Starting Over: Skinny

Many of you have been asking me about my diet plan and how I got to my bikini body in a short 8 weeks. I’m going to share with you a snapshot of my meal plan that you can tweak to your needs. 

In short, my meal plan given to me by my trainer friend consisted of lots of protein and 6 small meals a day (200-350 cals each) to keep my metabolism up. Barely any carbs. That meant no fruit guys :(

I was so full the first day I went on it because I had never eaten so much protein in my life even though the meal plan measured to less than 1900 cals. I was also working out very hard, lifting weights and running 6 days a week (IN ADDITION TO TEACHING PILATES A MILLION TIMES A WEEK) so that’s why my intake was high. I needed ENERGY for killer workouts.

I wrote down how I felt each day in this huge poster chart thing. I also recorded my weight every morning and any other notes I wanted to give myself like “Great progress Cassey! Keep going!” Hahaha. I got my body fat % checked every 2 weeks to make sure I was GAINING MUSCLE and LOSING FAT.

Here’s the meal plan…

meal 1

*egg white omelet (1/2 cup liquid egg whites) with 1 cup broccoli.

meal 2

*1 small can tuna with 2 cups broccoli.

meal 3

*9 oz boneless skinless steamed chicken breast and 1 cup steamed green beans.

meal 4

*1.5 scoops vanilla whey protein mixed w/ water (I was using Body Fortress Super Advanced Whey Protein Powder in Vanilla)

meal 5

*9 oz boneless skinless steamed chicken breast, 2 cups romain lettuce, 1 tomato.

meal 6

1.5 scoops vanilla whey protein mixed w/ water

For condiments I used lite soy sauce and tabasco. For dressings, basalmic vinegar or very light vinaigrettes. I also drank TONS of water.

That’s basically how I ate for 8 weeks.

I was suppose to carb load on Sundays to fuel up for the rest of the week, so the only difference here was that I did not take my protein and instead had sweet potatoes, black beans, oatmeal, and apple sauce. Apple sauce was the closest I ever got to eating fruit. I was allowed to sub the chicken breast for white fishes like cod. I could sub any of the veggies for other leafy greens.

This meal plan and lifting for about an hour followed by 15-20 min of intense cardio 6 days a week helped me go from 126 lbs and 24% body fat to 118 lbs and 17.5% body fat. I am 5’5”.

I’m not gonna lie, it was hard work but I LOVED every second of it. I went to sleep every night waiting to workout. I woke up every morning ready to workout. Results keep me going like a mad woman. How exciting is it to lose a lb every week for 8 weeks? It is one of the best feelings ever! I also loved looking at myself in the mirror and admiring changes like a conceited bi-otch. I know some people are all about the whole “don’t look at yourself until the end” type of deal, but for me, NO WAY!!! I wanna see that I look good and I wanna see it NOW! (Ok, kinda childish but hey, who doesn’t like a lil instant gratification?)

Just in case you haven’t been following this blog for a while, this whole 8 Week Shred thing was an experiment I was doing with my friend who is a personal trainer. We wanted to test out a specific meal plan and workout plan and record results. It was tough for both of us to be on such a restricted diet plan and yes I did have cravings. But I knew at the end of this, I’d have the body I’ve always dreamed of. So, that kept me going.

I am no longer on this meal plan and I have definitely added fruits back into my diet. I still however eat tons of protein and steamed veggies. And I still workout 6 days a week because I love it.

Disclaimer: PLEASE consult a registered dietitian, nutritionist, or doctor before making any drastic changes to your diet. This is just what I did. Do not follow it unless you know it is safe for you.

- See more at: http://www.blogilates.com/nutrition-2/6596867132#sthash.IS3XOMDU.dpuf