Life At Slow-Mo

I suppose I was celebrating too soon. Hitting 2 kg weight loss in 4 days seemed like a great thing worthy of cracking the champagne. But 4 days since then, the weight wouldn’t budge. It even increased 300 grams, and then decreased, and increased again.

Apparently, it is a normal thing for the body to quickly lose weight within the first week of dieting. But then the body responded by slowing the metabolism, and what worked in the first week wouldn’t work in the following weeks. It’s time to change strategy.

• It’s time to pay attention to the macronutrients.
  Some intermitten fasting advocates said you can eat ANYTHING within the eating window. But then, there is a limit on what the body can burn, even when it consumes food in shorter period of time.
  • Taking it easy on carbs while filling up on fibers is one way to adjust for the body’s slowing metabolism.
  • Adding protein can help break the the plateau. Protein is harder to digest. It takes more than twice the calories to burn protein than it does to burn fat or carbs, hence increasing body metabolism rate. Addition of protein also helps to protect against loss of muscle mass.¹ Here is a comparison of several protein sources:

Protein Source	Protein Content
Eggs	6.3 grams per 1 large egg (50 grams)
Almonds	6 grams per one ounce (28.35 grams)
Chicken Breast	26.7 grams per one half of chicken breast (86 grams)
Cheddar Cheese	3.96 grams per slice (17 grams)
Greek Yoghurt	19.9 grams per serving (200 grams)
Milk	8.32 grams per one cup (246 mL)
Lentils	9.02 grams per cup (about 100 grams)
Lean beef	24.6 grams per 3-ounce serving (85 grams)
Salmon	30.5 grams per half a fillet (124 grams)
Quinoa	8 grams per one cup (185 grams)
Protein Powders	16.6 grams per scoop (28.6 grams)
Ezekiel Bread	6 grams per slice (60 grams)
Pumpkin Seeds	8.8 grams per 1/4 cup (29.5 grams)
Turkey Breast	25.6 grams per 3-ounce serving (85 grams)
Shrimp	21.6 grams per 3-ounce serving (85 grams)
Peanut and Peanut Butter	7.31 grams per 1-ounce serving of peanuts 7.2 grams per 2 tables spoon of peanut butter

• Walking may not cut it anymore.
  In average, according to my activity tracker app, I burn around 200 calories for every 3 km walking. But to amp the metabolism, I will have to either taking a longer walk or increase the workout intensity. I don’t think it is time for me to start running again. I will risk my knees and other joints in my legs and hips if I run regularly while still in my present weight. There are several alternatives to running:
  • Swimming. The only stroke I can is breaststroke. Good news is, it is the best stroke for weight loss. It helps strenghten heart and lungs while toning thighs, upper back, triceps, hamstrings and lower legs.² A 30-minute continuous breaststroke lap swimming can burn 200 calories.
  • Other aerobic exercises such as Zumba, dancing or High Intensity Interval Training.
  • Lifting Weights or resistance training. Although lifting weight for 30 minute may not result in the same calorie burning as in Aerobic Exercises, but the burning process continues hours after the workout stops.
• Better sleep
  Ironically, I’ve been sleeping late writing these blog posts. To keep a good metabolic rate, I must aim for 7-8 hours of sleep at night.

I’m turning in for the night now. See ya!

==The Distracted Guy==