Monday 28 October 2013

The last two weeks (+ IF Results!)

Well, I'm writing this a week late, so I'll just write about my very first week of IF.

Frankly, it seemed far too easy. Sure, I got hunger pangs, but I just drank water and they went away. I even managed to go as low as 800 during the week, simply because I couldn't be bothered preparing food and eating. Strange.

My days were something like this: I got home at 3:30, waited till 4pm, then I filled up on a lot of protein, with a protein shake and two servings of meat every day. One of my favourite, most recurring lunches was a salad with:

-Base: leafy vegetables (e.g 50g 4 leaf mix, spinach, cos, etc)
-Layers: 2 of the following: 1/2 capsicum, 1/2 cucumber, 1 medium zucchini or 1 medium tomato
-Meat: Usually 75g boiled skinless chicken breast or 100g tuna in springwater
-Dressing: Always just the juice of 1/2 lemon, kamquats or lime
-Jewel: 1 walnut, crumbled on top.

Now that I think about it, I might start having this everyday for lunch again, because it really kept my hunger at bay. The salad was followed by 1/2 teaspoon of virgin, organic, unrefined, cold-pressed coconut oil, and this kept me full for a long time. When I next felt like snacking, I would have my protein shake, and that usually kept me full till the end of the night. Oh, and I chewed a lot of gum. A lot.

Anyway, on Saturday, or around then, I weighed myself for the first time in a while. And I was 52.3!!!! That's about 2.2kg lost! I was so insanely happy, because I hadn't seen any number below 53 in a while. Goa One completed! So happy, so happy, so happy! Sure, this may have been due to the low calorie count, but IF sure helped that! I was amazed, mitigated, happy, alleviated. Ecstatic, excited, buoyant, mollified.

And then the weekend came.

Because I had no school, I struggled to fast until 4. I eventually caved, and broke my fast early. On Saturday, I ate slightly over my goal. On Sunday, I tried to compensate, but I only fell deeper into excess calories.

So, even though I tried to start afresh on Monday, I couldn't. Well, I ate well on the actual Monday, I just couldn't compensate for Saturday and Sunday. Silly me, I should have just said, "I'm back on track" then. But no, I HAD to compensate.
On Tuesday, I binged. Almost 2500 calories. I haven't done that in a long time.
Wednesday was actually good-about 850. I thought I was back! |
On Thursday, my just-pregnant teacher decided it would be a good idea to give out jelly babies in light of her pregnancy. Fast? Broken.
By Friday, I was exactly starved, but more upset, confused, unmotivated, exhausted. I bought a curly wurly at school from fundraising and didn't even start my fast.
And when Saturday came, I binged hard. 1800 calories. A day before weigh day! However, I didn't break my fast, because I woke up at 3, but I became addicted to Nutri-grain and couldn't stop. Bowl after bowl...on Sunday, I binged again. 1900 calories...NUTRI-GRAIN, WHY?! I also consumed an unhealthy amount of natural homemade peanut butter during the week...I don't think I'll be making that again any time soon...

I was sure I had ballooned back up to 54.5, but when I weighed on Saturday, I was 52.5-53kg. Somewhat happy? Relief that I didn't gain as much, but still expectantly disappointed in myself.

So, new week.
Monday? Binged. I was determined to fast till 4 and go swimming, but mum met me with taro buns and green-tea-red-bean buns and chocolate scrolls in the car after school. I said no at first, but we got home, and I broke my fast at 3:30pm with tumeric chicken because I had to go swimming. But then, I ate a green-tea-red-bean bun, then the taro bun, then another green-tea-red-bean bun. Then I went to sleep, didn't go swimming, and yeah. AND THE TARO BUN WAS 600 CALORIES.

I can't be bothered trying anymore for today, but tomorrow will be different. I'll fast till 4, drinking 7 cups of water during that time, eat a meal only at lunch-no extras-brush my teeth, chew gum, drink more water, do my homework, take my protein when I need it, then have dinner-and only dinner. Protein will be my only snack, and gum. Who needs food anyway? I'm determined to get to GW2 by the end of this week.

Because this post is excessively wordy, the next posts will feature my horrific realisation that my friend has a skinnier waist than me, my active haul from last weekend, a chicken-cheese-egg recipe, and a green-tea-smoothie <3

I'M SMASHING TOMORROW. FAT GET OFF ME.

Monday 14 October 2013

Intermittent Fasting

I'm sure all of us in the weight-loss world have been exposed to the hype of intermittent fasting at some point.

It is supposedly the new method of torching fat, and even has health benefits such as prevention of cancer, stroke and heart disease.

