The progress and top secret details of project defattiefication

[Bernard Marx]

Yesterday was my first day of the fitness journey. I went to the gym at work, and had the personal trainer there perform a fitness assessment and write up a program that I can do in 30 minutes a day, five days a week. After going through that program with her as part of the appointment yesterday, I feel confident I will use many of the tips/tricks on NF to adapt and improve the workout as I go, but for right now, I just need to get DOING it, and I'll take the easy option of the plug and play. She gives me a sheet. I go to the gym, follow the sheet from station to station putting in the effort, then GTFO.

 

The length of time is important, because in order to ensure I actually follow through and do this, I will be using my lunch break to get my workouts in, then eating my lunch at my desk. This kills two birds with one stone. First, I'll avoid the temptation of ordering unhealthy options in the work cafeteria, and second, I'll have no good excuse to miss a workout. (I value my midday break from my desk, and I leave a standing appointment in my calendar for it so I can avoid people scheduling meetings and encroaching on MY time). I've left two extra sets of workout clothes, and a stick of deodorant in my filing cabinet (unlike my coworkers, I prefer to keep things digital, but they still issue us a cabinet), so I won't have the excuse if I forget my gym bag.

 

Today, following my NF quest, I still took about and hour to walk around the mall with my 'little brother' (big brothers program), we had a good time people watching, talking about the Walking Dead, Marvel superheroes (the kid puts me to shame on Marvel knowledge), and me explaining to him all the ways marketers have designed the stores to convince us to spend money. He didn't realize some of the things were intentional. When I talked about the candy by the cash register, his mind was blown. He also wants us to write some Walking Dead fanfic on an outing, and made sure to mention which compendiums were on his Christmas list (I think he was hint dropping). It was a productive conversation, and I was floored to learn that one, in almost four years, we'd never talked Star Wars, and two, he hasn't seen any of the movies...needless to say, I'm planning an outing where we will be watching them.

 

Anyway, back to my fitness journey. Other than the walking I didn't do anything today, but I want to share the results of my fitness assessment from yesterday so I have a starting point to reference in this thread.

 

The good: My cardiovascular system is surprisingly robust. I wasn't very far off from the 'passing score' on the step test/heart rate recovery test. (they count heartbeats for the full minute after a 3 minute, cadenced step routine. 95 and below is considered a passing score. I scored 108) Since my employer incentivizes fitness, one can earn $250 in a year by either logging enough workouts, or getting a passing score on this test. I haven't logged any workouts this year, so that's not an option, but I was close enough that a few weeks of actual training might get me to pass this test and get and the money by the end of the year. My abdominal strength was excellent for my age group. I hit the 78th percentile on the situp test (I think carrying a bunch of extra weight around a while is a good core exercise)

 

The bad: Pushups with proper form... yeah, so I hit failure at 2...that's kind of pathetic. Flexibility was awful as well, but nearing 5 years in a desk I expected my hips and hamstrings to be tight and I expect to make that range of motion a big target in my program. Let's not even talk about pullups at this point.

Measurements: BMI is sitting at just a hair over 31, which is bad, but better than it was. Body fat is 28%. I don't recall all my measurements, but my biceps were 14 inches, my stomach at the navel was 47 inches, and my waist 37.5.

 

Circling back to the hamstrings/hips tightness for a second, I found that my range of motion was so diminished I could not complete a single bodyweight squat with proper form. To remedy that, my program includes machine leg exercises so I can still strength train them better while working on lunges and stretching exercises to free up the muscles/joints. Once I can squat with proper form, both the trainer and I intend to replace the leg work with squats to allow me to workout more efficiently with my time (right now I have to do sets of three different exercises to get the gain I would get from the same number of sets of properly done squats).

 

I know where I stand, and I have a program and a plan to attack my biggest deficiencies first. Come Monday, it's time to go to work. Lastly, anyone have suggestions for good gym playlist songs? (I did read Steve's playlist post and stole some ideas, but I'm open to any input.)

 

[Bernard Marx]

No fitness today. Spent time with the family, cooked meals and portioned out for breakfasts and lunches during the week. Packed my gym bag and left it hanging on the knob of the door, so I can't forget it. Went over my plan of attack for tomorrow's workout, so I can get in and get out with the most efficiency and benefit and make day one of my fitness journey a successful one. I ate well today, which is a win since I find weekends harder to stay under my calorie and over my food quality goals. Drank one cup of coffee e and then water instead of soda all day too.

