try adding a cardio workout to see if I'm ready for a cut. I enjoy the lifting and do it 3 days a week. I push hard I think during the workout. I lift heavy enough that it's a struggle to get last 2 or 3 reps in and I burn while I work out but not much later. I am active from5am to 9 or 10pm. So that may be why, I must flush out the acid build up with water intake and massaging all day. Hubby feels a difference in my body but I don't see it. Maybe a bit more muscle in arms and legs. I'm so tired of the belly. I'm looking forward to getting rid of that. It's unsightly, hard on now backs and posture. I don't want to go down that road of low back pain. I have been working on core muscles. It's slow going but I'm making progress.
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    Well done with STS! If you don't see, but hubby sees, it means changes ARE happening! Have you been taking progress pictures? Today I went over through some progress pics of a friend and even though she couldn't see changes, once I compared and circled the changes, she was amazed.

    The main difference was in places we don't expect, like under arm fat (this week I pointed out the same spot to two ladies), under the bra line. She gained some weight during her reset, but her legs and butt have a nice round shape (guess where the extra weight went).Excellent job with lift heavier. Of course, we always look at the belly and want to see it gone ASAP, but usually it is the last one to go. Fat goes away in other places first and since we can't pick the spots, we need to be patient and keep lifting.

    The what's for dinner daily deal, ugh! It's can be a nightmare, I know, specially when different folks like different things. I try to compromise in between. Lately I've been stuck on trying different ways to make tofu. I cook meat, poultry, fish, but sometimes it feels like everything gets old. When I'm in the mood, I check out Pinterest for different things, type in the ingredients and see what comes up. EM2WL has some interesting recipes pinned that are worth checking: http://pin.it/vxyagu0 for high protein and http://pin.it/GGMYPan for plant based, among others.

    I posted this message on Facebook and thought it would be something to share here as well:

    "Yesterday I was talking to a friend about fat loss and we got to one of the goals that sometimes seem impossible to reach: lose.the.belly.

    Besides the fact that we want to lose fat all over, the part that most of us tend to obsess is the belly. It's were many of us store fat (that could be useful if we were stranded in an island). It's also were our hormones and stress make sure to bother us most.

    Usually the belly fat is the last one to go. At least it feels that way. Actually, it even feels like it gets bigger before getting smaller. We see our upper body leaning out, the legs leaning and the mid section seems to be going nowhere, at least for a while.

    A lot of it is fat tissue, so focusing on muscle building all over will speed up our metabolism and increase the calorie burn (even when we are sleeping or resting), which will make us burn the stored fat and eventually get to the belly fat.

    Building bigger and thicker muscles in the arms, butt, legs, back will help get the belly going. Plus the dense muscle tissue will make you look tighter and smoother. Think of making your bed without straightening the first layer of covers. The top won't look smooth. Once you straighten the bottom, the top looks like a hotel bed. So improving our core muscles will make the belly look flatter in the end.

    Just dropping weight without increasing muscle may make the belly look smaller temporarily, but not for long. Like when we get a stomach bug for a few days. We look so slim and belly free until we get better and eat normally again.

    Patience and consistency in following our plan is what will help us get there, maybe a little too slowly, but definitely surely and for life.

    Then there's the lose skin subject too. Lose slow = less lose skin, but loose weight too fast, the skin will not have time to adjust and will end up just hanging there.

    But it can be done! Staying consistent with our strength training, keeping our macros on check,drinking plenty of water,keeping up with protein, fiber and being careful not to drop the calories too low (TDEE minus 15% at most) is what will make our bodies burn the fat!

    http://pin.it/tmTSD5X
    http://eatmore2weighless.com/weight-lift...ight-loss/ "

    Tereza
    Team EM2WL CPT and Coach
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Once I'm done with meso 3 I'll try adding a cardio workout to see if I'm ready for a cut.

