Building A Fitter Me

Powerlifting meet

2012-02-07T09:58:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 218.4

My first day back in the Crossfit group class went well. I back squatted 295 for 8 reps, then did a hard metcon in under 12 minutes. My cardio capacity and strength endurance aren't where I'd like them to be yet, so I need to focus on pushing the intensity in my workouts and not sandbagging when it gets hard. Today we're doing a longer workout, probably upwards of an hour, so I'll get a nice calorie burn from that.

Diet yesterday was mostly good, but I did have a couple of beers that were left over from the weekend. Didn't really track calories but just focused on high protein, with carbs post-workout only. I've committed to competing in a powerlifting competition in April, about 9 weeks away. That gives me time to complete 2 more cycles of Wendler 5-3-1 and then take a deload week before the meet. My goal is to compete in the Open division in the 210 lb. weight class. My goals are to hit a 400 squat, 450 deadlift, and 300 bench, for a 1150 lb. total. Are those goals realistic? Maybe. I've squatted 365 in the gym for an easy single, barely failed at 385, so my one-rep max right now is probably around 375. I've pulled 445 on the deadlift so 450 isn't a stretch. The bench goal is probably the most ambitious one since I haven't maxed my bench out in a long time, but I'd rather aim high and miss than aim too low and not push myself. I figure the adrenaline of the event will help me put up bigger numbers than I could do in the gym as well, which is a well known phenomenon in the powerlifting and weightlifting worlds. We'll see how the weight loss affects this as well.

This doesn't mean I'm going to focus on being a powerlifter. I'm still going to be doing just the standard Wendler 5-3-1 template for my strength program and hitting the Crossfit WODs for my GPP/conditioning. My goal is always to be as strong AND as fit as possible, without sacrificing one for the other. Right now I'll focus on shoring up any weaknesses for this powerlifting meet, but later I'll probably focus on a Crossfit competition or maybe even an endurance event. I like mixing it up; it keeps things fresh.

Good start

2012-01-31T15:59:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 216

Doing alright so far. I didn't get to work out yesterday because we had a Paleo potluck at the gym, which I attended. We ate healthy food and had a good time. Today I've had a small bit of sushi (6 pieces), a big salad with egg, bacon, and mozarella, a protein shake, and some strawberries. I'm sitting at about 1500 calories so far. My goal is to hit between 2200 and 2500 calories a day (depending on whether I work out or not). Today's a workout day so I'll eat a bigger dinner, probably with some rice. This is the last week I'll be working out on my own, and I'm pretty excited to get back into the big group workouts. They're just so motivating and really push you to your limits. Now that I'm stronger I'm interested to see how it affects my performance in the lighter workouts as well. I'm hoping the increased strength will allow me to increase my strength endurance more quickly and I'll be able to endure for longer without burning out, but we'll see how it goes.

I know that was kind of a boring post, but I just wanted to write something to keep myself on track and focused on the goal ahead of me.

Guess Who's Back

2012-01-30T12:44:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 216.4

I think it's time I came back to the blogging world. As I mentioned in my last post these past few months have been focused on improving my strength and power, and I've done a pretty good job of that. I hit a few of my goals (310# front squat, 255# clean), got closer to a couple (375# back squat a few weeks ago, still making good progress using Wendler 5-3-1), and have a few I still need to test (haven't snatched in a while). My deadlift hasn't really gone anywhere, but to be honest I haven't been training it very much. I can still do multiple muscle-ups, I'm more muscular, and my general levels of conditioning are solid. All-in-all a good few months of progress.

There's only one problem: I'm fatter than I would like to be. I'm not fat fat, still wearing 36s and medium/large shirts, but I'm feeling the need to drop some significant bodyfat and really get jacked. I was 225 at the beginning of January so I've already made some progress, but I find that I really need to get my thoughts and issues out into the world (i.e. this blog) to continue making progress and staying motivated. I'm also finding that some of my old demons (sugar, fast food, and general BS cravings) have come back to haunt me.

I've got a couple of goals on the horizon:

I have a bet with a buddy that I would rock a 6-pack by May 1st.
I have a 30-day Paleo challenge coming up at the gym where I'll have an opportunity to get my bodyfat percentage tested before and after, and if I'm going to spend the money to do that I really want to make some significant progress in that time.
I want to get back into doing the Crossfit group classes instead of doing all my workouts on my own. We're implementing our own programming at the gym now (instead of going off crossfit.com WODs) and we're doing Wendler 5-3-1 for strength along with short, intense conditioning workouts, and this fits perfectly with what I need. Also I just can't push myself as hard alone as I can when I hit it with others. And it's so much more fun, too. My goal is 5 days a week in the gym, 4 days doing the group class and one day for Olympic lifting.

I've updated the sidebar with my weight goals and dates. I also want to take the time to enumerate where I am strong and where I need work, and focus specifically on improving on the weaknesses.

Strengths

I already shop and cook for myself every week and most evenings
I'm fairly consistent in terms of hitting the gym
I'm the strongest I've ever been right now, so my work capacity is pretty high.

Weaknesses

Sugar cravings
Fast food cravings (something about salty, greasy, crispy things that drives me nuts)
Not as consistent in the gym as I would like to be (e.g. when my schedule gets weird I usually just skip the gym instead of going at a different time)
It's very easy for me to gain weight - looking at the time between October 2011 and now (4 months) I went from 201 to 225 and now back down to 216. And I wasn't trying to gain weight, that was just regular ad-libitum eating. I really will need to rein it in and focus on eating only my allotted calories. I had hoped I could get away from calorie counting but I guess I'm just not the kind of person for whom that works well.

I think once the Paleo challenge gets going that'll take care of the cravings for the most part (after the first week, of course) and doing the group classes will help me get more motivated to be fully consistent in the gym and give 100% effort. I just need to track what I put in my face hole better and it should be smooth sailing.

I think I'm gonna take some pics soon and put them up here for comparison and accountability. If I'm going to have any chance of hitting my goal of having at least some abs by May 1st I'm going to need to cut down to less than 200 pounds, 190-195 realistically. It's a stretch, for sure, but I'd rather do this thing quick rather than drag it out. First goal is sub-210 by March 1st. Let's do this!

New goals and direction for the next few months

2011-11-10T13:35:00.001-08:00

I know I haven't posted in a while. Sorry about that.

I've come to the realization that I'm pretty happy with my health and body fat levels, so I'm not really trying to lose weight right now. I've been doing my own program for a little over a month and I'm continuing to get stronger, which is really my focus right now. At the Powerlifting cert I mentioned in the last post I hit a personal record of 445 lbs. on the deadlift, and did a 355 lb. box squat (having box squatted a grand total of maybe 3 times in my life). Two days ago I power snatched 175 lbs. which matches my squat snatch PR. I recently power cleaned 235 lbs., which matches my squat clean from my weightlifting meet back in March (just in case you aren't aware, most people trained in the Olympic lifts can squat clean/snatch more than they can power clean/snatch, so it means I'm getting stronger). I've hit 11 dead-hang chin-ups (and did 6 with 25 lbs. added weight), front squatted 230 for 8 reps, and am increasing my bench press every week (just did 225 for 8 reps). I've got incredible momentum right now, so I'm going to take at least the rest of the year to work on continuing to get stronger and more explosive.

