The Only Things I Can Eat 4 a Month R N This Box?

Moving

2010-09-20T15:13:00.001-04:00

Hello all. It's time for a little move/change. Since I'm no longer posting primarily about Nutrisystem anymore, I wanted to change the blog name. Something easier to remember and type. So the blog has moved over to www.zanehollingsworth.blogspot.com

This page (and blog) will remain to point the way to the new blog. Thanks!

Adding Mileage

2010-09-19T17:17:00.004-04:00

Today I began my training for the Tough Mudder. I'm gonna push my running a little more each week, building up to where I'm very comfortable running the 10ish miles I'll have to run in March. So for the past few weeks I've been running 3 miles in however long it takes (24-26 minutes, depending on whether or not I was running hills) and then walking a little bit to finish up my 30 minutes. A couple of days ago I decided to run 4 miles and do it in 32 minutes. That'll be my new workout a few days a week. Push 4 miles at a quick-ish pace some days, and others run hills a little slower, but still getting in 4 miles. After a few weeks, I'll lengthen the distance and start running 5 miles most runs, then repeat until I'm in the 8-10 range a few times a week.

This morning was my first real breakfast in 3 days. Kim and I went to Panera and split a bagel with cream cheese. Outstanding! I also had a chai tea latte, which I loved. Lunch was an unexpected treat. We noticed a lady sitting outside a Latino grocery store near where we were working. Kim went over to check it out and came back with half a dozen home made tamales! They were fantastic. My next meal was a Lean Body Chocolate Peanut Butter protein shake and a small amount of cottage cheese and pineapples. Dinner this evening was all fake meat products.

Today's workouts were cardio only. 2.2 mile walk this morning with Kim and JJF. 4+ miles on the treadmill (in 31:31) when the gym opened at 1. Then another 2.2 mile walk around the lake this evening. More than 8.5 miles on the day.

Tomorrow is back to my original 6 meals a day eating plan, new running schedule, and a chest workout. I'll also start working Insanity and a Spin in on different days as well. Now I've got two goals to train for. The Tough Mudder and The Wedding!

End of the Cleanse

2010-09-18T22:15:00.004-04:00

Today was the last day of my 3 day Shakeology Cleanse/Jump Start. I had 3 shakes during the day, plus one Lean Body shake. Then a salad and chicken for dinner. My freak out today was a muffin after dinner. Today was much easier. I had a little fruit during the day, plus a few slices of deli meat and jello pudding. I actually do feel better, but that could be from the chiropractor.

I had to go back to the chiropractor this morning. Lots of popping and cracking. Plus he hooked me to an electronic muscle stimulator for a few minutes. It felt wonderful. My muscles finally fatigued, then relaxed. I might have to go back next week, but I'll wait and see how I feel first.

I ran 3+ miles of hills this afternoon then walked this evening for today's exercise. Tomorrow will be more of the same.

I learned that the Tough Mudder for Georgia has been scheduled for March 11-12 in Cedartown. Can't wait. I think a large group form the gym is planning on running as a team. Should be fun.

I Think I've Got Shakeology About Figured Out

2010-09-17T14:45:00.006-04:00

After last night's meltdown (I freaked and had some cereal late) and midnight pledge to never drink another sip of Shakeology, today has been much better. I looked up some different recipes for making the shakes. The key (so far) has been to add MILK. The taste (for me) was just awful without the milk. I've also thrown in some pineapple or banana to help. But the milk is the key.

So this morning I had a cup of coffee, a Shakeology shake with milk and a frozen banana. It was pretty good. Another shake, this time with milk and pineapple before lunch. After my workout I had a Lean Body Chocolate Peanut Butter shake. It was Fantastic! No milk required. Late in the afternoon I had another Shakeology drink before having a salad and salmon for dinner with Kim.

Before heading to the gym today I had to go to the chiropractor. Within moments of the good Doctor walking into the room he had me laid out on a table and was pushing on me. Not working so good. So I moved to a low bench, he twisted me up, and then jumped on me. RELIEF. I then began to pop like wild. Every direction he turned me something popped, released, let go, etc. I feel so much better. I may have to go back tomorrow or Monday if I'm not 100%.

I had to go buy some salad and fish before I could go to the gym, so I didn't make it until around lunch. I was worried I wouldn't have a good run/workout as a result. Couldn't have been more wrong. 4 miles in less than 31:50. Barefoot! Best run I've had in memory. I felt great the entire time. I purposefully did a baby leg workout today. 3 sets of leg extension & 3 sets of leg curls. I didn't want to do anything to upset my back.

Tomorrow is my final day of the 3 day cleanse. Well, my version of it anyway. Today has been so much better. not perfect, but better. Tomorrow might be difficult. I'll be home most of the day, tempted to eat other stuff other than my shakes and one meal. I'll try to dull the cravings with football, and the endless pizza commercials....

My Back Hurts, I'm Starving, & Tomorrow is Leg Day...

2010-09-16T12:37:00.004-04:00

My back is still wrecked. I didn't sleep well as a result. So I got up early, had a cup of apple tea, and began my 3 day jump start/cleanse intro to Shakeology. Not loving it so far. The first shake I made following the directions was way to thick. The second was better, but I used a little pineapple instead of a banana and it tasted odd. I don't know how much I like the taste of Shakeology. I'm sure by the end of 3 days of it and very little else, I'll love it. My third and final shake of the day was at about 4PM. Just Shakeology and a frozen banana. Still not loving the taste. Gotta work on it. Maybe find some different recipes online. Dinner tonight was a salad and a piece of chicken. YUM!!! I did have a hand full on nuts this afternoon, and I've grazed on lettuce (and a few olives) all day long. Lay off me, I'M STARVING! Late I freaked and had some cheese, pudding, and a bowl of cereal. Still very low calories on the day (like less than 1400). Gonna try the cleanse again tomorrow, but I'm not sure if this is something for me.

At the gym I managed a slow paced 3 mile barefoot hill run. Nothing to get excited about, just grinded it out. My arm workout followed. Pretty weak really. 3 sets of overhead presses and 3 sets of press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls and ended with 2 sets of very heavy hammer curls.

Bad Run, Good Day

2010-09-15T15:43:00.004-04:00

We got up around sunrise this morning and took Jumping Jack Flash on a walk shortly thereafter. I walked the medium distance route this morning around the lake (2.3 or so miles) and Kim headed back the quick route so she could get ready for work.

At the gym today I had one of the worst runs in recent memory. I ran 3 miles, but it seemed like every single step was difficult. Like I was having to mentally push every second. Lots of days I start out and after the first minute hit a groove. The next time I look down it's been 18 minutes and I'm nearing 2.5 miles. Not today. Just difficult today. I don't know why really. I didn't run earlier and I didn't feel tired. I did train before I ran today. But it was only a shoulder workout. The workout was 3 sets of machine shoulder presses, 3 sets of dumbbell side lateral raises, 3 sets of dumbbell upright rows, 3 sets on the rear delt machine, and 3 sets of shoulder shrugs. Tomorrow I guess I train before I run again and see how it goes.

I tried to go to the chiropractor today, but when I went by his office he was closed. And he's closed tomorrow. My back is wrecked. I've got two huge muscles knotted up on the upper left side of my back. They're so tight (and won't relax) that they're pulling me out of alignment. This is what happened before. I can at least pop my back now, but as soon as I do, the muscles just pull my spine back out of alignment. Hopefully I can get in on Friday, get some treatment (as in having him hook me up to a machine and shock my back until the muscles fatigue, relax, and then he can adjust me). My back is so tight that the muscles have started to itch. Ugh.

Kim, JJF, and I walked around the lake this evening. We took the medium route. Jack saw a cat (again) and chased it. The cat (who looks just like our cat, Puppy) dove into some very high weeds on one side of the road/trail we walk on. Jack dove in after him. A few seconds later we saw/heard some weeds/bushes moving on the other side of the path. The cat had crawled through a hidden drainage pipe to the other side to lose jack. Pretty smart kitty.

Food today was again great. Muffin for breakfast, protein shake for AM snack, LC for lunch, another shake in the middle of the afternoon, salmon and a salad for dinner, and a muffin as a dessert. Around 1500 calories on the day.

My order of Shakeology arrived today. I'll start the 3 day cleanse tomorrow, then roll back into the 1500-1600 calorie diet after. I also received a few new Insanity discs. I replaced some that were damaged, and ordered the 20 minute Fast & Furious (or something like that) workout. I'll get back to Insanity next week!

Things Seem Easy Without Insanity

2010-09-14T22:12:00.002-04:00

This week (and last week too) I haven't had any Insanity workouts. I finished up the week before. Without the craziness, I feel like my training is so easy now. I'm still doing 3 rounds of varied cardio and my usual strength training. Once I get my shipment of Shakeology in (tomorrow, I think) and then get through the 3 day cleanse, I'll be ready to start mixing the Insanity back in. I've been toying with the idea of trying P90 or P90X or whatever it's called. I enjoyed the Insanity so much, I'm thinking I'd like something else. I don't know what I'd do about training at the gym though. Maybe just do some treadmill/elliptical stuff at the gym for a bit. Anybody ever tried P90? Any recommendations? Any thoughts? Anyone? Bueller? Anyone?

Today was another great day! I didn't wake up quite as early (actually overslept a little, I was tired) so I didn't run outside this morning. Instead I rode the spin bike for a little over 30 minutes as I watched a recorded episode of the West Wing. Best. Show. Ever.

Next up was the gym. I began with a back workout. 3 very poor sets of pull-ups, 3 sets of heavy t-bar rows, 3 sets of hammer rows, and 3 sets of lat pull-downs. Then on to the treadmill. I did a mile of varied paced running (between 7 & 8 mph), then a mile of HIIT varying from a walking speed of 3.5 for a minute, then running for a minute at a faster pace. Runs started at 8mph, increasing .5 each cycle until I was running at a 6 minute mile pace. Actually, at the fastest pace I felt my running form was the best. I was standing very erect, my feet were out in front of me, and my stride was very short and quick. Just like if I was running barefoot! Cool, I think. I was pretty winded after the HIIT (that's why I did it, to get in a more strenuous workout during the run), so my last mile was a varied run again, but at a slower pace (6-7). I finished up the workout with a few minutes of a slow walk.

After working some this afternoon, Jumping Jack Flash and I walked around the lake this evening. Tonight was Kim's night to work late, so it was just he and I on the evening stroll. As the temps drop, I want to start taking some of the big dogs on walks again. Still not cool enough for them though.

Food on the day was great again. Muffin for breakfast, shake for AM snack, Indian meal for lunch, shake as a PM snack. LC tortilla crusted fish for dinner, shake for dessert, and about 1/4 of a muffin on my way to bed. 1700 or so calories on the day. I'll burn 4000 or so. This new modified diet has been working perfectly. I'm never hungry, I'm staying full, and I've got plenty of energy. Some of the shakes I've been adding either a banana or some pineapple, or both. I haven't used more than a shake a day in years. I used to have four or more a day in college. I always enjoyed the simplicity and consistency of eating that way.

Awesome Morning

2010-09-13T17:10:00.004-04:00

Today has been, for lack of a better word, awesome. I was up early and shot some nice star photos before sunrise. As I waited on the sun to come up I walked the pug, had a cup of coffee, checked email, and got ready to run. The temperature this morning was an amazing 55 degrees, so I had planned accordingly and was itching to run.

Once the sun began to light the sky I retrieved my camera, got Jumping Jack Flash out of his crated, and headed out to run. Jack made it to the end of the driveway and stopped. His loss. I guess I should have known something big was nearby, since he didn't want to run with me. Just around the barn from the house I ran across a good sized deer. It took of in the direction I was running, so I just followed it. She (I guess) ran to the top of a ridge, turned, looked at me and waited for a few seconds. Then she was off again, down towards the lake and off into the distance. And the lake? It was perfect. Still, clear (the water), and very foggy. Just beautiful. When I reached the big damn (basically a mile from the house) I saw 30-40 geese and ducks swimming quietly in the center of the lake. They had been invisible just seconds earlier, but once I got to the damn I could just barely see them through the fog. They were silent. The only thing I could really hear was my footsteps and breathing. I made the turn and ran back home (the short route today) I spotted a large hawk at the little damn. Usually hawks will fly away when I get even moderately close, but this morning he (guessing again) just landed in a nearby tree and watched me jog by. Back at home JJF was waiting for me on the front porch. Lazy dog.

The running part of the run was ok too. I never have any idea as to my pace when I run outdoors. I finished 2 miles (more or less) in 18 something minutes. Not great at all. But not bad for varied terrain and the first outside run since summer started.

Once I made it to they gym I was running late (morning of mowing yards, running errands for the Don) and trained chest rather quickly. 3 sets of flat hammer presses, 3 sets of incline hammer presses, 3 sets of wide decline hammer presses, and 3 sets of pec dec. Next I moved to the treadmill where I planned to run 3 miles. I ran out of time and only was able to run 2. Finished them in 16:09.

After a dentist visit and working for a bit I came home where my only other exercise of the day was an evening walk with Kim and JJF.

Food for the day was great. I'm implementing a new modified diet for a while. Back to six regimented meals per day. No fast food. No Indian (OK maybe once every 6 weeks). No Pizza. Basically I'll have a muffin or cereal for breakfast, shake for snack, LC or NS for lunch, shake for snack, NS or LC for dinner, shake for dessert. I'll sub chicken or tuna with a salad for any dinner. Saturdays I'll have some turkey dogs as a treat, and make sure I eat real food (not LC or NS) both non breakfast meals on the weekends. As my weekend rewards, I'm gonna allow myself to have 1 Hornsby's Cider on both Saturday and Sunday nights. Only 200 extra calories, and it gives me something to look forward to. For a while it'll be a much better treat than say going to eat out at a nasty Pizza/Mexican/Indian (not nasty, just high calorie) place.

Today's food was great. Muffin for breakfast, Lean Body shake for AM snack, NS beans & ham soup for lunch, shake for PM snack, LC French Bread Pizza for dinner, shake for dessert, and a muffin before bed. Less than 1800 calories on the day. BodyBugg has me burning 4400+ calories on the day. Good day.

Weekend Waiting on Shakeology

2010-09-12T10:22:00.006-04:00

Saturday I finally had a "good" run. 3 miles in a little over 24 minutes. I also had a couple of good rides on the spin bike.

Food was great on the day, until dinner. Muffin for breakfast, turkey hot dogs for lunch, chicken breast for mid afternoon meal, cottage cheese and pineapple a little later. Dinner, not so great. we ate at a local county style restaurant. I had roast beef, mashed potatoes, green beans, and a fried veggie mix. And about 1/2 a slice of peanut butter pie. Wow.

Hopefully next week I'll have some of my new protein shakes in stock. I'm gonna try Shakeology, from BeachBody. I'm gonna begin with the 3 day cleanse. 3 shakes per day, plus some tea, a little fruit, and a salad for dinner. After that I'll use Shakeology once a day, and Lean Body shakes once a day. Plus lots of chicken, salads, muffins, and granola. And water. Lots and lots of water.

Sunday I'm gonna spin, walk, and maybe get in an ab workout. To help further my ab workouts (or lack thereof) I've also ordered the Insanity discs which were damaged/bad that I'd gotten off ebay. That along with a fast paced, time shortened Insanity workout. That along with the Insane Abs Workout, and the Sports Training workout should give me a few extra workouts to add to the mix. I'm not gonna re-implement Insanity until after the cleanse is over. Then I'm gonna use it only some days. I'll swap it out with riding the spin bike, or walking. I don't want to do cardio 4 times a day. 2-3 is plenty.

Better

2010-09-10T17:51:00.004-04:00

For the past few days my mornings have gotten stretched. I plan to be up, have coffee, work on the computer, and ride the spin bike for 1/2 an hour, all before 9AM. Today I got this accomplished by around lunch. I wasn't pleased.

This pushes my workout later in the day. I like to train around 10AM if at all possible. I feel better. I train better. I like the people in the gym at that time. Today I trained at 2PM. The people in the gym were fine (the 3 that were there), but I wasn't. I was so tired I almost didn't even stop at the gym. I started to just drive back home. I manged a better run today. 3 miles in 25 something. I didn't necessarily feel any better, but at least I manged to run the full 3 today. My leg workout was, well, puny. 3 sets of leg extensions and then 3 sets of leg curls. That was it. My legs were already tired from the run and spin bike this morning. Plus I missed last weeks leg workout, so I didn't want to cripple myself today.

Food on the day has been good. Muffin and granola bar for breakfast. A few more granola bars during the day. Veggie frozen Indian for lunch. A bowl of granola cereal post workout. Dinner was chick peas in a tomato gravy.

Tomorrow I plan on running, training abs, spinning, walking, and watching UGA!

Having to Ease My Way Back

2010-09-09T15:17:00.003-04:00

I finally returned to the gym today. Yesterday was devoted to catching up on work, and returning to a normal eating routine. I did manage to ride the spin bike for 30 minutes and go on an evening walk last night.

Today began with more work, bookwork, and banking before I could hit the bike for half an hour. Afterward I made my way to the gym and trained arms. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of overhead presses, and 3 sets of rope presses for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of rope curls, then 3 sets of incline dumbbell curls, and finally 3 sets of standing hammer curls. I had planned on running 3 miles of hills. I ended up running/walking about 2.9 miles of hills. I wasn't necessarily hurting during the run, but I never could get into a groove and felt very weak. So I'd run for a few minutes, walk a little, then run some more, then walk again, etc. 7 days off, I guess this is better than what it could be. Tomorrow I'm gonna try to run with no incline, earlier in the day, and see how I do. Before dinner JJF and I walked around the lake for my final cardio of the day.

Food today (and yesterday for that matter) has been good. Muffin for breakfast, protein shake after the bike, granola bar as a snack, shake after the gym, LC for dinner, and finally dessert of a granola bar and granola cereal.

Tomorrow is leg day. I'm gonna spin first, then run, then train. I think I'm gonna wait a few days before adding Insanity back into the mix. Maybe next week.

Back Home

2010-09-08T08:42:00.000-04:00

We're back home from vacation. Back to a new modified routine starting today. Back home, newly motivated, ready to run, train, spin, and go Insane. Back home, ready to eat healthy, be healthy, and get leaner.

We witnessed some of the sickest, heaviest, unhappiest people while at the beach. Once we noticed and began to actually people watch, we were shocked by how many (most) people were significantly over weight. Terribly overweight. I'd guess on average most people were more than 60 pounds overweight. That may be on the low side too. After about the 2nd day I was itching to get back to training and eating properly.

So back to it, starting NOW!

Trying for a Quick Week

2010-09-01T15:47:00.003-04:00

After training chest Monday, I've been trying to hit two body parts per day (complimentary parts, anyway) so I can finish up on Thursday and get out of town late that night. Back and biceps went well on Tuesday, and today I got in shoulders and triceps.

Tuesday's workout began with 3 sets of pull-ups, 3 sets of t-bar rows, 3 sets of seated rows, and finally 3 sets of lat pull downs. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls, and ended with 3 HEAVY sets of standing biceps curls. Wednesday's workout began with 3 sets of shoulder presses, then 3 sets of side lateral raises, and finally 3 sets of cable upright rows. Triceps began with 3 sets of press downs, then 3 sets of overhead presses, and finally 3 sets of rope press downs. Cardio on Tuesday was terrible. My phone kept ringing, I kept getting emails, and never could get into a groove with my run. I finally quit after about 2.5 miles. Wednesday's run was much better. 3 miles in 24:30, barefoot. Not bad. I finished off the 30 minutes by walking uphill slowly. Now the bad news. An hour or so later my left foot is hurting. I don't think it's injured, just 6 days worth of barefoot running has taken its toll. It feels like i just need to rest and maybe adjust/pop the outer (pinky toe) bone in my foot/ankle. I've gotta train legs tomorrow anyway, so I might not run. Or if I do I think it'll be back in my Mizuno Waves. Some nights this week we've been able to walk, others not. I have been on the spin bike each day though. 30 minutes per day, typically in the AM. Gotta get back in the habit of riding during the Braves games.

Tuesday I got up, set up the living room, and started my Insanity workout. I only have 4 left to do. I finished the warm up, looked at Shaun T for a second, and it hit me. I couldn't stand doing any of these workouts again. I'm SICK of it. I need a break. Don't get me wrong, I've loved the workouts. I'm just burnt out. Maybe after we get back from the beach I'll start doing a couple of Insanity workouts each week. I'll have to come up with some sorta schedule. Like not doing any on or near a leg day. I won't be doing many of the 2nd month's workouts either. I really never liked them as much as the first month's. They seemed to be power kinda moves (jumps, power jumps, diamond jumps) and things that were not as cardio intensive (that's relative, the entire thing is cardio intensive). I loved Pure Cardio and Max Cardio. They'll be in the rotation pretty heavy. I did notice while doing the core cardio and balance workout that my balance has improved dramatically. I couldn't stand on one foot and stretch with out falling when I started. Now while doing hip flexor burners I don't have to hold on to anything for balance. I was kinda shocked.

Food all this week has been good. I really don't remember what all I've had, but it's been good and on plan. Muffins or cereal for breakfast. LC or a shake for lunch. Shake or muffin for snack. LC for dinner one night and a little roast with my parent's the other night. Muffins for late snacks. I've gone Muffin Nuts!

Don't Eat Chinese Food Before Running

2010-08-30T23:26:00.002-04:00

Busy day today. I spent hours this morning working on some computer/work stuff before finally being able to start my Insanity workout around 10AM. About an hour later I was finished and had to hurry to make it to lunch with my mother, sister, and nephew. We ate at Drena's favorite place, Peng's Pavilion, a local Chinese joint.

