Recap: In case you missed the last post you can read it here, but in summary last year I was sick. I was tired, my knees hurt, I had anxiety and I knew I needed change. I almost didn't write this post but I've had enough people ask me what I've been doing that I figured it was worth a post.
Last November, before I ever had blood clots, I had signed up for a New Year Body Challenge. It was 60 days of workouts and recipes and guidance and support via a Facebook group. I am sooo glad I had signed up before I got sick. If I hadn't already signed up and paid, I might have talked myself out of it, but instead I had already committed and looking forward to it. I was sooo ready to begin getting healthy. The challenge was based on the Paleo diet (which you can read about here) and while it worked (I lost 15 pounds in a month) it didn't take me long to realize it was not sustainable for me. Cooking two dinners several nights a week was not ideal and wasn't something I was willing to do long term. Neither was giving up most carbs and dairy.
In the middle of March I started the 6-week Fit Body Challenge, I had done other challenges with the same trainer and always had great success (during my 15-day challenge a few months early I lost 12 pounds) so I was excited and looking forward to seeing more progress with this challenge. The plan came with six workouts a week and 11 daily meal plans to rotate through. It was great for a while. I'm a creature a habit and have no problem eating the same thing for lunch every day all week, but eventually it got to the point where I was cooking two dinners again, or doing some serious modifications so John didn't feel like he was eating the same thing three nights a week. Again, I knew that in order to be successful I needed to make long-term lasting changes and this wasn't it. It was great for the few weeks I stuck with it, but I couldn't do it forever. At this point even with my hodge-podge dieting and little to no exercise I had still lost 20 pounds.
In late April, I was browsing Instagram and saw a post from a girl I knew from high school about counting macros (macro-nutrients - more about that here) and the success her client was having. I had been tracking my macros before I got pregnant with Mason and had been losing weight very slowly but steadily (probably due to my less than stellar tracking skills) and knew it was something I could sustain. I could eat what I wanted as long as it fit in my macros, meaning I didn't have to cook two dinners or skip dessert, I just had to plan for it. So I reached out to her and got started on macro counting the very next day.
Working with Courtney was exactly what I needed. I lost eight pounds in the first month I was counting macros and that included two weekend trips where there was lots of yummy food and drinks and no tracking. She was (and still is) supportive and helpful and gave me workouts I could do at home. Full disclosure, until just a few weeks ago I have been terrible at working out consistently but I still saw results because 90 percent of the time I was eating within my macros. Since the beginning of May when I started counting macros, I've lost another 35 pounds, while steadily increasing the amount of food I get to eat each day. Some days tracking gets a little tedious and I just want to eat without figuring out how many carbs, fat and protein something has in it. But for the most part it is something I don't mind, something that has given me the flexibility to eat dessert every day and still reach my goals, and most importantly something I can do everyday for the foreseeable and long-term future.
I still have a long ways to go but I'm excited about where I'm at and where I'm going.The important thing is I found what works for me! And that might not be the same thing for everyone. Find what makes you happy and do it!
Being healthy isn't a one-time project you can do and just be done with, it takes hard work and dedication and consistency day after day and week after week. It is a journey not a destination and for now I'm enjoying the ride.
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