How To Be Healthy Without Being Control-Freaky

Yesterday Diana asked this interesting question which gave me pause ...

But would you say it is possible to get to all these benefits WITHOUT going through all the control-freaky, tough parts first?

The reason that things have changed so dramatically is because my only intention every moment is to take great care of myself body, mind and spirit. When I was just focused on how I looked and a number on the scale, I was living solely in my mind (rules, plans, maths, goals, to-do lists, success/failure judgement, guilt, no pain no gain, etc.) My new approach is based on a balance between head, heart and health.

Head [mind]
I am motivated to eat well, exercise, get enough sleep, meditate and relax because my belief system is now based on holistic health. I use my brain to assess data, apply knowledge and analyse feedback. It doesn't make strict rules but gentle negotiable guidelines. If I stop consulting my mind I live in anarchy without a system and without boundaries.

Heart [spirit]
I listen to my heart which lets me know when I'm on the right track. By having an open heart I am responsive to connecting with other people and nature and my focus is outward rather than inward. My feelings and emotions are chosen and not dictated by what I do or think. I concentrate on who I am, my values and simply being me - warts and all. There is no self judgement and no sense of being a victim. If I reject my uniqueness then I deny my divinity. I deeply and completely love and accept myself. If I stop consulting my spirit I live in selfishness, emotional chaos and self hate.

Health [body]
I prefer clean, healthy food. I prefer vegetables and fruit over cakes and biscuits. I am in tune with my body and know what is hunger, what is a legitimate craving (I'm deficient) and what is an emotional craving. I know how particular foods make me feel over the hours they are digesting in my system. I know my protein, carbs and fat and I know when more of one or the other is needed. I prefer to exercise my body so that I am fit and strong because I have more energy when I do. It is not a chore, it is a daily indulgence. If I stop consulting my body I eat crappy food, don't get enough sleep, over or under exercise and feel uncomfortable in my skin.

So it's all about balance ~ searching for and finding that place where all three areas have equal input. The traditional weight loss approach would seem to focus on the head only. It seems to me that the eat less/move more prescription rarely works in isolation and results in (a) giving up because it's all too hard or (b) getting all control-freaky.

So Far - Loving It - AD 2:5

Weight ... 62.2
Fat ... 117 ... 65%
Protein ... 112 ... 28%
Carb ... 27 ... 7%
Cals ... 1598

Alicia and Jessica have asked and I will answer.

I am absolutely loving the Anabolic Diet and I am seeing real results in the way I look which is worth far more than anything Satan's Spawn has to say (the scales).

Here is my research thesis 3 weeks into the experiment.

I think there are 2 types of dieters. Those who can eat complex carbs and thrive on them and those who don't. I don't know if there is any way to easily tell which type you are but I have some of my usual whacky ideas.

People who thrive on carbs may be
(a) those who have only developed weight issues in the recent past
(b) those who LOVE alcohol
(c) those who LOVE cardio
(d) those who have a distinct area where they put on weight (tummy or hips/thighs only)
(e) those who could never survive very long without fruit
(f) those who love real chocolate, ice cream and lollies and struggle to give them up
(g) those who are happy to eat 5 or 6 small meals a day

People who can live without carbs may be
(a) those who have had a weight problem all their lives
(b) those who aren't that keen on alcohol
(c) those who aren't that keen on cardio
(d) those who put weight on fairly uniformly all over their body (more hourglass shape)
(e) those who could never survive very long without cheese
(f) those who find low sugar versions of chocolate, ice cream and lollies more than enough to satisfy the odd sweet craving
(g) those who are happy to eat 3-4 larger meals a day

The good carb metabolisers do best with low fat and balanced protein and carbs. They enjoy the energy and buzz that carbs give them and feel lethargic without them.

The good fat metabolisers do best with high fat and low carbs. They are anxious types who enjoy the calmness and evenness of low carb and feel hungry and irritated when they include carbs in their diet.

SO ... I would recommend that you only try this diet if you are able to give up fruit, complex carbs and alcohol quite easily. If you prefer cheese to pasta then you will probably do well. And don't forget that you can eat all the oats, sweet potato, rice and fruit you want 1-2 days a week. If raisin toast is really just a vehicle for slabs of melted butter then you are probably a good fat metaboliser.

The one caution is not to make this into a low fat, low carb affair. No skinless chicken breasts and or egg whites. You have to have dark chicken meat, fatty fish, red meat and whole eggs. Plus a good supply of nuts, seeds and oil. You can add moderate amounts of cheese and cream if you keep it within your calorie limit. There is nothing more miserable than no fats and no carbs!

Another piece of advice is try to avoid frankenfood. I have given up my beloved protein bars and even protein powder in favour of whole foods. The only thing I eat that has been 'processed' is cheese and cream (and the odd Skinny Cow).

You also have to be an accountant when it comes to keeping your carbs at 30g a day. You have to count everything including tea (vanilla green tea has carbs), diet coke, splenda and cordial.