After lunch I went directly to the gym. I lifted first today. 3 sets of flat bench, 3 sets of incline bench, 3 sets of decline bench, 3 sets of incline dumbbell curls, and finally 3 sets of push-ups super sets (regular push-ups followed promptly with push-ups done with my feet balanced on a large workout ball). After the lifting I jumped onto a treadmill. Again today I ran barefoot style in my Vibrams. I learned to never run after eating such a large lunch. D'oh. I felt terrible every step.

The final evxercise of the day was a walk around the lake with Kim and JJF. The temps are much better here now. Another week or two and we can start taking some big dogs with us on walks.

Food today was good. Muffin for breakfast, Chinese for lunch, muffin for snack, LC for dinner, cereal and a muffin late. Not to bad at all.

Tomorrow I'm gonna hit Insanity early, do some book work, run, and double up muscle training at the gym. I'm gonna try to do back and biceps together so I can shorten the workout week down a day and train legs on Thursday. I don't want to miss a leg workout this week and be in an ill mood because I did.

Sunday Leg Day

2010-08-29T23:47:00.002-04:00

Since I'm running 2 days behind this week, I got to train legs today, on Sunday. Usually I like to just walk the dogs or get in an easy run. I did take it easy with the workout sine I had to miss last week's leg workout altogether and really don't want to be freaky sore this week.

When I arrived at the gym I began with a slow paced, barefoot (Vibrams) hill run (program) on the treadmill. I got in about 3.3 miles before slowing to a walk for a few minutes to cool down before the workout. I only did 2 exercises per muscle group today. 3 sets of heavy(ish) leg extensions followed by 3 sets of moderate true squats for quads. Hamstrings began with 3 sets of heavy seated leg curls and ended with 3 sets of heavy hyper-extensions.

The rest of the day was rest. I tried to do an Insanity workout, but my calves were exhausted from the barefoot runs of the past few days, so I gave up and decided to call it a day.

Food in the AM was good. A muffin for breakfast, protein shake before the gym, red curry chicken after the gym (kashi), and then the last of the left over chana sag. Dinner was awful. A Tombstone pizza. I suck. It was awesome!

I made some muffins late tonight to have for breakfast this week. I used a new measuring cup while preparing the mix. I didn't pay attention to the actual markings and used pints instead of cups. The muffins suck. At least I won't be tempted to eat them all day long now. I'm gonna plan out next week's meals tonight and tomorrow so I can have a good week before leaving out for the beach.

Chest, 3-4 mile run, Insanity, and a dog walk are on the schedule for tomorrow.

6 Miles in the Terra Plana

2010-08-29T10:56:00.010-04:00

Yesterday I had a decent day training. I began the morning with an Insanity Workout, Core Cardio and Balance. It was easy, as far as Insanity goes. I didn't remember which particular workout I had to do, so it was a nice surprise to discover it was a milder workout for the day.

After the Insanity, I went to the gym to train arms and run. The arm workout was typical, maybe just a little heavier than usual. 3 sets of close grip triceps press downs, 3 sets of heavy overhead presses, and 3 sets of rope press downs began the workout. I finished up with 3 sets of rope curls, 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls (heavy), and ended the biceps workout with 3 sets of very heavy standing dumbbell curls. I had planned on running 6 miles when I left the house. By the time I got on the treadmill I had decided I'd just run 60 minutes and see how far that got me. I had a decent pace (for me) and had 6 miles in just under 50 minutes. I was gonna keep going, but I had developed a NEW blister from the Terra Plana shoes on my left heel. So I slowed at about 51 minutes, walked another minute or so, and then stopped altogether. The run in the TP's felt good. Occasionally I could tell I was landing to much on one side or the other of one foot, but I almost immediately corrected it. A day later, other than the blister(s) the only issue I have is possibly some tenderness (bruising) on the pinky toe side of my foot. I think I ran about 10 miles in the TP's in a 24 hour period, so I guess the blister and tenderness are to be expected. Here's a pic of the new Terra Plana shoes below.

Food on the day was great, until dinner. Breakfast was a bowl of cereal, lunch was some left over chana masala (chick peas) and chana sag (chick peas in spinach). Dinner was a bust. I had a small, meaty pizza from this new FANTASTIC pizza place, which is unfortunately very close to our house. Like the closest restaurant in existence to our house. I can see having a small pizza during UGA games happening a lot this fall. Damn. Anyway, small, delicious pizza for dinner along with a couple of bread sticks. Then I really ruined the day with some ice cream for dessert. The sign outside the ice cream place said it all, "Treat Yourself". I saw the sing and agreed wholeheartedly. In actuality (the past week would be an exception due to the fact I was out of town in Atlanta two days) I follow a very good, healthy diet Monday through Friday. I do relax it on the weekends to keep my sanity. Once we set a date for our wedding I'll go back to full time "on" diet.

Sunday is leg day. I think I'm only gonna run about 3 miles of hills at a relatively slow pace to start the workout. It's supposed to be my off day from Insanity, but I'm thinking about pushing ahead and starting the final week a day early. If I do (and I skip the ever hated Max Recovery workout) I can FINISH the program sometime Thursday! I desperately want to be done with it then because I think we're headed out of town for the weekend and I don't want to bring Shaun T. and his Insanity along with us. No offense, but I need some time apart from him and his crazy, that was bananas stupid hard workouts.

Ruined The Day With an Indain Feast

2010-08-27T22:02:00.006-04:00

Today was strange. I began the day with a yogurt, some coffee, and bookwork. After a couple of hours I finished my work for the day and decided to get my Insanity Workout in early. I did the Max Interval Circuit. Doing it first makes it so much easier. I'm not wanting to collapse into a coma the entire workout. I'm actually able to complete most of the exercises. If I do the workout later in the day I fail out on every set.

After Insanity I went to the gym and trained shoulders. 3 sets of shoulder presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, 3 sets of rear delts, and finally 3 sets of shoulder shrugs. Next I ran 4.3 miles on the treadmill. The first 3.something miles were on the random hill setting. The remaining was on a flat surface. I ran in my new Terra Planar shoes today. They too are a "barefoot" shoe. I think I'm gonna like these shoes as well. No issues with regards to blisters as yet either.

I had planned to walk this evening, but Kim and I had to go to work on a leak at one of our properties so the walk never happened. Since we were half way there already working, we drove on to our favorite Indian restaurant for dinner. I ruined what was otherwise a pretty good day with my diet. I had a chicken curry dish is a tomato cream gravy, along with a mango lassi, some chai tea, puri, and a sweet coconut naan. Delicious. Of course I had my usual dessert as well, GULAB JAMUN! We brought home chana sag and chana masala. Tomorrow's lunch/dinner!

Tomorrow is another round of Insanity, then an arm workout, followed by a run. Might run 6 miles tomorrow. I've gotta train legs on Sunday, so I know I won't be running much then.

Crappy Luncy Followed by a Crappy Run

2010-08-26T19:38:00.003-04:00

Crappy. That sums up my day.

Breakfast was ok. A muffin and some granola. Lunch was no good. We ended up at the Cheesecake Factory. Blah. I tried the fish tacos. I should have just gotten a slice of cheesecake instead. They were blah. I ended up eating bread with butter afterward, which was delicious.

Once home from my day riding around in Atlanta I went on a run OUTSIDE. The temperature felt great. My new Vibram Bikila's felt great. I ran a decent pace from the house out to the end of the big dam of our lake (.94 miles) and stopped to return a phone call (I heard my dad's ring tone and knew I needed to call back or else I wouldn't have stopped). Once off the phone I noticed my right heel was hurting a little. I slipped off the back part of my shoe to find the blister which I thought had already healed to be bleeding. Lovely. I had to walk home with my right shoe half on/half off. Maybe a few more days and I'll be able to run in the Vibrams again. Blisters suck. I thought I was gonna get lucky with these new shoes. This seems to always happen to me when I get a new pair. Oh well, a few days of blisters, then a year or so of good use.

TOMORROW I make my return to the gym and Insanity. Two days off and I'm hating it. I could tell this evening I was in a bad mood (partially from the terrible fish tacos). I should be all better in the AM after a good workout. Maybe I'll even get up and run (wearing socks and shoes) before running at the gym.

Nothing

2010-08-26T09:16:00.003-04:00

Nothing. That's basically what I've done since Tuesday. I managed to walk around the lake last night, but that's it. I've been busy with work for the past 36 hours and it continues today. Hopefully I'll get back home by the middle of the afternoon so I can get some sorta workout in. My new shoes, the Terra Planar (not sure on the spelling) came in. All I've done in them so far is walk to the mail box. Pics and notes from my first run in them tomorrow. Shaun T is gonna try to kill me when I do my next Insanity workout tonight. I'm almost scared....

Running In the new Vibram Bikila

2010-08-24T16:38:00.004-04:00

Last night I only got to walk the dog around the lake to break in the new Vibram Bikila shoes. Today I got in a little 3 mile run on the treadmill and I was thrilled with them. Much more comfortable than the Vibram KSO's I've been using from time to time. The material is a little different, the fit is more snug and cushiony, and much more padding/gripping material on the front of the foot. I had a few people stop me and ask about them while I was training. 1 guy even knew what they were and had been trying to find a pair. I got lucky finding these (at the 10th place I tried). Maybe not so much lucky, just determined to find a pair....

My workout to day was very fast paced. I began with 3 sets of pull ups, then 3 sets of t-bar rows, then 3 sets of hammer strength pull downs, then ended with 3 sets of lat pull downs. I finished the workout in under 10 minutes, so I was moving quick with little rest. I was in such a hurry so that I made sure I had time to run for 30 minutes before having to get ready to meet my mother and sister for lunch. The run was great. No pain, no issues with the new shoes, just a good, decent paced run. I didn't push at all (making sure I was comfortable in the shoes) but by running after the fast workout, my heart rate stayed pretty high the entire workout. I guess the real test of how I fared will come tomorrow when I find out if my calves are wrecked or not.

I spent the rest of the day either working for my father after my lunch with Joyce and Drena. I had a chicken, spinach, shrimp, curried peach dish over rice. Very good. Really good considering that I forgot to eat breakfast for the first time in over a year. I guess I just got busy trying to do some bookwork and getting ready to train. Crazy. I wondered why I was so hungry before lunch.

My only other training on the day was a walk around the lake. I developed a very painful blister on my foot after the walk. Every time I get some new shoes I always get a blister or two.

Tomorrow is already wrecked. I've gotta work for a bit in Atlanta, deal with the blister, and try to train before the gym gets crowded tomorrow evening. Might have to skip the gym entirely and just spin, walk, and do Insanity.

Feeling Better

2010-08-23T18:04:00.004-04:00

After a weekend of being sick I'm back feeling better today. The only exercise I managed over the weekend was the most difficult 3.5 mile run I've ever done. Don't think I'll try running while sick much more.

Today I changed the order of my training. I began the day with the Insanity Max Cardio workout. MUCH easier doing it first. I completed almost every set at a good pace. Amazing what training fresh will do for you.

Next up was the gym. I trained chest first instead of running first. 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of decline presses, 3 sets of machine flies, and 3 sets of seated chest press. I ran at a moderate pace and finished about 3.6 miles in 30 minutes. I walked a little more and ended up with 3.85 miles total.

After working some this afternoon I came home and finished up my Insanity for the day with Cardio Abs. 16 minutes of a decent ab workout.

One of my new pair of running shoes arrived today. The Vibram Bikila's are specifically designed for running (whereas my other Vibrams are designed for general use). The fit is a little different and some of the materials are different (these are more comfortable feeling, at least so far). I'll try them out when we walk JJF later this evening. Just walking at first tonight and maybe I'll get to run in them tomorrow at the gym.

Bad

2010-08-20T22:50:00.003-04:00

Today's plan was to do my Insanity workout this morning, then go to the gym to run and train, then home to rest and watch the Braves play. It wasn't even close.

This morning I spent a few hours doing bookwork instead of Insanity. I readjusted my plan and went to the gym around lunch. I began the workout with a 3.5 barefoot hill run. My arm workout followed the run. 3 sets of overhead presses, and 3 sets of triceps press downs. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls and ended with 3 sets of hammer curls.

Back at home I rested for an hour or so before I attempted Insanity. I didn't make it through the warm up. I felt tired, weak, and knew I just didn't have it in me to do the workout. At the time I thought maybe it was because it is the end of the week & I'm tired, or tired from running extra earlier in the week, or maybe because I knew there was a baseball game on, but for whatever reason, I was very unimpressed with myself for not pushing and getting the workout in. An hour later the reason became obvious. I have some sorta stomach virus (guessing). I've been nauseous, sick to my stomach, weak, and unable to eat. I'm also not thirsty, which is usually a sign that I'm sick. I'm forcing down water, but I know I need more. Hopefully I'll be better in the morning and can have a good weekend. I'll be in a horrible mood if I can't run, workout, and find something fun for Kim and I to do tomorrow because of this....

Quick Post a Day Late

2010-08-20T11:30:00.002-04:00

Thursday

Workout - ran 3.5 miles barefoot (well, I was wearing my Vibrams), trained shoulders, Insanity Max Interval Plyo (sucked as bad as always), walked dog.

Food - muffin & yogurt, protein shake, frozen Indian meal, turkey sandwich, almonds, muffin, rice cakes.

I'm a day behind on everything this week. Workouts, posting, work....

Tomorrow is arms (should be legs), another barefoot run, Max Cardio and Cardio Abs, and a dog walk.

Another Fit Test

2010-08-18T15:27:00.006-04:00

After pushing yesterday's Insanity Fit Test and Workout back a day due to the 10 mile run, I had to suck it up and do it today. I am a little sore from the 10 miles. My quads and hams feel like I had a really good leg workout about 4 days ago. My ankles and calves fell somewhat fatigued and weak, but otherwise I'm not hurting too bad. Last night I was TIRED though.

I started the day with a muffin and some granola cereal. The muffin was a new cinnamon type muffin I baked last night. Each muffin has a little under 200 calories so when I combine a muffin with something else I get plenty of calories to get through my morning workout.

At the gym this morning I began with a 3.5 mile hill run on the treadmill. I kept the pace slow and incline moderate. My body responded nicely to running again. I was afraid my feet and calves would cramp up on me. After the run I began today's back workout (I'm a day behind this week) with 3 sets of pull-ups, then 3 sets of lat pull downs, followed by 3 sets of heavy T-bar rows, and finally 3 sets of seated rows. My post workout meal was a protein shake with a room temp banana mixed in. NEVER AGAIN. I must have frozen bananas! Thus I'll be going to the grocery store this evening.

Next up (after a small amount of book work so I could rest a little) was the Insanity Fit Test. This is my 4th time doing the test. It never gets any easier. Actually, it gets harder every time because I can push myself harder each time. Ugh. Results below:

Exercise	Day 1	Day 15	Day 36	Day 50
Switch Kicks	59	68	76	77
Power Jacyk	56	69	71	72
Power Knees	85	120	125	130
Power Jumps	35	57	65	72
Globe Jumps	7	12	13	13
Suicide Jumps	13	21	23	25
Push Up Jacks	35	45	55	59
Low Plank Oblique	40	60	72	74

Marginally better in everything except Globe Jumps. Maybe in two more weeks I can get one more jump in. I'm kinda tired by that point though.

After the fit test I rested a bit (creating this post and updating my results) before going back for more Insanity. Today is the Max Interval Circuit. This is day 50 of the program. The Max workouts are still kicking my ass. I fail out every time. Maybe at the end of the next two weeks I'll get to where I can stay in every set. I do think doing Insanity has increased my overall cardio/endurance/stamina. Pushing hard for an hour (or 45 minutes the first month) really helped me with the run yesterday. Today's actual workout was just as bad as usual. By the time I got to the final set of intervals I was exhausted. I ended up cutting it a set short. The only other workout of the day was a walk around the lake with Kim and JJF late this evening. BodyBugg has me burning over 4700 calories on the day. Pretty good considering I didn't ride the bike today.

Dinner this evening was jerked Salmon, sauteed mushrooms with green beans and onions, and some scalloped potatoes. Dessert was a protein bar and a muffin.

Tomorrow is my shoulder day at the gym. I'm gonna have to alter my cardio a little tomorrow. My ankle is sore from having on my running shoes all day (they were tied too tight). Maybe I'll run in my Vibrams tomorrow!

Celebrating With a 10 Mile Run.

2010-08-17T16:38:00.008-04:00

To celebrate my 1 year anniversary of The Diet I decided to do something I've never done before....I ran 10 miles.

Before the run I had a quick chest workout with mom. 3 sets of flat bench, 3 sets of incline bench, 3 sets of decline bench, and 3 sets of machine flies. Then I made my way to the treadmill. I've never attempted to run much more than 6 miles before. I've run 6 quite a few times, and then would walk the remaining time I had on the treadmill (until I hit 60 minutes). The first 7 miles were easy. I finished in under 60 minutes. I then had to stop and reset the treadmill (it will only allow you to use it for a max of 60 minutes). I then started my final 3 miles. No problem at all. I did slow my pace somewhat during the last 3 miles, finishing the entire run in around 86 minutes. So that was 7 miles in just under 60 (like 59:40 or something) and then the final 3 miles in around 26 minutes. The only bad part of the run was during the last mile and a half. My socks and shoes were soaked with sweat and I could feel my feet sloshing around in my shoes. But overall it was great. Very rewarding. Last year, I would have been unable to do anything near 10 miles. If someone was chasing me with a gun and was going to shoot me if I quit running, I'd be dead. I don't think I could have run a VERY slow mile last year. So again, very rewarding...

As a result of the longer run, I'm skipping Insanity today. Well, not skipping it, just pushing it to tomorrow. I've felt pretty good all afternoon, I just know there's no way I could possibly do one of the workouts with good form. Plus I'm scheduled to do a Fit Test as well. No thanks. I am gonna walk around the lake with JJF when it cools off a bit.

Food on the day has been good. Muffin and a NS scone for breakfast. Protein shake after the run. A NS lunch soup a little later. Dinner was a frozen Indian entree. Snacks were a sugar free jello pudding and a small cup of Greek yogurt. My last meal of the day was a bowl of granola and a muffin (I made a fresh batch and had to try one).

One Year Ago (before and after with pics)

2010-08-16T19:02:00.015-04:00

One year ago today I began my effort to get back in shape. At the time I weighed somewhere between 280-290. The scales stopped at 270 so I'm really not sure what I weighed. I know my heaviest was around the 290 mark, but that may have been a little earlier. Anyway, here's a photo of me the day before I started (@280+) above a photo of me from a few days ago (~200).

I began the endeavor by using NutriSystem. From August through the end of February I ate nothing but NS foods (except for Thanksgiving and Xmas). It was the easiest thing I've ever done. Simple eating plan and it worked great. NS wasn't the only thing I was doing. I was working out as well. I had been working out for a year or so before beginning the diet, but I hadn't lost a pound.

When the diet began I thought I was really doing a lot of cardio. I was walking on the treadmill for about 30 minutes a day, and a couple of nights a week I was walking the dogs with Kim. As I started to lose weight I started to enjoy the cardio more and more. I joked with Kim one evening that maybe a good goal would be for me to get into good enough shape to run around the lake one day. The urge to attempt to run kept getting stronger and stronger and after a few days of running on the treadmill I ran a little one evening outside. 2 nights later I ran the entire route I'd hoped to complete one day. Before this I couldn't run from the living room to the kitchen. Now I could run ~2 miles! Today I run at least 3.5 everyday. Some days I run 6. To celebrate the one year anniversary of the diet I'm gonna run 10 miles. Along with the weight training and running I now also typically ride a spin bike around 30 minutes a day. For the past month and a half I've been doing Insanity Workouts as well. All that plus a 2 miles walking of the dogs most evenings makes up my daily workout.

I no longer drive myself crazy with trying to weigh and make sure I'm still losing weight. I've slowly transitioned from being all about losing weight each week to being healthy, fit, active, and happy. Now if I miss a day of training or eat unhealthy I feel bad. I feel almost sick. I can't eat the way/things I used to either. I've become a part time accidental vegetarian. Kim doesn't eat meat, and when I was eating only very restrictive foods it was easier to eat fake meats with her and I kinda grew to like them. Before the diet I would eat multiple steaks each week, maybe some BBQ ribs, and lots of fast food. I can't really eat steak anymore. It makes me sick. I haven't had ribs in over a year (sorry Dubs). About once a month, or while on vacation we'll have a bite of fast food. I'm never happy afterward, usually looking forward to getting back to my healthy eating. My diet is pretty clean and any greasy fatty food doesn't sit well with me. That's ok. I really don't miss it at all. I now enjoy lots of fish, grilled chicken, turkey, some salads, cereals, protein shakes, etc.

During the past year my body fat has dropped around 13%. Total pounds lost are somewhere around 80. I wore a size 40 waist, now a 32-33. I was having to buy XX-XXXL shirts. Now I wear L or XL. Crazy. I've gone from my workouts being mainly resistance (lifting) to now a good variety of intense cardio, pretty intense lifting, INSANE interval training, and enjoyable outdoor activities (like walking the dogs in the summer heat).

One of the main things that motivated me to start a diet was when Kim and I were on vacation in San Francisco last summer and she had to help carry some of my camera gear up a trail. She was afraid I was gonna have a heart attack. That along with the fact I saw a photo I was in and didn't recognize myself. Now I'm confident I can outlast Kim hiking and playing around outdoors. I'm really amazed at how much happier I am doing anything outside in the summer now. Last summer I just simply stayed indoors. This summer has been different. I'm not saying I love the crazy hot humid days we've been having, but I'm ok with it. When fall gets here I may go outside, start running and playing out with the dogs, and not come in until winter.

