No pretending to like tofu any more!: Eric's primal transformation page 9

[en2ec]

Yesterday marked my 3rd full month primal.

Three months primal.

Starting weight pre primal (early March): 280+
Starting weight primal (May 26): 261
1st month weight (June 26): 249
2nd month weight (July 26): 241
Current weight: 232

Me aug 27.jpg

I lost 9 pounds this month. I'm averaging slightly under 10 pounds lost per month since starting primal! I feel great.

I started adding some dairy back in my diet, but I have noticed that I'm not breathing as well as I had been. I'll eat a little for the next week or so, then cut it out again. If my breathing changes accordingly, I will have to cut it out more or less permanently.

I'm still loving YAYOG. I started the power block this week and did decline pushups today. I was expecting it to be harder than it was. Hats off to Lauren who really knows how to gradually increase the difficulty at the right pace.

[en2ec]

I had some Thai food from our neighborhood place on Friday. I ordered my usual duck with extra veggies (no rice) and thought I'd get an app. I picked chicken wings assuming they'd be stir fried. Nope. They were battered and deep-fried. I haven't eaten anything with wheat (other than beer once in a while ... does alcohol cancel out the negatives?) in over 3 months. I thought since I ordered them I might as well eat them. The next morning was the first time in 3.5 months that I had any stomach pain.

I've been reading about people with gluten problems, and I've thought that my issues with gluten must be of the purely vague inflammation/metabolic type. I had forgotten that feeling in my stomach that was pretty much "normal" before going primal. So maybe I have more of a direct issue with gluten than I realized. It was a good reminder to stay on course.

I'm feeling much better now.

Oh, and I was at 229 this morning, down 3 pounds from 2 weeks ago.

[en2ec]

I was in a meeting today at work. This is a meeting that we have about every 6 months for the whole department (maybe 20 people). I got stuck next to the department head and after the business he wanted to get through, he turned to me and asked if I had anything to report. He always goes around the room like this, and I happened to be on his right and was the first to go, but I hadn't prepared anything and so said I didn't have anything to report. He then said what about your weight loss? And then the whole department broke into applause. I was a little embarrassed (I'm not an attention-seeker by nature), but it was also very nice.

I don't know how many people individually have come up to me and commented on my weight loss and ask me how I do it and how much I've lost. They are always really surprised by how much (I'm at around 52 pounds at the moment), and then they almost inevitably comment on how hard it is to lose weight. I say that it actually hasn't been hard at all ... you just have to eat the right things. Even though I've gotten the blurb about primal down to about 20 seconds, they always kinda glaze over and look at me like I'm crazy despite my obvious results. Oh well. What can you do?

Every day at the gym I pass by this spinning class. Most of the people in it are chubby, and they're all in there spinning away. Even one of the instructors is chubby. The class is going when I come into the gym and is still going when I leave. They're working their butts off, but I want to open the door and say to them: there's a better way! What amazes me is that even if you aren't plugged into primal or paleo, there are tons of other sources that say the same thing about exercising. That weight lifting combined with HIIT is the best way to achieve fitness. Being the inherently lazy person that I am, I opted to invest my time and effort researching (while sitting on my butt) the most effective way for me to minimize the time I spend in the gym. Why are there so many people who don't do this?

[en2ec]

It has been another month on primal. I know I planned to update my journal more frequently this past month. Oh well.

Starting weight pre primal (early March): 280+
Starting weight primal (May 26): 261
1st month weight (June 26): 249
2nd month weight (July 26): 241
3rd month weight (August 26): 232
Current (4th) month weight (September 26): 226

I didn't lose as much weight this month as I have been. I suppose that is to be expected. Also, I added some dairy back into my diet, and I've been drinking more red wine and chocolate. Work and family have also meant that I haven't been at the gym for the last 2 weeks. So, all in all, I'm still pleased with the progress, and I'm looking forward to getting back to the gym.

2012-09-26 10.05.10.jpg

[Leida]

I gotta say that your journal's title made me go: Me TOO! Sheesh, so glad i don't have to worry about the art of making tofu somewhat edible!

[en2ec]

I've hit the dreaded plateau. I was out of town on the 26th, which has become my offical monthly weigh in day, so I wasn't able to weigh myself on that day, but on my return, I weighed 225. OK. I guess I lost a pound, but that's easily within the margin of error.

I had been eating dark chocolate and drinking red wine a little too liberally. I'd also added some dairy back into my diet. I'm cutting the dairy out completely and scaling back on the chocolate and wine. I'd also been eating a lot of pork because I've eaten out a lot, and pork is the primary meat here. So I'm also eliminating sausages and cutting down on pork ribs in restaurants.

I've also been scaling back on my vegetable consumption. Not because I don't like them, but because it is so much work. But I have to ramp it up again. I think I'd been naturally filling up on more meat since I've scaled back on veggies.

I'm also thinking of doing a carb reload to see if that will kickstart my weight loss again.

On the positive side, I think that my pants fit a little better than last month, and I'm stronger. I'm now on the next level of You Are Your Own Gym. I am also thinking of adding back in the max capacity training 3x a week in addition to YAYOG.

[en2ec]

I weighed myself today, and I'm at 222 at home. So maybe I haven't hit a hard plateau. In any case, I've started IFing again, and I'm upping my veggie intake and reducing my dark chocolate consumption.

[en2ec]

Eric 2012-10-31 07.33.01.jpg

I weighed 218 at the gym today. Speaking of gym, I’m now on the “1st class” 10 week program from You Are Your Own Gym, which is the second program. I’m on week 2. Yesterday, I did 52 regular push ups … not inclined, not on my knees … but good ol’ regular push ups. I’ve never come close to that.

[JennGlob]

Eric 2012-10-31 07.33.01.jpg

I weighed 218 at the gym today. Speaking of gym, I’m now on the “1st class” 10 week program from You Are Your Own Gym, which is the second program. I’m on week 2. Yesterday, I did 52 regular push ups … not inclined, not on my knees … but good ol’ regular push ups. I’ve never come close to that.

Great work! I love how your style has changed from the beginning. Initially, you appeared to be throwing on what fit...now you can tell you feel good about yourself and own your look. I know men don't really think about these things, but it is great to see how your confidence has clearly grown.

[en2ec]

Great work! I love how your style has changed from the beginning. Initially, you appeared to be throwing on what fit...now you can tell you feel good about yourself and own your look. I know men don't really think about these things, but it is great to see how your confidence has clearly grown.

Thanks! Yes. For years, I've bought whatever fit. It is nice to be able to actually have a choice in what I wear, though I must credit my wife with encouraging me to have a bit more style.