Happy Friday everyone! I hope you all have some fun plans or some much needed R&R for the weekend. <3
Well, I started a new healthy program this week and so far, I’m loving it!!! It’s called The Faster Way to Fat Loss and it’s awesome! I’m obviously just getting started, but so far I’m really lovig the concepts behind it. I can already feel a difference in my body (energy level, weight loss, digestion) and I really think I will see and feel great results. I can also see myself making some aspects of this program a permanent part of my lifestyle.
I’ll talk more about the details in a second, but I just have to say that I have tried a lot of different programs and challenges in my life. I’ve read a lot of health, diet and fitness books. I’ve read a bazillion articles and researched so many different diet plans and healthy living recommendations. I love this stuff.
I hope this goes without saying, but I’m not obsessed with weight loss. I’ve been thin and fit many times in my life and I’ve also been overweight several times. I love and accept myself either way. My self worth and self esteem are not tied to my weight! With that being said, I have found so much joy, purpose and empowerment in learning about health and fitness, weight loss, nutrition and in learning how to take care for my body….physically, emotionally and mentally.
I also know that soooo many people struggle with weight loss and because of this, they also struggle with a lot of other things as well. They struggle with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart disease, low energy, depression, anxiety, low self esteem, low motivation…..the list goes on and on!
This just makes me so sad. 🙁 That’s one of the MAIN reasons I love health and fitness so much….it directly fights against all of those terrible things! It improves physical and mental health and allows people to live more meaningful, purposeful and enjoyable lives!!!
Our country as a whole is very overweight. Sadly, I just think it’s part of the culture. People think it’s totally normal to eat mass amounts of food, eat out a lot, run through the drive-thru on a regular basis, eat TONS of sugar, soda and processed food, live a very sedentary lifestyle, etc. This has just become the “norm” for our society. On the flip-side, it seems like people think you’re “weird” or “obsessed” if you cut out junk food, sugar, watch what you eat, exercise regularly, track your food or make health a priority!
It is seriously jacked.
Yes, I’m one of those people who strives to live a healthy lifestyle most of the time. However, even though I love it, I also know all too well how hard it can be to live a healthy lifestyle! It takes motivation, discipline and good ol’ fashioned hard work every day! I’ve accepted the fact that there will be times in my life when I’m doing very well and times when I will struggle. I know I’ll always be falling short in some area, and I’m okay with that! Perfection is not the goal. Learning and progress is.
That’s why I’m always learning, always reading and always researching!
And, that is why I’m so excited to start this new Faster Way to Fat Loss program! Yay! This program has totally blown me away because it’s quite different from how I’ve been doing things….and I like it!!!
First off, it puts nutrition at #1, as it should. But it puts rest and recovery 2nd! I LOVE that and I sooooooo need to make that more of a priority in my life!! In fact, this program says that if you are worn out or overtired, it is better to rest than exercise.
That totally makes sense to me, but it’s been hard for me to honor that!
We have to respect our stress levels. Trust me, I’m an expert in this. Ha ha. If we are just constantly going, going, going and have a TON going on in our lives, and are not getting enough sleep….our bodies will let us know!
The body will break down, the hormones will go haywire, you will feel like crap and you’ll gain weight! You’ll also make yourself more susceptible to so many different diseases and issues. No bueno.
So, I love that rest and recovery is such a priority in this program. Loooooove it!
Exercise is #3 on the list. The workouts in this program are great; they are simple, yet effective. They vary between cardio, strength training and HIIT and there is no need to spend hours in the gym. It’s just perfect IMO.
I’m also LOVING that intermittent fasting and carb cycling are part of this program. I really believe in both of these concepts. They just make sense to me.
I’ve been doing intermittent fasting on and off for a couple years now and it’s great. In a nutshell, intermittent fasting is just fasting (aka, not eating ;-)) for a certain period of time and then only eating during a certain window of time.
I love it because I feel like it just helps me to eat less. When I’m dieting or trying to lose weight, I’m usually a little bit hungry most of the day. That’s just how it is! So, when I’m intermittent fasting, I’m just hungry in the morning. Then, the rest of the day I’m full and satisfied. I like that.
There’s also some actual legit scientific benefits to intermittent fasting as well; it makes it easier for the body to burn fat and also allows the body to heal and repair itself easier. Awesome.
The most common ratio for intermittent fasting (and the one this program recommends as well!) is a 16 hour fast/8 hour eating window. I usually fast until noon or 1 PM and then stop eating between 8 and 9 PM. There are some mornings I’m quite hungry and it’s quite hard and there are some mornings it’s really not too hard at all. I just try to distract myself and keep myself busy!