This spring Kim and ran in the South East Warrior Dash. I NEVER, EVER thought I'd run in any kinda race. Now I'd like to find a few different 5k or 10k races to run just so I can have something to motivate myself to train for. The Tough Mudder, USMC Mud Run, and Black Foot Mud Run (night run) all look fun too. Well, the Tough Mudder looks awful, but something to shoot for.

Here's a few more before/after photos.

And the after...

But here is my favorite new photo....

Of all the things that have happened over the past year that I'm so happy with (losing weight, running, being more fit, more healthy, etc.) the one that blows them all away is of course our engagement. Maybe when the wedding rolls around I'll push harder and "dig deeper" and get in even better shape! I'm so thankful that I'm in better overall health and look forward to a long, happy, healthy life with Kim!

So to any of you that are just starting your journey to better health, it can be done. If you're interested in following my daily exercise blog (and all of my past posts over the past year of eating and training) check it out here.

Weekend Fare

2010-08-15T14:07:00.003-04:00

This weekend was about average as far as exercise goes. 4 mile run on Saturday. Dog walk, bike ride, Insane Abs, and rest on Sunday.

Eating was weird.

Saturday I got and had a bagel before the gym. Kim had planned to work all weekend, but her plans changed. Once I got in from the gym on Saturday we decided to go out for the evening in Chattanooga.

We ate dinner at 3 different restaurants, plus ice cream afterward. If you're interested in our Great Eating Adventure, check it out on our non-exercise blog here.

Sunday we ate at Harvest Moon Cafe in Rome for brunch. That was basically all I ate all day. Probably still ate too much on the day though.

Tomorrow's workout schedule is already altered. Kim & I have to go to Chattanooga in the AM. I'm sure we'll have Indian for lunch, then back home in time to workout (I hope). If not everything gets pushed back one day.

Woke Up Tired On Leg Day

2010-08-13T11:05:00.007-04:00

I woke this morning a little before 8AM, checked my email (I'm waiting on a few important emails for my father), checked twitter, and decided to rest for just a minute more before getting breakfast. A moment later when I opened my eyes it was 10:30. WHAT? I felt exhausted still. Not really a great way to start the day. I ran downstairs, kissed the Pug, drank some coffee, had my breakfast of a muffin & a NS apple scone, forced down some water and got ready to train.

I'm already sore in weird places (like the inner and outer portions of my lower calves?) before the run and workout. Not really a good sign of things to come. Once at the gym I ran 3.5 miles of hills on the treadmill. I kept the pace relatively slow and steady for the entire run. The leg workout began with 3 sets of smith squats, then 3 sets of hack squats, followed by 3 sets of leg presses, and finally 3 sets of leg extensions. Hamstrings work began with 3 sets of lying leg curls (heavy) and then 3 sets of weighted hyper-extensions. The workout overall wasn't that bad today. I did have one terrible calf cramp in the middle of the workout, but otherwise everything felt pretty good.

Back at home I tried to slow down and drink some extra water as I let the dogs inside and took the Pug on a walk. It's hot, crazy hot here. After tending to the hounds I had a protein shake with a banana as my post workout/pre-Insanity meal. My workout got pushed a few hours later than I wanted due to some work I had to finish. Kinda ended up being a good thing as I was much more recovered by the time I started. Today's Insanity workout was Max Cardio Conditioning. It was again very hard. I failed out on lots of sets. My form was much better today on football drills and suicide drills. All in all a good workout. Tomorrow is Core Cardio and Balance.

Dinner this evening was tortilla soup, NS veggie fajitas and veggie chorizo served on lite bread. We shared a small amount of ice cream after dinner. No walk this evening as rain showers have moved in.

I plan on running tomorrow, as long as my legs aren't freaky sore (they're already a little sore tonight). The run, plus a ride on the bike, a walk, and Insanity should make for an eventful day.

6 Miles & Crazy Sweat

2010-08-12T22:51:00.006-04:00

No Insanity today. Luckily that was the plan all along. I had a good bit of bookwork to do this morning and an appointment late this evening, so I knew it was gonna be hard to squeeze it in. My only workout of the day was done at the gym. I ran 6 miles in around 53 minutes, then I walked for about 15 more minutes trying to cool off. After the run I trained arms. 3 sets of triceps press downs, 3 sets of rope press downs, and 3 sets of reverse grip press downs. Biceps was 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls & 3 sets of standing dumbbell curls. I noticed while doing my seated biceps work I had perspired so much I was leaving little (large) puddles everywhere I stood as I trained. I was actually sweating so much the puddles of sweat had suds/bubbles (for lack of better term). That's an impressive amount of sweat, even for me. I was a good gym person & mopped up all of the sweat with my gym towel. I might sweat like crazy, but I'm not nasty and rude with it.

Food today was not so great. Breakfast was a muffin and yogurt. Lunch was a protein bar and post workout meal was a frozen Indian Dinner. Late afternoon I had part of another muffin before going to my meeting. After the meeting my first dinner was 4 small Real Mexican Tacos! Al Pastor, Cabeza, Barbocoa, and Lengua! My second dinner was a little (or a lot) of some type of baked spaghetti my mother made. My third dinner was a bowl of cereal and a protein bar after I got home tonight. Plus another 1/2 muffin. I was crazy hungry tonight.

Tomorrow is another good run followed by a leg workout. Then Insanity later in the day. Somewhere during the day I gotta squeeze in a bike ride and a dog walk. Hope I sleep well...

Exhausted

2010-08-11T15:45:00.003-04:00

I had a decent run around lunch today to begin my training. The first two miles were in just under 15:20, and then I slowed a little for the third mile. After the third mile I walked a bit to cool off before starting my shoulder workout. The workout began with 3 sets of hammer strength shoulder presses, then 3 sets of side lateral raises, followed by 3 sets of rope pulley upright rows, then 3 sets of machine rear delts, and finally 3 sets of shoulder shrugs.

The next part of my daily routine was the Insanity Max Interval Plyo workout. I did good for the first 1/2 of the workout. The next 10 minutes I ground to a halt. With around 20 minutes left I had to stop, hit pause, and rest in the floor. I thought that maybe if I waited around 5 or 10 minutes and recovered I could finish the workout. I tried and made it about a minute. I felt completely drained. I'd had about 64 oz of water just before and during the workout, so I wasn't dehydrated, I was just tired. I decided I needed food and ate a frozen Indian dinner.

When Kim got home this evening we went grocery shopping before going on our evening walk with Jumping Jack Flash. The walk was my only other exercise of the day. I skipped the spin bike all together.

I'm probably gonna skip the Insanity Recovery workout tomorrow. I think I'll run a little more than usual instead. I have a good bit of work to do tomorrow, so it'll be hard to squeeze in the Insanity anyway.

Full Hungry Day

2010-08-10T22:33:00.004-04:00

Today has been one of those days where I have been hungry all day long. I've manged it well, to a point. I've eaten healthy foods all day, just too much of them.

My day began with a muffin and yogurt. I then rode the spin bike for thirty minutes before my morning conference call. Afterward I had half a granola bar and got ready for my daily visit to the gym. A 3+ mile started my workout before training back. I began with 3 sets of pull-ups, followed by 3 sets of pull-downs, then 3 sets of hammer strength iso-lateral rows, and finished with 3 sets of T-bar rows.

Back at home I had a turkey sandwich before my Insanity workout. Today was the Max Interval Circuit. Very hard. Again I did better than last week, but still hard. I drank 4 pounds of water during the workout (and nearly vomited the last half right at the end). After the Insanity I had a protein shake (with a banana thrown in) to recover.

For dinner I basically started eating (after I could stand again after the Max Interval Circuit) and didn't stop for hours. I first had some left over chana sag (spinach and chick peas) with rice. Not much, but it was good. Then I ate a frozen Mexican meal (around 400 calories). Then I ate a large bowl of granola cereal. So now for dinner I've had well over 1000 calories.

I made myself stop eating and go on a walk around 8PM. JJF and I walked about 2 1/2 miles around the lake. Once back home I continued eating. A muffin, a NS cinnamon bun, a little cheese, and finally a NS brownie. The bad thing is I'm still hungry as I'm finishing up this post and going to bed. At least I can eat breakfast when I get up in the morning. Which may be very early, 'cause I'm STARVING!

Catching Up

2010-08-09T16:00:00.003-04:00

So I missed an Insanity Workout over the weekend. I knew my schedule today was gonna be altered due to a conference call at 11AM, so I decided to catch up on my missed workout this morning. Around 9:30 I started Max Plyo and finished up just as my father arrived for the call. We waited around for 30 minutes before contacting the other party only to realize the call was actually scheduled for Tuesday at 11. So we'll be meeting again tomorrow morning for the call. The good news is the Max Plyo workout was easier today. Not so much easier, well not at all really, but I handled it much better. I did fail out and need rest on some of the exercises, but overall I did fairly well.

I didn't make it to the gym until around 1PM. It felt considerably hotter than usual inside. Not sure if it really was or if I was just already hot from earlier. It really doesn't matter, it's so hot outside here (96-98 today) you can only cool a building so much. Anyway, I started with a 3+ mile jog (varied speeds between 6-8mph) then walked about 10 minutes to cool down. My chest workout today consisted of 3 sets of flat hammer strength presses, 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of decline presses, and 2 sets of machine flies. After my second set of flies I felt like I was pretty well spent and called it quits one set early.

Back at home I readied myself for the second round of Insanity on the day. Max Cardio. Again, MUCH better this time than last week. I was really a little worried about how poorly I preformed last week with the new workouts, but now I feel much better after doing better on both workouts today. This is how I'll do the Fit Test from now on as well. Fit Test in the AM, workout in the PM. Kim, JJF, and I walked around the lake as the sun went down and the temps dropped for my final exercise of the day.

Diet was pretty good today. Muffin and yogurt for breakfast. Granola as a snack before the gym. Left over chana sag after the gym. Turkey late in the afternoon. Dinner was a tiny bite of fake chicken, green beans, squash, and salad. After dinner I had some granola cereal and 1/2 a muffin. The BodyBugg has me burning over 4500 calories on the day. Not too shabby.

Tomorrow is Max Interval Circuit for Insanity & a back workout at the gym.

Weekend

2010-08-08T17:08:00.003-04:00

This weekend I ended up skipping my Insanity workout. I was a little tired on Friday evening and planned to move the Insanity from Saturday to Sunday.

Saturday morning I got some breakfast for Kim and I at a local little burger stand called Big Dang Burgers (& Biscuits). They have some big dang biscuits.... I brought our breakfast home so Kim could have breakfast in bed. Later in the afternoon I went to the gym for some cardio. 6 miles later I was finished. I now have a new rule concerning running; never run after eating gravy and biscuits. Back at home I later rode the spin bike for half an hour before walking with Kim and JJF around dark.

Sunday I decided not to do Insanity because my left knee was bothering me. I did make it to the gym for 30 minutes of cardio. I ran for 15 and then hit the elliptical for 15. I made myself leave after the 30. I felt like I wasn't doing enough, but I really wanted to rest my knee. The only other exercise on the day was a walk around the lake this evening with Kim and Jumping Jack Flash.

All in all not a bad weekend. Much better than last. Eating wasn't great, but again, better than last weekend. Friday night we had Indian, Saturday night was grilled chicken with my parents (Kim had a grilled veggie burger), and Sunday (our only real meal) was at the Chinese Buffet. I actually showed some self restraint at the buffet and left not feeling so miserable.

Back at it full tilt tomorrow.

Run & Skunk

2010-08-06T17:27:00.004-04:00

Today began with me actually waking up nearly on time. A muffin and some granola cereal for breakfast then I was off to the gym.

I had been arguing with myself all night as to what I would do for cardio today and I hadn't come up with an answer when I stepped onto the treadmill. I decided I'd just start running and stop when I got tired, train legs, then run some more. I ran nearly 6.7 miles before I stopped. I finished 6 miles in ~51 minutes then slowed a little at the end and walked a little to cool down. Legs began with 3 sets of leg presses, then 3 sets of true squats, followed by 3 sets of leg extensions. Hamstrings consisted of only 2 exercises. 3 sets of seated leg curls & 3 sets of weighted hyper-extensions. While at the gym I took in 4 pounds of water.

Back at home I had a protein shake, rested a little, then got ready for Insanity. Today was Max Interval Circuit. I did decent with the workout. Towards the end I was quite tired, but pushed through as best I could. The full body drill at the end kills me. It's a combination of 4 various drills in the plank position, done in one big set, 3 times each interval. After that I'm just spent.

Once I finished up with Insanity for the day I cooled off yet again, I decided I had time to get on the spin bike before Kim got home. I made it 15 minutes. I gave up on any more cardio and decided to eat some turkey as a snack. I was trying very hard not to eat too much during the day.

We went out for dinner this evening. Sitar in Chattanooga. It's our favorite little Indian place. Kim had fish tikka masala and I had chicken tikka masala. Of course I had to have a mango lasi and some chai tea. We also ordered some garlic naan and puri. I also ordered some chana sag to bring home and eat tomorrow. Dessert was a few bites of Ice Cream back here in Ctown.

Just as we were pulling in the driveway on our way home, the horrible, powerful, sickening smell of wet skunk hit us (in the car with the windows rolled up!). We got out of the car and were greeted by our Jack Russell. Yep, he'd been sprayed by a skunk again. This is the second time in as many weeks. You'd think he'd learn to leave skunks alone....

Max Recovery

2010-08-05T23:03:00.004-04:00

Thursday again began with me oversleeping a little. I beginning to think I'm just exhausted from training. I began the day with a muffin, yogurt, and a NS Cinniamon Bun Bar before heading to the gym

I decided to do something different with my cardio. Instead of just 30 minutes and then training, I'd do 30, train, then 30 more. I started off doing 1/2 of the 10K personal training program on the treadmill before training arms. The lifting started with 3 sets of overhead presses, then 3 sets of dumbbell overhead presses, and finally 3 sets of press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline curls and ended with 3 sets of standing hammer curls. I returned to the treadmill for 10 minutes, then moved on to the elliptical for 20 more.

Once back at home I had my lunch of a turkey sandwich and a NS oatmeal cookie before resting for a bit. Then it was time for Insanity. Today's Insanity Workout was Max Recovery. ~ 50 minutes of stretching, light cardio, and somewhat difficult plank/push-up/squat work. The most difficult part of any of the workouts for me (other than the initial shock of the workout in general) has been trying to do push-ups while already being sore, and being sure of my footing/hand positions while jumping/pushing on the floor. I've caught myself twice falling (almost face/nose first) because I've perspired so much my hands are slick while doing push-ups. I need a yoga mat or something.

After Insanity I had some left over veggie meat hamburger helper and a NS Brownie. After finishing some bookwork and a little more rest I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes. That was the end of my cardio for the day. Storm clouds moved in and I didn't get to walk.

My other meals on the day were a NS Lunch Entree of Pasta with Beef (I'm trying to eat as much of the NS stuff as I can, just so we can finally get rid of it all) and a LC Lasagna dinner.

Tomorrow is leg day.....I'm gonna try to do a split cardio thing again. 30 before, train, 30 after. Not sure how my legs will cooperate. I'm trying to get myself used to doing more than 30 minutes of running at a time. Just in case I ever want to try to run something longer than a 5k. Like the USMC Mud Run, or the Tough Mudder....

Max Cardio

2010-08-04T12:31:00.006-04:00

Today began much like yesterday, with me oversleeping. I guess I'm just exhausted and need the rest. I have been staying up a little late as Kim works on her computer, but not much past midnight. Anyway, once I got up and had some coffee I had my first meal of the day, a muffing and a half, and a cup of yogurt. I think it was around 400 calories total.

My workouts for the day began at the gym with a flat, faster paced run. I varied the pace constantly and finished 3 miles in 24:25. Not bad considering I'm only doing quicker paced runs once or twice a week. After the run I cooled down by walking for the rest of my 30 minutes of allotted treadmill time and then got ready to train shoulders. 3 sets of hammer strength military presses, 3 sets of cable upright rows, 3 sets of Bodymaster's machine side lateral raises, 3 sets of shoulder shrugs, and finally 3 sets of Bodymaster's rear delts.

After the gym I returned home for a protein shake and some rest before having to help my family move more furniture. After loading a moving van/trailer full of furniture (in 95 degree/105 degree heat index temps) I came home and had a turkey sandwich. Once I finished my sandwich I began pacing the floor, trying to get motivated to start today's Insanity Workout, which is Max Cardio & Conditioning. It was AWFUL. I failed out on every exercise following the warm up. Some were kinda easy, but because of the other KILLER exercises, I failed out on the easy ones as well. I hope I react to it like I did after the first time I did the Pure Cardio workout. I had a lot of trouble at first with Pure Cardio, but it ended up being my favorite workout from month 1. I don't know that Max Cardio will ever by my fav. Following the workout I collapsed onto the floor where the Pug attacked me with her incessant licking of my face (she loves sweat). Once I was able to stand I grabbed a cold bottle of water from the fridge, drank a few long gulps, and thew up. Cool, I know. I actually kinda almost passed out during one of the water breaks in the middle of the workout. I had to grab the side of the sofa and hang on for a sec. Like I've always said, if you're vomiting and passing out during/after a workout, that's a sure sing of a decent workout.

Once the sun began to set a little Kim and I called for JJF and took off on a walk. Did I mention it's crazy hot here? Just a little humid too. I was soaked (my 3rd change of clothes on the day) after about 1/2 a mile. I can't wait for some cooler weather. I may jog all day long once the temps stay in the 60's.

Dinner tonight was feat. Fake meat mixed into hamburger helper. Plus a small salad and some pineapple. Dessert this evening was a muffin and a NS cookie!

Tomorrow is arm day and Max Recovery. I feel like I need some recovery....

Max Plyo

2010-08-03T18:50:00.005-04:00

The day began with me oversleeping a bit. I was exhasuted from yesterday. Once awake and coffee'd up, I had granola cereal and yogurt for breakfast.

Since I arrived at the gym a little late (like 45 minutes) mom had already finished up her cardio. We jumped right into a back workout. 2 sets of pathetic pull-ups, 3 sets of pull downs, 3 sets of hammer iso-lateral pull downs, 3 sets of hammer rows, and 3 sets of t-bar rows. THEN I jumped on the treadmill. I ran the Hill program again. 6mph until the program more or less was over and then 7mph for the final few minutes of the 30 minute run.

After the gym I had a turkey sandwich before heading out for some errands and a trip to the grocery store. I needed to stock up on chicken and turkey. Back home again I chilled for a minute while trying to get mentally prepared for the Max Plyo Insanity Workout. For me, it was the most difficult workout so far. I actually had to stop and rest at the end. As luck would have it, my mom dropped by just when I needed the rest. We had a Ninjaed Ice Crystal Light Thingy. She liked it so much she ordered a Ninja this evening! I finished the final few minutes of the workout a little later. Not my finest exercise moment, having to take a break. I realized that while the people on the DVD were jumping in the air during an exercise, I was not. I was trying, I just wasn't really leaving the ground on my jump. Kinda pathetic.

After recovering from Insanity, I had a NS lunch meal of cheese tortellini and a blueberry muffin. Sounds great, I know. I just was still very hungry after the NS. Following the meal I turned on the TV and watched an episode of The West Wing (currently being replayed on Bravo) as I rode the spin bike for half an hour.

Dinner this evening was a LC Baja Wrap of some sort. Pretty good. After dinner I grabbed JJF and took off on our evening walk. Kim had to work late, so again it was just the dog and I.

Later, while watching the Braves game I had my final meal of the day. Another muffin and some jello pudding!

Fit Test Number 3

2010-08-02T17:40:00.006-04:00

Sunday = REST. I had planned to run & do Insanity. My right foot was sore (from the 6 mile run) late Saturday night and all day Sunday. Rest was required.

Monday began my 6th week of Insanity. This week everything moves to the MAX portion of the workouts. Max circuit, max recovery, etc. My Insanity workout this afternoon began with the Fit Test. This is my 3rd time going through the test. I again did better on each exercise. I'm actually doing better than the numbers indicate. The first time I took the test, it was the only thing I did that day. Today I had already run, trained, and moved some furniture with my parents. So here's the latest fit test results:

Exercise	Day 1	Day 15	Day 36
Switch Kicks	59	68	76
Power Jacyk	56	69	71
Power Knees	85	120	125
Power Jumps	35	57	65
Globe Jumps	7	12	13
Suicide Jumps	13	21	23
Push Up Jacks	35	45	55
Low Plank Oblique	40	60	72

I made the mistake of doing the Max Circuit workout immediately following the Fit Test. Doh! The first month's workouts are around 40 minutes each. This one was 60. I was dead by the end. Actually, I was in pretty bad shape during the warm up....During the workout I drank over 70 ounces of water. That's over 4 pounds of water. Crazy.

Prior to the Insanity Workout this afternoon, I trained around 11AM this morning. I began the workout with an easy 3 mile run using the Hill Program on the treadmill. Next I moved on to my chest workout. 3 sets of flat presses, 3 set of incline presses, and 3 sets of decline presses.

Late this evening JJF and I headed out on our evening walk. Kim has been feeling a little under the weather, so she didn't join us for the stroll.

I did get in some other non-training exercise today. I helped move an old bedroom suite that belonged to my grandmother. We loaded it up, moved it across town, then carried it up a flight of stairs at my parents' house. Later in the afternoon I was surprised to discover my father and our friend Robein cutting down an old, dead tree in my back yard. I gathered the hounds and brought them inside, and went out to help them get rid of the fallen tree. The work wasn't hard on either occasion, it's just very humid and warm here.

