Where’d this Weight Come From? And What I Intend to Do About It

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      One day you’ve got abs and enough bikinis to fill the swimsuit issue of Sports Illustrated, the next you’re buying a one-piece and wondering if you’re made of equal parts unicorn tears and jello. How did this happen? I used to be this scrawny thing that couldn’t put on weight even if my life depended on it. Now I’m looking like my life’s goal is to be a Jenny Craig before picture!

         About 10 months ago I was involved in a car accident. I got a concussion, bruised my sternum, and sprained my knee pretty badly. There was a lot of fall-out from that accident, including depleting all my savings. And because I had aggravated some pre-existing injuries in the accident it was easy for me to let exercising fall by the wayside and focus on work. Only now looking back do I realize that I was also comforting myself with food during these last 10 months to deal with the stress and trauma of the event. As a result, I’ve put on close to 20 lbs of fat (not muscle). To put that in perspective last spring I was probably weighing between 110 to 115lbs.

I’m currently weighing about 130 lbs, give or take a water retaining pound or two. That means I’ve gone up in weight about 20%!

          I’d tell you how many inches I’ve put on but honestly, I’m terrified to measure. I just know it’s not a 24 inch waist anymore because I cannot zip up any of my pants at this point.

           Those of you who have read my earliest posts are probably thinking, “but you’ve been through hard times before girl, what makes this time around so different?” Well, it turns out that it not only gets harder to lose weight in your 30s but it also becomes easier to gain weight. While your 30s can be an amazing time filled with self-activation and confidence, it’s also when you start to lose muscle mass. As you lose your muscle mass your metabolism slows down. So no, it wasn’t all in your head when you were feeling like that cupcake was going directly from your mouth to your love handles! If you want a primer on what you can expect each decade check out this article How Your Metabolism Changes as You Age – Women’s Health Mag.

          So here I am 31 years old, telling nature “challenge accepted”! I’m not exactly sure if the strategies that I employed in my 20s are going to work as well in my 30s but I know that I have to get off my butt and do something, while I can still get my butt through the door.

          My boyfriend’s got some ideas. He thinks that I should focus my training on yoga. I think he’s pretty bias as a passionate yoga practitioner. Personally, I have a hard time with the idea of making yoga my ONLY exercise routine because I’m not exactly crazy about the physiques I see on female yogis. Now maybe there’s someone out there who’s got an hourglass figure and can do all the bends but I haven’t seen them yet. Or maybe it’s going to fall on me to be the yogi with the booty. Time will tell.

         In the meantime, I’ll be doing the following things:

1. Diet: No gluten, no corn. High protein, complex carbs, lots of leafy greens and sensible portions.  I’m scrapping the gluten and corn because of my asthma.
2. Two-a-days! I’ll be working out in the morning and in the evening. Even if it’s just a quick 15 minutes of movement. Something to get my heart rate going in the morning and then a butt-kicking workout in the evening.
3. Yoga for recovery and flexibility one to two times a week.
4. Probably cry because I miss real bread.

And while I’m working on that, let me know in the comments if you’ve noticed that maintaining your weight has gotten harder with age. Also, keep me accountable. I’ll be posting updates as I hit milestones. Or setbacks, but let’s hope I don’t experience too many of those.