BRATTLAND

Stage 1 of my body recomposition was structured around this program.

A BIT OF BACKGROUND ON ME:

I am 5′1″ and should (and used to) weigh about 115lbs. In my early 20’s I became deeply depressed. I self medicated with sugar. I drank about 2 litres of a coke a day as well as coffee with cream and sugar. I ate maybe once a day. Don’t get hungry much with a steady flow of sugar and caffeine (and nicotine) coming in : ) Funny how people always assume that someone who is overweight is a glutton and over eats. I did not. I drank the weight on. Being only 5′1″ and inactive my calorie requirements were very low. I slowly, over 2 decades of just not giving a crap, climbed to 198 lbs.

THE CHOICE:

Then I started to FEEL like crap AND turned 40. It was time to grow up and take responsibility and choose to be the best I could be and feel GREAT instead of like crap. The first step was to quit smoking (after 27 years). I didn’t weigh for 6 months because I didn’t want to know if was gaining. When I did weigh I was 213lbs!

THE PROGRAM:

This program is very heavily influenced by Michael’s bodybuilding background. In fact it seems to me that it is exactly what a bodybuilder would do in the last few weeks before a competition and is called “cutting”. No salt. No fat. No dairy. No sugar. No white flour. Eating lean protein at every meal. Eating 5 to 6 small meals per day. Drinking lot’s of water. Resistance training. Body typing (Somatypes: Endomorph, Mesomorph and Ectomorph). I’m a type B Endo-Meso. The resistance training in this program is the main reason I chose it. I’ve known since I was a kid that I was not going to be one of those stooped over, weak and fragile old people I always saw. I knew it did not have to be that way if we built muscle. I knew I would lift someday. Thought it would be around 35 but ended up being around 40. You can lose weight without exercising but your end result is drastically different! Fitness industry types call it the skinny fat look. If you don’t use your muscles while losing weight your body figures rightly that they are not a priority and will then break them down for fuel! I wanted keep the little muscle I had and maybe make some more! I also knew this would be a new way of life. Forever! A whole food diet, more activity and fighting to keep the muscle we start to lose over the years and to gain even more!

CHALLENGES:

I did go through a very understandable rough patch in the first few weeks. To start with the first 3 days I was hungry constantly!!!! That was my body begging for the sugar I was addicted to. Then there was a period of nausea. That was my body getting used to digesting a lot more protein and a lot less carbs and processed JUNK! After that it was smooth sailing.

THE SUCCESS:

I was never hungry. I lost an average of 2 lbs per week. I went for a walk every day. Sometimes 30 min. sometime 1 hr. I did the resistance bands 3X week. I lost 50lbs in 5 months! In the first 3 weeks I lost 15 lbs!!! 5″ off my chest 5″ off my waist 5″ off my hips! I was happy!

BEING PREPARED: Don’t think just do it!

Personally, while losing weight at least, I find the fewer the choices the better. The less thinking the better. If there are options then a decision is required and that can lead to too much thinking, negotiating and bad choices. I WILL eat 5 times a day no matter what. Not an option it’s a must, nothing to think about, just do it! Same with walking. Every day. Not an option, it’s a must, just do it. On a workday I do it on my lunch break. DON’T THINK ABOUT IT, JUST DO IT!!! Make a plan and stick to it. Plan ahead so it’s a no brainer. You are prepared!

TIPS:

I bought one of those cool new thermal lunch bags. I throw in an ice pack and my food for the day and I’m set. Even if I’m just going out for a few hours I take a meal with me just in case! It’s when the unexpected happens and we’re not prepared that bad things happen : 0 LOL Twice a week I stock up on protein and veggies. A batch of turkey chili or turkey/rice meatloaf is cooked up each week and frozen in 1 cup serving sizes for post workout meals. I cook a bunch of chicken breasts in the oven in a covered roasting pan to keep ‘em moist and then I can just grab and go for the next few days.

I tended to usually eat the fast results option (protein and vegetable). I’d eat an apple before a workout and rice with chicken or chili as a post workout meal and then that was almost it for carbs. I admit that I still drink 2 or 3 cups of coffee with cream and sugar per day. I’ve had that sugar/caffeine addiction since I was about 14. I will end that by the time I reach my goal weight. Most of the time I was eating 40% carbs 40% protein and 20% fat and about 1200 calories per day. Around the 4 month mark I noticed my hair falling out more than usual. The bunch caught in the drain screen after a shower was about 3X as much. I started eating a little more fat (salmon or 14 almonds) each day and the problem went away : ) and I continued to lose 2lbs/week.

WARNING:

One last thing… While this is not a starvation diet in terms of hunger it can be in calories if you are too strict and always choose the fast track meal option. For a female type B (me) to eat 5 or 6 times a day with each meal consisting of just 2oz of protein and a cup of vegetables the calories would only total between 7 and 800 calories. That is extreme and unhealthy so DON’T DO THAT!!!!! A woman should NEVER go below 1200 calories. Furthermore, 1200 calories is still considered a calorie restricted diet and it is not recommended that you do anything other than slow “steady state” cardio (walking) or the resistance bands “body sculpting workout” while eating so few calories. You most likely would not have the energy to do more than that on 1200 calories anyway.

This program is about increasing your metabolism and energy expenditure. Protein and green vegetables take more energy to digest than any other foods. Eating more frequently keeps you blood sugar level and your metabolism regular all day long. Maintaining and even adding a little muscle means your body needs more energy on an ongoing basis. Walking and any other movement (get off your butt) increases your energy expenditure. Drinking water keeps your system functioning and does cause a slight increase in metabolism. When we don’t get enough water we retain water.

This program is carefully balanced. Follow the instructions. If you over exercise or eat too little the balance will be off and you will likely stop losing fat. Your body will be starving and or fatigued and stressed and will hold on to the fat.

IN CLOSING:

I still have another 40 something lbs to lose. I’m hooked on resistance training and have now joined a gym so I can lift heavy weights. I have no problem eating this way and will continue to do so for the rest of my life. I have increased my calories to compensate for the higher intensity activity I am doing now. Joining a gym and lifting heavy IS going to slow my weight loss short term. That’s another story (Body Recomp – Phase II) for another time : )