Analyzing & Adjusting

So, I am not going to be finishing the Stripped plan as I planned on this month. I am actually instead going to up my calories and try to maintain my current weight for a little while. I have been feeling like my calories have been a bit too low for awhile and that I know is not productive. 

I have basically for a while been feeling pretty awful. I have not really had much energy, been having insane cravings and have had absent periods (I know TMI haha). So, I kind of suspected that my calories were just too low for my current activity level so I took a visit to the BB forum to seek some advice. The ladies over there basically confirmed what I had been thinking: my calories were too low.

They suggested that I go up to maintenance calories for awhile since my body probably just needed a break from eating 1400 calories for almost two years. So, I will be eating a lot more (wahoooo!!) for about two months or so. Which is great because I will be eating at maintenance calories for the holidays! Then in January I will lower my calories again just not as low as I did before.

One of the things that I have learned during this whole process is that it is important to keep track of what you are doing and also have a good support system. I have been keeping a food journal this whole time and it helps me a lot because if I start to gain or anything I can just go back and kind of see where I went wrong and make adjustments. I also belong to a few forums where I am able to receive advice from others which has also been a major help to me. 

During my weight loss journey I have learned so much but it is a process. I am still learning new things from people that are more knowledgeable then I am in the subject. It is also nice to be able to talk to people who have similar goals and have been in the same situations as you. 

Anyhow, I just thought I would share a little update. Oh, I am still doing Chalean Extreme though (and I am loving it) so that is staying the same. I most likely will post results when I am done but I probably won't lose much weight since I am trying to maintain right now. I am hoping to put on some muscle though so we shall see..