Well, I was recently enlightened on this topic, mostly from a successful friend of mine on MFP in the weight-loss sense. And what source is more reputable than one who has tried, and succeeded?
She does the IF of 18/6 - 18 hours fasting, 6 hours eating window. This suits my lifestyle exceptionally well, as I am sleeping or at school for most of the fasting hours.

So I said, I'm going to do it.

After conducting some research and many tiring questions, (sorry, M), I devised a 3-component plan.

Firstly, there's the fasting (obviously). I plan to fast in the pattern of 18/6 as well, and gradually work my way up to 20/4. According to nowloss.com, 16-20 hours of fasting empowers your body to metabolise fat to its maximum ability. During the fasting period, you are allowed to consume sugar-free gum (yay!), black coffee, plain tea and lots and lots of water.

I also plan to combine intermittent fasting with a low-carb-high-protein diet, so as to maximise fat burning for energy, rather than carbs. I also find that low-carb helps suppress my appetite a lot more than, say, the SGD diet. However, it is not essential for IF, but I find that it will help with bf% reduction.
So from now on, I will be eating plenty of chicken breast, tuna in springwater, boiled basa fish and grilled salmon, as well as leafy vegetables, tomatoes, carrots, capsicum, cucumbers, celery and the like. Also on the list are nuts, protein powder, shiritaki noodles and sugar-free...stuff. All sugars are carbs, so avoiding that will hopefully mean avoiding carbs.

Number three is coconut oil. I've never actually stuck to this for long enough, but from today onward I am consuming 1-2 teaspoon of extra-virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil. I have had the Melrose extra-virgin, cold-pressed, unrefined coconut oil butter at home for a while now, for cosmetic purposes. It's amazing as a body moisturiser, eye make up remover, and hair treatment. It's also full of MCTs, which are readily utilised for energy rather than being converted into fat.

And there you have it. FLCC: Fasting, Low-Carb and Coconut oil.

I began trying on Sunday for 18 hours, but broke it at 16.5 hours with chocolate cake. I also went over my calorie goal, but I evened it out from free calories the day before and tomorrow (today). So I didn't do low-carb, but still got 16+ hours of IF.

Today, I did 18 hours of fasting, and my first meal was a delicious salad. I also took my coconut oil and sugar-free gum. It is quite important to break the fast with something healthy, so the body doesn't store as much fat. Dinner will be another salad, along with coconut oil, and a protein shake is coming up right about now.

So yeah. I really can't wait to see if IF works or not. I'm determined to stick with it for at least a week (how long they say it takes to start working), and I will report on my (potential) weight loss then.

Thursday 10 October 2013

I will succeed

I cannot even begin to apologise for my prolonged, unanticipated absence.

And I cannot even begin to explain.

Sadly, disappointingly, my situation has not improved during my truancy.
I am now officially 54.5 kg, even 55.
I am also 169 cm (grew 2 cm).

However, my increased height is no excuse for this weight gain. My bmi is higher than ever now, as is my visceral fat and my cellulite is more axiomatic than ever in my life, even before my weight-loss ambitions.

Actually, perhaps I would care to explain.

You see, high school is a cruel time in your lifetime. The lifeless teachers unsympathetically hose you with a steady flow of assignments, often simultaneously. Evidently, this leads to stress (horrible breakouts, dull skin, slowed metabolism, stress eating) and lack of sleep in an attempt to please their demands (slowed metabolism, dull skin). Combined, they inevitably result in weight gain. Fat accumulation.
What's more is that this year is constituted of more drama than ever experienced before. One individual of our friendship group decided to walk out on us. No explanation, no guilt, no attempt to resolve issues beforehand. The rest of us tried to talk it out, but she made it quite axiomatic that she did not want to solve anything.

When I realised that, a feeling of familiarity swept over me.
It was the same sentiment invoked into my heart when my dog passed away.

I feel like we're never going to get her back, and we won't, I know her too well not to know that. She fails to see how deeply her actions have impacted other members of our group, or if she does, she simply chooses to ignore it.

Friendship terminated.

Of course there is a silver lining. All pieces of literature possess that element. So you see, she was my weight-loss partner. We shared recipes, exercises and updates. However, we both struggled to lose weight. We just loved to eat, so despite conversing extensively about this topic, our physiques continued to inflate.

But no more.

A new fire of determination flares up in me. Do you know what would be the best "revenge"?

Why, you're correct.

I am going to lose 10 kilos of fat, starting right now. I can't wait to see her face. I can't wait to prove her wrong. I can't wait to see her eyes loiter around my stick legs, see her mouth paralyse in a ball of astonishment. Of jealousy. Of regret.