Before I started this program, I probably did intermittent fasting 2-5 times a week. Now, that I’m “all in” with the Faster Way to Fat Loss, I’ve committed to stick with it every day until the program is over…in 6 1/2 weeks!
I also really love the concept of carb cycling, although I’ve experimented with it several times in the past and haven’t had great results. Dang it. BUT, this program does it a little differently and I really like how they’re doing it!!! Time will tell if I get the results I’m looking for. *fingers crossed*
Most of the carb cycling programs I’ve tried in the past have a couple of low carb days, followed by some high carb days. The protein is also always kept high. Well, the thing I’m loving about the Faster Way to Fat Loss is that we have a couple low carb days and then some regular or low macro days. There are no huge swings from low to high carb days. I think that helps to support the blood sugar and hormones better.
I’m also super intrigued and encouraged by the macros that are recommended in this program! The past couple of years I’ve been trying to eat a high protein diet and I vacillate between higher carb, lower fat and higher fat, lower carb. This program completely switches it up and promotes high carbs, moderate fat and lower protein.
What the????
Mind blown.
I think I’ve been doing it wrong the past couple of years! I’ve purchased and followed several programs over the years and have had good results with some; not so good results with others. All of them have promoted a higher protein diet. I also paid to have my macros calculated for me and it was recommended I keep protein at 35-40% of my diet.
The Faster Way to Fat Loss recommends 20%. T-w-e-n-t-y P-e-r-c-e-n-t. Wow.
I’m shocked, yet intrigued.
I’ve been following the advice of various body builder type people out there and I’m starting to think the whole “high protein mentality” is just not ideal for *most* people. I know that carbs are the preferred form of energy in the brain, so it makes sense to feed it what it wants, right? I’ve also been reading that if you consume too much protein, the body converts it into sugar and then fat. It also puts a lot of stress on the body!
Who knew?
Sooooo, I’m chucking everything I thought I knew about macros out the window and I’m trusting the process. We will see. My body has felt quite “whacked” lately anyway and I’ve told you guys that I’ve gained some weight and it’s been nearly impossible to lose it. So, I’m definitely in a spot to try something new!
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So, I thought I’d share a few of the things I’ve been eating this week. We had a couple of low carb days, which I’m a big fan off. I don’t love low carb diets long term, but I always see great results when I add some low carb days into my lifestyle.
I enjoyed some yummy egg creations. For this one, I sauteed some bell peppers and green onions in a little olive oil and then added a whole egg and some egg whites seasoned with S&P. After the eggs were cooked, I added a little cheese, guacamole and tomatoes.
So good!
I also had some cauliflower oatmeal (100% cauliflower, no actual oats) and it was good!
I just cooked up some riced cauliflower and topped it with some chocolate peanut butter protein powder, cocoa, ground flaxseed and peanut butter. I know that sounds super weird, but it was great and actually tasted just like oatmeal.
I also enjoyed this for dinner on low carb day…
I made a simple green leaf lettuce salad topped with tomatoes and bacon. YUM! I used a little OPA feta dill dressing on top. Sooo good! I’ve also been making these crepes lately that I’ve been loving!
I just mix 6 Tablespoons of egg whites with a Tablespoon or so of protein powder (I’ve been using peanut butter cookie flavor) and then I just cook it up on top of the stove like a crepe.
On low carb day, I fill it with a little peanut butter and then top it with some Walden Farms caramel syrup (love!) and some lite whipped topping in a can.
On regular macro days, I love to fill the crepe with some fruit and still top it with the Walden Farms syrup and whipped topping. It’s such a quick, easy and yummy thing to make!
I also had some oatmeal on the side in an empty peanut butter jar with this one. I just made my Chocolate Peanut butter oatmeal recipe and while it was still hot, I put it in the jar. I’m always happy when I finish a jar of peanut butter so I can eat this! YUM!
I also made this on low carb day that was yummy!
I just cooked up some leftover chicken, zucchini noodles and asparagus in a pan and then added a Laughing Cow cheese wedge to the mix and cooked it until it melted.
It was good and it was nice to have such a quick and easy hot meal.
I made this for dinner last night and it’s one of my favorite meals!
Grilled chicken that I marinated in some BBQ sauce, with grilled peppers, onions and pineapple, brown rice and broccoli. I love this meal and could seriously eat it every night.
It felt like a summer meal too! Yay!!!
I also made a run to Trader Joe’s last week to stock up on some good stuff.
I don’t shop at Trader Joe’s too often because it’s not too close to my house and, quite frankly, it’s not the best store for a large family. It’s such a fun store though, so I love to check it out and get a few things sometimes.