[Bernard Marx]

First thirty minute lunchtime gym session in the bag today. Followed Steve's advice, screwed in my earbuds kept my head down and worked. I think some of the weights recommended by the trainer at work are too low, because I felt like I had a few more reps of each after the set, but i'll do the weights as recommended this week, and step them up five lbs a week until I get a good challenge. I got my stretching in at the end too, so hopefully I can open up my slightly right shoulders and very tight hips. Between keeping my diet cleaned up for a month now, and gradually increasing my activity, I feel really good right now.

[Bernard Marx]

Got my second session in yesterday. Had a couple interruptions for questions from the trainer I worked with to setup my program about how it's going, and from a coworker who typically only does cardio. Between the two, I only lost about 3 minutes, but between that and a couple fumbles trying to remember how to do certain exercises properly/set up the equipment, I didn't get through my entire program before I ran out of time. Getting ready to go down for today in about an hour, and I'm looking forward to having a more successful day. I'm going to increase weights on the exercises that felt too easy to hit my rep counts on Monday by 5lbs each and see how that feels, and I'm going to get one more rep on the assisted dips than I did on Monday (using the same assistance weight). I need to get my rep count up on those to meet my program, and when I get there I'll reduce the assistance weight and start counting it up again.

 

Also, I started losing weight before finding NF and starting on here, but yesterday I hit a milestone. I'm down 10lbs since October 27th, (31lbs total since I started working on small lifestyle changes last November), so I'm going to do my victory dance in the gym today by rocking the crap out of my program.

[Bernard Marx]

Got through my whole workout yesterday. Taking a day off today for the holiday which means I WILL NOT skip tomorrrow, come Hell or high water. Plan of attack for eating is to eat only half a slice each of the delicious pies I made and am renowned in my family for bringing. (a layered pumpkin and cream cheese that's as sneaky as it is delicious since it looks like a traditional pumpkin pie until you slice it, and I usually pick another selection each year. This year the second choice is a banana cream pie). Usually I have one pie left after the dinner, because I make enough so everyone can get some. If such is the case this year, the extra pie will be brought in to work tomorrow and shared with my group so I don't pig out on it over the next few days as in years past.

 

My focus will be on filling at least half my plate with greens/veggies, and forcing myself to then take smaller portions of the remaining foods. I won't deny myself my T-day favorites, but I'm not going to be a glutton and overconsume to the point of nausea either.

 

Happy Thanksgiving NF, today I'm thankful I've been able to successfully accumulate small changes in my life that have resulted in me improving my health and wellness, and thankful to have found a site chock full of good information and supportive people.

[Bernard Marx]

I got into the gym and successfully completed my workout, because missing two workouts in a row simply is not an option. Also successfully gave away my left over pie from yesterday to my co-workers, saving me thousands of calories over what I would have typically consumed for thanksgiving weekend.

[Bernard Marx]

Some like the scale to measure progress, some don't. Me, I like it. It gives me a concrete measurement that I can track as data points over time. I understand the limitations of the scale as a measurement, and it doesn't unhinge me when it doesn't go well, but when it does go well, I feel more inspired to keep working. Well, this morning, I measured 1 lb lower than last Monday.

 

Now, since I've started my last push (I started my journey over a year ago, but it's been about a month since I started pushing myself to stick to my calorie goal rather than just logging food) I've averaged 2.35lbs/week, so a 1 pound week might be disappointing, but I allowed myself a few extra calories to enjoy the holiday. I still had a couple slices of the my pie (i just didn't eat a whole one like in years past), and I've enjoyed some of my favorite foods that I know are less than healthy. I count 1 lb of weight loss through that as a win, because I didn't deny myself the things I wanted, I just tried to stay smart and disciplined about it. Measuring and logging portions of those foods to keep myself accountable allowed me to have what I wanted without derailing my progress.

