8 week challengers

Matt Long:

Before:

After:





Results:

The challenge was a great success. I really saw great results with my weight and body fat. I went from 13% down to 9% body Fat. I also reduced my weight from 188 to 184. With that transition in weight I added muscle and eliminated fat. My strength has improved and I feel much better.

I was able to focus on helping and serving others begining in my home with my beautiful wife and daughter. I look forward to the New Year and continuing with the goals for growth, progress, and development.




MacKenzie Long

Before




After



Goals
1. Decrease my body fat by 5%. That is just a little more than 1/2 a percent each week. I feel like that is very doable and it will put me at a percent that is sustainable, for me, once the 8 weeks are over.
2. Workout 6 times a week.
3. Lift each muscle group (HEAVY) once a week.
4. 30-40 mins of cardio each day.
5. Incorporate HIIT into my cardio 3 times a week.
6. Follow a strict clean meal plan. Eating 6 small meals each day. (except Thanksgiving weekend- lets be realistic people!)
7. Only eat out 4 times in the 8 week period- still ordering as "clean" as possible.
8. Do NOT obsess over what the scale says! It's important for me to remember that my goal is always to be increasing lean muscle mass- even while slowing loosing fat. Muscle weighs more than fat after all!!

Results
I loved being a part of this 8 week challenge! It was just what I needed to jump start my body after having a baby. I was extremely motivated during the first few weeks. I was seeing a lot of change and feeling great. At about week 5, I hit a little plateau. Part of me really wanted to give in and stop eating so strictly, or slack on my workouts, but I held very close to the goals I had set for myself and fought through it.

Sometimes I think my biggest downfall is my fear of failure. It holds me back. I feel like if I fail, knowing that I gave it my "all", it might hurt to much. So I find myself, at times, not giving something my "all", and almost using that as a scapegoat. I heard someone ask this question once: "What would you set out to do in this life if you KNEW you would not fail"? I tried to apply this during the 8 week challenge. I am so glad that I did!

I didn't miss a workout though out this challenge. I was at the gym 6 days a week. I tired to push myself, and to lift heavy through each and every workout. I originally set out to do HIIT 3 days a week. I noticed that my body was responding well to this, so i actually ended up doing HIIT 4 or 5 days a week. This was a big step for me, considering a really do not enjoy cardio and HITT requires you to really push yourself.

I stuck to my diet very strictly. I attribute this to 99% of my success. I endured some serious "sugar withdrawals" the first few days. I was really hard to resist, but after about a week, the cravings were gone and I as able to easily turn down even the yummiest of holiday treats.

One part of my diet that I slacked on at times, was getting all 6 of my small meals in each day. That takes a lot of preparation and consistency. Somedays I failed to make it a priority and went to bed with less nutrients in my body than I probably needed.

I ended up losing the 5% body fat that I set out to loose! I only ended up loosing about 5 lbs but I tried hard to remember to NOT let the scale be the measurer of my success. I set out to increase my lean muscle and I do feel like I did that. I try to remind myself that muscle weighs more than fat and that increasing our muscle is the ONLY way to permanently increase our metabolism.

Since the 8 week challenge ended I have been pleasantly surprised at how easy it has been to maintain my habits. I can honestly say that eating clean and exercising is a lifestyle! I look forward to continuing to work hard and can't wait for the next 8 week challenge!