Day 48 - lots of work, yoga

So suprisingly good day today for as little sleep as I got. I had a dentist appointment, got my clean bill of health there, thankfully, and then had meetings for much of today. Work is a little stressful right now - I have some really big deliverables that are being very difficult. After, came home for an hour, made myself a little dinner, then went to a 7pm yoga class with my friend Liz.
It was a good yoga class. Since there were only three of us, we got personal attention which is great for me, since I'm just starting out. Sometimes a very minor adjustment makes all the difference in a yoga pose. I felt like it was a light cardio workout, but a good strength workout.
It was very different from Sunday. Sunday was more cardio, and much more meditative. While today was relaxing, the teacher doesn't flow from one position to the next. It's like you reposition yourself for the next pose.
I did like that she had several series of ten or so poses that we did multiple times. A couple more classes with her and I'll be able to remember those to do on my own time.

Day 47 - Weights, abs, appetizers...

Good day! I didn't manage to get up when my alarm went off, so had to go after work for a nice 45min weight circuit. It was a good workout - upped most of my weights a little bit, and felt a good cardio burn. I'm doing 55-60 pounds with each arm now on the machine press, which feels great, and the cable crosses are come up nicely too.
I had a conversation about pressures on guys to do large weights. I've never felt that, probably because I started with a trainer, and I know if i work out right, at the end of the workout I'm not really able to lift much. Also, I can do more weight and do it crappily, with not much benefit. Like my ex-body builder friend said, if you're going to cheat, why bother going to the gym?
Got my yoga hamstring stretches done morning and night, and also did abs at the gym and abs before I crashed, so that's good. Still getting there! Gotta put on the pressure if I'm going to get where I want to be in 38 days.

Day 46 - YOGA! YOGA! YOGA!

Quite coincidentally, the second half of the experiment was my first day of yoga class. It was a beginner class, with an excellent teacher. Even though I wasn't able to do some of the more challenging positions - my balance is bad, but my flexibility is terrible - I felt like the teacher understood and explained the positions well. It was a cardio workout, too. I went with Megan, my roommate, and we both are sore right now. I've been assigned homework, a couple simple exercises to do at home to try to loosen up my hamstrings.
I think the yoga will be a good way to diversify my exercises. So now I've got cardio, yoga, and weight training. Do I double up a couple days? I'll have to ask Cera about how to make this work.
The yoga is a great meditation tool, as well. The teacher, Erin, gave a little motivational talk at the beginning of the class, and it was really good. At the conclusion, she asked us to think about what we'd like to get out of yoga. I was really impressed by the grace and balance of the class as a whole, and the way yoga approaches exercise - deliberately, slowly, and powerfully. That's what I'd like to take out of this, over time: A sense of deliberate grace and balance in my daily life.

Day 45 - Halfway there!

So 45 days in! 45 days of working out, eating mostly pretty good, and generally working to be fit, and it's been an interesting half of an experiment!
I definitely think i look better. Not sure if I feel better, but I feel good. I can see some pretense of abs coming out of the fat, too!
The biggest difference is simply the discipline. Going to the gym every day, without exception, and eating right - both are a big commitment, but I've found that I can do it. It's helped me be more disciplined in other areas. The alone time and self-reflection that has quite unexpectedly come with the workout has helped me in my job and my personal life.
On a micro-level, I'm up to 25min of running. I did just over two miles - still not all that impressive, but it's up from less than a mile when I started a month and a half ago. Weighted in at 158 today.
I'll get measurements posted later this week. It was a good 45 days, and while I'm still not exactly 'ripped,' I'm still excited about getting there!

Day 43 & 44

Totally missed Thursday for the gym workout. Worked too late, had meetings too early, and had plans with friends on Thursday night. And was in meetings over lunch, so they catered in a delicious chicken ceaser salad, with this very good corn chowder, and I snuck a little cupcake for dessert. Slate Street - damn good eats, really.
Had myself a bowl of oatmeal after work, and then homemade pizza about 9pm at a friend's place. While not the healthiest day, it wasn't terrible.
Friday got up early and did the workout things. Went to the Downtown gym, which has a pretty limited number of machines and it's definitely harder for me to get a great workout there. I'm still not sure i have a great grasp on the major muscle groups, which exercises to start with, and where to finish. But I can do a pretty intense cardio/weight circuit workout in an hour - I feel good about that. Abs are still tough, mentally, for me. I don't know why.
Food Friday was all good, with the exception of Friday night out, as generally happens. But still, not a terrible couple of days. I'm getting there.

