I started this journey end of last year with some rather unrealistic goals in mind. I think whenever people begin something new, there’s always that sense of embarking on high adventure and achieving dramatic results.

For example, I figured by the time I was two months in I’d be rock climbing, running a 5k, down 2 dress sizes, participating in a couple of mud runs, sporting some killer abs and shoulders, and ready to compete in body-bikini competitions.

Reality check: yeah…that didn’t happen.

My blog subtitle has seen a couple of rewrites since the beginning. As time went by, reality began to take hold.

The sobering fact is: you can’t change a body overnight. Not without consequences. At 40+ I was not ready to go on a starvation diet just to force my physical self to conform to an unhealthy body image.

Also, I didn’t foresee several months ago that my job would take a stressful turn as I received more projects; nor did I anticipate that I’d have a harder time working out as the weather started getting unbearably hot. Or that my body suddenly decided to go on a binge after a hormone surge 2-3 weeks ago.

Luckily, I have enough presence of mind to realize the direction I was headed back in and started to curb my appetites. I’m slowly inserting some changes back into my diet to get back on track.

It really is harder to create rather than destroy. It takes a few seconds to undo all the hard work I’ve done in several weeks time. Even with daily exercise, the body just cannot expend enough calories if I decided to scarf down a half dozen blueberry cake donuts in the morning.

Lately, I’ve been trying to reprogram my thoughts on food and eating. I really do like food, but I’m trying to alter my perceptions of what goes into my mouth at mealtimes. Is it really worth the extra calories eating something that tastes mediocre? I really shouldn’t stuff my face with filler especially if it makes less room for the foods I really want to eat. And the foods I SHOULD be eating are not only tasty but healthy. Versus the tasty, but crappy foods. 

So that’s where I am, seven months into PBT, trying to make mindful decisions on what goes into my body. I don’t know if people get to this point sooner or later in their quest for a healthier self, so I wonder if I’m slower than the majority of folks who come to this conclusion. Better late than never?

I’m a few pounds heavier than I was in early May prior to my trip to the beach. I hope that it won’t take me quite as long to get back to that weight, now that I know how to get there. 

Yes, we all get derailed on occasion, but what counts is that we get back on track.

Boom, get moving!

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Saturday the 19th was evaluation day at Peak Body Transformation. Another 10 week session had ended and it was my first evaluation in the alumni class.

Glancing at the results, I’m frankly disappointed in myself. I had no significant losses in inches or weight; however, I had modest gains in activity level. You’d think that after 20 weeks of 6 day training I’d achieve better in the physical appearance department.

So here is the finally tally after 20 weeks…

 

• Chest:  half inch loss
• Waist : 1 inch loss
• Hips: 1.25 inch loss
• R Arm: half inch gain (?)
• R Thigh: 1.5 inch loss

 

Most of my losses occurred in the first 10 week session, leaving very little physical loss in the 2nd session. My activity level,  on the other hand, improved in the 2nd session.

 

• 3min Step Test (heart rate): 140 to 108 
• Pushups 1min: from 15 to 35
• Situps 1min: 22 to 30 
• 1 mile time: from 12 minutes to 9:30 minutes (did not run during the current eval)

 

Three more activities were added during the evaluation:

 

• Wall Squat: 3:39 min
• Plank Hold: 2:47 min
• Steering Wheels (Figure 8 Band): 66

 

I’m rather disheartened by the minimal gains (appearance-wise) I experienced with this current session. I’m already auto-enrolled in the next two months (I have to give 30 days notice and last month is already paid) and at $74 a session, it seems too expensive for the results I’m getting. I enjoy the cardio workout and calorie burn, but I desire more muscle gain and strength.

Unfortunately, the diet part of the equation still gives me trouble. While I have some indicators that I lost 1% body fat (really really frustrating), it isn’t enough to help me achieve the tone and definition I want. I’d love to get below 30% but I don’t see it happening unless I do something drastic like a crash diet.

And my current meal plan…while I know I don’t stick to those calorie limits on half the days, I can’t help but lose a lot of energy by midday. I’m stuck at work realizing I’m about to fall asleep in my chair because I’m so tired and sleepy around 1pm. And my work day isn’t even half way done. 🙁

So frustrating!

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