 

Awesome. I'm very excited. As of right now, only 8.8lbs separate me from the magical weight at which my BMI calculation and a weight chart claim separates overweight and obese. It's a silly, and arbitrary thing to aim for. There are so many limitations to BMI as a measurement, but for me, the idea of meeting the medical definition of obese is something of a driver, so crossing back out of that definition motivates me, and once I cross that line in the sand, I know I'll be motivated even more to put that diagnosis as far behind me as I can. Obesity to me means dying young, getting out of it means being around for my kids for a good long time.

 

1 hour left until I head down to the gym to get in today's workout. On that front, I'm feeling more comfortable with it. I've already changed the machine curls recommended by the trainer for dumbbell curls, and today, I intend to replace the bench press machine with dumbbell bench presses. One at a time, I'll swap out the machine exercises with freeweights, and I'm going to work on getting stronger in my assisted pullups and dips until I can do them as bodyweight exercises. My biggest hold up is going to be squatting. I tried to do a set of box squats on Friday, and I found that my hips still lack the range of motion I need to keep my form right, but it's getting closer. I think if I save the leg machines for the last to transition away from, the combination of isolated strength training and the stretching and flexibility movements I've been working on will allow me to move into the box squat to bodyweight squat to proper weighted squat progression for the bulk of my lower body training.

[Bernard Marx]

I haven't posted in a few days. *insert playful scolding* but I've been trying to stay with it. The scale hasn't moved since my last post, which is a little bit frustrating, but not motivation killing. I feel relatively confident that if I just keep with it, eventually that needle will start moving in the correct direction again.

 

Honesty time, I'm not shocked that it hasn't been moving, because I haven't been quite as disciplined with my calories, and I've had a few bad days. Most recently, over the weekend we had my daughter's first birthday party. Parties in my family revolve around food, and to save money while still feeding everyone, I made four, very large, homemade pizzas. I'm kind of partial since I made it, but about four years ago I found a crust recipe that I love, and last year, I found the perfect (to me) sauce recipe. Because I made so much and unlike other meals I prepare I didn't pre portion it out, I overconsumed. My mother in law brought a great cake that I swore I would just allow myself a small slice since total self-denial is the quick road to failure, but surrounded by family and friends with whom eating heartily is the habit, my new, fledgling habits crumbled to my old established ones and I went back for more cake too.

 

I'm not going to beat myself up over it. It could have been worse. I had a bad few days, and I maintained my weight exactly where it was. I would prefer to have lost weight, and continued to progress. I'm telling myself that because I started lifting a couple weeks back, I might be reducing my body fat percentage despite not losing weight. At the very least, I'm far from throwing in the towel. I feel a bit discouraged, but not broken. I'm going to keep at it. So far today, I rocked my workout in (did my pull ups with 10lbs less assistance than last week), and I've stayed well on task with my eating. I'm not going to let a couple bad days snowball into a backslide. I have to keep working, and keep getting better. I saw myself in the locker room mirror, and I felt like I look better than I did a month ago, and I got a couple comments to that effect at the party, so I know I'm doing it. I don't give up. I don't quit. I don't stop. I don't collapse. That's just not me anymore. It's not the kind of person I have chosen to be; it's not the kind of person I want my kids to grow up looking up to.

[Bernard Marx]

Just came back from a GREAT workout. Today I added another dumbbell movement in favor of the machine flavor, and while keeping the weight the same as it had been on the machine, I felt the difficulty increased exponentially. BUT I DID IT!! The last three reps were trembly, slow, and exhausting, but I ground them out (the last one felt like it took a full minute to get through the movement). I upped my weights on several exercises over last time, and I FINISHED THEM TOO! Every last rep!

 

I've already felt some highs and lows in the process of changing myself, and right now I'm riding a powerful high. I finished my 30 minute session sweaty, shaky, panting, and grinning from ear to ear.

 

Yeah, 18 year old me could still beat 28 year old me's hind parts, but today me would wollop the ever loving crap out of yesterday me, and when I keep this up, tomorrow me will put today me to shame. At this pace, who knows, maybe 38 year old me will be able to take on 18 year old me and 28 year old me at the same time with one hand tied behind his back.

[Bernard Marx]

I had another really solid workout today. It's very exiting to be progressing quickly in my lifts right now, and it helps me keep up the drive to keep going back. 

