So we had Amelia's 7th bday party and followed that up with Great Grammy's 86th bday party the following day. To say I made some bad food choices would be accurate. I had about 7 pieces of really bad pizza at Amelia's party. Really - bowling pizza sorta kinda sucked. I also had a pretty large piece of cake. On Sunday I followed that up with some snacking (cashews, veggies with ranch dressing, triscuits/cheese/pepperoni) and then had dinner which consisted of a beet salad (that was a first) and lobster mac n cheese and regular 7 cheese mac n cheese. I got at least 120oz of water in each day. When all was said and done though I was up with my weight (surprise surprise) Up to 177lbs. So up 3 lbs, despite not having any alcohol in 2 weeks.
I jumped on the scale today just to make sure that I had rid myself of the weekend bloat and I have. 174.2lbs. Still not where I want to be, but still progress. I know I'm still converting fat to muscle, so I'm not complaining. I can see it in my arms, legs, back, etc... I'll get there.
I just finished Wk6D3 of P90x3. Not thrilled with the 2nd block of P90x3. Probably because it has a lot more legs in it. lol I hate working legs. This week I started adding in Ab Ripper X from P90X fame and today I just finished the 30 day burpee challenge (30 burpees a day for 30 days). No question it was tough. Glad its done. Not sure what my next challenge will be aside from my every day workouts and mostly healthy eating... but I'll figure something out.
Overall I feel good. Again, I still want to get rid of this belly fat. I'm told I look great and that's great and all. I still see belly fat and I want to lose it. I've contemplated taking supplements that would help with that, but it is kind of morally wrong in my head. The goal has always been to get healthy with REAL food. Not processed food. Healthy and ripped. ;) I'm healthier, not ripped.... yet
OK - until the next post. I'm out and going to bed. Time to catch up on some sleep as I have a frigin lower body workout tomorrow AM. SUCK.
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Thursday, January 23, 2014
Wednesday.... not such a good day
So I struggled. It was very snowy, shitty and even though I didn't have to get up and go to work (work from home day) I still had to get up and clear the snow so my wife could go to work. Knowing I didn't have to get up and drive into work I decided I would take an extra hour to myself and sleep. So instead of getting up at 4:55, I set the alarm for 5:55. What I did was set my day up for failure.
I cleared snow until almost 7:30 and I had to be logged into work for 8AM. What does that mean?? No morning workout. I spent most of my day angry and I ate my way through that anger. First a whole bag of buffalo flavored pub fries, then followed that up with a 14" tall gingerbread man cookie and I'm sure there was some other crap in the mix there as well. I was pretty much angry the whole day.
After I got dinner ready (which I had a shit ton of veggies and a tiny piece of fish) I went and did my scheduled Yoga workout and of course my burpees. I was a little disappointed in myself for letting me get into emotional eating, but I know I could have been far worse. I also know that I burned some of those calories off snowblowing in the morning. Did I burn the 1000 calories that were in that fucking gingerbread man cookie? Probably not. I just know it could have been worse.
What this reminded me of was basically I am a creature of habit and I don't like my routine fucked with. My shit gets messed up and I get pissed. Right or wrong I get pissed. I've been fully back on track today and I plan to stay that way. Saturday is Amelia's bday and I'm very much looking forward to proudly celebrating her birthday. She's an amazing young girl and I'm reminded of that more and more each day. On top of that I get pizza. :) Next weigh in Sunday.
I cleared snow until almost 7:30 and I had to be logged into work for 8AM. What does that mean?? No morning workout. I spent most of my day angry and I ate my way through that anger. First a whole bag of buffalo flavored pub fries, then followed that up with a 14" tall gingerbread man cookie and I'm sure there was some other crap in the mix there as well. I was pretty much angry the whole day.
After I got dinner ready (which I had a shit ton of veggies and a tiny piece of fish) I went and did my scheduled Yoga workout and of course my burpees. I was a little disappointed in myself for letting me get into emotional eating, but I know I could have been far worse. I also know that I burned some of those calories off snowblowing in the morning. Did I burn the 1000 calories that were in that fucking gingerbread man cookie? Probably not. I just know it could have been worse.
What this reminded me of was basically I am a creature of habit and I don't like my routine fucked with. My shit gets messed up and I get pissed. Right or wrong I get pissed. I've been fully back on track today and I plan to stay that way. Saturday is Amelia's bday and I'm very much looking forward to proudly celebrating her birthday. She's an amazing young girl and I'm reminded of that more and more each day. On top of that I get pizza. :) Next weigh in Sunday.
Sunday, January 19, 2014
P90X3 - Day 30 measurements
I will start by saying - I never measured or took pics before I started P90x3. I'm not in this to get a free T-Shirt. I'm in this program to get lean, healthy and look pretty kick ass.
I do however have some measurements that were last taken from when I completed T25, which was shortly before I started P90x3. That will have to do. The one thing I didn't record when these measurements were taken from T25 was my weight..... how the fuck does that happen? I have a rough idea of what it was, so we'll go with that. Now onto the stats....
