Unleashing The Beast :: FitBob

Weight: 219

I’ve gained ten pounds in a week! If only it were all muscle…

At 200 pounds, a one percent change in hydration levels/water weight equates to two pounds. Activity, respiration and altitude all affect hydration levels. In my case, eating carbs after about 8pm usually results in a temporary spike in weight the next morning. It’s not unusual for me to have five pound fluctuations in weight, day to day.

The scale is just one of many tools available to gauge progress – use it as a reference, not an absolute.

Weight: 212

Pigged out on carbs last night and saw the expected weight jump on the scale this morning. Busy day today, energy levels almost back to normal. Went to the club for a body composition assessment at 5pm, came in at 19%* body fat. Not great, but already improving. Wish I had comp assessed Jan 1 so I could put this number in a more positive perspective. Regardless, I have a starting point. My target is to get to 10% by July 31.

Historically, I can drop .5 to 1 percent a week – more when I’m doing a lot of outdoor cycling. So let’s say 20 weeks to transform 20 pounds of fat to 20 pounds of muscle and energy. Throw in an extra week or so and that’s five months, ergo my cutting phase must begin on March 1.

Until then, I am primarily working on building strength with the weights and low intensity (LI) zone cardio to prepare the body for the training loads that will be thrust upon it come March. With two weeks’ training under my belt, hopefully the bod’s adapted and recovered enough to start moving more serious iron this week.

I sleep 8-9 hours a night now and struggle to stay awake until 11pm, not used to hitting the bed before 2am. Nice.

Feeling good about the first two weeks’ training – a great start to 2012, let’s keep it going!

*3-fold pinch + estimated weight + late in the day + food = inaccurate test, take results with a large grain of salt, and use number as a guideline rather than absolute. Pinch tests generally have a 3-5% margin of error to begin with. The results stated 20%, 209 was input for weight when I was actually 214. That 2% difference in weight input changes the calculations to a lesser result, so I’m going with 19% math++!

March 3 – April 6, 2011

Timeframe: 35 days
On Plan: 26 days
Missed: 9 days

Exercise Time: 19 hours
Total Calories: -13465
BodyFat Equivalent: 3.74 pounds!

All in all, a good month. I missed more training days than I would have preferred, but life has a way of happening. The important takeaway for me is that I accomplished a solid month of base training and can now move on to the training I like better.

By charting my training, I am now able to look back and see a distinctive pattern/flaw: Rest days. In March, they were momentum killers – most of my missed days occurred after a scheduled rest day. Methinks I need to change the program and add a bit more structure.

So for April I’m switching to a different routine – the old standby that has served me well for years: Train Mon-Fri, with weekends “off.” Since month two is the strenght phase of my plan, I’ll lift one body part a day Monday-Friday, followed by some core work and at least :30 min cardio. Typically:

Monday: Chest
Tuesday: Back
Wednesday: Shoulders
Thursday: Arms
Friday: Legs

Training legs on Friday gives me two off days over the weekend to recover from blasting them, so I’ve got that going for me. Which is nice.

And while weekends are technically non-training days, I’ll still do rides for fun or with friends. Now those rides become “bonus” workouts – a key mental distinction.

Diet remains the same: eat healthy six days a week, with one cheat day to eat whatever I want.

(BTW – Cheat days are great! No only do they give you a mental break from restriction, they provide a short term, achievable goal. I usually put them on Sundays so I have a week-end target: “I can’t eat that today, but I can have as much as I want on Sunday!” And by putting it at the end of my week, I can choose to enjoy it earlier in the week and just eat healthy on Sunday instead.)

My weight has remained pretty constant over the month, but I can see the changes in the mirror and feel it in my clothes. Don’t get hung up on the scale – this past month my body has burned off fat and replaced it with muscle. So, while I may weigh the same, I look and feel different. THAT’s the important thing, not the pounds.

Spring is springing and I’ve been hibernating for a looonnng time… Fortunately, a week of training is in the bag and all systems are nominal.

Registered for my first century last weekend – The Elephant Rock Ride in Castle Rock, CO – and have three months of training til the June 5 date. Training notes and logs will be posted as soon as I catch up on a few things. (In tonight’s case, sleep!)

