Epic Blood - To go along with my RMR test last month, I had the most in depth blood work done. On Tuesday, I finally had my follow up appointment to go over the results. And the verdict is in ...
I have epic blood. Like, "my blood work results will kick your blood work results' a**" epicness. Sorry. It's true. (I may have challenged J to a "blood battle")
My cholesterol levels are awesome. (Total - 149, LDL - 48, HDL - 73, Triglycerides - 53. I knew you were wondering.) I have no signs of inflamation/oxidation. My glucose and insulin levels are rock star. My kidneys and liver know how to operate and my electrolytes are on point (Thanks Nuun!)
However, the tests showed that I am a carrier for Factor V Leiden (which increases my risk for venous thromboembolism, blood clots that form in the vein) and that I do not effectively metabolize folic acid. Also, I have a few hormone levels that while still in the normal range, are on the low side. Super interesting stuff.
And while I learned lots of new things about how my body is functioning, I was not at all surprised by two results.
I have crazy low levels of both Vitamin D and Iron, despite heavy supplementation over the last year.
In fact, all of the supplements barely raised my levels from the last time I had blood work done, which makes me think that I also have difficulty effectively metabolizing those nutrients. At this point, I'm not really sure how to rectify this absorption issue.
Epic Fit - Also on Tuesday, I had a professional bike fit on TigerBlood. After nearly two hours, lots of pictures, videos and lasers and numerous tweaks, it's like my bike was made especially for me. It's amazing. Definitely money well spent.
Dinnertime Crazies - I've been trying to focus on spending quality time with the girls while they are out of school. Part of this includes having conversations around the dinner table.
Day in and day out, I try to keep things civilized. It never works. Every single day ends up like this ...
Yes, I constantly question their sanity.
Showing posts with label RMR. Show all posts
Showing posts with label RMR. Show all posts
Thursday, July 12, 2012
Thursday, June 7, 2012
Three Things Thursday -
Food, Food and More Food - After I posted yesterday about my RMR, pretty much everyone asked me how I was going to eat 3000-4000 QUALITY calories per day. And the answer is ...
I don't know.
It would be super easy to head to Shyndigz and have a jumbo sized piece of cake everyday. Easy, but wrong. Plus, we put a self-imposed ban on that place until Labor Day.
But, in all seriousness, I don't really know what I am going to eat. Yesterday, I only made it to 2511 calories and could not have eaten another bite. Unfortunately, my 80 minute bike and 90 minute yoga session (not to mention my normal daily activity) boosted my caloric needs by about 1300. Yeah, so day one might have been a fail.
I'm sure your heart is breaking for the girl who can eat whatever the f#ck she wants.
Anyway, I'm know that avocados will become a daily staple and that I'll eat a full serving (or two) of nuts compared to the half serving I usually have. But after that, I am kind of stumped. The nutritionist recommended some interesting options for balancing my nutrients, but they are kind of counter-intuitive to endurance training, so I am not sure how I feel about them. I'm going to give them a go and will "review" them after a few weeks along with a "log" of what I am eating.
In the meantime, if you have any helpful hints, feel free to email me with them.
P90X - Ever since Ironman 70.3 Texas, I have been trying to incorporate more strength training into my routine. I have been doing a free weights circuit at home two to three times per week and I can definitely tell the difference that it is making. My shoulders, especially the reconstructed one, are much stronger and my swim times are evident of that.
Since things were going well, I had no intention of changing anything. But last week, my sister, Beans, mentioned that a co-worker of hers wanted to try P90X and that she was also kind of interested in learning about it.
I took that to mean that she wanted to start it IMMEDIATELY.
And that's what we did. On Monday, Beans, J and I started P90X. And it's beating the heck out of us. When I tried to get out of bed this morning to run, I could barely move. My hips and butt were on fire. So, I took an unscheduled rest day. Oops.
Nuun Winners - It occurred to me this morning that I never posted my Nuun Giveaway winners. So without further adieu, here they are. There were 75 entries and thanks to random.org, the lucky numbers were ...
#23 - Hot Mama @ Hot Confidence
AND
#37 Christine Ashby @ Swimmer Turned Triathlete
Congrats ladies! Please email me at racingwithbabes (at) yahoo (dot) com with your shipping address to claim your prize.