End of T25 (early December, ALPHA, BETA & GAMMA - 1 round)
Weight: 176 lbs
Arms 13 inches
Legs 21 1/2 inches
Chest 37 1/2 inches
Small of the waist 35 inches
Belly button 38"
2" below belly button 37 inches
Biggest part of the ass 39 3/4 inches
Day 30 of P90x3 (Block 1)
Weight 174 lbs
Arms 13 1/4 inches
Legs 21 1/2 inches
Chest 39 inches
Small of the waist 34 1/4 inches
Belly button 35 1/2 inches
2" below belly button 37 1/8 inches
Biggest part of the ass 39 1/2 inches
A couple other things I'd like to note here. I definitely feel less fat, certainly I can see some muscle definition in my arms, legs, chest, shoulders and back. I know I'm making forward progress, even though the measurements are minimal in their changes I know I'm trading fat for muscle. The pictures don't lie... so I get why they say "take pictures to help measure your progress!"
I think the biggest surprise to me was the measurement of the belly button. Certainly after an ab/core intensive workout I can definitely see some abs that want to pop out there and show themselves under all this fat. lol However I still see myself as kind of fat. To see that I lost over 2 inches just around my waistline where my belly button is.... well... it just really really surprised me. I'm pumped to see what the next 30 days brings. I'm ready to bring it even harder (if that's possible).
Off to bed. Block 2 starts tomorrow and that starts off with Eccentric Upper. NO idea what that is, but I'm sure I'm going to pay for not previewing that video tonight. lol
I do however have some measurements that were last taken from when I completed T25, which was shortly before I started P90x3. That will have to do. The one thing I didn't record when these measurements were taken from T25 was my weight..... how the fuck does that happen? I have a rough idea of what it was, so we'll go with that. Now onto the stats....
End of T25 (early December, ALPHA, BETA & GAMMA - 1 round)
Weight: 176 lbs
Arms 13 inches
Legs 21 1/2 inches
Chest 37 1/2 inches
Small of the waist 35 inches
Belly button 38"
2" below belly button 37 inches
Biggest part of the ass 39 3/4 inches
Day 30 of P90x3 (Block 1)
Weight 174 lbs
Arms 13 1/4 inches
Legs 21 1/2 inches
Chest 39 inches
Small of the waist 34 1/4 inches
Belly button 35 1/2 inches
2" below belly button 37 1/8 inches
Biggest part of the ass 39 1/2 inches
A couple other things I'd like to note here. I definitely feel less fat, certainly I can see some muscle definition in my arms, legs, chest, shoulders and back. I know I'm making forward progress, even though the measurements are minimal in their changes I know I'm trading fat for muscle. The pictures don't lie... so I get why they say "take pictures to help measure your progress!"
I think the biggest surprise to me was the measurement of the belly button. Certainly after an ab/core intensive workout I can definitely see some abs that want to pop out there and show themselves under all this fat. lol However I still see myself as kind of fat. To see that I lost over 2 inches just around my waistline where my belly button is.... well... it just really really surprised me. I'm pumped to see what the next 30 days brings. I'm ready to bring it even harder (if that's possible).
Off to bed. Block 2 starts tomorrow and that starts off with Eccentric Upper. NO idea what that is, but I'm sure I'm going to pay for not previewing that video tonight. lol
Saturday, January 18, 2014
Almost end of block 1
Tomorrow is my last day of "Block 1" or , the first 30 days of P90x3 for me. I've made no secret that my "diet" or eating habits the first couple of weeks of this program was pretty poor. I made some really good strides to bring myself back to reality and get back what I've earned over the past 6 mos or so.
Overall I really like the program. Tony sculpts that body boy. He helps with all the places that men care about. Arms, abs, chest, back, shoulders and yes... even the legs. I'm feeling pretty good about my progress as I gear up for Block 2. I know its going to get more intense and at the same time I need to kick up my own intensity so I can get the results I want.
I know I had stated that I was going to concentrate on a few different things and those things were 1) clean eating - eliminating processed crap food. 2) tracking what I eat (I was using MapMyFitness.com) 3) giving up pizza and beer for a while. I have not been consistent. Last weekend I did indulge in 3 beers. Yes on Saturday, Jan 11th I had 3 beers. Also - on Monday the 13th I bypassed dinner so I could have a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. That was my first bit of ice cream in some time. It was really yummy. On top of that - well, I haven't been tracking. SO - my wife was right, I should have focused on just 1 thing. That being said, I've busted my ass with my fitness and I haven't missed a workout in well over a month. Outside of those 2 things that I just mentioned, my eating has been clean. CLEAN. I still haven't had any pizza and I'm still on track for my next pizza being at Amelia's 7th bday party next week. There is a reason why I am back in the low 170's.