 

I'm going to hit a minor respawn today though. I've been cheating myself a little bit on my eating lately. Grabbing 'quick snacks' here and there that I'm not logging, and even slipping back into eating out of boredom every now and then, and it shows. I'm maintaining my weight, so I'm not at the point of 'oh crap, I'm failing and need to start completely over,' but I am at the point of 'after three months of consistent weight loss I'm not losing anymore, and if I don't shake things up I'll start getting discouraged and fail.'

 

My mini respawn consists of only one thing: recommit to logging EVERYTHING I eat, and STOP eating when I hit my daily caloric intake. The 'force of will' to do it doesn't always seem to be there, and my stocks of prepared, portioned, and frozen meals is running low, so for the next week or so, if I head into the kitchen looking for a snack, I'm going to make myself prepare, portion, and store a meal for the week. I think a lot of my snacking has been boredom related, so hopefully giving myself a task when I'm bored will help.

[Bernard Marx]

During my workout yesterday I realized that I'm getting really close to being able to keep my balance and get to parallel in a squat movement. I got close enough that from the mirror in front of me I couldn't tell if I was there or not, and had to have a new casual friend I've made since starting to work out look from the side and tell my I'm only about a half inch higher at the hips than the knees. I can still feel the deep stretch in my hips when I go through the movement, and I tend to lose my balance when I run out of range of motion in my hamstrings/calves and I either have to lift my heels or grab on to something, but I'm a lot closer than when I started a few weeks ago. The first time I tried, I was getting my knees to about 120 degree angle in the movement before I needed to hold on to something for support, and now I'm at about 95 degrees. 

 

Once upon a time, in the mythical land of high school football offseason weight training, I could get my squats down to where my hips were about an inch or so below my knees which were nicely aligned with my ankles with my weight balanced and strong on my feet, so I still have about an inch and a half more progress to make to get to where I'd like to be, but it's getting better. 

 

Speaking of making friends in the gym, since it's at my work, it's fairly small. I'm finding that by going at the same time each day, I see the same handful of coworkers who are already going every day, and they've been AWESOME, supportive, encouraging, and helpful. I've known some of them in passing from working with them, but only on a very surface level, I'm finding that by making these people the group I socialize with more than some of my less fitness motivated coworkers, they really are helping to bring me up to their level. There are two Druid ladies focused on Yoga, Tai Chi, and flexibility (they've been a big help in offering tips to fix my unbalanced and inflexible joints), four Scouts (one lady and three gents), who run a 5k route 3 days/week and cross train other days, and one male Ranger who runs with the scouts on two of their three days, then does kettlebell and dumbbell lifts to keep his strength up while he's losing weight (he started almost two years ago and is almost to his goal). It's been an awesome experience.

 

Also, milestone. Today will be the last workout of my third week of doing this. I've always heard it takes three weeks of commitment to build a new habit. By that definition, I can now say this habit has been created. It's still young and tender so I'll have to keep an eye on it, but it exists. Cool.  

[Bernard Marx]

So I said I would give the program from the trainer at work at least a month. About to start week four. I've already tweaked it a little, replacing a couple machine exercises with free weight versions. I think after this week it's going to get a bit more switched up.

As of last week, my hips/hamstring range of motion seems improved enough to squat, and I'm looking forward to getting squats in place of the leg press. I'm kind of bummed at the lack of a power rack in the fitness center at work though. Even before NF, I had a healthy dislike of smith machines instilled in me by my high school football strength and conditioning coach, but that looks like all they have. I'm going to check Monday to see if I can futz with racks on the press benches and find a way to do unsupported squats, or if I have to, front squats off of them. Downside is that will prevent me from safely pushing my limits with the exercise and I'll have to play conservative with my weights and rep counts to avoid getting hurt. Or maybe I should try to learn a steinborn lift and really freak the fitness center staff out :-p

Also, I think leg day is going to lose the isolation machines (curls/extensions) and replace them with dumbbell lunges and deadlifts.

Not sure how long I'll keep going with a hacked together program, but I think my Christmas gift to myself might be a copy of starting strength, and I might move into Mark's novice program around the start of the New Year. I'm imagining the fitness center will get crowded after the first, and hopefully, being the weird guy doing barbell exercises in the free weight area will allow me to avoid waiting in line for equipment while everyone else uses the stack machines, cardio equipment, and biceps isolation bench.