I don't know.
It would be super easy to head to Shyndigz and have a jumbo sized piece of cake everyday. Easy, but wrong. Plus, we put a self-imposed ban on that place until Labor Day.
But, in all seriousness, I don't really know what I am going to eat. Yesterday, I only made it to 2511 calories and could not have eaten another bite. Unfortunately, my 80 minute bike and 90 minute yoga session (not to mention my normal daily activity) boosted my caloric needs by about 1300. Yeah, so day one might have been a fail.
I'm sure your heart is breaking for the girl who can eat whatever the f#ck she wants.
Anyway, I'm know that avocados will become a daily staple and that I'll eat a full serving (or two) of nuts compared to the half serving I usually have. But after that, I am kind of stumped. The nutritionist recommended some interesting options for balancing my nutrients, but they are kind of counter-intuitive to endurance training, so I am not sure how I feel about them. I'm going to give them a go and will "review" them after a few weeks along with a "log" of what I am eating.
In the meantime, if you have any helpful hints, feel free to email me with them.
P90X - Ever since Ironman 70.3 Texas, I have been trying to incorporate more strength training into my routine. I have been doing a free weights circuit at home two to three times per week and I can definitely tell the difference that it is making. My shoulders, especially the reconstructed one, are much stronger and my swim times are evident of that.
Since things were going well, I had no intention of changing anything. But last week, my sister, Beans, mentioned that a co-worker of hers wanted to try P90X and that she was also kind of interested in learning about it.
I took that to mean that she wanted to start it IMMEDIATELY.
And that's what we did. On Monday, Beans, J and I started P90X. And it's beating the heck out of us. When I tried to get out of bed this morning to run, I could barely move. My hips and butt were on fire. So, I took an unscheduled rest day. Oops.
Nuun Winners - It occurred to me this morning that I never posted my Nuun Giveaway winners. So without further adieu, here they are. There were 75 entries and thanks to random.org, the lucky numbers were ...
#23 - Hot Mama @ Hot Confidence
AND
#37 Christine Ashby @ Swimmer Turned Triathlete
Congrats ladies! Please email me at racingwithbabes (at) yahoo (dot) com with your shipping address to claim your prize.
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
RMR Results ...
It's no secret that I have battled with my weight, now and in the past.
I do not pretend that I don't care, because in the end, when it comes to endurance sports and overall health, weight matters. It makes a true, measurable difference.
I do not hide the fact that I have gained 8-10 pounds since December, despite constant calorie monitoring and a vigorous training schedule. Furthermore, I do not hide how much this bothers me. Not for vanity, but rather from a performance standpoint.
And I know that to others I seem fit and my body may be "enviable", but there is no reason anyone should gain 10 pounds in 6 months when they ACTIVELY TRYING NOT TO. It just doesn't make sense.
I felt as if I had hit a dead end. I was eating the amount of calories I should have been based on all of those calculations for determining your metabolic rate. I was adding in for my workouts. And subtracting out 500 calories per day to create a deficit. I worked out more. I worked out less. I tweaked the numbers up slightly and then back down. Nothing worked.
I knew I needed help.
So, based on the recommendation of my friend, Sally, I set up an appointment to have my RMR (resting metabolic rate) tested.
This test, which costs $100 dollars and includes a meeting with a nutritionist, would tell me how many calories my body burns at rest. From there, it calculates how many calories you need based on your activity level plus 30 minutes of exercise each day (obviously, you get to increase or decrease your caloric intake based on your training schedule). In addition, it gives you caloric ranges for maintenance and weight loss.
I was convinced that I was going to be told that my metabolism is wicked slow and that I was severely overeating, thus gaining weight. To me, it seemed like the only logical outcome.
Yesterday was my test day. After four hours of fasting and relative inactivity (both key to getting accurate results), I headed to the appointment at Commonwealth Sports Medicine. Once there, I was asked a few basic questions.
Age: 30
Height: 5' 8 1/2"
Weight: 158
Goal Weight: 149
Then, my nose was clamped shut and I was told to breathe into a long tube attached to a machine. For 15 minutes. Upon completion, my results were printed. And here's what they said ...