    Keep in mind if replacing some lifting with a decent amount of time, or adding it, for the cardio - your TDEE will go up.
    If you mean 1 x weekly 15 min - then that's a wash out really when averaged over 7 days eating.
    If you mean 4-5 x weekly 30 min - that's significant unless it's walking you mean as cardio.
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    @beverlyriley900
    Oh I hate that with evening meals.
    Just don't have any brain energy left when you get in from work to think up something. I find it's not the cooking that I don't like (I love cooking!) it's the thinking up a different family meal on the spot every day!
    What I started doing was a meals list for the week. It has so many advantages: I only buy the ingredients I need for the week. I don't have to think and plan each day! Meals list goes on the fridge so I never get the dreaded 'what's for dinner?' question from my children, just check the fridge! I can pre-plan enough protein into every meal. I know the days my husband is cooking so it frees up my time to do something else. I make double the amount of some meals so we have the same thing two days in a row so on the second day no-one has to cook!
    Can you tell I love the new system I made?!?!?!
    Honestly, it just totally removed that layer of stress from my life! I highly recommend a similar system.
    Ichel
    Team EM2WL
  • jvezzsb01
    jvezzsb01 Posts: 115 Member
    I'm excited to hear about your measurements with your workouts!! Your building some serious muscle, it's awesome.
  • TerezaToledo
    TerezaToledo Posts: 613 Member
    Yay on losing inches! The weight increase is definitely fluctuation from the increase, you got that right. I can't wait to hear about you measurements! Are you excited for meso 2? 2 and three are my favorites!

    Tereza
    Team EM2WL Trainer
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    I'll take inches loss over scale loss any day!
    Well done for getting to the end of Meso 1! It's really tough!
    Hope you like Meso 2 & 3.
    I loved M2, but M3, my true love!
    Ichel
    Team EM2WL
  • heybales
    heybales Posts: 18,842 Member
    Scale going up with this last increase of 100 cal a day. I know it's just a number. I weight weekly to monitor how I'm doing with TDEE. I really needed a pick me up so took measurements. If numbers are correct, I lost 2.5 inches at my hips and 1 inch at my waist. So yes, scale is just a number. I'll be done with meso 1 on Friday so official weight in and measurements will be taken on Sunday. Here's to a good showing in Sunday.

    If it helps mentally to do math, it can usually point out the fact the scale isn't showing what the weight is.

    Let's pretend that increase of 100 calories was truly over your real TDEE, so eating in surplus. And who knows, maybe it was for a day or two until energy level made you burn more.

    It would take you 35 days to slooowwwlllyyy gain 1 (one) whole pound of fat.

    And the normal water weight fluctuations would likely cause that to be impossible to even see in that length of time.
    The odds of presenting the exact same hydrated body on the scale to see that - well, just go buy lottery tickets if you can make that happen!
  • brileylmt
    brileylmt Posts: 199 Member
    Yes, it is just a number. My focus is on inches lost, body fat % changes, increase in weights on lifting and how my clothes fit. It takes a bit but the letting go of my obsession with the scale has greatly decreased. Now it's once a month that I take all the measurements to see how I'm doing to make any needed adjustments.
  • empressichel
    empressichel Posts: 730 Member
    @beverlyriley900
    Yes! You are doing so well. Not only physically, which is fantastic results BTW, but also letting go of the scale is a HUGE accomplishment.
    Well done you!
    Ichel
    Team EM2WL
  • tj0861
    tj0861 Posts: 48 Member
    Today is official weigh/measure day. I am done with meso 1 and I'm on active recovery week. My weight is up, not concerned about that hubby and I had date night last night so I splurged. Body fat is the same, not worried about that either as it's trending down. Measurements are down 1 inch at waist, 3 inches at hips, 1.5 inches at right thigh and 2 inches at left thigh. This is compared to last month. So excited about results so far. Have a blessed day everyone.

    I am so jealous!!! I cannot seem to get those kind of results!!! You're rocking it!!
  • jvezzsb01
    jvezzsb01 Posts: 115 Member
    Awesome results, Beverly!!
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