Oh, you should have stayed with me. We could have done this together. We could have still been friends.

Oh wait. That's right, you walked out.


I will succeed this time. "This time" isn't even necessary. This is my first shot, and I sure as hell will succeed. No mistakes, no slip-ups, no cheat days, no binges. I don't even know what the aforementioned terminology is. I have never experienced them. No thinking. Yes, no human thoughts. Simply, robotically, reject the temptation. Dispose of it if necessary. No justification, no analysing. Do whatever is necessary to restrain that from entering your system.

1200 calories/less on a quotidian basis.
No thinking about it.
Just do it.


So how, you ask? Well, for one, I'll aim to lose the first 1.5 kilos. Goal weight1 53 now.

Also, I've identified a major cause of my excessive calorie intake as triggered by after school. I do well the first 6 hours of the day, but I come home, I'm hungry and tired. So I eat. And boy is it a struggle to stop from then til I sleep.
So rather than having a full-on, cooked meal, I'll have a snack instead. An apple. A pb banana. A piece of fruit. A bunch of veggies. Something that requires little preparation. Having said that, I must not eat processed food.
Another rule will be to eat something clean after school. Clean and light.
After my snack, I will chew so much gum my face hurts, until dinner.
Then I will brush my teeth, drink tea, and stop eating after dinner.

Breakdown:
-Eat a quick, clean snack after school
-Chew gum after ^
-Eat you regular healthy dinner
-Brush teeth, drink tea, chew gun after ^


Let's own October.

Tuesday 30 July 2013

7:08 mile

So we had the mile run today at school.
I got really pumped.
I strapped on my watch.
And hit start.

And I got 7:08!!!!!!

Now I know it's not that good for those of you who make sub 7 miles and sub 6 miles, but this was 20 seconds off my PB. So I was pretty happy, you could say.
I did do one or two practice runs in my own time, so I can't say that didn't help.

As for the 21-Day Challenge, I set some goals. Every week, I aim to lose a kilo. By the end of the challenge, I'm hoping to lose 2.5-3 kilos.
And in general, I also set some goals. For every kilo I lose, I'll buy myself something on my wish list. Right now it's nail polish remover, because I have a pretty sparkly french manicure on at the moment but as with all french manicures, it's chipping quickly.

Other reward items include:
-Covergirl's Clump Crusher mascara-after a lot of research, I concluded this was the best one for separation, a priority for my eyelashes. The brush also gives you volume, which I need.
-White eyeliner-supposed to make your eyes 'pop'
-Workout clothing!-I really want a plain black singlet! Or another pair of running shorts :D
-OPI's Alpine Snow polish-I really want a quality white polish
-An epilator. If I choose the more costly type, maybe I'll buy it after 2 or 3 kilos have been shedded, or I'll make it my last reward. I really want it though-it would seriously make my life so much easier.
-this weird looking eye makeup tool thing-again, this would just solve all my mascara problem of getting the stuff everywhere but my eyelashes.
-one more thing...just because it will then be 9 rewards for 9.5 kilos...

I have an excursion to the city in about a month. City=style. Style=thin. I must lose weight by then!!!! I want to actually be able to enjoy the city and showcase my streetstyle fashion sense on legs that don't resemble elephants. And then I have Duke of Ed's hike a week after...my legs need to be thin to look good in my workout shorts too! And I need to get my fitness up!

Right now, as in today, I'm kind of over my daily calorie goal. I'm not saying by how much. I did want to be 52kg by tomorrow morning, and I hope today won't affect that...I weighed myself yesterday though, and I was pretty much 52!!! Maybe 52.3 or something, but almost 52! I'll have weigh in tomorrow morning first thing, and maybe I'll be nice if I'm not there yet and weigh myself after school.

Byeeeee




Wednesday 24 July 2013

HONEY BUNNIES!


Hello honey bunnies! I know I haven't blogged in a century, but that's because I've been eating crap and hence feeling crap! And my skin has broken out so badly, my face looks like a minefield! I'll stop with the negativity and unnecessary exclamation marks!

But yeah. Sadly, I have been slacking off quite a lot lately. In quite a bit of excess calories at the moment...oh well? My 3 fast days are coming up, so that will be 3600 calories GONE, and my Duke of Ed hike (did I tell you it's been brought forward!?) will get rid of 4000 calories, and the rest will take care of itself.

In response to my horrible eating lately, I've decided to a 21 Day Challenge with a friend on MFP, where al you do is stick to your calorie goal for 21 days. And then hopefully form a habit of sticking under your goal. I really need to do this, a) to gain some control, b) lose 2100 calories (DC-100) and c) to gain more self-control. If I didn't have those excess calories, I would be down 2 kilos of fat by now...

