Female success on the 4HB plan!

[Barbii_]

Wow, I've been on the SCD since April 30th, 2011. I'm a 35 yr old lady with 2 small children. I've lost btwn 20-25lbs. I didn't have a scale when I began so I don't know what my start weight was. I don't know my inches lost either because my husband tossed my index card with my starting inches on it. But what I can say is that I started in a size 12 and now size 6 are big on me. So who really cares what the numbers say. That was the goal.*I did this without excersizing regularly, lately I haven't so much as taken a walk.
Let me just say that I have followed the eating plan to the mark (with the exception of a few tbsp cream in my coffee daily) for almost the entire time. In the beginning, I was eating by the book, but now I have modified my eating quite a bit. I have taylored my diet to:
a protein shake with almond milk first thing in the morning,
then to meal #1: 3 whole egg scramble, with sauted cauliflower and lentils
to meal #2: protien, sauted cauliflower and lentils,
to meal #3: protein and 2 veggie, No beans
and I never ever forget my new favorite coctail: 1/2 glass red wine + Diet Cherry Dr. Pepper on ice x2, EVERY NIGHT.
If I'm hungry before bed, I usually have a 1/2 cup cottage cheese.
I don't have cheat days anymore. I usually cheat at night after my dinner 2-4x a week. I follow the rule that if I get up to 140lbs on the scale, I stop cheating. When I get back down to 136lbs, if I crave something, I eat it.
My problem is that I don't know how to be happy with some of anything. I am an extreemist. I go super clean and good or I go super naughty and destructive. There is no middle ground. I would change this immediately about myself if I could.
If there has been one thing that has made the biggest impact on me since I started eating SCD, it has bee learning about all of the hangups I have in my mind in regards to food. Attatchments I never thought I had. Emotional dependence to food, especially being raised in an old school Italian family. It is really hard to stop looking at food as something that brings comfort or joy or pleasure. Eating to live instead of living to eat has been the hardest transition. And I am SO not there yet.
I thought that once I got to my 138lb goal that I would be happy. That just isn't the case. There isn't a day that goes by without me thinking about food more than I ought to. There isn't a day that goes by that I don't worry that I'm going to gain all of the weight back. Now that I don't have weight to lose, I tend to look at the flabby parts of my body that aren't perfect. There always seems to be something to critisize about our bodies. It's very hard being a woman in 21st century America, when it comes to self image.

[ellecardona]

I'm 27. 5'2". starting weight: 191
I'm 14 weeks in, and I've lost about 20 inches and 26 pounds.

I'm a professional choreographer, so I've always worked out a lot and had really good stamina and endurance. But, I love food! So, I've always had a hard time keeping my weight down. This is the first diet I've ever been on (can you believe it??).
I tried this diet as more of an experiment to begin with. I just thought I would see what happens if I stuck with a diet... I figured this one would be good for me since I typically eat the same things everyday anyway, and I love red wine!
I've had a few difficulties with the food, but none of them are really major. I've been through a couple different breakfast foods. Eggs have always made me really nauseous in the mornings. And beans (mostly black and pinto) started to give me SEVERE stomach pains after lunch. So... here is the diet I've landed for now:
Breakfast: celery and humus
Lunch: "Burrito" salad with Grilled chicken, romaine lettuce, corn, lentils, guac, salsa
Dinner: (this sometimes varies) Steak, pork, or beef with asparagus or zucchini
snacks etc: pickles (no sugar), slim jims (I know this is a bit of a cheat), almonds, raw veggies,
I typically drink a venti iced coffee black with cinnamon and drink about 100 oz of water a day. 2 glasses of red wine a night.
Cheat days are AWESOME! I cheat every Sunday (SUNDAY FUNDAY!!!)
Workouts: As a choreographer, I do dance a lot, so its hard to measure physical activity. I dance at least 5 days a week for work. I also consciously workout out at least three times a week for an hour each time.

Downside: None of my clothes fit..... I guess that is a good problem to have.

Good luck to all you ladies! It's so nice to have this community to see what everyone else is experiencing!

[justhamade]

I'm 27. 5'2". starting weight: 191
I'm 14 weeks in, and I've lost about 20 inches and 26 pounds.

