Healthy, Fit, and Fifty

Keep the Beat Up, Let's Drop the Beat Down

2012-01-13T11:32:00.001-05:00

Using the treadmill as part of my overall fitness program is working very well. Currently I am mixing the HIIT training g with 5K training. That combination has pushed me to intensify my running much more quickly than I would have with the HIITs alone.

Coming to the conclusion that HIIT may not be the best term to describe all my slow/fast routines. When being faithful to the math of my runs, they tend to be very HIIT like. However, when I'm being less stringent with counting phases of speed bursts during the run, the proper term is probably "fartlek". No, the boys in math class didn't come up with that one, although it is kind of fun the way it rolls off the tongue. It is actually Swedish for "speed play" according to Wikipedia. That really is the idea. In a pure fartlek the runner selects a short term goal, like a visual marker in order to push himself harder while running until reaching that marker and then slowing down for awhile. The process repeats itself throughout the run. The goal is, like doing a HIIT, to go through cycles of exhaustion and recovery during a single run.

Since I'm doing fartlek on a treadmill, a visual goal in the distance isn't possible. I use the songs I listen to on my iPhone to vary my speed: fast riff, run fast; ballad, slow down. I'm using the music to motivate my running speed. I love doing this. A song with great electric guitar riffs/solos makes a great running song for me. Sometimes other styles/genres of music qualify on the basis of their individual uniqueness. There’s nothing like hitting the top speeds on a treadmill while listening to something like T.S.O.’s “Figaro” by Mozart. No, don’t picture powdered wigs and harpsichords. Nothing like that at all after Trans Siberian Orchestra gets a hold of a piece of music.

Oops, sorry. This is supposed to be about fitness and running, not music appreciation.

Anyway, it works. Fartlek running on a treadmill while listening to good rock music. Helps you get a better burn.

Later folks.

New Toys!

2011-12-26T09:05:00.002-05:00

I received some really nice gifts from my family this Christmas. One I'm enjoying learning about is a Nike+ unit. I'm looking forward to using this to track my walks/runs and compare it to readouts on the treadmill. I'm at my in-laws house today in Memphis, TN. I took my first walk this morning. I slipped out before anyone else got up and walked to Starbucks. The stats are recorded on my iPhone as I walk and a summary report is given at the end. Today was 26'42" for a walk of 1.52 miles. According to the report I burned 240 calories. That seems high to me (check some of my earlier posts about the calories count issues with treadmills - looks like it might apply to Nike+ as well.

I can see interesting possibilities using this. I can instant, accurate records of all my cardio workouts, even on the treadmill.

Sauna

2011-12-21T11:53:00.001-05:00

The fitness center has a (large and working) sauna. I really enjoy using the sauna after an intensive set of HITTs. At the fitness center where I formerly had my membership, the sauna was small (three people was about all it could accommodate) and often broken down. This sauna is spacious and hot! I'm having to acclimate myself to the heat.

There are definite advantages to using the sauna. One is that it helps reduce muscle soreness from a hard workout. Another is that it helps rid the skin of free radicals. Sweating also moves excess salt out of your body (when I've been using a sauna regularly I can tell when I've eaten salty food - I can taste it in the sweat that runs across my lips). And finally, if it is quiet in the sauna, the combination of heat and solitude can be very relaxing.

The big myth is that weight can be sweated off in a sauna. There is a slight boost in metabolism that would mean a small increase in calories burned, but nothing worth building a weight reduction plan on. Sweat, no matter what circumstances produce it, does not come from fat. It is not being melted off. Sweat comes from fluidic the blood and that fluid is replaced the next time you drink water or do anything else to hydrate.

The sauna is enjoyable with definite benefits, but it is no substitute for the hard work of strenuous exercise.

Liar, Liar

2011-12-20T09:46:00.001-05:00

I started using computers back in 1989. They were a bit more primitive back then (and the first nominee for understatement of the year is . . . ). I used Word Perfect for my writing projects. I remember how sometimes to get the settings to work right I would have lie to the computer, tell it a paper size or a margin was different from what it actually was. That was a liberating realization. It kept from fighting with the computer and allowed me to get my way.

Treadmills are notorious for over estimating the number of calories burned in a session. They give a false sense of accomplishment, making the user feel that he has worked harder than he actually has. But there is a way around this flaw.

Lie.

Select a treadmill that takes weight information. That data is figured into the treadmills computer to gauge calories burned during a workout. For a given speed, the higher the weight entered when the workout began, the higher the number of calories shown as burned. So at the beginning of my treadmill workout I will enter a lower weight than I actually weigh. The final number of calories burned will not be inflated.

This doesn't make the "calories burned" count accurate, but it will avoid the reporting of the unduly inflated number of calories burned.

So how much lower should the weight number be? My guess is about 20%. I'll try to look into that and get a more "fact based" estimate. My personal practice is to put in the weight I want to be, not the weight I am. That gives me some idea of how hard I will need to work to burn a set number of calories. It's still off, but it's a good starting place.

One more note: incline makes almost no difference, though it should. I've experimented with this on a few treadmills, keeping speed the same, but trying various incline settings. I really can't see that there is anything in the treadmills computer function that takes into account steeper inclines resulting in harder work and more calories burned.

Treadmill Redux

2011-12-19T10:35:00.001-05:00

Coming back around to using a treadmill in my fitness quest. I'm a fan of P90X and sane nutrition, but there is a dynamic for me I using a treadmill that helps keep me motivated with exercise and nutrition. And, not to belabor the point, there is nothing passive about the way I use a treadmill.

I practice high intensity interval training sets on a treadmill (HIITs for short). There are several approaches to this, but the basic premise is that the intensity of the workout is varied from moderate to exhaustion through several cycles. When I was doing this regularly and running on the treadmill I would start with a slow warm up for 5 minutes, gradually picking up my speed and breaking out onto a jog. Then I would begin increasing my speed by intervals of 2 every 30 seconds until I reached exhaustion, at which point I would drop back down to my jog speed. After just a minute to rest I would begin increasing my pace again, but by intervals of 3, and continue until I reach exhaustion again. I would repeat that until I reached intervals of 6. After reaching exhaustion on that set I would start going back down in numbers (intervals of 6, 5, 4, 3, 2). I would consider it complete when's had reached the last set of intervals of 2. I'm not a fast runner, so my goal was augmented with the objective of running 3 miles in 30 minutes. The fitness variable was getting as much speed as possible before exhaustion.

Here I am now starting over again (I quit the pathetic fitness center where my membership was and tried to supplement it with walking around my community - not the same thing / same results at all). I'm having to start over walking on the the treadmill but I'm still practicing intense intervals, but with modifications until I'm running again.

I start off with a lower body stretch. I would always do. I like the experience of feeling my body becoming increasingly limber. I jumped on the treadmill once a few years ago, thinking I really didn't need to stretch that day and ended up with a pulled muscle. The pain of that experience has made me a confirmed stretcher for before and after each treadmill session.

I then do the slow warm up on the treadmill. When I'm ready to start I initiate the settings. Since I'm walking during my HIITs right now, I'm incorporating the use of steep inclines and make them the major variable. I set the speed at 3.5 (a good moderate pace) and the incline at 4. For each minute I increase speed and incline by intervals of 1 and continue until I' be reached maximum walking speed (right now 4.5 at lower inclines, less at higher inclines). After reaching maximum walking speed I continue to increase incline until I reach exhaustion. Then I drop back down on speed and incline, but not quite as far down on the incline (maybe only as far as 5.0, an increase of 2 intervals). I repeat the process until exhaustion, then start again at a higher incline.

I never start running. I make myself work harder by walking fast at a steep incline. Try this and you can get yourself I to a dripping mess, which, of course, you really want to do. People who never break a sweat using a treadmill really aren't accomplishing much. You will be able track you increasing fitness by using HIITs on a treadmill. And by the way, no holding on to the front or side hand holds. Walk with your hands swinging. That increases the level of your "work" while you're on the treadmill. At lower speeds you can also occasionally lock your hands behind your head, elbows high, for a workout of your abs.

This is where I'm starting as I work toward getting back up to running my HIITs on the treadmill again. In a few days I'll have to be on the road and away from my fitness center. The advantage of what I'm doing now is that I can still go out and just walk the neighborhood in order to keep my conditioning on track.

Remember, your goal is to work out on the treadmill, not just ride it. No matter what your fitness level, there is a way forgo to use a treadmill that is challenging and will improve your physical condition.

A Challenging Philosophy

2011-12-11T21:38:00.000-05:00

One of the bloggers I like to follow/read is Craig Ballantyne. He recently posted this as his daily philosophy:

Five principles for success

1) Show up.

2) Get outside comfort zone

3) Take the necessary actions to move forward

4) Get the social support you need

5) Never give up.

Outside comfort zone = Dramatic steps forward.

I can think of several areas of my life where I could pursue this advice to my advantage. I'm going to do that and report back on what the outcomes are. I could apply this in my teaching, my personal business, my church work, my health goals, my writing, etc.

So, along with all the rest, here goes.

I Thought Trigger Was A Horse!

2011-12-11T21:28:00.001-05:00

Looking into the reasons I am overeating I came across a website (http://www.medicinenet.com/emotional_eating/article.htm) that offered this observation: there are certain events/settings that trigger overeating. Here is the list offered on that web page:

SOCIAL: Eating when around other people. For example, excessive eating can result from being encouraged by others to eat; eating to fit in; arguing; or feelings of inadequacy around other people.

EMOTIONAL: Eating in response to boredom, stress, fatigue, tension, depression, anger, anxiety or loneliness as a way to "fill the void."

SITUATIONAL: Eating because the opportunity is there. For example, at a restaurant, seeing an advertisement for a particular food, passing by a bakery. Eating may also be associated with certain activities such as watching TV, going to the movies or a sporting event, etc.

THOUGHTS: Eating as a result of negative self-worth or making excuses for eating. For example, scolding oneself for looks or a lack of will power.

PHYSIOLOGICAL: Eating in response to physical cues. For example, increased hunger due to skipping meals or eating to cure headaches or other pain.

So, I see more than one trigger for me here and maybe some that are hard to classify in this list. Like an alcoholic who drinks alone I find that alone I like to eat. I don't think it is a response to loneliness. I'm comfortable being with people or being by myself. Maybe it is more like I can eat without shame if no one is around. But it's not always that. When others are around I am motivated to do more. When no one is around I let myself off the hook for responsible behavior. Is anyone else like that? But what is it about no one around that triggers the over eating?

Sometimes, at school I get a craving for a honeybun. That's over 500 calories by itself. That's equal to three Shakeology shakes. But when I get one, I don't want anyone to know. I go to the snack machine and slip it into my pocket after I buy it. Then walk back to my room or to the kitchen, get a cup of coffee and in just a couple of minutes the honeybun is gone. It just makes me feel good afterward. Is that the trigger in that circumstance: believing that it will make me feel better?

Eating large portions of comfort food is also something I do. Pastas are a problem area here. I am comforted by the warm feeling I get from eating a hot pasta dish.

Okay, there may be several triggers for me, and I eat like a horse or with a s little sense as a horse when I get a trigger in my routine. So two things coming from this: first, how do I manage the triggers and, second, what does the lack of motivation have to do with this. More to come.

Hitting HIITs Again

2011-12-11T20:56:00.001-05:00

I went to Coop's today (an area fitness center) and started using the treadmill. I will probably walk for a week or more before I start running on the treadmill doing HITTs. It's been since about February of last year since I've done this. That is when I let my membership at ZX expire. I was pit out with the filth and broken machinery. I started aggressively riding the bike, but that never equaled the amount of activity I had put out by going regularly to the fitness center. I walked 5 miles up hill (20% to 60% grade) with the pace mostly between 30 and 40. My BPM ranged from 130 to 150. I walked 5 miles like this. It took 90 mins and supposedly I burned 531 calories.

So the debrief: how does this help, why has not doing it hurt, what's the dynamic? My first impression is the power of the "calories burned" read out. I did all that and only burned 531 calories. I would have to do,that every day to burn a pound's worth of calories off. That sure puts me in a frame of mind to maintain the gains. It is a motivator in itself.

My plan is to walk and then begin the HIITs. Running more will burn more calories faster, but not really significantly so. When I was doing this before I would have to push 45 mins to approach burning 500 calories, but I was so done for that it was difficult to reach that number.

Now to find the motivation to add the P90X back in.

