Real-World Weight Loss: Month Nine!

I can hardly believe that I've been going to the gym faithfully for nine months now.  That's the amount of time it takes to grow a baby!  Alas, I haven't' lost a pregnancy's worth of weight, but baby days are over, and middle-age weight is make of sterner stuff!

The thing I love most about circuit torture is it never stays the same.  One minute cardio, one minute weights, mixes for floor, free weights, nautalis.  Some weeks, we have weight vests; some days, we do Tabata.  In nine months, I've not seen the same routine twice.  Today was Aggression Release Friday.  Ryion had set up the punching stations I've been wondering about for months. We punched one and kicked another.  Plus, we did punches with weights, and did slam ball (in which you hold a sand-filled ball over your head and slam it to the ground.  Sand-filled balls do not normally bounce, so the fun is to see how high you can make it rebound.)  We also had the inclined sit-up station.  We needed something to feel aggressive about, after all.

Hit me, baby!  I love the abuse!

It's been a long time since I punched anything.  The first time, I apologized, but by the end, I was getting into it.  "You want a piece of me?"

Yeah, sometimes, I get odd looks in the gym.  Why do you ask?

Anyway, considering that this month, I had a 2-week break with no exrcise and not-so great food, I did pretty well.  I've stayed under 145, though not lost more, and you can see my stomach has gotten a little paunchier than last month.  That's okay, though.  It's slow progress but steady overall.  Today, I pulled out a shirt that was tight last winter and it fits great!

Love that the extra chin is going away!

Will admit to having been fine with a bigger butt.  Want the waist to go away!
Lately, I've started replacing some of the cardio with abs.

	15-Jan	18-Sep		total loss
weight	169	143.6		25.4 lb dec
body fat	38.5	26.7		11.8 dec
chest	38.7	34.5		4.2 dec
bust	41.1	37.4		3.7 dec
waist	39	33.6		5.4dec
hips	42.8	37.9		4.9 dec
abs	42	36.9		5.1 dec
thigh	22	20.6		1.4 inc
calf	15	14.4		.6 dec
bicep	11.6	11		.6 inc
forearm	10	9.5		.5 dec
neck	15	14.2		.8 dec
Total loss				27.2 inches

Weight Loss Update 3: How Real People Lose Weight

Time again!  Here are the before-and-after photos and stats on my weight loss/muscle gain development.  Just a reminder or note for those who are new.  I take circuit training five times a week and sometimes work out on Saturdays.  I've also decreased my sweets and sodas and increased my water.  I am not on a diet, because I don't have that kind of discipline for cooking and eating.

Not as easy to see, but I'm starting to get my hourglass back,  I've lost 12 inches in waist and abs combined, but only 3 in hips and 3 in bust.  That's how I like it!

Look!  My poochy belly is shrinking!

When I take these pictures, I try to do them in the same outfit and without any sucking in of guts or posturing.  This is the real me as you might see me coming out of the gym (messy hair and all!).  I hate those Before-and-After shots where the person is wearing make-up and tanned and obviously holding herself in a perfect posture when her before picture was schlumped.

	15-Jan	19-Apr		total loss
weight	169	155		14 lb dec
body fat	38.5	35.7		2.8 dec
chest	38.7	36.1		2.6 dec
bust	41.1	38.5		2.6 dec
waist	39	32.9		6.1 dec
hips	42.8	39.5		3.3 dec
abs	42	36		6.0 dec
thigh	22	23.5		1.5 inc
calf	15	15		0
bicep	11.6	11.2		.4 dec
forearm	10	9.8		.2 dec
neck	15	14		1.0 dec

Total: 14 pounds lost and 23 inches gone overall.  I've not gone down a size yet in clothes, but all my clothes fit better now.  (Wardrobe-wise, I'm holding out for 145 and to be sure my husband has a post-retirement job, although when I reach 145, I'm buying a Biofit Bootcamp t-shirt regardless!)

If you are wondering what it's taking me to do this, may I suggest you start at the beginning and read my circuit torture adventures?   You can also put "Circuit training" in the search bar and they'll all show up.

Weight Loss Update 2: How Real People Lose Weight

Can you believe it?  It's been eight weeks since I started my exercise program (circuit training, affectionately known here as circuit torture), and changed some dietary habits to lose some of this blubber I've been carrying around for a decade.

Here's my story:  Back in 2002, I weighed 120-125 pounds and was in good shape.  I didn't do any special exercise or dieting, either.  But something happened in that year that caused me to gain 30 pounds without any appreciable changes in diet or habit.  My doctor says I was just getting old (I was 35).  Maybe it was the SlimFasts I was drinking instead of meals that summer because it was too hot to eat.  Whatever, it came on and would not come off.  I did try dieting at that time, but with no luck.  I had every medical test under the sun--finally sparking the "You're just old" comment.  I went to a naturopath.  Nothing worked.  I gave up and settled in with my new size, and gained another 20+ pounds over the decade.

