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Saturday, November 5, 2011

P90x Day 13

As of this morning, I've made it through the first 2 weeks of P90x workouts combined with healthier eating (Sundays are my day off). Overall things have been going well, and I'm excited to move forward. I have had a few ups and downs this week, though.
First of all, at the end of last week, at weigh-in time I had lost 3 pounds! I was feeling really good about how much better I was looking even after just one week. I imagine what I was experiencing was no more water retention thanks to the healthier foods I was eating. I was fine with that, though. You have to start somewhere after all.
This week has been a little tougher. I've struggled with more cravings and more hunger, something I didn't experience at all last week. I think part of it may be my body adjusting to a higher activity level as well as just my regular hormone cycle highs and lows. Part of it too, though, I believe has to do with how much I've been focusing on that and stressing about it. I did so well the first week and dropped that weight so easily that this week I started feeling all of this anxiety about every single thing I put into my mouth: "Is this going to make me gain weight?" "Are my portion sizes too big?" "Am I not eating enough and slowing down my metabolism?" "Is this really the best thing for me to be eating right now?" etc. I think I stressed so much about it and focused so much negative energy on it that it was constantly on my mind, causing me to think about food more and thus feel more hungry more often. By the weekend I had added back two of those pounds that I dropped last week.
On another note, this week I had a colonoscopy done on me. Six years ago I went in for one, and the doctor found polyps in my colon, something unusual in someone as young as I was at the time. As a result, I now have to go back every 5 years or so to get another colonoscopy. So this was my return appointment. On the upside, I have improved my eating habits and overall lifestyle choices so much that I knew he wouldn't find any polyps this time, and I was right! Everything looked great.
On the downside, the nasty, vomit-tasting stuff I had to drink to clean out my system in preparation for the colonoscopy combined with the anesthesia given to me during the procedure did a number on my system. Now, even though almost 3 whole days have passed since the colonscopy, I still don't feel quite right. I've been so tired, and I seem to now be fighting off some bug. Plus my body doesn't seem to be handling any food I give it very well. Every single time I eat now, I feel bloated and stuffed, only to feel quite hungry again within a couple hours. I think this weird reaction probably contributed to gaining back those 2 pounds this week.
Despite that, I am still glad I had the colonoscopy done. It was a testament to me that the way I'm eating now, i.e. a plant-strong diet, very little animal-based protein, no refined sugars, and very few processed foods truly are helping to create health and longevity in me. It really has been a long road of trial and error to finally find the right eating lifestyle for me, but I am grateful for how much I've learned along the way, and I'm excited to be doing something to share that knowledge with other people! (Did I mention that I signed up to be a Beachbody coach? I am so excited about it! Check out my website at http://beachbodycoach.com/coachdkmom. Beachbody is a great company with some really fantastic products!)
So, moving forward into week 3, I intend to really focus my energy on what I'm doing right and the success I've already had (like making it through 2 whole weeks!) rather than stressing about what I might be doing wrong. To help with this I will focus a lot of my EFT exercises on having confidence in and love for my body no matter what.
I'm also going to continue using a new nutrition product that I've recently discovered called Shakeology. I am really excited to see the results this new protein/nutrition drink will bring me. So far I've only been using it for about a week, but I really like the taste of it, so it helps me stay away from the sweets because I know I will be getting some Shakeology later in the day.
Third, I am going to focus on getting 8 hours of sleep a night whenever possible so I don't end up in overtraining mode. I am confident that as I continue to exercise, get enough sleep, and eat right, my body will be back to 100% very soon.
Week 3, here I come!

4 comments:

  1. What the heck is EFT?

    So what do you suggest to someone who would LOVE to get 6 hours of sleep (so 8 would be heavenly) but cannot fall asleep? I can lay in bed for 2-3 hours and still be awake.

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  2. That's a tough one. Is it because your body isn't used to going to bed that early, or is it because you have too much on your mind? Have you ever tried meditating? I'm serious about this. Just try to empty your mind of all thoughts and worries and just focus on keeping your breathing really regular. If it's simply because your body isn't used to it, maybe try going to be an hour earlier than usual, or even 30 minutes, and allow your body time to get used to it before you jump to too early of a bedtime.

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  3. One thing, it's not really "early". I usually read until 12:30 or 1:00. Then I panic a little because it's getting so late! I try to turn my light off by 1:30 at the latest but lately I've found that I end up laying there until sometimes 3:00! So I'm very jealous when I read that you've gone to bed at 8:30!

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  4. Hmm. Two suggestions: Try going to bed before midnight, and get off the computer at least 10 minutes before you go to bed. Does reading help you relax? If so, try reading for a few minutes before you go to sleep. (Okay, I guess that was 3 suggestions.)

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