That's not to say I'm not watching what I eat. I've been doing daily fasts until about noon or 1:00, eating low carb until my workout, and then eating a higher carb dinner with tons of protein. My bodyweight has increased to about 210, but I'm still on my fourth belt loop while the legs of my pants are feeling tighter, which tells me I'm gaining size but not fat. I can still perform muscle-ups, and as long as I can continue to increase my chin-ups/pull-ups (and not my pants size) I'm not really going to worry about raw bodyweight.

I figure I'll keep going in this vein until I stall out, then maybe cycle into a 4-6 week cutting cycle before next summer. I definitely wouldn't mind being more muscular come summertime. I'm also considering trying a powerlifting meet or two next year just to get a feel for that sport. My goals right now?

Front squat 300 lbs. by 12/1/11 (current PR 290)
Back squat 400 lbs. by 3/1/12 (current PR 355)
Deadlift 500 lbs. by 3/1/12 (current PR 445)
Bench press 300 lbs. by 3/1/12 (current PR 265, almost a year ago)
Clean & jerk 250 lbs. by 1/1/12 (current PR 245)
Power snatch 185 by 1/1/12 (current PR 175)

I think these are all very doable, especially the front squat and clean & jerk. If I can hit those numbers for the back squat, bench, and deadlift in a powerlifting meet I would total a pretty respectable 1200, only 79 pounds short of a Class I ranking (third highest classification in raw powerlifting, check this chart for details) in the 220 lb. weight class, and 9 pounds shy in the 198 lb. weight class if I decided to cut weight (which is probably doable).

I'm also staying on top of my conditioning workouts, doing sprints (rowing and running) and shorter Crossfit-style circuits twice a week each. I don't want to be one of those dudes who is crazy strong but gets winded walking up a flight of stairs. My goals are always to be as strong as possible while maintaining a very high level of overall fitness.

It's been 4 years since I started this blog. When I started the only goal was to lose weight and get healthy. I had no idea how far my journey into physical fitness would take me. So here's to another year of continued improvement and health!

Small setback in fat loss, but good gains in fitness

2011-10-21T13:10:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 206
Weighted Moving Average: 205.3

So I've gained back about a pound and a half, looking at my averages from the beginning of this month. Not what I wanted at all, and not what I planned. On the bright side at least I have been keeping good track of this data and can now look at it and use it to stop myself before I get back into that old cycle. I want to keep losing fat, I want to get lean and jacked! I want to increase my strength-to-weight ratio, and be able to do 20 deadhang chin-ups. But that's not going to happen unless I bear down and do the work. My main issue is just eating too much, overall. Quality is 90% good, but willpower is weak during the early mornings and later in the evenings, and I tend to want to snack on nuts and stuff, which is probably what's putting me over my caloric requirements. I think I'll knock that off now.

My new training program is going pretty well. I'm on my second week, and while I've had to make some concessions due to time and other conflicts I've been pretty darn consistent. I got 4 workouts last week and 3 so far this week, with another one planned for tonight, *and* I'm attending the Crossfit Powerlifting Certification this weekend at my gym, Crossfit 714 so I'm sure I'll be lifting weights all weekend. I got the chance to attend the cert at the last minute (noticing a pattern here?) so it forces me to adjust my training schedule, but that's okay because I know it'll be super informative, and maybe I can apply some of the Westside Conjugate method principles to my own training as well as programming for our clients.

I've come to the realization that my right shoulder still isn't 100%, and I really can't snatch or overhead squat heavy right now. I will need to add in more mobility and rehab work to get it stronger, but in the meantime I'm going to stick to power snatches and heavy front squats, with some pressing to keep strengthening everything. Last week I got a PR power snatch of 165 (only 10 pounds below my max squat snatch), and this week I set a PR of 10 deadhang bodyweight chin-ups. It's only a 1-rep PR, but I'll take it!

If anyone is interested in the program I've created just drop me a line in the comments and I'll make it available.

A little experiment

2011-10-07T12:29:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 201.8
Moving Average: 203.6

Still making good progress. Still sticking to mostly Paleo foods. Had a bit of fast food over the weekend and definitely regretted it, and got right back on the wagon on Monday. I'm really hoping to get under 200 by the end of October, and I think it's doable, if I can avoid all the candy that's sure to magically appear everywhere.

I'm beginning a new 8-week training program on Monday. I went ahead and programmed 5 workouts a week for 8 weeks, targeting my weaknesses and continuing to build my strengths. It consists of sprinting, Oly-lifting, powerlifting, conditioning sessions, and a little bit of endurance work, in the form of either bike rides or intervals (rowing or running). I put a lot of work into it, and I'm hoping it will be a success. I'm also using this as an experiment in programming Crossfit-style strength and conditioning workouts over a long period of time, as I would like to apply some of this to my role as Crossfit coach. Our gym currently does workouts from Crossfit.com with an added strength program, which is okay, but I think we could be doing a lot better for our athletes by programming everything in-house. I'm brand new to this, so I'm going to use myself as the guinea pig. Hopefully I'll learn a lot about what works, what doesn't, how to manage volume, how much periodization to include, etc. Should be fun! I'll keep you posted as to the workouts themselves and how everything goes as I move through the next 2 months.

Update on USAW cert and general diet progress

2011-09-27T11:48:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 204.2
Weighted Moving Average: 204.8

After a bit of a (planned) hiccup over the weekend I'm back on track. My friends are having a baby, and they threw a baby shower/big ass party on Saturday, where I had quite a few adult beverages and some off-the-reservation foods. But I did a fair job at keeping the damage contained to that day, and after a bit of stomach/digestive issues over the subsequent two days I'm totally back to being clean. I just really love the way I feel when I eat strict and sleep well, and I hate the way I feel when I don't. So that helps a lot with staying on the straight and narrow.

I got another comment from a coworker on how much weight I've lost (this is someone I only see every few months, so it's probably easier for her to notice). She even took the time to ask me what I am doing, and seemed genuinely interested in my answer (which was basically "avoid grains and vegetable oil, eat meat, veggies, fruit, and coconut"), which makes me feel good. I am fully convinced that this is the way to eat for life, and it makes me feel good to share this information with others who might benefit from it.

I just realized I've never really shared some of my favorite Paleo/Primal/Ancestral eating sites and resources; I've added a resources section to the side of the blog to remedy this failure to share this valuable information. Take the time to check them out and get your life on track.

