Sunday 29 September 2013

Macro's??...So what's all this Talk about Macro's.....



MACRO CITY!!!

So what's all this chatter about Macro's?...every time I look on FB or IG everyone is chatting about Macro's...and that is awesome!

I haven't been this excited about a way of eating since Weight Watcher. WW had great flexibility, you got to structure your day based on Points. Well Macro's work in much the same way.

With either system you can choose how to spend or use your Macro's. You can choose to spend all your WW points on cereal and milk if you so wish, the same with Macro's. Even using your macro's in a poor way, you should still loose or maintain weight.

I'm so excited about Macro's because this time around I know more, have different goals and I have a Diet coach teaching me so much, my brain hurts at times!!

How my love of Macro's Began....

I first heard about Macro's from my Friend Katie. Katie is an Athlete and she also uses Macro's as a way of life. Katie mentioned it to me and I thought...humm sounds interesting, but it seemed like work and at that point in my life more work wasn't appealing....so I left it at...Hummmmm.

Over the Summer I was over having a play day with my Friend Carrie. Carrie is also an Athlete and she is a busy working Mom of 3 young girls. Carrie started talking to me about Macro's too...again I thought, hummm...again more Macro talk...but being in a bad place I didn't really want to listen to much.

Soon after that play day Alyssa talked to me about Macro's...This was after I had spoken to Craig about my eating issues...and we were taking steps to correct it. I was really humbled that Alyssa was offering to step in and help me. So because I respected that so much I decided to listen and really learn  how Macro's work. :)

So how they work in a very short description :) Alyssa did an analysis of my systems for me..she knows my training. With all that info she gives me a break down of daily Goals for food. Those goals are Protein, Carb, Fat and Fiber. I need to intake all the Macro's she instructs me to eat...it really doesn't matter how I get it in...but I have to get it in!

It's likely the best "diet" I have ever learned about. The super cool thing is that it works for starters, and it works for athletes...even elite athletes!!

When I first started with Macro's I played around a TON...so many days I would miss hitting all my macro's and have to figure out a way to hit them the next day. So I made a ton of Bowls!!...Bowls rule...take lots of yummy stuff and mix it together...yeah, that's Macro's!! :)


Example: Cabbage, Spinach, Avocado, Tuna, red peppers, Cucumbers Mayo mixed with mustard as dressing. :) Amazing!!


Mexican: Love this one:)...Cabbage and spinach, Avocado  Re fried beans, tomato, spicy enchilada sauce!!..so Yum :)


** Notice I always make 2...it just makes life easy!!**








So I enter all the ingredients into My fitness pal and I know where I am at for the day...that's why making 2 is really a helpful thing for a busy Mom.

The bowls are good for every day...but the amazing thing is, I'm now in a competition...my Macro numbers started out the same....but I changed from everyday eating to Athlete eating.

I call it Athlete eating because it's all about timing macro's around your training. I make sure I have lots of carbs around my training...load up on fats in the morning, and eat small meals often.

So now I split my carbs to focus on my training schedule. I need to ensure my body is well fed and grows. Alyssa has monitored my Macro's since day one of this challenge.  She started me off close to where I was before the bulk...about 1300 calories broken up how she felt best suited me...she needed to see how I responded. Well I lost weight way to fast...working out burned to much so she upped me to 1500, mostly upping my carbs and Fat...sure enough I still lost. So finally we have settled in well at 1700 calories per day...DOUBLE ...DOUBLE what I was eating before I spoke with Craig!! 

What's also awesome is that I'm only 2lbs lighter then when I weighed in for this competition...but I'm fairly lean!...So having a great macro balance and eating my Macro's timed properly is really working amazing!!

It does take lots of prep to eat like this...but the results are worth it. I eat out of containers a lot-lol...but it's all very routine for me now. I think I have a good pattern and I'm seeing lots of positive changes!!

You get to be creative with Macro's...it gets you excited about food again. You have total control on how you use Macro's and tracking with My fitness Pal keeps you accountable and aware of what goes in your mouth. 