Tomorrow I do pictures & measurements for my first 30 days. I never did either of those things before I started P90x3. I did however do them after I completed T25.... so I'll have a rough idea of how far I've come. I know its going to be all positive and I'm happy about that.
My birthday is 2 mos away. I'll be 42. I'd like to be 42, 170lbs and have some rocking abs. lol Pushy? Maybe. It took me 10 yrs of neglect to get this body fat, it shouldn't come off in less than 10 mos. It doesn't hurt to try though.
Now.... time to get some sleep while I can.
Overall I really like the program. Tony sculpts that body boy. He helps with all the places that men care about. Arms, abs, chest, back, shoulders and yes... even the legs. I'm feeling pretty good about my progress as I gear up for Block 2. I know its going to get more intense and at the same time I need to kick up my own intensity so I can get the results I want.
I know I had stated that I was going to concentrate on a few different things and those things were 1) clean eating - eliminating processed crap food. 2) tracking what I eat (I was using MapMyFitness.com) 3) giving up pizza and beer for a while. I have not been consistent. Last weekend I did indulge in 3 beers. Yes on Saturday, Jan 11th I had 3 beers. Also - on Monday the 13th I bypassed dinner so I could have a pint of Ben & Jerry's ice cream. That was my first bit of ice cream in some time. It was really yummy. On top of that - well, I haven't been tracking. SO - my wife was right, I should have focused on just 1 thing. That being said, I've busted my ass with my fitness and I haven't missed a workout in well over a month. Outside of those 2 things that I just mentioned, my eating has been clean. CLEAN. I still haven't had any pizza and I'm still on track for my next pizza being at Amelia's 7th bday party next week. There is a reason why I am back in the low 170's.
Tomorrow I do pictures & measurements for my first 30 days. I never did either of those things before I started P90x3. I did however do them after I completed T25.... so I'll have a rough idea of how far I've come. I know its going to be all positive and I'm happy about that.
My birthday is 2 mos away. I'll be 42. I'd like to be 42, 170lbs and have some rocking abs. lol Pushy? Maybe. It took me 10 yrs of neglect to get this body fat, it shouldn't come off in less than 10 mos. It doesn't hurt to try though.
Now.... time to get some sleep while I can.
Tuesday, January 14, 2014
"Transition Week" Block 1
This week is transition week. So the 4th week of every block of P90X (1, 2 & 3) is called "recovery" or "transition" week. I'm really liking it. I did Isometrix on Monday and I sweat and worked my ass off and never lifted a weight. As Tony says, it's all the hardest parts of Yoga without the flow. Yeah - I see that now.
This morning was Dynamix. I've done it before and I'll do it again. This morning for whatever reason my focus was really good and I was really really strong with the moves (I thought). At the end it was a really good sweat.
My typical go to breakfast is 2 large cage free eggs cooked in 1/2 tspn of coconut oil with 2 pieces of nitrate free, uncured bacon. This morning I think I slightly under cooked one of those eggs. I get completely grossed out by the texture of an under cooked egg. The uncooked white. YUCK. Raw eggs are vomitous. Time to switch up the breakfast I think and instead I'll mix the eggs together and cook with some sauteed baby spinach. Greens are so yummy. Then add some salsa to spice things up. :)
This week is my "on call" week. Meaning I work nights from 5PM until 1AM Monday through Friday. Friday night at 5AM I am the only person on call until Monday morning at 1AM. That weekend will kill you if you let it. It can be tough tough tough. The reason why I mention this schedule here is because during this week I would typically struggle with my eating. I would indulge in processed foods of all shapes and sizes. Probably struggle with my water a bit more than I should. Plus being up late doesn't really help me with my normal "get up early and get it done" workout schedule. Again, I struggle. After dropping the kids off I typically head right back to bed and get a nap in. It's definitely a challenge for me and I recognize that. I'm working on it and just focusing on my food consumption and water, water and more water.
My wife just started her new diet from her nutritionists. It is for all intents and purposes at best a 1000 cal a day diet. They say its healthy but if she should stray off course she could land in the hospital with pancreatitous (no, I don't know how to spell it - sound it out jack ass). Does that sound healthy to me? No. Do I agree with it? Not entirely, but I do agree something drastic is needed to shock her mind and shock her system. She will essentially be doing this for the next 8 weeks. During which time she can have ZERO alcohol. Her primary nutrients will be in liquid shakes. She can have a few ounces of lean protein with some veggies every day, which is good - because you need real food. I'm here to support her in this venture in any way I can. This means I also make sacrifices with my eating and drinking, so be it. I've said it before and I'll say it again. I need her healthy. This will hopefully help get her to the healthy weight she needs to be so she can have the hip replacement surgery she needs.
Those eight weeks should bring me pretty much to the end of P90x3. I look forward to the journey and seeing what my body will look like and how it feels. I don't have a six pack. 8 weeks from now I don't expect to have one either. I'm OK with that. As long as I continue to make strides in the right direction then I'm OK with it. I get stronger every single day and push myself every single morning. My body is toning and getting stronger, all good things.