Ooh, I just got an email from USA Weightlifting: I passed the certification test! I'm now officially a USAW Certified Sports Performance Coach! I wasn't too sure if I passed the test, because it was hard. I studied the materials pretty in-depth, and I'm fairly well-versed on technique, but it was still really tough. That's a relief, though; you have to pay to re-take the test online, and I really didn't want the added expense. I'm feeling very happy right now!

Feeling confident

2011-09-21T10:48:00.000-07:00

Weigh-In: 204.2
Average: 205.5

Had a great time at the USAW Level 1 certification this weekend. I learned a ton about performing and coaching the Olympic lifts, as well as program design and assistance movements. Once my shoulder is back to 100% and I fix some of the mobility issues I've been having I would really like to do a 12-week weightlifting cycle, ending in another competition. I would also like to compete in the 85kg weight class this time, instead of 94kg like last time.

I'm making good progress on the weight-loss front. I have had a couple of cheats (a couple beers one day, some corn tortillas another) but in general I've been really strict, even on the weekends. I've managed to completely avoid wheat which is something I plan to continue as strictly as possible forever. My digestion is so much better without it, and I think cutting it out is what has led to me losing much of the chub from around my waist (see the new book Wheat Belly by Dr. William Davis for more info).

I'm now comfortably using the 4th hole in my belt after being stuck on the 3rd (and even the 2nd, at times) for a few years. I think this time I've finally managed to get fully back on track to reach my goals. I know I'm still a ways away, but I feel pretty confident now that I have the ability and drive to get there. It's a good feeling.

Leveling up my knowledge

2011-09-16T15:58:00.000-07:00

This weekend I'm going to be attending the USA Weightlifting Sports Performance Coach Level 1 Certification being held at our gym. I wasn't planning on it, but one of the owners of the gym can't make it, so the opportunity falls to me. This is an awesome opportunity, as I've been teaching the Olympic lifts as part of our beginner's intro course, and also when I help out with the classes, and to be honest I probably enjoy that aspect of coaching the most. There's just so much to learn in the O-lifts, it never gets boring, but it does require me to continue to stretch my limits as a coach and increase my knowledge about the technical aspects of these lifts. I've attended a couple of seminars put on by local Oly coaches, but this is the first real USAW class and cert for me. I've thought about starting a weightlifting club at Crossfit 714 at some point in the future, and USAW requires certification to do that, so this is a good step in that direction, should I choose to go down that road.

While this is an awesome thing, it's going to make it tough to find the time to cook my meals for the upcoming week, but I'm going to do my best to make the time, even if I can only do a couple of slow-cooker recipes. I'm really making good progress with regards to my body-fat, strength, and performance, so I need to be on top of my nutrition to keep the ball rolling.

I've actually gotten 3 remarks in the past few days with people saying I'm looking lean, or more buff, and one lady I've never spoken to before started talking to me about healthy eating and that she could tell I was into that. It's a really great motivator when others comment on your progress, and I'm hoping that'll help keep me on track mentally to reach my goals.

Training has been good this week. I hit new personal records in the power clean (230# for 1 rep, 5# PR) and front squat (290# for 1 rep, 15# PR). I completed Murph as prescribed on Tuesday (took just under an hour) and hit my PRs on Wednesday, so I can only imagine that those numbers could be a little bit better if my body was fresher. My shoulder is continuing to feel better and better, and even the 100 pull-ups in Murph didn't bother it. All in all I'm feeling really good with where I'm at and where I'm going.

Edit: I wanted to post a recent picture, for posterity, cuz I haven't posted anything in a while. Here's me from a few weeks ago during my birthday party.

I've dropped a few points of body-fat percentage since then, but it's fairly indicative of where I'm at now.

Making progress

2011-09-13T11:13:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 205.4
Moving Average: 206.9

Looks like my weight is starting to move downward. I've weighed in under 206 the past 3 days. My goal is to be under 200 by October 1st, so I've got 17 days left in this month. I'm not sure if I'll make that goal, and I really don't want to try to hit it through restricting my calories drastically, but I'm hoping now that everything seems to be dialed in that the weight will drop more consistently. We'll see.

The thing that is surprising to me is that I have made absolutely zero effort to restrict the quantity of food I'm taking in. I've been eating tons of meat, fruit, coconut, nuts, vegetables, sweet potatoes, etc., even to the point of fullness and I'm still leaning out and dropping weight. I doubt that will continue forever, because from what I've seen and read it does take some restriction to get down to sub-10% levels of body-fat, but I'm going to ride this as long as I can, and when I stall out then I'll think about modifying my intake or counting calories.

My girlfriend and I came up with a delicious healthy snack to help with those times where you just want something a little sweet and comforting. I've had a big tub of shredded coconut just sitting in my cabinet for over a year now, so we decided to take a couple scoops of that and mix it with the vanilla coconut milk from Trader Joe's. On its own it tastes similar to Frosted Mini-Wheats if you let them sit in milk for a long time, but instead of being filled with poisonous gluten and gliadin it's full of healthy MCTs and fiber. We experimented even more with it, and my girlfriend came up with a mixture of shredded coconut, coconut milk, chocolate whey protein, cocoa powder, a little sweetener (stevia or sucralose), and a touch of coffee, which is absolutely delicious. It's a chocolatey treat with a balanced amount of protein and fat, with only a small amount of carbs. Yum!

Good first week of clean Paleo

2011-09-08T11:38:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.4
Average: 207.4

Last post I mentioned starting a strict 30-day Paleo routine that I would be starting September 1st. I have indeed started, and am now just over a week in. Even after just a week I am feeling tremendous! The first few days without caffeine were rough, and I slept a lot over the weekend. What this tells me is that I was sleep-deprived, and was using caffeine and energy drinks to prop myself up, when what I really needed was good, restful sleep. After the first few days I started to feel much more energized, my brain cleared, and avoiding caffeine has become routine. To ease into this whole thing I didn't restrict myself (quantity-wise) at all the first week, just eating to fullness, and eating more fruit and nuts than I normally would. This has had a good effect on my digestion, as before I was not regular, nor did I have healthy BMs (sorry, TMI, I know), but now everything is moving through excellently. And from the information I've been consuming it looks like a healthy gut is key to a healthy life. I'd been damaging mine with alcohol, wheat, and sucralose (Splenda) and now it's beginning to heal.

But, the biggest benefit I've experienced is, by far, my increased performance in the gym. Yesterday, which was my third day working out in a row, I beat everyone in the gym on the workout, even those guys who usually destroy my times. I felt super fresh the whole time, and my recovery between the end of the WOD and the cool-down was noticeably faster than usual. Usually after a hard metcon it will take me a good 10-15 minutes to scrape myself off the floor and get moving again, but yesterday it only took about 3 or 4 minutes. Then, right after, we did 3x400m sprints, and they felt better than I can ever remember, and again my recovery between attempts was very quick.

