The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

As promised it’s time to lay it all out...

All journeys have beginnings and mine started about 9 months ago when I started Crossfit.  While I don’t have a picture or a weight from when I started, I do have a picture and a weight about 2 months in… this is me in November and I weigh 173 pounds.  It was at this point I decided to take on eating Paleo.

   

Well, needless to say, while I learned a lot about nutrition and what my body wanted (and didn't want), the weight loss I expected did not happen.  I even went to a cooking class by Paleo Nick, (#PaleoNick).  Awesome class by the way, and highly recommend it if he comes to your area.  However, it still didn't make a difference.  This pictures below shows me 3 months into my original quest and now at 178 pounds.

 Things weren't adding up… sure my weights in the gym were getting heavier, I was even logging weights that put me on the whiteboard (a board at the gym that shows the top three scores for lifts, workouts and other benchmarks), but that was it.  I wasn’t losing weight and I was (and still am) struggling with elements that required me to move my own weight, such as running and pull-ups. (Handstand push-ups I'm good with).

As I said in my first post, everything begins in conversation.  I started talking to an amazing woman at our gym, Casey, who had helped some of our coaches with the struggles they had been having around the area of food.  She took me on and began working with me on a specific diet to get my weight down.  She asked me to take pictures at the very beginning.  I didn't because I didn't want to see, but now I wish I had.

The first week of the program I lost 6 pounds.  Unfortunately, it did not stay off.  6 weeks in and I was still at 173#.  Pictures below, with the following stats: 

Ht: 5'4"

wt: 168

waist circumferance: 33"

Hip Circ: 39"

Right Bicep: 11"

Left Bicep: 11.5"

Right forearm: 9.5"

Left forearm: 9.5"

Right quad: 22"

left quad:22"

right calf: 15"

left calf:15"

BF%: 26.6%

Current weight: 168# (was taken after I had a stomach bug.  I'm just being honest)

Lean muscle weight: 124.8#

Fat weight: 43.6#

So now the game really begins… weekly updates on my progress as well as logs of my workouts and food intake.  My goal is to reach 150# or a BF% of around 15%-18%, we'll see which comes first and where I perform best.

My biggest struggle certainly revolves around food.  Not only do I work with food (and drink), but I also find comfort in it when I am upset.  What is your Achilles heel? 

The adventure continues tomorrow.  But in the meantime, there it was… the good, the bad and the ugly.