Hi guys,
Welcome to the 30 Day Cowlean Challenge. I was “swinging back the other way” with my health recently, so decided that this would provide excellent motivation to get myself back on track. Each day I’ll be putting out content, commenting on that day’s weigh-in and the previous day’s calories, and musing on topics which drift in and out of my mind. It’ll be rough and ready in some places, but I’m looking forward to giving my thoughts on a wide range of topics, and to show you what can be achieved over just 30 days.
Weigh-in: 208 lbs
To put that number in perspective, my lowest weight was 185lbs. I admit that at that point I was probably near perfect health, with everything dialed in. On the other hand, I was using weight loss techniques like 20 hour fasts. I’ll come out and admit that I was truly addicted to losing weight, but that’s a story for another day...
This number also represents a bit of water weight; much more than I’d usually be carrying. I wouldn’t be surprised if I lost somewhere up to five pounds in the next few days. This is completely expected when you reduce the amount of carbs in your diet: less carbs, less salt retention, less water weight. You immediately lose the bloated look and feel lighter.
Whereas this doesn’t change my diet recommendations, I’m undecided whether I’m an overall fan of the effect or not. On one hand, people just starting out see quick results on the scale, but they are losing fat at a much slower rate. It’s what they do with that initial motivation that counts. Do you see it as a win and move on? Or do you become irritated because your weight loss slows leading to more intense dieting.
It’s much easier to continue with a process when you’re getting positive feedback. Dieting has an interesting learning curve: it begins relatively easy, as you make a few changes and you’re rewarded with immediate weight loss. Then you plateua and you eat even healthier to maintain results. Eventually you hit another plateua and the cycle continues. The problem is that we can go too far, where we’re actually hurting outselves to lose weight (e.g. 20 hour fasts! - C).
As far as I’m concerned, if you’re living at or near perfect health, then just let your weight move around freely.
Until tomorrow,
Cowlean
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