Not read the previous parts to Juliet from Hull Weight Loss Series?
On with todays FINAL PART 5!
July 5th 2014 was when this journey began. What an incredible 12 months it had been, I was fitter and lighter than I ever remember being as an adult. 1 year to the day I was weighing in exactly 12 stone lighter and I couldn’t have been more proud of myself for what I had achieved. But I wasn’t done yet, I still had weight and fitness goals to achieve.
I began looking at the data I had collected over the 12 months to see what changes had happened to my body composition over that time. When trying to lose ‘weight’ what I actually want to be doing is losing fat and maintain muscle. My weight loss had been reasonably consistent averaging 1 stone per month but when I broke down my body composition from weight loss before training and weight loss after training the results were quite staggering.
As shown in the graph below, my fat mass continues to drop at a good rate but since beginning training in October my muscle mass has reduced at a much slower rate. There are peaks and troughs in the figures due to hydration levels at the time of weigh in but generally the trend over the months is clear. Maintaining muscle mass helps to maintain weight loss as muscle burns more calories than fat. Also my body shape is greatly improved.
This month I also took a trip back to my home town of Kings Lynn to see friends and family. I bumped into a few people that I hadn’t actually seen since I began losing weight. It was surreal that people did not even recognise me and there were a few double takes and comments like ‘that’s not Juliet… that’s half of Juliet!’ Everyone was very complimentary of what I had achieved so far and it felt great.
August
On the 1st August and I managed to set myself a new personal best for my 5k row coming in at 19minutes and 9 seconds getting ever closer to my sub 19 minute target!
One of my early goals was to fit into a pair of designer jeans that I had purchased back in October 2014 that worked out as a UK size 12/14. My aim was to fit into these jeans for my trip to America at the end of August. I tried on the jeans at the start of the month and they fitted perfectly! In fact a little too well because by the time it came to flying out to America I couldn’t wear them as the waist was a little too large!
I had begun to find my weight loss was slowing right down as I got closer to my goal weight and it was becoming harder to stay focused as I knew I was going to America and would put on weight so it was tempting to start the holiday early but that would just mean more weight to lose when I returned. So I decided to mix things up a little. Rather than some of my usual gym cardio sessions I would try the classes at the gym. I already regularly did a Zumba class each week so I would work other classes in. It was fun trying the different classes and great to mix things up a little. I wanted my weight to be 13 stone something by the time I flew out to America and I was pleased when my last weigh in of August put me at 13 stone 13lb! It was great to reach another milestone; every pound I lost was a new lowest weight.
I wouldn’t have dared dream of weighing less than 14 stone a year before this day.
September
When I got home from America on Friday 11th September I stepped on the scales straight away …. 15st 7lb!! That was a gain of 22lb!
I knew I had eaten 3 times my normal calorie intake of around 1500 a day every day whilst I was away but I had continued to exercise and walked miles.
The maths didn’t add up, in order to gain 22lb of fat I would have needed to overeat by around 77,000 calories – that’s 7,700 a day whilst I was away. Even at a conservative estimate of burning 2,500 calories a day BMR (Basal Metabolic Rate) and exercise I would have needed to consume 10,000 calories a day in order to gain that amount of fat! John emailed me back and explained not to panic…..!
A Question……..
Ever seen the film sliding doors where it plays out the 2 life scenarios based on her catching the train and not catching the train? The moment I stepped on the scales it was a BATTLE between the old me and the new me!
The old me would have seen a 22lb gain and I would
- Be angry with myself for undoing 2 months hard work in 10 days.
- Decide I might as well enjoy the weekend too as I’d blown it anyway and diets only start on Mondays anyway!
- Plan something drastic to lose the lbs as quickly as possible to get back to where I was before. This would be very low calorie, skipping meals and exercising for longer periods of time (beginning Monday).
- Resent that I couldn’t go away on holiday for 10 days and enjoy myself without gaining a stone and a half for no real good reason!
The new me saw the 22lb gain and I would:
- Trust in the science that there was no way that it was a gain of fat and the water weight would drop off quickly.
- Appreciate my holiday and enjoyed the relaxed eating but was keen to get back to my normal way of eating.
- Note the effects the high fat and sugar foods had on my body, bloating, greasy skin, lack of energy and headaches had returned and use it as another reason to get back to my normal eating.
- Not have to plan an extreme diet to drop the weight as just going back to my usual eating would be enough for the lbs to drop, initially at least.
- Decide I wanted a plate of veggies for my evening meal with a bit of lean protein – Oh how I’d missed nice vegetables.
Saturday 12th September –
The old me wouldn’t have weighed in because the holiday was continuing for the whole weekend. I would have weighed in on Monday and drawn a line then be ready to start some extreme diet. I would have continued to eat the types of foods I ate whilst I was on holiday the ones that should be enjoyed once in a while and not in large quantities every day!
