#paleo challenge
Well, I’m on day…25 of 30 (I had to think about that for a moment!) of the paleo challenge that my entire gym decided to do together. And I’m pretty pleased. If you had asked me a day ago, I would have growled at you, but since I let myself eat plenty of carbs last night (a sweet potato and a Larabar as a treat sound a little sad in retrospect) and a fatty (but not fattening!) breakfast this morning, I feel pretty fantastic. And it seemed to have a profound effect on my 9-mile run today. For whatever reason, I forgot to bring my water with me on the trail, so mild dehydration on a hot day like this slowed me down toward the end, but it was still a far more energetic run than I’ve had in quite awhile! So, I at least can’t say this kind of fuel is slowing me down.
In general, I feel that my performance has been slightly better, or at least is holding steady, when compared to how I have a tendency to eat while not paying much attention to diet. And, perhaps best of all, I’ve fully realized that fasting exercise is no more difficult than working out after eating. It’s nice to know that my body can accomplish the task at hand without needing food in some specific time frame.
So, how about the way my body looks and feels? Well, it’s tough to notice changes when you see yourself in the mirror everyday, which is, of course, what makes progress photos so important. I can tell that there is some amount of fat loss when I see how loosely my slacks fit or when I feel the more exposed contours of my quads and hamstrings. But the confirmation of visible change came in a very real way when my coach mentioned that I was looking leaner. I like to think that he’s just afraid that I’ll beat him! That is, he’s offering a 3-month membership to anyone who leans out more than him in this 30 day timeframe. Well, we will know for sure in the next week. In any case, I’m happy with how this has affected me.
Well, I did this last year, and I’m doing it again now. It’s the time of year where the entirety of my gym comes to the same conclusion: summer’s here and it’s time to lean out! So the majority of us, together, engage in a friendly competition to clean up our collective diet.
In the past, the prize has been a pot of cash reserved for the male and female who are able to reduce their body fat percentage most. This year, ANYONE who manages to cut more than our beloved leader and coach gets a free 3-month membership. And that’s a pretty substantial value.
So the competition is on, and I’m intent on “beating” him. Of course, I was rather pleasantly surprised when I received my initial hydrostatic test results anyway. After a few months of high stress and mediocre diet, I expected to have my body fat percentage closer to 25%. Instead, I was amazed to come up from the tank and hear the attendant inform me that I was sitting at 20.3%! I’m still a bit confused as to what metabolic pathways have been serving me so well, but I’m happy to claim that stat if I may.
With this challenge to cut our processed food, grain products, dairy (less unpasteurized, full-fat products), and legumes; I think I’m going to be seeing some nicely revealed muscles come July. More importantly, though, I know this will improve my performance! Every time I’ve made an attempt to become more “fat adapted” metabolically, I’ve experienced great success in my distance running and general energy levels. So, for a woman who is looking at an 8 hour race in August, this is a huge benefit.
Well, let’s get to the stats:
Current BFP: 20.3%
Current (Dry) Weight: 136.2 lb
Lean Mass: 108.6 lb
Fat Mass: 27.6 lb
And goals? Well, to achieve a leanness that will earn me 3 months free at the gym. ;) But, more specifically, I’d like to get down to about 17% with a combination of fat mass reduction and muscle growth. Tough, but doable. Especially when I’m running for hours on end during the process and walking around sites half of all working days.
I’ll keep you informed, friends.