Yesterday, I did the beep/bleep test with my sport class, and improved by 0.2, getting 9.6. I could've done more, but I could not be bothered...a mistake to be learnt from. I actually love the beep test for some reason...much more than the milke run. My best mile time is 7:28, but I ant to get a sub 7 mile time in a month. So, to do this, I need to do:
400m-1:45
800m-3:30
1.2km-5:15
1.6km-7:00
I tried running 400m in that time, and I literally had to sprint it flat out. I really need to train.

Oh, I'm also starting the 10 Day Ab Challenge. Its bitterly unpopular, but easy, and that's why I chose it-to fee successful at something. I've also read about the 30 Day Shred, and it seens as though people are losing heaps of inches in that program...so I might try that after.
I might also try the 20 Day (or longer) challenge, here.
I've decided to go with the low-reps-high-weights training method, therefore abolishing the 30-Day Squat and Crunch challenges. However, I read that you do need higher reps and lower weights for beginners, so that's why I'm just doing the 10 Day Challenge that is based on that training style.
OH, I might be starting swimming again!!!! Did I tell you I used to be a state swimmer?! I loved it, but my mum made me quit..still won't tell me why. But then a while after my club disbanded, so yeah. But now I found another close-ish club to our house, SO I MIGHT BE STARTING AGAIN. SO EXCITED. Actually so excited, especially because my school gave me my very belated age champion swimming trophy recently. Just looking at it made me more determined than ever to join.

fit-is-healthy:

samis-fitspiration:

i have no idea what the hell he is doing but i need this on my blog hahahaha

Lettuce be friends.

This is gold. 

Friday 12 July 2013

12867

And that's the number of excess calories to date. Yes, the number has grown. That's why I haven't been bloggin for a while :(

Anyway, I had 2 binge days (in a row) and then three excess days. I feel like such a failure right now. Boo. And I haven't been exercising for a while either…just very slow walks. With the help of CardioTrainer, I figured two laps around the neighbourhood is just short of 2 kilometers, and a lap of the local park is a tad more than a mile. I should start training for a mile…but yeah.

I weighed myself (finally). 53...lost 1.5kg, but that 1.5kg shouldn't even have been there anyway. I also have some sort of ab definition in my midsection, but only in the morning and when I'm flexing, and in bright light. There will be a time (hopefully) when the definition of my abs does not depend on lighting or the amount of food eaten...hopefully it will come soon!
I think my thighs have gotten fatter though. Not necessarily larger, just...fatter. I can grab more fat around the back :(

I just want to eat close to 500. I don’t even care anymore. Dark times. 


Friday 5 July 2013

Mathematics+cool poses

So...after doing the maths, I calculated that all of my excess calories add up to 9816 calories. That's pretty much 3 pounds of fatty fat fat.
How did I get here in the first place? Well, 2853 calories came from Wednesday 19th of June, one massive binge day. An excess of 2085 calories was the total of 3 days eating in excess, and 3678 calories is the total of the 3 fast days to be completed in August.
So yeah. After more math, I calculated that for the 4 weeks and 3 days I've been calorie cycling, I have an average of 1500 calories a day, including the 9816 calories.

I weighed myself today. I purposely did not get my hopes up, and thank goodness I didn't because I'm 53 (still). I guess that's an improvement from my 54.5 kilos, and I had to pee after my weigh in. So I must have been a tad lighter than 53? Hopefully! Oh well, I don't really care for the number on the scale anyway, because I want to lose fat, not muscle!

Speaking of fat, my body fat calliper came today. Only, even though it's meant to be more accurate than the tape measure method, the accuracy is quite questionable. According to the calliper's chart, I have a body fat percentage of 15%. And there is really no way that's true, because I can't see my abs (apart from at the very top) and my thighs are still massive! So I suppose I'll just follow the tape measure method then.

Oh, gues what?

I can totally do the splits! Just did them fully today, for the first time. My preferred split is the left leg split, because my right leg is really inflexible.I was so happy though :')
I went to a party yesterday, and my calisthenics and dancing friends were all there and being flexible and doing heatstands and leg mounts. And I was just there being...I can do a press?


Anyway, I kind of did a headstand there, but I'm struggling to hold it up. I can also do a one hand cartwheel, and I really want to be able to do an aerial. And a handstand. And a press hanstand. And a back handspring. And a front walkover. And a back walkover. And a scorpion, bow and arrow, leg mount, forearm stand, and all of these...