Painful Honesty

2011-12-10T12:49:00.001-05:00

Time to get honest with myself. Something just isn't working here. I'm not staying with the program. I'm eating like I don't have a care. Discipline is non-existent. Weight is way up, clothes are too tight.

What's going on! It seems rational that having had the victories I've had in this battle I'd be able to stay the course. I know the change in my schedule has been a problem. I've even is cussed that with my two support buddies at work. We would take some time every morning to up chat each other and motivate ourselves to stay the course. We would make our commitments for the day and then hold ourselves accountable for them. We all miss the benefits from those talks, those support systems.

But I can't lay it all to blame there. This trend started last April when stress at work went up. I don't handle stress very well. I eat to ease the stress. I need to do some research on how to handle that.

Also I had some big challenges going on back then that schedule changes ruled out. At least I let the schedule changes rule them out. Maybe I need my big challenges again.

One thing that left my regular discipline schedule was running my HIITS. My old fitness center closed and I tried substituting bike riding. Today I'm going to redeem a gym membership I won at a new local gym. I'm going to start the HIITs again.

I've also got to get back in touch with my BeachBody coach and let him know what's going on. Also contact my success buddy and make myself accountable there as well. Honesty hurts, but time to get honest. Way past time.

Oh No!

2011-11-15T21:30:00.001-05:00

Two things to cover.

First P90X progress: great first week and start of the third week. I can already tell the difference. Subjectively, I have better stamina during the routines. Objectively, the reps are already higher. And I'm keeping up with AB Ripper X, too. I had just blown that off during other rounds. It's going well so far. One week out of 13 isn't much, but it does set the pace. One concern is temperature. It's getting colder in the garage. I think if I try to get into the routines as soon as I get home (ha! Like that makes a difference) the garage will be warmer. I need to avoid going late at night like I did last night.

Last night was a special case. First, it was Halloween and I didn't want to be in the garage doing routines while the neighborhood kids were coming to the front door. So I put off doing "X" until the ghouls gave up for the night. I wasn't finished until a little after mid night, and I got up five hours later to get ready for work. So I was really beat this morning, which is something I need to discuss later.

I found a way to work on getting to pull ups. It's called a reverse back pull I think. In this exercise I suspend myself under the lower arms of the pull up stand (the arms used for leg lifts) and, with my legs extended out, heels resting on the floor, I pull my torso up. This works the back muscles more intensely than using a chair to assist in a normal pull up. The chair method is helpful when it is possible to do pull ups. However, when it is impossible, this reverse style seems to be the most effective technique for getting there.

I've started using the apple cider vinegar in my diet. I'm also trying to restrict myself to purified water. The ACV isn't so bad. There is something strangely refreshing about it. Intake approximately two table spoons to 8 oz of purified water. I'll keep it up and report on the changes/benefits I see.

Okay, two: blew it today, rather this morning. I was really tired when I got up. Less than 5 hours sleep. I did "X" last night. Went to bed beat after having come home from work beat. I was getting enough rest and I knew it. This morning as I was driving to work I was fighting to stay focused on the road. I realized that either I would get something to eat to jump start my metabolism or I would have to call off my two reading recovery lessons. And since I couldn't call off the lessons, well . . .

So I got a. chicken filet biscuit, nugget fries and a large coffee. It helped a little . After my lessons I went back and got two blue berry biscuits and another coffee. I ended up throwing away almost half the coffee, but I ate all the food. And now, a couple of hours later I'm once again falling dead tired.

Okay, observations. Does missing sleep after a hard workout make me crave food more, or was that fatigue induced weakness? I didn't drink a shake at home before I left and I don't know why. I didn't have my ACV water because we were out of purified water. I'm just wondering what were the good and the ad choices here. Also, is nutritional weakness a quirk or the product of circumstances? I'm leaning toward "the product of circumstances" perspective. I was tired, exhausted reserves from a late night X routine, I chose note to drink a shake or ACV water, and then trying to negotiate traffic in the dark. I was under pressure to perform and lacked energy. T seems all these things played into my nutritional faux pas. The ability to see circumstances piling up is difficult to master, mainly because I'm involved in the circumstances.

So, I'm doing really well overall, but I. Gong to have to watch the rest and keep my supplies handy at home. Of course last night was unique, but it will not be the last night like that and this will not be the last morning that I feel caught between a rock and a fat place.

Rediscovering Excellence

2011-10-15T11:21:00.002-04:00

" Excellence is an art won by training and habituation. We do not act rightly because we have virtue or excellence, but we rather have those because we have acted rightly. We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act but a habit." Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC) Greek Philosopher"

Habits are amazing. My habits can liberate me or enslave me. Take this blog for instance. After I got my iPad I found it convenient to write and post my blogs from it. But then there was some code problem between the iPad and Blogspot. I couldn't get my posts to save as draft or to post. Then, instead of changing my habit, I let my habit of only blogging from my iPad stop me from blogging at all. Luckily I've checked out Blogspot again and the issues seem to be worked out (maybe its that incredible iOS5 upgrade!).

It happens with my health and fitness as well. I get into the habit of eating and exercising a certain way or time, and it keeps me going, improving. But when "life" interferes and causes conflicts or changes, the habit - if it is too inflexible - is no longer my liberator, but my enslaver.

I moved from my 4 year apartment stint into a house in August. The house is great, but I no longer have the free time that I had before. The drive into town is further, the yard demands attention, cleaning the kitchen just takes more time because there is more space to be covered moving around. And though there is a great space I've dedicated for exercise, I'm allowing my habits from a more leisurely paced life to block my fitness and nutrition goals.

Okay, so yet another lesson learned. This is another example of how easy and how incredibly complicated pursuing health can be, and often both at the same time. This is a change in focus here, but this simple fact (that health can be easy and complicated at the same time) underscores the importance of having accountability or success partners for this journey.

So, the challenge before me I the next few days is reactivating powerful liberating habits. After all, excellence is a habit.

Again, the Bike

2011-06-17T10:38:00.000-04:00

My P90X and Insanity schedule is in limbo for a few more weeks. But I have been using the mountain bike for transportation a lot. I haven't hesitated to jump on it for any trip of 5 miles or less. And the strength in my legs I'd getting better quickly.

Which is the reason for this post, an observation about the way the strength is working. I posted earlier how regular bike riding had done next to nothing to prepare me for my 5K. Guess if I want to train for running, it's best to run. Did seem to help my endurance, but that just meant that my legs hurt that much more, since I was able to run longer than I had trained to do.

But here is a gain I have noticed: strength walking down stairs. Big deal, huh? Not when I li e on a second story apartment and have knees that are 56 yeRs old. I'm in good shape, but I would have to exercise extra caution when descending a staircase. But since I've added regular bike riding to my exercise, I'm practically bouncing down stairs. Another serendipitous discovery. As I increase my fitness level I continue to discover what I lost as I recover it. Yeah, healthy is much better. And riding that bike is worth it, too.

You Never Forget (But There's Still Lots To Learn)

2011-06-09T08:56:00.000-04:00

I've enjoyed getting back on a bike. That's "bicycle", not a motorcycle like most other guys my age. And it's true, you don't forget how to ride a bike. It's a 21 speed Schwin mountain bike, but it suits me well for riding in town. I find I'm more of a blood and guts kind of guy, more so than the finessing road bike type. I like jumping curves, fighting traffic, muscling the bike through traffic. It very existential when I'm in the traffic, a la running with the bulls of Pamplona, omlyni get to do it every day.

I started riding as a way to supplement what I was doing for my fitness level. I've gradually increased my distances. I've gotten up to 45 miles in the course of a day. I getting faster riding around town. And it's working on the supplementing health aspect.

Just a few things I've observed (learned) about the results of bike riding. It doesn't help you prepare for a 5K. Yeah, learned that one the hard way. Ouch! My legs ate definitely stronger. I can literally feel that. It is changing the way I walk. And I'm standing straighter. Dunno if that is the result of the legs being stringer or maybe the core getting stronger. But it's great noticing how much more erect I'm standing since I started hunching over handlebars. Who knew? Lots to learn riding a bike.

Exercise/Carb Craving Connection?

2011-04-30T09:34:00.000-04:00

Is there a connection between exercise and craving carbs? I've discussed this with co-workers and we've noticed this trend. This is purely anecdotal information, but I'll see what else I can find out about it. We've noticed that when we are exercising regularly it is much easier to control/manage appetite. Both cravings and hunger are reduced, and one exercising routine seems to make resolve to do the next easier. The complication is when the opposite seems to happen. If we are not exercising then we start having to deal with increased hunger pangs, even if we are eating. That's an interesting reversal. Exercising, reduced food intake, no hunger. No exercise, increased food intake, more hunger. That alone is reason enough to put a premium on setting aside time for exercise.

But our observation gets more specific and interesting. When we exercise it is easier to control/manage nutrition. If we neglect exercise, we noticed that we don't just crave food in general, we crave carbs, not good natural carbs, but highly processed carbs: sugars, breads, pastas. For me it's sweets. I get to that stage of "no thank you, I do not want A cookie, I want the entire package of cookies."

So, the take away is plan meals, plan exercise, and work the plan. Missing exercise has greater consequences than just missed burned calories. Whether this is a physical response, a mental phenomena or a combination of the two I don't know. I don't know if this is anything other than just a unique response true of just a few people. My intuition is that it is a hard wired connection (exercise controls cravings, no exercise brings on carbohydrate craving). What have you noticed. Post a response and tell me about your observations on this.

Sometimes the Sun Doesn't Shine

2011-04-27T21:44:00.000-04:00

Nutrition was far less than good today. I had my super healthy omlette this morning and started fine. But I also cooked with my students today. We repurposed some leftovers from the freezer that came from a banquet we had in February. The dishes were casseroles that weren't particularly healthy to begin with, and by the time we added some ingredients to bump the fare up, it was really bad news. I don't want to explain everything, but let's say it involved a lot of marshmallows and Jiffy corn bread mix.

Of course I had to eat some. And the some more. And thar ended up spelling the end of restraint. I even ate barbecue baked chips. I haven't had those in ages. I could taste the heavy dose of sugar on those things.

I did do my Insanity plyometric cardio routine. It went really well. I went to walk, but the legs were hurting a bit too much.

So, where from here? First, "do your best, forget the rest" remains the order of the day. I plan to start a cleanse to drop kick my butt into ketosis and get backminto a steady fat burn. I'll make a stab at walking again in the morning ands get those 5 miles in. I'll use what was a bad day to push me to have a a string of great days. Sometimes the runner stumbles. But you get up and run again. May not have been the best day. But it's just a day. Carry on.

Shutting The Back Door

2011-04-20T13:16:00.001-04:00

Most people I know who, like me, have lost weight have two wardrobes: a fat wardrobe and a skinny wardrobe. The skinny wardrobe is made up of clothes we can now wear. The fat wardrobe is made up of old favorites, clothes that gave us comfort, or for whatever emotional or financial reason, keeps is from getting rid of them. I have a pair of bluejeans that fall in that category. They are special to me because they are hand-me-downs from my son! When I lost over 100 lbs he gave them to me because the jeans were too small for him (he was wearing his "fat" wardrobe at the time).

I lost enough weight that had started wearing smaller jeans than this favorite pair. But I held on to those jeans because they were significant to me. And I held on to a lot of my other "fat" clothes, most just because I didn't take the time to get rid of them.

I had left the back door open to regaining weight. What later started out as a minor fluctuation, or up tick in my weight continued going up without alarm or reignited concern from me partly because I had an entire "fat" wardrobe waiting to accommodate me.

By neglecting to get rid of bigger clothes I gave myself an avenue to get bigger without being forced to realize that it had to stop. I had left a back door open to regain weight I had lost. And this has happened more than once.

By holding on to our "fat" clothes for whatever reason/rational we use to defend keeping them, we put ourselves on the road to regaining weight previously lost. So it's time to make some tough decisions. I just got back to wearing some of my smaller clothes, especially some smaller jeans. So I'm taking that special pair of jeans and taking them to Goodwill. I'm putting some other items with the jeans, things I've held on to but don't have to wear because I'm into some smaller clothes: printed t shirts, khaki cargo pants, polos, dress clothes and more. I'm going to shut the back door to regaining weight I have worked hard to lose.

Get rid of that old "fat" wardrobe and celebrate the new you. Shut the back door to gaining/regaining weight.

Walking the Halls for Health - what we can do at Landrum HS

2011-04-19T12:51:00.002-04:00

Walking the halls.

Spent some time using a Measure Master Roll Tape this morning to work out some walking distances. I took the measurement of the three main hallways and came up with this.

