Last year around this time, Barb and I were in great shape physically. Coming into Fall of 2019, we lost a bunch of unwanted fat, had a regular exercise routine, and were eating right.
By October 2020, we had gained a bunch of fat back.
So what the heck happened?
You could say it was “COVID”. But I have a problem with that.
The bottom line was that our fitness plans fell apart. Exercise became sporadic (couple hours per week) and our sugar and high glycemic carb intake got out of control. In fact, I don’t know how out of control it was because I stopped tracking.
One of the rules I use for judging any fitness plan is that it must work through thick and thin – not just in the good times. I’ve seen too many people plan their fitness programs around an ideal time in their lives when there is less stress. “I want to start after the holidays” or “I’m going to wait until I retire.”
Truth is there will always be stress. That’s a given. And your plan has to work through it all.
Secondly, I judge a fitness plan by the results it achieves a YEAR down the road from when it is started. Seen too many people excited about losing 10 or 20 pounds in a few months, only to gain it back in a few more. It takes months and months to break habits. Every plan is time tested.
So by my own standards, it appeared our plan failed. No excuses.
But not really.
Another couple of “Ron’s Rules” are 1) never give up and 2) it’s not a failure if you learn something.
And this time around, I learned some very valuable lessons.
- I feel like crap when I eat poorly. I literally was eating myself to sleep at night and passing out in a food coma. I was starting my day with sugary snacks and kept returning to them to feel better, to no avail.
- Exercise for me needs to be 5 days per week, no exceptions. I stopped exercising altogether this spring and then I threw out my back this summer. This laid me up for weeks. Also, my knee was acting up due to too much of the wrong activities. I have to exercise!
- Many of the good habits I established were still with me. I still had a high protein breakfast every morning. My evening meal was still nutritious. It was the snacking that was killing me.
- While I was fat, I was able to break my cereal at night habit. I substituted yogurt with chocolate syrup and whipped cream. Yeah, sure it was actually WORSE for me, but it broke the habit.
So a few months ago I started back on the path to getting in shape. First, I got back to my exercise routine. Barb and I started our Outdoor HIIT class in late summer, which was a great place to start as it has all the important elements in it. After that, I added some cardio and yoga sessions along with a “Heavy Lift” day.
The exercise helped me feel better and alleviated most of my physical issues, but it really didn’t change my excess bodyfat.
So last week I started on my diet. I eliminated most of the bread, carbs and sugar I added in over the past few months. My evening snack changed to yogurt sans chocolate syrup and whipped cream.
The result is amazing. I feel so much better and the excess fat is coming off quickly. I dropped 5 pounds in a week.
It’s crazy how we do all the wrong things when stress enters our lives. Instead of eating right and exercising during a pandemic, we eat things that make us feel worse and stop doing things – like exercise – that make us feel better.
Didn’t help that gyms were closed – but hey, we all need to adapt.
We’ll be having our Stay Off the Scale Challenge again after the first of the year. This is how Barb and I got into such great shape to begin with. If you’re looking to step it up after the holidays, let us know!
So we can be ready for whatever comes at us in 2021!
Ron