Yay!

Today's Weigh-in: 226.2 (new low!)
5-day average: 228.9

It looks like I'm finally starting to see some pounds drop. 2 weeks ago I was fluctuating pretty steadily between 230 and 234 lbs. Now I seem to be going between 226 and 230, so that tells me that at least the range of weight is going down.

I have a new workout routine that I'm going to do through the end of the year. Previously I was doing weight training 4 times a week and working each body part once per week, but hit it hard with at least 4 different lifts in each session. I now realize that this was a bit too ambitious for my current fitness level. I have been reading Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (which is a great book by the way, very informative), and he recommends that you have at least a year of solid weight training experience before doing the 3 or 4 day split that I was doing. Thankfully the book has templates for beginning, intermediate, and advanced lifting routines, so I borrowed one of the intermediate level routines that should help me build good muscle without stressing my body too much (or injuring myself). My new workout is as follows:

3 sets of each exercise, 8-12 repetitions (excluding abs and calves, do 15-25 reps each set).
2 different lifts per muscle group.

Mon, Thurs:
Chest: Flat bench, incline flys
Shoulders: DB shoulder press, DB side lateral raise
Triceps: Tricep pushdowns, overhead tricep extensions
Abs: Crunches, Reverse Crunches (or weighted crunches)

Tues, Sat:
Legs: Leg Press machine, Leg extension machine, Lying Leg Curl
Back: Low back extension/hyperextension, Pull-ups or lat pulldowns, Seated Cable Rows (or Bent-over Barbell Rows)
Biceps: Barbell curl, Seated alternating dumbbell curl
Calves: Standing Calf Machine, Seated Calf Machine

I think this is a more reasonable approach than the one I was taking. I'm going to follow this through January 1st (I may substitute different types of lifts for the same body parts, but the basic routine will stay the same) and judge whether I need to adjust to a new program or continue with the current one.

I got my myotape the other day, but I left the measurements at home. I should be getting my camera today, so I hope to post pictures and measurements by tomorrow. Also, it turns out I don't have pink eye, it was just irritated (why, I'm not sure). Seems to be all better today, thank God.