Monthly Archives: April 2017

April 24, 2017 · 5:13 pm

8 WEEKS TO SUMMER – WEEK 2 & 3 UPDATE – NEW DIRECTION

Week 2 Macros:

Date: 4/10/17

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 142.5 (Beginning Weight 142.2) = gain of +0.3lbs

Macros: Last Week – 130C/130P/120F (2120 cals)

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Week 3 Macros:

Date: 4/17/17

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 142.8 (Beginning Weight 142.2) = gain of +0.6lbs

Macros: 130C/100P/100F (1820 cals)

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This Morning:

Date: 4/17/17

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 142.3 (Beginning Weight 142.2) = gain of +0.1lbs

Macros: Intuitive eating

Sometimes we need to learn to recognize when all signs are pointing you toward a different path. I ask my clients to trust me when it’s time to place our focus elsewhere and I am doing the same with myself right now.

I have been in a caloric deficit for three weeks now (I cut calories by another 300 a day last week) and I literally haven’t lost any weight or seen an appreciable change in body composition…in fact I weigh more…not by much, but it’s more nonetheless. It’s no fun to be REALLY hungry and see the scale go up!

Why didn’t my body respond? There are several reasons:

I am in the middle of treatment for a candida overgrowth (and will be for several more months)
I am on week 10 of a major kitchen/family room renovation (I am cooking for the family in our laundry room)
I haven’t been sleeping well

Those are not prime conditions for going on a diet. When you are under stress your body does NOT want to drop any fat. Its funny…if I client came to me and told me that they had items 1-3 above going on in their life right now I would have told them that this wasn’t a good time to attempt a cut. Somehow I didn’t think through that one for myself.

My plan from now through the end of my candida treatment and kitchen renovations (hopefully just a few more weeks) is to eat intuitively and continue to train. I know how to eat and what to eat to best fuel my body and that is what I am going to do. Eat when I am hungry and eat until I am full. I plan on eating three square meals a day and will continue eating along the principles of the Autoimmune Paleo Diet. I have successfully reintroduced tomatoes, several seed and nightshade spices, and eggs, so those will be a part of my diet in addition to the AIP.

I am very comfortable with my current physique, so this cut wasn’t something I needed in order to feel comfortable in a swimsuit for the summer…it was more a fun way to document a cut. Fortunately I have already done so. For those of you interested in seeing what the process is like to go through a cut, click HERE.

If you would like me to help you get ready for summer, please click HERE to learn more about my programs.

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Filed under 8 Weeks to Summer 2017, IIFYM and Macros, Nutrition

Tagged as 40 and fit, 8 weeks to 40, 8 weeks to summer, autoimmune, autoimmune protocol, balanced intake, bikini ready, candida, fit at 40, get summer ready, grapefruit seed extract, healthy diet, hormones and diet, how to get lean, hypothyroid, IIFYM, increase metabolic capacity, intuitive eating, leaning out, losing weight, macros, metabolic capacity, metabolism, nutrition consulting, Reverse Diet, Reverse Dieting

April 10, 2017 · 3:40 pm

8 WEEKS TO SUMMER – WEEK 1 RECAP

Here is where I am as of this morning:

Date: 4/3/17

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 142.5 (Beginning Weight 142.2) = gain of +0.3lbs

Macros:

Last Week – 130C/130P/120F

This Week – Same

So…you’ve gotta love going into a deficit for the week and GAINING weight. My weight actually got as high as 143.4lbs this week.

I have been battling a candida overgrowth for the past few months and have been cycling treatments. This past Monday I began using grapefruit seed extract and have been experiencing intestinal issues as a result. I am guessing this is the blame for the weight gain. You should’ve heard my stomach last night. It was so loud my husband could hear all the gurgling and wars going on in there!

I was also REALLY hungry last week. Again, I am guessing that is a result of the candida not wanting to give up. I know that I am not even close to starving on a 2000+ calorie per day day, so I know logically that it must be the candida as well as my body adjusting to all of the changes.