The distance from the opening of the 200 hall to it's end is 365 feet. So one lap is 730 feet. The same measurement on the 300 hall is 315 feet, so a lap is 630.

From the opening of the 200 hall, to the end of the 400/500 hall, and then to the opening of the 300 hall is 1152 feet. And the distance across the commons is 53 feet.

Putting all that together, 1 lap up and down all three main halls is a total of 2565 feet. Two laps: 5120 feet.

There are 5280 feet in a mile. So for the sake of argument, 2 laps up and down the three major halls is approximately 1 mile (an extra 1/2 the distance down the 200 or 300 hall would make up that distance, but let's not quibble).

So, of your health goals involve a certain amount of significant walking, here's an excellent way to meet that goal: 2 laps equal 1 mile.

How many calories is that? I walk a mile in 15 minutes so that comes out to 100 calories a mile. Here's a good website to go to find how many calories you can burn in a mile.

http://walking.about.com/library/cal/uccalc1.htm

Happy walking.

Serendipitous Almond Milk

2011-04-08T12:44:00.002-04:00

I've seen almond milk on the shelf and have read some folks recommending it, but I mostly ignored it. I thought of almond milk as just a bit of over reach that wouldn't make much difference in the long run. I didn't think the the results would be worth the additional expense.

However, I decided to give it a try this week. Let me tell you what I learned just by comparing the nutritional tables between 1% milk (I normally use 2% - when I'm not using water) and almond milk. Just for the record, by the time milk is reduced down to 2% or less, it is treated almost like a sugar water by the body when being digested. First, almond milk has fewer calories. A cup of unsweetened almond milk has 40 calories, while a cup of 1% milk has 200! That cup of almond milk only has 2g of carbohydrate, the 1% milk has 24g (to maintain weight you only need about 150; that cup of 1% milk becomes 1/6 of what you need for the day). The lopsided comparison goes on. Nutritionally, almond milk is far superior to bovine milk.

Now here's the real surprise: I was trying this out in my chocolate Shakeology. My expectations were low, but I was blown away by how much better my chocolate Shakeology tasted. Today I tried it with greenberry Shakeology. I've always liked greenberry, but adding almond milk to it - wow!

Here's the way I made my greenberry Shakeology: 1 scoop greenberry Shakeology, 3/4 cuo of Dole frozen mixed fruit, 4 Tblspns of Dannon Light and Fit vanilla yogurt, and 1 cup of Blue Diamond unsweetened almond milk. Absolutely great.

Side Benefits to Shakeology and Almond Milk

2011-04-05T14:45:00.002-04:00

I asked one of my clients who works in the building with me try the Sakeology with almond milk. She usually blends hers with fruit and water. Later in the day she came to se me to tell me that she thought another benefit was that the Shakeology was more filling. Her usual experience is that late in the afternoon she feels a little hungry and goes for a snack, usually of nuts. But today after having almond milk I her Shakeology she felt no need to snack to hold off her hunger until supper time.

I thought about that for just a moment and saw how it was entirely possible that a Shakeology user would feel more satisfied after having a shake made with almond milk. The additional nutrients in the almond milk could very well result in an enhanced sense of of satisfaction after eating. The body recognizes empty calories for what they are and will push us to eat to get the nutrients it needs. But if nutrients are high the body responds by not desiring as much food, even if the calories count is much lower.

So an added benefit to using almond milk with Shakeology is that enhanced sense of being nutritionally satisfied, and not being hungry or constantly craving snacks.

All That Wasted Time!

2011-04-05T12:30:00.000-04:00

The three day cleanse is going right along. However, I do make one modification: I use some dairy. In my Shakeology I like to add a little vanilla or strawberry yogurt and use 2% milk. The amounts used add about 100 calories to the Shakeology.

I had seen almond milk in the past and considered it an unnecessary measure, so I never used it. Recently I read some reviews on the product and noticed that coaches whose guidance I listen to were using it.

So today I made my Shakeology with my Shakeology. Shakeolofy already tastes great, but this was even much better tasting with half the calories of 2% milk and many more nutrients and antioxidants, I'm sold.

To make my Shakeology I use a handful (a half cup to a cup's worth) of Dole frozen mixed fruit, about a cup of almond milk, 4 table spoons of Dannon's Light & Fit yogurt, and a scoop of chocolate Shakeology. The fruit adds 70 calories, the almond milk 40, and the yogurt maybe 10 ( the whole container is only 400). The Shakeolog is 140 calories. That makes about 260 calories in a meal replacement that is loaded with nutrients.

Outstanding Shakeology Results

2011-04-04T09:45:00.003-04:00

I received an email recently from Donna, one of my Shakeology clients.

Hey,
My cholesterol is down to 170. I'll have to look it up to see what it was last year. But, I'm sure it was over 200. Go Shakeology!!

She has been using Shakeology since December, 2010. She has lost 10 pounds. Recently she participated in an annual staff health screening. Last year her systolic blood pressure was in the 130's, but his year her reading was 106/60. Her cholesterol is down almost 50 points, from 207 to 170. And the only change she has intoduced into her lifestyle is that she has a Shakeology smoothie (she adds yogurt and frozen strawberries) for her lunch.

I can't say that everyone's results will be as dramatic as Donna's, but you, too, can have measureable results from using Shakeology. If you would like information on Shakeology you can go to http://myshakeology.com/drrmc or contact me through the comments section below.

Thats' right, Donna: Go Shakeology!!

The Shakeology Three Day Cleanse

2011-04-04T05:57:00.002-04:00

Special thanks to Beachbody Coach Mike French for this information.

The Shakeology Cleanse is meant to jump start you in your fitness, break a plateau or shred pounds fast & effectively in a healthy way. The key is caloric efficiency; getting the most nutrients possible out of the fewest number of calories. It’s too fat restrictive for a lifestyle plan, but perfect for a three day jump-start to looking and feeling better.

SHAKEOLOGY 3-DAY CLEANSE

The basics are as follows

3 SHAKEOLOGY Shakes a day

2 Cups of Green Tea a Day

1 or 2 pieces of fruit a day

1 salad for dinner

Only white grilled protein in salad

NO:

DAIRY, or EXTRA SUGARS

Only Low Fat Dressings.

You can put your 2 snacks before/after any of the MAJOR MEALS-Breakfast Lunch & Dinner

Dinner salad has only WHITE GRILLED PROTEIN: poultry or fish.

REPEAT all 3 Days

1 cup of green tea

I used Triple Leaf Detox Tea

BREAKFAST:

Shakeology 140 calories

1 scoop

1⁄2 cup of fruit (60-90 calories)-optional

add ice

8-10 oz of water

SNACK (85 calories)

1 piece of fruit

- Apple, pear, orange, banana mango, etc

LUNCH:

Shakeology (140 calories)

1 scoop

Add ice

10 oz of water

1 cup of green tea or a Detox Tea

SNACK:

(either snack here or after dinner one or the other)

Shakeology (140 calories)

1 scoop

Add ice

8-10 oz of water

DINNER:

Salad Grilled white fish or poultry (roughly 340 calories)

SNACK:

(either snack here or after dinner one or the other)

Shakeology (140 calories)

1 scoop

Add ice

8-10 oz of water

Getting the Family Involved

2011-01-17T20:35:00.000-05:00

Two of my sons have started doing P90X. We're going to get group photos made when we finish. We should all be winding up by the end of April. This is going to be fun and a good way to stay motivated on this aspect of the journey.

My wife is mixing her program with Weight Watchers. She's always done well with that program. So we've just about got the whole clan involved.

But we have different goals. The wife and I are doing weight loss. The boys are trying to bulk up. We'll have a lot of good information and insight by the end of the process.

So here we go. A headlong rush to the end of April should reap outsanding results. Charge!

Team Up

2011-01-17T14:05:00.001-05:00

You Spell "Sore" With A Captial "S"

2011-01-04T20:32:00.000-05:00

I mangled my way through my workout last night. Some compute maintenance/transfer/upkeep was taking much longer than I had anticipated. And the soreness from my run on Saturday was really setting in. I probably won't get back to run until tomorrow night (Wednesday) late. It may wait till Thursday if the legs are still sore. As tough as it is, its good pain - its the pain that tells me I'll be stronger when its gone.

The nutrition part of my program is doing great. I'm relying heavily on Shakeology and its works great. I'm actually concerned that I'm not getting enough calories.

Tonight's routine will be shoulders and arms. That should give the lower body a bit of a break. And today Judy spent some time on the elliptical and the treadmill. We're both wearing pedometers to work on getting our 10,000 steps per day. All in all, looking very good so far. Time to Bring It, folks.

This is the scene from the "man cave" last night. I was moving files from my old G4 to my "new to me" G5 dual processor 2.5 GHz Power Mac. Since the main 'puter was busy I had to use the G3 iBook my brother-in-law gave me to play my P90X video on for the exercise. There's even my trusty iPad to the left of the monitor. Anybody looking for a well used G4?

First Day of the Challenge

2011-01-02T22:20:00.000-05:00

Here we go on day one. Its first thing in the morning. I didn't sleep well last night and now I'm running behind. When I get home this afternoon I'll be doing my first set of the round. I've got some ambitious goals to get through in the next few months, but I believe I can do it.

***

After lunch I went to run to set my baseline for where I want to build on. The time frame includes 5 minutes of warm up, running until I reach a total of 3 miles (includes the warm up distance) and then the 5 minute cool down. Today it took exactly 38 mins. I would like to set my goal higher, but for the time being, I'm going to make it 1 minute a week for the first 4 weeks. Then I'll drop down to 30 seconds a week for the next 4 weeks. I'll re-evaluate it then, but I'd like to keep it up until the end of the effort.

I'll do the P90X after I get back from church.

***

Done with Chest and Back. First round of the 90 Day Challenge I joined is in the books. Gonna try to get some rest now.

Getting Grilled Chicken Moist and Tender

2010-07-19T13:37:00.000-04:00

From Kimberly Ann:

"Do you know of a way to cook chicken breast in a way that they come out more tender? I've been doing them on a small George Foreman grill and just seasoned for about 3 1/2 minutes which helped with the shorter cooking time. When I did them for 4 min. they were just too done. I was looking for maybe a healthy but low fat marinade. I even thought of squeezing lime juice on them and letting them sit. Do you have any suggestions?"

Good question, Kimberly, because I also have found that a Foreman style grill can make chicken breast fillets dry and/or tough on the outside. Four suggestions from me that I have used.

1. Cut back on the heat and let the chicken cook slower.

2. When you marinate, use olive oil also. Are you using any salt in the marinade? If so, eliminate it. Salt before cooking pull moisture out of the meat. The olive oil helps to keep the chicken moist and the outer layer of the breast meat tender. I like to use olive oil and Tony Tchasheirs Cajun Seasoning, or lemon pepper, or season all. I realize some of this goes against the "no salt" advice, but olive oil and just about any grilling seasoning is great.

3. Start with the breast fully thawed. I usually buy the bags of chicken breasts from Wal-Mart and will cook up a whole bag at one time. I use the extra meat during the following days for all kinds of dishes. When I have tried to cut corners and start cooking while the meat is not fully thawed or still really chilly, I get the dry meat result. When I'm cooking chicken breast (which can be once or twice a week - remember I cook them all at once) I let the meat get up to near room temperature before I cook it. It goes without saying that you don't let that process go on a second longer than necessary.

4. Another way I've cooked the chicken breast is to fry it. Don't gasp. Here's how. Cut the chicken breast up into the size of portions found in Chinese cuisine. Put olive oil in the frying pan (don't use much; it doesn't need it and nobody's that wealthy). And again, cook at a lower temp. Always comes out tender and juicy, but th color is a little pale, so it needs a nice sauce to dress it up if not casseroled.

4. Finally, the best way I've stumbled on to cook the chicken healthfully and without drying it out is to chunk the Foreman and invest in a Nuwave Oven. Frankly, I hardly ever get the Foreman style grill out any more. I still marinate using olive oil as a base, but then it goes into the Nuwave oven and comes out perfect. If you don't have one, you might find a friend who does and borrow it before you invest. Luckily, mine was given to Judy and me as a gift. At first I thought, "What am I going to do with this monster?!" But now I wouldn't part with it.

Hope that helps Kimberly. I understand the problem and have had to deal with it. Keep the nutrition clean. Remember: you can't out exercise a bad diet.

2010-06-28T13:13:00.001-04:00

I had some salty snacks yesterday. There is very little salt in my nutrition these days. I'm noticing any bloating right away.

