Bighara enters the octagon

[Bighara]

All right! Here we go again!

 

So I've been away from the Challenges and NF for a bit, but I've still been working out and trying to be careful about diet/nutrition. Overall I've done OK I think. 

 

Until May.

 

In May @otterbyte and the kids went to visit her family in Argentina for a month and I went down for a week in the middle of their stay. Baching for a couple weeks, then being in Buenos Aires did not help my weight. I was still working out, there was WAY too much food in BA and it was not exactly a lean cuisine.

 

Long story short, I gained about 5 pounds, and not of muscle. 

 

On another note, I am planning to start Muay Thai soon. The fitness kickboxing classes have helped a lot with my conditioning, so I think I might be able to survive actual training.

 

So! On to the challenges:

 

Flexibility: I am still fairly stiff and limited in range of motion. I don't know that I'll ever do the full splits, but I need to emphasize this more in my own workouts. 

Goal: Go through the "Limber 11" routine 2/week.

 

Record keeping: When I got my FitBit, I switched calorie tracking apps from MyFitnessPal to LoseIt. I had use MFP for a couple years, but since UA owns it now and has their own tracker device they want you to buy, the app just doesn't want to play nice with FitBit. LoseIt's interface is different enough that I've been sporadic in logging meals, etc. Another factor that has contributed to gaining some of the weight back.

Goal: Consistently track my meals with LoseIt.

 

Weight: While my "final" goal for weight loss is 180 pounds, my immediate goal is to get rid of the 5 or so I regained recently. 

Goal: I want to at least get back to the previous 185 over the next 4 weeks.

 

Home workouts: We have a heavy bag, some barbells, a pull up bar, and a treadmill at home. So I have resources. What I would like to get for my birthday in August is an adjustable weight bench for more free weight exercises. To manage this, I need a bit more room (which is to say less crap) in the basement. I need to clear out some junk we don't need and find better places to keep the stuff we don't toss or give away. Once that's done, I can remove a couple shelves and mount the TV on the wall (it stands on a shelf now). That will give us some room for the bench (and @otterbyte more space to do her Fitness Marshall playlists).

 

Goal: CLEAN ALL THE THINGS! Or at least get the basement cleared enough for the bench and hanging the TV screen. 

[Kishi]

Your home gym sounds so cool.  I'm lucky to have some kettlebells, some bricks, and some small bags of sand lying around. And forget about a heavy bag.

 

Anyway, I like these goals. I advise you to watch that weight goal, though. If your goal is to actually build some muscle, you're gonna have to put away some food, and that might mean recomp as opposed to cut. Recomp is possible, but when you see the number on the scale fail to move, unless you expect it it can play with your head.

 

So, you know. Just be careful with your expectations. The rest of this does look good, and five pounds in a month is totally doable. Just be ready to flow with it if it turns out not to happen.

[Bighara]

@Kishi re: weight, I know, but I am currently at about 22% bodyfat (according to calipers). I figure I can safely lose a few lbs.  I weighed in at 186 yesterday, so I may refine that goal a bit as we get closer to launch. 

 

Speaking of muscle, I recently stumbled across a fairly informative (and funny) YouTube channel by two brothers that has a lot of good info. They call themselves B.U.F.F. Dudes (Better Understanding of Food and Fitness). They are goofy, and focus a lot on powerlifting/bodybuilding, but their fundamentals are strong. I did their bodyweight routine yesterday and it nearly killed me!  I used the rings instead of the broomstick though.

 

 

[Bighara]

DAY 1: 

 

I weighed in at 186 this AM, so I've already lost nearly all the "Argentina fat." I will continue to work on losing what I can toward the final 180 goal.

 

I've been consistently entering my food data in LoseIt and keeping under my calorie limits (as well as hitting things like my protein goals).

 

This morning I did a dumbbell-slash-bodyweight workout followed by the Limber 11 as a cool down. 

 

I'm taking the kids to the pool in a bit, and I'll try to get a few laps in as well. Then it's off to see Spider-Man: Homecoming.

 

I've got a mess of pre-measured fish and chicken lunches with brown rice and veggies made up for the week. I still need to pack my gym bag to take back tot he office. Tomorrow is Leg Day (hooray  )

 

Onwards!