Food today has been terrific. Granola and yogurt early this morning, A turkey sandwich with a single slice of cheese for lunch (I've now given up low-fat mayo). For snacks I had some chocolate PB, a NS cookie, and 1/2 a NS granola bar. Dinner was a LC Thai Style Chicken and Noodle dinner. I also had some granola later to get in enough calories for the day.

Tomorrow I'll train back at the gym, Insanity during the afternoon, walk and spin as usual. I'm excited (terrified) to see what the next Insanity workout is. As I'm finishing up this post, my BodyBugg has me already burning over 5000 calories and it's not quite 11PM. I blew past my goal of reaching 5K one day this week. Maybe I'll get close every day!

6 Miles of Hills

2010-07-31T20:13:00.006-04:00

Today began with Kim and I having a lovely breakfast together at home. We had facon, fake eggs, and a bagel. Actually I had a bagel, she had tomatoes.

I decided not to do my Insanity workout today. Instead I ran 6 miles. I kept the pace relatively slow, but ran hills the entire time. BodyBugg had me burning over 1100 calories. I'm not gonna say the run was easy, but it sure wasn't hard. Just long. After I finished up on the treadmill I did another mile on the elliptical to cool off. Back at home I rode the spin bike for 15 minutes, then went on a walk with JJF. Kim walked a little bit with us, but turned back after about 1/2 a mile. She's been feeling bad (sore throat, etc.) all day.

My other meals on the day consisted of a turkey sandwich for lunch, 2 low fat apple muffins, and a few olives during the day. Dinner was jerked salmon, au gratin potatoes, and squash Dessert was Skinny Cow! Decent with my meals today.

Tomorrow I'll get in an Insanity Workout for sure, probably a run, and then a walk. That's my plan....

Legs, An Attempted Pug Party, Beef Tongue, & Ice Cream

2010-07-30T13:45:00.005-04:00

Another Friday and that means it's LEG DAY!

I began the day with a muffin and some yogurt before heading to the gym. I arrived about an hour later than usual and ran 3+ miles using the Hill Program on the treadmill. Next came the leg workout proper. 3 sets of smith squats, 3 sets of true squats, 2 sets of leg presses, and 2 sets of leg extensions for quads. Hams began with 3 sets of seated leg curls, 2 sets of very light stiff leg dead lifts, and finally 3 sets of weighted hyper-extensions.

After the workout I had a protein shake before grabbing the pug and heading back to the gym for a Pug Party. Unfortunately, Belle (my pug) was scared of Emma (L's pug). That combined with a minor disturbance at the front desk at the gym made me decide to give up on the Pug Party a little quickly. Belle was actually terrified. I don't know why. She actually jumped (as well as a pug can) up into my arms. One home all was well again in Pug Land. She immediately began to battle with JJF.

Next up I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes before having a bowl of granola cereal.

A little before Kim got in from work I got in my Insanity Workout for the day. Again, it is the Core Cardio & Balance workout. Still gotta do it twice more over the weekend before starting the second 30 days of the program. Excited to get at it next week. With the longer Insanity workouts coming up, I think I have a real chance to have some 5000+ calorie burn days. I've come close quite a few times, even 4900+, but I've never hit 5k. Something to shoot for.

Tonight for dinner we went to a local Mexican place so we could grab some tortas. I wanted an Al Pastor torta. They were still out of Al Pastor, so I opted for Lengua (beef tongue). It was pretty good, but I only ate about half. I also had a very small (Mexican style) chorizo taco. Before all that we split some flour chips with cheese dip and salsa. After dinner we again had some ice cream. It was crazy good.

Tomorrow is all cardio, with maybe a few sets of abs at the gym. I think we're gonna grill out for dinner. Maybe some jerked salmon. Sunday is Rest Day! I think I'm still gonna do something. Insanity and a walk? Sounds good.

Almost Broke My Ankle

2010-07-29T21:58:00.003-04:00

I began today with a little longer run than usual. 4.5 miles at various speeds. Up to 9MPH for a bit. Nearly broke my ankle in the process. Afterward I trained arms with my mother. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of overhead dumbbell presses, and 3 sets of rope press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls and ended with 3 sets of standing heavy hammer curls. Once back home from the gym I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes and got in my Insanity Workout late in the evening. We tried to walk late, but only got in about a mile before some large storms moved into the area.

Breakfast was a muffin and yogurt. Post workout I had a protein shake plus a banana. Late afternoon I had a turkey sandwich. Dinner was a LC Pizza. After dinner we had a little Ice Cream ('cause it was still like 100 degrees outside). During the day I also had a NS cookie, a Skinny Cow bar, and some rice cakes. Probably around 2200 calories on the day (a little high) and I burned ~4700.

Tomorrow is legs! Yippee! I'm gonna try to eat very light all day (breakfast, shake, and maybe a light snack, basically keep it under 1000 calories) and then eat an Al Pastor Torta for dinner. That's my goal anyway.

Shoulders & Baking

2010-07-28T15:09:00.004-04:00

I've been on a muffin kick for a while. I love the Isabella Bakery Low Fat Blueberry Muffins, but I have a hard time finding them at the local Kroger. I LOVE the Kroger Double Chocolate Chip Muffins, but they have ~500 calories. I've decided to bake some muffins myself. Nothing too difficult, just store bought mixes. First I'm trying some chocolate chip muffins. I'm using egg beaters instead of real eggs and otherwise following the directions. Each muffin will have ~200 calories. Next time I'm trying some low fat Blueberry.

Today began with a NS Double Chocolate Muffin and a bowl of granola. Once I arrived at the gym I joined DJ & L on the treadmill for a 3+ mile run. Seemed very easy today having someone else there. I ran the hills program & they did different stuff (5x5x5, I think). After the treadmill I trained shoulders. 3 sets of military presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright cable rows, 3 sets of rear delts, and 3 sets of shoulder shrugs.

After the gym I had a Lean Body Protein shake with a banana before jumping on the spin bike for 30 minutes. Afterward I had one of my favorite LC meals, Chicken Carbonara. After eating I baked my muffins and crossed my fingers. I was also a little bored, so I took some pics of the muffins....

I had to try one after they cooled off. Pretty tasty & ~200 calories. They should fit into my breakfast menu well.

After my Betty Crocker moment, I got in my Insanity workout for the day. All week I have the same workout. Core Cardio & Balance. Easy and I still burned around 400 calories. I'm excited/nervous about next week. I think the workouts get longer and harder. It'll be fun though!

All that's left on the day is a walk with JJF. Kim has to work late so it'll just be the two of us. If he chases a skunk and gets sprayed again, he might get to sleep in the outside dog house....

A Day in the Car

2010-07-27T20:25:00.004-04:00

Tuesday I spent the majority of the day driving around Atlanta. From around 10Am until after 6PM. We viewed 9 different properties during the day. Before the trek began, I went to the gym and ran 3 miles on the Hill Routine and then trained back. 3 sets of pull downs, 3 sets of hammer pull downs, and 3 sets of hammer rows. I didn't have time for anything else.

Not so great day eating. Before the gym I had a lowfat blueberry muffin and afterward I had a bowl of granola cereal. During the drive I had a large Supreme Protein Bar, a Kellog's granola bar, and 2 Blue Rockstars. Dinner was Mexican. Cheese dip, flour chips, a chorizo taco, and 2/3 of a torta.

Around dusk, Kim, Jumping Jack Flash and I took our usual evening walk. It was lovely, until we got home. Near home we began to smell a burnt smell. Kinda like an electrical fire. After we got back to the house left out to go to the grocery store (and Jack ran in as we walked out) the smell was much stronger. Like a chemical weapon. Once back home and inside the house we realized it was a skunk & Jack was rotten with it. He smells awful & now so do we. So does our house. So does our lake. He smelled so bad when we got home he hid in the fire place. This is possible the worst smell I've ever come across and it'll be with us for days....

Recovery Week

2010-07-26T18:31:00.004-04:00

Sunday = Rest Day (still burned almost 3400 calories).

Today begins my Recovery Week on the Insanity Workout. 6 days of Core Cardio and Balance before starting month 2 of the program next Monday.

My actual training today began with a 3 mile run on the Random program on the treadmill. Following the treadmill I trained chest. 3 sets of machine presses, 3 sets of incline machine presses, 3 sets of decline machine presses, and 3 sets of cable flies. Back at home I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes and then washed our old 4runner we use in lieu of a 4wheeler. Insanity followed later in the day. No walk this evening (due to thunder storms and torrential rain), so I may end up spinning again late.

Good day with my food intake. Breakfast was a low fat blueberry muffin, & post workout meal was a protein shake. Post spin was 1/4 of a protein bar, a NS chocolate chip cookie, and a turkey sandwich. Dinner tonight is fake meat steak (fake steak), mashed potatoes, and later on a little NS granola bar.

Tomorrow will be an altered day. I'm headed out with my father for a long day of looking at some properties. My job? Navigation. I'm the only one who can operate a GPS device. So I'm planning on running and training at the gym early (for me that's around 8) and then spinning and Insanity whenever I make it back home. Don't know what I'll do about eating while gone. I need to plan that out tonight.

Legs On a Saturday

2010-07-25T09:38:00.004-04:00

Still being a day behind I had to train legs on Saturday.

My morning began with Kim and I making breakfast at home. She had a zucchini & onion, fake egg omelet. I had a facon, egg beaters, and cheese sandwich, a slice of bread with my new apple cider jelly, and a cup of yogurt. Yum!

After dreading, moaning, and crying about having to go to the gym I ended up having a great workout. I started out the treadmill running the hill program, at 6mph, for 30 minutes. After the run I decided to alter my usual exercises. I began the workout with 3 sets of smith squats, then 3 sets of true squats, and finally 3 sets of leg presses for quads. Hamstrings began with 3 sets of seated leg curls and the workout ended with weighted hyper-extensions. I burned 900+ calories at the gym.

I came home and had to grilled jerked chicken breasts before starting my Insanity workout for the day. The workout was the Plyo Cardio Circiut. I decided to try the workout in my Vibrams. The workout is always hard, but with the FiveFingers shoes on I had an extra tough calf workout.
My Vibrams pictured below.

I rested during the afternoon until the sun went down a little and the temps dropped. Kim and I walked our usual route around the lake. It was still hot. Like 85 with a heat index of 93. After we got going it was actually kinda pleasant. Really muggy, but not oppressive like an hour earlier. No spin bike on the day. I was just to tired.

Dinner was fake meat (we now call it Feat, sounds delicious, right?) tacos. So it was Feat Tacos for me and Kim had crab legs. I can't believe I'm gonna say this, but I'm starting to prefer the veggie meats to real meat. With the feat there's no chance I'll end up feeling bad from to much grease in the food.

We tried a new treat late last evening. Kim decided to try putting some Ice into the Ninja and then add some crystal light. It made a nice little slushy/snow cone. I made one using my favorite orange crystal light flavor. Basically a 0-20 calorie dessert.

As I write this on Sunday morning, my legs are already sore. Cardio will be an adventure today. I'm gonna try to run, spin, and walk. At least I don't have an Insanity workout to do. All next week the Insanity workouts are Core Cardio and Balance during what the program calls the Recovery Week. I think since starting Insanity my body fat has dropped over 1.5%. I don't want to give all of the credit to Insanity, but it sure didn't hurt. During the past month, while during Insanity, I've also run 3 miles, worked out, rode the spin bike, and walked almost every day. I hope over the next 5 weeks of Insanity I get similar results. If I do I might just restart the program after finishing.

Trainin Hard and Throwing Up.....

2010-07-23T18:02:00.005-04:00

After my lost day yesterday, I made sure I trained hard and ate well today.

The morning started off with me having to work a little, which put me getting to the gym about an hour late. No problem though. I began my gym time with a fast(er) run than of late. The first two miles were in under 16 minutes and the third was finished under 24:30. I did run a few low intensity hills with the quicker pace, but then really increased the incline the final 5 minutes. By the time I had 30 minutes in I was very hot and almost dizzy feeling. I rested a minute and then began my arm workout. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of overhead barbell presses, and 3 sets of overhead dumbbell presses for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of straight bar curls, followed by 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls, and finally 3 sets of standing hammer curls. I couldn't go as heavy as last week with the hammer curls, but was within 5 pounds. I was so exhausted and borderline sick during the workout that I kinda vomited in my mouth between sets while training biceps. Who pukes training arms? I guess being exhausted from the run and combined with the general soul sucking heat we've been experiencing here in GA, I'm lucky I'm not puking and passing out every workout.

My Insanity Workout today was Pure Cardio and Cardio abs. Lots of running, jumping, twisting, and kicking during the Pure Cardio portion. The abs workout is pretty quick, but leaves me lying in the floor, in near whole body cramps at the conclusion. I burned around 800 calories from the Insanity session today (workout time plus some cool down).

Kim and I walked as soon as the temps dropped from the afternoon heat index of 105. Crazy hot here now. We walked without Jumping Jack Flash tonight because he has gone to visit with my parents and their dogs.

My spin session came later in the evening than usual. I was just too tired to ride when I initially came in from the gym. I climbed on during the Braves game.

My eating was much better today. I had a NS blueberry muffin, facon, and yogurt for breakfast. Post workout I had a protein shake (Labrada Lean Body, calorie free caramel sauce, a frozen banana, and a spoon full of chocolate peanut butter), and it was fantastic. After Insanity I had another yogurt, a few olives, and a sugar free jello pudding. Dinner tonight was veggie sailsbury steak (it was good!), carrots, and green beans. After our walk I had a final bowl of cereal. ~1800 calories on the day. BB has me burning 4800+.

Since I'm a day behind, I get to train legs tomorrow. Oh Joy! At least I get to have a nutritious breakfast with Kim first.

Lost Day

2010-07-22T23:19:00.002-04:00

Well, I knew today had the potential to get wrecked, and sure enough, it did. No gym, no run, no walk, no insanity, no spin. Good breakfast of granola and yogurt, good lunch at Subway. Afternoon meal of a frozen Indian dish and 2 NS cookies. Dinner sucked, nutritionally. It tasted great. I had a Al Pastor Torta, along with some flour tortilla chips & cheese dip. Yup, by dinner I had resigned myself to a lost day and ate out. Finally, late this evening I had yet another NS dessert and some more granola. Pretty bad day overall. I did manage to secure some flooring for Kim's parents. It was supposed to be wood, but ended up being some kinda weird vinyl laminate. I did get a little ab work out in during the day. As dad & I were walking through an abondened warehouse we're interested in purchasing, in the dark, without a flashlight, dad managed to avoid the hole in the floor I noticed and pointed out, only to stumble into the largest, black water, nastiest, knee deep hole in the entire building. After I realized he wasn't hurt and was in fact already laughing at himself, I doubled over with laughter. I laughed so hard my abs cramped up on me. It was classic. He had to wear his golfing shoes the rest of the day. Good times.

Long Day

2010-07-21T23:07:00.002-04:00

Today began like most other week days. Granola cereal and coffee. I had to do a little bookwork and then hit the gym. 3 miles of hills, followed by another mile plus of faster paced flat running. My chest workout followed. 3 sets of flat bench presses, 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of decline presses, 3 sets of cable flies, and finally 2 sets of dips. Thoroughly exhausted afterward, I went home and downed a protein shake. A little work around the house and then I got in 30 minutes on the spin bike. After the biking I had a LC meal and a sugar free Rockstar. A little rest and then it was Insanity time. Today was the Plyo Cardio Circuit. I was dead afterward. I've been exhausted all evening. Dizzy every time I stand up, sleepy every time I sit down. For dinner I had a frozen Indian meal with a little rice. After dinner Kim joined JJF and I for a nice walk around the lake, which completed my exercise for the day. Since the walk I've been starving. I've had the last bite of a protein bar, a small bowl of cereal, a NS cookie, and some sugar free jello pudding. The BodyBugg has me burning 4600+ calories on the day.

Tomorrow I know my morning is already altered. Work for a bit first, then gym. At least the Insanity workout is Cardio Recovery, so there's that. Plus a Braves game early in the afternoon will give me something to watch while riding the bike.

Not Again!

2010-07-21T14:54:00.004-04:00

Tuesday was a day of victories and defeat.

I had to alter my training routine somewhat. I began with 3 miles of hills, followed by a decent back workout. 3 sets of t-bar rows, 3 sets of iso-lateral pull-downs, 3 sets of wide hammer pull downs, and 3 sets of straight arm press downs. I quickly returned home so I could get in my Insanity workout. After getting RUN OVER by Shaun T. I took a shower and headed off with my parents and my aunts to visit a Amish type of farmers market. Quaint, in the middle of no where, and very hot.

They bought a bunch of veggies, I bought a jar of apple cider jelly. We left and headed to Chattanooga for dinner. I ate 2/3 of a cheeseburger, a few nachos and a few fries. Afterward I took our little group (we were waiting on rush hour traffic to dissipate) to Chattanooga Cupcakes. I ordered a single Peanut Butter & Chocolate cupcake and we headed home. Once home JJF and I walked around the lake and then I hit 3o minutes on the spin bike as I watched the Braves game. I consider most of these things a success. I got in all of my training for the day (burned 4500+ calories, thank you very much), I only ate part of my burger, and I only ordered a single cupcake. The defeat follows.

Back in June, for my birthday, we grabbed a couple of cupcakes and brought them home with us. The cats and the Pug conspired to eat them before I could. This time would be different. I had a plan. Once home with my beloved cupcake, I had a little bite of the icing before my walk and placed it into the microwave so none of the animals could get it. After the walk I had another bite and returned it to the microwave as I jumped on the spin bike. Shortly after my ride I heard Kim say something about my cupcake looking like it had fallen apart as she took it out of the microwave to heat up her dinner. I decided that would be a great time to finish off my cupcake and walked into the kitchen to retrieve it before the animals got to it. I rounded the corner and saw the Pug eating my cupcake, in the floor. I cried. Kim cried too. She had set it on the edge of the counter, and tragically it fell, where the Pug was waiting. UnReal. Obviously I'm not meant to enjoy a cupcake at home. I give up. If I ever get another cupcake, I'll eat it IN THE STORE. It makes me sad thinking about my poor cupcake. At least the Pug enjoyed it.....

Change Up

2010-07-19T18:47:00.006-04:00

Monday is usually when I train chest. I had thought last night about changing the workout more than usual (I typically alter one thing week to week). I really planned on doing all dumbbell work today. When I got to the gym Mom decided she wanted more of a change. Recently, she's only been making it to the gym on Monday & Tuesday. So she's been getting lots of chest and back workouts. As a result we decided to train shoulders today, and do mostly all dumbbells. Of course to begin the workout we pre-exhausted on the treadmill. I ran 15 minutes of 6mph random hills, then 15 minutes of varied pace (between 6-7-8mph) on 0 incline to finish up. I managed a little over 3 miles and was ready to train. We began with 3 sets of seated dumbbell military presses, followed by 3 sets of side lateral raises, then 3 sets of upright rows, then 3 sets of rear delts, and finally I finished up with 3 sets of shoulder shrugs. Once home my workouts continued with a 30 session on the spin bike as I watched the pilot episode of the Wire (The 101 [Directv101 & 239 are replaying the entire series], which is one of the best series I've ever watched) on my DVR. A little later I got in my Insanity workout for the day (Pure Cardio & Cardio Abs). I was pretty much beat at this point. A little rest as the temperature cooled and then JJF and I took our evening walk around the lake. The BodyBugg had me burning ~4800 calories on the day.

Good day with the eating as well. Breakfast was a low fat blueberry muffing and Greek Yogurt. Post workout I had a Lean Body Protein Shake. After my spin I had left over Indian (Chicken Tikka Masala and a little rice). After the Insanity I made my own version of a Mango Lassi. I used Jumex Mango Nectar and a cup of Oikos Vanilla Greek Yogurt. Ninjaed it up, and loved it. Kinda high in calories (400), but for an occasional treat it was great. Dinner tonight was more left over Indian. Chana Saag (chickpeas and spinach) and a little rice. Perfect. Later I had a little left over veggie hamburger helper, a protein bar, and cereal. Calories on the day were a little over 2400. High, but still not bad when you take into account the burn total.

Weekend Resting

2010-07-19T12:32:00.003-04:00

Saturday was a day of both training and relaxing.

Training first. 3 mile hills run on the treadmill. Back home I had a protein shake and then 30 minutes on the spin bike. I rested for a few and conviinced myself that if I ate a sandwich and then did my Insanity workout, I could then go to bed for a couple of hours before Kim got in and we would be ready for our dinner and a movie. So I pushed through the Insanity routine, and then went to BED. I woke up to thunder, lightning, and the beginning of a massive rain storm. I ran down, brought the hounds inside, and went back to bed for another hour. I awoke at about 5PM (crazy), released the hounds, cleaned up, and waited on Kim to get home from work. We headed North to Chattanooga around 6:30 and had one of the best Indian meals I've had in a long time. I don't know that it was really any better than any of our other meals at Sitar, but it seemed like it. I had a chicken dish and Kim had soup, salad, and chickpeas with spinach. Loved it. We then proceeded to the movie theater to watch Inception. I really liked it. The theater was crowded, so we had to sit closer to the screen than I wanted, but otherwise it was a delightful evening.

Sunday=REST. I didn't do anything (well, I took a nap). I did fetch breakfast in bed for Kim as we watched a couple of horrible 80's movies. The rest of the day I watched a couple of rain storms, watched Psych (so funny) and True Blood.

Monday is back to running, spinning, Insanity, dog walking, lifting, and low-calorie/high protein eating. Woohoo.

