I didn’t think I’d have to do this. | 41 + 42 of 90

Realness ahead. Don’t read if you think you’ll be triggered.

So, for the past 2 weeks, I’d had some weird digestive issues. My weight and body fat stalled at first, but now everything is steadily climbing up. If I told you that I don’t care and that all is rainbows and unicorns in the Land of 90 Day Journey, I’d be lying.

Now, I don’t want to sound negative, but I do want to share my REAL, honest feelings with you. Most people won’t want to share that side of themselves with you for fear of sounding like they’re “obsessed” or “relapsing” or have “disordered thinking.” I’m telling you the truth – things that I usually only tell my actual friends (aka people who I love and respect and who love and respect me back) – because I want you to know that this journey isn’t easy. Even for a fitness professional like me with over a decade of experience in exercise health – EVEN I have trouble figuring out what works for my body. I want you to see that.

Having a goal, working super hard towards it, seeing immediate results, and then continuing to do the same thing, and then seeing what you’ve worked so hard for unwind right in front of you is FRUSTRATING. And I am not just talking about weight loss or fat loss, this applies to ANY journey. Be it career, academics, a sports competition, or whatever – you just kind of feel exhausted when your hard work doesn’t continue to “pay off”.

Looking in the mirror though, I do see a stronger, more confident, and leaner version of who I was about 5.5 weeks ago! Looking back to where you started is such an important practice for gratitude – without that, you’d never appreciate where you are now.

Anyway, for the past 2 weeks I have not seen any progress, so I’ve been strategizing my next move in order for me to still hopefully hit my goals (in HEALTHY WAYS ONLY!!!)

STATUS OF GOALS:

Starting (August 12): 136 lbs and 24.4% body fat
Current (September 26): 129.4 lbs and 23.3% body fat
For reference, last week I was at 129.2 lbs and 23.2% body fat
And the week before that, I was at 128.8 lbs and 23.3% body fat
Goal (to be hit by Nov 14): 120 lbs and 20% body fat

STATUS OF PROGRESS:

Percent achieved towards weight goal: 41% lost in 42/90 days (47% of timeline )
Percent achieved towards body fat goal: 25% lost in 42/90 days (47% of timeline)

As you can see, my progress is lagging behind the allotted time frame. No I’m not panicking or freaking out, but like I said above, knowing these data points allows me to make a plan.

So here’s the realness. I am hypothesizing that I’m no longer seeing progress because I’m most likely snacking too much. Like all those nuts I eat? I don’t measure them. And to be super honest with you, I eat them throughout the day – not because I am hungry, but for fun.

The first few weeks of the 90 day journey were so motivating because I didn’t have to measure anything and I didn’t have to count anything because my body was shocked by the type of food I was eating that I lost weight and body fat pretty “easily” – well, if you call working out 6x a week and eating low carb easy that is :P But like I mentioned in my first blog post, the first month of any eating plan I follow will allow me lean out by about 5 lbs no matter if it’s vegan, paleo, Whole30, low carb etc. Then after that, it’s a totally different ballgame.

So now, we’re in that 2nd ballgame, still using tactics from the first ballgame. That doesn’t work. Not for my body anyway. It needs more attention. So, after talking to a nutritionist, he advised me that there was no “sexy way” to hit my goals. I would have to track and measure my food to really see what was going on.

Well guys, it’s time to take this 90 day journey to the next level! I just downloaded MyFitnessPal and will be tracking my macros (protein, fat, carbs) for every meal I have. I think this will allow me to be a lot more conscious of my snacking. Also, my friend Drew and the author of Complete Keto, said I should be at around 75% fat, 20% protein, and 5% carbs for daily intake. I had only been visually guesstimating here so I am not actually sure how close I had ever been to those percentages. He also advised that I be more focused on hitting my macros instead of worrying about calories.

Tracking food meticulously doesn’t get me excited, but looking back to the two times in my life where my body did change drastically  – once in Boston when I started weight lifting and eating high protein for the first time (healthy amount of calories), and second when I prepped for the bikini competition (unhealthy amount of calories) – the one thing I had in common was that I was tracking my food both of those times. I really wanted to avoid measuring and tracking this time around (it is so tedious and time consuming), but eating when I am hungry and stopping when I am full really doesn’t work when you have a second dessert stomach :P

Anyway, my point is – it’s time to get even more serious. And I’m up for the challenge, no matter how tedious. I have a goal to hit on Nov 14 and I am going to try my best to get there. If I fail, I fail, but at least I will know that I gave it my all.

So, with that said, day 42 is the new day 1 of my 90 Day Journey – Level 2!

PS: Sorry for combining 2 posts in one! Last night I legit fell asleep on my laptop on my couch and thought to myself, sleep is more important than blogging – GO TO BED!!! I was so exhausted. I even slept in today. My body really needed it.

PPS: Also, I decided to skip what I ate in this post because my old food habits are changing as of today, so I want there to be a clean slate for new beginnings!

PPPS: Saying this again for anyone new – my focus on numbers is purely for progress tracking. Please do not be concerned that I am “relapsing” into an unhealthy relationship with my body. I have goals I want to hit and the numbers help me gauge if I am getting farther or closer to my goal. Purely simple. That is it! You don’t need to do what I am doing. Do what works for you. This is my own personal journey that I just happen to be blogging about publicly. I am glad that those who are following along are feeling inspired and getting meal ideas!

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