I'M GOING VEGAN: day 13

Today I have something to say and I'm kinda pissed. I'm trying not to be. Maybe I just woke up snappy. Catching shade where there is none. Oversensitive. Or just plain over it.

As well all know when attempting to loose weight or become healthy, its a journey and won't happen in a few weeks. It takes patience, understanding, research, and understanding of progress not perfection. To me this is a "duh".

Sure I post #beyoncebody or #teamthighgap or #teamnogut .. what's wrong with it? Does it mean I love myself any less... or worse that I don't know my selfworth?

Nonsense.

Yes, I have a goal of loosing 45lbs by August. I realize that inches will be my most prominent non-scale victories.

So today, I posted in a Facebook fitness group "My main focus is to achieve a thigh gap. So what will tone/slim down my thunder thighs?"... some of the responses were helpful like

• Make sure you are eating enough calories or you will shut down the metabolism. If you are burning 600 cals a day through exercise then a healthier and more sustainable number would be 1600-1800 calories a day.
  
• Keep an eye on calcium, iron, and your b vitamins. Lots of dark leafy greens, citrus fruits, legumes, starchy fruits, and whole grains. Enriched non dairy milks like almond, rice, or coconut so avoid overdoing it on the soy. Use olive, grapeseed, and eat nuts and avocado for EFA's.
  
• you can't spot train fat loss. You can spot train muscle build/tone but not fat loss.
  
• "Thigh gap" or the "hip bridge" is not something every woman, in fact most women, can attain. That is actually genetic. If you aren't genetically predisposed to them then you have to have a very low body fat %. Our bodies are designed to store fat there for pregnancy & breast feeding.
• The stair master actually builds up legs so you will gain the muscle mass in your legs which can and will tone your legs. But as far as not needing the storage you can't really stop where your body stores body fat. And you can't stop your body from storing. Especially if you are calorie deficient for your activity level. Then your body holds on to everything it can and starts to feed off of muscle and organs.
  
• around a 45lb weight loss with an august goal (that is maintainable) is doable it would just require a lot of determination and commitment.
  
• once someone is able to achieve a very "fit and healthy physique" with lower bf (body fat) levels (not dangerously low), then things like muscle definition in that area will be more noticeable
  
• If you want to tighten up the inner thigh look into some hip Adduction exercises.
  
  But I wasn't here for this:  "Why not just be as healthy as you can be because you are worth it?" ... or the motivational stories about why a thigh gap isn't that important vs being healthy/fit. 

I just wasn't here for it! Like re-reading everyones comments a few hours later I can see their points. But in that moment all I saw was red, when it was implied about self-worth.

Like sooooo over it! My mindset was that, I naturally HAD a thigh gap, however my NEW thighs overlap/rub... for ME that's not what I like. So I'm making a change.

YET, that wasn't even the point of my post. I just wanted information on weight training I could use during leg days as the majority of my weight (IMO) are in my thunder thighs.

It was suggested that I utilize the (female)  trainers in the group for assistance. But, I really am over the motivational/encouraging speeches about progress not perfection. Love your self.. blah blah. I do love myself. Too much sometimes! lol

I just need simplicity. The facts. I appreciate that these women wanted to share their personal stories, it shed light BUT maybe only 2 people truly answered my question....

One suggestion I took action on was making an appointment with the Wellness Center, to learn more about my body fat % and metabolism to make sure I'm consuming the right amount of calories,  so on Feb 7th, I got an appointment for setting up a bod pod (for body fat) and metabolic testing.

I'm excited. I'm also thinking about enlisting a personal trainer (probably male) to teach me proper weight training.

Anyhoo, that's my rant for today. I increased my calorie intake to 1500 and right now I'm at 700, so I'll need to eat some more before the day is over (healthy of course).

ps. I might be a tad oversensitive and a bit confrontational lol

pss. something important that has stuck with me. Gluten-free cookies are STILL cookies. :) lol I only had 2 today.

Workout:
2.5 miles on treadmill --Beyonce keeps me going! I was jamming to Yonce)
hip abbduction/adduction machine (weights 80-90), 3 sets of 15
Pull over weight machine (Weight 50 -did 1 set lol- changed to 40) 3 sets of 15
Free weights 2 sets of 15 (weight 10) -- I use 8's at home so it was a struggle.
Rowing machine 2 sets of 500 meters

Meals:
pb & j on wheat, no crusts
2 gluten free cookies
Soy Chicken Parmesean (2 soy chicken patties, 1 slice soy cheese, spaghetti noodles, spaghetti sauce, green/yellow pepper, onions, curry/garlic powder/salt/pepper/ginger seasoning)

Water: 90 oz. I'ma hit 128oz  today ya'll

If I consume More I'll update below
****

For motivation check out Fat Girl Meets Fit World -- check out her amazing "thigh gap" it may not have been her goal but I'm a fan. If I can achieve something similar with clean eating and training dirty I will be just as happy. :)


Please comment below with your thoughts and any suggestions. Don't worry I'm not feeling snappish now lol :)
xoxo