[SevenofSeven]

Keep up the fantastic work dude, really have enjoyed reading your entries!

[LiserFrenche]

keep up the good work!  subbing!

[Bernard Marx]

Thanks friends. 

 

(ed. whew this turned into a long post. sorry for any awkward sentences or typos, but I'm going to say my own post is tl;dr)

 

Come clean time. Last night, I found myself having done really well all day, MFP showed me with over 1100 calories left for the day (busy writing my term paper that's due in a couple days because I'm a terrible procrastinator only took breaks for a couple small meals and didn't snack, chugged black coffee to fuel the writing). Well, my wife loves pizza, and I've said no every time she's asked if we could have pizza, because I know it's one of my weaknesses. It tastes good, and just doesn't fill me up. It's kind of like chinese food. I can consume an inordinate amount of calories eating pizza and not even realize it because I never feel satisfied. Well, I figured, I have 1100 calories, I can probably get enough pizza to be satisfied with that many calories...well, half the pizza and a couple bosco sticks later (and a whopping 2200 calories) I stopped eating. I let it set in for a minute what I had done, I let myself feel guilty for a minute, and then I entered every last bit into MFP, and looked at my calorie graph for the week. Yeah, 1100 over in one day hurts, but I love that app because I could see I still ate a deficit for the week. Not enough to hit the 2lb/week goal, but it's still a deficit. I took the advice that I read from Steve, and that I've been recycling on the respawn boards trying to help and encourage others (and convince myself of the truth of those words at the same time without admitting that I'm taking yet another stab at a comeback from a mistake). One bad day won't break me. One bad day doesn't stop me. 

 

Today, I played with the 'intermittent fasting' idea to reduce my overall calorie load. I'm going to try and come in a few hundred below my calorie goal today in an attempt to partially offset last night's gluttony. After today though, I'm over it. Tomorrow, I go back to work literally and figuratively. 

 

Another more happy topic, I improvised a recipe for a vegetable soup today as my punishment for catching myself about to eat out of boredom alone. Onion, parsnips, carrots, celery, cabbage, lentils, mushrooms, my homemade vegetable broth from the freezer (I made about 20 quarts of that stuff back in july, still good), olive oil,orzo pasta, coriander, dill, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. I have my medium size stock pot full of it on the stove. I'm guessing I'll get about 14 2 cup servings out of it (BTW I love the little two cup ziploc type twist loc containers for storing portioned out soups, stews, goulashes, diced fruit, etc. Easy to grab a container from the fridge or freezer and throw it into the lunch box) and according to the recipe analyzer of MFP input using my food scale, it's a paltry 190 cal/serving. I also bought and marinaded some 'chuck tender steaks' on sale at the grocery store thinking 'hey, cheap meat, maybe I'll try to eat more of that to up my protein.' Only a quick google search upon getting home informed me that the steak has a brutal misnomer and isn't tender at all unless taken care of properly. I stabbed the steaks pretty good with a fork and I've got them marinating now in some balsamic vinegar, olive oil, and cajun seasoning (sounds weird, but the site i found said to smell your vinegar and oil, then smell the seasonings, and if you find the smells complementary, it will probably taste good. I love cajun seasoning, and the two smelled like they went together, so we'll see).

 

It's been just over two hours in the marinade, so we'll see if the internets were right that a good marinade tenderizes the tough cuts and makes for a flavorful outcome. I've got 8 4oz steaks that I'm about to cook in the old lodge skillet and toss in individual freezer bags. I'll keep the ones I can eat in the next couple days in the fridge, and freeze the rest, so I can eat them over the next few weeks. I'll let y'all know how it turns out.

 

I love meat, but I'm out of practice cooking it. My wife is a vegetarian, and I find myself eating predominantly vegetarian for the last few years out of convenience. It takes more work to cook meat just for myself, so I usually just eat the veg meals I make at home and eat meat when we go out to eat. (my wife doesn't cook other than the awful for you frozen or boxed convenience meals, so I've been trying to take on more of the cooking responsibilities so I can take ownership of my health. I'd like my wife to join me in this journey eventually, but I don't want to push so I'm just going to keep trying to lead by example).