The new me weighed in – 7lbs lighter already! Trusting in the science I knew I had eaten around 4500 calories a day and my Fitbit (exercise tracker) told me I had burnt around 2750 calories a day. Doing the maths over the 10 days that calculates to be a surplus calorie intake of 17,500 over the holiday which is a 5lb weight gain of fat. I knew from the science there was more water weight to drop off so I would weigh in each day and watch it drop off! As for my diet it was back to my usual routine, nothing drastic just the foods I was eating before I went away.
Sunday 13th September –
Old me is still eating anything I fancy because they will all be banned from Monday when I start the diet to lose the lbs I gained. I’d be feeling bad about myself because the amount and type of food that I am eating but despite this I would continue to eat those foods as if it’s the last time I will ever eat them.
New me weighed in again intrigued by how quickly the water weight would drop off, 14st 10lb that’s another 4lb gone and 11lb in 2 days. I was already starting to feel less bloated, my clothes feeling a better fit and my skin was less greasy.
Monday 14th September –
D Day for old me. Weigh in first thing, undoubtedly I would be weighing at least a few pounds heavier than on the Friday. I’d wake up feeling really hungry due to a carb heavy large evening meal but driven and ready to start the starvation diet that would see me drop those extra pounds super-fast!
Unfortunately after a super healthy breakfast of 2 eggs scrambled and a tablespoon of stir fried veg I’d start to feel really hungry mid-morning, in fact I would be starving hungry. I can’t eat anything because I need to lose those pounds! By the time lunch comes I would be ravenous and my small salad and chicken would not satisfy my cravings for carbs. I would be feeling irritable and become annoyed at myself for being in this position. I would feel deprived and question why I am bothering when I feel so bad. My planned evening meal of lean protein and veg was not going to cut it and on my way home I would be stopping off at the local Chinese as that is the only way I could satisfy my hunger. I would eat my meal like I hadn’t eaten for weeks. The diet would begin tomorrow.
The new me weighed in – 14st 6lb, another 4lb gone over a stone in 3 days. I knew it would soon drop off no need for extreme calorie cutting or over exercise just getting back to my normal habits and it’s dropping off. I still hadn’t got back to the gym as I was feeling pretty unwell from jet lag still but eating my veg and lean protein was helping me recover and feel better generally.
Tuesday 15th September –
The “Old me” would be back on the wagon, clean sheet, OK it’s not a Monday but the diet needs to resume as another 1lb gained due to yesterday’s over eating. But it’s like Groundhog Day, a small breakfast and a large carb heavy evening meal the night before leads to hunger around 10 am which then leads to overeating at lunch and I’m back off the wagon as I crave all the sugary foods and give in to those cravings.
The new me weighed in – 14st 4lb, another 2lb gone. Back to the gym tonight – my usual Tuesday training with John. I was back to my usual diet of protein breakfast, scrambled eggs, chicken and salad for lunch and protein and vegetables for dinner.
Wednesday 16th September –
“Old me” – pointless weighing in I know I’ll be heavier because of all the food I ate the day before, might as well enjoy the rest of the week because I’m away this weekend and get back to the diet Monday.
New me – weighed in 14st 4lb, stayed the same. I had expected this to be the case, before I went away I had weighed 13st 13lb and calculated based on calorie intake a 5lb weight gain on holiday putting me back at 14st 4lb with my holiday weight. No problem at all going back to my usual habits would see me lose around 1lb of fat a week so that 5lb would be gone in a few weeks’ time.
Thursday 17th September –
Old me – no point weighing in diet starts Monday!
New me – weighed in at 14st 3lb another 1lb gone. Back into my normal routines, no battles with myself over food or exercise just cracking on with it.
Friday 18th September –
Old me – same as before no point weighing in I’ll deal with the damage after having a super weekend. I’d be justifying it to myself that I deserved a break from it all, I’d earned it. I’d be ignoring the fact my clothes were too tight, that I felt bloated, my skin was greasy and I generally felt pretty awful.
New me – weighed in 14st 2lb that’s another 1lb lighter. That works out as my water weight dropped plus probably 2lb of the fat I had gained whilst on holiday.
In 7 days I had lost 19lb, whilst old me would have continued to gain weight and would be weighing in around 15st 10lb. I can’t say how much I would have gained but I don’t think it would be unrealistic to say that in another week of unrestricted calorie intake I would have gained another 3lb at least,. The sliding door moment was my decision when stepping on those scales to eat an evening meal in line with my usual habits rather than extending my holiday for the weekend. I can see how in previous weight loss attempts I so quickly lost control and gained weight when seeing such a large gain on the scales things can seem pretty hopeless with such a big gain but my week of weigh ins proves that it’s not hopeless at all.
Progress photographs – 17th October 2014 (25 stone) – 28th August 2015 (14 stone)
27stone vs. 13st 12lbs
As you can see by this amazing 5-part series……..Juliet has made AMAZING progress, not just in the weight loss, but with confidence, fitness, strength, mindset……the list could go on! I hope this helps lots of people realise what they can change – if they want to change.
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