How I Lost Ten Pounds in Twelve Weeks and the Lessons I Would Recommend for You to Take From It to Apply to Your Fitness Journey.
At the end of June I was really uncomfortable in my skin and decided it was time to lose some body fat. Here is what I did, why I did it and some recommendations for you to achieve your fat loss goals too.
Calories in versus calories out –
The first thing I did was determine how many calories I burn in a day, including my activity level, workouts, etc. (Go here to calculate yours.) For me, I burn around 2400 calories a day.
Then I put myself into a calorie deficit. I really enjoy eating healthy foods. But on Saturdays I like to eat out, have margaritas and have freedom in my food choices. So for two Saturdays I did my best to track my food. Both times I landed around 3500 calories so I had to consider that when getting into my overall deficit for the week.
So if I’m burning 2400 calories a day x 7 days a week, that’s 16,800 calories a week. Then I took out the 3500 day. That left me at 13,300 for the other 6 days, which is 2200 a day to maintain.
At first, I started my calorie goal at 1700 a day but I was absolutely starving and had no energy. So after about a week I bumped myself to 1900 and pretty much stuck with that. There were exceptions like when I went to Detroit for a few days (I don’t track on vaca) and when I had a whole apple strudel (I didn’t want to only have that to a small enough portion AND eat all of my healthy food while keeping my cals at 1900.)
Food quality –
The food quality I was eating prior to this was already on point. Every day I have a protein shake with berries and oatmeal for breakfast. For lunch I have about two pounds of sautéed vegetables with Turkey breast and rice. And dinners are always another couple pounds of vegetables, chicken/ steak/ pork/ fish at dinner with potatoes or a grain.
The only things I really cut back on were dessert (I’m known for eating at least two desserts a day) and the amount of oatmilk I put in my coffee as that adds up quickly and doesn’t help with satiety.
When a client comes to me, this is often where we start. If you’re consuming Goldfish crackers and wine everyday, that’s not a good way to spend your calories. Not only will you end up with inadequate nutrients, but you’re going to have a poor gut health, a weakened immune system, more inflammation and more cravings because of it. Don’t force yourself to fight this battle uphill.
Macronutrients and blood sugar management –
As for macros, I also didn’t have to change anything there. By simply eating a large serving of protein at each meal, a small portion of fat and a moderate portion of starchy carbs or fruit, I was naturally landing around 30% protein, 40% carbs and 30% fat. This is a really good starting point for anyone, in my opinion, so I just left it.
Now, if you’re reading this thinking that 30/40/30 will work for you, it may but there are always exceptions. For example, if you’re sedentary and/ or peri or post menopausal and experiencing insulin resistance, that’s likely too many carbs. If you’re in a significant calorie deficit, that’s possibly too little protein. If you train hard/ often that may be too few carbs for you. Everyone is different and this is where having a nutrition coach (insert link) can be helpful.
But here’s the thing.. you don’t have to even track macros if you simply eat in a way that balances your blood sugar. How do you do that? Eat adequate protein at each meal.
At breakfast, have a shake, eggs or Greek yogurt. For lunch eat chicken or turkey. At dinner eat steak, fish or pork. And for snacks have some cottage cheese or hardboiled eggs. And make this a good amount. One egg or three ounces of deli meat isn’t going to cut it. You need a few egg whites, Greek yogurt with a sprinkle of whey protein or six ounces of chicken.
Pairing protein with each meal helps stunt the insulin response to food. This ultimately makes your body more capable of fat loss. This will also help you stay fuller longer as protein takes longer to digest. This helps make a deficit easier to manage.
Exercise –
Finally, let’s talk about my workouts. What I was doing didn’t really change. From 2020-2022 I was doing 4-5 days a week of Olympic weightlifting, about 3 days a week of CrossFit metcons and one yoga session. Weightlifting never felt good on my body- having to catch a heavy barbell at that velocity was a lot on my body so I know I wasn’t recovering well.
Now I strength train 3-4 times a week, do CrossFit metcons about 3 days a week and yoga. But because I’m recovering better, my workouts have improved despite losing weight. I actually hit PR’s on my one rep max back squat and weighted chin up. I feel awesome in metcons because I’m not carrying extra weight and generally feel more connected in my body.
All in all, I feel really great and from here my plan is to continue to track for maintenance, at least through the end of the year.
I was nervous that tracking my food would make me feel restricted but it didn’t. I’ve put in a lot of work to have a healthy relationship with food and I believe that’s crucial in making this work. You have to be able to view this as data, or a science experiment and recognize that there is a trade off and that you’re not being punished. Nourishing your body with healthy food in a quantity that will help improve your body and mind is paramount. Don’t discount the importance of the mind game here otherwise you will eventually fail.
If you have any questions I’m happy to answer, just email me . If you wanna do this for yourself, I’m here to help.
I can give you the guidance you need and support too. Learn more about working with me at KyraWilliamsFitness.com/signup
Your Coach,
Kyra