 

One of my tricks to reducing my calories, and save money on our food bills despite buying more expensive fresh produce and such has been to cut out restaurant food as much as possible. It works great, but I haven't been eating much meat, and it's been tough to get enough protein to accommodate my lifting lately, so I'm going to inconvenience myself and cook up some meat from time to time.

[Bernard Marx]

Today has been good so far. I had one of the steaks I prepared yesterday along with the soup for lunch right after my workout. The marinade worked alright to tenderize the cheap meat, and it tasted pretty good. You wouldn’t mistake it for a filet mignon by any stretch of the imagination, but it was definitely not too bad. I think if I did it again, I might slice the steaks into strips to add into a soup, salad, sandwich, burrito, or stir fry.

I made good progress on my lifting today. Two of the exercises whose weights I increased from last workout failed before I hit my reps, so I’ll be keeping those weights next time and trying to get at least one more of each. The two that didn’t fail on rep count felt close to it, so I’m thinking they’ll hit failure with the next weight increase. I forgot to look into getting around the lack of a power rack. I suppose dumbbell lunges and squats while hugging a plate are always options for a lighter weight and form focused starting point and I can always advance super slow perfect form reps, or even pistol squats if I need more resistance over time.

Even more exciting, I took a few days off from weighing in to ease the frustration at my stubborn scale and this morning I was rewarded with a drop to below 248 for the first time in my journey. 247.6lbs is where I stand now. It’s been almost six years since my weight was this low. Caching this little victory into my momentum inventory. It’s also nice to break out of the 249 - 251 range I’ve been hovering in for almost three weeks.

Yesterday, I succeeded in staying about 400 calories below my normal daily goal to partially offset the 1000 calorie overage Saturday night. (although I drank WAY more water than usual to compensate for the occasional hunger pang). So far today, I’m right on track to hit my daily goal on the nose, and adding in the steak as well as switching the fruit and yogurt parfaits I make and have been eating for breakfast from regular to Greek yogurt have me on track toward the protein goal for today that I typically fall short of. I know I could probably pick up a drum of whey protein to mix in with things to get some extra, but to me that doesn’t feel sustainable. I don’t have a good reason, I’ve just never been a fan of dietary supplements. For now I’m just going to try and focus on small dietary changes to get me to where I need to be nutritionally.

[LiserFrenche]

You are making great progress!  Congrats on the weight loss and breaking out of that plateau - no small feat woot! woot! Also on the progress you made lifting. Keep it up!

[SevenofSeven]

I have to say I am impressed that you cook! With the cheap steak have you a crockpot/slow cooker? Best invention EVER! Put all the ingredients in before you leave home, switch it onto low and dinner is ready to go when you get home. I love crockpots during the winter when things are insane with kids sports etc.

[Bernard Marx]

I have to say I am impressed that you cook! With the cheap steak have you a crockpot/slow cooker? Best invention EVER! Put all the ingredients in before you leave home, switch it onto low and dinner is ready to go when you get home. I love crockpots during the winter when things are insane with kids sports etc.

 

I do have a crock pot, but I don't usually use it.

 

For whatever reason, I got sucked into the concept of 'freezer cooking' than slow cooking. I like to cook, but it feels like a chore if I have to do it every day. On the other hand, if I can cook when I feel like it, portion out my meals and toss them in the freezer, I get to enjoy my cooking sessions. Then, when I don't feel like cooking, instead of grabbing some preservative laden frozen dinner or restaurant prepared item, I can simply toss a container into the microwave on defrost for a few minutes, then on med/high for a minute or so, and dinner is ready. My wife and I bought a 7 cu ft chest freezer a couple years ago, and that's plenty of room for a month or more worth of meals.