[Kishi]

Mm, them pre-done meals, tho. Things are vital.

 

Also, congratulations on losing the Argentina fat! Sounds like you're off to a strong start on this challenge. That's very good news. Now settle down and do the boring work to get what you want.

[Bighara]

Of course I had Reese's Pieces at the movie theatre. 

 

Spider-Man was V. Good!

[Bighara]

Yesterday I worked out with weights (leg day, as previously mentioned). I am keeping a written log of weights and reps, as my previous strength training has been pretty haphazard.

 

My new leather jump rope is NICE. Very smooth motion. The bearings keep it from fouling and the weight of the leather is a nice middle ground between a speed rope and a weighted one. I want to get to where I can consistently jump for 30-60 seconds without flubbing it. (Jump rope times are a promotion benchmark for the Muay Thai classes)

 

 

 

Tonight is kickboxing, so no weight room this afternoon.

 

Food is doing OK. I have another pre-measured tuna steak & brown rice meal ready for lunch. I confess I had a piece of french toast at the cafeteria this morning with coffee, but I did log it in LoseIt! So it's not exactly cheating, right? 

 

The basement is moving a bit slow. Social obligations this past weekend curtailed time to work on clearing things out. On the plus side, @otterbyte has been working on it a bit during the week. That's progress, right?

 

 

PS: Speaking of food, I am going to try something tomorrow: A 24 hour fast. I'll eat after class (around 8:30 pm) tonight and then again tomorrow night. I tried the 12-16 hour IF before and it wasn't something I wanted to continue every day, so I'm going to give 1/week for 24 hours a shot. 

 

I'm sure I'll feel fine!

 

 

 

[Kishi]

Mmm, skipping rope. It's good stuff. I want to try to work that back in at some point my own self.

 

I hope the French Toast was good! And as long as you're willing to make room and accept the consequences, it can't really be a cheat, can it?

 

Good luck w/ the fast!

[Mistr]

Nice that you have already lost the weight from your vacation. I agree that having prepped meals makes a huge difference. It is a lot easier to resist temptations when you know you have a good lunch or dinner waiting for you. Good job on getting your flexibility and endurance training back on track!

[Bighara]

Let the Hunger Games Begin!

 

 

Today is fasting day. Last food was a 9:00 last night. I've had a couple small cups of black coffee (no sugar) and that's it. I'll keep up with plenty of water and maybe an unsweetened ice tea at lunchtime. 

 

That's the plan anyway.

 

I have a weight workout to do in about an hour, and I may "treat" myself to some unsweetened almond milk after that. 

 

 

The fast is trying out a 1 day/week IF schedule. We'll see how it goes from here.

 

 

[Kishi]

I've heard that if you're not going to do the 16/8, a single 24-hour fast is good for you. Hopefully, this feels easy, and you won't have any trouble.

[Bighara]

Chest/Arm workout is done. Not too hungry, actually. Muscles are like:

 

 

But I don't think that is fast-related.

[sarakingdom]

10 hours ago, Kishi said:

I've heard that if you're not going to do the 16/8, a single 24-hour fast is good for you. Hopefully, this feels easy, and you won't have any trouble.

 

5:2 is a thing that's been studied, and that's basically five days of eating normally and two 24-hour fasts.

[Bighara]

Well, I survived the 24 hours. That 9PM chicken panini was TASTY!

 

@sarakingdom I've heard that too. I doubt I could manage 5:2, but 6:1 possibly. I might try it again next week with the idea of working up to 2/week. We'll see.

 

I forgot to mention yesterday that I also got to 55 seconds on the jump rope (personal best!).

 

 

[Kishi]

11 hours ago, sarakingdom said:

 

5:2 is a thing that's been studied, and that's basically five days of eating normally and two 24-hour fasts.

 

Yeah, and that was actually my original foray into fasting, but I always struggled w/ being super hangry on that second day. It's one of the things they don't mention in the fine print - if you're gonna do a 5:2 split, you need to make sure those days are spaced out from each other so you can recover.

 

At least, that's how it was w/ me. /shrug

[Bighara]

1 hour ago, Kishi said:

 

Yeah, and that was actually my original foray into fasting, but I always struggled w/ being super hangry on that second day. It's one of the things they don't mention in the fine print - if you're gonna do a 5:2 split, you need to make sure those days are spaced out from each other so you can recover.