Pre work out Pumpkin Protein Pancakes

If you choose to try Macro's see someone that can set you up with the correct numbers. If you try an on line calculator it doesn't know you!!...I tried it and the numbers were way far off from what Alyssa gave me...and what she has given me is working!

Next week I will be posting about the progress...and YES I will bite the HUGE bullet and post some pictures...the before are going to be tough to post!! But... I'm excited about the changes I've made in 3 weeks...so I'll share what 4 weeks of IIFYM with Alyssa and Training with Craig has done :)


If you fail to plan, you plan to fail

Doing something for me, makes me better for others


Sunday 8 September 2013

It's been an interesting experience thus far...


Ups Downs and the Lessons.

Well it's go time for this contest. Thanks to everyone for the kind words and encouragement. I thought it would be a good idea to get my thoughts down on "paper" so I can look back.

I'm having my picture, measurements and weight taken tomorrow. I'm more than a little freaked out about it!!!. I'm feeling the most uncomfortable I have in years...I'm soft from not training...I'm really struggling with the idea of jumping this far out of my comfort zone! I knew this would come, and I wondered how I would react...I guess now I know.

Commitment to change to improve and to be healthy

I'm not sure why this is so hard for me to do, why I'm so anxious about being seen not at my best, just out of bed so to speak. I know full well I will be back in good shape in a couple of weeks...but knowing I need to expose my worst is hard! 

I've learned a lot though this and I'll have to just take a breath tomorrow and know I did this for a greater purpose, to learn and to have a healthier lifestyle...and better self image.

I have to say I feel much better about my relationship with food. I can honestly honestly say that I did not enjoy very much of the crappy eating. I really paid attention to how I felt eating poorly, and for the most part I really just didn't want to be eating it. I'd say the novelty wore off pretty fast for me. 
That taught me that I really do have a grip on this...I really don't have to worry about going back to how I was before. That lesson alone is worth this.


I've decided to promise myself I will trust this process. I will trust Craig and Alyssa with my diet and my training. Me giving up control is beyond hard...I feel a little sick typing it. 

Strong enough to start over

I am smart enough to realize that what I was doing was NOT working...so in order to learn something new, that should work...I need to do everything they say. I have to resist the urge to eat less because I think I should, I need to not do more cardio because I think I should. I need to trust in this process...that will be a huge challenge for me. I'll have to pay close attention to that aspect of this challenge.

So that's how it's gone so far...I've had ups and positive lessons...and some downs because of fears and insecurity.

I've really understood that it's ME against ME...just like when I changed the first time. 


Truth
  

Friday 6 September 2013

This is Not a Weight Loss Blog.....

This is NOT a weight loss blog....This is an Empowerment Blog!


For those of you wondering what the point is to my new Blogs, I would like to clear that up for you...Apparently I have ruffled a few feathers with my choices.

This is not a Blog about weight Loss...This is an Empowerment blog...and it's for ME :)  I would like to refer back to blog #1 in my new blogs. In that blog I admitted I had an issue with food and I asked that the pressure of being looked at as a weight loss motivator, to ease off. The pressure was feeding my unhealthy choices. I have new goals I want to hit, I want to do new things, and I want to get healthy and strong. I feel I am heading towards REAL balance...not swings in my weight...where someone does the binge and purge thing, but instead a healthy relationship with food through learning and understanding how MY body works. 

Before this Challenge with Popeye's I was in a bad cycle. Craig has a great was of explaining things...I call them "Craigisms"...Anyone that trains with him knows about his little "isms". Craig explained that I was just the body of a car...in that car was only a Gas peddle. So all I was able to do with myself was Gas on weight loss, I was only able to go in one direction. I was so focused on loosing, so afraid of gaining, feeling so much pressure that I gassed on to a very unhealthy 107lbs.