What does my low carb eating day look like:
B: pancakes made from 1 whole egg, 2 whites, ricotta and psyllium served with butter and low carb ice cream
L: chicken thigh or 1/4 chicken with almonds and cream cheese + green salad (sometimes)
S: nuts and cheese
D: meat and veges

If I get hungry I have more meat, or cheese or nuts. If I go higher one day in calories I usually find I under eat the next day (just like a 'normal' person). I drink lots of green tea, a couple of cans of diet coke and at least 3 x 750ml bottles of water with a splash of low sugar lime cordial.

My exercise routine is rather more free-form. At the moment my goal is to train 1 body part per day if it is not sore from previous exercise. I favour working my back and shoulders as their growth makes the most difference to my shape.

M: Legs = deadlifts and squats
T: rest if my back and shoulders are still sore from Monday (deadlifts make me sore everywhere). If I'm not sore I'll do shoulders = press, upright rows, reverse flyes, cable pulls
W: Back = underhand pull down, wide grip pull down, rows, back extensions
Th: Chest = press, flyes, pushups, pec machine (only needs maintenance so doesn't matter if I am a bit tired by this day. If things are too much I rest again because I'll hit my chest on Friday anyway).
F: Upper body depletion before carb refeed - Chest, Back, Tricep, Bicep and Shoulders supersets
S: Off
S: Off

I fully deplete before my carb up to make sure the carbs go directly into my muscles and I let them rest and grow. I don't use the carb load to smash my body straight away. I let things 'cook' over the weekend and go back to the gym on Monday.

I also do a lot of incidental walking (I don't have a car) and I do yoga a couple of times a week.

Carb loads are all complex carbs, no deliberate protein (only incidental from the carbs) and low fat. I use my fat allowance on treat carb/fat foods like chocolate or chips. I eat frequent small meals on this day. I have only done one refeed so I am no expert.

There you go. Embark on this journey at your own risk!

Cardio or not to Cardio

I am the former fat chick who lost 20kg by cutting out junk food and lifting weights. I didn't do any cardio.

I am also the former fat chick who got skinny and ran 5km nearly every morning for an entire month and didn't lose one extra gram of fat.

So I have mixed feelings about cardio.

I know that it burns calories while you are doing it, and if you do high intensity intervals, you burn extra calories afterwards. What does that mean to me? It means that I am STARVING all day. In fact, I have had my biggest binges after an intense RPM class or a long run.

I have been contemplating this thing we call cardio and I have formulated one of my weird theories. I don't think that the activity requires so much fuel that I am in massive deficit and therefore hungry. I think it is all about stress.

When I run, do sprints or an RPM class, the resultant rapid beating of my heart and shortness of breath feels like there is something wrong. It feels the same as when I am frightened, I am emotionally upset or I feel panicked about something. This is how I physically experience anxiety. I don't know much about hormones but I am pretty sure that this physical state causes my body to be flooded with cortisol.

My conditioned response to stress, rightly or wrongly, is to find comfort and the quickest route is food. It is not genuine hunger I am feeling after intense cardio but a learned coping strategy for the stress.

Curiously, I never experience these feelings when I weight train. I don't know if it is because I breathe deeply and slowly, or because there is no urgency to what I am doing but lifting seems like I am doing something right. I know my heart beats faster and I can work up a sweat (thank you Mr Deadlift) but somehow I feel more solid and grounded. It is the same when I do incline walking on the treadmill - solid, grounded, and calm.

Some people thrive on stress. Some people live their lives from one adrenalin filled moment to the next and want more. Me, I want peace. I want to quieten the chattering voices in my head. I want to feel calm.

I think I'll give the high intensity cardio a miss for now.

Photo Shoot Challenge - T - 3 Weeks

Starting weight: 63.8
Last week: 62.6
This week: 62.1
Loss this week: ★ 0.5 kg
Total loss : 1.7
Left to lose: 3.3

I am back to my 0.5kg a week pattern but I am still extremely happy to have lost 1.7kg in the last three weeks. I won't make my goal, but I should be at most 60.x by photo shoot and under 60kg by Christmas.

I have had a good week, busy at work and only two gym sessions so far but it doesn't seem to have impacted on the weight loss. I trashed my shoulders on Tuesday and they are still a bit tender which makes arms/chest/back a bit difficult because you use your shoulders for everything.

I am leaning out nicely, there is no jelly covering my belly any more, my hip bones are emerging more and more each day and I can see quad lines in my legs.

I am very calm and under control and it feels brilliant. I just had a bacon and egg beef burger (without the bun) for breakfast - you gotta love that!

Onwards and downwards ...

Photo Shoot Challenge - T - 4 Weeks

Starting weight: 63.8
Last week: 63.7
This week: 62.6
Loss this week: ★ 1.1 kg
Total loss : 1.2
Left to lose: 3.8

I had forgotten how much pleasure you get from seeing the numbers go down in the course of a week. This huge loss (for me) TTOM assisted but I am still happy!

I have eaten well (I even ate out twice at the pub) and trained hard the last 6 days out of 7 and this morning I am sore all over.

I base my success on Fern's intervention - she gave me some nutrition and training ideas and most importantly the 'cordial cheat'.