Turning Up the Effort

2010-06-23T10:23:00.000-04:00

I've blogged before about how to use a treadmill to get real results instead of just wasting time. If you're not dripping with sweat when you finish with your minimum twenty minutes on the treadmill, you need to seriously reconsider what you're doing and why.

Use the machine to push you. I do my HIITs on the treadmill shooting for 400 calories burned and 3 miles run, in less than 32 mins (working toward less than 30 mins). I worn out from running, but I can still keep going at a slower rate. But I have to make that slower rate effective. Remember: no sweat, no results.

I set the treadmill for cardio. I put speed at 3.2 to 3.5 and heart rate at 140 to 145. The variance is just to compensate for how burnt I feel from the previous run. I usually shoot burn another 200 calories. (Disclaimer: I know the "calories burned" on these machines is about as bogus and overrated as a Yugo customization store, but the numbers provide goals and consistency between workouts). I run the incline down to zero and let the machine gradually increase the incline to get my heart rate up. Once I reach the target heart rate, I'll let it stay there for a couple of minutes, then run the incline back down to zero and repeat the process. I do this until I've burned the additional 200 calories.

This process keeps me from falling into a steady state cardio, and moves me from low intensity to high intensity, keeping the body adjusting and burning additional calories. The age old problem is that if effort is static and unchanging, the body finds the most efficient way possible to meet the metabolic demands placed on it, reducing the effectiveness of the exercise. Constantly changing the effort level and metabolic demand keeps the body from ever settling into that efficient state and ends up with more calories burned.

Try it. Put in the run, but at the end of the run you've got some more to give, do this intense walk on the treadmill to get rid of a few more calories.

Salt Anyone?

2010-06-22T13:37:00.000-04:00

During the past year I've noticed the effect that salt has on me. Because I was using salt, and lots of it, I couldn't really tell what it was doing to me. It's sort of like trying to determine if a fish feels wet. I was using a sauna regularly at the time, so that helped with some of the salt in my body. Also, I couldn't tell that salt was causing me to retain a lot of fluid and bloat, because I was bloated!

With some of the developing changes in my nutrition I just naturally reduced my salt usage. Then when I did use salt I could really tell what it was doing to me. My feet, which had finally begun to show some veins and tendons instead of just being balloons on the end of my legs, would quickly lose that definition.

The bottom line is that there is plenty of salt in the foods we eat to sustain health. Part of our nutrition plans needs to be cutting out the use of the salt shaker in our food prep.

Don't Waste Your Time On The Treadmill!

2010-03-21T17:17:00.001-04:00

I enjoy the treadmill. Its not that I don't enjoy running outside, but I find I get a good workout off of a machine as well. The key is to make the machine work for you, not just get on it.

I've heard people talk about getting on a treadmill for a workout. When I ask them about the details I sometimes find out the person just walked or jogged lightly and didn't even work up a decent heart rate. Basically, they wasted their time.

Others will champion the advantages of using different machines: air bikes or elliptical machines. But the same mistake can be made on those machines: if you expect to be any different just because you got on an exercise machine for a half hour, but you don't push yourself, you wasted your time.

Generally speaking, it is not the machine, but the intensity and effort you bring to it that will make the difference. If you are not challenging your body to do something harder, you are not changing your body to be harder.

My choice is the treadmill. I enjoy the run and I enjoy using the machine to push me forward. Other machines may be preferable to you. It doesn't matter which one you like to use and switching up from time to time is a definite advantage. But given a choice, I'm climbing on the treadmill.

Here's what I do. I start out with a 5-minute walk. On the treadmill that I use (Life Fitness), for me that starts at a speed setting of 2.8 and I gradually work it up to 4.2 or 4.3. After five minutes I go to 5.2, a slow jog. After 30 seconds I speed up to 6.2 or higher. Then every 30 seconds I speed up by an increment of .2. When I reach exhaustion (somewhere between 8.0 and 9.0 depending on the day) I drop down to 5.3. Then I begin speeding up every 30 seconds by an increment of .3 until I reach exhaustion. When I need to slow down to rest, I drop the speed down to 5.4. I incrementally increase the speed every 30 seconds by .4 until exhaustion. Then I drop down to 5.5. Incremental increases at 30 second intervals are .5. At exhaustion I drop to 5.6 and repeat the same kind of cycle. When exhausted and I finish that round, I start the process in reverse: 5.5, 5.4, 5.3, and 5.2. With that final round done, I walk for 5 minutes again to cool down.

The entire exercise takes a little over 30 minutes, usually about 35. If I don't have that much time I can adjust to make it shorter. If I feel a bit of overachiever in me, I can make it go longer.

The advantage is that I get an effective workout, instead of just putting in time on the treadmill. Another is that this is effectively an interval exercise, or HIIT (shown to reduce belly fat). With every round I am challenging my body to either work harder or longer or both. I can evaluate each session I'm on the treadmill by recording the length of time that I run and the point at which I reach 1 km, 2 km, and 3 km.

Similar approaches can be used on the exercise bike, the elliptical machine and even a stair master. If you are not sweating and needing to get your heart rate down at the end of the exercise, you need to reevaluate what you're doing. It's not the machine. It's how hard you're willing to work while you're on the machine that makes the difference.

Check out other great health and exercise resources at my Coach site. With the use of BeachBody products I have lost over 100 lbs and I'm keeping them off. At 55, I'm in the best shape of my life. I look forward to helping you reach your health and weight goals.

Run for Your Life!

2010-03-11T10:33:00.001-05:00

I've enjoyed the couple of late starts and early releases we've had from school due to snow, but I'm really glad that winter is on its way out. The weather has been great lately, and even though I know there will be some wintry intrusions, the cold is giving way to spring and summer warmth.

That means more time outside and some morning exercises that I haven't been doing. Its time to start readying myself for am runs outside. I've not run since the late fall when I changed my work schedule and chose not to go to the fitness center in the afternoons after school. So, I'm in the same boat with a lot of other people who need to get back into running.

First, measure a course. Get in your car and drive the course you plan to run or find some other means of measuring. Remember, three miles is approximately five kilometers. If you can do that much, go for it. If it needs to be less, set it, but make sure you're doing that much on a regular basis.

Then begin getting out on your course and walking or running. Expect to be sore at some point. Muscles are going work harder than they have. Start off slow. Either a very slow jog or even walking could be best. Do that for one to two weeks daily. Then it is time to pick up the pace. This is a "make myself do it" decision. Heart rate needs to be well elevated and breathing should be hard enough to make more than monosyllabic conversation difficult. Keep this up for a week if it doesn't make you sore, or until the soreness passes. Be careful here: even though you are trying to push your performance, don't over do it. You should not be gasping for air with this level of intensity. Run hard enough to make conversation difficult.

Once you've acclimated to that stage (it may be as long as a month after starting) you're reading to start HIITs: high intensity interval training. The concept here is that for short periods of time you will push yourself to your limits. Then slow down, but don't stop. Just get down to a recovery level. For example, after warming up with a slow steady run for five minutes or so, start speeding up. Push yourself harder for a 30 seconds to a minute. After that, slow down to your original jog speed or even a little faster, and catch your breath. This should only be a minute or so. Once you've regained your rest level, push your speed up again. Do it faster this time. The repeat the process of dropping back to a resting level to get your breath back. When you stop the push, the high speed interval, you should be gasping for air. You should have reached your physical limit.

The advantage of this process is that is has been shown to improve cardio vascular response and to burn belly fat. The routine will improve slow and fast twitch muscle fibers (because you're utilizing both). And it will increase your overall speed.

If you plan on participating in 5K runs, spend at least one of these exercise days during your week to just keep up a sustained hard run. Push yourself to maintain a high speed. The HIITs will help you build this sustained speed as well. You've already determined your course, so keep a record of how long it takes you to run the course. Chart your progress. From time to time, follow the course in reverse. This will help you avoid certain injuries to your legs or hips.

Before you know it, you'll be back into shape and keeping up your runs. Run every other day, about three times per week. If you run more often, make sure you intersperse some very light duty runs into your regimine. Certainly take at least one day off from running to give your body some recovery time. And the older you are, the longer recovery can take. Be wise.

Well, that's how I plan to do it. I'll be getting up early in the morning and putting in a couple of miles running around my neighborhood. My June, I should be ready for some 5K runs. Let's get going and start running for our lives.

Coach!

2010-03-04T20:10:00.000-05:00

This past weekend I signed up as a Beachbody coach. I have had and continue to have outstanding results using their projects. Losing over 100 lbs of body fat is one of the most amazing things that has happened to me. And the opportunity to let others know about those products and to experience the high of getting into the best shape of their lives.

If I can be of help to you, contact me and let me show you how to reach the health you have always wanted for yourself.

Update 1/25/10

2010-01-25T12:45:00.000-05:00

I'm half way through the first recovery week right now. On Friday,1/29, I begin the second week of P90X. I did core synergistics for the first time this weekend. It didn't come up in the rotation of routines until I was in the recovery week. I firmly believe this routine is of the devil. That's the first one of the routines where Tony has said, "this is bonus, you don't have to do it," that I took him up on it. But I'll master this one, too.

Judy and I allowed ourselves a cheat day yesterday as we enjoyed some company and watching the playoffs. Glad to see my old home town Saints lose the the Aints stigma. Who dat, baby. But I digress. The donuts and the chicken spaghetti weren't worth it. So I put a big note on my mirror with the white board marker: "The cheat is never worth it!" I would rather just eat clean and feel good. I actually felt nauseous that evening as I did my exercises.

I am still amazed at the strength gains that just keep coming. At this rate month two will be a rocker. I'm maintaining a steady dosage ibuprofen to manage the soreness in my right shoulder. I wonder if it is from the racquetball accident I had 22 years ago or something else? The ibuprofen works well enough to keep the pain down. It must be just some tendinitis that sets up.

P90X is an absolute blast. I look in the mirror everyday and say to myself, "you’re one of the few rocking the X!" I'm becoming so incredibly judgmental. I can't help but, when I see other guys my age, to get some satisfaction from the fact that the vast majority of them physically cannot do what I'm doing every day. The routines, challenging as they are, are actually fun. This is simply amazing. Like Diekler, "Why didn't I have this body in high school?" But its great seeing it come into being at 54.

Pain, Glorious Pain

2010-01-23T13:05:00.000-05:00

Just a few days ago I posted that I needed to up my effort some because I wasn't hurting enough. The rational behind that is that the pain is a result of lactic acid buildup. The production of HGH requires lactic acid buildup in the muscles. So, if I'm not sore, then I'm not getting the change I ought to get.

Well, I succeeded. I'm hurting. It's all good pain. It's not a pain from an injury, but from pushing the workout, the kind of pain that says, "You pushed your limits and you'll be better after this."

I'll not go looking for the pain. I'll look for the intensity, the push, the level of work that results in real progress. The side consequence is pain, but its pain that tells me I' m doing a good job.

Nothing Confusing About Muscle Confusion

2010-01-19T05:32:00.000-05:00

Good to see weight loss coming regularly now. That's about 14 lbs in 19 days. Hopefully this week will find me well below 190. The goal for the end of the week is 190. The goal for the end of the next week is 188. Looks like I have the chance to get a week ahead of the schedule.

I was supposed to do two routines yesterday to get caught up. Judy came in on Sunday so I skipped doing my routine on that day so I could spend the time with her. I got one routine in yesterday, but before I could do the second, she came in from work (got finished early). It was her only day in town and I spent my time with her instead of in the man cave doing more exercise. She's going to be gone for several days, so I have this week to put in an additional routine.

Yoga X today. Its long, its a challenge. I'll get it done. I'm seeing gains every day. Yesterday was arms and shoulders. Though I haven't done that for a week, I gained quite a bit of strength. In fact, I was just about at a point I had never reached doing Power 90. I am at the threshold of making more progress in a month, than I made in three months with Power 90. This could be that vaunted "muscle confusion" aspect that Horton goes on about. Though I haven't done shoulders and arms for a week, I have addressed some of those muscles in the other routines I've done, but in different ways. The net results is that I'm experiencing some gains in strength. I've also noticed more strength in my legs as I've gone up and down stairs. I'm excited about what the next weeks will bring as I continue with P90X.

