kingkeld's Journal, 23 January 2014

Good morning!

I feel a LOT better today. Truly. And there's a few very specific reasons for that.

1. My union representatives at work had a meeting with the bosses, and have clarified a few things. Essentially, they were made to listen to my side of the story on the whole mess. This means a lot to me.

2. I had a talk with my boss. The one that I've had issues with. It seems like he's turned around 180 degrees after that beforementioned meeting.

3. I'm on sick leave. Stress. Heart.

Especially #3 has made me loosen up a bit. Knowing that I do not HAVE to go in, makes me a lot more comfortable with everything.

It's been a few hard weeks coming back to work. It was a lot of pressure, and I felt that I was pushed out there WAY too hard. Apparently, so did my doctor. He told me to go home and stay home until we've talked and until I've had my heart rebooted, as a minimum.

Of course, just going home isn't solving everything, but it solves the immediate stress for me.

I have a good understanding with my leaders about how we do things now.

The arrangement is simply that I will NOT be working for right now, but if I do remember things that needs to be done, then shoot them an email so they can look into it. This will prevent me from falling behind far too much. It was bad enough what I came back to. Nobody had really worked on my cases and it was ALL catch-up along with a lot of new cases being piled on top. No good.

The DOWNSIDE to this is that I can't work at the gym, obviously, and I can't teach my classes. Not while I am out sick from my primary job.

In my head, these things do NOT go together. I am stressed because of a heart condition and because of my job.

The other jobs are actually mental "re-fills" for me, and something that makes me happy and proud to do. But rules are rules, and I can see why. It makes sense, on the administrative level, so to say.

If nothing else, I suppose it's motivation to get back on my feet ASAP. Right?

...

I did poor on my diet yesterday. I went over my calories, and I'm not too happy about that. It wasn't a lot - 200 calories - but it wasn't neccessary. Boo. I will just keep going.

...

Since I am out and away from work, and will be for probably a few weeks, then I need a mission.

So, I have decided to change some parameters in my weight loss/maintenance plan starting today instead of February 1st. It'll give me something to commit to instead of worrying about work. I think it's the smart move.

...

I have teamed up with my buddy Draglist, and we're gonna NAIL this IIFYM approach. :) It's fun, it's easy, and there is so much good food one can eat.

If you haven't really followed this journal, or heard of IIFYM, let me do a quick recap:

- IIFYM is the abbreviation of "If It Fits Your Macros". Essentially, the theory is that if you reach your protein, fat and fiber intake daily, along with not exceeding your calorie allowance, then you can basically eat what you want.

- You calculate your numbers on www.IIFYM.com. It basically gives you the numbers you need. Full focus needs to be on REACHING your protein, fat and fiber recommendations. There is supposedly nothing wrong with going higher on these. The is also a carb number, but this number is basically the "left over" calories when you calculate your calorie allowance and subtract protein and fat. There is no need to reach the carb intake. You can replace those with protein and fat.

That's really all there is to it. Count your calories as always, focus (A LOT) more on the macros. Enjoy life. Don't forget that exercise still is very important. :)

...

I have been doing this for quite a while, but I have seen myself GAIN weight (and fat) with it.

The more I look at the IIFYM.com suggested numbers, I see that I have had too high a calorie intake.

I will put myself in weight loss mode and try to follow the recommended strategy from there.

Also, I see in my food stats that I am WAY low on fiber. I haven't had ANY focus on fiber, but this will change starting today.

So, my new numbers are:

Max calorie intake: 2500 calories.
Min protein intake: 185g
Min fat intake: 70g
Fiber intake: 37 - 45g

This should be easy.

I already pre-planned my meals for today, hitting every macro there.

Lunch: 2 large homemade beef enchiladas
2nd lunch: Large, whole wheat pita with ham
Afternoon snack: 1 protein bar
Dinner: Grilled chicken breast in tomato sauce, with whole wheat pasta (and a HUGE portion, too!)
Post-dinner snack: 2 protein bars.

