Categories
Monthly Reports Reports

Monthly Report 03/2020

As you probably saw I wasn’t posting my weekly reports in March. It was mostly due to the SARS-CoV-2/CoViD-19 outbreak. But here is the monthly report 03/2020.

First, our government took away my ability to practice boxing and BJJ, which caused a short downward spiral for me. I just sank into a bit of a low (since I had a bout with depression in 2017, I won’t say that I am depressed, because what I went through wasn’t depression).

After I got myself together and I started working out at home in the cold mornings of Ljubljana’s March, I started feeling worse and I got a slight fever.

I have been battling with this fever for the last 2 weeks. As I am not coughing or have difficulty breathing I am staying in self-isolation. Our government has imposed strict rules of travelling to and from work so I do some work from home with my current disease.

I have spoken to my personal physician and she said, that I should measure the fever daily and come to the clinic only if it gets worse ( I currently have a small fever of 1 – 1,5 °C = 1,8 – 2,7 °F). If not, I have to stay in self-isolation. I feel like crap, my muscles and joints hurt and I really wish I was over this. But it is getting better and sometimes I have no fever in the evenings. It returns with a vengeance in the morning though.

Monthly Report 03/2020

As a result (as you can see in the graph) my weightloss in March 2020 was not as successful as I had hoped. I still lost a minimum of 2 kg, which I set as the least amount of weight loss per month. I will get back on track and have better results in April; hopefully.

Monthly report 03/2020

These are today’s measurements (monthly report 03/2020):

Weight: 114,0 kg = 251 lb (change: -2,0 kg = – 5 lb)
Body fat percentage: 44,2 % (change: – 0,8 %)
Waist circumference: 100 cm = 39 24/64” (change: – 4 cm = – 1 5/16 ” = 84/64 ” = 1 20/64 ”)
BMI: 33 (change: – 1)

Categories
Mental Fortitude Mindset Reports Weekly Reports

Weekly Report 10/2020

In the last few weeks, I discussed how to get back on track when you fall off the wagon. In this week I go a step further and write about staying in a bigger caloric deficit and how to deal with less food. Without further ado, here is my weekly report 10/2020.

Weekly Report 10/2020

How am I handling an increased caloric deficit?

I lost 2,1 kg (4 lb) of weight last week because I want to lose 0,9 kg (2 lb) weekly for 2020. This is the most weight I will lose, the minimum is 0,45 kg (1 lb). For two weeks before I ate too much food to be on track with this. Then I decided that I will go into a bigger caloric deficit for 3 to 4 weeks to get back on track.

Last week I was still skipping my supper and I am almost on track as you will see. I feel great. I was afraid that I will lose my will and I will get demotivated. But currently, I still feel very motivated. I have had no problems with the lower will in the past 2 weeks.

It also means that I will continue with this increased caloric deficit for the third week. If I can lose 2,1 kg (4,6 lb) for the third week in a row I will be almost completely back on track.

If I don’t lose the weight in the coming week, I decided that I will go back to my previous goal. I will be on this “normal” caloric deficit for 4 weeks. Then I will try to increase the deficit again to try to catch my maximal goal. With SARS-CoV-2/CoViD-19 in the news all the time now, I don’t want to risk a decreased immune system I normally experienced when I tried to lose massive amounts of weight.

These are today’s measurements (weekly report 10/2020):

Weight: 115,2 kg = 254 lb (change: – 2,0 kg = – 4 lb)
Body fat percentage: 44,7 % (change: – 0,3 %)
Waist circumference: 101 cm = 39 49/64 ” (change: – 3 cm = – 1 11/64 ”)
BMI: 34 (no change)

Categories
Monthly Reports Reports

Monthly Report 02/2020

Another month just flew by and here is the monthly report 02/2020.

In my last monthly report, I started explaining my reasoning for weighing myself every day. I simply do it, so I can adjust my meal plan quickly. I also explained that I understand that weight will go up and down between measurements.

How do I cope with my weight going up and down?

This one is quite easy. It is normal for the weight of people to go up and down from day to day.

It is important to have weekly, monthly and yearly goals. This way it will be easier for you to see whether you’re on the right track or not. As I wrote in this post, I made a table in which I calculated the differences if I lose:

  • 0,9 kg (2 lb) per week
  • 0,45 kg (1 lb) per week
  • 2 kg (4,4 lb) per week

I also put my daily weight in this table along with my waist circumference (even though I measure waist circumference once a week). This helps me with seeing the forest through the trees.

For me, it is more important that I hit that weekly and monthly goals than my weight going down day after day after day. And this is basically all I need to not stress out from weighing myself every day.