[Bernard Marx]

I'm going to dub this the week of winning. I must've accidentally had a little tiger's blood to drink over the weekend. Pull up assistance weight down by ten pounds, AND I hit my reps. Dumbbell rows are up to 45 pounds, and I can do them controlled, with good form, and for my full 12 rep endurance count (going to try for 50 next week). I asked the trainer for help finding more body weight options, and replaced the back extension machine with body weight extensions using a balance ball. The movement feels much more natural and challenging. More replacements are still pending. I climbed the stairs to my second floor office this morning and found myself breathing normally at the top. A coworker I hadn't seen in a while and haven't told about my weight loss efforts saw me in the cafeteria yesterday nd asked 'So, how much weight have you lost?' The scale is still slowly moving downward (Hale-freaking-lujah). Looking at my macros in MFP, the small changes in my diet have changed my percentage of calories from protein for the better. For the last 10 weeks, I've averaged about 17%, this week I'm on track to about 25%. Almost all of that increase in protein has come at the expense of a reduction in carbohydrates rather than fats, so I'm sitting at 25%, 30%, and 45% (protein, fat, carb) which is somewhat better than the 17%, 31%, 52% I had before. I don't feel as hungry, and I've been able to reduce boredom eating significantly. I had to punch new holes in my belt after a couple days of getting irritated about hitching up my pants. Chalk this one up as another high point in the journey, because when all the effort yields results, it feels incredible.

[Urgan]

I do have a crock pot, but I don't usually use it.

 

For whatever reason, I got sucked into the concept of 'freezer cooking' than slow cooking. I like to cook, but it feels like a chore if I have to do it every day. On the other hand, if I can cook when I feel like it, portion out my meals and toss them in the freezer, I get to enjoy my cooking sessions. Then, when I don't feel like cooking, instead of grabbing some preservative laden frozen dinner or restaurant prepared item, I can simply toss a container into the microwave on defrost for a few minutes, then on med/high for a minute or so, and dinner is ready. My wife and I bought a 7 cu ft chest freezer a couple years ago, and that's plenty of room for a month or more worth of meals.

 

Freezer cooking is a really smart way to go for when life gets too busy or easy temptations are too close to hand. 

 

Congrats on the squat progress! You're doing a great job keeping consistent, building muscle, and creating a downward caloric trend. Have you considered also taking body measurements on a quarterly basis as a complementary standard for progress?

[MattGannon]

Great job man, sounds like you are doing really well. You seem to be enjoying all of it too, which is super important. I'll definitely be following along with your journey.

[Bernard Marx]

Freezer cooking is a really smart way to go for when life gets too busy or easy temptations are too close to hand. 

 

Congrats on the squat progress! You're doing a great job keeping consistent, building muscle, and creating a downward caloric trend. Have you considered also taking body measurements on a quarterly basis as a complementary standard for progress?

I have the measurements from the fitness assessment I did at the start of training a few weeks ago. I don't remember them offhand, but they're written down in my file in the fitness center. For now, my plan is to have another fitness assessment performed 6 months after I started and see how much my body composition, dimensions, and performance indicators have changed. I would do it more often, but I have to pay for the assessments. I'm ok with paying for them, and committing to paying for them, because I'm putting a financial stake into what I'm doing and giving myself one more reason to stick with the program. When I paid for the first, I pre-paid and scheduled the second right then, so if I don't follow through, I'll be out the fee for the second assessment with no benefit.

[Urgan]

I see, this is definitely a good plan. Quarterly is good, semi-annually works just as well. The change may just shock you by then lol, you won't ever be lost the weeds wondering if the change you're looking at is just water weight or something. Keep it up, you've got a good thing going here.

[Bernard Marx]

This week keeps churning in a positive direction. My workout was a little wonky yesterday since I had to work around someone else who was using the 45lb dumbbells I needed at one point, so I just reordered my 'push' routine to put the chest press at the end rather than the beginning. I typically have DB shoulder press later, and by switching the two, I easily hit all my reps on the shoulders (at a weight I've been slowly trying to increase reps) and I hit one fewer rep on the chest press than last workout at the same weight. I'm thinking the order change adjusted the level of muscle fatigue going into the exercises, so I'm going to leave the weights where they are until the next push day and see how they feel in the normal order. It's kind of hard to measure progress when you introduce new variables that mess with how your body works.

 

The scale is still moving downward pretty quickly. It almost seems like it's playing catch up with where I should be after those three weeks of not moving, because I've dropped down to 245.6, so a net of almost 4lbs in about a week. It's almost too bad to understand it's essentially a fluke. If it were possible to be healthy and continue at that pace, I'd hit my goal in 11 weeks. Oh well, we can't always get what we want. With around 50lbs yet to go, I'll be perfectly happy to get within 25-30lbs of my goal by summer.