Friday, January 10, 2014
Annual Physical follow up.
First let me just state that I am currently on medication for 2 things. High cholesterol and high blood pressure. To me, they are both the results of poor food choices and insufficient healthy activity. Here I'll cover what my stats were back in April and what they are now.
April January
Weight 197lbs 177lbs (their scale)
Blood Pressure 140/96 126/80
Total Cholesterol 164 197
HDL (Good Cholesterol) 43 56
LDL (Bad Cholester 111 120
My goal is and has been to get off this medication and just be healthy with food and only food. My Dr appeared to be pleased with what they have me down as a 20lb weight loss (actually my scale has me at 23lbs). He was happy with the normal range blood pressure. Also happy with my good cholesterol going up (25% might I add). Not so happy that my bad cholesterol went up or my total cholesterol went up. Why might you ask? I wish I knew. Probably because I have other people in my gene pool that have some unhealthy habits and have high cholesterol. Due to that I believe he thinks its a "genes" thing. I don't.
How do I stack up in the real world? Lets see shall we? This is one of MANY cholesterol calculators out there, but they have all pretty much told me the same thing.
http://www.hughcalc.org/chol.php
April January
Weight 197lbs 177lbs (their scale)
Blood Pressure 140/96 126/80
Total Cholesterol 164 197
HDL (Good Cholesterol) 43 56
LDL (Bad Cholester 111 120
My goal is and has been to get off this medication and just be healthy with food and only food. My Dr appeared to be pleased with what they have me down as a 20lb weight loss (actually my scale has me at 23lbs). He was happy with the normal range blood pressure. Also happy with my good cholesterol going up (25% might I add). Not so happy that my bad cholesterol went up or my total cholesterol went up. Why might you ask? I wish I knew. Probably because I have other people in my gene pool that have some unhealthy habits and have high cholesterol. Due to that I believe he thinks its a "genes" thing. I don't.
How do I stack up in the real world? Lets see shall we? This is one of MANY cholesterol calculators out there, but they have all pretty much told me the same thing.
http://www.hughcalc.org/chol.php
From what I can see, I'm healthy. However, my Dr doesn't want me to stop taking medication. He instead said I could lower my dosage from 80mg to 40mg for the cholesterol meds. My BP meds are 10mg (very small dosage). I'm going to cut my cholesterol pills in half and take them like that. I'll try and do the same with the BP meds, but if I can't then I simply won't take them and I'll periodically check my BP to make sure it remains normal. Take it when my kids aren't around for the best possible hope for success. lol
Next appt is in July. I've got 6 months to lose what I think will be at least another 10lbs (my wife won't agree) and get off the drugs forever. I'm here to prove Drs wrong and show that good health starts with me and my choices. Thanks Doc for more motivation.
January 10th 2014...
Well I'm rapidly finishing up wk 3 of P90x3. I've got 1 more "workout" and a stretch and then I'm on to my recovery week. I'm looking forward to the change in routine... that is for damn sure.
This week, I don't know what it is.... I've been in a real funk. I know I started the week off bad knowing that I had gained 10lbs back. That will definitely fuck with you mentally. It messes with you because you put in SO much effort to get rid of it and have a week or two of bad choices (working out or not) and BAM.. there is some of that work undone. I was definitely discouraged. What can you do? Pity yourself and keep saying "woe is me" without doing anything to help yourself and get yourself out of that place? Or you can take a step back and figure out how to get your head in the game and overcome whatever is in your way now.
I did the second option in case you were wondering. I decided my first step was to get rid of those 10lbs that I gained back so I could put my focus on my target of 170lbs. What could I do differently to help me get there? What am I doing now that maybe is interfering with me reaching those goals. My wife said - make it simple, just pick one thing and focus just on that one thing. Well I already do that. I get up and workout. Oh, you meant one OTHER thing. Ahhhhh.... well I picked a few different things. No alcohol, no processed food and tracking what I eat daily. I can tell you that is actually a lot of things. Its not difficult to track your food. Its tedious. It does kind of hold you accountable, if you let it. As I had thought all along, it does also suck. No one wants to be told you can or cannot do something. If I want to sit and eat a bag of damn Fritos and wash it down with beer then why can't I? I totally can. Its just not as important as the bigger picture. I'll have you know its been 9 days since I looked at the scale and saw 183lbs. This morning I woke up and it said 173.8lbs. A pound a day. Crazy, right? Healthy? I have no idea. I'm eating all healthy foods. I do get hungry and I eat more. However I'm more mindful of what I'm eating and when I'm eating. No more late night snacks (like I actually stay up late. HA)
As we know the eating is the big part of it. Really big part of it. You can't out exercise a poor diet. You just can't. Trust me, I've tried. Exercise will only get you so far. Give it a try, you'll look like a circus freak. Strong muscular arms, legs and this big old buddah belly. Attractive isn't it? Tony Horton thinks that calves are the most beautiful/attractive part of a persons body (quote from Power90 when he says "you know, there is nothing better than a nicely shaped calf). Well guess what, I think its abs. I want them. At this point I'm not sure if I'm disciplined enough to do all the right things to get them, but I'm going to find out. Eating right, after eating poorly for so long isn't easy. It is difficult and does take discipline. For all those that can do it day in and day out without a second thought, I give you a ton of credit. There are times I do want to go back and sit my ass in front of the TV, open a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos and wash it down with Mtn Dew (or beer, no love for the soda - still plenty of love for the beer). Somehow I still manage not to do that though.
