by EM2WL | Feb 12, 2013 | The Journey, Transformations
Guest Post, courtesy of Salina
I have stayed committed since Dec 2011, but logged into MFP everyday starting at the end of Jan 2012. It’s been a year and here’s what I’ve done:
Apps: MFP, FitnessBuddy (electronic log of weight lifting), hundredpushups, C25K, Zombies Run!
Programs: Eat More to Weigh Less (EM2WL), New Rules of Lifting for Abs (and for Women), Butt Bible, 30 Day Shred, P90X, Book – How to Eat What You Love and Love What You Eat (helped with emotional eating)
My personal rules:
- Make a choice and enjoy that choice guilt free.
- Choose things I can do for the rest of my life. That means unreasonable workouts, restricting food/starving myself, or cutting out entire food groups are all a no-go for me.
- Focus on being healthy, looking good is a positive side effect.
- Sleep and rest are as important as working hard and giving it my all.
Inspiration quotes:
- A year from now you will have wish you started today
- Strive for progress not perfection
- The only person you are in competition with is the you from yesterday
Inspirational people:
Advice:
- If you don’t feel like working out that day, go for 10 min. If you want to stop after 10 min, then give yourself permission with no guilt. (I’ve never once stopped after 10 min, although I have cut my workouts short to 40 min.)
- If you spend time feeling guilty about what you didn’t do, then you don’t get to enjoy what you are doing. How good does the cake taste if you are feeling guilty for eating it in the first place? How can you enjoy time for you while working out if you are feeling guilty about not spending time on the chores/hobby/family?
- Don’t starve yourself. You’ll be more successful in the long run if you do it a little slower and eat more food. Check out www.eatmore2weighless.com for information
- Find a workout program you like and change up your routine every 6-10 weeks – you’ll probably stick with it because you have an ‘end’ to look forward to and something new to try. Take a rest week between switching up your routine (or earlier if you feel exhausted/running on empty).
- Work hard at workouts that you enjoy and fuel your body properly, including eating from every food group.
- Don’t deprive yourself, rather find balance. I enjoy eating out with friends and family, I still drink alcohol, and I still make time for friends, family, and sleep.
- Don’t set your goals based on what the scale says–only you see that number. Everyone else sees how your clothes fit or how your muscles look. For me, meeting all of the other goals has been so much more rewarding than seeing a certain number on the lying scale that lies.
Here’s what I did:
| Time period |
Exercise |
Caloric intake |
Weight/Bodyfat |
Dress Size |
| May 2011-Aug 2011 |
C25K |
2500-3000 calories?? Didn’t track |
Start 193 lbs, end 183 lbs |
Size 12/14 |
| Sept 2011 – Dec 2011 |
Exercise restriction due to hernia (surgery #1 Oct 2011) |
3000+. Emotional eating, didn’t track |
197 lbs, 33% BF |
Size 14 |
| Dec 2011 – Feb 2012 |
Exercise restriction due to hernia (surgery #2 Jan 2012) |
1700-2200 cal/day, track with MFP |
182 lbs |
Size 12 |
| Feb 2012 – mid Mar 2012 |
Light cardio 2-3x week |
1700-2200 cal/day |
177 lbs |
Size 12 |
| Mid Mar 2012-early Apr 2012 |
30DS 2x/week, pilates 1x/week, medium intensity 20 min cardio 2x/week |
1700-2200 cal/day |
177 lbs |
Size 12 |
| Apr 2012 |
Butt Bible lower 2x/week, NROLFW Level 1 3x/week +HIIT cardio, pilates 1x/week |
2200 cal/day |
176 lbs |
Size 10 |
| 1st half May 2012 |
Exhaustion/sick, full rest on workouts for 2 weeks |
EM2WL: 2400 cal/day with no exercise |
175 lbs, 27% BF |
Size 10 |
| 2nd half May 2012 |
NROLFW + HIIT cardio 3x/week |
2500 cal/day |
175 lbs |
Size 10 |
| June 2012 – mid Aug 2012 |
NROLFW 2-3x/week, running 3 miles 2x/week, volleyball 1x/week |
2700-2800 cal/day |
172 lbs, 26% BF |
Size 8 (reached at 173 lbs at end of July) |
| 2nd half Aug 2012 |
Rest |
2600-2700 cal/day |
172 lbs |
Size 8 |
| Sept 2012 |
NROLFA 2-3x/week |
2600-2700 cal/day |
171 lbs – 175 lbs |
Size 6/8 |
| Oct 2012-Dec 2012 |
NROLFA 2x/week |
2600 cal/day |
169-174 lbs, 25% BF |
Size 4/6 |
I was always one of the lucky people – I was stick thin, could eat what I wanted when I wanted without any impact to my size or weight. I’m 5’11” and for most of my life I was a size 4 or smaller. I also grew up playing volleyball and staying active. Combine getting older, an office job in front of a computer, and having a baby and suddenly I didn’t look like this anymore (size 4, early 20s):
