I feel like I peaked in July 2014 when I had my first place win at a CrossFit competition. Although I don't want to focus on scale weight as a defining factor any more, I was a very lean 183# and felt great while just eating intuitively and following a more whole foods-based diet. While I've continued to gain strength since then, I've slipped into some bad eating habits that caused me to put some weight back on (I was back to flirting with 200# during a lot of 2015). Having a little more weight on has slowed me down in my CrossFit metcons involving body weight movements (REALLY back to hating burpees again), and that is making me cherry-pick WODs to avoid nasty metcons involving burpees...and this behavior has resulted in a downward spiral in my stamina (that's a vicious cycle). It's also interfered with my first pull-up goal (whether it's just mental or physical).
I tried following IIFYM (If It Fits Your Macros) in the early summer, and a coach set a limit of 1900 calories for me to do a cut. After a while of eating at that number, I had NO energy for WODs - it simply wasn't enough calories to support my activity. I decided that my performance and building muscle were more important than fat loss, so I started eating the number of calories that my Fitbit said I burned each day, tracking diligently in My Fitness Pal. While my performance did increase again, so did my weight, although not vastly. I think a big mistake was eating a lot of processed cards in order to make the high carb requirements to meet my calorie goal each day, which was sometimes upward of 3000 calories (so many bowls of frosted flakes...). I wanted to do a cut at the numbers that Eat to Perform recommends (which are higher than the IIFYM numbers), but they want you to be eating at your full maintenance calories for at least 2 months before doing a cut (they theorize that your body needs to be well fed at a maintenance level for a while before it's willing to release fat), so that's what I did for a while...and then vacation time hit in mid-November.
I haven't tracked a thing since mid-November. And I think that would have been ok if I didn't do one other thing: reintroduce a dairy into my diet. It started as a couple cheese puffs here and there, which didn't seem to affect me. So, had a few more... And then a scoop of a cheesy dip at a book club night...and then several scoops at another party...and then several bags of cheesy popcorn/puffs & Doritos throughout the rest of the year. I never went so far as to have a bowl of real ice cream or a slice of cheese, and I still strictly avoided gluten (although I have had some tapioca products, which I know affect me too). But now I am so bloated a puffy that I am petrified of what the scale might say. Every part of me has expanded - even my boobs, which I do not like!!! I look like I'm pregnant. And my gut has been gassy and churning as ever. It's been over 2 years since I felt this way. My body is obviously inflamed again. Suffice to say, apparently dairy truly is an issue for me, so it needs to go. 
So, starting Monday 1/4/16, Brian and I are starting a Whole30 (always so nice to do this together). I'm also going to start taking RepairVite again since I obviously have some inflammation to treat again. I'm planning to track my nutrition using the following Eat To Perform "PFFL" numbers (Performance-Focused Fat Loss), using sweet potatoes and fruit to meet my carb requirements. I am REALLY looking forward to watching all of this "fluff" come back off again, and just feel better again.
And here are my 2016 goals (which look a lot like my 2015 goals):
HIGH
WOD DaysMEDIUM
Rest DaysLOW
Used SparselyCalories:
- Still get that damn strict pull-up - commit to a pull-up program 3x/week
- WOD at least 4x/week, unless I'm really feeling like I need more rest
- Drink 3 liters of water/day
- Do some mobility every day (especially for lower back)
- Remain gluten/dairy/tapioca-free
- Focus on a whole foods-based diet, minimizing processed foods
Here's to a better 2016!
