How I Lost Weight this Summer
Earlier this summer I blogged about a reality check I received that I had gained some weight. As a result I made some changes in my lifestyle. The result? Well, I went to a wedding in the beginning of the summer and just attended one this past Friday. When I got measure for my tux for last Fridays, I learned that I had lost 2 inches around my waist!
Before my reality check, I had done P90X twice all the way through and ran 3 marathons, and I still didn’t look how I wanted to look with my shirt off. After doing a ton of research through the P90X nutrition guide and the BeachBody Forums, I learned that losing weight, getting a 6 pack, and looking great all come from the kitchen, not the gym!
Developing a healthy lifestyle is sustainable, dieting is not!
Below, I’ve given you what I did to lose weight based on my research. It worked for me. The reality is that losing weight is as easy as burning more calories in a day than you consume. Dieting is really about cultivating a healthy lifestyle more than it is “dieting” until you see a desired result. Developing a healthy lifestyle is sustainable, dieting is not! It will take discipline, but after a few weeks of disciplining yourself and starting to see the results, it becomes easier and easier to be disciplined and make healthy decisions.
I’d encourage you to get an accountability partner to hold you to your diet and to working out. I’d encourage you strongly to get the P90X nutrition guide, it really helps a lot. It gives lists of food that are great for you and foods that you shouldn’t eat. I literally take them with me when I shop and only buy things on the “good list”.
Me at a Wedding in Late June
Me on Vacation in Early August
What I did:
Changes in my Routine:
- I work out in the mornings for an hour to an hour and a half before I eat using P90X
- I started eating 5-6 small meals throughout the day instead of 2-3 big ones
- I tried to stay at or under 2,000 calories a day, tracking them using Tap & Track
- I tried to get all my carbs in before 5 p.m. on a certain day, in fact, I tried not to eat after 5-7 p.m. every night.
- I looked up the calories when I went out to eat, ate salads without dressing, lots of grilled chicken and vegetables (You can eat healthy when you eat out)
- I allowed myself at least one cheat meal a week, usually on a night out with friends or Laura (So when I was tempted to “waste” a cheat meal on something small during the week, I’d remind myself that I had a scheduled cheat meal coming up!)
Typical Diet:
Breakfast/PostWorkout Meal: Syntha 6 Protein Shake/Bannana/1 Cup of High Fiber, Low Sugar Oatmeal
Morning Snack: Protein Shake
Lunch: 1 Cup of Oatmeal, 1 Cup of Non-Fat Yogurt with Fruit, Hummus and Whole Wheat Crackers, Chicken
Afternoon Snack: Bowl of Low-Calorie, Low Sodium Soup, 2 cans of tuna in water with mustard or hummus,
Dinner: 2 Chicken breasts or Egg White Omelets
Late Snack (If I had to): Chicken Breast
If you’re looking to lost weight, I hope this helps you! Remember, losing weight is as simple as burning more calories than you consume in a given day and it’s all about a healthy lifestyle, not a diet!
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