

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.