For those who do not know, The CrossFit Games started in 2007 with the intentions to reveal the "Fittest man and woman on earth". It started with a small group of around 70 athletes and in 2012, more than 69,000 CrossFitters had competed. These athletes are tested comprehensively on endurance, physical and mental strength and the Games differ from year to year, each time made unknown until right before each event. This year, we congratulate Rich Froning and Samantha Briggs, who emerged as the "Fittest man and woman on Earth"!
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| Photo credits to Rogue Fitness |
So, what made me kickstart this fitness journey? How has this lifelong journey towards health and fitness been for me? How is my diet like typically?
As mentioned previously in my first post, my husband, Jason was the one who inspired me to start working out seriously. That was back in 2008-2009, I had been very active in sports since my school days but that was all. I had, in mind, a dream body but without any fitness goals and equipped with very pathetic basic knowledge of sports. I was only involved in Netball trainings in school and naively thought that was sufficient. I was snacking so much I could finish a bag of chips (or maybe even 2) in a few hours. My favourite snacks were chips of any sort, chocolates, sweets and I hated fruits, vegetables and nuts. I had no problem maintaining my already slim physique but I was obviously expanding at the hips, butt and the infamous tummy area. When I felt fat, I'd starve myself and will feel skinny (bad skinny fat) all over again. So I was "working out" once a week and eating 1-2 meals a day, excluding snacks.
Well, it was in 2009 (if I'm not wrong) that I started to pick up working out, bit by bit. I don't exactly remember the details but working out was not a priority then. I'd rush through my workouts, skipping them when I had something "better" to do. To me, being in the gym would already make me fit (HAHA!). It went on for almost 2.5 years, with no proper nutrition, supplement nor diet, I was still snacking on my favourite snacks and having cheat meals every other MEAL. My enthusiasm never lasted more than 3 months, on and off. I was doing legs most of the week, though I saw a lot of improvement and my hips went down by a size (I had always been a bottom-heavy), I had a tiny upper-body frame and my shoulders were "smaller than three of my head put together", as quoted by Jason. In other words, my body didn't look proportionate. I was never fat, not even plump before, but that was not my dream body, which comes with a good and well-balanced diet suited to my fitness goals, good supplements for workout and overall health, and good training routines.
It was only in late 2011 when I was taking my training more seriously because of my upcoming wedding. I was doing working out more, with the guidance of Jason and his gym buddies. This was when I started finding out more about working out, proper supplements, diets and most importantly, how to keep myself healthy. I still snack occasionally, but I had already cut out fast food then. In July 2012, signed myself up with California Fitness since that was the nearest gym to my office then. I vowed to make full use of the gym since I had spent money on the membership and increased my training frequency. Diet was still an issue to maintain. It was only since April this year that I entirely cut myself out from unnecessary processed food (my favourite snack from Daiso was the only major distraction), I educated myself by reading up more about diet and watch workout videos and attempt new workouts every now and then.
Like many of you ladies ESP, I faced the problem of bad snacking habits. I never minded working doubly or triply hard in the gym but I could not resist snacking, it was a huge challenge. NOW, I can proudly say that the only snacks I eat are fruits and nuts. I never step into any fast food restaurants, I try to go for whole food when I can and I try to keep my diet as "Paleolithic" as possible following the first meal of the day. I had to adjust my diet drastically since one of my fitness goals is to get rid of my lower tummy fat. As the saying (absolutely true) goes, "abs are made in the kitchen, not the gym".
Planning of your meals
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| Photo credits to Bodybuilding.com |
So typically, I eat 6-7 meals a day and here goes:
Meal 1 (6am or 8am): 1 scoop whey protein
Meal 2 (9.30am): 2 eggs, peanut butter toast & tea
Meal 3 (12.30pm): 1 serving of chicken breast or fish or beef with veg
Meal 4 (4pm): a handful of nuts with/without fruits
Meal 5 (7.30pm): 1 serving of chicken breast or fish with half serving of veg
Meal 6 (11pm): 1 scoop whey protein
On workout days, I take an extra scoop of whey protein after workout. And on days when I train in the mornings, I'll squeeze in an extra meal (small one) between meals 2 and 3, 1 poptart or a handful of nuts or fruits.
Some simple tips to take note if you are trying to burn fats:
- Plan your meals in advance and keep your body filled with food (quality food) so your body will not stop digesting - eating every 3-3.5 hours for fat loss that is. When your body goes in starvation mode, it will start "consuming" your muscles for energy, instead of fats - losing lean muscles will decrease rate of fat-burning, slow down metabolism and thus store fats!
- Keep your meals small and just sufficient, so you will not overeat, which will then affect your next meal.
- When in doubt, go for high-protein food.
- Drink lots of water (at least 2 litres a day)- the more water you drink, the more you drain.
- Choose fibrous carbs over grains - for carb sources
- Listen to your body.
I hope I don't bore anyone with this long post. There are so so much more to share but I'll stop here for now. Feel free to ask if you have any doubts, I may not be entirely right, nor am entirely detailed. I'll assist as much as I can.
Have a good rest-of-the-week ahead everyone!
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