Wednesday Weigh-in

What went in:
Avg daily calories: 2463
Fat: 105g - 37%
Carb: 227g - 34%
Protein: 169g - 27%
(Note: I didn't track food Fri-Sun due to vacation, so this is only 4/7 days)

Workout Summary:
2 x metcon
1 x strength (5x5)
1 x HIIT (spinning)

What came out:
Weight: 178 (-7!!!)
BF: 12%
Chest: 38.3 (0)
Arms: 11.5 (-0.25)
Hips: 38 (-0.8)
Waist: 33.3 (-0.8)
Thighs: 22 (-0.5)
Calves: 14.8 (-0.25)
Forearms: 9.6 (-0.2)
Shoulders: 46.25 (0)

Analysis
Wow, that's a helluva correction. I don't really even know what to make of this. After weeks of painstaking effort to gain a pound a week, to see almost all of it evaporate in one week is...shocking.

So what changed? Well, I started tracking food in Fitday, for one, and realized I was WAY over nearly every estimate of required protein per day. So I dialed back my proteins a little, and tried to dial back my carbs a lot - my target is 100g/day, but so far I haven't managed to actually get it below 200. I compensate for the caloric loss with fat to try and keep at 2500 cal/day, which SHOULD be a surplus of 500, but perhaps my daily requirement has gone up.

But I suspect the real culprit is the protein powders. I haven't had a muscle milk or protein shake for 5 or 6 days. I think the MM has creatine in it, which would put a lot of water in my muscles and might explain this plummet in weight. I can only think this is water. I can only HOPE it's water! I'm heartened by the lack of change in my chest and shoulders, and am happy about my waist, but my diminished biceps, already so thin, makes me a sad panda.

Overall, I'm not TOO upset. I was getting unhappy with my increasing waistline, and would like to keep that number closer to 33 than 34.

Looking forward
I'm going to follow the excellent guidelines laid out in this article and its companion (both WFS), and see where that takes me over the next month or so.

Namely,
- Eat at least 150g protein/day, but not more than 175
- Try to lower carbs below 200g/day - 100 is the goal
- Keep calories up to 2500-3000/day
- No sugar or high GI carbs after 8pm. No more Muscle Milk before bed. Look for a sugar-free source of casein protein (cottage cheese?)