Legs & Bed Bugs

2010-07-17T09:40:00.003-04:00

Friday. Leg day. I woke feeling weak (thanks so much sushi...) so I opted for a double chocolate muffing for breakfast. Not the low fat version, thank you very much. 480 calories later I was ready for the gym. I ran 3 miles on the random hill setting, then walked for about 5 minutes to cool down. That 35 minutes was the warm up to my leg routine. 3 sets of 20 reps on the leg press, followed by 3 sets of 20 on the true squat, then 3 sets of 12-15 reps of leg extensions. Hamstrings started with 3 sets of 12 on the seated leg curl machine, and ended with 3 sets of 20 reps on the hyper-extension contraption. I limped back to the car and home for a protein shake.

After completing some more bookwork I hit the spin bike for 30 minutes before having a turkey sandwich. A little more rest then it was time to get Insane with the Power & Resistance workout. 45 minutes later and I grabbed a towel (after collapsing in the floor and being liked non stop by Pug Pugglesworth for about 5 minutes) and jumped into my dad's truck to head to one of our properties. We were on Bed Bug patrol. Some of our tenants bed have been infested with bed bugs, and the tenants just threw the beds out by the dumpster. Of course the waste services company refused to collect the discarded bedding, so we had the pleasure of loading a few box springs and mattress sets onto the truck. They'll make it to the dump on Saturday. I don't think I got bit by anything (including some of the largest ants I've ever seen).

Once back home I joined Kim & JJF for our nightly walk. 2+ miles later I was finished with my cardio for the day. 4444 calories burned (according to the BodyBugg)! My final meal, after the walk, was a serving of Jasmine rice and a piece of grilled, jerked chicken. I did try a cup of OJ Ninjaed with some vanilla Greek yogurt a little later. Yummy! A little under 2000 calories on the day.

Tomorrow I'll run, spin, do a very few sets of abs at the gym, get Insane (plyo circuit), and try to walk. Not sure about the walk. Kim and I are gonna try to go out for dinner (either Indian or oysters) and then see a movie. We'll see how it goes...

Sick of Sushi

2010-07-16T08:52:00.003-04:00

Thursday I had to catch up a missed shoulder workout, along with my normal arm workout while at the gym. After a breakfast of granola and a low fat muffin I arrived at the gym. First off was of course a 30 minute run. For a little change I set the pace to 6mph, and ran the Random Hill program on the treadmill. I actually enjoyed it this time. The last time I ran the program I had to lower the intensity a little just to complete it. Once my cardio was over and I cooled down for a sec, I began my workout with 3 sets of shoulder shrugs, moving on to 3 sets of hammer shoulder presses, and then onto 3 set of side lateral raises to finish off shoulders. For arms I began with 3 sets of triceps press downs, followed by 3 sets of rope press downs. My biceps work began with 3 sets of seated incline curls, and ending with 3 sets of heavy standing hammer curls.

After an early afternoon of some bookwork, a trip to the recycling center, and finally a stop by the grocery store, I returned home with enough time to eat a sandwich and get in an Insanity workout. Luckily it was the recovery/stretching workout, so I didn't feel so tired afterward.

I had to work a little late in the evening out of town, so I took the opportunity to drag mom along with me (Kim was working late) to eat dinner. As luck would have it, Dad was finishing up on the golf course just as we were making our way to Mt. Fuji for dinner, so he joined us. Bad news for me. I'm finally sick of sushi. I don't know what happened, but about 1/2 way through my sushi deluxe dinner, I just couldn't eat another bite. Ugh. What am I supposed to do now? Sushi was one of my last safe havens of healthy food that I could get outside of home. I'm very troubled. I love sushi. Only now I don't. AAAHHHH!!!! I hope this doesn't carry over to oysters.....I'll have to test that out soon.

After I got home I nibbled on a protein bar before going on a walk with Jumping Jack Flash before Kim got home from work. Good burn of 4300+ calories on the day. I'm back near 200 even now. Couple more weeks and I'll be hitting new lows every day.

Leg day tomorrow. First a run, then legs, then a bike ride, next Insanity, and finally a nice warm walk around the lake. I usually eat sushi after a leg workout to make me feel better. Maybe I'll grill some chicken instead...

Huge Calorie Burns

2010-07-15T09:27:00.005-04:00

Tuesday began with granola and a muffin before hitting the gym. I ran a good varied interval and finished 3 miles right at 25 minutes. My workout (with mom) began with 2 sets of pull-ups (they sucked), followed by 3 sets of pull downs, 3 sets of hammer strength pull downs, and finally 3 sets of hammer rows. Only 11 sets, but I felt pretty tired at the end. Back at home I had a protein shake, did some bookwork (as a way of resting for a minute) then hit the spin bike for 30 minutes. After the bike I had a grilled turkey sandwich, and then began to mentally prepare for my Insanity workout. I banged it out and then rested (collapsed into the floor and then attacked by a wild, licking, Pug) until Kim got home from work. We decided to walk before dinner, so we grabbed JJF and hit the trail. Dinner for me was a LC meal. Good day overall.

Wednesday was weird, but a huge calorie burner. I began with granola and a muffin again. Then I got ready for the gym, but never made it. Robein (he works with us) was available for the day, so he and I tackled cleaning out my garage and out building. 6 hours later I have a very nice looking garage & an almost empty out building. I also burned around 6 calories per minute the entire time, so I racked up some very slow, moderately intense cardio. After we finished up I had another turkey sandwich, and got ready for Insanity. To my dismay, the workout was Pure Cardio and Cardio Abs. I thought it was gonna be Power & Resistance or something a little easier. 40 minutes later I was dead. THEN we went on a walk. Ugh. I felt a lot better after the walk, but I was pretty tired. Dinner was a LC pizza, followed by a bowl of cereal. 4650+ calories burned on the day. Less than 2000 consumed.

Tomorrow I get to combine shoulders, bis & tris into one big workout. Yippee!

Rest and Chest

2010-07-13T09:16:00.009-04:00

Sunday = Rest. I did nothing. Well, that's not entirely true. I took a two hour nap during the afternoon.

Monday was a return to normalcy. Only different. I had to work a little in the morning, so my arrival at the gym was well after lunch. I ran 3 miles on the Random Hill setting on the treadmill. My pace was sorta slow, but the varied inclines made up for it. I followed the cardio up with 3 sets of decline hammer presses, 3 sets of incline hammer presses, and 3 sets of seated flat chest presses.

After the gym I had the joy of grocery shopping to endure before preparing for my second Insanity Fitness Test. At least it was over quickly. Here are the results:

Exercise	Day 1	Day 15
Switch Kicks	59	68
Power Jacyk	56	69
Power Knees	85	120
Power Jumps	35	57
Globe Jumps	7	12
Suicide Jumps	13	21
Push Up Jacks	35	45
Low Plank Oblique	40	60

So, after two weeks I've at least become more proficient in the exercises. I have noticed (the last day or two) better balance while doing the stretches and exercises as well.

Following my Insanity, I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes while Kim and I watched an episode of West Wing. Then it was time to take Jumping Jack Flash on his evening walk. While walking we spotted a rabbit on the trail ahead of us. It just sat perfectly still as we (and JJF) approached. Jack ran right towards it, but not like he was chasing it, just like he was running along as normal, only the rabbit happened to be directly in his path. At the last moment the rabbit hopped twice and vanished into the underbrush. Jack stopped, looked into the dark abyss that is the weeds and growth just off of the trail, and then continued on his way.

After the walk I had a dinner I've been craving for quite a while. Red Beans and Rice over bread. Very different from the way I used to eat it. Last year, I would have eaten the ENTIRE box (say at least 800 calories) plus I'd have added in some type of meat (polish sausage). So the meal would have been somewhere north of 1700 calories. Last night, I ate about 2 servings (400 calories) with 2 1/2 slices of 35 calorie per slice bread. Entire meal less than 500 calories. The rest of my meals were typical for the day. Granola & yogurt for breakfast, sandwich after the gym, LC meal later in the day. All in all a decent day.

Tomorrow will be back on my normal training time, normal meal schedule, and then the All Star Game in the evening! GO NL!

More Core and Balance

2010-07-11T10:43:00.002-04:00

Saturday I got to sleep late! No leg cramps overnight, no screaming Pug (until 9AM). It was lovely. After a nice breakfast of a low calorie/fat free blueberry muffin and yogurt I was off to the gym. A little slower paced 3 mile run, followed by an ab workout, and finally 15 minutes on the elliptical completed my gym time. Once home I had a turkey sandwich and then got into my Insanity Core & Balance workout. 40 minutes of stretching, lunging, and squatting. It's actually one of the more difficult workouts for me. Holding a deep squat for a minute with VERY sore & weak legs is kinda hard. Anyway, glad I got it in.

Late in the evening we went to a friend's daughter's 4th birthday. It was a pirate themed party! Argh maties! I had 2 hot dogs, some potato chips, and a cupcake. Kim and I were both frayed by the time we left. We're not used to being around a house full of running, playing children. The parents of the children seemed to be unfazed, kinda numb to it all.

Once home we grabbed JJF and took off on a nice walk. 2+ miles in the late evening 90 degree heat. Later, as we watched a West Wing marathon on the DVR, we ate some leftover veggie meat taco mix from the night before. Still just as good as the night before.

Sunday is REST DAY. I'm sure I'll walk, and might even spin during the World Cup finals. No Insanity, no running, no training. I'm looking forward to a rest. My left knee feels a little funny/loose (if that makes any sense). So a good day of rest then back at it on Monday!

Veggie Meat Tacos, Cardio Abs, & Leg Day

2010-07-09T21:48:00.002-04:00

Thursday was a weird day. Normal breakfast of cereal and yogurt then on to the gym. 3+ mile run, and then an arm workout with my mom. Easy workout. 6 sets for triceps and 6 sets for biceps. I then had to hurry home and then off to a meeting. By the time the meeting was over I had missed lunch and Dad and I decided to try a new Japanese place in town. It was decent. Very limited menu. He had scallops and I had beef. Lots of rice and veggies. I ate about 2/3 of my order. It was pretty cheap, so it might make our rotation. Once back home I forced my way through an Insanity workout. Not so much fun after eating a very late lunch. I didn't have time for a ride on the spin bike, but did get in a late, hot walk around the lake. Burned a little under 4000 on the day. No clue on the intake. Guessing a little under 2000.

Today has been rough. Up early to do some bookwork and eat breakfast (the usual) before hitting the gym. My gym workout began with a 3+ mile run again. Then I moved on to my leg workout. 3 sets of leg extensions, 3 sets of true squats, 3 sets of leg presses, and 3 sets of seated leg curls. I cut back the hamstring portion of my leg workout because of all of the terrible cramps I've been suffering recently. After the gym I had a protein shake with a frozen banana and a little caramel sauce. A little later I hit the spin bike for 1/2 an hour. During the afternoon I had a chicken breast and then a little later a turkey sandwich. I then had to get in my daily dose of Insanity. Today was Pure Cardio (to quote the Shaun T. [the instructor on the DVD] concerning the Pure Cardio workout, "That shit was BANANAS y'all") followed by Cardio Abs. This was my first go at the Cardio Abs. Lots more jumping, knee lifting, twisting, and squeezing. I'm already sore....

Dinner tonight was a treat. Actually, I'm concerned that I think that. We had veggie meat (from a can that looked and sorta smelled like dog food) tacos. Loved it. Along with the tacos we had some veggie re-fried beans, and cheesy Mexican rice. Not sure on my daily total calorie intake for the day. I think before dinner I had right around 1000. Then who knows for dinner. Safely under 2000 for the day, I hope. Looks like I'll burn 4200+ on the day.

Tomorrow I'll get in a run and probably a bike ride too. I'm debating on whether or not to do the Core Balance & Recovery Insanity workout in the afternoon. Depends on how sore I am. I'm looking forward to breakfast already. I found some fat free, low calorie blueberry muffins to try. Is it wrong to be excited about breakfast before I go to bed?

Push

2010-07-08T08:35:00.005-04:00

Wednesday I woke feeling pretty bad. I'd suffered through leg and ab cramps all night. Kim tried to tell me goodbye as she was leaving, but I grimaced in pain as a fresh leg cramp grabbed me just as she tried. I forced down some coffee and then cereal and yogurt, followed by yet another coup of coffee before I gave up and went back to bed. I slept for a few hours (cramp free) and then finally made my way to the gym around 1PM.

The gym sucked. I was barely able to run 15 minutes. Once I hit the 15 minute mark I retreated to the elliptical for 15 more. Neither was very impressive. I forced my way through 12 sets of a back workout. 3 sets of hammer rows, 3 sets of hammer front pull downs, 3 sets of hammer rear pull downs, and 3 sets of lat pull downs. I make up the names for the Hammer Strength exercises. They actually have very precise iso-poylmetric-isobaric whatever names. I never can remember so I just make the names up. Anyway, I had thoughts of returning to the elliptical for 15 more minutes, but ultimately thought better of it.

Once home I forced down a protein shake, with a frozen banana and a little calorie free caramel sauce Ninjaed in (yup, I just made Ninja into a verb). I got in 30 minutes on the spin bike during the second half of the Spain/Germany world cup match (GO SPAIN) and then attempted an Insanity workout. It was pitiful. I mean just a poor showing on my part. I failed out on quite of few exercises towards the end. Finally, during the Braves game (so we could build up a delay on the DVR) we walked about 2 miles in the 94 degree 8PM heat. It was hot, but not terrible.

The rest of my meals were protein shakes and two turkey (or was it chicken?) sandwiches. Late (around 10PM) I had a chocolate peanut butter sandwich.

To have felt like warmed over death for most of the day, I think I pushed and ended up with a decent day. I burned 4050 or so calories, and consumed well under 2000 (around 1800 I think). Let's do it all again tomorrow!

Insanity + Ninja = Insane Ninja?

2010-07-06T16:41:00.002-04:00

Back to the grind after taking part of Sunday and all Monday off. The morning began with a bowl of granola cereal. I had to hit GNC (before my monthly discount ran out) on the way to the gym. It's expensive being all healthy and junk. I had to re-up on my crazy vitapacks, plus I'm almost out of my normal protein so I bought a TUB of some sorta AMP EXTREME WHEY or something. The main thing is it is chocolate, plus it has 60g of protein per serving with less than 300 calories.

I grabbed a protein bar to eat before training too. That ended up being rather stupid. I felt like I was about to vomit during my entire run. 3 miles in around 25 minutes. Not good, but considering I missed a day or two and I felt like I might hurl, I was really just happy to finish it. I trained chest and shoulders (to make up for missing yesterday). 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of flat presses, 3 sets of shoulder presses, 3 sets of lateral raises, and finally 3 sets of flies.

Once home I tried out the new protein. It was OK. Nothing special. Kinda flat and weird sweet. After resting a bit and then watching some World Cup (Go Netherlanders, or is it Hollanders, maybe Dutchmen?, anyway go team in orange) I did the Pure Cardio Insanity workout. It was still hard, but I did better this time. I actually completed some of the exercises. Last time I failed out on every one.

After the Insanity I was pleasantly surprised by the delivery of my new blender thingy, the Ninja! Thanks to Lili for putting me onto this. I tried it out pretty quickly. 3 scoops of protein, 1 frozen banana, a few spoon fulls of vanilla goat yogurt, and a scoop of calorie free caramel sauce. I loved it. The Ninja did it's thing and completely obliterated the banana and left me a smooth, yummy drink. Gotta get some ice and plain 2% Fage yogurt to work with now.

I've still gotta get in a walk tonight and probably a little session on the spin bike too. Then start all over tomorrow.

Hot Dogs, Pizza, Ribs, and Still Craving Indian....

2010-07-06T09:18:00.002-04:00

The past two days I've had exactly one workout. Sunday morning I did one Insanity workout. Then it was off to Kim's parents for a hot dog, a two ribs, and a bite of a potato. Afterward, we went to my parents house where I ate again. This time (over the course of 5 hours) I had two of Kim's BBQ sandwiches, another hot dog, and a few chips and dip. About 10PM I had a slice of coconut cake. Lovely. It really could have been much worse. I shot lots of pics of fireworks (which amounted to no exercise).

Monday I ended up not training at all. I didn't sleep well Sunday night and generally had no energy. So I took the day off. We had to go to Chattanooga for an appointment and had planned on eating some yummy Indian after. Well, the Indian place wasn't open yet, so we decided to drive from Chattanooga to Kennesaw to eat dinner with our friends K&K for their daughter's birthday. We ate at a pizza place called Big Pie In The Sky. It was featured on one of the Travel Channel's shows, Man Vs. Food. It was packed. You'd think they were moving crack instead of pizza. The wait was over an hour, and the line to order stretched out the door. I didn't realize how big the slices were and order 3 slices. I ate one, plus a maybe 1/3 of another. I'm throwing the rest away. It was ok. Not the best I've ever had. Not worth an hour wait. Not worth missing Indian for.

Anyway, I have a plan for the rest of the week. Each morning I'll get in my gym time (run plus workout), Insanity in the afternoon, bike ride after that, then walk in the evening. Today's workout might be two body parts. Chest and shoulders to make up for yesterdays missed workout. Either that or I'll have to train legs on Saturday. Ugh.

Pollo Alegre

2010-07-04T12:06:00.002-04:00

Friday I had the best run I've had since mid May. Varied intervals from 6-8 mph for 3 miles. Then I walked for the remaining five minutes before training legs. My leg workout was purposely restrained. After the run I only did 12 sets total. 3 sets of leg presses, 3 sets of leg extensions, 3 sets of seated leg curls, and finally 3 sets of hyper-extensions. I really wanted to find a good balance between a decent workout & making sure I wasn't too sore for my upcoming Insanity workouts. After the workout I rode 30 minutes on the spin bike and then walked around the lake late Friday afternoon.

Saturday my plan was to run early at the gym and then get Insane in the afternoon, followed by a bike ride later, and a walk around dark. Didn't work out that way. Got in another good run at the gym, but then had to work a bit in the afternoon. Insanity ended up being pushed entirely, biking was scarped, but I did get the late walk in around dark. It was neat seeing/hearing lots of fireworks going off nearby. Our dogs loved it.

Friday's food was not so good. Muffin for breakfast, shake after the gym. Then we had to work some and ended up in Chattanooga for an early dinner. It was the kinda meal Kim and I love. We felt like we were in a chapter from the book "Stuff White People Like". We were eating ethnic food, we were the only white people in the restaurant, & we were watching World Cup with the staff (who spoke little or no English). We were thrilled. We each had a HUGE bowl of Pho. Kim had seafood and I had strange beef (no idea what kind...). After dinner we hit a nearby Fresh Market and bought some various nuts, and two mini cannolis. Late Friday night Kim and I both freaked and had to have some fast food. She had some fries and I had a about 3/4 of a cheese burger and some fries. I was shocked/thrilled to learn that I couldn't eat all of the burger. Weird.

Saturday, breakfast was another muffin. After my run I didn't have a chance to have a shake before heading to work. Lunch was with my dad at one of his favorite places. Another place where we were the only white people. Pollo Alegre (Happy Chicken) is pretty cool. No menu. You either get a whole or a half smoked chicken. Sides are either bean soup or rice and beans. It was fantastic. Late Saturday night I had a couple of turkey sandwiches for my final meals.

Sunday began with an Insanity workout. The rest of the 4th will probably be spent doing non exercise things. I plan on eating some burgers, hot dogs, bbq, etc. Maybe just 1 of each. No late walk tonight either. Firework show doesn't start until 9:45. I'll trade my walk for a chance at some nice firework photos. Should be fun....

Sleeping on the Porch

2010-07-02T09:49:00.003-04:00

Yesterday I had a WEAK arm workout. 12 sets total. 3 sets of triceps press downs, 3 sets of overhead presses. 3 sets of incline dumbbell curls & 3 sets of standing dumbbell curls for biceps. I guess I was a little tired from running before the workout. 26 minutes of 1 minute intervals between 6 & 8 mph. Then I walked for about 15 minutes to cool down. That's 4 decent runs I've had this week! So happy now with the new running style and resulting zero pain!

After the gym I got in 30 minutes on the spin bike late in the afternoon before Kim got in from work. After the ride I decided to go out on the front porch and have a seat while I cooled off. I fell asleep. Slept about half an hour in the late afternoon Georgia heat, sitting straight up in a chair. Lovely. Once Kim got home and changed clothes we put in the Insanity DVD and went through the day's workout. It was the same workout as the first day. Hard, but I did better. Almost made it through the second work circuit before having to stop during an exercise for rest. I don't know if I'll ever make it through an entire workout with out failing out during a set. I'm really enjoying the workouts and stretches. Kim loathes it. Anyway, after Insanity we rested a minute and then walked JJF around the lake.

Food was decent on the day. Breakfast was cereal and yogurt, post workout I had a protein shake, lunch was a chicken salad sandwich, during the afternoon I had a handful of almonds and a protein bar, dinner (late) was a turkey sandwich. Not sure on the calories in for the day but I burned over 4300.

Friday is leg day, and thank goodness it's also Insanity's rest day. So all I gotta do is run 3 miles, train legs, maybe spin 30, and walk the dog. Yay!

InZanity....

