Today I want to touch on something that I don't think a lot of people have gotten a chance to see from me lately. I've been pretty great about staying upbeat and positive throughout these last few weeks, but I am human too. And I do meet disappointment from time to time. I've just gotten so good at letting it roll right off. WELL.....
I know that I said I lost 5 pounds a couple weeks ago, and 5 inches off my waist, which was AWESOME! The bummer is that that's all I've lost thus far. And trust me....I have been BUSTING it up in my living room every day (with the exception of a couple emergency/sick days), and being practically a saint with my nutrition. I'm taking everything incredibly seriously, and for a number of great reasons. The only problem is, the results aren't matching up to my expectations....YET.
When I start my workouts in the morning, my body is achy from the day before, I'm usually hungry (I've started having a pre-workout snack that works wonders with my energy, but I digress), and I'm not going to lie....I'm not exactly looking FORWARD to kicking my own butt. That takes a lot of "talking-it-up" in my own head. But let me tell you what it's like once all the huffing and puffing, jumping and pivoting, and sweating and stinkin' is over.
Once my workout is through, and I have a moment to chug my water and catch my breath, I look down at myself. Every day I do this. And do you know what I see? Dudes.....my leg muscles. They are WICKED after I work out. Now, don't get me wrong. There is still MUCH more work to be done here. However, there is definitely a difference between when I was sitting on my behind doing nothing on the couch, to the last month of straight in-my-living-room-butt-whooping. I can see the different muscles in my thighs. Like, not just a raised quad. I can see the lines defining the two (whatever you call them) muscles in the front, and my hamstrings are poppin' too! I may not have lost inches on my thighs since a couple weeks ago, but my muscles are starting to shine through the excess fat, which to me, is far more important that any weight loss.
My scale has not MOVED sinced I last updated you guys on it. Which is GREAT news considering the information above. Why? Because my muscles are taking over. They're replacing the fat that once was. Let me clear up a little well-known fallacy that many of you have probably heard, and that I know I've been guilty of saying in the past.
Muscles do NOT weigh more than fat. A pound is a pound any which way you slice it. Muscle is DENSER than fat, so it takes up less space. When my scale stopped moving, I knew exactly what was going on. I need to allow my body the time it needs to change and to quit being the impatient butthead I know I can be. I need to allow the time my muscles need to take over inside of me, and once that transition happens, and my body is comfortable with the muscle built in, the fat shredding WILL happen! And THAT, my friends, is when the pounds will start sliding right off.
In the meantime, you may catch me grumbling here and there about my stupid scale being a real jerkface, but don't mind me. I know what's REALLY going on, and I'm doing what I need to do to get to that "happy place" I've built up in my head regarding my goals and my healthy new lifestyle. And that's ultimately the most important thing.
So when it comes down to your health journey, remember this: If you have just started this journey for yourself, and you are doing all the right things, and the results just aren't coming to you fast enough, give it time. Be patient with yourself, with your body. You may have been like me and ate crap for your entire life and avoided any strenuous exercise like the Black Plague. As Tony Horton, the trainer for P90X says, "Rome was not built in a day, and neither were you." To break the old you down and build a new you in the process, it will take time.
If you have enough strength, determination, and desire to see yourself through all this sweaty, grueling work, you will NOT regret it. I promise.
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