This first round will lay an excellent foundation. I anticipate some astounding results on that second round. I will be "different", fit, by the time we get to July 4th, my new Independence Day - independent of fat and flab, psychologically free in new ways. Yoga X today. Its long, its a challenge. I'll get it done. I'm seeing gains every day. Yesterday was arms and shoulders. Though I haven't done that for a week, I gained quite a bit of strength. In fact, I was just about at a point I had never reached doing Power 90. I am at the threshold of making more progress in a month, than I made in three months with Power 90. Could be that vaunted "muscle confusion" Horton goes on about. Though I haven't done shoulders and arms for a week, I have addressed some of those muscles in the other routines I've done, but in different ways. The net results is that I'm experiencing unexpected gains in strength. I've also noticed more strength in my legs as I've gone up and down stairs. I'm excited about what the coming weeks will bring as I continue with P90X.

This first round will lay an excellent foundation. I anticipate some astounding results on that second round. I will be "different", fit, by the time we get to July 4th, my new Independence Day - independent of fat and flab, psychologically free in new ways.

Eyes on the Prize

2010-01-18T12:15:00.000-05:00

Having health related goals is important to the process of losing weight and becoming fit. And many people will gladly set goals. One of the challenges to successfully reaching our goals is keeping the goals in front of us. Many of the goal gurus suggest reading the goals on a daily basis or even more often than that. Here's an idea I use to keep my goals, deadlines, and progress in front of me. I use my bathroom mirror as a personal white board.

I use white board markers to write on my mirror. I write down my goals, my deadlines, and my current progress. I also do this to remind myself of things that are coming up that need to be taken care of in the next day or so. My mirror is like a page from my personal Daytimer or Day Runner.

Dry erase marker marks can just be easily wiped away with a tissue. Colors are available so that emphasis can be made where necessary. And every morning you look at yourself in the mirror, there are the goals and a visual reminder of who is responsible for reaching your goals - the man (or woman) in the mirror.

Ta Da!

2010-01-18T10:01:00.000-05:00

A sudden drop in weight came on Saturday. That morning I weighed in at 195. Then I started urinating. A lot. Usually that's the sign that a quick significant weight drop is happening. I had actually already lost the weight. I was just retaining the fluid. If I know I have curtailed the calories (and I had) then the weight has to be burning off. But even if the adipose is burned, fluid may be retained, keeping body weight up.

One thing that seems to trigger the elimination of this retained water is drinking tea. I brew tea at home that I drink cold and often in the place of water. I drink the tea without any sweeting--sugar or artificial. I started drinking fresh brewed tea that way while I was in high school. An acquired taste to be sure, but now I actually find it far more refreshing than to drink sweetened tea. Ironically, my preference for unsweetened tea puts me quite out of step with South Carolina's bias for sweet, really, really sweet tea.

We use a Mr. Coffee tea maker. I use three regular tea bags and one green tea bag to brew the tea. It makes for a mild tasting brew, but I'm not so sure there's much health benefit from the one green tea bag. However, adding the small amount of green tea doesn't hurt.

And one slightly related rabbit to chase: refrigerate the tea and scrub out the pitcher between brews. If you don't know what "soured tea" means, learn. I have been to many restaurants, ordered tea and found it soured - literally a bacteria culture gone viral. In fact there is one very success deli in town where I won't even get the tea because its always soured. When I ask the wait staff for fresh tea because the tea I'm drinking has soured, I have often been met with the blank stares of obvious ignorance. I think the reason so many people aren't aware that tea can sour is that they mask the taste of soured tea by adding more and more sugar.

Movin' On

2010-01-17T07:26:00.002-05:00

I'm into my third week of P90X. I haven't missed a day of working out and that's no small feat. When I was doing Power 90 I had to make a 30 or 45 minute commitment. I had trouble keeping those days. For P90X I'm making a commitment to spend at least an hour every day. Actually, its taking much longer than that. I'm doing well on the routines, but I have to push that pause button quite often, something I almost never did with Power 90. The result is that P90X is taking twice as much as twice as long depending on the routine.

My strength is improving as well as stamina. There are some things (like pull ups) that I'm having to modify, but still the progress comes.

I'm regretting that I didn't keep up my routines for Power 90 from Thanksgiving to New Year. I can tell that I lost some ground with my strength. It especially shows up in my push ups and the ab routines.

All good right now. My right should keeps threatening to act up, but I'm keeping on the ibuprofen to suppress the inflammation and it works.

Xness, here I come.

Starting P90X

2010-01-01T20:14:00.000-05:00

Good start today. West was 204. Imagine what it would have been if I hadn't been working on getting it under control before the holidays. I have some soreness in my right shoulder. I've tried thinking about when that would have happened, when I would have injured it. However, it there hasn't been anything. It started maybe around a couple of weeks before the Christmas break. At that point I had basically stopped doing any exercises. It may be that the soreness is due to lack of exercise, caused by my tendons tightening up. I'm taking the chondroitin and ibuprofen to help out. Its already better than it was a week ago.

The weight I picked up during the past three weeks is unreal. Staying with my parents a few days was particularly problematic. On the good side, I didn't eat until I was stuffed at every meal. But there was all this extra "stuff" lying around to be eaten. Mother makes some of the most incredible sweets imaginable. Everything is picture perfect and delicious. She can make these things and they don't bother her. She doesn't "want" them. Neither does Daddy. I want them constantly. I could eat her chocolate covered cookies one after another and not feel like I had eaten anything.

That "bottomless pit" syndrome is a problem that has to be addressed. And it seems that it is particularly pernicious in relation to sweets. I've already identified flour products as having an exaggerated effect on my tendency to put on fat. Sweets -- foods laden with sugar, fats and all sorts of health ruining extras -- seem to have the effect of negating any feeling of satiety. That makes recreational sweets a double danger.

Fortunately, I've started the push forward with P90X today. I will do two back to back rounds ending close July 11th, my youngest sons wedding. The first round will get me ready to really tear it up during the second round.

Well, here it goes. Two rounds. Clean nutrition. Focus on the goal: fat gone. 'Nuf said.

Moving Forward

2009-12-06T00:18:00.000-05:00

Made it to Peak really late on Thursday and Friday. I still have this really bad chest congestion. On Thursday slowed down and went for more time, more calories, but I also ran one session at level 10. On Friday I think my energy was so depleted by the time I got there that I just couldn't go long. But I did get in a 10 and a 10.6. Watching the calorie intake today, but no extra exercise. Tomorrow will be difficult since I'll have a guest.

Saving the Goal

2009-12-02T17:33:00.000-05:00

Well, I'm there again: one hundred eighty five pounds. I have 13 lbs to lose in the next month - at this point 30 days to Jan 1. Time to focus and save this goal.

A goal is a promise we make to ourselves. Too often we allow ourselves to break those promises. After all, who will be affected? But these are some of the most important promises we make and some of the most important to be kept. The old saying is that promises are made to be broken. I can think of a number of promises that should never be broken and among those are the promises we make to ourselves to make our lives better.

My BMR is 1700 calories daily for 175 lbs. I'm shooting for 1000 calories a day. That gives a 700 calorie deficit every day, that's 1 lb every 5 days and that's a total of about 6 lbs loss by Jan 1. The rest will have to come from a forced calorie deficit.

There is no weight loss without good nutrition, exercise and, importantly, calories deficits.

The goals remain: 172 lbs by Jan 1, complete 1 round of P90X by April 4th (Easter) and finish a second round by July 4th.

Here's to pulling this one out of the fire.

Which 50% Are You?

2009-12-02T15:15:00.001-05:00

During the Thanksgiving break I heard a news broadcast that related appetite and exercise. Their report was on research indicating that exercise would increase appetite and was therefore suspect as a means of weight control. This took me totally back since my experience has been totally the opposite. This went report went on for awhile making this point about how questionable the value was of exercise for weight control. Finally toward the end of the report I caught the line that this was only true for 50% of the population.

Well, I guess I'm in the other 50%. I find that with exercise I can really ramp down my appetite. It’s when I don't exercise that I problems. And specifically, it is cardio that helps me to best control my appetite. A lot of the fitness people out there will rag on cardio as ineffective at worst or inefficient at best when it comes to burning fat. That may very well be the case. For me, cardio exercise has two other benefits that make it an important part of my weight loss regimen. First, I find it mentally helpful. Completing a good cardio or HIIT session gives me a sense of well being or positive mind set. I can stay in a much more positive mindset about my program when I'm doing cardio. So, if for no other reason than that, cardio (HIITs) would continue to be a part of my overall exercise program.

The second reason is that I find my appetite bumped down when I am doing cardio. If I skip my HIITs, if I stop doing any kind of cardio exercise my appetite begins to go ballistic! I mean, seriously, food starts calling my name. I get amazed at the students I teach when we have snacks of some kind. Some of them can eat a cookie or two and be totally satisfied. How can they just let it go? I want the cookies, all the cookies, and some more cookies. I want cookies until my stomach hurts. Then I want some more. I think I know what it must be like to be an addict or alcoholic. The best way to control those urges is to keep up a regular cardio program. I can do a much better job of avoiding binge eating if I just keep up my HIITs.

If it’s a 50/50 break down, I sure am glad that I'm on the half of the population whose appetite is helped by exercise. I still recommend that everyone try it. If you're having trouble controlling your appetite, find a level of cardio that is sufficient to keep cravings curbed.

Sometimes the talking heads just don't seem to want personal drive to work. Drive yourself to health anyway.

In Pursuit of Intensity

2009-12-02T13:36:00.003-05:00

One of the guidelines of doing effective exercise/weight resistance is doing it with intensity. Running a slow jog day after day teaches your body how not to burn too many calories. Using the same weights and never attempting to push heavier weight will not give you muscle. But what does it mean to exercise with intensity?

Dennis Hardy gave a good definition. In one of his latest emails Hardy said, "If you are applying the proper intensity to your workouts, at some point during the workout, you should seriously doubt if you can complete it."

That's what I have thought about intensity meaning, I only wish I could have said it as well.

To do my HIITs with intensity means at least once I must push my speed to such a level that I do not think I could possibly complete the 30 second run. To do my resistance with intensity means that in at least one set I must be struggling to get the weight up, using every bit of my fortitude to finish.

That brings up the other aspect of intensity. It is attitude. Without the attitude to give the workout 100% or even 110%, intensity will not happen. Intensity begins in the mind, in the will, to go beyond limits.

A nice jog is enjoyable, no matter what some of the folks say about "mind numbing cardio". I find it anything but that. But is it effective for the building of a better body. Nope. Admittedly, it can actually undermine your struggle for a better body if done too much. You will simply train your body to conserve as many calories as possible when doing cardio. Your body will look for the path of most efficient caloric expenditure.

But pushing your routines to the level of intensity, to the place where you think you may jeopardize your ability to complete the exercise, will bring results you can see, results that make a real difference. Then you begin to experience "intensity".

Does That Hurt?

2009-11-18T11:35:00.001-05:00

I’m surprised that I have been so sore since Sunday after doing the cardio 3-4 of Power 90. I complete Power 90 1-2 sculpt 3 to 5 times a week, sometimes more. I run three miles about as many times a week as I do the Power 90. I certainly would not have thought that there was much in Power90 Sweat that would push me to the point of getting really sore. It did, though. I have felt the pain primarily in my claves, but it was in my legs, arms and shoulders at first.
I went to run last night after staying at school late. I arrived at Peak at 10 PM. I tried to start my HIITs on the treadmill, but I didn’t get through the first round before I could tell that running could possibly hurt me more. I had muscles in several places in my legs feeling like they would pull if I increased my speed very much. I had to stop at about 7 minutes and leave.

My calves are still really sore this morning. My original plan for today was to go home and do Power 90 Sculpt and Sweat. The schedule for the day has changed some and I’m trying to decide whether to keep with plan A or to go to Peak after church. Even as I write this I realize that the best thing to do will be to stay with the first plan. I’ll wait to get a run in tomorrow, but I’m doing another Power 90 Sweat tonight at home.

The episode has convinced me that I need to add the cardio routines from Power 90 to my regimen. There are muscles that get worked in that routine that all those weight resistance exercises don’t touch. Here’s to even more progress.

Challenges, Challenges

2009-11-17T05:39:00.001-05:00

My weight dropped just as expected. The challenge remains keeping the fat loss going. This morning I'm skipping the Power 90 work out. I'm still very sore from the workouts on Sunday. Its important right now to give my body a chance to recoup. Muscle growth comes during rest following challenging exercise, not during exercise itself. I also need to get more rest. Sleep is important to the muscle growth process.

There are some nutrition pitfalls I face today. The students are cooking a Thanksgiving meal. I will be around a lot of food today. The temptation will be to overeat and to eat the wrong things.

