I think it was again a mediocre week, but it was understandably mediocre given my continued (perpetual) workload and preparation for travel … which I’m now writing this update while going thru Kansas, so, this post isn’t going to be as long as my past weekly look-backs.
But with that said, something that should be said at the beginning here is that I was quite concerned the last two weeks about not meeting my goal for the end of this first 8-week block of cutting weight and fat. There was a bit of tapering off in the middle, there was uncertainty headed into this last week of cut, and concern that if I didn’t make it, I would quit in disgust and failure. That said, I made it. And I need to recognize that because, well, I did.
That in mind, looking ahead another two months, I need to continue to build on this progress. I have successfully lost 10 lbs before. I’ve never really successfully, steadily, lost more than about 10 lbs. if I hit -15 lbs and am still losing weight, that will be a new record for me. In 14 years. So, we shall see.
Food: Food was again good this week, extremely little cheating, especially considering the bread pudding I made that was spur of the moment and considering it was my first week where calories were dropped by 60 per day.
Exercise: I again succeeded in expending more than 1875 calories this week from exercise, but I had to struggle to do it. Struggle as in carving out time, finding motivation, and the last two nights, the setting I’ve been using the last two weeks on the elliptical seemed extra-hard. I don’t know if that’s because of all the stuff I had going on, it was a lot hotter in the basement as we go into summer, or if there’s the decreased calories that were starting to affect me.
But, seriously, I’m supposed to be doing other stuff! Not just cardio, but some weight lifting and core exercises with body weight. I mean, come on.
Sleep: I napped more this week than last, despite getting more sleep at night. So, there’s an issue there that’s cropping up. Hopefully this break next week will fix some things, if it’s body chemistry because of 8 weeks on a cut.
Measurements: My big concern from last week was that I would not reach my goal weight this week. I can within 0.04 lbs, so that’s a win, and that was the week’s average. Meaning, as you can see from the infographic, my weight at the end fo the week was below it. That means I consistently lost 0.7% of my weight, per week, for the last 8 weeks, meeting my goal. Driving in the car now, so I can’t check, but if that isn’t a record for me, it’s close.
Bodyfat percentage was also down this week, but a rather large drop. I did the measurements twice and they came out the same, so I’m again two weeks or more ahead of where I planned to be at this point, so that’s also going well. Of course, more than one-quarter of my body is fat, so that’s not good, but it’s decreasing which is good.
Points: Points were again lower this week because I did no exercise beyond the planned cardio, and because there was the bread pudding day where I went way over on carbs.
Looking Ahead 1 Week: As discussed in various other posts, I’m going to be in Ohio this week for my mom’s birthday. Very concerned about reverting to old habits, but I brought exercise clothes and there’s an elliptical, pool, Bowflex, and roads. And, I brought several bins of food for pre-planned snacking and cooking to really try not to revert. 🤞🤞🤞
It also might be hard to tell if I rever weight-wise because I will be officially on break. Or, more accurately, on a maintenance plan. That means my calories go back up to my BMR, not to -450 per day from that to lose a pound a week. So, I should be able to maintain my weight this week. Officially, my goal is to keep my average at 214.6 lbs. But, that doesn’t factor in the slope: the fact that by the end of this Week 08 I was below that average. And since I’m writing this on Sunday, I can say my weight this morning was 213.2 lbs. I’d be very happy if I can maintain that, or close to it.
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