The other part of the equation is getting off your ass and getting moving. Help your body burn those calories and all that fat that has been stored up in your inactive body. That is something that I actually didn't have an issue with. That was something I was pretty good at. 4:55AM the alarm goes off, I get up, grab my phone and my shorts and head downstairs. Stop in the bathroom and take a quick pee, wash my hands, put on my shorts and grab my water from the fridge as I head down to the basement to workout. I'd power everything on downstairs and just get right to it. Right now I'm struggling with that. I don't know why. I just don't know why. Certainly I'm still getting up and doing it, but I'm struggling with that process and its hurting me. Not as much as it would if I didn't do it, but it is still hurting me. I'm not getting as much out as I could. Then again, as I type this... work isn't getting as much out of me as they could either. lol Whatever.
This month I added in the Spartan 30 day burpee challenge to my routine (30 burpees per day for 30 days). Maybe that's contributing. I don't know. I just know mentally right now I'm really struggling to get up, get out of bed and get my shit done. This past week I've been getting up, going downstairs and just kind of sitting there on my phone and surfing a little bit before I even get started. Next thing you know its 5:20, I've been up for almost a half hour and haven't done shit. Dumb. I've got to fight through that. At this point I'm hoping a change in the routine will help that. Obviously I want to get as much as I can out of this routine and use it to get as close to my fitness goals as possible. I'm just not doing that right now for whatever reason. Again - next week is a change in the workout routine, so hopefully that helps invigorate me. Recovery week is only 1 week and then you move onto "Block 2" which I'll do for 3 weeks before another recovery week. I only made it to day 78 when I did P90X and again, that was almost 2 yrs ago. Without question I put in more than 78 days with T25, I don't know why its so hard with Tony Horton. He's not a bad guy. lol Maybe I just need a little break. Not necessarily a physical one, but a mental one. A day where I wake up and don't worry about when I'm getting my workout in and what I'm doing. I don't know, but I do know I need to figure it out and not let this mind-fart derail me.
This week, I don't know what it is.... I've been in a real funk. I know I started the week off bad knowing that I had gained 10lbs back. That will definitely fuck with you mentally. It messes with you because you put in SO much effort to get rid of it and have a week or two of bad choices (working out or not) and BAM.. there is some of that work undone. I was definitely discouraged. What can you do? Pity yourself and keep saying "woe is me" without doing anything to help yourself and get yourself out of that place? Or you can take a step back and figure out how to get your head in the game and overcome whatever is in your way now.
I did the second option in case you were wondering. I decided my first step was to get rid of those 10lbs that I gained back so I could put my focus on my target of 170lbs. What could I do differently to help me get there? What am I doing now that maybe is interfering with me reaching those goals. My wife said - make it simple, just pick one thing and focus just on that one thing. Well I already do that. I get up and workout. Oh, you meant one OTHER thing. Ahhhhh.... well I picked a few different things. No alcohol, no processed food and tracking what I eat daily. I can tell you that is actually a lot of things. Its not difficult to track your food. Its tedious. It does kind of hold you accountable, if you let it. As I had thought all along, it does also suck. No one wants to be told you can or cannot do something. If I want to sit and eat a bag of damn Fritos and wash it down with beer then why can't I? I totally can. Its just not as important as the bigger picture. I'll have you know its been 9 days since I looked at the scale and saw 183lbs. This morning I woke up and it said 173.8lbs. A pound a day. Crazy, right? Healthy? I have no idea. I'm eating all healthy foods. I do get hungry and I eat more. However I'm more mindful of what I'm eating and when I'm eating. No more late night snacks (like I actually stay up late. HA)
As we know the eating is the big part of it. Really big part of it. You can't out exercise a poor diet. You just can't. Trust me, I've tried. Exercise will only get you so far. Give it a try, you'll look like a circus freak. Strong muscular arms, legs and this big old buddah belly. Attractive isn't it? Tony Horton thinks that calves are the most beautiful/attractive part of a persons body (quote from Power90 when he says "you know, there is nothing better than a nicely shaped calf). Well guess what, I think its abs. I want them. At this point I'm not sure if I'm disciplined enough to do all the right things to get them, but I'm going to find out. Eating right, after eating poorly for so long isn't easy. It is difficult and does take discipline. For all those that can do it day in and day out without a second thought, I give you a ton of credit. There are times I do want to go back and sit my ass in front of the TV, open a bag of Cool Ranch Doritos and wash it down with Mtn Dew (or beer, no love for the soda - still plenty of love for the beer). Somehow I still manage not to do that though.