Also, I'll be at school late today doing stats for a basketball game. I plan to go to Peak late and get my HIITs in, but it will be late.

HIITs yesterday were fair. Nutrition was good. Got in 45 pushups. Making progress. Weight was 185 this morning. That's 13 lbs left to go. Forty-five days left. Thanksgiving and Christmas to fight through. I'm going to do it.

Hurts So Good

2009-11-16T05:26:00.002-05:00

There are 47 days to go. Today's weight was 188. That is 16 lbs to lose until I reach my goal of 172 by Jan. 1, '01. That will require 1 pound of fat loss every three days. That is entirely doable. But it will require total focus on carrying out the plan: resistance, HIITs, and nutrition.

Today is planned out. I've completed resistance. I'll have fruit and yogurt for breakfast, salad and a few ounces of chicken breast for lunch and supper. I'll have fruit and yogurt for between meal snacks.

I may have to stay at school for a while at the end of the day, but I plan to go to Peak afterwards and do my HIITs. I'll also make a run to the grocery store to pick up some milk and other staples to keep me on the nutrition track.

For my cardio yesterday I tried the 3-4 level of Power 90. I did fairly well on all but the yoga. I've got to get back into that as I near the start of P90X. An additional result of doing cardio 3-4 is that I'm sore. That shows I need to be doing that cardio aspect of Power 90. I get sore a little from the weights, but today I am noticeably sore.

In spite of this flare up from my bad nutrition over the last few weeks, I had several comments directed my way by folks who were noticing that I had lost weight. Actually, I think they noticed that my body is changing shape. I'm getting some muscle in the right places and its beginning to show, even from under a suit coat at church.

Well, comments are the goal. The goal is to see what I have left to lose when I get down to 172. Time to get started on this week.

Why Does This Feel Good?

2009-11-15T08:20:00.000-05:00

I'm loving this. The way my body feels after a workout is amazing. There's a slight feeling of tiredness in the muscles, but a great level of energy and satisfaction.

Tomorrow is the 45 days left to go mark. I've got to push this hard, really hard. And I've still got Thanksgiving and Christmas to get through. I need to be flawless in the execution of the program to make my goal. I have 16 lbs to go. A chunk of that will be gone in the next few days. Then I drop below 180.

At that point my basic caloric needs will be pretty low and my body could even shift over into famine mode since it will be a new low in body weight. It seems that adipose is ill disposed to be disposed of. Its like fat fights back to keep from being burned off. That's another aspect to be factored in.

Muscle seems to be willing enough to grow. I just have to keep pushing forward on increasing the weight I use. However, I have to watch out for injury. Right now there are some twinges in my shoulders that are telling me I'm pushing my limits.

I'm doing well with the resistance training, but I'm doing it every day. I'm supposed to do it every other day. And I'm not doing the cardio aspect at all. I'm trying to get to the gym most days (5 or 6 out of 7) and do the HIITs. By the way, yesterday's results were okay: I broke 100 calories at 9'30" and 1 mile at just under 10 minutes. That distance is actually .97 miles in 5 minutes. The first 5 minutes on the treadmill are for warm-up and are a series of graduated walking speeds. Then at 5:01 I start running HIITs. I get two rounds in before I reach the 10 minute mark. I did okay on the next 10 minutes, but then I slowed down the last ten. I did break 400 calories, but just barely. I think I was dealing with some dehydration. What makes me think that is the way my body seemed bit slower getter down to a resting state at the end of HIIT rounds. Also my top speeds were lower. Still, overall, I'm continuing to show improvement in my strength for running.

Today I'm eating a meal at church while attending a meeting. I'll be good. This afternoon I need to do some painting (community service project) and once I get home I would really like to get to the gym. Or I may just try the sweat thing here (Power90). Gotta do something to make these last 45 days count.

O well, time to get ready for church. Later.

What A Week!

2009-11-14T11:13:00.001-05:00

I should be shot. Weight this morning is 190. It should be 7 lbs lighter. What a week though: anniversary, late days at school, God interruptions (God's insistence that I minister conflicted with my plans and I didn't think I was up for a fuss-fess with Him).

It seems that I still have to fight battles with handling stressful situations. Here's what I see: I must get more rest, plan my meals in greater detail, make complete preparations for the morning workouts before I go to bed, and avoid snacking on the food the students snack on.

Again, most of this is not solid fat weight. I will drop a lot right away. But that is about a week lost to shed the first 5 lbs. Then starts the slow crawl to the final goal of 172 lbs.

I also see that part of the problem is I really have progressed this time. In comparison to where I was, I like where I am and he way I look right now. My overall body proportion is better. Shoulders are bigger (even if the gut stays biggest) and my face looks more normal (not so much like someone just rescued from a prison camp). Just being so much better is undermining my resolve. But this last twenty lbs has got to go and stay gone.

And notice also how easy it is to put it all on. I have to dedicate myself to weight resistance, HIITs and great (not good) nutrition to really get the adipose to come off. I only have to give in to cravings to put fat back on.

Once again I'll start on my goal of doing 50 push-ups a day (not all at once right now, but in increments of 10 to 15). I didn't do all of them this past week by any stretch of the imagination, but I did do more. I can already see the increase in strength, and I see it in more than just my push-ups. I have a much stronger back fly set now than before.

So I'll continue with those goals, but I need to do better planning. I need to spend more quality time in planning and include in those plans what I will do when Plan A goes awry.

I have made such astounding progress! I am so pleased with where I am and I'm excited about where I'm going with my health. I look around at other men may age and think, "I'm handling this a lot better than you are." And I could do it so much better. I will do it even better. Goal: 172 lbs on the morning of Jan 1, 2010. Goal: start P90X the first week of January. Goal: buffest guy at the wedding on July 9. I'm doing this. I'm doin' it!

Update 11/10

2009-11-10T05:23:00.000-05:00

I ate heavy but clean yesterday. Weight today was 186. Once again, I anticipate a large drop in the next 24 to 48 hours that will get me close to where I should be. I didn't try to eat very clean on Sunday, but I did over eat. Whether the calories are compact or just immense in number, they will get me.

We've got a jam-packed week and it looks like I can't get to the fitness center until Thursday. Our anniversary is Wednesday and we're celebrating during the weekend. So, there's some food issues to come.

Power 90 strength levels are coming up. I hope that means more muscle mass, not just muscle toning or better mental attitude. I still need to focus on doing extra pushups during the day and work on pull up technique as well.

The goal today is to eat clean. Fifty one days to go. Fourteen lbs to go.

Work Out, Weigh In, Write It Down

2009-11-08T07:45:00.002-05:00

Today's weight: 183. Power 90 Sculpt done. I gave blood yesterday. Probably ought to consider that as part of the weight loss. I was really weak the rest of the day. Maybe I felt that way because I'm used to feeling stronger, where as in the past, hey, I was weak.

I am a week ahead of my schedule, not 5 lbs like I said yesterday. That means I'm only 2 lbs ahead of schedule. That's one plateau from failure to reach my goal. I was 10 lbs ahead of my projection a month ago and 13 lbs ahead of schedule on Oct. 3. On Oct 22 I was back to only about 2 days ahead of schedule and I stopped blogging and weighing in daily by October first I was 1 lb behind schedule (weight 190, goal 189/188). Is there a pattern here?

I caught back up by Saturday, but that was a loss of a nearly 15 lb lead in one month's time.

I think the answer to the question is "yes". I need to make a promise to myself to weigh in and blog daily. I did keep my journal most every day, but that's my journal and its not posted. There is something effective, motivating about posting this blog. I know most all of the fitness guru's out there suggest that weight be taken once a week. I understand that they want to keep people from getting discouraged. I can see that. But it doesn't discourage me. I can take the day-to-day fluctuations. And weighing daily helps me identify the plateaus when they come and gets me started fighting them early on.

I just need to make sure that no matter what, if I'm here and I'm not sick or running late getting ready for work, I need to work out, weigh in, and write it down. That helps keep me on task.

Here's a past treadmill HIIT I didn't post.

Do I look angry or what? I'll try to smile next time.

Late Update

2009-11-05T14:29:00.001-05:00

Between being excedingly busy and wasting the little bit of descretionary time that I had, I haven't posted much lately. Here's a quick catch up on all that's been going on.

Progress is right on top of projection. If I fall off the wagon any more I could get behind the projections and miss my goal. So this is "fish or cut bait" time. Current weight is 187. Nutrition has been clean. I've kept up with the weight resistance and the HIIT routines. Sooner or later I'll have to start interspersing the sessions instead of trying to do one of each every day.

I was interested in watching what would happen to my appetite when I started getting my exercise regimen up to par. And it has happened as I thought/knew that it would: as I settled into a regular exercise routine, my appetite abated. It is absolutely necessary that I exercise just to keep appetite in check, not just to lose weight.

I've also seen a problem with the HIITs. Slowly they are turning into cardio sessions and not just intense intervals. The problem arises from trying to meet certain goals of time and distance. One of the easiest ways to reach the time/distance goals is to run longer, and that leads to sacrificing intensity to do longer runs. I will have to think through my HIIT goals to get myself back on track to focusing on intensity. The purpose of the HIITs is to burn fat and specifically to burn belly fat.

Monday, Monday

2009-11-02T05:18:00.002-05:00

Been a bad boy. But I'm past Halloween. I've got a couple of days here by myself where I can focus on exercise and good nutrition. Once again, the first 10 lbs will fall off quickly. My goal is to be in the 170 range by 12/1 and at my goal by 12/31. I can do it. I will do it.

I have developed a problem here of making promises to myself that I'm not keeping. Not good. I actually should have already been at my goal weight of 178 if I had kept the original track.

I have a co-worker who is trying to lose some weight right now. That will be a help. We can hold each other accountable. Also we have had a coupled of schedule complicators: Dad's surgery and Judy's flu. Both of these put me in situations where I was not being very careful about nutrition and had to neglect some of my exercise. Hopefully that's out of the picture for now.

It also points to a problem I have of not handling the un-routine very well. I'm failing for lack of a rut. I'm a train in dire need of a dependable track. That's an issue I need to address.

I've been reviewing P90X. Yeah, it finally came in. I've decided (for some of the very reasons I addressed above) that I will wait until I return from the Christmas trips to start P90X. So, I've got two months to get ready for it.

So here goes a new week and a fresh start. I've completed Power 90 1-2 Sweat this morning and I plan to run this evening, though the thighs are still a little tender from the Friday run. I think if a person pushed hard enough on Power90 1-2 it would be enough to do amazing things. And what I've seen from my review of P90X is that it's Power 90 on steroids - very do-able while simultaneously very challenging. I can see from some of the routines why the people who do it are so confounded ripped when they get finished. Looking forward to March 31 (end of first P90X round). 2010 is the year of P90X for me. It's been three years and 160 lbs coming, but its here.

Ready, Set, . . .

2009-10-29T23:05:00.000-04:00

Okay. Caught up on rest (I even fell asleep this evening watching the news and its anything but boring). Ms Judy is feeling better (flu, not H1N1). I'll start tomorrow with Power 90. I'll run after school tomorrow. So I should be back in the grove. I can tell my exercise is off, because my appetite is way on! What a valuable lesson: exercise plenty, eat less. I'm also looking forward to what I do after this hiatus from my exercise routines while I was taking care of sick folks - first Dad, then the lovely and gracious Ms Judy.

Been a busy day so I'm off to bed so I can get up with a semblance of rest in the morning and start a really great day and slide into an outstanding weekend.

Long Trip Home

2009-10-28T12:05:00.000-04:00

I returned from a long trip to my parents’ house to help take care of my father who had had knee replacement surgery. The combined trips added up to over 24 hours on the road. And some of that was some really late hour driving.
I was glad I could be there for my folks, but what a number I did on myself. My parents can have sweets around the house and just ignore them. If I know there's candy around, I catch myself going back again and again. It's like I can't leave it alone. Additionally I don't cook anything like my mother cooks. When I'm preparing meals the nutrition index is way up and the unwanteds (highly processed food, breads, and fried foods) are way down. It can be exactly the opposite there.

I went in without a plan and I gave in. But what I learned is the importance of going on trips with a well developed plan. That won't make nutrition perfect, but it will certainly keep me from being a total victim of really bad nutrition.

You see, I notice that it isn't just going to my parents' house that's a problem. It’s anytime I'm on the road. My bad nutrition started while I was driving to my parents' house, not when I walked in the door.

