Day 0 - Tone Every Inch

I always seem to have excuses. Sickness, traveling, etc. Geez, I need to get off my butt and start doing something again! But first, I need to get better. I'd like to stop coughing and I'd like to NOT have a husky man voice.

So the last few days have been considered Day 0 for the Tone Every Inch book. I've spent a lot of time reading and not doing. Here's what I've learned...

1. My Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) is 1560.75 - this is how many calories my body burns without exercise based on a long equation that uses weight, height, and age.

2. With my current level of exercise, I burn approximately 2419 calories a day just by living and going on with my day to day activities.

3. As early as your 20's, the average person starts losing 1/2 a pound of muscle a year.

4. Muscle burns more calories than fat.

5. Dieting incorrectly can cause muscle loss which leads to "yo-yo dieting" because of an increase in body fat. This is why only 1 in 6 dieters are successful. (Pretty crappy statistic, if you ask me!)

6. Um, chocolate milk is one of the best things to drink after a workout? That's what the book said! Specifically Ovaltine.

I'm planning to follow the exercise plan but the food plan they have seems... expensive and lacking in calories. My calorie intake was 1600 and that was difficult and the kickstart plan for this diet calls for only 1200 calories. There are some really interesting recipes that I will most likely try like Basil Pesto Salmon, Lime Cilantro Black Beans, Maple Cashew Smoothie, Savory Tuna Sandwich, and Portobello Sandwich.

After my reading and "studying" it makes sense to me why my weight hasn't fluctuated too much since the end of March. I'm eating my husband's cooking which should have packed on the pounds within hours but... I increased my muscle mass, dropped my body fat percentage, and now my body is more effectively burning calories. I figured that my metabolism had changed but I guess I never realized why!