The other part of the equation is getting off your ass and getting moving. Help your body burn those calories and all that fat that has been stored up in your inactive body. That is something that I actually didn't have an issue with. That was something I was pretty good at. 4:55AM the alarm goes off, I get up, grab my phone and my shorts and head downstairs. Stop in the bathroom and take a quick pee, wash my hands, put on my shorts and grab my water from the fridge as I head down to the basement to workout. I'd power everything on downstairs and just get right to it. Right now I'm struggling with that. I don't know why. I just don't know why. Certainly I'm still getting up and doing it, but I'm struggling with that process and its hurting me. Not as much as it would if I didn't do it, but it is still hurting me. I'm not getting as much out as I could. Then again, as I type this... work isn't getting as much out of me as they could either. lol Whatever.
This month I added in the Spartan 30 day burpee challenge to my routine (30 burpees per day for 30 days). Maybe that's contributing. I don't know. I just know mentally right now I'm really struggling to get up, get out of bed and get my shit done. This past week I've been getting up, going downstairs and just kind of sitting there on my phone and surfing a little bit before I even get started. Next thing you know its 5:20, I've been up for almost a half hour and haven't done shit. Dumb. I've got to fight through that. At this point I'm hoping a change in the routine will help that. Obviously I want to get as much as I can out of this routine and use it to get as close to my fitness goals as possible. I'm just not doing that right now for whatever reason. Again - next week is a change in the workout routine, so hopefully that helps invigorate me. Recovery week is only 1 week and then you move onto "Block 2" which I'll do for 3 weeks before another recovery week. I only made it to day 78 when I did P90X and again, that was almost 2 yrs ago. Without question I put in more than 78 days with T25, I don't know why its so hard with Tony Horton. He's not a bad guy. lol Maybe I just need a little break. Not necessarily a physical one, but a mental one. A day where I wake up and don't worry about when I'm getting my workout in and what I'm doing. I don't know, but I do know I need to figure it out and not let this mind-fart derail me.
Wednesday, January 8, 2014
January 8, 2014
Welcome to 2014. New year, same old goals. Why is that? Is it possibly because I haven't been committed enough? Is it because I haven't done enough of the right things? I don't know.... Here is where I am though.
I've completed Beachbody's T25. All phases, ALPHA, BETA & GAMMA. The ALPHA & BETA phases are essentially 10 weeks. It took me somewhere between 14 - 16 weeks. I lost 17 lbs during that time. At the suggestion of some other folks from the fitness challenge group I am part of, they suggested I move forward and give GAMMA a try. I had been really surprised & disappointed by the lack of strength training in T25. That was a challenge for me, because I felt my body really responded best to strength workouts. I was told GAMMA would be much better and sure enough it was. GAMMA was fantastic. Want your ass kicked in 25 minutes? That's the one for you. Lots of weights but still with that Shaun T non stop cardio. I did GAMMA for another 5 or 6 weeks until P90X3 arrived. During that time I lost another 7lbs and got down to 173lbs. My lightest weight in over a decade.
At the beginning of December P90X3 was released. I was an excited boy and a first day buyer. I could not wait to get my hands on it. Everything I wanted. Short workouts (30 minutes), Tony Horton and lots of strength training. Man oh man was I excited about this. I didn't get the package until the week before Christmas and it took me time to convert the DVDs to digital files so I could upload it to my NAS and do these workouts from any room inside the house. I started Christmas week. I'm in the middle of week 3 and my results have been mixed.
My progress. Well weight wise it hasn't been good. During Christmas I acted liked "old Chris" and ate and drank whatever I wanted. Beer? Yup, I'll have 1, 2, 3, 4.... what the hell... why not another. Wine? Yeah - I'll have a bottle. Cookies? SURE! Just give me MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE. I weighed myself right before New Years. Mainly just so I could see how much more I could get away with on New Years Eve. I mean, after all the first few days that I was the human garbage disposal I was still hovering around 174 - 175. To my surprise I was up to 183lbs. I was SO SO MAD. I had fought and worked my ass off and fairly discipline (not strict, but not unreasonable) when doing T25 and lost 24lbs. I was pushing so so hard to get to 170lbs and instead of being closer to my goal I was what seemed to be a whole month behind to get back to where I was before Christmas.
So where am I now? Well, since I haven't really missed much for workouts (1 week I was sick out of the past 5 or 6 mos) I'm considerably stronger. Chest, back, arms and even my legs are stronger. I still have knee issues and knee pain, but that comes and goes. My knees still feel weak. I get it, but I don't. I've had this issue with my wrists before and honestly I don't know what I did to cure that issue, but wrists are great. Knees.... not so much. Anywho - my body continues to get stronger. My belly is still very much present. That is a result of 2 things (IMO). 1) There isn't nearly as much "Ab" stuff in P90X3 and most of Shaun T's workouts were "Core". 2) Nutrition. Abs are made in the kitchen. That's what I've been told over and over and over. I keep saying, bullshit.... I work my arms and my arms are muscular. I work my chest and my chest is muscular. I work my back and guess what?? Yeah - fucking muscular. Why would abs be any different? Here's why.... anything your body can't process (extra protein, extra fat, extra sugar, extra whatever) all sits in the least worked part of your body. Penis you say? No, abs. I'm not a geriatric. That brings me to Nutrition.