Monthly Report 02/2020
This is a graph made from the table I mentioned. This is my daily weight in the first 2 months of 2020. As you can clearly see, it goes up and down quite a lot.
It doesn’t look like it, but I lost 6,9 kg (15 lb) in 2 months overall (even with all the ups and downs).

Monthly report 02/2020

These are today’s measurements (monthly report 02/2020):

Weight: 116,0 kg = 256 lb (change: -3,3 kg = – 7 lb)
Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
Waist circumference: 104 cm = 40 60/64” (change: – 2 cm = – 50/64 ”)
BMI: 34 (change: – 1)

Categories
Mental Fortitude Mindset Reports Weekly Reports

Weekly Report 09/2020

In the last 2 weeks, I explained how I cope when I overindulge with eating. With my meals back on plan, here is the weekly report 09/2020.

Weekly Report 09/2020

After 2 weeks of not just not losing weight but actually gaining it, I finally started losing weight again. In the last 2 posts (1, 2) I was discussing how falling off the wagon is nothing to be ashamed or scared of. Now I want to discuss more how to dust yourself off and get back on it.

As I wrote on this blog already, I want to lose between 0,45 to 0,9 kg per week (1 to 2 lb per week). I made myself a table in which I write my weight and my waist measurements. In it, I calculated how much I should lose if I lose 0,45 kg (1 lb) per week and how much if I want to lose 0,9 kg (2 lb) per week. I also calculated how much I weight I should lose if I lose 2 kg (4,4 lb) per month. With all these calculations I can see, which of my goals I am hitting and which I am not really on par with achieving.

So, I did something that I normally don’t do. I actually calculated an additional difference and that is that I want to lose 2,1 kg (4,6 lb) per week until I am back on track (it should be 3 to 4 weeks of this). It is a bit much of caloric deficit, but I will try it, just to see, how my body reacts to the additional lowering of my calorie intake. After the first week, I feel normal; I’m not more tired and I don’t feel weaker.

For this bigger caloric deficit, I stopped eating supper, which is about 400 to 450 calories per meal. This is currently the only adjustment I made to my meal plan to lose this extra weight.

These are today’s measurements (weekly report 09/2020):

Weight: 117,2 kg = 258 lb (change: – 2,2 kg = – 5 lb)
Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
Waist circumference: 104 cm = 40 60/64 ” (change: – 1 cm = – 26/64 ”)
BMI: 34 (change: – 1)

Categories
Exercise Mental Fortitude Mindset Reports Weekly Reports

Weekly Report 08/2020

As I started explaining last week, sometimes we fall off the wagon. In weekly report 08/2020, I expand on what happened to me and how I cope.

Weekly Report 08/2020

Falling off the wagon is something normal. At least in my opinion. What to do? Well, first of all, you shouldn’t mope. Analyse your fall and adjust appropriately.

I knew that this would be a possibility when my parents invited me to eat at “Domačija na Vihri” in the village of Topol above Medvode. They make good food, but it is food that I avoid for the most part. They have fried meat or cheese (one of my favourite dishes), french fries, or if you like traditional Slovene foods like krvavice (a sort of black pudding), pečenice (sausage like the German bratwurst).

I tried to adjust the food before Sunday when we went to Topol, but because I was exhausted from Saturday’s hike, I just couldn’t bring myself to exercise on Sunday. As a result, my intake was far too big for my needs on Sunday. So, I added 0,1 kg (0,2 lb) to my weight over a week; most of it on Sunday, of course.

Last week I said that you should adjust your calorie intake in advance if you know that you will overeat on a specific date. I didn’t have enough notice, so I didn’t adjust soon enough. This means I will have to do extra work in the next 3 to 4 weeks if I want to be on track for 1st January 2021. The important thing is that we don’t postpone returning to our meal plan to next week or next month. This, in my experience, normally means that your weight loss will stop and you will add some extra weight to your start weight.

All-in-all, you may fall off the wagon. It is quite normal, really. Just try to dust yourself quickly and get back on as soon as possible. Don’t stay off for too long!

These are today’s measurements (weekly report 08/2020):

Weight: 119,4 kg = 263 lb (change: + 0,1 kg = + 0 lb)
Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
Waist circumference: 105 cm = 41 22/64 ” (no change)
BMI: 35 (no change)

Categories
Reports Weekly Reports

Weekly Report 07/2020

How does it feel, when you fall off the wagon? Well, here’s the weekly report 07/2020.

Weekly Report 06/2020

On Saturday, 15th February 2020, we had an annual meeting with the mountaineering club, of which I am a member. The purpose is to either confirm or invalidate the yearly reports of different sections of the club.

Of course, all of this is happening with a huge amount of food and drink. We did walk for about 5 hours and made about 19 km (11,9 miles) up and down hills, but we started eating with homemade cured meat and sweets and then had a large meal after we stopped walking.