This is me on Jan 25, 2013

This year, I decided I'm tired of being the shape and consistency of a pudding bag.  Even more, I'm tired of getting out of breath going up a flight of stairs or when I lay down at night, which actually scares me some.  I don't care overmuch about the weight, per se, but I hate not fitting anything properly, and not finding anything that doesn't make me feel dumpy when I catch my reflection.  So, if I'm going to be 169, I'll be a fit 169.

I'm not dieting.  It does not work for me, and I don't have that kind of discipline.  Instead, I've cut sodas, desserts, and fast food drastically, and started exercising 5-6 days a week.  I also drink a gallon of water a day.  Two weeks of this past eight, Rob was home on mid-tour leave with the goal of hitting every restaurant and fast food place he's missed for eight months.  Even with looking at the low-cal options, I was taking in way more calories, sodas, and sweets than I had even before I started this regime.  However, if I can't have a little backsliding, then this is not the lifestyle for me.  The only thing I'm staying faithful on is the exercise program.

In the end, I'm pretty happy with the results of the past eight weeks.  I lost body fat, nine pounds, and a couple of inches in the waist.  Some places where I increased inches, I'm seeing muscle instead of wobbly fat, so I don't mind.  Nine pounds is about a pound a week, which is what they say is healthy weight loss for a long run.

	15-Jan	8-Mar		loss
weight	169	160		9 lb dec
body fat	38.5	36.6		1.9 dec
chest	38.7	36.8		1.9 dec
bust	41.1	38.2		2.9 dec
waist	39	36.9		2.1 dec
hips	42.8	40.5		2.3 dec
abs	42	39.5		2.5 dec
thigh	22	22.8		.8 inc
calf	15	15.3		.3 inc
bicep	11.6	12		.4 inc
forearm	10	9.8		.2 dec
neck	15	14.2		.8 dec

Here's my photos from yesterday. 

You can actually see some definition in my arms.  Funny thing is, since I started exercising, I don't have nearly as much trouble with carpal tunnel, either.

Please note that I am not posing or sucking in my gut or doing any of those photo tricks to make myself look better.  I'm also using the same shirt.  The idea is to see my progress in an everyday manner.

I post these because I think that the media--from advertising to talk shows--puts a lot of emphasis on quick and extreme results.  So tell me:  does this inspire (or reassure) any of you in your own weight loss efforts?  What are you doing to have a healthier you this year?

Circuit Torture--er, Training. Real world weight loss

Here we are at the one-month mark of my new circuit training routine, so I thought I'd give you an overall view of my progress, more than anything to show how a normal person loses weight.  This is me a month ago:

 

My body seems to enjoy 160-170, which I have been at for a decade now.  I am 5'3", so in theory, I'm on the border of overweight and obese:

Excuse me while I take this with a big grain of salt.

I'm large--a size 12-14--and I don't like my belly (or as Amber calls it, "the food baby") but obese?  Still, I am not happy with my shape or that I'm so weak, which is why I'm making some changes.

First, know that I am not dieting.  I have tried this in the past and I inevitably lose 5 pounds in the first week or two, then never lose again, give up after two months and gain it back. Also, I'm not interested in giving up sweets and such for a life of veggies and free-range chicken.  So I've cut down on the bad stuff.  Sodas are a once or twice a week, dessert on rare occasions, eating out once in a while.

However (as you know), I am exercising six days a week on a really intense routine that incorparates cardio and weights.  Here's me after a month:

Not the most flattering of pictures, true, but the point is to see what progress I made.  I'm trying to use the same outfit for photos and measurements each time.

It doesn't look like a lot, but I m toning up. I can go up the stairs without losing my breath, and I can carry more.  Also, my jeans fit better.  Here are my stats:

	15-Jan	8-Feb		loss
weight	169	165		4lb dec
body fat	38.5	35.3		3.2 dec
chest	38.7	36.9		1.8 dec
bust	41.1	39.6		.5 dec
waist	39	35		4.0 dec
hips	42.8	40.5		2.3 dec
abs	42	39.5		2.5 dec
thigh	22	23.9		1.9 inc
calf	15	15.1		.1 inc
bicep	11.6	11.8		.2 inc
forearm	10	9.8		.2 dec
neck	15	14.5		.5 dec

I'm not happy about how little weight I've lost, but Ryion, my Personal Torturer...er...trainer, said people often gain at first because fat is converting to muscle.  Plus, as I said, my body seems to settle into a comfortable weight and stay there regardless.  If I can shape my body better, I'll be satisfied.  Something else you can't see in the photo btw, is that I've established a better routine of exfoliating my face and for the dark circles under my eyes.  (My mother-in-law bought me some stuff for the circles.)

My next step is to drink more water. I'm supposed to drink 84 ounces a day.  The formula is half your weight in ounces.  I saw on Dr. Oz that lemon water is supposed to help, so I'm doing that.  I also want to add a multi-vitamin.  I'm bad about taking these regularly.