100 Days

100 days ago I started my fitness journey. Well, I REstarted my journey.

I have always lived a very active life, playing sports all throughout my childhood and until I graduated high school, so I never had any problem with my weight. That all changed when I went to college. When I graduated high school, I weighed 148 pounds, by the end of my Freshman year of college I weighed 170 pounds. Yikes!

The next couple years my weight went up and down and I was not happy with how I looked, but never unhappy enough to do something about it. A year ago in January 2010, with my weight at a peak of 175 lbs, I decided something needed to change, through diet and light exercise I was able to drop 15 lbs in 3 months and by the end of March I was down to 160 lbs and 31% body fat. Then life happened again and I got off of my fitness track. Luckily because of the fast pace of my job I was able to keep my weight at 160 lbs, but I still wasn’t happy.

This brings me to 100 days ago. Something changed in me and I was finally unhappy enough with myself to make something different. So I started moving. And I started eating healthier.

Over the last 100 days I  have gone from walking 2-3 miles 4-5 times a week to taking 2-3 body pump classes, 3 core conditioning classes, walking 3-5 miles 5 times, and hiking 2 times every week. Is it a LOT? Yes. There is no denying that. However, I did not try to jump into that type of a schedule from the start. I started out doing what I felt comfortable with and each time I needed a new push, I added something. I listened to my body.

I have also changed what I eat. Fast food and eating out used to be the norm and now if I eat out it is at most once a week and I never eat fast food. I try to eat as clean and natural as possible. And I net around 1600 calories each day, high in protein and low in fat. (calories net means that I track my exercise calories as well so if I were to exercise for 400 calories one day I would actually eat about 2000 calories that day). The only supplements I used was protein powder to add protein to my diet. No diet pills, no thermogenics, no caffeine pills. Not saying these are all bad, just not for me. 

I am now down to 157 lbs and 21% body fat.

The last 100 days have been quite the journey and I look forward to the next 100 and beyond. Although I weigh more than I did when I graduated high school, I am in the best shape of my life and I am extremely happy with how my body is starting to look.

This is the change my body has gone through from 175 lbs to 157 lbs.