I buy most of my produce at Costco, but I bought a few fun things at TJ’s. I loved those bags of Cruciferous Crunch (kale, brussels sprouts, broccoli, green and red cabbage.) Awesome. I also got a bag of broccoli slaw and I plan to make salads and green smoothies out of them! I also bought some zucchini, green onions, lemons, snow peas, frozen cherries, hemp seed, green salsa, tzatziki and hummus.
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I’ve also been enjoying running the past few weeks! I’m getting ready to run a relay race in about a month. Yay! I went on an easy 4 mile run on my treadmill a couple days ago….
I also went on a 6 mile run last weekend, that was quite hard! It was a little hot (upper 60s) and I was pushing my 3 year old and doggie in the jogging stroller. I was glad I went though and I was happy to hit 6 miles.
I took this pic on the homestretch…
It was such a beautiful day and it was so nice to get outside! I’m planning on going on a run tomorrow as well and I’m hoping to hit 6 1/2 to 7 miles. I’m *not* going to bring the stroller tomorrow, so I hope I feel a lot stronger.
My longest leg of the relay race is 9 miles (and it’s my last leg….eeeek), so I’m a little nervous. I want to feel very strong and prepared!
Well, I think that’s all I have to say today. I will keep you guys posted on my progress with the Faster Way to Fat Loss. I’m sure hoping I see and feel great results! FYI, I share quite a bit on my Instagram Stories, so if you care to follow me, you can follow me there!
Love you all! Good night!! xoxo
What are the recommended percentages for fat and carbs? Another post I saw about this plan said to have .7-.9 times your body weight in protein which is greater than 20%. Just a bit confused.
This plan recommends that you start with your macros set at the My Fitness Pal default, which is 50% carbs, 20% protein and 30% fat. If you’re eating 1700-1800 calories a day, then 20% protein typically equals out to be around .7 times the body weight. However, this plan also encourages you to listen to your body and if after a couple weeks you’re finding you’re really hungry most of the time or stuffed, you can adjust your calories and macros up or down depending on what your body needs. IMO, the most important things in the Faster Way to Fat Loss plan are intermittent fasting, carb cycling (although that one didn’t work out too well for me!), calorie cycling, getting adequate rest and sticking to a clean, healthy diet. I don’t think the particular macros are quite as important. You certainly have to stick to the recommended calories to get results though! I really liked this plan. I wish you all the best!
Soooo happy to find this post!! So I’m just finishing my first round. Confession: I haven’t been religious and sticking to it. I do most days, but coming off a keto lifestyle, I just have gone a little too crazy with carbs! Ack! I think I’ve actually gained weight (haven’t weighed) because my clothes are actually tighter. I want to cry! Sadly my FB trainers, although super sweet, aren’t actually super helpful when I ask questions. Any thought of what I should do? Feeling discouraged.
Hi Kristen, I’m so glad you found my post and that you are doing The Faster Way to Fat Loss! It’s a great program. I just sent you an email with some of my thoughts that might help you. Hang in there!
I’m so glad that Kristen posted that she was less than satisfied with her experience. I too didn’t feel like the Facebook group was helpful at all. I didn’t get very good results on this plan but I am still trying to adhere to it without signing up for a second go-round. In principle, it makes sense, but there is not enough information given to help you if you have lots of food allergies to many of the main food they recommend you eat (eggs, avocado). Telling me to eat more calories, of less fats is not helpful unless you can help me on what to eat. I was disappointed in my experience.
I’m so sorry to hear that Jennifer. 🙁 I learned a lot on The Faster Way to Fat Loss, but there were a few things I felt could use improvement (the Facebook group and more personalized information!) I really, really feel if you just pay attention to the calorie range (if I’m trying to lose weight, that’s between 1200-1700 calories) and make sure to fill your body full of good, nutrient dense foods….foods you know work for your body, I think you will feel great and get great results! Nobody knows your body better than you do! The things I did LOVE with the Faster Way were Intermittent Fasting, Calorie cycling and the macros (loved the decrease in protein and increase in carbs!)
Thanks for the post. I’ve just completed my prep week and am still struggling to get the macros right vs. calories.
I struggle with the ratios daily. This calorie plan is high compared to what I’m used to. I’m a CrossFit junkie and protein is major. Now shifting to carbs I am finding getting all my calories in difficult.
I know, it was hard for me to cut back on protein and eat more carbs too! However, I loved how I felt! It also felt like more of a livable lifestyle. I like it! I find as long as I stick within the calorie range and eat mostly decent food, I feel great and get great results. Good luck!!