After Craig sat down with me and made me talk about my issues and seek help from Alyssa I gained a Gear box for my car :)...I can now Gas on weight Gain...Gas on Weight Loss...or just sit in Neutral. Choosing to Go through this gaining process for this contest, I have now gotten the last part I need for my car. I have a steering wheel!!...YAY!. So now I can Gas on...Break...Shift and Steer my little muscle car in ANY direction I want...I have total control of my Car...It's a very empowering feeling. 

I'm very excited to start on a healthy diet with Alyssa...to learn to love food again. I'm so excited to see my body change the way I want it to...I'm ready to do new things...I'm ready to walk away from loosing weight...and finally become what I want, with true balance and no pressure.

This contest prep has taught me soo sooo much. I am going to be able to better help our main two customer groups...The ones that wish to Gain. I have struggled sooo much with gaining...I will explain why in a moment. And I will be able to help the other part of our customer base, the ones wishing to loose.

Ok...Onto Metabolism...I'm sticking with the Car "ism" for this Blog...Zoom Zoom!!

We were given 4 weeks to prepare for this contest...the contest is called..."Can you walk the walk??" So we could choose how we wanted to come in to this opportunity. We could Bulk and loose...we could loose and bulk or we could just go in and see what happens. Craig, Alyssa and myself felt the Bulk to loose would be best for me because it would give me control...it gave me the parts of my car I needed to have control.

We tried to bulk me in a lean healthy way...NONE of us had any idea how my body was actually working....so we had to resort to trying junk food to gain a few lbs and to help me learn to loosen up the reins on my food issues. Well after 2 weeks of GAS on crappy eating....I've yet to hit 120lbs. I've stopped training...I'm a little soft...but no movement in the scale. I was baffled by this...I was feeling gross, and upset. So Craig once again hooked me up with a "Craigism"

He explained that when I was a runner I was this little car....cute eh ;)
Cute pre lifting Sheryl :)
There is nothing wrong with this little car...it is efficient, it gets you where you need to go...but the one thing it does not do, is burn very much fuel. As a runner I was what we call in the fitness industry "Skinny Fat" I was small but I didn't have any muscle on my body. When I ran, I ran to eat!...I knew if I wanted a burger, or an ice cream I needed to run to earn it. Remember me saying a million times..."earn it to eat it"?! So if I was still this cute little car I would have bulked in a week...I would have gained my 10lbs with ease. I've still been thinking of my body as this little car...so I ate that way.

I've been training HARD with Craig for about a year. When we lift, it's HEAVY...Lucky girl eh! And now my metabolism runs like this Bad Ass Muscle Car...Yippee!! :)
Me as a Bad Ass Car...Zoom...Fast Metabolism baby...Finally!!
Craig explained that the more muscle you have on your body the more fuel you need to operate. So what that means is that for far to long I have been afraid to use the engine that is my metabolism. He has built me a Metabolism by introducing me to heavy lifting. Something I truly truly love. I can't describe in words how it feels to hit a personal best in the Gym. To squat like a boss...or dead lift like a strongman!! Now more than ever I am HUNGRY for personal bests...I'm hungry to be strong and build the body I want...and not care what the scale says! My goals are more than weight loss. "It's not about what you have done, it's about what you are doing". 

If you learn one thing from this Blog post please understand this...Lifting heavy will do way more for your metabolism, and more for your over all physique than endless hours of cardio EVER will... PERIOD!

So far I feel really positive about where I am going and what I have learned. I have learned that gaining is HARD when you train hard. I have leaned that I have total control over my body. I have all the parts of my car...So Look out...I'm going to drive it to an awesome level of Bad Ass!! 

Fully fed body by Alyssa....Training like a Beast thanks to Craig! I'm excited to see what happens after weigh in on Monday...I may not win this contest...but I have won back my body, and beaten the scale!! :)

YEP...Best years to come! :)
I will be posting blogs through this contest, progress pictures and all-Yikes, be brave Sheryl!!...I want to teach women about lifting heavy and eating within your Macro's. It's a livable way of eating that I think will work for many people. 

Lifting heavy will not make a woman bulky...it makes you solid, strong and kick ass ;)