Wait. Can't see that? Let's try again ...
Yeah, that's right my RMR is 2534. As in, if I stayed in bed all day and did nothing, I could still eat 2534 calories. And based on my lifestyle and 30 minutes of cardio (like I ever do just 30 minutes of cardio), I should be eating 3609 to MAINTAIN MY WEIGHT. (Note: based on these results, my metabolism is 67% faster than a typical person of similar sex, age, height and weight)
That's pure insanity.
Do you know how much I have been eating?
Somewhere between 1500-1800 on rest days. And 2200-2800 every other day. Even on days when I workout for 3+ hours, I never have more than 3000 calories.
Which means, I have been severely UNDER-EATING.
My body is holding on to it's weight, because I'm not giving it enough fuel.
In addition to these results, I had my body fat percentage tested. It came in at 24%, which is EXACTLY what my home scale has be telling me. So, that means I currently carry around 37.92 pounds of fat. To get to my goal weight and goal body fat percentage of 149 and 20%, I need to lose 8.12 pounds of fat. Hopefully, with the help of the new eating guidelines placed in front of me, I can make this happen.
Have you ever had this or a similar test done? What did you think of the results?
I do not pretend that I don't care, because in the end, when it comes to endurance sports and overall health, weight matters. It makes a true, measurable difference.
I do not hide the fact that I have gained 8-10 pounds since December, despite constant calorie monitoring and a vigorous training schedule. Furthermore, I do not hide how much this bothers me. Not for vanity, but rather from a performance standpoint.
And I know that to others I seem fit and my body may be "enviable", but there is no reason anyone should gain 10 pounds in 6 months when they ACTIVELY TRYING NOT TO. It just doesn't make sense.
I felt as if I had hit a dead end. I was eating the amount of calories I should have been based on all of those calculations for determining your metabolic rate. I was adding in for my workouts. And subtracting out 500 calories per day to create a deficit. I worked out more. I worked out less. I tweaked the numbers up slightly and then back down. Nothing worked.
I knew I needed help.
So, based on the recommendation of my friend, Sally, I set up an appointment to have my RMR (resting metabolic rate) tested.
This test, which costs $100 dollars and includes a meeting with a nutritionist, would tell me how many calories my body burns at rest. From there, it calculates how many calories you need based on your activity level plus 30 minutes of exercise each day (obviously, you get to increase or decrease your caloric intake based on your training schedule). In addition, it gives you caloric ranges for maintenance and weight loss.
I was convinced that I was going to be told that my metabolism is wicked slow and that I was severely overeating, thus gaining weight. To me, it seemed like the only logical outcome.
Yesterday was my test day. After four hours of fasting and relative inactivity (both key to getting accurate results), I headed to the appointment at Commonwealth Sports Medicine. Once there, I was asked a few basic questions.
Age: 30
Height: 5' 8 1/2"
Weight: 158
Goal Weight: 149
Then, my nose was clamped shut and I was told to breathe into a long tube attached to a machine. For 15 minutes. Upon completion, my results were printed. And here's what they said ...
Yeah, that's right my RMR is 2534. As in, if I stayed in bed all day and did nothing, I could still eat 2534 calories. And based on my lifestyle and 30 minutes of cardio (like I ever do just 30 minutes of cardio), I should be eating 3609 to MAINTAIN MY WEIGHT. (Note: based on these results, my metabolism is 67% faster than a typical person of similar sex, age, height and weight)
That's pure insanity.
Do you know how much I have been eating?
Somewhere between 1500-1800 on rest days. And 2200-2800 every other day. Even on days when I workout for 3+ hours, I never have more than 3000 calories.
Which means, I have been severely UNDER-EATING.
My body is holding on to it's weight, because I'm not giving it enough fuel.
In addition to these results, I had my body fat percentage tested. It came in at 24%, which is EXACTLY what my home scale has be telling me. So, that means I currently carry around 37.92 pounds of fat. To get to my goal weight and goal body fat percentage of 149 and 20%, I need to lose 8.12 pounds of fat. Hopefully, with the help of the new eating guidelines placed in front of me, I can make this happen.
Have you ever had this or a similar test done? What did you think of the results?
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