Awesome.

Might be a good idea to add some protein/fat to your breakfast. Doesn't have to be eggs.

Slim Jims aren't the worst snack, but some good quality beef jerky might be a bit better.

Keep it up!

[Barbii_]

Sounds like you are doing great! I have the same weight loss roughly and like you, so much more in inches. Isnt it great?
I just switched to Atkins a month ago just to add some dairy and found that I didnt lose a lb and actually got bloated and gained one or 2 lbs. So I'm now back to beans meat and greens every meal and I already feel better! I just got stuck in my mind and felt like I needed some variety, but it surely wasnt worth it. I would rather eat beans every meal and stay lean and full than come up with millions of meal options that make me soft and feeling yucky. I was also out of control with cheating, it got to like every 2 days, after dinner I would go nuts! So, I feel like I got back on track in my head and ready again for the SCD. I have discovered Franks red hot sauce and I can practically drink it! I eat chicken legs like 3-4 nights a week covered in it! Its like juiced up chicken wings! Yummo!
Anyway, good to hear about your diet and your progress!!! SCd all the way!!!!!

[justhamade]

I would rather eat beans every meal and stay lean and full than come up with millions of meal options that make me soft and feeling yucky.

Roots and tubers like yams a sweet potatoes are a good (possibly better) substitute for those that don't want/like/tolerate beans.

Grass Fed Butter or ghee is the only dairy I would say is worth adding. Pasteurized dairy is actually very unhealthy.

[Barbii_]

Ok Justhamade, I took your advise on moving my body. Listen to my workout today and tell me what you think: Please

Walk on treadmill at 3.6 mph 1% incline 15 min
sprints on track/walk/sprints on track/walk 15 min
spin bike difficult level 4-5 15 min
abs 100 leg/butt lifts on bench with knees at 90 degree angle

My quads feel like I ripped them, already in pain
But I sweat like crazy

Yesterday I pushed my 5yr old and 2 yr old in a double stroller for an hour in our neighborhood, up and down gradual inclines
My pecs hurt from pushing, they are heavy!

So, tomorrow I will probably walk on treadmill at a 3.6 at 1% incline and spin on bike, I probably wont be able to sprint.

I also plan to look into the kettle bell workouts on youtube. I gotta find one, wish my gym had them available.

Any comments would be great!

thanks a million!

[justhamade]

Listen to my workout today and tell me what you think: Please

Looks pretty good. Could make a couple small tweaks.

So, tomorrow I will probably walk on treadmill at a 3.6 at 1% incline and spin on bike, I probably wont be able to sprint.

You might want to rest or do a different workout tomorrow. Usually the same workout 2 days in a row is not recommended. Recovery is key to fat loss and muscle gain.

I also plan to look into the kettle bell workouts on youtube. I gotta find one, wish my gym had them available.

You can do kettlebell type workouts with dumbbells. Like this image
or

The kiwi workouts are highly recommended. http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/exercise/

[lockyourknee]

I have been successful on this plan with a few tweaks.

vitals: 35yo woman, 5'9", starting weight 205lbs, current weight 157lbs, the vast majority of loss occurred over a period of about 6 months. I've now maintained the same weight for about 6 months.

exercise: Bikram yoga 2-3x/week, walk or run 30-60 minutes most other days.

The changes I made were to 1. eliminate the legumes at dinner 2. make sure to eat nothing after dinner. Additionally, I 3. skip dinner one day a week. (When I hit a yoga class on a weekday I get home late anyway, so I just go to bed.) I have experimented with various periods of fasting and this seems to be the MED

[justhamade]

1. eliminate the legumes at dinner 2. make sure to eat nothing after dinner. Additionally, I 3. skip dinner one day a week.

Those are awesome tweaks.

Did you experiment with skipping breakfast and diner worked better for you?

[Barbii_]

Thank you so much Justamade for the info and ideas. How often would I do the Kiwi workout? Maybe alternate with my walking routine or do it with walking on same day?



Are you saying that leaving legumes out for dinner would be good for more fat loss? I would totally do that if you think it would help. I love protein and 2 veges for dinner.