Starting Over On TNT

I’ve been on some sort of low-carb diet since August of 2007.  First South Beach, a very brief Atkins stint, back to South Beach, then TNT. In all these diets, or lifestyles, starchy carbs are BAD. They cause that nasty insulin response that can lead to fat gain when you eat too much.

TNT has this basic take on it with a twist. Targeting carb intake at specific times to allow your body to use them correctly. Instead of a staple, carbs are seen as an important tool to build muscle, speark fat loss, and , in all honesty, keep you sane.

This weekend I had my refeed meal Friday night and a planned cheat Sunday morning for my mother-in-law’s birthday. This morning I weighed my lowest in 8 or 9 months. I guess you could say that TNT also uses carbs to trick your body into letting go of all that hard earned fat as well.

I tend to get a little obsessed at times. The last 4 days I’ve had2 RT’s and 5 CT’s. In that time I’ve noticed my weight stop inching down. I’ve done this before and had the same results and am pretty sure it’s due to lack of recovery time. Some times I feel guilty if I’m just sitting around watching TV and think I could jump on the treadmill.  So of course, there I go–up and at ‘em.

I need to learn to slow down a bit at times. Just sit back and not worry about it. So to that end, I will do my best to take tomorrow off. We’ll see how it goes.

As I posted just an hour ago, I ate pizza tonight. You would think that an influx of carbs like that would give you a boost of energy! Not here. I was going to have a cardio workout tonight, but I feel tired and sluggish. Who knew! I would bet this feeling is how I gained weight in the first place.

Just an interesting observation.

July 13 of 2007 I weighed 230 pounds. One night after my son’s gymnastics practice, as I lay on my bed watching TV and eating chips, he walked by and poked my ever expanding belly.  He wasn’t trying to be mean, it was just out there.

After he was in bed I started thinking. In 2 years I had gained 30 pounds and didn’t even realize it. I knew I had to do something at that point. I had read the South Beach Diet book and thought it was something I could handle.

After 1 month I had lost 13 pounds to 217  just eating low-carb. I had better energy, and slept better.

In the second month I started riding my stationary bike. The weight kept falling off–another 14 pounds. 204 pounds was great I thought that this was the best change in my life I could have made.

By October the weight loss had slowed as I had expected it to.I was 197 and had lost another 7 pounds I decided to borrow a friends P90X  program to see if it was worthwhile. I felt better than I had in years.

In November the P90X program was a great catalyst for me. I lost another 10 pounds to 187. I had lost 43 pounds. By the end of the month and into December I weighed in at 181 pounds. Then I got hit with the double whammy.

Whammy 1- Overtraining. The P90X program is 6-7 days a week 1 to 1.5 hours a day. I think the low carb eating combined with the amount of exercise I was doing was not a good idea. I woke up to work out one morning and felt too depressed to move. I knew it was time to back off.

Whammy 2-Holiday Time. nuff said

January was tough gaining those hard lost pounds back, but I fought it off. by the end of March I still weighed in at 183. Then I hit my third whammy.

WHAMMY #3:I got lazy.In 1 month I put 17 pounds on. Of course the fries tasted good and the ice cream was wonderful, but when I hit 200 pounds I wanted to kick myself.

South Beach had treated me well but I was ready for something else. After browsing the forums and the bookstore TNT seemed like it was worth a try. And luckily, this Challenge was starting the Wednesday after the Sunday I started.

Enough for that, it’s time to live in the present and get to work!!!