My shoulder is healing up pretty nicely. The anti-inflammatory effect of the Paleo diet is definitely helping in this regard. I am able to do pressing movements (shoulder press, push-ups) as well as power cleans again already. The only thing that still hurts are dips, pull-ups (if I kip too much), and I haven't even attempted muscle-ups because I know the risk of re-injuring myself is high if I try them when I'm not ready. So I'm just taking it slow, doing my mobility and rehab/prehab work, and substituting troublesome movements with ones I can do pain-free.

As you can see I haven't lost any scale weight lately, but a look in the mirror shows me at the leanest I've ever been, more so even than when I weighed 196 a few years ago. I'm beginning to see veins in my arms (which I've never had), and I've been complimented on more than one occasion about my chest and shoulders looking strong. My waist size has also dropped, to the point where some of my boardshorts I wear for working out are almost falling off, even when tied as tightly as possible. The only downside to this increased muscle is that my thighs rub together again, which makes running a pain. I'm hoping that as I drop some more fat that will become less of an issue, but I don't know to be honest.

I know I promised more posts this month, but I've taken on the responsibility of doing daily blog posts for the gym so that may not work out as I had thought. We'll see.

Info dump

2011-08-24T14:23:00.000-07:00

Bah. Been treading water again. Averaging about 208 still. Starting September 1st my girlfriend and I are doing another 30-day super-clean Paleo challenge. I like to do this every so often so reassess where I'm at versus where I should be, and to get rid of the stuff that's holding me back. Right now it's booze, diet sodas/energy drinks, and too many cheat meals. Now that summer's coming to a close, and all the events, vacations, and parties are off the docket I can tighten everything up and get back on track again.

This past weekend I drove up to Big Sky, Montana with the owners of Crossfit 714 (the gym where I train) for the annual Crossfit Affiliate Gathering. I had an amazing time (other than the long drive to and from southern California)! Did some downhill mountain-biking, experienced whitewater rafting for the first time (so much fun), stayed in an amazing penthouse suite, ate elk, boar, venison, duck, and bison, drank a ton of Montana beer, built a bonfire, and hung out with some awesome people (including Greg Glassman, the creator of Crossfit!). It really was an awesome experience, and I hope that I'm blessed enough to do it again (maybe next year).

On a more bummer note I partially dislocated my shoulder (again) the day before we left for Montana, doing behind-the-neck jerks. My grip was too wide, and I was so eager to put up a big number that I rushed the lighter warm-up sets that should have prepared me for the bigger weights. Last time I maxed-out on this movement I put up 275 lbs., so I was confident I could get 300, and I felt good through 265. I loaded up 285, got it overhead, but the weight traveled behind me and I didn't let go in time, which resulted in my humerus moving forward in my shoulder socket, and a nasty grinding feeling, along with a disturbing pop when the bone popped back in immediately when I dropped the weight. It's a very surreal feeling to have your bones in places they're not supposed to be!

Since it did immediately pop back in I didn't feel the need to go to the doctor and just started icing it right then. It's been a week now, and while it still hurts it's much less severe than it was in the couple days following the injury. I'm taking it easy for at least another week, and if the pain doesn't get better I'll see the doctor and maybe get an MRI. My biggest fear is that I tore something, but I think the pain would be worse than it is if that were the case, to be honest. But like I said, if it doesn't feel better soon I'll go see the doc. In the meantime I plan on doing some rotator cuff strengthening exercises that I learned when I was in physical therapy earlier this year. I think slacking off on those rehab/prehab movements is partly to blame for the re-injury.

I can still use it, as I did when mountain biking and rafting, I just can't internally rotate it or do any overhead movements (at least, without pain) at the moment. Today I'm going to test how it feels to do push and pull movements, and adjust my training accordingly. I think this effectively puts the kibosh on my Olympic lifting career, at least for now, but it also allows me to explore some other aspects of strength and conditioning that I've been neglecting (like sprinting and explosive plyometrics).

Anyway, once I get started on my 30-day challenge next month I'll be posting a lot more frequently, and I'll keep you posted on my training as well.

Wizard needs food

2011-08-02T11:01:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208

Moving Average: 207.8

I've been really hungry this past week, and it's showing on the scale. While I've done a fairly good job of keeping my food quality high the quantity has been too much to support weight loss. I think my body just wanted a little more energy, so for the past few days I've eaten more food. I feel better now, so I can reduce my intake for a while. This is how it seems to work for me: eat enough to lose weight for a few weeks, start getting hungry and more tired, eat higher calories for 3-4 days, rinse and repeat. I guess it just comes down to listening to my body and trying to keep it happy (while not indulging in foods I know it *doesn't* need).

I hit a new PR on my back squat yesterday (#355 Oly-style) so I know my time in the gym has been well spent. Still hoping to get 400# by the end of the year, though, so no slacking now. I also did 20+ muscle-ups on a pull-up bar yesterday, which is the most I've ever even attempted. Unfortunately I tore the skin on my right palm, so I have to deal with that. It's minor enough that I think I can just tape it up and continue working out this week. We'll see, though.

Quick analysis of progress to date

2011-07-25T10:40:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208.2

Moving Average: 208.9

Now that I have a few weeks of weigh-ins recorded I can start using the exponential weighted moving average formula I added to my spreadsheet (details about the algorithm are here for you nerds). It's the same formula and weighting used by physicsdiet.com but more flexible because I can do whatever I want with the spreadsheet, versus the very limited functionality of the physicsdiet website. I've set it up so that I have a goal weight to meet each week (remember, I'm shooting for 1 pounds/week through the end of the year), and I'm using the Sunday value of the weighted average as my measurement. So far I've hit all my weekly goals, but I know I need to tighten everything up if I'm going to continue making progress.

I figured I'd do some analysis of my progress so far.

What's working

My athletic training is still going great. I'm still making progress on my back squat from week to week (going for 2x5@285 tonight). My capacity for doing longer workouts is greatly increased (I did a Crossfit workout named Barbara last Tuesday that was almost an hour, and I mountain biked for close to 3 hours on Saturday morning, and I'm not even sore). The one thing that has slipped a little is my Olympic weightlifting, simply due to time constraints, but I'll make sure that doesn't happen any more.

Eating during the week is pretty solid. I've been mainly doing fasting until about 2 or 3PM, eating a meal or two before I hit the gym, then eating another when I get home, which feels good and works well for me.

What's not

Too many cheat meals the past 2 weeks. I've allotted myself 2 per week, but I've been having double that, mainly on the weekends. Too much alcohol on a daily basis as well. I need to limit my intake to 1-2 glasses of wine/night, and not every night. This has always been tough for me, as I'm so used to coming home, making dinner, and having some drinks to wind down from my day. I need to find a healthier alternative, for sure.