2010-06-30T17:44:00.003-04:00

Today's (Wednesday) Insanity workout was the most difficult (for me) yet. Pure Cardio. It should be called Pure Hell. I'll get to it in a sec. My training began this morning with another completely decent run. I ran one minute intervals at 6 & 8 on the treadmill for 10 minutes, then 10 minutes at 6, then the intervals again for the last 10. I then walked for about 13 minutes as mom finished up a little cardio before we hit the weights. We trained shoulders together this morning. 3 sets of hammer strength military presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, and 3 sets of rear delts. I decided against any elliptical work today (because I knew the name of the upcoming Insanity workout) and headed home. After doing a little work at home I hit the spin bike for 30 minutes before heading out for some errands. Once back home this afternoon I began the Insanity a little earlier than usual. I knew Kim was not gonna be able to workout with me today, so I might as well get it over with early. It was brutal. I guess I was a little tired from the other training & starting earlier than usual, but the warm up seemed more difficult than usual. The actual workout was a series of 1 minute long cardio exercises. I didn't last through the first exercise. During almost every exercise I had to stop and catch my breath or get some water. I didn't feel real bad, 'cause the people on the DVD were falling out frequently too. Finally towards the end, the main guy was having trouble. He couldn't remember the name of the exercises! Kinda funny. Kinda sad. Anyway. It was rough. I burned well over 400 calories during the 40 minute workout, plus who knows how many more while I cooled down from the workout.

Food today has been sparse. Muffin for breakfast, shake after the gym, turkey & tomato sandwich pre-Insanity, a handful of almonds, and I hope to get to eat dinner with Kim tonight (sushi, I think). I haven't been hungry. That's alarming. Tomorrow or Friday it'll catch up with me and I'll feel wiped out.

It was bound to happen, and quite frankly I figured it would have happened sooner. One of our friends began to tease Kim and ask if she's ready to go home from work every day for her InZanity Workout. Get it? InZanity? HaHa. Kinda like InZane in the membrane? InZane in the brain? Cypress Hill.....Get it? I'm tired and getting goofy. Time for a Blue Rock Star and then some raw fish. Maybe a late walk. Or some Virtual Inzanity......I quit....

Need Some Balance

2010-06-30T08:19:00.004-04:00

My lack of balance was brought up again today. Today's Insanity workout was the Cardio Recovery workout. Meaning not so much cardio, but quite a bit of stretching. I realized during some of the stretches that I was straining and actually trembling trying to hold the stretch while in correct form. When I was to stand on one leg, I simply couldn't. I had to hold on to either the wall to get my balance, or grab the cat tree, or whatever I could get my hands on so I didn't fall. After I got in the stretch I could usually manage to balance myself ok, but getting into position without steadying myself was almost impossible. The only really difficult part of the workout was after some slow squats or lunges, we were to hold the squat position at the bottom of the squat. Nope. I held for a few seconds, but had to stand repeatedly to rest my quads, then I'd return to the squat. The freaky deaky soreness in my feet and calves continues, now add in a little quad and ham soreness in non typical portions of my legs to the mix as well. Tomorrow's Insanity workout is the Pure Cardio workout. Should be great....

My training for the day began hours before the Insanity workout at the gym around 10AM. 3 miles of intervals on the treadmill again. It was the best solid run I've had since the middle of May. After the run, mom and I trained back. I began with 2 sets of pull-ups, then 3 sets of pull downs, followed by 3 sets of hammer rows, then 3 sets of t-bar rows, and finally 3 sets of straight arm press downs. Afterward, I got in 15 more minutes on the elliptical before heading home for lunch. Late in the afternoon, before Insanity, I got bored and rode the spin bike for 30 minutes. After Insanity, Kim, the dog & I walked around the lake in near darkness. It was very relaxing though. On the day I burned 4500+ calories (I haven't checked the final total yet, but when I went to bed it was almost at 4500). I'm anxious to see how many I burn with tomorrow's Pure Cardio workout combined with my regular training.

Food on the day was decent. I began the morning with a chocolate muffin, post workout I had a protein shake, afternoon meal was a turkey & tomato sandwich, dinner was a LC meal, and I had some almonds and a EAS protein bar scattered throughout the day.

Great day overall! I went to bed exhausted, but excited about another day of training and eating well to come. On the day I had actual training time of just over 3 hours. Plus the time of working around the house (I had to move a baby gate to limit the Pug's access to the cat's litter boxes, clean, work on the laundry, and make humming bird food) and I had close to six hours of physical activity. I do want to try to get back to shooting some pics of my food for the blog. I found some videos on youtube of people doing the Insanity workouts. Don't think I'll be doing that. Maybe more videos of the Pug!

Freaky Sore

2010-06-28T23:51:00.003-04:00

I woke this morning to find some new soreness as a result of yesterday's Insanity workout. Most notably strange places in my feet and calves. I've very quickly learned that the things I need to work on the most are my balance and my flexibility. I used to have plenty of both. Not so much now. The balance issue is very odd. At the end of the workout I had trouble standing on one leg as I stretched the other. Gotta work on that.

My workouts began at the gym today. I started with running 3 miles (the best run I've had in a month) of intervals, varying speeds from 6 to 8. I then walked about 20 minutes uphill, and finally finished up with about 10 minutes on the elliptical. I didn't mean to do quite so much cardio, but I got to the gym early and then had to wait on mom to finish up her fist treadmill work since she got her new pedometer. Next we trained chest. I was rather tired when we started, so it was a machine only workout. 3 sets seated chest press, machine incline presses, hammer strength decline presses, and machine flies. I retired to the house immediately following our last set.

Kim and I had our second Insanity workout after she got home from work. 40 minutes of bouncing and jumping around and we were exhausted. Kim said she's sore all over. She claims even her hair is sore. This workout was a little different than the first. More squatting and jumping than the first, along with some triceps and shoulder exercises.

After dinner Kim, JJF, and I walked around the lake. We got a free light show off in the distance as a massive cloud rolled towards us, filling the sky with almost constant lightning.

I had a decent day with food. Cereal and yogurt for breakfast, protein shake after the gym, two turkey sandwiches scattered throughout the afternoon, and cereal for dinner. I also had a serving or two of almonds (I tried some new habanero bbq flavored nuts & some buffalo flavored too) & munched on a chocolate muffin over the entire day. More calories than I had intended, but still well under 2000. I burned 4055 according to the BB. I really think the BB under-counts the Insanity workouts. 400 or so calories during a 40 minute workout. During the same time frame we take our nightly walk and burn 230. I'm usually barely sweating at the end of our walk, and that's from the heat more than from exertion. At the end of an Insanity workout, I'm trembling, on the verge of vomiting, soaked with sweat, and my heart is racing. I really think the BB is off with this type of workout. Maybe if I count all of the calories burned until I cool down to a resting burn rate it is more accurate. If that's the case I'm burning somewhere around 700 calories as a result of an Insanity workout. Either way, it's a good burn, just kinda messes with my mind thinking that a leisurely walk can burn more than 1/2 the calories as all that craziness.

Tomorrow is a back workout at the gym (switching shoulders and back since the Insanity workout had a little shoulder work today), some intervals on the treadmill, Insanity, walk around the lake, and maybe even a quick ride on the spin bike.

Crazy Sunday (I Mean Insane)

2010-06-27T18:12:00.002-04:00

Sunday found Kim and I doing our first actual Insanity workout. Pretty rough. I think someone who wasn't already physically fit would have a difficult time completing the warm up. The entire workout lasted about 45 minutes. A few minutes of that was dedicated to stretching. Upon completion the BodyBugg showed me burning 450 calories during the workout. I think by the time I get cooled down I'll have burned around 700 or so as a result of the workout. We did complete the entire workout. Having said that, we had to stop and rest a few times during the final circuit. The workout is basically a lot of jumping, squatting, bouncing, and running around. Throw in some push-ups, punches, jabs, and stretching for good measure. My mom asked me if I thought she could handle the workout. I told her I was pretty sure it would kill her. Later this evening we'll get in a walk around the lake. Jumping Jack Flash is home from his visit with my parents, so he'll be excited to walk with us.

I've been somewhat careful with my food intake today. No meat so far. Breakfast was a bagel with strawberry cream cheese. Lunch was some frozen Indian food (veggie) Palak Paneer. My pre-workout meal was a cup of Greek yogurt with honey. After the workout I've managed to drink some water so far. Later I'll get a protein shake (I hope). Dinner will be something light. Either cereal or a small NS or LC meal.

Insane

2010-06-27T10:13:00.004-04:00

I've been looking to find a better/different/new ab routine for a while. My regular routine is sorta boring. Crunches, weighted crunches, v-sits, etc. So to change things up and help vary my carido workouts I ordered the Insanity Workout DVD's. Yesterday Kim and I did the fitness test. It was pretty hard. I'm excited to see what the BB reports during a workout. I recorded my test results so I can compare them to how I do on the test at the end of the 60 day program

Switch Kicks 59
Power Jacyk 56
Power Knees 85
Power Jumps 35
Globe Jumps 7
Suicide Jumps 13
Push-Up Jacks 35
Low Plank Oblique 40

I'm still battling my weakness/nausea problem, but hope to be better tomorrow. Kim and I'll try the first actual Insanity workout today and get in a late walk around the lake. Tomorrow I'll figure out how to incorporate Insanity into my regular routine. I'm guessing gym and treadmill first, Insanity when Kim gets home from work, then a walk late in the evening. Maybe I'll get in a bike ride somewhere in the afternoon.

End of the Week and I'm Spent

2010-06-25T11:57:00.002-04:00

Well, all of the low calorie meals, workouts, & multiple daily cardio sessions finally caught up with me today. I was preparing to train legs and just couldn't seem to get ready. Every time I'd walk up the stairs I'd have to rest. I'd grab my keys to leave and decide to take a seat on the sofa to catch my breath. I knew headed to the gym it would be bad. On my third leg exercise I vomited in my mouth. Then I did it again. Lovely. I did finish the workout, but no cardio. The actual workout began with 3 sets of leg extensions, followed by 3 sets of squats, then the vomit machine (leg press) for 3 sets. Hamstrings began (slowly) with 3 sets of seated leg curls, 3 sets of stiff leg dead lifts, and finally 3 sets of hyper-extensions. I crawled back to my car and drove home.

Yesterday was not really much better. The entire 40 minutes on the treadmill was just awful. I ran some intervals, but I could barely do it. No energy whatsoever. Mom and I trained arms together, but it was kinda pitiful too. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of overhead presses, 3 sets of rope presses for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls, and ended with 2 sets of standing hammer curls. Later that afternoon I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes and then walked (in the dark after it finally got cool) for about 2 miles last night.

Food has been about the same. Yogurt and cereal in the morning, protein shake after the gym, LC or NS for dinner, then maybe another protein shake or some grilled chicken scattered throughout the day to get in more calories and protein. Last night (I had to work for a minute late) I stopped by a taco truck in a nearby town and got 3 tiny tacos. 1 carnitas (pork), 1 lengua (tongue), and cabeza (cheek/head). They were awesome.

Today I'm gonna stick with my shake after the gym, but dinner will be either some raw fish (almost vomited in my mouth again as I thought about eating sushi just now), a deli sandwich, or maybe some more crazy tacos.

Below is a pic of me from 1 year ago today. What a difference a year makes. I was in San Francisco, pigging out on a hot dog.

Where's my neck?

Yahoo for NS and me losing 80+ pounds! I miss hot dogs though....

Eating & Training Well, Running Like Poo

2010-06-23T17:58:00.004-04:00

Yesterday was another very productive day. I began with a NS muffin and some Greek yogurt for breakfast. Next I hit the gym where I did cardio first for a change. 30 minutes on the treadmill, varying speeds and inclines. Mom joined me to train shoulders after the treadmill work. 3 sets of machine military presses, 3 sets of dumbbell side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, and finally 3 sets of rear delts. I had to get home for a meeting pretty quick, so no additional cardio on the elliptical.

Lunch meeting was over very quickly. I returned home to have a protein shake and REST. I had gotten very tired at the meeting and I decided that I'd lay down and read for a bit. I might have read 10 words before I crashed out. I woke as Kim got home from work and we had some black beans and veggies for dinner. After dinner and a little rest we walked our 2.4 mile route around the lake. We were dog free as JJF is visiting with my parents and their dogs for a few days. He needed a break from the Pug.

Somewhere during the day I had a half of a protein bar, a plum, and after dinner a NS fudge brownie with chocolate PB. Really good day overall. 1500-1600 calories in. Not sure about the burn because I'm a big dummy and let my BB battery go dead, so it was charging all day instead of on my arm. I'd guess well over 3700 calories burned.

Today has been great as well. Woke early to take the Pug out with thoughts of an early walk/run around the lake. I was greeted by 85 degree temps before 8AM so I decided to skip it. My car read 97 this afternoon and I saw pics from others on twitter reading 105. Oddly enough, I haven't been miserable when I've been out. Granted it's not for long or in direct sunlight, but I don't feel like I wanna die. This time last year I wouldn't have attempted to walk around the lake. Wild horses couldn't have dragged me. Now I'm pacing waiting on Kim to get in from work so we can eat and walk.

So after taking the Pug out and then releasing the remaining hounds this morning I had a double serving of low sodium oatmeal for breakfast. A little later (when the US Work Cup Match came on TV) I had some yogurt. During the match I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes and then joined Kim on the sofa (she was able to stay home to watch the match and wait on her replacement iPhone to be delivered) to watch the last of the game. Best. Soccer. Ever. I hope that goal and win helps popularize the sport here in the US. It should. BTW, twitter failed just after the goal. Pretty cool.

After the game I got ready and hit the gym. I began with my back workout. 2 sets of pull-ups, 3 sets of pull downs, 3 sets of t-bar rows, 3 sets of hammer rows, and 3 sets of straight arm press downs. Next up was the treadmill. It was pathetic. I might have had 1 good run since Warrior Dash. I've changed the way I land on my foot (so basically the entire way I run) and it's taken much longer than I'd hoped for me to adjust. I don't have any pain now, but I also don't have the same pace or endurance I had before. Gotta work on that.

Once back home I had a protein shake, then another plum later on. Dinner was a NS BBQ wrap. I've still gotta get in 500-700 calories later on tonight. I wanna wait until after our evening walk/run so I won't feel like puking all over Kim as we walk.

I've found 2 more mud runs for Kim and I to do. One is this weekend and the other is in September. The September run looks great. 4.2 miles, 30 obstacles. It's the USMC Mud Run. Sounds fun...

Monday

2010-06-22T15:41:00.002-04:00

Monday I met up with my mother to train chest. We began with 3 sets of incline presses, then 3 sets of decline presses, followed by 3 sets of cable flies, and finally I finished up with 3 sets of dips. Mom walked on the treadmill as I ran intervals for half an hour. After she bid me farewell I finished up my cardio at the gym with 15 more minutes on the elliptical. Late in the afternoon I rode the spin bike for 30 minutes as I watched soccer, and finally we walked around the lake later in the evening. During the walk I managed to run about 1/2 a mile or so in my Vibrams to continue learning to run "barefoot".

Very good day with my eating. NS cinnamon bun bar for breakfast, protein shake after my workout, yougurt and jello late in the afternoon, NS Rotini for dinner, and dessert was a Snickers Marathon Protein Bar & granola cereal. I took in around 1550 calories and burned around 4040. Good day.

Tongue, Butt, Pork Belly, & Doughnuts

2010-06-21T13:11:00.004-04:00

Over the weekend we ate out with the family to celebrate my Bday and Father's Day. We ventured to Honey Pig to let my parents try Korean BBQ for the first time. It went as well as could be expected. I don't think they loved it, but they did eat some of it. We had shrimp, beef brisket, beef short ribs, pork butt, tongue, and pork belly. I loved it all, but especially the brisket and short ribs.

My sister got me a gift I've looked forward to for quite some time. The Happy Birthday Doughnuts from Sublime Doughnuts. YUM!

The rest of the weekend I spent resting and getting to feeling better (I had a meal Friday night that made me sick) so I could have a good week back training and eating healthy. Monday I'll train chest, run, bike, and get in an evening walk (after it cools down below 90).

Bare Foot Running (Almost)

2010-06-18T12:01:00.003-04:00

Thursday marked a milestone for me. It was the first day I was able to run a full mile, outdoors, on rough terrain, wearing my Vibram Five Fingers shoes. They are the goofy looking shoes that simulate bare foot running conditions. I felt great. My calves were a little tired after the mile, but nothing too bad. I'll keep that up for a bit and then start trying to stretch the distance a little. No knee/heel/foot pain at all!

I am a day behind with my workouts this week so I trained back on Thursday. Mom joined me for the workout. We began with 3 sets of lat pull downs, then 3 sets of t-bar (for me)/y-bar (for mom) rows, then on to seated low rows on a hammer strength machine, and finished up with straight arm press downs. After the workout we hit the cardio area. I began with 30 minutes on the treadmill (of which I ran about 23-24 minutes). I then finished up with 15 minutes on the elliptical. My other cardio of the day was the run/walk at the end of the day in my Vibram shoes and a 30 minute bike ride early in the AM.

Food was really good on Thursday. Breakfast was bite of a left over cupcake (ok, it didn't start out so good), protein shake after the gym, yogurt late in the afternoon, NS veggie fajitas for dinner, and a cupcake from my mom for dessert.

Arms tomorrow at the gym, along with the usual cardio, followed by legs on Saturday! The reward for legs on a Saturday will be the Korean BBQ at Hone Pig for my Bday dinner/Father's Day Celebration.

Cupcake Tragedy

2010-06-17T14:54:00.002-04:00

It's still hot here. I have managed to finally get our downstairs HVAC unit repaired and running. It wasn't as expensive as what it could have been, but getting it fixed did cost me a missed workout, 2 days stuck inside waiting around on repair men while being unable to ride the bike (way to hot), and a bad meal. During the first day of waiting around I finally got a little stir crazy and ate some Pizza Rolls. Big mistake. I still was good on my calories for the day, but I felt TERRIBLE for the next 24 hours. As a result I was unable to do any cardio that night, nor any the next day. I was able to workout out though. Anyway, long story short, the air works, I'm cool(er), and all is back to normal.

Yesterday was my birthday. To celebrate I trained shoulders. 3 sets of military presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright bar bell rows, 3 sets of rear delts, and 3 sets of shoulder shrugs. The workout was all the exercise I got in on the day.

Kim and I headed to Chattanooga to try a new Vietnamese place last night. We arrived and were the only customers. I'm starting to get used to this happening. We both had Pho. It was good. Not great. Not nearly the best I've ever had. But it was good. The hostess/waitress/owner was so sweet and helpful. We each also had a spring roll before the soup and they were wonderful. I had a beef roll & Kim had a veggie roll.

Dessert was from Chattanooga Cup Cakes. Some of the best cupcakes I've ever had. Unfortunately, Belle and the cats agree with me. After we got home and as I was on the phone with my mother, I heard something fall. After hanging up the phone I walked into the kitchen to have another small bite of my cupcake only to find them missing from the counter. The cats (Puppy, I think) knocked the box into the floor. Belle and the cats were in the floor eating the icing that had exploded out of the box. Luckily the box held up, but the cupcakes inside were pulverized. I screamed at the animals, grabbed the box up. and stored the remains in the microwave over night.

This weekend is my last meal off for a while. We'll eat dinner out Saturday night with my family (at Honey Pig, a Korean BBQ) and then eat a meal Sunday as well for Father's Day.

Hot

2010-06-14T17:30:00.002-04:00

It's hot here. My downstairs AC is not working. Oddly, the 83-85 degree temps inside feel wonderful compared to the 99 outside. Heat index is well over 100.

Despite the heat, I had a good bike ride this morning after breakfast. Afterward I went to the gym and trained chest. 3 sets of incline dumbbell presses, 3 sets of flat hammer strength presses, 3 sets of decline hammer presses, and 3 sets of machine flies. I moved on to the treadmill next for 30 minutes of intervals. 10 minutes of running (7 mph), then 5 minutes uphill (level 9) speed 3.5, then back to the running for 5, then walking for 5, then running for the final 5. I felt much better after today's run. I'm nearing where I was before Warrior Dash, even with the new technique. Maybe a couple of more days and I'll be back to normal. Most importantly, no pain! Tonight, after dinner Kim and I'll get in a walk to finish my cardio for the day.

Food for the day has been pretty good. Cereal for breakfast, protein shake after my workout. Late this afternoon I've had some peanut butter, skinny cow(s), and a LC meal. That may about do it for today. I'm full and don't really want anything else. If anything maybe I'll have some more cereal since it's so FREAKING HOT!

Weekend.

2010-06-14T09:09:00.002-04:00

The weekend found Kim and I watching lots of soccer. We both enjoy watching it, and unfortunately about the only time we can consistently find soccer matches televised is during the World Cup. Now I've got something to watch every morning while riding the spin bike!

The temperature here has reached miserable levels. 95-99 degrees, 50-80% humidity. Saturday we walked before lunch (it was overcast, hot, but tolerable) and again late (around 8:30). Sunday the sun was very bright and walking during the day was out of the question. We did walk late, but it was still hot and muggy.

Saturday food kinda sucked. Good breakfast of cereal, but the rest of the day was downhill. Kim bought some nuts for us to eat while watching USA vs. England, followed by some frozen fish sticks/nuggets. Dinner was grilled chicken, a tomato sandwich, and later a peanut butter sandwich.

Sunday we had Egg Beaters and veggie chorizo for breakfast, grilled chicken for lunch, grilled chicken after the gym, a peanut butter sandwich late in the afternoon, and dinner was field peas, a tomato sandwich, and squash. Tomatoes aren't even good yet, but I'm craving them something fierce.

My only gym time of the weekend was to train abs on Sunday. 3 sets of hammer strength weighted crunches, 3 sets of v-sits, and 3 sets of crunches. I then hit the treadmill for 30 minutes. 15 minutes of running, 15 minutes of walking, done in 5 minute intervals. I had zero foot or knee pain! My calves are a little sore still, but I'm getting much more comfortable running on the toes/balls of my feet now.

