SENSATIONAL SIXTH WEEK!

Igor is doing a great job preparing me for my trip to Siberia in terms of eagerly packing on the weights each week and making the workouts more challenging each time. (Igor sneaked on a few more pounds when I was doing squats and hoped I would not notice!) I say, "Bring it on!"

There is nothing like feeling satisfied with your hard work when you wobble your way on your jello'ed legs to the car after a workout. As per my request after last week's discovery of my intolerance for low glycemic berries, I immediately introduced supplementation based on the recommendations by Igor Klibanov. So for the last week I have been very careful to eat the right things and keep on track so that today's measurement would be a true reflection of how the supplementation was affecting my weight and measurements.

Based on today's measurements, my weight went up a half a pound. One of the most liberating things that I have discovered in the last few weeks is that the scale really is no indication of fat loss. For the first time in my life I am not afraid of the scale and it does not put me in a bad mood when the number goes up. Rather I know that I am gaining lean muscle mass, which not only takes up less space than fat, but also burns more calories.

Pan seared Tilapia with citrus salad

This is what I had for dinner (on the right) ...by that you can guess what the results were before you read on.

As far as the measurements went, yes the callipers did their pinching routine...

All in all a sensational start to week six, I am encouraged to see positive results and improved strength and stamina too.

Today I will start to introduce grapeseed oil into my cooking. It has many benefits. Read more here.





I will let Igor give you his progress report here:

After 5 Weeks Progress Report

by Igor Klibanov.

Today we measured Melony's body fat. Ordinarily, we measure body fat every two weeks, but last week, we found that her body fat decreased nicely, with one area that actually increased: The Supra-iliac, or in otherwise known as the love handle area.

How could that be?

From previous writings, we know that different areas of fat deposition are indicative of a person's hormonal profile. This methodology is called "biosignature." The love handle area (supra-iliac) is correlated to insulin. So Melony's insulin had started misbehaving. Why might that be? Well, the primary reason is that we introduced the berry family into her diet to see how she handles a little extra sugar. Apparently she didn't handle it as well as we would have liked, since her supra-iliac area actually increased.

Not her fault. Her compliance was great, and she didn't "cheat" at all. So we had to look elsewhere for the answer. Very often, if insulin is misbehaving despite eating an extremely clean diet, there is some nutrient deficiency. We introduced the following adjustments: supplementing with zinc, magnesium and chromium.

Zinc is a mineral that is synergistic to every other mineral, meaning that it makes them work better.

Magnesium has many effects on the body, one of them is the improvement of insulin sensitivity (the amount of insulin released in response to a certain dosage of carbohydrates).

Chromium is a mineral that is often deficient in most food, and it helps the body use the insulin that it has.

By implementing targeted supplementation, Melony's measurements showed great improvements after just a single week. Her love supra-iliac area in particular dropped by a very good amount.

Now don't take this to mean, "if I take zinc, magnesium and chromium, my love handles will disappear." It's not quite like that. First and foremost, it's a combination of exercise, and nutrition and supplementation. Since Melony's exercise and nutrition were on par, the only place left to look is supplementation. Furthermore, these were the right nutrients for Melony, but they may not be for you (and may not help your particular love handles). Everyone is different, and exercise, nutrition and supplementation recommendations should be given with that in mind.

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Thank you Igor.

With this report in mind I am now allowed Clementine, oranges and grapefruit. I hope next week's results will be just as positive.

 "That first Clementine tasted sooo good!"- Melony Teague (left)

JUST A NOTE:

Today I did some cardio High intensity training to finish off my workout. To be exact it was 26 min on the Elliptical. I am such a stranger to that particular machine, but that was what the trainer ordered, so I complied. Another note to self: Do not think of something funny while lifting heavy weights! If you are like me, when I start to giggle I loose all strength. I have to force myself NOT to laugh when working out, or I would just collapse. 

Laughing between sets, however is allowed and encouraged, although I am usually trying to drink water and catch my breathe rather than laugh!