Weekends. Always been an issue, probably always will be. All I want to do after a hard week of working and working out is eat chips and drink beer while sitting out by the pool or playing video games. I've been doing an okay job of stemming this activity, but it's still been happening more than it should. I think just being aware of this tendency (and not ignoring it) can help.

I haven't been doing the mobility work that I know I need to be doing on a daily basis either. It's so effing beneficial, but I hate doing it so bad. It just hurts, plain and simple, and it's really hard to get motivated to do something that hurts, even if it makes me feel *way* better afterward. I'm thinking I should add this into my gym time instead of trying to do it at home, that way I'm already primed for doing hard, possibly unpleasant work. I'll give that a shot.

So that's where I'm at right now. I'm hoping that simply by taking the time to think and write about this stuff I can make the small adjustments necessary to stay on target.

Mid-week update

2011-07-13T13:19:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.2

Looks like my new lower weight is sticking around and wasn't just a fluke of hydration or something. Nothing new to report right now, really. I'm eating high quality food in moderate amounts, I'm still hitting my workouts hard, and I'm getting my 8 hours of sleep every night. I do feel a little worn down from the increased workout volume and decreased calories, but not enough to impact much. I'm really sore from Monday's workout, so I'm taking a rest day today instead of tomorrow to recover a bit more. Yesterday I was too sore in my lower back to do the prescribed workout, so I did a bunch of upper-body strength work (bench press, weighted chin-ups, muscle-ups) which I haven't done in a while, and it felt good. I talked to one of my buddies (a fellow trainer at my gym) and he independently set the same weight-loss goal and timeline as me (185# by end of year). So we're thinking we might have to come together with some friendly competition/accountability. I'll keep you posted. Now I'm just hoping to see some sub-206 weigh-ins before the end of the week.

Moving in the right direction, finally

2011-07-11T09:57:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 206.8

I know it's been a while since my last post, which probably leads you to believe that I've once again slacked off on my goals, but this time that's not the case. I'm actually doing really well. Last week I was basically stuck at 211-212 every day, and I was getting pretty frustrated at the lack of progress, especially since I've been working out 5 days a week and only eating 2 cheat meals a week. But yesterday I weighed in at 209, which was a nice drop, and today I'm at 206.8! Usually after the weekend I gain a pound or two, but I've been making sure that even my cheat meals are kept within reason. To be honest it just doesn't feel good to go out to dinner and eat so much that I feel bloated and awful. And I find if I eat any significant quantity of gluten-containing foods or vegetable oils that I get bad stomach aches and my digestion suffers for days. So, for example, my girlfriend and I went out to dinner on Friday, and instead of getting a burger and fries or a big greasy sandwich I ordered some grilled salmon and shrimp with veggies and sweet potato fries, and to be honest I enjoyed the hell out of it. I had a couple beers, of course, but only a couple, and I left the restaurant without feeling like I swallowed a bowling ball. I think I'm finally learning the benefits of moderation, not just from a weight loss perspective but in how I feel, physically.

Anyhoo, I'm feeling good. I've hit my workout goals for the past 2 weeks, and I find I'm able to push myself harder in the gym without feeling smashed afterwards, which means I'm fueling my body correctly. I'm going to keep on doing what I'm doing, because it's working.

Setting myself up for success

2011-06-28T10:16:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 210.4

I'm a week into my new cycle, and feeling pretty good. Even with eating bad food over the weekend (camping) I've lost 4 pounds in a week. I only got 2 training sessions in last week, because I wanted to limit my soreness on the weekend because I knew I would be doing some serious mountain biking. That worked out well, and allowed me to stay fresh and active while still cutting some weight.

This week I'm going to try to get all 5 training days in. I've also made a spreadsheet which allows me to track everything I want to do every day, and accrue point values for each good habit I develop. Right now I'm tracking things like recording daily weigh-ins, ounces of water consumed (shooting for 100oz./day not counting coffee or diet soda), doing mobility work for flexibility, and taking my supplements. I'm a sucker for points, so I think this will help me stay on track better than just juggling everything in my head. I'm thinking of adding other stuff to this checklist as well, such as flossing my teeth, but I want to focus on a few super-important things first, then add new things as good habits form around the old things. I even wrote my goal weight on a piece of paper (185) and stuck it to my cubicle wall to remind me not to settle for anything less than full achievement.

I'm finding myself really motivated right now, but I know that motivation doesn't last, so I have to use the drive I have right now to set myself up for success when I'm just not feeling it.

New training cycle

2011-06-20T09:48:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 214.6

Whoa, where did that come from? Well, in the last month I've really let my diet (and training, but to a lesser degree) slip. I was aware of it happening, but I just didn't really feel like doing anything about it. I guess I was just a bit burned out on the whole thing. This is probably a natural cycle, just part of the process, but it probably could have been managed better, or planned for. I hadn't planned any rest or deload weeks, so everything was kind of ad-hoc, and I don't thrive in that type of setup.

The good news is that I'm feeling quite motivated now, so today is officially Day 1 of my new training cycle. My training during the first half of the year was dedicated to increasing strength and performance in the Olympic lifts, while maintaining a good level of conditioning. I think I've accomplished this fairly well, although I was 10 pounds shy of my goals in both the Snatch and the Clean & Jerk. I still made great progress, though, especially considering my shoulder injury and the 6 week rehab I did on it.

The goal for the next 6 months is going to be a focus on losing body fat while increasing performance on Crossfit workouts. To do this I have to dial in my diet, sleep, recovery, and mobility. I need to lose weight to increase my performance in bodyweight movements like pull-ups and running. I need to get the correct amount of food that will allow me to train with maximum intensity while burning fat, and also avoid foods that are detrimental to performance, such and pro-inflammatory foods (grains, sugar, milk, vegetable oils). I need to get good sleep every day, so this means limiting caffeine and alcohol. And I need to be in the gym 5 days a week to maximize gains.

While this probably sounds like a lot, it's really not that far off from what I'm used to. I'm used to training 4 days a week, so adding another day isn't a big deal. I already know how to cook good food. I know what foods affect me negatively, and what foods I thrive on. I've built the base for this over the past 3 1/2 years, it's just time to put it all together and make a solid push towards excellence.

Oh, I almost forgot. What's my weight goal? Right now, it's 185 pounds, but ultimately it'll be whatever weight I find I perform most optimally at.

Just a little update

2011-05-13T12:15:00.000-07:00

Just wanted to fire off a quick update, since it's been a while. I weighed in at 203.4 today, so I'm on the path to sub-200. I got a couple of personal records this week: 275# front squat and 245# clean and jerk, which is 10 pounds shy of my goal for the year. All the squatting I've been doing has helped a lot, and getting stronger is just fun.