Hope everyone is having an excellent 2011! I’ll part for now with a fave tweet from @ApoloOhno:

Face ur fears
Understand ur insecurities
Demolish self doubt
YOU are in control, so drive carefully and mash the gas.
#InspireYourself

(His book, Zero Regrets, rocks btw)

From RedCross.org:

“In the 48 hours since the earthquake struck in Haiti, the American Red Cross has received nearly $35 million in donations, and we are thankful for this unprecedented outpouring of support.

More than half of the donations have been through online contributions, with strong support as well from corporations and the unprecedented activity over the past two days in mobile giving.

The American Red Cross has already released $10 million for relief efforts in Haiti. That is only our initial commitment, and based on the amount of money we’ve raised already, we will certainly add more. Future allocations will be made once we know more about the situation on the ground in Haiti and the greatest needs in both the short-term and in the long-term.

The response to the emergency in Haiti has been impressive and moving, and the donations to the American Red Cross have exceeded the totals amounts received in the first 48 hours of both Katrina and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.”

Follow progress and help out at American Red Cross, www.state.gov, interaction.org, or www.usaid.gov.

No doubt times are tough here, but they are far tougher there. A 7.3 magnitude earthquake is no joke. Many thousands of human beings with far less than us could really use our help. Please help if you can.

As always, be sure to investigate the avenues through which you give before donating. Unfortunately, there are those who seek to profit from this disaster.

Many of us resolve to get in better shape, eat healthier, take better care of our bodies every New Year’s Eve. These resolutions often have strong beginnings (ever notice how much busier gyms are the first week in January?) but will often fade after a week or two. Life gets busy, people get sore, tired, or lose motivation to train.

I would bet that most people who resolve to get in better shape for 2010 haven’t been working out much in 2009 – working out isn’t a habit for them. While there’s no hard and fast rule on how long It takes to break a habit, plan on it taking about three weeks. Time to break the habit of NOT working out and create a new, more positive habit OF working out.

Three weeks to change your life for the better – who can’t do that? You CAN do it. Commit to it, make it a priority, and see how your life changes for the better: Better mental outlook, better sleep patterns, better body composition (less fat/more muscle), better self-image and thus more confidence. In short, a better, more enjoyable life.

Here’s a simple solution that will help you make it through the habit transition time, make your workouts more enjoyable, and make the time pass more quickly – group workouts. Here’s why groups are a great way to get (and keep) you going:

- Group workouts have a set time so you know you’re supposed to be there. By registering for them, you have an implied social obligation to show up.

- You can make new friends or go with existing ones. Either way, you’ll know people who are going to be there. Just about everything is more fun with friends.

- Time flies when you’re playing. Whether it’s a spinning class, aerobics, zumba, dance, yoga or a host of other options, you won’t notice the time go by as much when you’re in the company of others.

- Everyone is there for the same reason. Whether you’re just starting out or training for a specific event, each and every person in the class is only there to improve themselves.

- Competition and social pressure. While you may not naturally be endowed with that ‘competitive spirit’, by being in the same room with a bunch of people trying to do the same thing you are doing can often fire an unexpected, perhaps primal, urge to outdo them. Maybe less so if they are total strangers (hence the suggestion to make new friends) but nonetheless we are all human beings with an innate survival instinct. Take advantage of your biology!

Time and time again research has shown that the true “magic pill” for human beings is exercise. As humans have moved into the Information Age, we have so much available to us, at our very fingertips, that we no longer need to be active to survive. But we need to be active to thrive, our bodies need exercise to function properly.

It IS that simple. Overweight? Don’t take some pharmaPill, make better food choices and get active. Back hurting? Don’t rely on drugs, strengthen your abs and back through exercise. Want to add distance to your golf game? Don’t get a new driver, get a gym membership. I know that I can drive the ball 20 yards further when I’m working out regularly.

