Month One: Exercise Results
Hi, I’m Brittany! If you’re unfamiliar with my story, I lost 125 pounds just focusing on nutrition, no gym, no work out DVD’s, no working out at all. You can read more about that here and here.
Month One: Exercise Results
I really let myself indulge during the end of the year holidays last year (2017). I was at a healthy weight, happy with my appearance, and I felt like a deserved a little treat. I was very lenient and ended up overindulging. When January came round, I was up ten pounds.
With a new year came new resolutions and I resolved to lose that pesky ten and start exercising. But then, life… We moved, we started dealing with some medical issues, personal issues, and before I knew it, it was February and I wasn’t any closer to my goal.
On February 24th, I stopped making excuses and decided to START. I hadn’t worked out in over 10 years and the work out experience I did have, was the equivalent of high school gym class.
I’ve never been athletic. I’m not one of those people who enjoys sweating. My idea of a nice Sunday afternoon is eating and napping, not hiking or jogging.
But I want the results that exercise yields and I’d love to firm up my mommy tummy/cesection shelf. I decided to start with the Couch to 5k, an interval running program. I downloaded the 5kRunner app and started running.
My first day was a mess. I was a bit too ambitious and tried to run hills. You can read more about that here.
In the last four weeks, I’ve seen my endurance greatly improve. At first, I was only able to run for 45 seconds straight before I had to stop and walk. Now I can run for a full four minutes without stopping. For the last couple weeks, I’ve been interval running 2 miles every day, sometimes 3.1 miles (5k) if I have the time.
I am so proud of myself and now that I’m building endurance and gaining confidence in this area, I’ve begun adding a little bit of strength training in. This is a brand new development. I’ve only done it twice but I can tell already that it’s going to help so much with toning.
The BIG question that everyone keeps asking is, “Have you lost weight?”
No. I’ve been diligently working out 6 days a week for the last month and I gained two pounds. Which means I am still exactly 10 pounds up from my lowest weight.
My diet is great, minus a weekend where I pizza binged. My water intake is great. I’m not used to working so hard and not seeing results. After four weeks I grew frustrated and started scouring google.
And I found this, click here.
Basically it’s a very common, expected issue if you’re in a healthy weight range and you begin working out. What I’ve deduced from my reading is that when you begin exercising, you get little tears in your muscles. These tears then rebuild themselves with stronger fiber. During this process, your body stores more fuel for you to burn during your workouts and for every molecule of glucose (fuel) it stores, it requires three water molecules.
Even though you’re building muscle, you’re still burning fat and eventually, the body will release the excess water weight (can take up to two months) and you’ll begin seeing results.
Which is SUCH a relief!
Month One: Exercise Results
-Up 2 pounds.
-No inches lost (my thighs are actually larger)
-More endurance
-Feel stronger
-Feel healthier
-Clothes fit the same.
I’m trying not the let the scale effect me. I’m only weighing once a week and being diligent with my food and water tracking. I’m confident that my body will begin adjusting soon and I hope that I’ll have more to report next month! So far, I’m pretty stoked with my progress this month even though it wasn’t what I was expecting. Just being able to run, for the first time in my life, is success enough.
I started the Couch to 5k training last July. Trained for 8 weeks (3x/week) and then have diligently run 3 miles 3x/week since. After 7 months I’d only lost 2 pounds! But I could definitely see muscle definition I’d never had before, so I kept at it and around the 8th month I lost 8 pounds over the course of a few weeks. It just kept coming off, like the running was FINALLY catching up to me:) So even if it takes a while, keep at it! I’d never been a big exerciser but the feeling of accomplishment I have after a run has converted me, for sure! Good job and keep up the good work!
Love this, thank you so much for sharing!
This is a very valuable, helpful, well written, well-detailed post. You are doing very good work and helping others a great deal. I know you will keep at it!
Thank you Sue, that is very kind of you to say.
Is the link you provided suppose to send you to a sign in page for SparkPeople?
No, it redirects to an article called: ”Why Did I Gain Weight After Starting an Exercise Plan?”
I just checked it. The link is working correctly for me. There is a pop up where they ask if you want to subscribe to their newsletter but it’s just a popup.
If you can, think about getting a body composition analysis done. I just had mine done last week, and I’m looking forward to having it done again in another 2-3 months. There is so much more to the equation than the scale – and unfortunately, I give the scale WAY too much power. Hoping this will help with that!
It’s a huge accomplishment to be able to run when you’ve never done it before – congratulations! This is just the beginning…you’re going to love running and all the amazing feelings you get after a run.
I just found your website and Instagram and am so inspired by you. Especially reading your struggle with the scale recently, because I’m also up 10 lbs from my lowest weight and have been feeling SO frustrated about it. Nothing I do has helped me shed those pounds, and it has been bringing me down a bit. 4 years ago I lost 75 lbs (by dieting only) and then 3 years ago I became a runner. I’ve been maintaining and doing well, but the past 6 months this 10 lb gain has me feeling a little defeated. I’m currently training for a half marathon and running more mileage during the week, which I know could have something to do with part of the weight gain. But I still can’t help feeling frustrated.
Thank you for sharing your story and giving me a little peace of mind. Knowing I’m not alone in my journey is comforting. I also just got an Instant Pot, which I’ve never used! I am excited to dive more into your recipes and try it out!
I love that you are focusing on how you feel and your accomplishment, rather than just the scale. This is usally my downfall! Keep it up! You will see results.
So happy I have this to look back on. I recently got a spin bike and have been having a blast cycling three times a week and lifting in between. (Lifting in my first passion… I lost it for a few years but happy to pick it back up) My diet has been AWESOME and again having a blast coming through all three of your books. I am in my third week and stepped on the scale this morning… and it hasn’t budged. My heart sank. I don’t want to track my food… as I have counted “points” for far to long and want to mend my thinking process out of that. When I count points… I lose weight weekly… so now that I am not counting but eating a mostly whole food diet with added exercise… nothing. It almost messes with my head. Like am I eating to many calories? What’s going on?! But I am going to take your advice and keep moving forward. I adore you and your cookbooks Britt! I just want my body to reflect the work I am putting in.