When I embarked on this journey in December 2011, I really had no idea what I wanted my goals to be, beyond ‘Weigh 165 lbs by Halloween’ which was the last time I remember being a size 8 and feeling great about the way I looked. Seeing myself in my sister in law’s wedding in September 2011 made me realize just where I was size wise:
I dealt with the death of my dad and two surgeries (with each having a 6 week exercise restriction period) in the last year. I am so proud of my progress thus far. I am looking forward to doing a Tough Mudder or Warrior Dash this year, as well as continuing to lift. Some before/after pics:
Holiday party 2011 in red, 2012 in black:
Front, back, side
Fitness changes:
| Weight |
197 lbs |
169 lbs (up to 174 lbs…it fluctuates) |
| Bodyfat |
33% |
25% |
| Dress Size |
14 |
4/6 |
| BMI |
27.5 |
23.7 |
| Resting HR |
85 bpm |
58 bpm |
| Distance run before walking |
½ mile |
3.5 miles |
| Push-ups |
3 on knees |
22 on toes, 70 with short breaks every 12-15 |
| Plank |
15 sec on my knees |
3 min on toes, with unsteady arms on bosu ball, unsteady/raised feet on exercise ball, or jack knives with exercise ball or 50 lb cable pulls while planking |
| Side plank |
10 sec on knees |
2+ min on toes with one arm or one leg raised. Also 50 lb cable pulls while planking. |
| Bench press |
16 lbs |
105 lbs |
| Lat pull down |
50 lbs |
140 lbs |
| Pull ups |
100 lbs assist |
36 lbs assist |
| Squat |
Body weight |
Body weight + 110 lbs |
| Deadlift |
40 lbs |
100 lbs |
by EM2WL | Feb 6, 2013 | The Journey
As I sit here beside the ocean in Bermuda tears fill my eyes, almost 9 months ago I had reached my end at 320lbs. I knew I had to start somewhere so I started to educate myself on food, exercise, weight loss, and my body. I reached out to Lucia my good friend from Florida who told me eating 1500 calories was starving myself. Years ago it worked but I gained it back double.
The more I read the info on EM2WL I realized I had been doing it all wrong. As I reached the first 40lb weight loss I began increasing my walking. I love to get outside so I started doing 2 miles a day then increased to 6.5 miles. After I watched Kiki’s YouTube message on cardio I realized I was becoming a cardio crackhead. For the last few weeks I have increased the strength training using an app on my phone called virtuogym.
I noticed my pants getting too big but for months the scale would not move… Now, I’m 60lbs lighter I enjoy and love the changes I am making. I sent my son a picture of me and he could not believe it was me… “dats my momma?
I even drove to buy the protein bars from Lisa’s Six Pack Nutrition Shack on my visit to Florida and carried them on the plane back to Bermuda.
You have to begin this journey wanting it for yourself. I have had so much support along the way. My spiritual and physical life has changed; I can do squats without my knees locking, and I am up for the challenge to lose more weight building muscle while losing fat.
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
by EM2WL | Jan 29, 2013 | Testimonials, The Journey
Patience pays – after the first 2 months of “trusting the process” w/no changes (right), 4 months later = results! (left)
I had always been skinny and in shape prior to having children.
I never had to watch what I ate, count a calorie, and even worry a bit about my weight. After having my first child, 9 years ago, I gained about 55 lbs, watched what I ate, but not strictly and worked out. I was able to lose the weight and keep it off. Jump ahead 6 years, and I got pregnant with my youngest daughter, who is now 3. Losing the 58 lbs I gained with her had been a nightmare.
I jumped on the Weight Watchers bandwagon, lost some weight, and then onto the 1200 calories plunge. I initially lost weight, but then got totally stuck. I was barely eating anything, working my butt off at the gym, and still nothing was changing. I was tired, unhappy, and just miserable. Then, I stumbled across the Eat More to Weigh Less board and had that AHA moment! I did my own research, talked to trainers, and found out I was doing it ALL WRONG.
Lost some weight, but tightening all over!
I started by eating at my TDEE and resetting my metabolism. Initially I gained a couple pounds as expected and then maintained for 2 months. After that, I began the 20% cal reduction, began Beachbody coaching, and started Turbo Fire w/ Shakeology. In the last 4 months I’ve completed that program and started Les Mills Combat. I workout from home, drink my Shakeology, and have lost 10 lbs. But guess what? I don’t watch the scale! My body, pictures, and clothing tell a different story. It was definitely worth taking the time to listen to my body and treat it right. I am now eating over 1800 calories per day and losing my old body. I’m stronger, happier, healthier, and on top of the world.