Day 42 - Long day... good workout

Missed my yoga today. Really want to give it a shot, but my friend told me there was a class, and I was ready to go, but apparently it's an Ashanti Yoga class that requires previous experience. I'm so inexperienced I'm not even sure I can bend, much less fit in to an experienced class. I'll wait.
Late workout today. I read today that early workouts, either morning, afternoon, or early evening improve sleeping habits, but not late workouts. So definitely gonna try to workout a little earlier. Unfortunately this starts in 6 hours, 6:30am, so it's gonna be tough today. blah.
Consumed 2400 calories, 200 more than the 2200 calories I'm shooting for. Not bad. I really kind of need to work to make it over 2k calories.

Day 41 - almost half-way there!

Today was just a little bit off. Reminds me of the quote from "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" - I never could get the hang of Thursdays. Except today's Tuesday, and generally, I'm quite good at Tuesday. Got up a bit later than I should have, and made it to the gym for a rather lackluster weight circuit. My upper body is sore, but my will to make it a cardio, you know, really push it, was lacking.
On the plus side, had a catered work lunch and the food was healthy and fantastic! That always makes my day better. And I had no real work to do tonight, which was great too, so I cooked dinner and chilled out all evening. Very nice.
I haven't actually done my night set of abs yet, but I figured if I posted about it, I would have no choice. I do about 60-80 ab exercises - 15-20 leg lifts, obliques both sides, and full body, and then I try to do it again. Can't really count it the second time, because it's so sad and I have to rest too much. Getting there, though!

Day 40!

40 days in! Almost half-way there. So far, I know I'm down about 3% body fat, and I know my stomach has gotten smaller, but haven't seen any real definition yet.
The workouts are easier - way easier than when I started. I did 55 minutes of cardio today, because I ran out of time (soaking wet when I finished), and then some abs. I can't seem to do abs in the morning - it's just tough for me! Even at night. They're such a little thing, just can't seem to get in the groove of even 5min of abs before I get going or crash out.
Tomorrow I'm weights, which I'm looking forward to. They're fun - I'm using caloriecount.about.com, and they've got great workouts on there as well. Trying to continue to use the full-body workouts, that combine weight lifting with lunges or steps or something. They're hard, but they make you sweat like nothing else. Great cardio.
I got a referral to a good yoga teacher on Monday & Wednesday nights at my gym, and I think I'm going to try to make one, no matter how embarrasing it might be. Does that supplement my workout, or do I still have to do cardio? I'll see how strenuous it is, and go from there.

Days 37 & 38 - Weekend Edition

I did pretty good on food this weekend, if not that great on booze. Got a neat little martial arts workout late yesterday, then went out and had a couple beers and a couple vodka tonics. This morning, got up a little late, had a great breakfast, went out to the gym and had a great arm/chest workout. Lost track of time, and really got into the zone - pushed weight limits, and then did a little swimming and hung out in the hot tub.
Got home, did some yard work, took a nap, then some friends came over and we did a little BBQ action. Not a bad Sunday, altogether.
Found a new website - Calorie Count from About.com. You give it your goals, and it tells you what you have to eat. Then you enter everything you've eaten, and it grades how healthy it is and the number of calories consumed.
According to the website, I consumed 1,913 calories, about 300 calories short of the 2200 calories it recommended for me to gain a little weights.

Day 36 - back in the saddle

So totally skipped yesterday. My first day in 35 days without a workout. I had to be at work too early, and my friend's birthday, so we went out right after work. Busy, and just didn't have time. Today I was back on, with an intense but short morning workout.
I didn't have dinner, though - absolutely sick of chicken, and couldn't think of anything else good, so just had a yogurt. I'm going to have to make a concentrated effort to eat more.
I think I did find part of an oblique, though! Stoked about that.

Day 35 - Cardio, not much food...