Sore During the Workout

2010-06-12T13:51:00.002-04:00

Friday's leg work out found me sore during the workout. 3 sets of leg presses, 3 sets of true squats, 3 sets of leg extensions for quads. All sets were 20-25 reps. For hamstrings I cut back to only six sets. 3 sets of seated leg curls and 3 sets of stiff leg dead lifts. I tried to run on the treadmill afterward. My knees buckled twice within the first 60 seconds, so my treadmill work consisted of walking uphill. Still got in a good cardio workout. My heart rate stayed between 140-150 bpm. Jogging/running my heart rate never gets above 170, so not bad at all for walking.

Eating has settled into a very nice routine. Cereal or oatmeal for breakfast. The occasional yogurt for a morning snack. Protein shake after my workout. I had a LC meal late in the afternoon and then grilled chicken for dinner. Before bed I had a chocolate peanut butter sandwich for dessert.

During the day I managed a 30 minute ride on the spin bike. Before dinner Kim and I walked a couple of miles to finish out my cardio for the day. I consumed around 2000 calories on the day and burned just under 4000.

Lots of walking and World Cup watching planned for the weekend.

Barking Calves

2010-06-10T23:24:00.002-04:00

My new style of running (landing more on my toes/balls of my feet) has finally resulted in one of the things happening that I've read about. Very. Sore. Calves. I have well developed calves and typically don't train them anymore. I don't want them to be freaky big so I tend to not train them at all beyond the workouts they get running, walking uphill, and on the StairMaster or elliptical. Running in the new manner is shredding my calves. I ran intervals again today, 5 minutes running then 5 of uphill walking, and by the end of my 30 minutes on the treadmill my calves were barking. Screaming really. Once I was home and resting I noticed both calves were twitching like crazy. Almost like they were starting little micro cramps, but didn't have the energy to fully cramp up (thank goodness).

Today was arm day at the gym. I began with 3 sets of overhead presses, then 3 sets of press downs, and finally 3 sets of rope press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of hammer strength preacher curls, 3 sets of incline dumbbell curls, and finally 3 sets of heavy standing dumbbell curls. 30 minutes on the treadmill and then 10 on the elliptical and I called it quits at the gym. Once home I had a protein shake and then got in 30 minutes on the spin bike while watching the Braves game (they had a day game today). This evening Kim, JJF, and I walked the 2.4 miles route around the lake before dinner.

Good food day. Breakfast was a bowl of oatmeal, morning snack of yogurt, protein shake for lunch, LC late in the afternoon, more LC for dinner along with some squash casserole Kim made. Dessert was a Chocolate Peanut Butter sandwich. A little over 2000 calories today. I think I'll have burned a little over 4000 according to the BB.

Tomorrow is leg day. Wonderful. I'm still sore from last week....

Mixed Up

2010-06-09T20:13:00.004-04:00

Today was all mixed up. I usually like to get in some AM cardio after breakfast, hit the gym after a snack, rest in the afternoon, walk in the evening, and maybe even a little more bike later on. Today I began with a ride to MetroAtl after breakfast (oatmeal). After dropping my sister and nephew off I shopped a bit with mom before having some sashimi for lunch. The fish was pretty good. Salmon, albacore, blue fin, octopus, shrimp, and super white fish all on a bed of rice. I ate all of the fish and a little rice. We then returned home just in time for me to get the hounds back inside the house before a storm hit.

After the storm I finally made my way to the gym. I began today's shoulder workout with 3 sets of military presses, then 3 sets of side lateral raises, followed by 3 sets of upright rows, then 3 sets of rear delts, and finally 3 sets of dumbbell shoulder shrugs. I moved on to 30 minutes on the treadmill, 5 minutes walking and 5 minutes running, then repeating. Afterward I did 15 minutes on the elliptical. The running today was better, but still bad. I felt fine with regards to stamina and strength, but my calves got tired relatively fast landing more on my toes than usual. Hope I'll get accustomed to it before long. The good news is that I don't have any thing hurting me at all, save my sore legs from my last leg workout.

After the gym I had a protein shake and decided to hit the spin bike for a bit. Easy 35 minutes as I watched Justified. I love just about anything Olyphant is in (loved Deadwood) so I got hooked watching Justified. Kim made it home a little later and we walked JJF around the lake (about 2.3 miles) at a relaxed pace. According to my BB I burned ~290 calories on the walk. Crazy to be able to burn that much just taking a leisurely walk.

Tonight's dinner is gonna be pretty light. A tomato sandwich and maybe some small LC meal. I'm actually still kinda full from lunch.

Tomorrow I hope to have more of a "normal" day. I think by tomorrow I'll finally be fully recovered from last weeks leg workout, just in time to train them again on Friday....

Learning to Run Again

2010-06-08T18:31:00.002-04:00

Today I trained back at the gym. 3 sets of hammer strength rows, 3 sets of HS front pull downs, 3 sets of HS rear pull downs, and 3 sets of dumbbell rows. It was one of the better back workouts I've had in a while. Afterward I moved to the treadmill. I varied the 30 minutes on the treadmill, some of the time walking uphill (9 incline) at a speed of 3.5, and the rest of the time running with the incline at 0 and a speed of 7. A little more walking than running. It'll take me another few days to get back to my previous running routine. I'm really trying to concentrate on land more on the toe/ball of my foot instead of the heel. Kinda like learning to run/walk all over again. Very natural barefoot, not so much with a pair of Mizunos on.

Food today has been good. Oatmeal for breakfast. Protein shake post workout. A little peanut butter and a large bowl of cereal late this afternoon. Dinner will be some squash (Kim's craving squash) and either some LC or NS.

Tonight, hopefully, we'll get in another walk and maybe a little bike ride. I was able to ride this morning for about 10 minutes, but between my sore legs (yes, still sore 4 days after the leg workout) and DirecTV having a system wide failure (HD systems all failed today) I didn't do too well. Maybe a little ride this evening during the Braves game.

Wrecked Legs

2010-06-07T13:30:00.002-04:00

Friday was leg day at the gym. The workout was nothing to get excited about. I think it was 19 sets total. 4 sets of leg extensions, 3 leg press, 3 true squat, 3 seated leg curls, 3 stiff leg dead lifts, and 3 hyper extensions. I averaged somewhere between 15-20 reps per set. Nothing too heavy. Just a decent workout. Saturday I felt pretty good, just sore. Sunday was horrible. Quads, glutes, and hams were sore to the touch. Today is no better. I managed to walk a little Saturday, but it was really more of a stumble/gimp crawl. Sunday I couldn't do anything. Not one of my top ten workouts, but I'm sore like I've never trained before. All of this is due to my taking a few weeks off to concentrate on running and making sure I wasn't sore or injured for the Warrior Dash. I knew it was coming, but I'm silly sore...

Saturday we went out with my family to celebrate my Dad's birthday. We ate at a new Ruth's Chris Steakhouse. It's only a 40 minute drive! I had a salad and a NY Strip. It was all very good, but I've never been so sick so fast from a meal.

Sunday Kim and I went to Chattanooga to watch the new Shrek in 3D. Pretty good. Not as good as some of the others, but we laughed a bit. We ate at a Korean/Vietnamese place afterward. Pho for both of us. It was good, but not as good as the other we've had.

Today I trained chest, walked on the treadmill (still way to sore to run), and rode the elliptical at the gym. Chest was 12 sets in about 13 minutes. 3 sets of hammer strength bench, 3 sets incline, 3 sets decline, and 3 sets incline dumbbell flies. 45 minutes uphill walking on the treadmill then 10 minutes on the elliptical. Pretty good workout. I'll hit the bike later this afternoon (I have my final dentist appointment at 3) and then walk with Kim this evening.

Food so far today has been great. A single serving of granola cereal for breakfast, then a protein shake after the gym. I'll have snack as soon as I'm back from the dentist (Fage yogurt I'm sure), then dinner (NS or LC) after our walk, then maybe a peanut butter sandwich for dessert. I'm giving up my Skinny Cow for a bit and returning to PB.

Shoulders, Cardio, and Work

2010-06-04T10:36:00.002-04:00

Thursday was another productive day. I consumed around 1700-1800 calories and burned around 3750.

Exercise for the day began with a shoulder workout. 3 sets of military presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, and 3 sets of rear delts. Next I moved to the treadmill for 30 minutes. 5 minutes of uphill (level 9) @ a speed of 3.5, then 5 minutes running @ 7, then back to walking uphill for 5, then back to running for 5, then finishing up on the treadmill with 10 minutes of walking uphill. I moved to the elliptical for 15 minutes to finish my time at the gym. My final exercise of the day was a 2+ mile walk with Kim before dinner.

Pretty good food day as well. Breakfast was a banana and a small bowl of granola cereal. My next meal was a protein shake after my workout. I then had to go to work for a bit and drank a 100 calorie Life Water (thought it was calorie free until I finished it, whoops). Dinner was a Lean Cuisine Pizza. After dinner I had 1/2 a chocolate peanut butter sandwich and a serving of sugar free chocolate jello pudding. Throughout the day I also had a few Brazil Nuts, and a little hummus with cucumbers. I've also (for the past month or so) been taking a new stack of vitamins. Extreme Athlete or something similar from GNC. I actually kinda like it. Quite a few pills, but it seems to give me a little bit more energy.

Tomorrow is LEG DAY. It'll be the first time I've trained legs in at least 3 weeks, maybe longer. I took off from training them so I wouldn't be sore or feel weak before the Warrior Dash. Now back to it. I should be wrecked all weekend. Yahoo!

Home and Back At It

2010-06-03T10:31:00.002-04:00

And we're back from Texas, by way of New Orleans. Actually we got back late Tuesday night, but it took me a minute to unpack, catch up, and rest before getting a post ready.

We were in Texas to visit with fiends and attend a few cook outs. On the way back home we stopped for a night in New Orleans to grab some of our favorite sandwiches from Johnny's Po Boys. Lovely time had by all, but it's always great to come home.

I returned to the gym and very strict eating yesterday. I've really been kinda relaxed with my eating since we went to Costa Rica back at the beginning of March. I'm now rested and ready to push hard and drop my BF & overall size some more. I'm so sick of eating after the trip (I was fed all kinds of crazy good Mexican meats like cabeza [cheek], costillas [beef short ribs], extremely slow cooked brisket, along with a huge amount of vegetarian Indian food, and some of the best Pho' I've ever had) that I've already planned my summer meals. All "on" plan/diet/low calorie with the exception of my father's birthday meal, my birthday meal, and the 4th of July.

I trained with my mom yesterday. When I arrived she'd already started on the treadmill so I joined her on a nice uphill walk for 20 minutes. I'm still babying my feet to make sure I don't injure either of them. We began the weight training with 3 sets of triceps push downs, 3 sets of overhead presses, and finally 2 sets of rope press downs. Biceps were next beginning with 3 sets of seated incline curls, and then 3 relatively heavy sets of standing dumbbell curls. Mom took off at this point and I returned to the cardio for a bit. 15 minutes on an elliptical and then 15 more minutes on the treadmill, again just walking uphill.

My food intake was very controlled yesterday. Breakfast was a NS Blueberry muffin and some yogurt. I snacked on a few Brazil Nuts before the gym. After the gym I had a protein shake. Dinner was a Lean Cuisine Thai Chicken & Noodle entre (310 calories)! Dessert was a bite of Chocolate Peanut Butter. On the day I had less than 1600 calories. A little too low really, but a good start back. I only burned around 3300 on the day, so I've gotta get back to work with my cardio.

Below is a photo of the courtyard at the W New Orleans. We enjoyed a relaxing evening hanging out there and down by the waterfront Monday night.

Dashed (Warrior Dash)

2010-05-24T20:42:00.005-04:00

So we ran the SE Warrior Dash last weekend. To read about it check out my personal blog here.

We were tired afterward. Not so much from the race, just the entire weekend surrounding the race. We (and the pug) slept like we were dead last night. Today began the return to training for health/weigh loss again. Still gonna run, lots, but not the main concern now. I've got a real problem with my left heel/tendon (Achilles) area that I've gotta let rest and heal up. Cardio for the next couple of weeks will be all on the spin bike, the elliptical, walking around the lake, and walking uphill on the treadmill. I don't want to tear whatever is wrong with my foot, so not much running this week and next. When I raise my toes upward while keeping the heel of my foot on the ground it feels like something is about to snap, and hurts a lot. It even huts to touch it. So in my expert medical opinion, I need to rest it awhile.

Warrior Princess Kim & the Warrior Pug!

I'm returning to a lower calorie daily intake for a while. 1500-1850 or so. No breaks on weekends. No breaks on vacations. Just back to normal (NS normal). My training switched today too. I trained with weights first. Cardio after. Today was chest. Lifting first I felt pretty strong. 1 warm up set and then 3 working sets of hammer strength bench presses, then 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of decline presses, 3 sets of machine flies, and 2 sets of push-ups. Most sets were between 8-12 reps except for the push-ups, which were sets of 30 & 20 reps. Cardio at the gym was 15 minutes on the elliptical and 15 minutes walking uphill on the treadmill. I did run for about 2 minutes on the treadmill testing out some new shoes. I finally found a pair of Vibram fivefingers! Pretty cool, geeky looking shoe. Think toe shoes. I'll post a pic soon. Anyway, the shoes are supposed to force you to run as if you are barefoot, which is supposedly better for you. As I ran on the treadmill, they did force me to land much more forward (the ball of the foot, I guess) and lessened the impact on the heel. I'm looking forward to running outside (on dirt/grass/trails) wearing these. Just gotta wait on the tendon/heel the get better. Late this evening Kim, Jumping Jack Flash, and I walked about 2 miles around the lake. I wore the Vibrams and was very pleased with the way they felt.

Kim and I just after the race.

Food today was granola cereal for breakfast. Some lean ham and chicken for lunch. Post workout was a protein shake. Dinner this evening was a NS Buffalo Chicken Wrap. Dessert was a white chocolate chunk cookie. Good day!

BTW, someone ran the race (5K with obstacles) in 15:48. That's fast, yall!!!! We don't know our times yet, they'll be posted later this week. We are both beet up. Scratches and bruises all over. So much fun though. We're running another one on June 26th, assuming my foot heals up.

Pain Free Run

2010-05-20T16:43:00.002-04:00

Today I was able to run again. After resting my poor foot for two days I returned to the treadmill for what I had intended to be a moderate run. I ended up running 3 miles in 23:39. Pretty good for me. The real good news is (up to now anyway) my foot isn't hurting at all.

After finishing up 30 minutes on the treadmill I trained back. 3 sets of hammer strength pull downs, 3 sets of hammer strength rows, 3 sets of lat pull downs, and 3 sets of straight arm press downs. I finished up my time at the gym with 15 minutes on the elliptical machine.

Once back home I had a small lean cuisine meal (macaroni and beef) and then rode the spin bike for 45 minutes as I watched the Braves game. BTW, the Braves came back from a 7 run deficit in the 9th, winning the game on a walk off grand slam. I high fived the cats and the Pug! Unbelievable.

I hope to get in a walk with Kim late this evening and then another run tomorrow before we head to Mountain City late Friday for the Warrior Dash. I don't know if we'll get to run at all on Saturday before the race on Sunday.

Newest Injury

2010-05-19T09:56:00.002-04:00

My newest injury (had it a few days now) is killing me. I couldn't run much at all yesterday. I made it less than a mile before having to give up and walk on the stair treadmill. The pain eased up a bit. Walking down stairs hurts like hell, but going up is not so bad. I'm gonna try to rest it for a few days. The inside of my foot between my ankle and heel is swollen and hurts to touch. Weird. I don't remember twisting my ankle, tripping, or anything that could have resulted in this pain. Hope it goes away soon.

I rode the bike for an hour yesterday and trained chest while at the gym. 3 sets of presses, 3 sets of decline, and 3 sets of flies. No walking or anything else last night.

Today I'm gonna try to ride the bike for an hour (no pain at all while riding) and train shoulders. I'm not gonna run at all today. I'll ride the bike again this evening for some more cardio.

Food has been lots of cereal, lean cuisine, NS snacks, protein shakes, and even a slice of Pizza (a single slice mind you) out last night.

Good Time on the Treadmill

2010-05-18T09:05:00.003-04:00

This week I've decided to only run once per day leading up to the Warrior Dash on Sunday. I'm still doing other cardio, like the spin bike, elliptical, walking uphill on the treadmill, walking at the lake, and the stair treadmill.

Yesterday was kinda busy for me. I had to train, eat, go to the dentist, and squeeze in a little bookwork. My morning exercise was an hour on the spin bike. After the bike I headed to the gym and ran 3 miles in 23:49. I think that's my best time yet. I didn't feel as if I was going to die while doing it either. I spent the remainder of the 30 minutes allotted for the treadmill walking slowly uphill. I didn't have time to lift, so I went home to eat before going to the dentist. Late in the evening Kim, Jumping Jack Flash & I walked 2.25 miles around the lake for my final exercise of the day.

My newest jogging related injury (I have a new one every few days now) is a very sore left heel/tendon. It really hurts walking down stairs. I need to baby it for a day or so and then be ready for at least two outdoor runs before Sunday.

Great eating so far this week (meaning Monday and breakfast on Tuesday). Cereal in the AM, lean cuisine for lunch, NS snack, NS dinner, more cereal, and finally a skinny cow ice cream sandwich. ~2100 calories. Burning between 4000-4500 most days I train. Weekends I let the calories get high & not worry about it. I think the middle of June is when I'll go back to being "on" during the weekends too.

Today I'm gonna get my hour on the bike, run on the treadmill at the gym, train chest (& maybe shoulders), stair treadmill, & walk around the lake. All that after I get the HVAC repaired this morning. Priorities!

One Week Out!

2010-05-15T22:57:00.002-04:00

The rest of the week my training (& eating) has been all over the place. After getting left in the dust on my Tuesday run I had to take Wednesday off, but then ran a fast paced (for me) 3 mile run on the treadmill on Thursday. 3 miles in 24:17. Then I trained shoulders and triceps. Easy workout. 3 exercises for shoulders (military presses, rear delts, and side lateral raises) and two for triceps (press downs, and rope press downs). Friday I was unable to train again because I had to unexpectedly work some during the day. Saturday Kim and I ran in the AM and then walked late in the evening. I hope to get in a run on Sunday morning and then get in a workout later in the afternoon. I've been working the spin bike back into my daily routine. At least an hour on the bike, every other morning. I've also added some stair work. No more than 15 minutes at a time, only at a moderate pace. Adding these to my routine has pushed me above the 4500 calorie burn level easily each day.

Next week I've decided I'm only going to run once a day leading up to the Warrior Dash on Sunday. One day inside, the next outside, and repeat until Sunday. I've also decided not to train legs again until after the run. No need in being sore the day of the run.

My meals have been good for the most part. Every day begins with granola cereal. Lunch is typically a lean cuisine or protein shake. Some days I eat another bowl of cereal after my workout, some days I have yogurt, and occasionally I have a lean cuisine. Dinner is usually grilled fish (still). Twice this week I ate "out". Wednesday we had dinner at an Indian restaurant (I had a chicken dish and ate less than half, last year I'd have eaten 2 meals) and Friday we ate sushi. Not perfect eating, but not bad. I'm still not concerned with eating off once or twice a week. I think sometime in June I will return to a very strict (no "off" meals) routine for a while and try to push down below 190.

So next week is the Dash. The week after I'm in Texas for a bit. The next week is my Dad's birthday, followed by my birthday in the middle of June. I think just after my birthday I'll make the change.

I read a great post this evening by a friend on NS. She commented on how eating bad foods make her physically ill, and how she feels successful because the change in diet has become a change in lifestyle. I've felt the same way for a while. If I ate a cheeseburger I'd be sick for days. While I do still eat my off meals, I do control the portions (one of my main goals to master on NS) and never over eat. Her post mirrored a lot of the feelings and thoughts I had, but stated them a little better. I think she received a little hate mail as a result (just as I did when I attempted a similar post after the first of the year). Anyway, I feel ya Lili. Keep at it!

Smoked during my run...

2010-05-11T14:51:00.004-04:00

Sunday morning Kim and I ran our little route around the lake. We made it two miles before needing to recover a little. This is the best Kim has done so far. She's only been able to train once a week or so, so this much progress is great. We'll try to slow down and stretch out the distance on the net run.

Monday I ran 3 miles at home, then rode the spin bike for about 30 minutes before heading to the gym. At the gym I planned to get in an hour on the treadmill. I began with 15 minutes of a HIIT run. 2 minutes 30 seconds at 6, then thirty seconds at 9.5, then repeat. I stopped after 15 minutes. My legs felt weird, for lack of a better word. I guess just a little different from the small amount of near sprinting. I moved on to the stair-treadmill. 15 minutes on it and then back to the treadmill for a 15 minutes uphill walk. After the cardio I trained chest. 3 sets of incline presses, 3 sets of decline presses, 3 sets of machine presses, and 3 sets of flies.

Today I rode the spin bike for an hour then went to the gym. At the gym I got my ass handed to me. I ran into one of the local trainers who proceeded to invite me to go on an outdoor jog with him and some of the guys he trains. He assured me that they were going to run a slow, easy, deliberate pace......And I'm sure it was, for him. I did real well the first mile and a half, then we arrived at a rather large hill and I watched them run off into the distance. I walked up the hill, and then resumed a SLOW paced jog back to the gym. My slow and their slow are two very different things. Getting left so far behind is a sign of the shape I'm really in. Good for me, but not so good. It's great motivation to train harder, continue losing weight, keep running, and get to the point where I can not only train hard in the gym, run well on the treadmill, but also run at a decent pace outdoors (7:30-8 minute miles instead of the 9-10 minute miles I run outdoors now). After I got home from the gym (I didn't even work out after the run) I rode the spin bike for another 35 minutes. Hopefully Kim and I will be able to get in a little walk after dinner.