BIG REMINDER: Don’t overdo it! Listen to your body! Ease into working out. If you’ve been inactive for a while, try starting out with a 30 minute walk every other day. Feel ok? Do it every day. Not willing to go every day? Up your walk time to an hour. If you’re hitting the weights, take it easy for a few weeks – your body needs to adapt and adjust to the new workload you’re putting upon it. You won’t feel like going back if you’re so sore you can’t move. Make it a habit, a regular part of your life. It’s not a sprint for instant results, think of it as a lifelong marathon – slow and steady wins the race.

It will probably take some sacrificing on your part – be mentally ready to give something up. If you’re not willing to give up after work happy hours, have kids, or often have to work late, consider getting up an hour earlier to get your workout in before the demands of the day kick in. (If you’re efficient, you only have to get up 35-40 minutes earlier to get in a 30 minute walk!)

Always remember to embrace your victories! For some, just making it to the gym or a group class should be considered a win. For others, just finishing the class is a win. See how far you can go this year and amaze yourself at the changes you can accomplish!!

Have a happy, healthy and fit and fun 2010!!
FitBob

Calories Burned, Last Two Weeks’ Exercise: 6249
Equivalent Fat Calories: 1.74 pounds
Estimated Fat Loss: 2 pounds / 1% of body weight

Two weeks in – feeling bigger, better and stronger every day. My sleep patterns have returned to normal; I’m going to bed around 11:30, falling right asleep, and generally sleeping about eight hours a night. After particularly hard training days, I’ve even slept 10+ hours. (Haven’t slept that much in years!)

The nice thing about my Polar heart rate monitor is that I can download my workout info to my computer and can view it in calendar format. It’s more useful for analyzing my cycling workouts since the bike computer tracks mileage, elevation change, etc. but in the gym it’s good to get an accurate measurement of total caloric expenditure.

Gained 5-7 pounds and put on some nice muscular size during the first weeks of training (approx. 1″ on arms, chest and legs.) Weight has stabilized during week two at 204 pounds, +/- 2 depending on hydration levels. I estimate my bodyfat percentage to be around 16%… looking forward to getting calipers or tested regularly for more accurate data there.

My moods have continued to be more positive and upbeat overall. The body likes to be active! (duh) I had a few beers when out with friends earlier in the week and definitely noticed the effects the next day – not only was my motivation weaker, my body felt more fatigued and I just felt more “blah” overall. Duly noted.

Now that my bod is feeling pretty good, it’s time to start incorporating deadlifts into my workouts once a week. “Deads” are a great exercise that hit the quads, hams, glutes, lower back, shoulders, biceps and forearms in one lift! Strict form is MANDATORY so I’ll start out pretty light; probably do ‘em on back day.

Other than a few days when I didn’t eat enough, I’ve been sticking to my eating plan well. I need to remember to up my carbohydrate intake a bit to keep energy levels high. And I am starting to see the changes in my physique – especially when lifting. A bit more vascularity, a bit more definition, a bit more progress. Good stuff!

WIth the holidays nearing, I have a bunch of family obligations this week. While they shouldn’t interfere with my schedule, if I have to miss an extra day or two this week I’m sure my body will like the extra recovery time. It’s easy to overtrain, especially when beginning a new program. Better to rest and recover than slow progress by training too much.

Saw a sign like this near the finish line on this year’s Ironman t.v. coverage. Gotta respect those who even attempt such a feat.

“You are an artist, and the bars, weights, machines and food are your tools. As an artist controls his brushes, hammers and chisels, so to must you control yourself so you can create the kind of body that is good enough to be framed.”
- Mind Pump

If you can keep your head when all about you
Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,
If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,
But make allowance for their doubting too;
If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,
Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,
Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,
And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream – and not make dreams your master;
If you can think – and not make thoughts your aim;
If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster
And treat those two impostors just the same;
If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken
Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,
Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,
And stoop and build ‘em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings
And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,
And lose, and start again at your beginnings
And never breathe a word about your loss;
If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew
To serve your turn long after they are gone,
And so hold on when there is nothing in you
Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,
Or walk with Kings – nor lose the common touch,
if neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,
If all men count with you, but none too much;
If you can fill the unforgiving minute
With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,
Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,
And – which is more – you’ll be a Man, my son!

– Kipling