I've also kept up my conditioning by doing short, power-oriented circuits. Here's Monday's workout, to give you a taste:

2 minutes max reps push press, 135# (I got 27)

1 minute rest

2 minutes max reps squat clean, 135# (12)

1 minute rest

2 minutes max reps chest-to-bar pull-ups (21)

1 minute rest

2 minutes max calories on Concept2 rower (32)

1 minute rest

2 minutes max holds L-sit on parallettes (40 seconds)

Pretty tough stuff, but I love it.

Even though my weight hasn't gone down considerably I'm noticing that I'm leaner than I was a month ago. I can see my top 2 abs easily, as well as my ribs on the sides, and my shoulders and arms are more defined. I have veins in my forearms where I didn't before, so everything's headed in the right direction. I've just got to tighten the food/drink reins a bit and dial everything in. I find that I do things in cycles: a period of time being very strict on food and alcohol, and a time where I'm more lax. I figure as long as I don't lose the progress made during the strict phase, and return to being strict relatively quickly, I'll continue to progress toward my goals. Right now I'm being not so strict, but I think next Monday I'll tighten everything up again for a few weeks and see if I can't make a push for sub-200 pounds.

2011-04-27T10:42:00.001-07:00

Well, the end of the month is coming up, and the question is will I reach my goal of sub-200 by May 1st? The answer is no. I weighed in at 207.2 this morning. But that's okay, for a couple reasons. I started supplementing with creatine again, to help my weight training. This always adds a few pounds of water weight. I ate a lot of carbs (and calories) over the weekend (dinner with friends, Easter brunch with family, Easter candy(!)) so some more water retention (and possibly some legitimate weight gain) there. But my diet during the week has been great, my training is still going strong, and I'm at the leanest I've ever been. I have to use the 4th notch of my belt to keep my pants on, whereas for the past few years I've been stuck on the 3rd, and the 4th would just hurt. So the number on the scale has to be taken for what it is: a single measurement that doesn't take all factors into account. And I'm learning to be okay with that. That said, it's still a useful metric, and I still want to be under 200 sometime soon.

I'm on my last week of physical therapy for my shoulder. Just one session left. Monday I did some heavy snatches and overhead squats, which are by far the worst aggravators of the injury, and had no issues whatsoever. Definitely good news. Now I can go back to training for Olympic weightlifting full-time.

I bought a bicycle last week, and I've been riding as often as I can. It's really fun, and a good way to burn some extra calories. I rode 6 miles to work today, and I'll be riding home tonight as well. It's a full-suspension mountain bike, so it's not the most optimal road-riding solution, but it does the job. Many of my friends are into mountain biking, so this summer should have a ton of opportunities to hit the trail, which is something I'm looking forward to immensely.

Overall I'm happy where I am, and where I'm headed. Making good progress all-around.

Good start to the week

2011-04-19T10:21:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 203.6

Yesterday was a great day. I ate great, had an awesome workout, and slept really well. I think the calorie boost over the weekend really helped me recover, because I felt strong when I was lifting, and my wind was great when I did a conditioning workout. I never felt like I was hitting a wall, which is really amazing for me, especially when losing weight.

Got more good food and more good exercise planned for today. Let's keep this train a-rollin'!

Bad weekend, but recommitting to succeed

2011-04-18T13:25:00.000-07:00

I don't have a lot to say today, but I need to write something. This weekend was not very good diet-wise. I let my plans slip far too much, and overate on more than one day. I also had alcohol on 3 days instead of one. I guess I let my recent successes get to my head and open up myself for a failure. But it stops today.

I weighed in at 201.8 on Friday, and my waist measurement is down 1/2 inch to 35.5 inches. My body-fat measurement was 16.5% Saturday morning (at 203 pounds). I know that I can get under 200 by the end of the month if I don't let any more of these multiple-day slips happen, so I'm re-committing to my plan as of today. Slip-ups are bound to happen, and I'm accepting that fact. I figure as long as they're very occasional, and don't end up going from a couple days to a week or more I'll be fine in the long run. Also, the aches, pains, and intestinal discomfort I received from loosening my diet has helped remind me why I am doing this in the first place.

But yeah, new goal is sub-200 by May 1st. Totally doable. Gotta focus on food quality, good training, staying healthy, and sleeping well. What I'm doing is working, I just have to keep doing it. Sorry if this isn't very interesting to read, but I need to put it out there to keep myself accountable.

Weekend wrap-up, training and rehab update

2011-04-12T10:48:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the Tuesday post, I've been really busy at work lately. This weekend was definitely a success, diet-wise. I missed Friday's workout due to a meeting at work, but I made it up on Saturday morning, so I'm still on track. I was famished all day Saturday and Sunday, and I ate a lot, but I stuck to the good stuff. Fruit, meat, salads, and potatoes. I figured with the higher carb weekend I would gain some weight by Monday, but I weighed in at 206, and today even lower at 204.6. I'm really happy with the progress I'm making right now.

Yesterday I tested my 1-rep max back squat, and nailed 345 using a high-bar placement. This matches my old (1.5 years ago) PR, which is kind of sad, but I had lost a lot of strength in the past year due to some dietary and training problems. Also, the old PR was done using low-bar style, which usually allows a larger weight to be moved, so doing the same weight high-bar (and ass-to-ankles deep) is a good achievement for me. It proves that my current program is working, so I'm going to keep on riding this pony till it dies. New goal is a 400 pound back squat before end of year. With that I can probably nail a 300+ front squat, which makes heavier clean and jerks much easier, which is my ultimate goal.

Shoulder rehab continues. I'm doing more strengthening exercises for my rotator cuff, and I feel a lot stronger in the ranges of motion where I was having trouble. It also feels a lot more solid in the socket, which gives me confidence that I can start snatching heavy again soon. I did a few ring muscle-ups yesterday and had no pain, no impingement whatsoever, and my transitions felt smooth and solid.

All in all, I'm pretty happy about how things are going. Let's hope they keep going for a while!

Friday

2011-04-08T13:42:00.001-07:00

It's the end of the week, and I'm feeling pretty good about it. Nailed the nutrition and sleep yesterday, and today I'll be back in the gym trying to set new PRs. I'm up to 3 sets of 5 reps at 265 pounds for my back squat, and I'm going to be hitting some weighted pull-ups as well. Still a bit sore from Wednesday's workout but not too bad. I weighed in at 206 this morning, which is about what I've been averaging for the past 6 months or so. Just gotta keep it up.

The weekend is a trial by fire for these types of endeavors, and I've failed on more than one occasion in the past. I need to focus on what I eat, and make sure I don't end up in a situation where I have to make a compromise. I need to focus on my rest, and get plenty of it. I need to focus on recovery, and also on making time to just have some fun. What's the point of being lean and fit if you never have any fun?

