Four Week Progress

Last Friday (I know, I'm a week late) was our four-week check-in to gauge our progress on the Brutal Beauty Bootcamp program. I'm not going to show all of the pictures, because I'd rather unveil the totally drastic changes at the end of 12 weeks. Instead, I'll show you a photo of what appears to be the most dramatic change that you would actually notice if you saw me on the street. And no, I'm not talking about the haircut. ;)

Taken 8Jan12

Taken 5Feb12

 I can't believe how puffy and fat my face was before! Please ignore the horrible hair, red nose and lack of makeup, too. This was taken mid-cold and my nose had been running like a faucet all day.

Tally to date
Pounds lost: 8.5
Total Inches Lost (measured at neck, bust, underbust, upper right arm, natural waist, at navel, hips, right thigh, and right calf): 9.25

It appears that the initial fat loss has occurred from around my internal organs and off my face. The rest of me looks slightly smaller but nothing so dramatic as my face. I've lost two inches off my waist, but again, more likely from the fat disappearing from my abdominal cavity, not subcutaneous fat. That's the way it works with me. In a couple weeks, once all the extra organ fat has been burned off, the more visible layer will start to go, too.

So - how do I feel? I'm kind of hungry once in a while, but that's due more to poor food choices than anything, I think. On rest days I really need to be mindful of where my calories are coming from. And I also need to stop buying pizza from the shop next door to my new work.  It's going to sabotage all the good work I've done thus far. At least I've been able to resist all those fabulous smelling bagels and donuts at the Tim Horton's that is on the other side of my branch. Sigh.

Week 2 Day 5 of BBB

It's late Friday evening, closing in on the end of the second week of Brutal Beauty Bootcamp. I'm pretty pleased with how things are going, notwithstanding that stupid piece of junk in my bathroom that calls itself a scale. Grr!

Ok, ok. I understand that it's a bad thing (supposedly) to weigh yourself every day. I understand that sometimes you can see the scale not move (or even go up!) yet still lose inches. I get it. I really do. But. I weigh myself every day. It's just a thing I do. And it's not because I want to punish myself about what I ate yesterday, or didn't eat...it's because, well...I kind of look at this like an experiment.

For example: I've noticed a trend over the last two weeks. The day after a training day, my weight is always up. It seems that the more carbs I eat, the more my weight goes up. It's a positive correlation. My calories are on-target, my protein is nice and high, I'm eating REALLY CLEAN...there's no other reason why I could be gaining weight. So, it must be water.

Last week, when I first noticed it, that weight (plus some) disappeared by the morning of the next training day. Today, I was up a pound from three days ago (the morning of my first workout day this week, the furthest I can get from a carb re-feed).

Last night, I got curious. I can't really tell much by my waistband if I'm losing any fat from the belly. I see some change in my face and neck, but I haven't measured my neck (hmm should do that, now that I think of it). So I measured myself. I was pleasantly surprised. In total, since I last measured myself at the end of December, I've lost an inch off my waist, an inch off my thigh, 3/4 of an inch off my upper arm, and an inch off my bust measurement. Wow. Not bad for - essentially - two weeks of serious bootcamp and one week of half-assed somewhat Paleo eating and a couple workouts!

I'm pretty pleased. I think I'll keep this up!