Lately I've learned first hand that some of the things I have read but was never sure about are indeed true. I would recommend you take my word for these things and not try to find out first-hand. The process stinks.
Here they are, in no particular order:
- Extreme stress really does hinder fat loss. I hired Julie Lohre as a coach. She is awesome, with the most comprehensive program and organizational skills I have seen to date. But, bless her heart, she couldn't elicit a change in my body, despite her best efforts. I was (and still am) under a ton of stress in my personal life. I am absolutely confident this stress stopped my body from letting go of the fat she was trying so hard to wrangle off of me. I only did her program for 8 weeks because I felt bad. She has limited availability and I felt her time was better spent with a client who she could actually gain some satisfaction from. I'd of worked with her longer, otherwise.
- L-glutamine powder taken either pre- or post-workout really does help with soreness. Spent all last week sore when I forgot to take it (because of the stress). And my routine didn't change at all, so it's not like I did anything new to elicit the pain.
- If I start eating refined sugars (white flour or white sugar), it's pretty much guaranteed to trigger a binge.
-Same with diet soda.
- Exercise really does stimulate feel-good hormones that help lift your mood. It's much harder for me emotionally in the early mornings since my life has encountered sadness that is not going to go away (maybe ever). After I work out, however, I feel better the rest of the day. For this reason I am going to try and split my workouts up to lifting in the morning and cardio at night, just to get the good stuff going through me 24/7. And I am going to start adding in weekend exercise all I can.
- Cardio is not as important as lifting, but it's still important. I don't drop weight nearly as fast without it.
- 1600 seems to be the magic number for me. If I eat calories much below that, I don't drop weight nearly as quickly. And the lower I go below 1600, the more my weight loss stalls. Additionally, I get really hungry if I eat below about 1450. Seems my body wants the muscle I've worked so hard for FED! I've heard this. I've blogged about it. (See "Moving Past a Weight Loss Plateau"). And I have lived it numerous times.
- No kidding, stress really does give you more grey hair. (This has nothing to do with physical fitness, but it's true nonetheless.) I will be scheduling an appointment with my stylist soon.
So there you go- I have been my own, unwilling, science experiment. Maybe my experience can help someone else who thinks, as I used to, "I wonder if that's really true?". And now I am curious- What fitness data have YOU found first-hand to be true?
love it
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