So less than 24 hours after I found out I need to eat more, I totally blew it. Ate barely anything today, all because of work. Too much to do, and forgot to eat dinner.
I did another 60min of cardio! That I was pretty proud of. It was hard, but not too hard. Definitely manageable, even though I'm still a little sore from yesterday's workout. I'm taking the day off tomorrow, I've decided. I know, it's bad, but it's my first one, and I've got a crazy day. No way I'm going to get up before work to lift. Probably won't make it in until Friday night. I'll do a little abs, and pray for forgiveness, and it'll be fine. As long as this is a one-time thing, right?

Day 34 - aw I hurt

Today was session #8 with Cera. I bought nine sessions originally, so maybe one more, or maybe I'll pick some more up. Depends on how well I do the next two weeks working out by myself. I feel like I have a decent knowledge of the routines, but not quite as comfortable as I wish I was. Cera, btw, I'm pretty sure she tried to rip my arms off today. Actually, we did a lot of balance/full body stuff with a focus on upper and lower body. 15 minutes in, and I was huffing, and 45 minutes in I was hurting pretty bad.
Still, good numbers on the weights. Not sure exactly what they were, because my brain wasn't exactly working at all.
I'm going to need to step up my caloric input, I guess. I've never been a huge eater, but to get the kind of increased build, I need to up it a bit. That's actually going to be a little difficult, but I think I can do it. Actually, probably need to start watching the diet a little more. I'm not eating bad, and not drinking much, but my diet - especially lunch - hasn't been spectacular.
Also, gonna try to do abs in the morning and the night. It's only a couple of minutes, and need to get some shape going on!

Day 33 - 630am workout....

Yeah, so I'm realizing, again, that early morning workouts are not perfect for me. I made it to the gym at 6:30, and yes, I can do a serious workout first thing in the morning. But was sooooo exhausted after the gym, came home and crashed out again. Not exactly have the most productive morning.
But a very productive day, for a Monday. Mondays are generally all catchup, but I had very useful meetings, ate good, and it was all pretty decent. I think I'm slipping a little on my water intake - only probably 7 or 8 bottles of water today (refills - I don't believe in using all that plastic). My throat is a little sore, which makes water very un-enjoyable.
The weight circuit took a little time to get going. I did 3min of hard cardio, just to get the blood pumping, and then some very good weights. It wasn't until probably about half way through that I really got the blood going and the cardio workout rolling. It's a little bit of a mixed bag, I think. If I do my reps quickly, I get the blood pumping and a cardio workout. But if I keep it slow, keep the heart rate down, I feel like I can do bigger weights for more reps.
So what's better? A cardio or bigger weights?
Side note: I'm getting very tired of grilled chicken. Gotta figure out another healthy protein. Maybe more steak.

Days 31 & 32 - Weekend Edition

I'm really enjoying the workout, and it just hasn't been that hard to get in on the weekends. Saturday I did 40 minutes of a nice intense weights circuit, and mostly handled my eating ok. I've been moving my focus to heavier weights, and aiming for failure at 2 sets of 10 reps instead of 15. Time to start building some bulk.
I did pretty good on eating both days, except for a couple of drinks on Saturday night. Another milestone today, with a full hour of cardio! Sure, that's not much for most people, but considering I started at 30 minutes max, I'm pretty happy about it!
And after Saturday night being only a couple hours of sleep, Sunday morning I got up at 9am to eat some yogurt, then went back to crash for two hours, and then off to the gym. I always do considerably better if I give it at least an hour and half to two hours after eating - any less than that, and I run out of steam earlier.
My abs, always the worst part, are getting better. Not great, but better. I work on them every day, and the workouts are getting slightly longer. I'm hoping for a huge breakthrough one day, but we'll see.

Day 30 - Milestone Edition - 1/3 of the way done!

I finished my first 30 days off strong today, with a hard 50minute cardio workout, and topped it off with a nice ab workout, back workout, and a little hot tub action. Not a bad night, altogether. So here's the results of 30 days of workout - really not much different in terms of size, but I've doubled most of my weights and definitely doubled my cardio ability. Over the next 30 days I'd like to hit 10% body fat, and start gaining a little size!