Day 4

2011-04-07T12:05:00.000-07:00

So, I had a bit of a cheat yesterday. My good friend called me up and wanted to go out to a bar, and my first inclination was to decline because of my current fitness goals. But I thought about it, and realized that I don't get very much time to spend with my friends these days, and it's something that I'm really working on addressing in my life. So I made the decision to move my 1 day of alcohol intake to yesterday instead of Saturday. Everything else was kept the same, I stuck with hard liquor (no beer) and had a good time. I had to be up early, so I missed out on a bit of sleep, but I can make it up by going to bed early tonight.

I don't regret this decision, and ultimately it will average out the same, while keeping me from getting neurotic about all this stuff. I'm back 100% today, no caffeine, no alcohol, etc. and I will continue until my next drinking day, sometime next week.

Everything else is going well. I nailed 3x5 back squats at 260 pounds yesterday, which was tough but doable. I threw in a short bodyweight metcon just to test my conditioning, and did really well. The strength I'm gaining is definitely translating to easier bodyweight movements, and I didn't feel like I was going to die, so I haven't lost much (if any) work capacity. I've got a couple more weeks of physical therapy before I can get back to heavy Olympic lifting, but right now I'm happy just getting stronger. Now to go eat some beef shank and berries to refuel.

Current measurements

2011-04-06T09:59:00.001-07:00

Today I remembered the measurements that I took on Monday, so I wanted to post them before I forget:

4/4/11

Weight: 209 pounds

Body fat (measured by handheld bio-impedance device): 17.1%

Bicep: 14.5"

Thigh: 24.5"

Waist (relaxed): 38"

Waist (flexed): 36"

Chest (relaxed): 42.5"

Chest (flexed): 44.5"

Hips: 36.5"

I looked back at my info from a year ago, and I had 18.1% body fat at the same weight, so over the course of a year I gained 2 pounds of lean mass and lost 2 pounds of fat. Definitely not the best results ever, but still an improvement. If I kept that rate up for 10 years I would end up at 7.6% body-fat at 210 pounds. But that's still a bit slow for my tastes :) The most important measurement I'm looking to change is my waist measurement, since that's where a majority of my fat currently lives.

Today I weighed in at 206, so I'm down 3 pounds from Monday already. Blah blah, water weight, I know. Still feels good. Been drinking decaf coffee with organic heavy cream during the day (along with lots of water), and at night I've been having sparkling water with lime juice on the rocks, and some herbal tea. My sleep last night wasn't as good as the night before, and I had some crazy dreams, so there's still some adjusting going on internally. Today I'm fasting until at least 1PM, then I'll have some pot roast and some carne asada I made last night, along with some strawberries and olives.

I think the daily blogging is helping a lot, so I'm considering extending it another week to keep up the momentum.

Day 2

2011-04-05T10:48:00.000-07:00

Day two is off to a good start. I made sure I get to bed early last night, and it paid off with a great night of sleep, almost 10 hours, which tells me I needed it badly. Got a great lifting session in, and hit the squat weight that I missed last week. As they say, there's no such thing as over-training, just under-eating (and maybe under-sleeping) and that's what I was doing last week.

I ate a lot yesterday, more than I normally should if I want to lose weight, but I was hungry and wanted to make sure I got enough calories. I'll adjust my quantities on a day by day basis based on how quickly I drop weight.

I'm feeling a bit clearer mentally today, lack of caffeine notwithstanding. I'm looking forward to a few weeks down the road when I'm fully clear of stress-inducing substances and running at 100%.

That's it for now, but things are looking good.

Off to a good start

2011-04-04T10:30:00.000-07:00

Today's the first day of my grain-, sugar-, alcohol-, caffeine-free month. Drinking decaf coffee is fine, but I'm still pretty tired, which tells me I should probably just work on getting more (quality) sleep. My brain also feels a bit foggy, but I know these things will pass within a few days.

I took some measurements this morning but forgot them at home, so I'll post them tomorrow.

Breakfast was some beef shank stew with vegetables, lunch will be chili and Manhattan clam chowder along with some strawberries, and teriyaki chicken with veggies (and maybe a sweet potato) for dinner. The chicken has a little bit of sugar, but as long as I only use a tiny bit of sauce it'll be fine, especially after a workout.

I'm feeling recovered from last weeks aches/pains/issues so I'll be back in the gym tonight squatting and getting stronger. I'll be posting every day this week, even if it's just a short status update. I think I'm off to a good start, now to just get some momentum built up.

Time to shape up

2011-04-01T11:25:00.000-07:00

Time for a confession: I've been letting the diet slide lately. And I feel like crap as a result.

The past few weeks I've been seeing a physical therapist for my shoulder injury 3 times a week, so I decided to lay off the Olympic lifting until I finish the PT. I changed up my training to 3 days a week of heavy compound movements (back squat, weighted dips, weighted pull-ups, deadlift) with some metabolic conditioning thrown in when I have the time. All of which was going great, and I've been making really good gains in strength. But, in the interest of "recovering" from my workouts I've started allowing things that I had practically eliminated from my diet. Rice, fast food, candy, etc.

But the funny thing is I'm now recovering worse than before, even though I'm eating more calories and more carbs. Right now my body is terribly inflamed, I had no energy for my workout on Wednesday (which I had to give up on), and I'm sore as heck from a level of volume that should be easily maintainable by me, even while attempting to lose weight. I had forgotten just how sensitive I am to dietary toxins, but this has been a rude reminder.

What all this means is that it's time for another round of "super diet clean-up." Beginning Monday, April 1st I will rid myself of the following things:

* Any beverage stronger than green tea (includes coffee, energy drinks, alcohol, diet soda, etc.)

* Any and all grains or grain-like seeds

* Sugar

* Most dairy save for some whey protein post-workout and a small amount of grass-fed butter, as I've found these don't bother me

If I need some post-workout carbs I'll have a couple bananas, or a sweet potato, and just stick to meat, eggs, veggies, berries, a small quantity of nuts, fish oil, and a variety of spices to keep it interesting. A square or two of 85% dark chocolate here and there, and a few glasses of wine once a week (on the weekend) to help keep me sane.

The goal is to stay this strict through the month of April, and re-evaluate at the end to see what worked and what didn't. I can practically guarantee a few things, though: improved recovery, improved sleep, more energy throughout the day, improved body composition, and hopefully some PRs in the gym. The first week is always the toughest, so I'll be blogging every day next week to keep my mind in the right place. I'll take some measurements this weekend as well for comparison.

Wish me luck!

Meet results

2011-03-14T12:20:00.001-07:00

Saturday I competed in my first Olympic weightlifting competition in the 94kg weight class. It was tiring, chaotic, motivating, and fun. I made 5/6 attempts, snatching 70kg (154 pounds) and clean&jerking 107kg (235 pounds) for a total of 177kg. I missed my second snatch, and watching the video of my snatch attempts I can see why. I was not fast at all in the catch, and it cost me. My snatch PR is 175 pounds, so I'm kind of bummed that I didn't even come close to hitting it, but you have good days and bad days.