There is NO way I can eat more than that. It's a LOT of food, all good, and super tasty. I am looking forward to it.

These meals are STILL putting me on the low side on the fiber. To compensate I will have some psyllian husk. High on fiber, easy to do.

...

So, today I will relax. I will calm down. I will go do my walks, get the calorie burn for the day up, but mentally calm down. Down, down, down, down down, as the song goes.

It's been a couple of ROUGH weeks, and I am glad I'm finally being heard and getting some help. I needed it badly.

For the rest of this week I will try to get my footing on fully doing IIFYM with a calorie deficit, and see what's happening. I hope this is the game changer that will start lowering my body fat percentage again.

It's not like it's horribly bad. It's 13% today. I'm basically at around the same numbers as I was in November. I know I wasn't too satisfied with it then, and I'm not too satisfied with it now. But I know I can fix it, if I apply to it. I know that IIFYM will help me doing this.

The game is afoot. :)

...

Today, I'm thankful for:
- Sick leave.
- Unions.
- Wife.
- Sick leave.
- Unions.
- Wife
- Coffee.
- Sick leave.
- Unions.

See a pattern here? :)

Have a great Thursday. I'm gonna make this the best day in a long time. Life is good, and better than it has been for a while. Truly.
184.7 lb Lost so far: 157.0 lb.    Still to go: 0 lb.    Diet followed poorly.
gaining 3.1 lb a week

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Comments 
Feel better soon. Here's wishing you zero stress and full recovery. 
23 Jan 14 by member: Helewis
It sounds like a great idea to modify your plan now and not wait. I learned about the importance of fiber a couple of years ago and incorporated it into my diet 40 - 60 grams daily. Before the fiber I was plagued with stomach and constipation issues.....now totally gone!!! For me it was a quality of life changer. I'm glad that things are looking better for you....hang in there Keld:) 
23 Jan 14 by member: namgrunt51
That's great news about your extended leave. Get some rest and take care of yourself so you can get back to doing what you love and looking forward to seeing the results of your tweaked numbers. Best wishes! 
23 Jan 14 by member: ChicaLean
That is wonderful news! Hope you are able to rest now knowing things are changing. 
23 Jan 14 by member: iamachristianjesusfreak
Glad you got some stuff sorted out... Communication is key... And I do understand from an 'employer' perspective, you cannot teach your class..... However, on the positive, great you are doing your walks and have teamed up with Draglist... Plus you have your bike and fitness DVDs.... I do think, in the end, you will go into the 'health and fitness' industry, as an advisor. Maybe not now, but certainly in the future.... Because you have learnt so much on this site and by researching. When your heart issue sorts itself out... Hopefully you will feel better 
23 Jan 14 by member: Sk1nnyfuture
I agree with Sk1nny. The real job was your bread and butter and they figure if you can work at the health club then you are well enough to come back to work. I understand that logic. So use this time to get better ... get that heart back in rhythm and enjoy learning how to be Macro Man. Happy you are back on sick leave. :)  
23 Jan 14 by member: Mom2Boxers
Lol. "Macro Man". Before I know it, I'll be in the Village People.  
23 Jan 14 by member: kingkeld
Thank god for unions and sick leave! (oh you already did that LOL) So god to hear that you will be able to concentrate on yourself for a while. Interesting bit about the fibre, I haven't been looking at that at all. I've been mainly trying to keep the carbs down and the protein up - seems to be working. My Tanita, however, is showing me an increase in fat %, but I guess that also goes along with weight loss (?). Enjoy this time that you will be able to work on YOU! Have a wonderful day. 
23 Jan 14 by member: Lynn1958
I'm so glad to hear that things are looking up for you at work. Glad your Union is helping you out!!! 
23 Jan 14 by member: tglenna
Lynn, I often see my body fat percentage go up when my weight goes down. They're relative numbers. Try to calculate the WEIGHT of the body fat, and you might be pleasantly surprised. :-)  
23 Jan 14 by member: kingkeld

     
 

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