My meals have been very good so far this week. Cereal, protein shakes, Lean Cuisine meals, fish, and vegetables. I'm kinda growing tired of grilled fish. Well, the thought of it anyway. I always enjoy it when we eat it.

2 Weeks to Go

2010-05-09T12:11:00.002-04:00

Two weeks until Warrior Dash! I've lengthened my runs outside to 4+ miles, and my treadmill work has got me running 3 miles in about 25 minutes.

I recieved and email through the NS site a few days ago from a contact concerned that by not eating NS any longer and working out I would backslide into gaining weight. I guess my posts of late have dealt more with training than with eating. If anything, I'm eating healthier than when I was eating NS alone. The reduction in sodium has been tremendous. I've increased my protein amounts and reduced the fat in my diet. I'm sure I take in more calories than most on NS do, but then again I train at least 2.5 hours a day, 6 day a week.

Monday through Friday my current diet consists of granola cereal for breakfast (I eat a large bowl with skim milk ~ 500 calories). Pre workout (after my first run of the day) I usually have either a protein shake or a cup of yogurt. After the gym I have a small lunch (lately I've been eating either sushi [not rolls, either nigiri or sashimi] or a Lean Cuisine meal). Late in the afternoon I sometimes have a NS snack or something similar (Skinny Cow for example). Dinner most days is grilled fish. Typically either salmon or mahi mahi. We use no oils, no butter, usually only jerk or pepper seasoning. We have a salad with dinner along with some type of veggie. Dessert is usually a Skinny Cow Ice Cream Sandwich. This puts me between 2000-2500 calories per day. Along with the food I take a vitamin pack from GNC (athlete stack) and drink LOTS of water.

This routine varies on the weekends. I usually have one meal out at night on the weekend (this weekend we ate a delicious meal for Mother's Day at St. Johns in Chattanooga). Last weekend we ate at a Korean BBQ. Sometimes we eat Mexican or a good seafood place. I even eat a dessert on the nights out. I'm not concerned right now with the weekend meals potentially negating the work during the week. After months and months of battling and losing weight every day, I NEED a little rest. The main thing is that I'm not gaining any weight now (and probably losing a little each week, just not the 3-5 pounds I was losing before). I am in better physical shape now than 2 months ago (just ending the NS program). I'm much stronger, have much more stamina (longer runs, more often), and can train harder. I'm sure in another couple of weeks, say a little after Warrior Dash, I'll be ready to go back into a mindset of losing another 20 pounds or so. I'll use our upcoming wedding as good motivation to lose down to around 180.

The eating routines I developed on NS have become a lifestyle. Smaller meals, smaller portions, salads, healthy snacks, and eating breakfast EVERY morning have been key. Most importantly I have removed FAST FOOD from my life. The NS friend's email was trying to make a point to me that I already know, and have even talked about with anyone who will listen often. Exercise is great, but the proper diet is a must.

Back Day

2010-05-06T09:29:00.002-04:00

Wednesday is back day for me at the gym. It's not as demanding as leg day, but still kinda rough. Before hitting the gym I began the day with a 3 mile run around the lake. I did manage to actually run the full length, but still slower than normal. Maybe a couple of more days and I'll be back to my usual pace. Once at the gym I ran 3 more miles on the treadmill before beginning my workout. 3 sets of y-bar rows, 3 sets of t-bar rows, and 3 sets of lat pull downs. I planned to walk with Kim later in the evening, but she had to work a little late and then I had a little work to finish late as well, so no walk for us.

Food was good on the day. Cereal, lean cuisine for lunch, more cereal, skinny cow snack, salmon for dinner.

Tomorrow I'll be back outside running & training arms at the gym. Woohoo!

Still Here

2010-05-05T09:22:00.003-04:00

After a weekend off from running (letting a sore foot heal) I'm still not back to where I was before we went to Myrtle Beach. My eating has been good (other than the weekend), but my training has been sub par.

Monday I ran 3 miles on the treadmill, but it seemed like it took forever. I also rode the spin bike about 45 minutes too. The bike is still easy, so at least there's that. I returned to my strength training after taking the previous week off. Monday was chest day. 3 sets of machine presses, 3 sets of incline presses, and 3 sets of machine flies. Afterward I did about 15 minutes on the elliptical to finish my workout.

Tuesday I was able to run outside. Horrible. I ran about 2 miles and slowed to a walk for a bit. Then I picked up the pace for about half a mile, then slowed again for a bit, then finished off running the rest. 3.75 miles. It felt like 30. Once back home I hit the spin bike for 30 minutes and then got ready for the gym. My plan was to run intervals on the treadmill. 2.5 minutes at level 6, then .5 minutes at level 9, repeating until I'd run about 30 minutes or so. I made it ten minutes. The workout wasn't too hard, nor was I winded or hurting, I just felt exhausted overall. I slowed to an uphill walk for ten minutes, and wanted to finish the last ten minutes at a 7mph jog. Nope. I made it about 5 minutes and then returned to my uphill walk. Yup, it sucked. My workout for Tuesday was shoulders. 3 sets of shoulder presses, 3 sets of lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, 3 sets of shoulder shrugs, and 3 sets of rear delts. Again I returned to the elliptical trainer for about 12 minutes to complete my gym workout.

Food has been cereal and protein shakes in the AM. Sushi for lunch. Dinner during the past two days was seared swordfish on Monday & grilled jerked salmon on Tuesday. PM snacks have been either skinny cow treats or more cereal.

Wednesday I hope to push a good outside run (even at a slow pace, whatever, just finish without having to walk) and then some type of interval cardio at the gym, followed by a back workout.

Warrior Dash is rapidly approaching. We've finally secured a very nice looking cabin for the weekend. Kim's trying to plan a practice run at our lake the weekend before. If she can get it together it should be fun. If you're running it (or just wanna come run through the fields with us) let me know.

Weekend Full of Asian Foods

2010-05-02T15:05:00.005-04:00

Friday I returned to running outside. It was terrible. My first problem was my foot. The bottom of my right foot hurt (I guess from running so much on Thursday after having so many days off). The second problem was I was running later than usual, thus a little warmer than usual. And finally I extended the run from 3 miles to 4.3 miles. The first part of the run was great, right up until I hit the 2 mile mark. I decided to walk a bit and then run some more. Overall I was very unhappy with the run, but I burned a lot of calories (~1000). I later went to the gym planning to get a 3 mile run on the treadmill. The sucking continued. I managed another 2 miles and then retreated to the elliptical. Finally late Friday evening Kim & I walked 2 miles around the lake, bringing my total to around 9 miles for the day. I burned ~4400 calories on the day, but never really got in the intensity out of the workouts I was looking for.

Saturday Kim & I went to Atlanta to look at some wedding dresses for her. The only exercise of the day was a 30 minutes ride on the spin bike before we left. I did get a little walking in at various shopping locations, but noting with any intensity.

Sunday I planned to run outside, but my foot was still sore from all the running on Thursday/Friday, so I decided to get all of my cardio in on the spin bike. I'll return to both running (albeit on the treadmill because we're expecting lots of rain) and training Monday morning.

My eating on Friday and Saturday was good for some meals, not so much for others. Friday everything was great in the AM (cereal, protein shake, and then sushi for lunch) but dinner was a pork (carnitas) burrito. Saturday AM was again good (cereal) and lunch was good also (Vietnamese Pho Noodle Soup). Dinner again was not so good. We ate at Honey Pig in Atlanta. It's a Korean place. Lots of pig and kimchi. Yum. If you're interested in reading about our meals, check my personal blog here for pics and links to the restaurants.

Three weeks to the Warrior Dash! Yippee!

3 Miles Turned Into 8

2010-04-30T07:48:00.003-04:00

Thursday found me almost back to my normal training level. I began the day with a 35 minute ride on the spin bike. Very easy and I felt fine after the ride. I headed to the gym with the intention of only running 3 miles and then trying to catch up on my missed workouts from earlier in the week. The 3 miles were easy and just as I was finishing up a cool down walk, DJ arrived and I decided to run a little more with him. I ended up with an hour total on the treadmill and then 10 more minutes on the elliptical trainer. After the cardio I decided not to workout (I was feeling very tired) and headed home. My only other exercise on the day was about a 2 mile walk after dinner with Jumping Jack Flash. ~ 8 miles total on the day.

My meals again consisted of cereal (twice), a protein shake, a lean cuisine meal for dinner (which wasn't bad at all), and a skinny cow ice cream sandwich. Total calories on the day were around 2200, BB reported a burn of + 3800.

Friday I hope to be running outside again (before the bad weather hit here this weekend) and maybe an ab workout or something in the gym. I've decided to rest each muscle group this week (except for abs, maybe) and begin fresh on Monday.

Working My Way Back & The End of the Warrior Beard

2010-04-29T17:56:00.003-04:00

Wednesday's workout fell a bit short of what I wanted. After being sick for all day Tuesday (and not training at all) I managed to get in a 35 minute ride on the spin bike. Not to bad, but I felt exhausted afterward. After dinner, Kim, Jumping Jack Flash, and I walked about a mile and a half around the lake. Oddly enough, everything hurt. I really thought I'd feel better after taking a weekend + a few days off.

Since being sick I've ate a lot of cereal. That's really all I've felt like eating. Well under 2000 calories for Tuesday. BB showed a burn of a little over 3000.

Thursday I'm gonna try to spin for at least an hour, and run no less than 3 miles (on the treadmill, I don't feel ready to run outside yet).

I received an email from the organizers of the "Warrior Dash" a few days ago with updates concerning the race in late may. I've been growing a "Warrior Beard" for about 2 months so I could enter the Best Warrior Beard contest. The email explained that the contest would be held about 4 hours after we will finish the race. We have at least a 3 hour drive home, so I won't be there for the contest. Booo! So the beard is already gone. Below is a pic from its last night with me. Good bye Warrior Beard!

Weekend Away @ Brook Green Gardens

2010-04-28T10:10:00.002-04:00

Kim and I took the past weekend off and traveled to Myrtle Beach. I did run the first day we were there, but then decided to give my sore calf a rest. It worked out well as we had a rainy day on Sunday, and then Monday was the all day drive home.

We really love getting to go to the condo when we can. It was still a little to cool for the beach, but we really enjoy getting to relax, have a few nice meals out, and do.....nothing. We did go back to Brook Green Gardens (twice actually) and viewed the new butterfly exhibit. We also went to Wilmington for dinner with friends on Friday evening and had a delightful meal (lamb shank over grits & a colossal creme brulee).

My plan for returning to running and the gym fell apart on Tuesday. I woke up about 4AM Tuesday morning sick as a dog. I spent the rest of the day between the sofa and the bed. Hope Wednesday is better. I want to at least ride the bike, workout, and try to walk. I'll work my way back to running.

Sideshow of pics from the gardens below.

Brook Green Gardens from Zane Hollingsworth on Vimeo.

Running, Fog, Training, and Life Since NS

2010-04-22T12:49:00.002-04:00

Wednesday morning began with me not sleeping well and rising very early. I took the opportunity to finish preparing for an insurance audit, catch up on my blog reading, shooting photos of the early morning fog, and then prepping for a run. The first 2o minutes of the run were awful. Evidently I didn't sleep well because I didn't feel well, or something. Anyway I was tired and felt like poo until the last 5 minutes of the run. I guess I realized I was heading home and felt better, thus making the running more enjoyable. I thought I would have one of the poorest times, but I actually came in just a little quicker than normal. Weird. Guess because of very cool temps I was moving well even though I wasn't feeling well.

Wednesday's gym experience was weird as well. I ran two miles on the treadmill with no problem, then it felt like someone flipped a switch and I was out of energy. I moved to the elliptical and continued for 20 more minutes before being ready to workout. I attempted to train back. I was tired, weak, and uninspired. I struggled through about 9 sets total before giving up and coming home. I collapsed into the bed ans slept for 4 hours. Pitiful, I know. Anyway, I woke feeling better and quite refreshed.

Thursday morning began with me waking after getting a full 9 hours of sleep! I found Jumping Jack Flash and took off on a run. He made it about 100 yards with me, saw a rabbit, and vanished into the woods giving chase. That was the last I saw of him on the run. I finished the run with one of my fastest times yet (when not on a treadmill). Very pleased I cleaned up and headed to the gym. Easy 3.5 miles on the treadmill and then an arm workout. 6 sets for triceps and then 6 for biceps. Fast, hard, heavy, and out! I love training that way. IMHO, if you're training arms and it takes an hour, and you're doing 15 sets for bis & 15 sets for tris, you're over-training. Just my two cents.

Food for both days has been good. Lots of granola cereal (I do this whenever the temps start rising, I could live on cereal alone during the summers), lots of grilled chicken and fish, and lots of protein shakes. I have made an effort to cut back on the number of granola bars I eat during the day. They are a healthy snack, but if you eat 6-8 per day......

Since returning from vacation and cutting back (stopping) on NS I've slowly crept back towards my weight before vacation. During the week I train hard, eat well, and loose a couple of pounds. On the weekends (or when we have to eat out for a Bday or whatever) I don't worry to much with what I eat and gain a pound back. So I've slowly been loosing weight, but the great thing is that I haven't reverted to my old habits and attacked fast food, or doughnuts, or some other terrible thing. It's safe to say my healthy eating, exercising, training, running, and concern for my health has become a lifestyle, and not just a temporary diet. Very pleased.....

Below is a pic of the 5AM foggy morning. I had to wait until 5 for some cars to drive by so trees would be lit up enough to tell what I had in the frame...

Rain, Run, Spin, Spun....

2010-04-21T08:18:00.003-04:00

Tuesday I was unable to run outside at all. Rain had moved into the area and meant the dogs, and I had to stay inside. I took the opportunity to steal Kim's car away for the morning and get her some new tires and the oil changed. I even had a little time to grocery shop before I was due at the gym.

Gym was easy. 3.5 mile run on the treadmill followed by a shoulder workout. 3 sets of military presses, 3 sets of side lateral raises, 3 sets of upright rows, 3 sets of rear delts, and 3 sets of military presses. Sounds like a lot now, but I flew through the workout. Once home I hit the spin bike for 45 minutes (I needed to watch 24 from Monday night) and then had a snack. After dinner and during the Braves game I spun for another 35 minutes. Easy rides now. I push fast for a minute then increase the intensity and push hard and slow for a minute, then repeat.

Hope to be back running outside tomorrow morning. Just over a month until Warrior Dash!

Strength is Still Returning

2010-04-19T20:57:00.002-04:00

Monday began with a 3 mile run. I ran alone today because Kim needed to get to work early and Jumping Jack Flash has gone to visit with my parents and their dogs. He needs a little rest anyway. He's been getting four or five miles in every day and is almost too small. We've decided to buy him some canned, high calorie dog food to supplement his diet. Summer is always rough on him. He plays too hard and eats too little. I've discovered that when I run alone I encounter much more wildlife. Today I saw the usual geese and other birds, and a few horses in the field, but then I ran across some ponies in the wooded part of the run I've never seen before. Moments later I almost ran over a couple of large deer. The pranced away and I continued my run towards home running across several very cute rabbits along the way. I guess without Kim or Jack to talk to as I run I don't make as much noise and get closer to the animals before they take notice. Of course Jack is usually either just in font or just behind me barking and playing making noise (or chasing the animals before I ever see them) so this could be a reason I don't see as many animals too.

After the run I went to the gym and ran another 3.5 miles. My old training partner DJ arrived during my run and we trained chest afterward. Today's workout continued my theme of getting stronger each workout after switching my diet. I think the increase in calories (minor) and the substantial increase in protein (considerable) has really made the difference. I think I've regained better than 1/2 of what I lost while using NS. Today we began with 3 sets of incline bench presses (~232#'s for reps today, while I used to do ~272#, & I got as low as ~180#'s), then flat bench dumbbell presses for 3 sets, next 3 sets of machine flies, and finally 3 sets of decline bench presses (almost back to the full amount I used to press here). All of this was after running 6 miles. Overall I was very happy with my workout. The running is very easy now (I've begun pushing my outdoor workout trying to decrease my time) and the workout intensity is returning as well. WOOHOO!

The only other exercise of the day was after dinner. Kim, the pug, and I took a mile walk around the lake just before dark. I'm still amazed at how many calories I burn just taking a leisurely walk in the evening.

Food was great all day, including the dinner at the local Chinese Buffet. I didn't go too crazy at the buffet. Some sushi, peanut chicken, shrimp, a little more peanut chicken, sesame chicken, and a cup of ice cream. The rest of the day was protein shakes, granola bars, granola cereal, and grilled chicken.

Good Weekend.

2010-04-19T11:37:00.003-04:00

Saturday Kim and I decided not to run. Instead we played some tennis. I loved tennis when I was in high school and a few years after. But I haven't set foot on a court in about 15 years or so. It was pathetic. I mis-hit more shots in the hour we were there than I mis-hit in 10 years when I played before. I tried some serves. Terrible. Two out of ten went in. By the end I had regained a little bit of a swing and could volley well from the net. Kim didn't have too much fun, she expected to be able to hit the ball well. I reminded her it was only the 2nd time she'd tried to play tennis as an adult and that we were there just to get some exercise and have fun. As a result of the tennis, I'm now sore all over. I'm sore in weird places from running at a sprint, from serving, lunging, etc. We did have a pretty good workout and I hope we can go play again and have a more relaxed, enjoyable time.

Sunday we did go for a nice jog around mid morning. Kim had the best run so far. She pushed about a mile and a half before we stopped. We only walked a small portion of the route before returning to a jog and finishing the 3 miles. I went to the gym and ran another 3 (and felt terrible the entire run) and then trained abs.

Sunday evening my parents joined us for grilled fish, spaghetti squash, grilled veggies, and a salad. The rest of the weekend we ate pretty healthy, other than Saturday night, which we took off completely.

Monday is back to the 6 miles a day + the usual workouts. A little over a month to go before Warrior Dash, then I can ease up on the running some.

A House Nearby Exploded Today

2010-04-15T22:34:00.006-04:00

Yep, a house a couple of streets away blew up today. Kinda puts my running/training/dieting in perspective. More about the explosion below.

This morning began with me waking very early due to Kim's iPhone alarm going off non-stop for what seemed like hours (probably wasn't more than a few minutes). She's a deep sleeper. Usually I'm not. I wake easily and usually in a very good mood. Kim typically does not. So I got up and did my usual thing of taking the pug out, getting some coffee, releasing the remaining hounds, and feeding the cats. Kim rose a little later and I began my first hour on the spin bike as she got ready for work. I decided not to run around the lake today so my sore leg muscle could get a little more rest. I next hit the gym where I did do some very slow intervals (between 6 & 7 mph) and then walked for a bit, then finally finishing up with a little more jogging before moving to the elliptical for about 15 minutes. So with another hour of cardio complete I moved quickly through an arm workout. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of rope press downs, and finally 3 sets of reverse grip press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls, 3 sets of standing hammer curls, and 2 sets of concentration curls. Whew! I was beat when I left.

Back home I changed into some dry clothes, had a new and improved Labrada "Carb Watchers" Lean Body Protein Shake (Chocolate Ice Cream flavor), and headed back out to work for a bit. After finishing up my few errands, I hit the local sushi place for my afternoon snack. I had salmon, tuna, tilapia, eel, shrimp, and white tuna. Pretty good (especially for my little town).

Once back home I was sitting at my computer in my office, doing something very productive like looking at FaceBook or something, when I felt the house shudder followed instantly by the sound of a very loud explosion. Shock wave followed by sound wave. I've been in a couple of earthquakes so I knew the order of the shaking and explosions were wrong (the last earthquake I was in last month, there was a loud boom, followed by shake, shudder, shake). I was up and running outside before I really realized what I was doing. I had my keys (so I could grab my police scanner out of the car, or drive away if necessary), my phone (because I figured something bad had just happened right outside my house and I'd need to call 911 any moment), and most importantly, my camera. Once outside I found nothing. Nothing but a beautiful day. The only strange thing was every dog within ear shot was going nuts. I turned on the scanner and heard the initial call of a possible explosion. Withing a few seconds I could hear more and more calls ringing in the background as the local 911 switchboards lit up. The subdivision that is just upstream from our lake was where the explosion occurred. Now I could see smoke rising from the area. One house was completely obliterated. Nothing left. 15 others were damaged. Some type of a gas leak occurred and the house blew at about 3:25PM. No one was home. The local school buses hadn't made it to the neighborhood yet either. Everyone was very lucky. Had anyone been inside they'd have been a goner.

Over the next hour I watched FaceBook and Twitter as my local town lost it's collective mind. Some people swore they'd seen a jet crash into the house. Others knew for a fact the house contained a meth lab. Nonsense. The explosion blew outward, not like an impact where something hit it and then the structure collapsed. And for the amount of force generated by the explosion it would have to have been the biggest meth lab in the world. The explosion was felt miles away and heard on the other side of the county. But none the less, the local lunatics went wild with stories. And of course everyone tried to drive into the area to see what had happened. Absolute lunacy reigned supreme for a few hours this afternoon. I think things have calmed somewhat now (except for the families that were involved, and the idiots who have been trying to sneak into the neighborhood). For the record, once I realized that the explosion was not right outside my house, I did NOT attempt to run to the area and sneak around the police to take pics. I did think about it though.

For pictures of the explosion try here and video from and Atlanta news chopper that was in the area here.

Kim made it home a little after all of the excitement and we had grilled salmon with jerk seasoning along with some beans and rice. We then walked Jumping Jack Flash for a bit before dark. My final cardio of the day came as I watched the Braves beat the Padres tonight. Over a 4000 calorie burn again today and I consumed somewhere above 2500. Really doesn't seam as important compared to your house blowing up....