Since January, I’ve been working with a woman named Katie on getting my nutrition under control. I have talked about it on a blog a little bit in the past. Basically, I’m currently in a caloric deficit and I count my macros with an emphasis on protein. This is driven toward goals involving weight loss and athletic performance. I have been getting compliments for a few weeks now about how I’m “killing it, looking thin, looking good, looking leaner, [etc].” I enjoy getting them and they reinforce that what I’m doing is worth the effort.
BUT…
I want to emphasize that it’s about more than how I look. Like most people, I puff up through the day with food and water intake. My scale will even show as much as 5 pounds gained through the day. Some days, I look like a puffer fish version of myself (hello, PMS!).
Anyway, I am so pleased with how this has gone over the past few months that I want to share a few things.
First, I was NOT going to work with a coach on this. After deciding that I couldn’t eat intuitively and feel good about my body, I started tracking my food and limiting myself to 1200 calories a day. I’d done it many times in the past and saw very fast results. I felt sluggish in my workouts, I couldn’t keep my eyes open, and I had too much advice coming from too many places. All well meaning, of course. I talked to Katie about how she thought she could help me and she broke down the many reasons that my plans were failing me. Intuitive eating won’t work if you’ve developed disordered eating habits.
I’ve been in a caloric deficit, but that doesn’t mean I’m drooling over food every time I see it. I don’t even really think about it as much anymore unless I’m hungry. When I’m hungry, I eat food. Yes, I check my macros to see what of the things I want would be the best choice to hit my goals FOR THE WEEK, not for only that day. I eat a lot more than 1200 calories. How did I get to the macro/calorie number equation? Katie did that for me and I used her app to help her dial it in. In the last 106 days, that’s worked for me.
This is a slow process, but I’ve lost 22 pounds of fat and gained about 2 pounds in muscle. Many times I’ve been “dieting”, I’ve lost fat and muscle together. I recently discovered that I fit into my old clothes I’d put away because I was too big to wear them. Before I started this coaching, I borrowed a pair of size 16 jeans from a friend because all I had were size 14 in my closet and I couldn’t fit them anymore. This past week, I threw on a pair from my closet and realized later that they were size 12! I immediately messaged Katie, who was very supportive, especially considering she gave birth less than 2 weeks prior and was probably quite busy with her own life.
I’ve been able to start running again! I have been running 3 miles a couple times a week in addition to my Crossfit workouts that I do 6 days a week. I have the energy to do it. That’s a huge statement as to how eating better has impacted my daily life.
I know much of this is just singing the praises of Katie and I’m sure some people will want to meet her for themselves. She does remote training stuff, for sure. Her info is at this link: https://www.breezeathletics.com/ . I get nothing for telling you about it. Just warm fuzzy feelings.
Thank you for reading! I searched my photos for a “before” comparable to this after and I can’t find one. I will have to do an updated “after” very soon for the actual photo I took at the start of this. Also, I may have published this before editing…so it might change…
Jenn's Journey 