It’s been one hell of a week. I started Leangains last Saturday, with a ton of curiosity as to if I could even stick to it, let alone see results. First two days, I went in bright eyed and bushy tailed to the program, like a shiny new toy had arrived. I was meticulous to track everything that I ate. I took close attention to what was a carb, protein, or fat, even though I was having a hard time holding out to eat after 1pm. It was really difficult to stop myself from overeating once the feeding window was open. Having held off the entire morning sort of created this ravenous beast that felt deserving of any food she wanted. Stopping at 8pm was even harder. The first day, I cut it close, ending my last meal at 8:15. Second day, I ended way too early with a tap out time of 6:35.
By day 3, I was drained, tired, and grumpy. I was certainly going to quit. This wasn’t getting me anywhere but hungry, and depleted. On the third morning, I was so hungry that I made a snap decision to open the feeding window from 16:8 to 14:10, and start my first meal at 10am. After eating and having time to realize that this IF schedule isn’t about deprivation, but eating more so intuitively than just adhering to a strict schedule. Once I saw that I could be flexible on a daily basis, still maintain full control, and follow the IF guidelines, I got my second wind. No way I was quitting.
The thing I’ve noticed most about week one is that my body a short reboot, and did so by fluctuating my hormones and energy. I started out full of gusto, and by day 3, I was barely dragging. Now, day 4…Oh, wonderful day 4, I had so much energy that I went back to 16:8, and got to focus on my macros a bit more. I researched alot about fasted and fed strength or cardio training, bcaa supplementation in a fasted state, and why minimal preworkout supplements are so handy prior to runs. With all this info, I was ready to finish out the week.
Moving into day 5, the energy was still bubbling and I had so much mental clarity. I felt positive and confident. I wasn’t hungry. I ate when I was hungry, which fell shortly after the feeding window had begun. By this time I had figured out to eat a “craving” based meal as my first meal, then eat according to my macros for the rest of the day. This way I could reevaluate what I’ve eaten and what macros need more attention than others, so I can hit my macro goals. It had become fairly easy and almost effortless. Speaking of effortless, drinking water was a breeze. I’ve started downing 2 -2.5 liters a day, and now, I just grab and drink without thinking since I have my giant water bottle filled for the day.
During day 5, it was time to release some of that energy and workout. I took my c4 (preworkout), and got to it. I hit some amazing lifting records and even ended the routine with a nice 1 mile run. The combination of good feels from IF (Leangains) and the Cellucor C4 really threw me into a highly focused zone.
This carried out into day 6, with all the energy and good vibes! The groggy part of my transition was officially over. Now, yesterday ( day 6) would have been an active recovery day, BUT I felt so good and wanted to get a run in. Zombies, run is the most fun I’ve had running! I’ll have to write a post about it on its own. Haha. Anyway, I ended up running 4.5 miles in 33.47 minutes! The longest and fastest run I have ever completed. I wasn’t even exhausted after. I was sweaty, tired, and expecting to be sore, ofcourse! I’m still in shock of how well I did and how far I have come.
This morning was a weigh in.
It’s been 7 days since I starts Leangains. 10 months since I started this leg of my weightloss journey.
3lbs down this week!!!
35lbs down total 🙂
I’m more than happy with my results, and honestly, even though it’s only been a week, I can see major benefits to starting intermittent fasting via the Leangains program. I’m going to continue on and push through! I hope this post helps any of you reading to gain an idea of what to look forward to during the first week of starting intermittent fasting, Leangains, or any major nutritional schedule.
Best of luck!
Best of luck.