I'd be lying if I said I wasn't self conscious about my appearance.
For the most part, I've always thought I was in decent shape. A little soft sometimes, but I run a few times a week, I go to yoga a few times a week. And now that I think about it, that's mostly it. But it's still more than most. Or at least more than a lot of people.
In the beginning of April, I started seeing posts from the girls at Tone It Up about their upcoming eight week bikini challenge. I've followed them for years...they started this company a few years ago and now have this cult following. Of course when I first found them, I purchased their nutrition plan. But I never really did anything with it. But because of that purchase, I now get all new plans and challenges for free.
So I thought what the hell. I needed something to kick start me back into working out. And the meal plans were much easier to follow now that they have been doing this for a few years. With five meals a day (3 full and 2 snacks), I can choose anything recommended for any of those meals. It's not like if I have eggs for breakfast, I can't have a bar for my snack or something.
The first week I followed along with the food really well, but I did my own thing for the workouts. That's also when I saw Lindsay post on IG that she visited our friend Heather at work to get her body fat tested in the Bod Pod. I hadn't had that done since high school or college and thought that doing a before and after test sounded like a good idea. While I'm glad I did it, I also kinda wish I didn't know the results. According to the Bod Pod, which is just about as accurate as it gets, I fall into the excess fat category.
There are six categories (I'm giving the numbers for women):
Risky (low body fat) - <15%
Ultra Lean - 15-18%
Lean - 19-22%
Moderately Lean - 23-30%
Excess Fat - 31-40%
Risky (high body fat) - >40%
If I had to guess before the test, I would've put myself in the moderately lean category, thinking I was somewhere in the mid 20s. And I would have been wrong. I am in the excess fat category which indicates an excess accumulation of fat over time. My number was 33.4%
I did not dive off the deep end when I found out...although I wanted to. I am trying to work harder at limiting the junk I eat, but I'm not killing myself trying to do it. I still had drinks with KW last night. I still occasionally eat a potato chip. Although that's prob something that should stop unless maybe they're baked. For now.
I'm now in week four of the challenge and I'm trying to keep up with the exercise they recommend and follow the nutrition plan. But I'm not perfect. I know I will cheat this weekend when I go home for a wedding, but I still hope to at least get a workout or two in.
I want to fully follow this plan for the rest of the challenge once I get back from Philly. No cheating on my meals or eating any junk food. It's only four more weeks at that point. I do allow myself some red wine because, well, it's me. But I also want to keep up with their exercise plan, while still getting my runs and yoga in as well.
And then at the end of it I will go back to the Bod Pod and see if anything has changed. Ideally, in the long run, I want to be in the low to mid 20s at a lighter weight. But that will take time. For now, let's see how I do over the next 4.5 weeks.
For the most part, I've always thought I was in decent shape. A little soft sometimes, but I run a few times a week, I go to yoga a few times a week. And now that I think about it, that's mostly it. But it's still more than most. Or at least more than a lot of people.
In the beginning of April, I started seeing posts from the girls at Tone It Up about their upcoming eight week bikini challenge. I've followed them for years...they started this company a few years ago and now have this cult following. Of course when I first found them, I purchased their nutrition plan. But I never really did anything with it. But because of that purchase, I now get all new plans and challenges for free.
So I thought what the hell. I needed something to kick start me back into working out. And the meal plans were much easier to follow now that they have been doing this for a few years. With five meals a day (3 full and 2 snacks), I can choose anything recommended for any of those meals. It's not like if I have eggs for breakfast, I can't have a bar for my snack or something.
The first week I followed along with the food really well, but I did my own thing for the workouts. That's also when I saw Lindsay post on IG that she visited our friend Heather at work to get her body fat tested in the Bod Pod. I hadn't had that done since high school or college and thought that doing a before and after test sounded like a good idea. While I'm glad I did it, I also kinda wish I didn't know the results. According to the Bod Pod, which is just about as accurate as it gets, I fall into the excess fat category.
There are six categories (I'm giving the numbers for women):
Risky (low body fat) - <15%
Ultra Lean - 15-18%
Lean - 19-22%
Moderately Lean - 23-30%
Excess Fat - 31-40%
Risky (high body fat) - >40%
If I had to guess before the test, I would've put myself in the moderately lean category, thinking I was somewhere in the mid 20s. And I would have been wrong. I am in the excess fat category which indicates an excess accumulation of fat over time. My number was 33.4%
I did not dive off the deep end when I found out...although I wanted to. I am trying to work harder at limiting the junk I eat, but I'm not killing myself trying to do it. I still had drinks with KW last night. I still occasionally eat a potato chip. Although that's prob something that should stop unless maybe they're baked. For now.
I'm now in week four of the challenge and I'm trying to keep up with the exercise they recommend and follow the nutrition plan. But I'm not perfect. I know I will cheat this weekend when I go home for a wedding, but I still hope to at least get a workout or two in.
I want to fully follow this plan for the rest of the challenge once I get back from Philly. No cheating on my meals or eating any junk food. It's only four more weeks at that point. I do allow myself some red wine because, well, it's me. But I also want to keep up with their exercise plan, while still getting my runs and yoga in as well.
 |
| 35 days left to run 51 miles |
And then at the end of it I will go back to the Bod Pod and see if anything has changed. Ideally, in the long run, I want to be in the low to mid 20s at a lighter weight. But that will take time. For now, let's see how I do over the next 4.5 weeks.
Comments
Post a Comment