In my effort to ditch the last 5 lbs. of my stubborn weight, I joined BetterMe for 1 month. It was a glorious journey with Omar, my favorite among the Coaches there.
For those who are not familiar with BetterMe, the program consists of a customized meal plan and strategic workouts to reach your goal. They were drawn based from a series of questions that you honestly answered before you joined. It also offers different Challenges for a fee but the Intermittent Fasting Challenge is free. When you enter the IF Challenge, you will be guided on a day-to-day basis which I found really amazing. I love the Message Platform where you can ask questions and Coaches answer. One Coach particularly stood out among the rest. Omar.
Omar would patiently read my rantings and answer them in a meticulously detailed fashion. He would also ask specific questions and lavish me with advices not only with concerns on fitness but on life’s drama as well. He is a dedicated coach, a caring teacher, a supportive friend, and an inspiring therapist-in-one!
In a nutshell, here are the lessons I learned from him:
1. Do not compare yourself with others. The only person you should compare yourself with is yourself: He told me this when I was frustrated that some people could lose 10 lbs in less than 3 months of IF while I only lost 2-3 lbs after 5 months of 16:8 IF.
2. Track your daily calorie intake using a food scale. You could be under-eating. Chronic under-eating can lead to metabolic adaptation. Your metabolism slows down and as a result, you struggle to lose any weight: Interesting point! Omar told me to use the calorie tracker of BetterMe which I didn’t know existed. And when I did, I was surprised that it included our very own native Filipino dishes like sisig, pinakbet, tokwa’t baboy, etc. It even includes my favorite pulutan Chicharon Bulaklak!
3. Your mom has her unique metabolism, body stats, activity level, etc. It is also not realistc to compare yourself with her: I couldn’t help it. I am so envious of my 88 yr-old mother who only weighs 110 lbs. without any effort while I struggle from dawn to dusk just to maintain my 120-lb. chunk of weight.
4. Weight loss is not a true indicator of progress. If you gain muscle mass at the same time you are losing body fat, your weight may not change and might even go up. Waist circumference is the most affected by changes in body fat: Now this really made my day! I have miraculously lost 3 inches off my waist so I should be jumping in jubilation!
5. You’re in your 60’s. Your body’s ability to recover is much lower and hence you can easily over-train and chronic over-training can lead to elevated cortisol levels that can interfere with your body’s ability to lose weight, especially if combined with a stressful life or lack of sleep: Ouch! Hard to accept but true . . . What a revelation! Now I know.
6. With the intense training program that you have, better follow a non-intermittent fasting regimen to maximize your performance: I love this advice! One Coach from BetterMe suggested that I could level up my fasting from 16:8 to 20:4 without even knowing how I spend my day. Unlike Omar. He asked for my daily activities, both exercise and non-exercise. And he came to the logical conclusion that I should stop Intermittent Fasting based from my intensive training program. I promised Omar I will end it on Easter Sunday, signifying a new life for me.
7. Feel free to eat sweets and food that you love as long they are within the 20% of your food choices. The 80% should be healthy options. Of course, the 100% should be within your calorie target: I am happy that Omar and I share the same Food Philosophy. 80% of our food intake should be healthy and 20% should be what we love, whether it’s healthy or unhealthy. The problem is, in reality the proportion is oftentimes reversed—we indulge in food that we crave for 80% of the time!
8. If you cannot control yourself when you crave for unhealthy food, keep them out of reach: Easier said than done. We are actually 8 in our household so you can just imagine how much food we store but I will try my very best to follow this. Self-discipline is the key.
9. To prepare for an upcoming event, practice 6-7 days of calorie-saving before the event: This will probably be the only advice I won’t be following. Instead of saving calorie for 6-7 days, I will just fast the day before and fast again the day after the event. This is easier for me than restricting my calorie intake for 6-7 days. I will only have to suffer for 2 days heheheh . . .
10. Take a break from dieting for 4-6 weeks: Yehey! This is the BEST advice ever! According to Omar, 5-6 months of calorie restriction is too long already. So beginnng today, I am on a Diet Break. He told me to maintain 1,900 calories a day but I think that is too much. I will try 1,500 to 1,600 calories first.
Thank you so much Omar. You’re the best! Thank you for correcting my misconceptions and giving me hope to carry on. I really enjoyed our chats, talking about fitness, wellness, lifelong friendship, spiritual journey, personal and family goals, etc.
Praying for your health and safety. Wishing you success in everything you desire to do. May you experience true joy and happiness in this lifetime.
God bless you and your family Omar!
(Thanks for dropping by. You may email me at ndelr62@gmail.com for comments or chat with me via Messenger. Stay safe everyone!)