Before I go on another trip, I'll take some time to work on controlling nutrition/eating while on the road. I need to have a plan, a routine that I can turn to when I'm out of my own environment. The importance of planning - that can't be overemphasized enough when I'm preparing for a trip or circumstances require me to be out of my own element. I know how weak I can be around food I don't need. I also know how strong I can be in the same situations. I just need to plan to stay strong when I'm out on the road.

That planning is just as important at work. We're coming up on holidays. Today, the PTSO brought in all kinds of goodies for the teachers to eat. Lots of brownies are on the venue. I luv me some brownies. Thanksgiving is just a little further off and then comes Christmas. All these holidays are saturated with food traditions. The need to plan on how to get through these days is really important. I've already had one year where I lost ground to bad nutrition because I gave in to the food storm that came during the holidays.

So, a primary task for the next few days is to spend some time coming up with contingency plans and to develop some strategies for dealing with food issues while traveling or celebrating the holidays.

Things That Go "Bump"

2009-10-20T11:55:00.000-04:00

My weight has been holding at 184 since Sunday, but I do expect a drop in the next few days. Looking at my nutrition (which hasn’t been perfectly clean – darn the Krispy Kremes, darn the Krsipy Kremes! – but it hasn’t been much) there has to be a "let go" point. My weight going into the weekend was 182. I certainly haven’t eaten 7,000 superfluous calories since then. So for some reason there is a bump up that either will be gone soon or has some other explanation. I don’t think I u-turned back to Plateauville.

What could be causing this stubborn bounce? A primary cause might be the amount of salt I've eaten with the Mexican soup we've had the past three days and a resulting increase in fluid retention. It could also be the weight of the soup. It’s clean, but it’s heavy. No processed ingredients in it, just canned vegetables.

Another possibility is that here has been a gain in muscle mass. Could that happen so quickly? My muscles were possibly ready to grow after all the conditioning I had done. When I started pushing heavier weight, muscles responded immediately. I certainly can feel more definition between my pecs in the center of my chest.

Another possibility would be my body reacting to the loss in weight last week and purposely holding on to some fluids. This is a lot like the “too much salt” reason, but I’ve seen it before. I have some weight loss, nothing changes in nutrition or exercise, but the weight drop just suddenly stops for a few days. Then there is a sudden drop and the gradual weight loss resumes.

The real issue here is that it’s time to get down into the 170 range and stay there. I’m facing some challenges to that this weekend as I prepare to go to my parents’ house to be with my dad following his surgery. I’ve gotten to the age that I have fluid retention/swelling when I travel for long stretches of time. This is a twelve hour trip both ways. I won’t be surprised if I lose all definition in my feet – no more veins sticking out or tendons showing when I flex my foot. Also, Mom’s food is just plain toxic to me. She is the world’s greatest cook (no, really) and I’m a food-aholic. Why my parents aren’t human blimps I’ll never be able to figure out. If I spend just a few days there I start gaining pounds and pounds. And I’m about to spend a few days there. I will be challenged to practice some Spartan discipline while I’m there. The travel time will have a detrimental effect no matter. Here’s to striving for some positive results.

Just Being Accountable 10/17/09

2009-10-19T22:31:00.001-04:00

I didn't get my HIITs in until this evening. I had already had supper before I went to the fitness center. The session went well. I reached the first 100-calorie burn before 10 minutes. I reached the second 100 calories burn by 16.5 minutes. I didn't reach 3 miles until 31.5 minutes, but, after all, I was running after supper. So I reached my early targets earlier and my later targets a little later. Still, a great set of sprints. I hit several 9's, a couple of 10's, 10.5 and one brave attempt at 11. Can't wait for Power 90 in the morning. P90X should be here in just a couple of days.

Progress Log

2009-10-19T13:14:00.001-04:00

I wish I knew why I waited so long to set up a progress log for my workouts. I remember when I first started this journey toward better health and began by regularly going to the fitness center. I carried a small binder with me. I had the different exercises broken down on separate pages and included a table showing date, weight and reps for each one. It was easy to track my progress and to tell when I needed to push for additional weight on each exercise. It worked well. I didn't have to remember and I didn't subjectively go by what I felt like doing. I had a record and knew what to do to make progress.

In just the few days that I've been doing this with the Power 90 sculpt sessions, I've already been able to push myself beyond what I was doing. And it is a much more intense workout. I find myself gasping for air at the end of sets and pushing to make my reps. The end result will be definite gains in strength.

Keep a log of your progress. It will keep you on track, moving ahead with your goals as you seek to build the muscle needed to burn calories and fill out physique.

Today I will have to work to squeeze in the HIITs at Peak. I have an important meeting immediately after school at an office in town. I'll need to change there before going to the center, and all that gets to be a bit complicated. But I'll do it. I'm facing problems enough with consistency this week with the trip to my parents for Daddy's knee replacement surgery. But I'll do it because I'm so close to reaching the long term goals I set.

On Course

2009-10-18T07:27:00.000-04:00

Finished with Power 90 this morning. Why did I keep putting off making that tracking log to go with the workouts? Today, instead of going by memory, I was able to look at the written record of what I had done previously and make progressive adjustments.

I've never used a tracking sheet before and had seen progress when I had done Power 90 rounds in the past. I had been indoctrinated by my own bad habits of the past and my satisfaction with what was probably much less than optimal results. I look forward to reporting some significant strength gains as I finish up this round before going to P90X.

Weight was 182 again today. That's great, because I expected a bump back up. My weight had suddenly dropped down to that level and looked like it was a fluctuation. I do plan to get in a run today. If it turns out that I don't I will try a Power 90 Sweat session. I haven't been doing the cardio aspect of Power 90 at all. I've only focused on the sculpt. Living in an upstairs apartment makes me a bit conscious of noise I'm making on the floor. So I've avoided the jumping around of Power 90 Sweat. But daytime noise should not be such an issue and I guess I should go down, introduce myself and let them know what I'm doing and that I will be careful about it. Just wanting to be a good (healthy) neighbor.

Finishing the Day

2009-10-17T21:48:00.000-04:00

Good set of HIITs at the fitness center. I went up to several 9 MPHs, 9.5 MPHs, even 10 MPHs. I felt great afterward. I reached 100 calories burned before 10 minutes, 200 calories at 16.5 minutes, 300 calories at 24.5. I reached 3 miles at 3 minutes, 5 seconds. I did more sprints until I broke 400 calories burned. There was a 5 minute warmup at the beginning and a 5 minute cool down at the end.

Later in the evening I made Mexican soup. Some of the best I've ever made. No processed contents. High protein beans with corn, peppers, brown rice, and grilled chicken. Time to wrap this day up and get some rest.

Saturday Surprise

2009-10-17T16:18:00.001-04:00

Yesterday's weight was 184 and today's was 182. That weigh in came after my workout and a shower. I didn't expect to see anything else this week. This one might bounce back up before the weekend is out.

Basic eating has been clean. I ate a brownie some of the students had cooked, but just one. It couldn't do that much damage, and by the weight loss, it doesn't appear to have done any at all.

I finished up a worksheet to use with my workouts so that I can keep a record of my progress while I'm dong the DVD workouts. I"ll do it a few days before I come up with a baseline.

I'm planning to go to be with my parents during an upcoming surgery. This will mean a few days on the road and away from home. Keeping up with my daily routines will be a challenge, but I'm committing to doing them.

I've been really slow about getting busy today. I've worked on several 'puter projects and now I'm about to go to the gym and do HIITs. Then off to work for a couple of hours.

Vince Delmonte of No Nonsense Muscle Building (http://www.vincedelmontefitness.com/) has the info in one of his recent emails that 1 lb of muscle burns 50 calories a day. Add 10 lbs of muscle and that's an additional 500 calories to work with every day. I've done great on the nutrition end. It has become part of my lifestyle. I may climb down off the wagon from time to time, but I realize this is not just a temporary diet. I've seen what happens when I stop watcing nutrition and give in to eating without thinking: my weight goes up incredibly fast.

I'll be starting P90X soon. I'm not as progressed as I had hoped to be with body strenght, but its time to get going with X. I expect to see some good muscle mass buildup from using X.

Well, time to get up and finish this day.

Some Progress

2009-10-15T05:30:00.002-04:00

Finally dropped down to 185. That's two days ahead of the goal. Now I can seal the deal between now and Saturday morning. Two more days at this weight or lower and I should have eliminated temporary fluctuations up or down.

Good run yesterday. I've definitely cranked running up a notch. I'm getting close to where I was when I stopped last fall.

I didn't push hard with the weights in Power 90 this AM. I got the routine in, but I'm pushing hard about every 2 days. Great progress overall and good job keeping with this plan.

Gotta get more sleep.

Is This Plateauland Already?

2009-10-14T13:30:00.002-04:00

The past few days nutrition has been great, resistance training has been great and HIITs have been great. But my weight won't budge off of 187. Plateau already? The drop will come and it will come soon. My goal is still to be at 185 by Saturday.

Just the few days of getting back into Power 90 has caused some of my muscles to bounce back. Along with some noticeable added strength, I can already tell that the cleft between my pecs is deeper (pecs getting bigger).

I had a great session with my HIITs yesterday. My goal was to reach 100 calories before 10 minutes (counting the 5 minute warm up walk), 200 calories before 15 minutes and 300 calories before 20 minutes. I also set goals to reach 3 miles before 30 minutes and to continue the sprints until I hit over 400 calories. I hit every goal, sometimes with only a second or two to spare, but made it none the less.

This was my final reading at the end of my cool down walk. I had to push into the 9 mph range several times and did it well. Good day yesterday. Now, if only I could find the exit from Plateauland.

Working My Plan

2009-10-13T05:48:00.000-04:00

Four days straight of Power 90 sculpt. The plan I started this past weekend is working great. Before I go to bed I make sure everything is ready for me to do a session of sculpt. When I get up, the computer is on, the water and towel are out. The CD is in and ready to go. I literally just have to push play. But lets do this for a month before I declare "Mission accomplished."

Peak is going well. I'm getting my sprints in. That's another thing I make sure is prepared before I go to bed. The back pack is packed and by the door. I just have to pick it up and change at school before I leave for the day so that my first stop is the fitness center on the way home.

I'm pushing my sprints/HIITs. Rest periods between sprints is limited to 1 minute, 1 & 1/2 minutes, or until my heart rate is in the low 140's. One consequence has been that I don't run as long, but because of the speeds I'm selecting, I run as fast or faster. I should be able to bring my goals to 200 calories burned before 20 minutes and 300 burned before 25 and 3 miles reached by 29 minutes. Yesterday I missed 3 miles in 30 minutes by just few seconds.

Excercise and Appetite

2009-10-12T12:27:00.001-04:00

I've been advocating exercise as a way of cutting into appetite. Now a professor in Austrialia has researched this process. Steve Boucher has shown how interval training increases catecholoamines, a hormone that actually reduces your appetite. So HIITs are a hit when it comes to using execise to modify your apetite.

Do Your Best, Forget the Rest

2009-10-11T07:35:00.003-04:00

Can't account for the jump in weight from 182 to 185. Yesterday's or today's measurement must be wrong. Yesterday I got in HIITs and Power90. I've already done Power90 this morning. I'm trying to get everything ready for Power 90 before I go to bed: the computer comes on, towel and water are waiting. I just get out of bed, come to the man cave and get started. This will work. I'm just doing sculpt int he early morning (I'm getting up at 5:00 AM to do Power90) so I may try to add some sweat Power 90 in the afternoons or early evenings. Peak HIITS are immediately after school when I can get there which is most days. I find I don't have to run every day, but I enjoy it. Usually I have an exceptionally good run after a day or two off.

Today is Sunday, and its time to exercise the soul.

Developing a Strategy for Success

2009-10-10T21:11:00.004-04:00

Last year I would go to the gym early in the morning before heading to work. I would prepare my gym bag at night and have everything ready for me to get out of bed and head to the gym at 4:30 or earlier. It worked well. I walked out with my workout clothes on and my change of clothes in the bag and my lunch packed. I would even have something for breakfast, like a granola bar or the like. It worked.

Now I'm having to go into school early and that's cutting into the time that I would be getting up and going to the gym. I'm getting there after school. I take my gym clothes with me to school and change into them after the last bell. Then I head to Peak and get in a very good HIIT session.

The problem is getting my weight resistance in. And the best time would be the first thing in the morning. The conflicts are not getting up early enough, being concerned about the amount of noise it makes for my downstairs neighbors and the fact that I really like to take it easy in the morning and wake up slow.

