It's been a while...

Wow.  I didn't realize how long it's been since I have posted here!  There just isn't enough time in the day...

I just went back and read my last two posts.  I had a friend tell me it wasn't fair to attack WW like I did, since it works for so many people.  Her point was that WW (and programs like it) encourage people to be healthier where they are and within the confines of their willingness.  And this is true.  No doubt this is true.  And we all where we are.  One size certainly does not fit all.  So, I will put down that fight.  I didn't mean to offend, and if I offended, or worse, insulted progress that anyone has made under these programs, I truly apologize.  Any step that a person can take toward being healthier is a step in the right direction.  And many times these small steps do have a domino effect, resulting in even better decisions toward better health.  That has been my experience, for sure.  I have learned all of the lessons I have learned the hard way!

Speaking of lessons...I have learned another hard one.  Damn you, calories!  After having the baby, I started back where I left off.  It only seemed to make sense.  Only, I don't have the muscle mass I did then.  I am carrying an extra 25 pounds.  And I did exactly what I have been railing against...I fell back on something that has worked in the past, but didn't take the time to research how doing this might be self-sabotaging.  Since I had Jenna, I have been extremely diligent with my commitment to working out and even to the way I was eating.  Problem was that, even though I was eating clean, I was eating too much, resulting in too high of a caloric intake....and resulting in no weight loss.  Another example of how eating too much of even "good" stuff can sabotage progress.  It seems like every couple of weeks JP and I have sat down and tweeked my eating.  Everytime I started out hopeful, but ended up frustrated after a week or two because the results I was seeing were not proportional to the work I put in.  So, it seems as though we were constantly back to the drawing board. 

The first thing most people would ask when this would come up is, "What about your workouts?"  And then, "Maybe you need to lift weights less and do more cardio."  And in theory this idea sounds good.  In application, it's all wrong, especially for my goals.  We looked over my workouts every time we sat down to tweek the nutrition plan and each time we agreed that my workout plan was on target.  I could go more into it, but as I have said previously, my overall goal is not weight loss.  Although weight loss (or, more accurately, fat loss) is one of my goals, another of my goals is lean muscle gain.  As a result, cutting back on lifting and kicking up cardio would actually result in muscle wasting, resulting in a loss of lean muscle mass.  And lean muscle loss over time actually decreases the amount of resting calories burned, decreasing the resting metabolic rate over time.  Definitely not what I am looking to do.

Back to nutrition...well...it seems as though we have finally found a combination that works.  I'll outline what this is in the next post, but I am happy that, after all of this hard work, I am starting to see some progress. :)