Starting measurements: 5/13
Weight: 155
Body composition: 15.5%
Chest: 36.5
Rt Arm: 12.5
Lft Arm: 12
Waist: 33.5
Abdomen: 35.25
Hip: 39.25
Rt Thigh: 19.75
Lft Thigh: 17.25
Calf: 14.25

Measurements on 6/9
Weight: 157.5
Body Composition: 12.3%
Chest: 37.5
Rt Arm: 12
Lft Arm: 12
Waist: 34.25
Abdomen: 34.25
Hip: 39
Rt Thigh: 20
Lft Thigh: 18.5
Calf: 14

I had a good day - skipped breakfast, but most of the food was good, and the workout was good, long, and very satisfying. Didn't even drink tonight. I'm feeling good about this whole project so far. I was a little worried about hitting it too hard and burning out, but that hasn't been a problem so far. Two months to abs!

Day 29 - Surviving a busy work day

Tough workout today. One of the more difficult in terms of discipline.
I had lots of meetings, and the food was less than optimal, plus I wasn't on that much sleep. I had to skip the oatmeal for lack of time, so a banana and yogurt at 8am, protein bar at 9:30, then meetings straight through until noon. Lunch meeting meant I didn't really get to eat then either, except half a burrito at noon and another half at 1:30pm. Slammed all afternoon, and a quick protein shake at 5:30 when I got home. A couple pieces of pizza and a bunch of baby carrots & cherry tomatoes, and when I went to my workout around 8:30 it was really hard to stay on track and hit my weights.
I did, though - discipline is something I've been able to improve over the last 30 days as well. Failure is success, right?
Still managed to hit all my weights, though, so the show goes on! 10% body fat in two weeks!

Day 28 - Four weeks in

Today I ran intervals for 20 minutes, and almost died. My back and my left foot, instead of my right earlier, were killing me. So I went to the precore machine and did another 20 minutes before they closed the gym. It was an intense, if short, cardio workout.
Ate my standard oatmeal w/ protein, a banana, and was off to work where I had meetings all - and I mean ALL - day. 5:30 board meeting, and they have carrots, cherry tomatos, and broccoli, and that was basically my dinner, except for the 9:30pm protein shake. Dinner Dinner didn't come until 11pm, when I had eggplant lasagna, which is basically lasagna without the pasta. Very good, actually.
Left foot is still killing me. Gotta be careful on that treadmill, but I'm going to get that number up! I'm only at 2 miles now, which is a little sad.

Day 27 - Measuring progress

After 27 days of working out, today we went back to my original stats and re-measured everything. Good news and eh news - eh news, I've gained no size whatsoever. Maybe an inch in my calves, maybe a tiny bit in my chest, but mostly, no size gain. Good news is that I've dropped from 15.5% body fat to 12.3%, which puts me on track to hit my 7% in another 53 days with a little room to spare.
Not that I'm slacking up. This week we're shooting for 50min of hard, intervaled cardio, intermixed with intense weight training. And I think I can do it. Except I may be going to the lake on Saturday, which will throw a little wrench in the works, because I don't think I can go to the lake without drinking - a lot. C'mon, what fun would that be?
Tough workout today. I think Cera (my trainer) is done with fun and games and getting me into shape! I've only got a couple more sessions with her, so I've got to maximize her input and get into my routine to finish up strong. No slacking off now!

Day 26 - Monday all over again

Today was a semi-breakthrough. First, I figured out that apparently the machines I've been doing cardio adjust the resistance by weight, so when I was doing a difficulty 20 last Saturday, I think I put my weight as 16 instead of 160.
I did it right today, and did 45 minutes of difficulty 8 intervaled with a difficulty 4. And it was tough. The breakthrough was that even though I really, really wanted to give up, I didn't have to convince myself to keep going. Either the threat of blog-shame, or maybe I'm just getting my crap together, but I knew I was going to do 45 minutes. No excuses.
I mostly ate good, and fairly normal day at work - I think that green chile chicken burrito is the healthiest thing at El Modelo, which isn't saying that much. It was only chicken, green chile, and cheese, so couldn't have been that bad, right?