Nutrition. I call myself "Paleo"... most of the time. However, a person who eats Paleo doesn't do dairy, grains, refined sugar, etc.... Tell that to the guy who LOVES pizza. Go ahead, fucking tell me. I can't tell you how many pizzas I've eaten, ESPECIALLY around the holidays. I practically went out of my way to eat more pizza. Seriously downing large pizzas at will, on my own in a single sitting. Last time I checked pizza has both dairy (aka cheese) and grains (aka crust).... so WTF! Alcohol? SUGAR and more grains. Again WTF!! Want to know why I gained back 10lbs? I was fucking dumb, that's why!!
My commitment. Well - I have been introduced to some truly inspirational people that are friends of my youngest brother. One does crossfit and is a frigin workout machine. He pushes the limits of his body with that stuff. Having done T25, I feel I could do some crossfit. The other is a woman who in 10 mos time took her plateau'd semi fit body and turned it into a rock hard hot momma. During that time she only lost 7lbs but the difference in her body is AMAZING. ROCK HARD solid Abs and just all muscle. I want that. I'm putting in the work and I should see better results and I'm not. It is clear to me that its been due to my nutrition choices. My commitment is to stop drinking alcohol for the foreseeable future (my last drink was on Saturday January 4th 2014). Stop eating pizza (also, my last pizza was on Jan 4th). Stop eating processed foods (we typically indulge in frozen apps on Saturday nights or chips, or both. lol). Track my food and log it (the thing I absolutely hate the most). See what my results are from there. The next pizza I will have (and it will suck) is likely going to be at Amelia's 7th bday party on January 25th. This may not seem like a big deal to some people, but its a HUGE deal to me.
As of this writing I'm just under 178lbs (177.8lbs) Just over 5lbs lost since New Years. I'm trying to be happy with that, but I still have the regret of putting that weight back on. I'm trying to do what I always recommend to others..... don't look back, just correct what you can and move forward. Always easier to say than to do. I have my yearly physical coming up on Friday and I had booked this appt back in June or July. At that time I was somewhere near 200lbs and I told myself I was going to be 175lbs (or lower) by the time my physical appt came. I was going to work hard and get off the prescriptions for high cholesterol and high blood pressure (which, back in June my cholesterol went down 100 pts and was finally in the acceptable range). Despite my slip ups I'm still close to that target weight (for the appt, my goal weight is 170lbs and then I'll revisit it). We shall see what the Dr says regarding my meds. I really want to be off them. I don't like taking them. Even though I have zero side effects from them I just find it unhealthy to have to live off medication and supplements. Its not the example I want to set for my children. My children have recognized my efforts to get healthier and that makes me proud. My youngest likes to tell me (as she did this morning) "Daddy, your belly is growing smaller". lol She is too fucking cute.
I'm going to try and blog more as I continue on this journey. Occasionally I look back at it and its nice to know what worked and what didn't work and also just to see how far one has come. I look forward to completing "Block 1" of P90x3 in the coming week and checking out the new stuff in "Block 2". Definitely time for some changes. Too much of the same thing over and over gets old.
I'm out - take care to anyone who reads this.
I've completed Beachbody's T25. All phases, ALPHA, BETA & GAMMA. The ALPHA & BETA phases are essentially 10 weeks. It took me somewhere between 14 - 16 weeks. I lost 17 lbs during that time. At the suggestion of some other folks from the fitness challenge group I am part of, they suggested I move forward and give GAMMA a try. I had been really surprised & disappointed by the lack of strength training in T25. That was a challenge for me, because I felt my body really responded best to strength workouts. I was told GAMMA would be much better and sure enough it was. GAMMA was fantastic. Want your ass kicked in 25 minutes? That's the one for you. Lots of weights but still with that Shaun T non stop cardio. I did GAMMA for another 5 or 6 weeks until P90X3 arrived. During that time I lost another 7lbs and got down to 173lbs. My lightest weight in over a decade.
At the beginning of December P90X3 was released. I was an excited boy and a first day buyer. I could not wait to get my hands on it. Everything I wanted. Short workouts (30 minutes), Tony Horton and lots of strength training. Man oh man was I excited about this. I didn't get the package until the week before Christmas and it took me time to convert the DVDs to digital files so I could upload it to my NAS and do these workouts from any room inside the house. I started Christmas week. I'm in the middle of week 3 and my results have been mixed.