I have a hard time drinking plain water and I normally only drink green tea to get my fluids in. This is not so easy in summer. At Fern's suggestion I have been putting a little sugar free cordial in my drink bottle. Since last Sunday I have been drinking at least 4 x 750ml bottles each day on top of my tea and 1-2 cans of diet coke. I don't count the calories.

Yesterday I trained arms, glutes and abs. A weird thing happened after my deadlifts (a personal best of 50kg). On the palm of my left hand I had a stinging sensation and took of my glove to see a vein in my palm completely blown out. I now have a large black bruise in my palm. Weird ...

Incline Intervals

In the pursuit of a tight toned butt my new gym buddy suggested I try stairs and hills. After two days on the step machine this morning I jumped on the treadmill with a slow incline walk in mind.

About 3 minutes in it occurred to me that I should ramp up the incline for one minute (so steep that you have to hang on) and then back down for a minute. I think I was at 14.0 on the high and 6.0 on the low at a fairly moderate pace.

20 minutes later my hamstrings and glutes were screaming and I was drenched in sweat although it didn't actually feel like very hard work.

So if you don't feel like pounding away at interval sprints which are tough on your knees and make your jiggly bits ... well jiggle, then maybe try the incline version. It's cardio with muscle building. Two for the price of one!

The mystery is solved

This is how you get DOMs in your glutes and hamstrings after doing yoga. Even though I do yoga at least once a week (sometimes twice) I never count it as exercise for my body, only for my brain. This week, my body got a workout. It's called Half Moon.

Too Fat to Go to the Gym?

I wake in the morning and lie on my back staring at the ceiling. I put my hand on my belly. It is round and protruding, even while lying on my back.

I pull on my gym clothes and need to change my leggings because they are too tight and my belly and hip fat spills over the top. I find a pair of track pants and a loose singlet that hides the fat.

Once I am at the gym I try not to look in the mirror but catch unexpected glimpses of myself. My underarms sag when I do shoulder presses, my stomach sticks out when I do crunches and my breasts seem to get in the way.

On the treadmill, I notice that my thighs rub together and my backside wobbles with every stride.

Later, as I get in the shower, I look at my bloated rounded body. I can no longer see my hip bones, or a space between my thighs.

As I dress, my choice of clothes diminishes daily. I have long since abandoned my fitted T shirts for looser tops that cover the extra padding around my hips and mid section.

Waves of depression wash over me at various times during the day as I feel the changes in my body. Sometimes I wish that I had never dieted down to 54 kgs. In hindsight, I should have been happy at 60kgs and the routines I had in place to stay there. Getting really lean hasn’t helped me stay leaner, it has actually made things (in my head) worse.

But this is not a post of doom and despair. It is a post of hope. I have come to realise that I cannot unlearn 3 years of healthy thinking and behaviour in 6 short months.

Although I cannot explain how I know how to ride a bike, I know how. I don’t analyse it, or plan it or write it out, I have faith in my ability to ride and get on with it.

I know how to eat healthy with appropriate control, and how much fat my body prefers. I am not going to over think the process. I am going to relax and let my old (good) habits and instinct take over. The first step has been taken. I have cut back on all dry carbs (wheat, oats, rice) since Monday and am focusing on lean protein, non-starchy vegetables and diary. It is amazing how my hunger has completely subsided.

I am slipping back into my old ways, and it is a good thing.

10 x 3 OR 5 x 6 still equals 30

I have been having success (if success means being unable to walk or move my arms) with a different approach to training.

In the past I have 'trained to failure' which means only just being able to get the last rep out with superhuman effort. Training like this is painful, can leave you physically exhausted and put you off going to the gym. All that effort is too much to face when you are already tired.

There is another school of thought that says you should never train to failure because of the stress it places on your body and your mind. Instead you do the same amount of work with more rest.

Theoretically, if you lift a weight 10x for 3x sets you are putting a 30x load on your muscle. If 10 is the maximum you reps you can achieve before you fail, then 3 sets is plenty.

You put the same amount of load on your muscle if you do 5x reps for 6 sets with exactly the same weight. Only now you don't feel any stress or strain because you have plenty left in the tank.

With this approach, you may choose a slightly heavier weight to start with, and do more sets. I have been doing 5 reps x 8 sets. (Here's a handy hint - write the number 1 through 8 in your training diary and cross off the sets otherwise it is too hard to keep track of where you are up to). Sometimes the last set is a bit tough but nothing like the burning, quivering, lactic acid nightmare of lifting until you can't lift anymore.

It almost feels like cheating because you don't feel like you've worked hard at all. But you will know about it the next day (and beyond). It is especially good if you have an injury or an exercise that causes you pain of one sort or another because if you lift this way you don't get to the point when your dodgy knee or shoulder starts to hurt (in a bad way).

I have also been just doing one exercise for each body part. So lower body was just deadlifts, back extensions, abs and box squats. Upper body was chest press, bicep curls, skull crushers and military press (no back needed as it was still sore from those deadlifts). Quick and easy!

Try an experiment. Give yourself a light day when you halve the number of reps you are doing at your current kg/lb weight, double the sets then add a couple more. See if you don't curse me the next day when you can't blow dry your hair.