I ingested a lot more salt this weekend, but I also fell off the wagon a bit. I couldn’t get back to my normal diet on Sunday, I just ate food with my parent. Food that is far more calorically dense than the food I normally eat.

This actually happened to me last year as well. What is important, when this happens is, that you realise that this is happening and try to get back to your normal diet as soon as possible. It also helps, if you know in advance that you’re going to eat more, to decrease your calorie intake in advance, so you don’t gain a lot of weight.

So, if you are invited to family or friends and you know you’re going to eat a lot, you eat a bit less 7 or 10 days before. If you don’t know in advance than you work after will be a bit harder. Just don’t let that day or weekend turn into weeks and then months, because you will be back to the start with extra weight.

These are today’s measurements (weekly report 07/2020):

  • Weight: 119,3 kg = 263 lb (change: + 1,8 kg = + 4 lb)
  • Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
  • Waist circumference: 105 cm = 41 22/64 ” (change: – 1 cm = – 22/64 ”)
  • BMI: 35 (+ 1)
Categories
General Health Mental Fortitude Mindset

Living With Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis

I have been living with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis for 2 years now. As a result, my thyroid gland is slowly being destroyed by my immune system. Here are my thoughts on the matter.

Because of my disease, I have been supplementing my thyroid hormone production with a manufactured form of T4 (levothyroxine). It is not much of a hassle. I take 50 mcg of this every morning 1 hour before my breakfast as per doctor’s orders.

If my thyroid gland was being destroyed and I didn’t have enough thyroid hormones, I couldn’t lose weight. Well, at least that is the conventional wisdom of some of my acquaintances. In my country, that is just another excuse. Since we have a decent health care system, we can get a thyroid specialist quite easily. The doctor will make an exam and start with supplementing with T4 hormone if needed.

My thyroid hormones are now where they need to be and I have no excuses about not losing weight. I have to stick to my meal plan and my workouts and my weight will continue to go down. It has worked for me in the last year and I don’t see any reasons why it wouldn’t continue to work.

What do I have to be mindful with Hashimoto’s thyroiditis?

Well, I started eating a bit differently in the last year with regards to having a type of hypothyroidism. There is a wonderful book in Slovene, that details what to eat and what to avoid with hypothyroidism and hyperthyroidism and it cites the research behind it.

The things I stopped eating after eating the book:

  • raw cabbage
  • raw spinach
  • soy (and tofu)
  • peanuts
  • flax seeds (I even made a few changes to my Breakfast of champions after rereading the book)

The things I eat less of since reading the book:

  • berries
  • green and white tea

The things I prepare differently after reading the book:

  • I cook broccoli and cauliflower instead of steaming it

The things I added to my diet:

  • 2 brazil nuts for Selenium (Se), which helps with Iodine (I)

So, this was a short text on me living with Hashimoto’s Thyroiditis. I have to be a bit more mindful about eating and that is that. In my opinion, since we have a decent healthcare system, most problems with the Thyroid, are just excuses. Yes, it is more difficult to lose weight if the Thyroid is impaired, but it is not impossible.

Categories
MealPrep Recipes

Rice Sidedish Meal Prep

Every 4 to 5 days I make a rice sidedish meal prep. I eat rice with my lunch 4 days out of 5. This means that I eat rice for most of my days. Out of all the “carbs” – rice, potatoes, pasta, corn, etc. – I like rice most. So, I eat rice almost every day.

As I mentioned in a previous blog post, I eat meat, vegetables and rice or potatoes and a leafy green salad on most of my days. I recently started substituting meat with legumes on some of the days. I am keeping rice as a sidedish regardless.

What to buy for rice sidedish meal prep?

I buy 3 types of rice in a local supermarket, I buy from. The make is not important but these 3 types of “rice” I eat are:

  • 3 kinds of rice: brown rice, red rice and black rice
  • 3 kinds of wheat: brown rice, spelt and barley (my favourite)
  • 3 colour mix: brown rice, red quinoa and buckwheat

These types of rice then take turns. I prepare my favourite 3 kinds of every second time. The time I made and took pictures of my favourite type.

This meal prep is enough for me for 4 times. Since the package has 800 g, it is enough for me for 20 meals. However, I only cook a fraction of the package at the time.

How to make this meal prep?

This meal prep is easy to make. All you need is a measuring “instrument”, a pot and the following ingredients:

  • 2 mugs of rice (I have a small coffee mug that can take 80 g of rice, meal prep is 160 g in total for 4 servings)
  • 4 mugs of water (you need to use 2:1 volume ratio for this mix – 1 part rice, 2 parts water; please read the packaging of the rice you’re cooking for the rice to water ratio)
  • salt

First, I rinse rice on a strainer. I rinse it until the water that runs through it is completely clear.