Day 25 - Fancy shoes plus

Got myself some fancy New Balance shoes today. Apparently, my feet are wider than the standard athletic shoe, or at least that's what New Balance would have me believe. I ended up with 2EEs, but she gave me some freakin' huge shoes to try on too, that reminded me of big ol' panda feet to go padding around in. I ran for 5min on them, and they're way better than my old shoes.
Did the weight circuit today, with a focus on chest and arms, my favorite.Time flew by. I pushed myself, but not as hard as Cera would have pushed me. I'm really aiming for failure on every set, if possible. Plus that circuit makes a great cardio workout.
Afterwards, did the total zen hot tub thing. I swear, that hot tub is worth the gym membership by itself. Absolutely nothing is more relaxing than a good soak after a workout. I think that 15-20 minutes gives me more clarity about life in general than any other time during the week.
I didn't eat much today, and kind of had to force myself to have a late dinner, too. Not quite sure what's up with my appetite. Mostly healthy today, except for a little cheese and some chips, but overall, I'm satisfied.

Day 24 - Cardio & BBQs

Great cardio workout. My weekend workouts are turning out the best, for some reason - my trainer said that noon - 2pm are the most ideal times to workout, and today I did 45min of cardio on a pretty high difficulty setting, and blew through it no problem. Compared to last time, when I had to convince myself not to quit every ten minutes, literally. And then I was on resistance 5, today I did resistance 12 intervaled with 15, and jacked it up to 18 then 20 for my last couple of minutes.
I don't understand the heart-rate monitor. 25 minutes through the workout, it said I had a heartrate of 96. That can't be right. I'll have to ask someone about that.
Eating was basically one long meal - went to a BBQ at one, and nibbled until 5. Didn't really eat much after that, except for some grapes & peanuts, and I got a street dog at 9pm or so. Nothing - and I mean, nothing - is better than a hot dog from the little vendors in DT Albuquerque. I don't understand it, the hotdogs are nothing special, but that melted cheese, & onions, wow, just makes life complete somehow.
I went to a Third Eye Blind concert at about 8:30, and started drinking. Nothing crazy, but steady drinking until 2pm. I figure about about 500 calories of booze. I don't know, though, about the drinking thing - I have some really built friends, and they drink more than anyone I know. One of my friends was at his best, as far as being buff, during his 50 day drinking spree a couple years ago. Guess it just takes lots more workout time.
Oh, and got a new fancy scale that tells body fat & hydration. Took a baseline an hour after working out yesterday, and it gave me a 19.5% body fat with 56% hydration. That's a little depressing - I thought I started with a 14.5% body fat. More workout time.

Day 23 - Twice the starter weights!

Day 23 started off right, if a little late, with the standard oatmeal/protein breakfast. I snuck out of a meeting to kill a protein bar, then lunch was brought in, and I made the best of a carnitas (deep-fried pork, probably the most unhealthy thing on earth) burrito by eating a small one with only rice and pico de gallo.
I did a really good weights workout. I officially doubled the weights I started with on the shoulder & lat press today. That milestone felt great!
And then I went out for a friend's birthday celebration, which is never a great thing, and we drank enough for me to need an extra workout one day this weekend. I don't think I'll make it, but I'm going to try to sneak one in.

Day 22 - first compliments!!

I think I got my official first compliments on the new me today. Two friends I haven't seen since I started said I looked great. I'm still not seeing a huge improvement in my pictures, but hey, maybe it's posture or something. I can't really say I feel a whole bunch different, but today I felt like crap all day because I didn't sleep.
Lack of sleep kills me. I stayed up until 3am, got up at 7:30. It threw off my eating, and I barely got a workout in. I'm finding in a workout program, sleep is a discipline like anything else, and anything less than 6 hours makes life very difficult.
Good breakfast, but had to do a 5 hour energy shot to stay alive this morning, which gave generally caffeine-free me a serious case of jitters, but, damn, it did help me get stuff done! Lunch was with friends at a Mexican restaurant. Non-New Mexicans have to understand, there's a difference between New Mexican and Mexican food. New Mexican is green and red chile, soapapillas, and rellenos. Mexican is more meat (usually cooked in lard and/or tons of fat) with a side of rice and refried beans, fajitas, or very cheese-heavy dishes that rely on chopped onion, tomato, and jalapenos for the spicy part. Neither is healthy, but with New Mexican you have to watch out because the best stuff is all deep-fried, and Mexican they love the delicious fatty meats.
I had Steak Ranchero, which fantastic and probably healthy except for the greasy (and very good) part.
Couldn't handle anything for a mid-afternoon meal - I was going to go home and crash, but I stuck it out, took a lukewarm Boost energy drink (9g protein, lots of vitamins & minerals) at 4pm, and took an hour nap until a friend's dinner party at 7pm. There I resisted home-made pizza, cheese & bacon-wrapped peppers, and homemade cake, along with basically unlimited beer & wine, and drank 4 glasses of water and ate fresh fruit & grilled meat. Excellent food, but still I ate less than I have on any other night. Again, blame it on the lack of sleep.
Left early to come home and do a cardio workout, something I am very proud of, but very unlike the me of only three weeks ago. Discipline, discipline, discipline - if I fall down on sleep, I make it up with a lack of party.