As for my macros, I did allow myself a refeed on Friday (I hadn’t planned on one) because I was really hungry and it felt like my body needed it. I woke-up the next morning 0.6lbs less which reinforced the fact that having the refeed was the right call. This week my plan is to keep the same macros and see what happens. I actually “feel” leaner despite the weight gain and don’t want to reduce macros at this point.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions as I document this process. If you would like me to help you get ready for summer, please click HERE to learn more about my programs.

CLICK HERE TO READ MY DAY 1 RECAP

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Filed under 8 Weeks to Summer 2017, IIFYM and Macros, Nutrition

Tagged as 40 and fit, 8 weeks to 40, 8 weeks to summer, autoimmune, autoimmune protocol, balanced intake, bikini ready, candida, fit at 40, get summer ready, grapefruit seed extract, healthy diet, how to get lean, hypothyroid, IIFYM, increase metabolic capacity, leaning out, losing weight, macros, metabolic capacity, metabolism, nutrition consulting, Reverse Diet, Reverse Dieting

April 3, 2017 · 6:53 pm

8 WEEKS TO SUMMER

It’s been about two years since I did my first macro-based cut/diet (click HERE for details). Since then I have focused my attention on building-up my metabolic capacity as well as trying to add as much muscle as possible…easier said than done. Click HERE for details on the Reverse Diet I completed after my cut two years ago.

I thought it would be fun to do another cut and document it for all of you to show that I am now able to diet-down on much higher macros than before. My goal is not to lose much weight, but rather to lean-down a bit right in time for swimsuit season.

I am currently following the Paleo Autoimmune Protocol Diet with a few successful reintroductions added back in (eggs, tomatoes, peppers). This diet has been SUCH a big help in my attempts to control my autoimmune diseases. I have also been battling a pretty significant candida overgrowth with the help of my functional medicine practitioner. Next month I should have an update on that since I just sent my latest tests into the lab.

Here is where I was prior to my original cut back in 2015:

Date: 9/7/15

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 143.8

Macros:

Monday -Thursday & Saturday 1515 calories 120C / 135P / 55F

Friday 1736 calories 180C / 146P / 48F (heaviest weight lifting day)

Sunday 1562 calories 106C / 145P / 62F (rest day)

Here is where I am as of this morning (my weight is pretty darn similar in both pictures):

Date: 4/3/17

Height: 5’9″

Weight: 142.2

Macros:

Daily – 130C/130P/120F

As you can see my macros are pretty consistent now versus the carb cycling I did before. My current macros are also MUCH higher in fat. I find that I feel better eating higher fat and stay more satiated. I will most likely add in a refeed day, but will keep my macros as is for this first week.

It is exciting for me to see that in two years I have been able to increase my cutting macros from an average 1553 calories a day to 2120 calories a day…that’s huge. I am proud of that 567 calorie increase PER DAY!

My workouts are also less intense and shorter in duration than they used to be. I used to average 90 minutes a day 6 days a week and now I lift between 45-60 minutes 5 days a week and walk at about 3.5-4.0 mph for 45 minutes to an hour twice a week.

Feel free to let me know if you have any questions as I document this process. If you would like me to help you get ready for summer, please click HERE to learn more about my programs.

Click HERE to read about my Week 1 Recap

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Filed under 8 Weeks to Summer 2017, Education, IIFYM and Macros, Nutrition, Uncategorized

Tagged as 40 and fit, 8 weeks to 40, 8 weeks to summer, autoimmune, autoimmune protocol, balanced intake, bikini ready, fit at 40, get summer ready, healthy diet, how to get lean, hypothyroid, IIFYM, increase metabolic capacity, leaning out, losing weight, macros, metabolic capacity, metabolism, nutrition consulting, Reverse Diet, Reverse Dieting