My progress. Well weight wise it hasn't been good. During Christmas I acted liked "old Chris" and ate and drank whatever I wanted. Beer? Yup, I'll have 1, 2, 3, 4.... what the hell... why not another. Wine? Yeah - I'll have a bottle. Cookies? SURE! Just give me MORE MORE MORE MORE MORE. I weighed myself right before New Years. Mainly just so I could see how much more I could get away with on New Years Eve. I mean, after all the first few days that I was the human garbage disposal I was still hovering around 174 - 175. To my surprise I was up to 183lbs. I was SO SO MAD. I had fought and worked my ass off and fairly discipline (not strict, but not unreasonable) when doing T25 and lost 24lbs. I was pushing so so hard to get to 170lbs and instead of being closer to my goal I was what seemed to be a whole month behind to get back to where I was before Christmas.
So where am I now? Well, since I haven't really missed much for workouts (1 week I was sick out of the past 5 or 6 mos) I'm considerably stronger. Chest, back, arms and even my legs are stronger. I still have knee issues and knee pain, but that comes and goes. My knees still feel weak. I get it, but I don't. I've had this issue with my wrists before and honestly I don't know what I did to cure that issue, but wrists are great. Knees.... not so much. Anywho - my body continues to get stronger. My belly is still very much present. That is a result of 2 things (IMO). 1) There isn't nearly as much "Ab" stuff in P90X3 and most of Shaun T's workouts were "Core". 2) Nutrition. Abs are made in the kitchen. That's what I've been told over and over and over. I keep saying, bullshit.... I work my arms and my arms are muscular. I work my chest and my chest is muscular. I work my back and guess what?? Yeah - fucking muscular. Why would abs be any different? Here's why.... anything your body can't process (extra protein, extra fat, extra sugar, extra whatever) all sits in the least worked part of your body. Penis you say? No, abs. I'm not a geriatric. That brings me to Nutrition.
Nutrition. I call myself "Paleo"... most of the time. However, a person who eats Paleo doesn't do dairy, grains, refined sugar, etc.... Tell that to the guy who LOVES pizza. Go ahead, fucking tell me. I can't tell you how many pizzas I've eaten, ESPECIALLY around the holidays. I practically went out of my way to eat more pizza. Seriously downing large pizzas at will, on my own in a single sitting. Last time I checked pizza has both dairy (aka cheese) and grains (aka crust).... so WTF! Alcohol? SUGAR and more grains. Again WTF!! Want to know why I gained back 10lbs? I was fucking dumb, that's why!!
My commitment. Well - I have been introduced to some truly inspirational people that are friends of my youngest brother. One does crossfit and is a frigin workout machine. He pushes the limits of his body with that stuff. Having done T25, I feel I could do some crossfit. The other is a woman who in 10 mos time took her plateau'd semi fit body and turned it into a rock hard hot momma. During that time she only lost 7lbs but the difference in her body is AMAZING. ROCK HARD solid Abs and just all muscle. I want that. I'm putting in the work and I should see better results and I'm not. It is clear to me that its been due to my nutrition choices. My commitment is to stop drinking alcohol for the foreseeable future (my last drink was on Saturday January 4th 2014). Stop eating pizza (also, my last pizza was on Jan 4th). Stop eating processed foods (we typically indulge in frozen apps on Saturday nights or chips, or both. lol). Track my food and log it (the thing I absolutely hate the most). See what my results are from there. The next pizza I will have (and it will suck) is likely going to be at Amelia's 7th bday party on January 25th. This may not seem like a big deal to some people, but its a HUGE deal to me.
As of this writing I'm just under 178lbs (177.8lbs) Just over 5lbs lost since New Years. I'm trying to be happy with that, but I still have the regret of putting that weight back on. I'm trying to do what I always recommend to others..... don't look back, just correct what you can and move forward. Always easier to say than to do. I have my yearly physical coming up on Friday and I had booked this appt back in June or July. At that time I was somewhere near 200lbs and I told myself I was going to be 175lbs (or lower) by the time my physical appt came. I was going to work hard and get off the prescriptions for high cholesterol and high blood pressure (which, back in June my cholesterol went down 100 pts and was finally in the acceptable range). Despite my slip ups I'm still close to that target weight (for the appt, my goal weight is 170lbs and then I'll revisit it). We shall see what the Dr says regarding my meds. I really want to be off them. I don't like taking them. Even though I have zero side effects from them I just find it unhealthy to have to live off medication and supplements. Its not the example I want to set for my children. My children have recognized my efforts to get healthier and that makes me proud. My youngest likes to tell me (as she did this morning) "Daddy, your belly is growing smaller". lol She is too fucking cute.
I'm going to try and blog more as I continue on this journey. Occasionally I look back at it and its nice to know what worked and what didn't work and also just to see how far one has come. I look forward to completing "Block 1" of P90x3 in the coming week and checking out the new stuff in "Block 2". Definitely time for some changes. Too much of the same thing over and over gets old.
I'm out - take care to anyone who reads this.
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