EM2WL and Beachbody have changed my life. I became a Coach in order to help others and teach them what I know. It has absolutely changed my life! Let me help you change yours!
Facebook: www.facebook.com/rachael.kosal
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
by EM2WL | Jan 24, 2013 | Metabolism Reset, The Journey
Behind the metabolism reset curtain…
I’ve been at cut for a little over a month and I am pleased to say that my metabolism reset was a success. I even went into cut over the Christmas holiday and woke up to a 1 lb lost the day after. This is not to say that I didn’t enjoy myself but when your cut is 2k+ you can enjoy a few more delicious bites than if it was 1200. Toward the end of my metabolism reset I started getting hungry and didn’t understand that it was my metabolism saying “Hey, I’m here and I’m awake”. It took almost 3 weeks into cut at 10% for the scale to move which kind of scared me, because again I still struggle with the microwave mentality. It doesn’t happen over night, your body is a tricky and complex machine and it tends to do what it wants to. Often times, our brains and our bodies aren’t on the same wave length, one or the other is mostly lagging behind. But once the scale started moving I was as happy as a dog with two tail. So far I’ve averaged about .5-1 lbs a week, not counting TOM and those occasional misbehaved meals.
Doing a metabolism reset was one of the best things I could have ever done for myself. It has healed so much more than my metabolism or just teaching me how to eat. My relationship with food is not that of guard and prisoner anymore. I’m in control because now I know that life doesn’t end with 1 bad food choice or giving in to my sweet tooth. When you allow yourself to eat more you are not tied so tight to those tiny portions and extreme food restrictions. Reset has also opened my eyes to all the health problems I had from eating VLCD. Lack of energy, irregularity, outrageous food cravings, dry skin, irritability, headaches and hair loss. All of these things I had no clue came from poor nutrition until I started eating. I still have chocolate cravings and honestly that craving I’ll keep, LOL after all chocolate is a required macro!!
Lifting weights is now my new love and I actually enjoy getting up in the morning to go bang some iron. My personal goal for this year is to squat and deadlift my body weight and increase upper body strength. Even with weight training I struggle with the “get there fast” thoughts in my head. I still think I should be flipping over cars and climbing buildings when I should just keep picking up heavy things and putting them down until they become too light, then pick up something heavier. I’ll be doing Xtrain soon and STS in the fall.
I never really thought that I had a eating disorder until I did my metabolism reset and began my cut. I’ve always associated eating disorders in terms of extremes i.e anorexia or bulimia. Ive never been one to extremely over eat or under eat for long periods of time (so I thought) But now that I am counting my calories and am being more accountable for what goes in my body, I now know that my eating is very disordered. There have been days that I would mentally struggle to eat 700 calories and then there are days I devour 2500 calories, all linked to how I am feeling and the level of stress. Now I understand why my weight loss yo-yo’ed for so many years, and I also understand why so many fall into these eating habits so easily and get stuck there. EM2WL has saved me in so many ways and Ive learned so much. Without their guidance I could have easily fallen into the anorexia/bulimia pool and drowned like so many, but because my relationship with food is continuously healing I haven’t. A full Metabolism Reset was one of the best things I did for myself, next to buying my first weight set. I can only speak on what I know and what I know is eating more saved ME.
If there is any doubt in your mind about increasing your calories, lifting weights, doing a metabolismreset, I challenge you to change the way you think, re-train your brain from the way we have all been taught to lose weight and give it your best. You wont regret it and your body will thank you for it.
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
by EM2WL | Jan 14, 2013 | Testimonials, The Journey
For the first time in my life I feel like I am doing the right thing by my body (and mind).
Starting from the time I was a small child I had issues with food. I had a parent who would say things like “Do you really need to eat that?”. She was also always trying some crazy diet or weight watchers, slim fast etc. I remember thinking I needed to be doing slim fast shakes too when I was 8 years old.
When I was 9 years old I began to make myself throw up after eating a large meal or if I over did it on junk food. That continued until I was 14 when I discovered the gym. I would spend hours upon hours working out but took a pause from bulimia. I also took up smoking to help control my hunger (I was smart one…)
I continued on with this until I was in University when I began to make myself throw up again as well as exercise for hours on end. I looked pretty good too. I was lifting heavy weights but also doing hour of cardio per day. I was a student at the time so I had the time that I could put into that, but I wasn’t ever really happy with myself or my body (looking back I would kill for that body now but not how I was maintaining it).
After University I got married and quit the gym because we couldn’t afford it and didn’t live near one anymore. I put on 55 lbs in no time. I just ballooned right up and couldn’t mentally handle it. I started making myself throw up even more, sometimes ten or more times per day. I was still fat.
