Extreme Inferno – the results are in

The current round of Extreme Inferno finished yesterday – another 12 weeks of intense, fat busting exercises in the bag and I feel pretty good for it. The last time I posted I talked about the fact that I’d reached a bit of a fat loss plateau and had realised that I needed to take a good look at my diet. I’m pleased to report that a few weeks of back to basics clean eating has seen the fat start to shift again.

So what have I achieved in 12 weeks? My measurements aren’t dramatically different to be honest. A few centimetres here and there. But my photos tell a slightly different story and one that I’m happy with.

Left – ‘before’ June 2014

Right – ‘after’ September 2014

There’s definitely some shrinkage around my tummy area and I’m starting to get a bit of ab definition. The camera doesn’t show it that well but my arms and legs are much firmer than they were 3 months ago as well.

And as for the scales – well I’ve given up relying on them for my BF% – I’ll go back and have another BodPod analysis done at the end of the year for that. But in terms of weight? I’m 2lbs heavier in the photos on the right. Go figure (and throw away your scales at the same time…)

In some ways the changes that have been most remarkable for me during these 12 weeks are the mental ones rather than the physical. Admitting that my diet needed tightening up again, starting to prepare my own lunches rather than relying on shop bought food, finding ways to deal with social occasions so that I kept my alcohol consumption in check, keeping going with the exercise even when the fat seemed to be determined to stick to my body. I’ve proved to myself that I’m not only strong physically, but I’m also pretty strong and resilient mentally. The support from the fantastic EI community has also made a massive difference and for me is one of the best things about the programme.

And now that I’ve found a way to move past the plateau I’m really excited to see what the next round of EI will bring for me. Yep that’s right I’ve enjoyed it so much that I’m going to do it all over again. Julia’s going to be running the next programme, which starts on Monday 22nd September, from her brand new members website. Having worked with her for the last 18 months I’m really excited to see her transition onto her own website and I’m looking forward to reaching my 41st birthday in December in the best shape of my life.

If you want to find out more about Extreme Inferno and how to sign up then head over to Julia’s website here. There’s an early bird discount running until the end of today (September 15th) but even after that at £10 a week it’s fantastic value for money.