Day 68 of 90.....

I'm tired. And hungry. I'm seeing results.

We started the last phase of our diet this past Sunday, 1250 calories. I spent Friday and Saturday enjoying a few extra calories to mentally prepare for this part. Apparently all of those times that I thought I was "cheating" I really wasn't, there was actually a name for it. I discovered that there are things called "re-feeds" where you up your calories and carbs a bit while maintaining protein and lowering fats that you are supposed to do every so often to recharge your body. Well I didn't know that had a name, I just thought that was cheating. It seems similar to when we were carb cycling, but its not as structured as that was. A re-feed day you can actually increase your calories substantially, upwards in the 2000 range. I didn't go that high in Friday or Saturday, but lets just say I wasn't hungry those days either.

Here we are 4 days into the 21 days of the 1250 calorie diet. The main components getting me through the gaps between meals: sour patch kid gum (yep, found some!!!), liquid/powder water flavorings and coffee....lots of coffee.....thank goodness I found the Green Mountain coffee at that gas station. I've become a chain chewer. One piece of gum lasts about 30 minutes before the flavor is gone and I switch it out for a new piece. My jaw hurts.

Workouts are good. Weights are staying between the 8-15 rep range for now, completing usually 4 sets of each exercise. Sometime I do active rest periods, sometimes I take a nap between sets, depends on how large of a Green Mountain I had that day. I'm doing at least 1 cardio session a day. I'm alternating between HIIT/sprints, LSD (long, slow duration.....get your heads out of the gutter) and plyometric type circuits. I'd say at least 3 days a week I am doing double cardio. I found out that it works for me to split the cardio sessions into 2 smaller sessions. I'm fighting some plantar fasciitis pain, but as long as I stay off the arc trainer I seem to be ok. Guess I'm stuck on the stupid treadmills.

Its clear to see that if people didn't know what we were doing before, they do now. Not only are we walking around in 5 inch clear high heels, but our muscles are now quite noticeable without even having to flex. People at the gym are asking more about what we are doing. Its becoming real.

I'm trying to keep positive thoughts in my head even though I'm constantly thinking about food. My clients have been sharing with me their food experiences so that it may seem that I too have experienced it with them. One of my clients even sent me a picture of her ham and cheese Panini she had for dinner one night. It was awesome and I stared at it for a while. I've warned my husband that for the next 4 weeks I probably won't be the friendliest of beasts, but he's informed me that at least I look like a "beautiful zombie". I will get through this diet. Just keep telling myself that.

I did get my suit in the mail last week, and I did try it on and did take pictures. I'm not sharing them. Its a humbling experience when that much is revealed in a "bathing suit".

I've been putting a lot of work lately into what my plans are for when these shows are finished. I'd like to stay similar to this lifestyle just within a satisfying calorie range. I used to get headaches all the time and have wicked blood sugar fluctuations when I wasn't eating this clean. Its nice to not have headaches and to have a stable blood sugar on a regular basis. I know a lot of that has to do with the amount of sugar I was eating before. Hopefully I can stay away from it most of the time when I am on the other side of these competitions.