July 23, 2006
Body For Life - 5 week update
So I am about 5 weeks into the BFL - Body for Life challenge and thought it was perhaps time to drop in an update and outline my progress so far.
There have been a few changes, the weight has started to drop - 9lbs in total. I lost a bit in the first couple of weeks and then as usual I hit a plateau and then over the last few days its started to drop a bit again. Here's the weight chart:
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There also appears to have been some change to my body composition, with a small but definate (I think) increase in muscle mass and a decrease in the body fat mass - which is what I'm in it for.
I am probably not quite on target to achieve my high weight loss goals for this challenge, so I better start making more of an effort. I am spot on with the exercise, doing more cardio than prescribed and working hard with the weight training. I am mostly ok with the diet but I am allowing myself a drink once or twice a week, which I really ought to stop.
Generally I have found the diet ok. It took a while to fathom out what I needed to eat to get a portion of protein and carb at each meal but when that was sorted I find my six meals a day amounts to about 1800 cals a day. Thats not bad - all about portion control.
A typical days food intake will be:
Breakfast - Banana and protein smoothie
AM Break - Ham slices and 3 rice cakes
Lunch - Chicken fillets, couscous and carrots
PM Break - Myoplex Diet shake
Tea - Grilled Tuna, new potatoes, cabbage
Evening - Cottage cheese and 3 rice cakes
Initially I was sceptical of the protein supplements but they are a blessing. It's hard work preparing so many meals with 1 portion of carbs and 1 portion of protein, particularly at breakfast. The protein powder means I can have a nutritious fruit shake and still get the protein I need. The myoplex diet is useful after my gym workout as its easy and actually feeds my sweet cravings as its basically the only pudding style food I allow myself.
I think the program has proved very positive so far. It has given me a boost on the fitness front again as I've joined the gym and go every day. Not only does this mean that I'm lifting weights but I also use the treadmill. My running has shifted up a gear as a result. Since I've started BFL, I ran my first 5k, this morning I increased this to 7k and I'm registered in a 10k event for October.