 

At least, that's how it was w/ me. /shrug

 

Oh yeah. I don't think I would ever try 48 hours straight as part of a regular plan. Something like Wed/Sun or similar would be the way to go. I don't think 48 is what was studied though. 

 

Honestly, I am also concerned about the fasting vs. trying for "dem gainz" in the weight room. If my protein intake is down that day, does it mess recovery muscle building up?

 

[Kishi]

26 minutes ago, Bighara said:

Honestly, I am also concerned about the fasting vs. trying for "dem gainz" in the weight room. If my protein intake is down that day, does it mess recovery muscle building up?

 

That is a good question I don't know the answer to. Offhand, I'd say that you shouldn't fast and weight train in the same day. Particularly if you're trying to build muscle. The nutritional aspect is key, and while the anabolic window is kind of a myth, it doesn't serve you to starve when you need to feed. I don't think the two are necessarily mutually exclusive, but timing will be important.

[Bighara]

A bit of a setback. On my arm workout Wednesday, I apparently messed up my left shoulder a bit. Specifically the upper trapezius on the side of my neck. It's not crippling, but I've had to go easy on the exercise the last few days (Thursday's kickboxing class was probably a mistake). @otterbyte has been having some shoulder trouble too (more joint than muscular though), so we skipped Saturday's AM class. I'm hoping a few days' rest will set things right. 

 

It's a bit frustrating because it's very hard not to use my arm. It's not bad unless I lift it above the shoulder or twist my neck at certain angles. Which I tend to do without thinking. 

 

Repeatedly.

 

I have been trying to keep records of workouts and the Lose It! food entries. The weight has been relatively stable. Hopefully when the workouts start up again, it will drop a little more. 

 

The arm/neck pain has slowed the basement work, but maybe this weekend!

[Kishi]

Guuuh, sounds like my left arm work. Super annoying when you have to fix it and not overuse it and have to use it all the time anyway.

 

My problem is presently improving, but in order to do it I had to be judicious and get rid of one of my favorite exercises, which was exacerbating the issue. Be careful with this and figure out what's bugging it, and then rest from that for a while.

[Bighara]

OK! It's been a week of rest. Time to start using muscles again!

 

The neck is a little stiff, but not sore. I am going to try going to kickboxing class today (there's an AM class and I am teleworking, so I'll take an early lunch break).

Assuming that doesn't mess me up, we'll try Saturday's class too and some limber 11 this weekend.Then maybe even back to the weight room on Monday. I am going to drop my % 1RM on the weights from 75% to 65% so I can keep stricter form. 

[Kishi]

Form work is best work. Muscles to their best work when you follow proper form. Unless you have to make adjustments, but until then!

[Bighara]

Survived class. We'll see about tomorrow. It think part of my current fatugue the #@$%&! heat. It's been miserable and muggy here in the DC area for the past several days,

 

 

 

[Bighara]

So not a lot of news to report. The shoulder is much better, so the workouts are continuing (Yay me!). I have been inconsistent on the limber 11, though. Tracking is Lose It is going OK, although I was annoyed to get their message that I had to buy premium to continue linking my FitBit. Of course, they gave a 50% off deal as well, so it could have been worse, I suppose.

 

Not much has happened on clearing the basement, sad to say. At first it was because I was resting my shoulder even from lifting boxing and shelves, etc. Now I just need to find some time. I'm taking next week off from work, so I still have a few days to get something done there.

 

I'm back up a pound or so.  Probably from no exercise for a week and a bit of self-medicating for the shoulder pain via wine.  

 

 

 

 

[Kishi]

The weight gain's probably to be expected on account of lowered activity and wine, like you say. But you're recovering! All of that's just a bump in the road now. You'll be right back on track soon enough.

[Bighara]

1 hour ago, Kishi said:

The weight gain's probably to be expected on account of lowered activity and wine, like you say. But you're recovering! All of that's just a bump in the road now. You'll be right back on track soon enough.

 

Of course, rescheduled meetings have totally thrown off my workout schedule for the day, but I might get a bodyweight/heavy bag routine in at home (maybe?)

 

How I feel on the bag

 

How I probably look