Category: Weightloss
I suppose it’s time I sit down and bang out this blog post, as it seems it doesn’t plan to write itself. And, I am really proud of all I was able to accomplish in the ten weeks of the FitLifeSF Challenge. It’s just that… well… I’m not so sure there’s much worth writing about because, in hindsight, it was pretty simple, really.
So, everyone knows that I love, love, love geeking out on technology– especially fitness technology. Pair this with my love of pseudo-medical devices and you know I’ve got pretty much every bodyfat caliper/scale, pedometer, running gadget and gizmo you can imagine. Enter: BodyBugg. You may have seen the BodyBugg strapped to the arms of contestants on The Biggest Loser, but I’m convinced this tool has value for everyone from your average person looking to drop a few (or many) LBs to a seasoned athlete wanting to fine-tune their fueling for training.
The results are in from the FitLifeSF 10-Week Challenge, and everyone who finished the challenge saw some wonderful results! Without further ado…
Here’s a question that gets asked a lot: “Should you look at the scale?”
I think absolutely you should* if fat loss is your goal. I know others will tell you to “ignore the scale,” but it is the most objective way to tell if you have your energy balance right for fat loss. When we add exercise to our regime, it is SO easy to overcompensate on the calories we think we are burning. We pour the cereal for a few seconds longer, we add just a little more peanut butter to our toast, we take just a few more noodles every time we have pasta– we don’t even notice it, but before we know it we’ve totally equalized or, worse, flipped the energy equation. Weighing and measuring food is one way to make sure this isn’t happening, weighing and measuring your body is the other.
It also bears mentioning that exercise has been proven to have more than just a physical effect, it also has a mental one. It improves mood, outlook and self esteem (all great things!) Unfortunately, what this can mean is that maybe we’re standing a little taller, looking at ourselves through different eyes, feeling great about ourselves and, thus, seeing some changes that might not really be there; The scale and the tape measure are two totally objective tests that won’t lie to ya. Especially if we are getting fit for health vs vanity, we need to move beyond the mirror and put some numbers behind it.
*To preserve your sanity, I suggest weighing only once per week, at the same time of day, under the same conditions, otherwise the waterweight fluctuations will drive you batty. If you insist on weighing yourself every day, use a tool like Google 15 to give yourself a running average and make adjustments to your program based on the average, not the day-to-day fluctuations.
This is one comment that we get often on this blog… Women concerned with getting bulky or “looking like a man” if they do P90X or any weight work. Let me assure you that this concern is totally unfounded.
Ok people, this has been a BIG question on our site, and we decided to take the comments off our other posts, and move them to a easy to find place. 
The great thing about P90X is that choosing between the Classic or Lean workout is very simple, and if you want to see different results, switching from one to the other is just as simple.
Please post any questions you might have on this subject here. Be sure to read below, as Smurf and I have responded to many comments on this subject!
-Rob
If you find this post helpful and want to purchase P90X or any equipment from Beachbody, we’d much appreciate if you use this link:
http://beachbodycoach.com/fitlifesfrob
If your Beach Body Coach isn’t helping you, be sure to tell Team Beach Body you want FitLifeSFRob as your coach! You then get the combined experience of Smurf and me.
We are 5 weeks (a little more) into the new year… do you know where your goals are? We got in touch with the FitLifeSF Challenge contestants to find out how they were doing, and here is a little bit of an update.
That is the question I pose to all you guys. How are you doing 3 weeks in? I hope you have not started to slip into bad habits.
Me, I have been kicking into high gear. (Added 3 days of SAMBO on top of my Insanity workouts)
We had a week of tasty, P90X-friendly meals at FitLifeSF Headquarters this week– a few simple favorites, and a few recipes worth sharing:
It’s about time someone did this! Thanks to The Daily Beast for compiling the latest data on which diets actually work based on weight lost at 6 and 12 months, as well as attrition rate (after all, no diet works if you can’t stick to it!)
The winner, Volumetrics, is an approach I highly recommend for many folks, and, of the top 5, all but Atkins are what I consider to be reasonable, balanced, SUSTAINABLE ways of eating for life. (Maybe it’s because I’m more of an endurance athlete, but, I’m just pretty anti-Atkins. I do agree , however, that lowering carbs for a week or two is one way to lose some of the water weight that is stored with glycogen and slim down for a near-term event.)