Egull1's Journal, 30 April 2017

So, as weird as this sounds, this is truly news to celebrate. And, believe it or not I'm not being "tongue & cheek" here! My new scale came yesterday around 3:00 p.m. and I decided to go ahead and hop on, just to try it out. Now, this weigh in yesterday was after my workout and after I had already eaten breakfast.

Guess what the idiot box said? "drumroll..." = 200.8 lbs

This mornings weigh-in (after waste elimination) = a whole 202.4 lbs

For the math and science freaks out there - you guessed it, this girl is genuinely fluctuating in water weight because as filling as my mother's vegetable lentil soup is, I guarantee you it's not that dense! lol. But, I needed to see this, because it's proof in the pudding regarding what's been happening.

So, how the heck did I gain 1.6 lbs of water weight in less than a 24 hour period? Well, what this increase in water does reflects is the level of inflammation I have most mornings since I incurred poly-arthritis from a bout of Rheumatic fever. Pain thresholds in the a.m. usually run around a 6-7, sometimes a 3-4 if I'm lucky and take 400 mg of motrin before I go to bed. Yesterday, I took motrin after breakfast, which explains why I came out with a smaller number around 3 given the "anti-inflammatory" benefits had already kicked in.

Is there any other time of day I might weigh? Technically, no unless I did it at night. But, I prefer to do it after waste has been eliminated, which is usually in the mornings.

So, how the heck can I measure my progress?
Per Tom Venuto's advice in "Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle" (which I highly recommend to ANYONE using weight training and resistance training to lose), I already popped the caliper he suggests into my amazon cart so I can start measuring body fat percentages.

I'm going to be frank here. I'm realizing there are two camps of people on the fat loss vs. weight loss journey; people that just want a smaller number on the scale (which is fine) and those that genuinely want less fat and more muscle on their bodies. Those two things can look very different on a scale. If you're just starting out like me, using resistance training, and have a body type that has fat but actually increases muscle mass remarkably easy, then I highly suggest Tom Venuto's book because the transformation and adjustments of someone on this type of journey are very different than those that have no interest in what they're losing as long as they're just shedding pounds.

So, can I give ANY progress report? Yes, I can. My shirt is even baggier this week then it was last week AND the sit ups are providing definition in my abs I've NEVER had before. There is also noticeable loss in face and neck. And, I love it!

Todays workout increases:
-5 minutes in level 16 on the recumbent, 15 min in level 15, and 10 min in warm up and cool down
-Increase 45-48 reps for all upper arm strength training exercises
-Increase 45-48 abductor leg lifts
-Increase wall push ups to 46
-Increase sit ups to 34

Today is an early fatterday/splurge day for me as we have a benefit to attend tonight, but after today it will be 10 whole days until my next splurge day. It will be challenging, but good. Also, I will not be logging my morning weigh ins every morning on FS, but add the data on my weekly weigh in every Sunday so I can better see the fluctuations.

Have a wonderful Sunday, everyone!

202.4 lb Lost so far: 7.6 lb.    Still to go: 52.4 lb.    Diet followed reasonably well.

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2184 kcal

Fat: 85.30g | Prot: 64.34g | Carb: 162.06g.   Breakfast: Mezzetta Super Colossal Spanish Queen Pimiento Stuffed Green Olives, Scrambled Egg (Whole, Cooked), Tillamook Extra Sharp Cheddar Cheese, Ore-Ida Potatoes O'Brien, Heinz Tomato Ketchup, Cooked Mushrooms (Fat Added in Cooking), Coffee with Cream and Sugar. Dinner: Vegetable Beef Soup (Home Recipe), Denny's Chocolate Lava Cake, Bonefish Grill Fried Calamari, Ken's Steak House Ranch Dressing, BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse Barbeque Bison Burger. Snacks/Other: Red Table Wine. more...

2825 kcal

Activities & Exercise: Bicycle - 30 minutes, Weight Training (moderate) - 30 minutes, Resting - 15 hours, Sleeping - 8 hours. more...