My husband and I decided it was time to have babies and I decided it was time for me to confess my deep dark secret to him. I didn’t want to live like that anymore. He was sweet and supportive. I sought counseling because I didn’t want to bring a child into this world while I was treating my body that way. I committed to ditching the Bulimia and after 18 months became pregnant with my daughter.
Within 6 weeks of having her I knew I wanted to make a change. I dieted (low calorie), and started running as well as spin class and got myself down from 245 to 186 (with no real shape yet to my body). At this point I got pregnant again with my son and went back up to 235 despite doing spin and eating better during this pregnancy.
Now, one year later I am down to 178 lbs but I look a million times better and I feel a billion times better. Around the end of April 2012 I started reading about “Eat more to weigh less” on the Myfitnesspal forums. It all just made so much sense to me. It seemed to reasonable and like something I could stick with for the rest of my life. So I upped my calories! At this point I was already lifting heavy weights as well but on low calorie diet there is really only so much your body can do in terms of recomposition.
So TMI but my whole life I have been constipated. When I upped my calories I immediately became regular and also had more energy and I was able to increase the weights I was lifting exponentially. I also dropped 5 or 6 lbs right away (I had previously been on a weight loss plateau). Then the weight loss slowed to a grinding halt for 12 weeks. Now, most people would give up and go back to their 1200 calorie diets, BUT I knew in my heart heart that I needed to stick this out. I NEEDED to. For my children’s sake. I NEED to be a good example for them, a healthy example. So I just plugged away at it, day in and day out. Was it frustrating to not see the scale budge? Absolutely. 12 weeks!!! And then finally in the 13th week I started dropping weight again. And in the mean time I was seeing changes in my body, both how I looked and how I felt. I was stronger and happier and my libido was even coming back.
I started seeing a naturopathic doctor who has a machine to monitor lean body mass and metabolism. Both of those numbers were low for me. 
For the past 5 months I have seen her monthly and each month I have lost pounds of fat and maintained my muscle mass or even put on muscle! On a low calorie diet this would be pretty well impossible.
Another important thing for me was increasing my protein amounts to 1 gram per pound of bodyweight. Since increasing my calories and protein I have not felt the urge to binge or overdo it really at all. Everything just seems more balanced. It has been 8 months so far and I have not looked back once despite the plateaus or the weight gains here and there because I am smaller, fitter and happier and I know this is the way to go. And in fact, this is how my thin/athletic friends live their lives as well.
This was very long winded but the moral of the story is that you need to stick it out. Even if you hit a weight loss plateau and don’t see a loss on the scale for months, there are other more important things happening in your body. Not to mention the fact that you are worth more than a number on the scale!
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
by EM2WL | Jan 8, 2013 | Testimonials, The Journey
Follow Kelsey’s journey from the beginning:
part 1, and
part 2
***UPDATE – 22 DECEMBER 2012***
Weight = 137 lbs (-7.6 lbs)
Leg = 23 inches (+0.5 inches)
Waist = 30.5 inches (+ 0.5 inches)
Hips = 35 inches (+0.5 inches)
Chest = 32.5 (-1 inch)
Arm = 12.5 (-0.5 inches)
I have now been on EM2WL since 1 June 2012, so it will be 7 months on 1 January 2013!!
The benefits so far:-
-
being able to eat more and not feel guilty
-
putting proper clean foods into my body
-
more energy
-
stronger (both body and mind)
-
a much more confident individual
-
a lot more self worth…I no longer base it on a number!
-
being able to enjoy the precious time I spend with family and friends and not constantly having this little voice in my head telling me “don’t eat that, you’ll get fat”
-
acknowledging that everyone is a different shape and size and accepting that my body is built for strength and independence!
-
being able to run 3 miles – I have one leg shorter than the other as you can see in the picture so that is a task in itself!
I am listing no burdens because I don’t believe that EM2WL is a burden, I think it does have a few hard points about it like feeling bloated etc but I wouldn’t say they equate to burdens. Therefore I think this process is in itself precious and life changing.
My future goals are to run the Race for Life in May/June 2013 and complete the Insanity programme which I am starting on 31 December 2012. I am going to do it 3 times a week and run 3 miles once a week so I should hopefully be finished by 1 June 2013 which is when I will update you with my final results/1st year of EM2WL. I will update you again in March 2013 as to my progress and take some more piccies.
Love to you all and I hope the New Year brings you all happiness and hope :)
Kels xx
Have an EM2WL transformation to share? Willing to let us tag along on your journey? We’d love to see it! Be featured on our Transformation/Journey page by submitting your story to Success@EM2WL.com
Recent Comments