So, to get the resistance in first thing I'm planning on using my strategy from last year. Before I go to bed I'll make sure that everything is ready for me to start Power 90 when I first get up. I'll make sure that my clothes are ready, that my water and towel are ready and that the disk is in the machine. I may even see if I can learn how to get the 'puter to start itself and be waiting on me.

So I'll put this strategy got work this next week and see if I can't be consistent about getting Power 90 done on a daily basis.

Necessity of Weight Resistance

2009-10-10T16:04:00.003-04:00

In the three front approach to fat loss there is an important symbiotic relationship. Diet is the most important. You simply cannot out exercise bad nutrition. Cardio (HIIT type) brings a focus to burning belly fat. There is also a specific role for resistance training. Calories deficits from reasonable eating can also result in loss of muscle tissue. It is resistance training that supports muscle maintenance. So to keep from losing muscle mass while dieting, weight resistance is essential.

I had thought that the HIIT might keep the muscle mass on me, but that definitely did not happen. During this time that the weight resistance (Power 90) has been iffy, I have definitly lost some upper body strength. HIIT did not help me maintain my upper body strength, though it obviously did not.

All three elements are necessay. Good nutrition is absolutely required for the fat to come off. I deal with it by eating no processed food and very little meat. I've not even bothered keeping close track of calories and the weight has come off. To be sure, I haven't over eaten, but that's the next point. HIIT helps to cut into appetite as well as give specific help with burn belly fat. And weight resistance builds muscle mass as well as keeps it from being attacked by the body as an energy source. HIIT helps promote the accumulation of lactate acid and that brings on the HGH.

What Should Have Happened

2009-10-10T12:45:00.002-04:00

Still 13 lbs ahead of schedule. Bounced back up after the two weeks of the sponsor visit and the Joel trip. Yesterday I deserved to be sent to nutrition hell. I was surrounded by snack food in the morning that had been brought in for the TAV meeting. I resisted every bit of it. I really wanted it, but I resisted. But when I let my students cook as a reward for their cooperation with me during the TAV event, I had to sample the muffins. I ate one and that started it.

I was like an alcoholic. I ate one and I just allowed myself to eat more. They were certainly good, but I have no idea how many I ate of those cupcake sized muffins. Then Denise's class cooked a birthday cake for one of her students. I had two pieces of that (my student's muffins were better, so I ate a lot more of those). I let the afternoon class cook brownies and I ate some of that, too. That stuff had Crisco and oil in them. That's killer stuff.

I felt so badly for eating like that during the day that I wouldn't allow myself to eat anything else for the rest of the day. Judy was still a bit sick and I catered to her some. She wanted donuts and I went and got her some - six. I didn't eat any of them. Frustrating! How can I be so strong at home when I was so weak at school?

What are some options I could have utilized to keep from eating like a fool.

1. I could have told someone. I simply could have said to Denise or Robert "I want to eat. I don't just want a muffin; I want the muffins. Watch me to make sure I don't."

2. I had good food there I could have eaten instead. I could have eaten nuts. I could have eaten a salad and let that satisfy my herding instinct.

3. Think of different foods to have the students cook that is healthier. We could have done microwave popcorn. I could come up with a healthier (less nutritionally disastrous) oatmeal cookie recipie.

I think I'll work on number 3. That helps me and the students.

Back on track now. Here I come 172.

The Cost of Ditching Nutrition

2009-10-07T16:52:00.002-04:00

Progress has been great. There have been days when my weight loss was totally inexplicable. I'm marking it up to the three front approach to fat loss: totally clean eating; resistance training; and HIIT style cardio.

From September 27th I went 12 days without watching the nutrition. Judy had "company" company in town and then we had a few days before the rush to my youngest son and his fiancee's engagement party for family. I could feel my body thickening up. And I could tell that I wasn't feeling as well. Those few days really demonstrated how imnportant my nutrition is and just how fragile the benefits of good nutrition are. In that short time the scales say I gained about 10 lbs. I didn't eat that badly every day (though there were some). The issue is that my body reacts awfully to awful food. This will come off right away, I'm sure. But even if it comes off as fast as it went on, that will be a total of one month lost on the progress.

I'm not beating myself up over this. It was factored into the plan. And I fully expectd the results. The weight loss I have seen since I took all processed foods out of my diet is amazing. My body just dosen't do highly processed carbs without the natural fiber element. Fruit is fine as long as it is in its natural state. Take away the fiber and it becomes a recepie for fat. I'm glad to know that. Randall can't do bready foods. It makes him almost instantly fat.

The goals are on track. I will easily beat the 172 goal by 1-1-10. Then I push for the cut bod. Woo hoo, doing great, even with the set backs and difficulties getting the exercise in.

Back To School Strategy

2009-08-01T13:19:00.001-04:00

The official first day of this personal challenge begins today. The challenge lasts until 01-01-10. Thats 153 days from today. My goal is to be in the 170 range on my weight. My specific goal is 173 lbs. I also want to be able to do 10 pull ups by then. The personal challenge will continue through to late May or sometime in June when Katie and Joel are married. I'll define those goals a little better, but generally speaking, buffist fiftyish dad at the wedding.

I'm setting some priorities in my life for this challenge. They are non-negotiable. Negotiating, rationalizing some of these is exactly what has led to my need to get radical about my current health. I must exercise. I must eat clean. I must plan my days. In addition to these health related priorities, I'm adding writing and ramped up Bible study. And these are my new year resolutions. I resolve NOW to reach these goals by 01-01-10.

Yesterday I ran at the gym doing wind sprints on the treadmill. I enjoy doing that because it is easy to set goals. I can set a calories goal (I know that's not very accurate and should not be counted on, but it does give me a target) a speed goal and the ability to time my workout. What I do is spend five minutes warming up (learned the hard way last year when I started running and pulled a muscle; it took weeks to move past that injury); I start out at 2.5 and increase my speed by increments of 3 until I get up to 4.3. That usually leaves me with about a minute to a minute and a half to go before I start running. At the end of the five minutes warm up I increase th speed to 5.2. Every thirty seconds I increase the speed by .2. I continue to increase that speed until I reach 7.0 and run at that speed for 30 seconds. Then I reduce the speed to 4.0 - a fast walk. I watch my heart rate until it is in the 120 range, at which point I increase the speed again, but this time to 153. With each 30 second increment of time I increase the speed by .3. When I finish at 171, I drop again to the fast walk, 4.0. When my heart rate is in the 120 range, I increase the speed to 154 this time. And with each 30 minute increment I increase speed by .4 until I complete 30 seconds at the 170 level. Reduce to walk, let heart slow down and then increase speed to 15.0. Each 30 seconds I pick up the pace by .5 until I complete 30 seconds at 170 or 175. Then I begin the 5 minute cool down. When I check my heart rate at the beginning of each of the other cool downs I'm usually in the 160 range of BPM. I can burn (according the treadmill, which, admittedly, is not accurate at all, probably not even close) 300 or more calories in less than 30 minutes. I do this particular plan as a version of HIT training. I'm avoiding steady state cardio. I'm training my muscles to do more. And as time progresses I make the session harder. I go at higher speeds (I want to end each level in the 10.0 range). So that gets me around the problem of the body adjusting to what is being done in cardio and burning next to no calories at all. That's what happened to me last summer. I ran miles and miles and got almost nothing for it. My nutrition was bad and I wasn't burning nearly the calories I thought I was.

I'm also walking here in the apartment community. I have a mile course set around the place and walk it three to four times. I'm pushing to getting up to five laps soon. What I'm finding is that my running is doing better than usual. I think the walking is exercising and building some muscles that I was compensating for in the running. There is more air time (pushed up from the ground with my feet) than I had before. So yesterday I walked 4 miles.

Then later I went to the pool and swam. I'm swimming underwater so I can listen to my shoulders. I'm hearing a lot of crackling sounds and I know from previous experience doing squats in Power 90 that that is the sound of tendons moving that haven't been stretched very much. I heard it in my knees before, but now its gone. So I want to work my shoulders until its gone from there as well.

What I'm learning: My appetite can be voracious, but I also know that exercise can help me control my appetite by putting a damper on it. This is one of those great serendipitous truths about health. The more you exercise, the less you may want food. My understanding that always been that just exercising cuts back on appetite. I thought that although I had plenty of evidence that that was not the whole truth. I would exercise, then crave and crave and crave. What I think I'm learning now is that there must be a certain level of exercise before appetite is affected. I did not eat a lot yesterday, but I exercised a whole lot. This morning I had a practically empty if not totally empty stomach, but I went to the gym first. I ate afterwards because I could tell I need food, not because I craved food. After I finished my 8 oz. whey protein drink and my 4 whole egg omelet, I was stuffed.

It seems that the level of my exercise finally affected my appetite. So, to hold down appetite, I need to elevate the amount of exercise I do until it takes affect. I need to exercise not just to control weight, but I need to exercise enough to control my appetite. Exercise too little and appetite can still be out of control.

I'm using whey protein drinks (EAS chocolate powder) after intense workouts. My soreness has been almost non existent. It seems that possibly taking the protein drink helps to keep me from being sore. That's stuff I'm glad I learn as I continue on this challenge.

Well, that's a bit much for today. I've gone way past the amount of time I had intended to spend on this. So until tomorrow.

New Start

2009-07-31T12:37:00.000-04:00

One thing I've learned is that I don't handle summer very well. Last summer I learned that you can't out exercise your diet, but at least I was exercising/running regularly.

This summer I'm learning just how intolerant of high processed carbs my body is. Gaining weight when I'm not eating clean is incredibly easy. It also seems that eating the carbs causes my appetite to escalate and to crave more processed carbs.

I had read in one blog that craving the unhealthy things was a sign of poor nutrition and could be helped my loading up on macro-nutrients. The brain would be able to detect the presence of the nutrients and would back off of the craving for processed carbs. I don't believe it. I think the answer is that we just crave the things we like and we like the sugar in highly processed carbs.

August first begins my "New Year's Resolution". Instead of waiting for the new year to make resolutions, I'm making resolutions for the new year.

Here are some of my goals: I will be in the 170's range. The goal weight is 173, but I'll call it successful just to be in the 170 range. I will be able to do 10 pull ups. Joel and Katie's wedding will be in May or June of 2010. I will be at my "buff" stage by then. I will be in the 10% body fat range.

I have the diet well mapped. I should be losing about 2 lbs per week. That means staying extremely focused, anticipating the setbacks and plateaus. I'm ready. I'll do it.

Fighting the Binges

2009-01-29T13:29:00.001-05:00

The biggest difficulty is fighting the urge to binge -- to just eat whatever is at hand. I did it today. I had to host a reception for a speaker in my class room and just couldn't keep my hands off the sweets.

I'll make up for it, or at least I'll get back on the wagon. But this still means making up lost ground. And when I give in to the binges, its easier to give in to not doing the exercises as well. This is the challenge I will have to find mental tools to deal with.

How It Began

2008-12-02T16:10:00.001-05:00

This journey began with the move that my wife and I made to South Carolina in 2007. My in-laws took a photo of my wife and I standing on the steps of the house we were leaving moments before we were in our cars headed to a new home.

After we had settled in our new apartment in South Carolina, I spent an evening setting up my comoputer and downloading some photos. The picture of my wife and me on the front steps of the church was there. I was shocked at how big I was. My gut was huge.

That's was my moment. I decided then that I would lose this weight and get rid of it forever.

I wish it had been that easy. What began was a series of mishaps that revealed just how bad my physical condition was. I broke my right collar bone in February from doing Roman chair and chest flies. In May I developed seviere tendenitis in my right hip from runnning. After my right collar bone healed I developed a dibilitating pain in my right shoulder that had to be treated with a cortezone shot (never had one of those before). That plus a dozen other assorted ailements held me back physically. Nutritionally I thought I was doing great. I was certainly doing better, but my nutrition had been so bad almost anything would be an improvement. In fact, in spite of the injuries and the less than perfect nutrition, I was able to lose a hundred pounds in the course of a year and a half.

There is still so much to learn about myself and how my body reacts to what I'm doing. As of the fall of 2009 I am in a push to finish losing the gut. When I'm dressed I look thin enough. But I know about the blubber bulb under my shirt. I still have a significant layer of fat to lose. My goal is to be down to 172 pounds by January 1, 2010. And I plan to be the buffist dad attending at the wedding of my youngest son in July. Those are the goals I'm moving toward headlong right now.

I hope these posts will be helpful to folks who come this way. I've been through a log and I've learned a lot and I want to use it all to help other people have the same success with fat loss and muscle development that I'm having.