Time for a Metabolic Reset
Since 2011 I have been training pretty much non-stop for some type of endurance event. Whether it was a triathlon of some distance or a half marathon, I've been in constant go mode. At times I've tried to lose weight, and others I've worked for performance. In most cases, I have not reached the goal I was working towards.
In 2016, my goal was an Ironman. I had been training all year, mostly cardio, for this event, and slowly I was gaining a good amount of weight. It really started in July. I did a 3-week "Countdown to Competition" meal plan to really kick my last bit of weight loss before going into 100% triathlon cardio mode. I was expecting to lose 12-15 pounds with the restricted pan, but instead I lost 7. I was kinda disappointed, but I rolled with it.
Two weeks later, I started a new workout program, 22 Minute Hard Corps. This workout was 22 minutes a day, rotation between cardio and light resistance training. It was setup like military boot camp style workouts, but it was there to kick your ass a bit more. Trust me, I've done the boot camp thing, this was 10 times harder.
Anyway, after 4 weeks of this ass-kicking workout, and meal plan, instead of losing weight, I gained 8 pounds. I was baffled. I happened to be on Facebook and saw a coach friend of mine who saw the same results during the same workout plan. Now, he had recently finished a Physique show with a very strenuous training regime and meal plan. But he was gaining weight. I didn't really pay it too much attention as I was 2 months from Ironman North Carolina, and had to focus.
Once the race was over, I gave myself about 10 days to recover and then got right back into working out. This time it was a new program, MMA-inspired, by my favorite trainers. I wanted to do it because it wasn't triathlon related because it was punching and kicking. Completely opposite of anything I had been doing, I figured, why not? Well, after 3 weeks, I had gained more weight. I couldn't understand it.
I had posted about how much weight I had gained on my Facebook page, and a trainer friend of mine messaged me. He proceeded to tell me that my metabolism was in distress, and that I needed to reset it. He suggested that I rest, get my thyroid tested, and then get back to weight lifting in order to build my metabolism up to where it needs to be. I had my thyroid tested, and what a shock, everything came back normal. No shit, right?
So, Thanksgiving morning was my last complete workout. I wasn't told how long to rest, so I decided that since I was going on vacation for Christmas, that I would start back in the gym on Jan 9th. And for 6.5 weeks, I did NOTHING. Not one workout of any kind, no meal plan of any kind. Just living life. Yes, I gained weight, that was expected. But I let my body recover, rest, and whatever else it needed to do.
Now, it's January 9th, and the workouts have started again. What am I doing? I started lifting again. My plan for 2017 is 4 rounds of Body Beast, Beachbody's mass gaining program. I'm starting my calorie intake at 2500 calories (Body Weight x 10). Depending on how my body responds, I will increase my calories every 3 months or so until I reach my desired maintenance level. If my metabolism is as bad as I think it is, that may take the entire year. But we shall see. I'm really hoping this helps my body get back to normal. It may take longer than 2017, but with any luck I will be getting back into triathlons in 2018. Only time will tell. At some point I'd like to get my body back to where I was in 2014.
