For a background to this post see How I Plan to Lose 20 Pounds and Win the Bet.
Week #6 Weigh-In: +1. Total Loss: -6.
The bad new is this was the first week where I gained weight. The good news is I lost another 1/2 inch off the waist. My pants are getting a little loose. Am I gaining or regaining muscle? Possibly. Now that I am in the gym 5 times a week for knee rehab, I am lifting more volume. My intensity is of course lower, but when you have a knee injury and work out in a gym that is too hot, something must give.
6 week, 6 pounds, 1 inch off waist. That kind of fat loss would make me a boring contestant on The Biggest Loser. But it is working for me.
If I don’t lose weight in Week 7, I will return to the food journals.
Notes:
- I pigged out on Sunday. Can I call this a refeed? I blame poor sleep. Bad sleep leads to bad food choices. Whenever I talk to people with serious weight issues they ALWAYS have trouble getting good sleep.
- I ran out of tuna and didn’t replace my stash until Friday. Protein suppresses appetite. Tuna is a quick hit of protein. When I was eating tuna in the AM, I was dropping weight. When I ran out, I started to gain. This week I will have plenty of tuna.
Andrew
Apr 6, 2014 — 12:56 am
For better sleep, and motivation….?!?
http://blog.sethroberts.net/2014/04/05/bedtime-honey-and-motivation/
MAS
Apr 6, 2014 — 9:33 am
@Andrew – Tried honey. Doesn’t work for me. Full explanation here:
https://criticalmas.org/2014/02/experiments-update-sleep-gray-hair-tight-neck/
My one night of bad sleep was just that, one night. My sleep has been awesome this year so far. I may have discovered another sleep hack which I am currently experimenting with that is specific to naps.
Mans Denton
Apr 6, 2014 — 9:43 am
Hey MAS! Nice meeting you in Seattle. About the tuna – what are your thoughts on excessive mercury? Would you consider switching to canned salmon and/or fresh?
Love the ease of tuna, but always been a bit worried about overdoing it. Definitely some lack of research and ignorance on my part.
MAS
Apr 6, 2014 — 9:55 am
@Mans – Nice meeting you as well. Hope you located your phone.
I’ve never subscribed to “fear of a toxic planet” thesis. Living in a bubble worrying about things outside your control is likely far more damaging to our health that the toxins we seek to avoid.
I am persuaded by this post which states the benefits from seafood far outweigh the negatives – even with tuna.
https://chriskresser.com/the-truth-about-toxic-mercury-in-fish/
Salmon is fine. Tuna is just cheaper and more convenient right now.
Bill
Apr 7, 2014 — 12:33 pm
MAS,
You said that protein is an appetite suppressant and yet I noticed on your food journals you don’t eat eggs. Is that just personal preference (taste), or is there another reason?
MAS
Apr 7, 2014 — 2:36 pm
@Bill – I go through swings where I eat eggs and then swings where I don’t. This week I’ll be eating quite a few eggs.
BigTex
Apr 8, 2014 — 6:42 am
After reading Andrew’s link I tried honey before bed again and observed how I felt when I woke up
this morning…I was more energetic and alert…but this was just one morning…but I plan on
continueing it to see if I think there is really something to it…I am usually fairly energetic and alert, but I felt a little more so this morning. My sleep was weird though, it was really deep until about 3 am when I got up to go to the bathroom…I could never really get back to the deep level again before I got up at about 6.
MAS
Apr 8, 2014 — 6:54 am
@BigTex – You could try adding my sleep hack, which targets going back to sleep in the early AM.
https://criticalmas.org/2014/01/amazing-back-sleep-hack/
BigTex
Apr 8, 2014 — 7:01 am
I forgot about this…I will mix up a batch and have it ready…
thomas
Apr 10, 2014 — 12:55 pm
are you losing bellyfat or just waist girth? i have a ring of fat around my waist and it seems that it is permanent.
BigTex
Apr 10, 2014 — 1:05 pm
Mark Sasson would say your not “fat adapted” meaning your not adapted to using fat as fuel…but you are not unusual…the first place you add fat is your waist and its the last to go…
fitnessbetwinner
Apr 10, 2014 — 1:47 pm
@Thomas: where you tend to gain fat it mostly genetically determined. Belly fat/visceral fat can be very stubborn.
thomas
Apr 10, 2014 — 5:28 pm
thanks for the advice. I am trying to lose the belly fat so that I may not have to take blood pressure medications if it is sufficiently reduced. my limbs are all getting thinner but the gut remains. gonna try some extreme methods now.
MAS
Apr 10, 2014 — 6:14 pm
@Thomas – I am losing around the waist.
I wish I could advise you, but I have no way to that. We are unique. I will say that I question extreme methods. Although they may get better results in the short term, they are rarely sustainable.