Day 21 - lots of food, lots of cardio

Woke up at 7am, wide awake, which is unusual for me. Even more unusual, I stayed up. Had a cup of hot black tea, and my oatmeal with a scoop of protein. I did some work, checked some email, then met up with friends for an 8:30 breakfast at my favorite New Mexican restaurant. Where they had gorgeous plates of huevos rancheros (eggs, green chile, refried beans on a tortilla smothered in cheese, for you gringos), I had yogurt with granola.
It was a little painful.
Fiber bar and a subway 6" for lunch, another protein bar at 2:30, and a hardcore 45min run on a pre-core machine at 5pm. I set the resistance at 5, which was pretty easy compared to the hardcore workout monsters around me, and had to convince myself not to stop at 15, 25, 35, and 40 minutes in, but I made it to 45 minutes. I play little games - just 20 minutes. Then, just five minutes more. Then, five minutes more and I'll be at 350 calories, etc. Until I pretty much fell off the machine at 45 minutes.
A well-deserved 15min in the hot tub, and a quick shower, and I went home to make myself a chicken salad, with just a little unhealthy dressing. My friend and I cooked dinner at 9:30 again, strip steak in fajitas, and a little tiny bit of wine, and the day's done.
Each day I'm learning a little bit more about how this process works. I'm going to try to start including those little bits of information, as I've always been a unashamed collector of useless information, and I suspect others might be too.
Today I learned that you're supposed to eat protein 30min to an hour after cardio, and immediately following weights, because cardio keeps your heart rate up for longer for a residual workout effect. Tidbit of the day for you, there. enjoy.

Day 20 - Obama thinks I'm fat??

Tip of the day: http://www.mypyramid.gov is a great resource to see what kind of diet works for your body type and activity level. It also told me I was too fat for my height. C'mon! 161 pounds is NOT fat for a 5'7" dude. Is it? Hope not. Way to shoot my self esteem, government.
I meant to get up and do cardio, but slept in instead, and regretted it all day. I really missed the workout - a very new and good experience for me. When I got to the gym for my workout with Cera, my trainer, I was pumped and ready to go.
I hadn't eaten for about 3 hours before the workout, and my energy level was fantastic, for about 30 minutes. Cera warned me we were doing a hardcore upper body, and I was ready to run, but after 30 minutes of bench presses, shoulders, chest stuff, pullups, I ran out of steam doing simple pushups.
I think this really emphasized to me the need for cardio to be ready to play with the workout. If I was in better cardio, I could have kept going, no doubt. After meeting twice a week for these first three weeks, now we're down to once a week. The challenge will be keeping my workouts of the same caliber now that I'm on my own six days a week.
I'm good though. I'm excited about my workouts, I miss them if I don't do them, and I think i'm starting to see some limited results in my arms, and maybe a slight tightening in the belly.

Day 19 - Off to a running start

Really a decent monday. I planned on getting up early, but instead I hit snooze for an hour and got up just in time for work. I had my oatmeal, protein, & yogurt, went to work, had a fiber bar at 10:30, lunch was an apple and a cup of Healthy Choices soup (40% of daily salt intake!). I heard if I keep up my 10 glasses of water a day, salt intake doesn't matter too much. I should check that.
Protein bar at 2:30, then to the gym by 5:30 for 10 minutes of running (just over a mile - my feet and back were killing me), and 30 minutes of interval biking, just over 8 miles. Nothing too impressive, but a good 40min of cardio and some abs afterwards.
I rewarded myself with full pound of t-bone, a big beautifully marbled piece of meat for dinner with corn on the cob, and a baked potato. Not a bad day, really. I'm happy.