I use the strainer a lot. First, I rinse the rice on it, and then I drain excess water when the rice is already cooked.

I then put the water into a pot and salt it. When the water boils, I put the rice in the pot and cook for the amount of time that is specified on the package. For 3 kinds of wheat, it says 18 to 20 min. I always keep to the lower number in the span, so I cooked 3 kinds of wheat for 18 min. I always try to cook every carb “al dente”, because the digestion of the carbs is slower as a result and you don’t get the spike of blood sugar after the meal.

When rice (or wheat) is cooked, I rinse them through the strainer and let it cool. After it is cool, I put it in an airtight container and store in the fridge. You can keep it up to 5 days (7 at the maximum).

One portion is prepared on my plate and three portions are in the plastic container in the back.
Categories
Annual Reports Reports

A Year Gone By

As I’ve mentioned a couple of times on this blog I started with my lifestyle change on 7th February 2019. I couldn’t find any pictures or other measurements for the aforementioned date, but I’ve been successful for 10th February 2019, so in this blog post I want to show you the results of a year gone by.

A year gone by
My current progress is evident on my belt. I started on the last hole in the belt, now I am on the 7th hole, that I added a while back. I am keeping the belt as a reminder of what was.
For reference, the holes are 2,5 cm apart (almost 1 ”).
You can also notice that my pants are kind of funny. I didn’t yet buy new tailored pants. Because these are too big for me, it looks like I am spotting a bulge (that I normally correct, but I just wanted you to see).

A year gone by in numbers:

These front pictures were taken on 10th February 2019 (left) and 10th February 2020 (right).
I try to make all these photos as similar as possible, but sometimes I’m not so successful. For me, the biggest difference I currently see in the mirror is my face.

These are measurements for 10th February 2019:

  • Weight: 135,5 kg = 299 lb
  • Body fat percentage: 45 %
  • Waist circumference (at the narrowest): 111 cm = 43 45/64 ”
  • Waist circumference: (I don’t have the measurement, because I measured waist at a different spot before)
  • BMI: 38

These are today’s measurements:

  • Weight: 117,5 kg = 259 lb (change: – 18 kg = 40 lb)
  • Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
  • Waist circumference (at the narrowest): 101 cm = 39 49/64 ” (change: – 10 cm = – 4 ”)
  • BMI: 33 (change: – 5)

I am also posting 2 pictures of before and in the middle to show you the difference. In 2019 I was taking only the front and side pictures at first. Somewhere in autumn 2019 it also occurred to me, that I should also take pictures of the back. I put together pictures in MS Paint so there can be side by side comparison (I am considering Gimp for more of these comparison pictures).

These are the side pictures – 2019 on the left and 2020 on the right.
Here you can actually spot the difference of my belly. I also have to comment, that the underwear is the same make, model and size.
Categories
Reports Weekly Reports

Weekly Report 06/2020

So, after a week, when my weight didn’t go down, I’m back to losing weight. I also posted a review on a year of my transformation, but for now, here is a weekly report 06/2020.

Weekly Report 06/2020

Two weeks before I wrote about waist circumference and why WHO considers it important enough to post (now a relatively old) study on it. I would like to continue with more on waist circumference.

How do you measure your waist circumference?

The WHO study also lists how to measure your waist measurement. “Measurement protocol” is described on page 20 if the WHO paper in question.

Firstly, you should take measurements with a non-stretchy tape measurement. Use it snuggly!

Secondly, make all the measurement horizontally (parallel to the floor). Take them after you’ve exhaled.

Thirdly, the height of the measurement has to be in the middle of:

  • the last rib you can feel (on the top)
  • the highest point of your pelvic bone you can feel (on the bottom)

For me, it’s getting easier and easier to feel the bones I mentioned the more I lose weight. It was more difficult to feel my bones at first and I had to press more into my skin to feel them. Now that I lost some weight and I have some practice, it’s easy to do this every week.

I typically lose about 1 cm of my waist circumference per 10 to 14 days (approximately 1 inch per a little more than a month).

Weekly Report 05/2020
This is my measuring tape that was bought in a sewing store. It comes in a nice little metal box and has centimetres and inches on it.

If you are just starting to lose weight or are massively obese, I wouldn’t worry about waist circumference. But, if your BMI is in the overweight area (25,00 to 29,99), I would measure my waist circumference. This would tell me if my overweight status is a result of muscle or fat. And, if it is due to fat, I would consider losing it and getting healthier with a lower probability of NCD.

These are today’s measurements (weekly report 06/2020):

  • Weight: 117,5 kg = 259 lb (change: 2,1 kg = 4 lb)
  • Body fat percentage: 45 % (no change)
  • Waist circumference: 106 cm = 41 47/64 ” (no change)
  • BMI: 34 (- 1)