After the snatch I was pretty focused on the clean and jerk, and was able to match my PR on the platform. I'm just so much more confident in both my clean and my jerk than I am in my snatch, and that's a big factor. All said and done I placed 3rd (out of 5) in my weight class, and I'm pretty happy with my performance on my first time out.

Now that the competition is done I need to focus on getting my shoulder back to 100% and getting stronger. I did end up getting a prescription for physical therapy, and I'm seeing the PT 3 times a week. I'm going to avoid doing any movements that aggravate my shoulder for the time being, and just focus on getting as strong as possible in other parts of my body. Unfortunately this means I won't be able to do heavy snatches for a while, but I can still practice my form (which is my real problem) with lighter loads that don't bother me.

My weight is fluctuating right now due to having to make weight for the meet. I weighed in at 202 on Saturday, and this morning I was 206, so I figure it'll stabilize somewhere around 204 within a day or two, and then I can focus on getting under 200.

Quick update

2011-03-04T11:51:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 204.6

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 205.4

Hey, just wanted to post something quick. My weight is back on the downward slope, so I'm happy about that. I tweaked my shoulder in training the other day, so I'm going to see the doctor on Monday to hopefully get a referral to see a physical therapist, as my shoulder is a constant source of injury and missed training days. I'm hoping they can assess me and give me some rehab movements that will strengthen my shoulder and allow me to train at 100% again. I'm still planning to compete at the lifting meet, but I may have to be more conservative with my weights due to the shoulder problem. I'm sure it will be a fun experience either way, though.

Strength++

2011-02-22T15:50:00.001-08:00

Hey everyone, sorry for the gap between posts (again!). I did end up getting a cold after my last post, but thankfully it was short and easy (3 days) and I was back in the gym by the next week. My weight-loss has pretty much stalled since then, with no real movement in either direction on the scale. I've indulged too much in food and drink, and now I'm reining it in once again. I know what I have to do, and I'm doing it.

My training is still going pretty well. I took a weightlifting seminar this past Sunday with Sean Waxman from Waxman's Gym which was pretty enlightening for me. My starting position on the first and second pulls of both my snatch and clean and jerk was off, and we got it corrected, for the most part. I just have to drill the movements to ingrain them in my muscle memory.

Last week I hit another PR, this time in the clean and jerk. I nailed 235 pounds, which is 5 pounds more than I did a few weeks ago. I tried 240 but I just couldn't get under it fast enough. I feel that I'm nearing the limits of my strength in the clean, unfortunately. My best front squat is 255 pounds, which is pretty darn close to where my clean is at. I have a similar problem with the snatch, although not quite as close percentage-wise (max overhead squat being 195, best snatch is 175). I've also lost some strength on my back squat and deadlift due to not programming them into my workouts for the past few months. So I'm retooling my program a bit to incorporate more strength work (squats, deadlifts, presses) as well as both heavy and light Oly work (it's based on this template, if anyone's interested). I just started yesterday, so we'll see how it goes.

One of the other trainers at my gym has also been looking to compete in weightlifting, and she found a local meet in March. I wasn't planning to compete this early, as I wanted to cut weight first, but I've decided to take on the challenge. I figure it'll give me some exposure to the dynamics of a real meet, with all the rules, judging, commands, etc. I have to compete at 94kg, but that's fine, since I'm never going to be an elite-level weightlifter in any weight class.

That being said I'm not giving up on my goal of cutting down to the lighter weight class. Just not for my first meet. I bought a singlet which should be good for both weight classes (it's made for men between 185 and 225) so no worries there. Just gotta stop eating so damn much :-)

A little sick, but a little leaner too

2011-02-08T20:43:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208

Average: 206.7

Sorry for the delay between posts. The past week hasn't been quite as good as the few before, due to a few reasons. Last week I started having a lot of aches and soreness all over my body, and even doing lots of mobility work and icing didn't really help. I seem to be okay now, but it kept me out of the gym for most of last week. And today I started coming down with a cold, so I'm not feeling too hot. I'm thinking that I've probably just been fighting the cold off, and that's what caused my body to break down, but I dunno. I'm hoping it's just something minor that will go away quickly.

While my weight is still higher than I would like my body-fat is down quite a bit. I've noticed more definition in my shoulders and arms, and others have commented as well. Also, my pants are tighter in the thighs and looser in the waist. I took a body-fat measurement yesterday and it showed me at 17.5%, down from 19% about a month ago. So it seems that all the heavy lifting I've been doing has caused me to gain muscle mass, even though I've been in a calorie deficit. It's counter to most "broscience", but it is what it is. If I have to compete at a higher weight class due to simply being too muscular to cut any more weight, that's simply what I'll do.

Diet compliance has still been great. I'm not having any difficulties with this at all, to be honest. I'm not really craving anything bad, except maybe beer, but I just wait until the weekend and have my cheat day. Simple, easy, and seems to be working well for now.

Hopefully I can get back in the gym within a few days and start lifting again. I don't want to lose too much ground.

Going strong

2011-02-01T17:23:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 206.2

Well, I didn't quite make the goal of 205 for February 1st like I had hoped, but I'm still moving in the right direction. My weight is fluctuating depending on the day of the week, since I'm doing weekly high-carb cheat days on Saturdays. So I'm probably going to make my "official" weigh-ins on Fridays, when my weight should be at its lowest for the week, and then just kind of ignore the fluctuations on the other days.

Still going strong in the training realm. I haven't missed any scheduled sessions, although I have had to move some of the conditioning workouts around due to time constraints. I'm also doing more mobility work to make sure I keep all my muscles, joints, and ligaments nice and limber to prevent injury, especially since I'm moving some pretty heavy (for me) weights on an almost daily basis. My body is holding up pretty well, especially considering the fact that I'm in a caloric deficit. The only problem I'm having is with my back and shoulders being tight, and that's due to my busted bed. Once I get my tax refund it's time to replace that piece of crap.

Diet's also been spot on, save for the planned Saturday shenanigans, where many beers were consumed and pizza eaten. It's nice to have a day where you don't have to worry about diet.

Off to the gym now for some more lifting and some conditioning. I hope everyone else is doing just as well as me.

Weight is down, and PRs are up!

2011-01-27T11:10:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.4

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 207.7

Looks like the weight is moving in the right direction now. Slow and steady is going to be key here, as I don't want to lose any muscle mass in this process. I need to have the highest possible strength-to-weight ratio if I'm going to be at all competitive at the weightlifting meet.

Speaking of weightlifting, my training has been going really well. I'm nailing all my training weights, and I can feel the benefits of improved technique and strength. On Tuesday I decided to find a new max for the snatch, as my previous PR happened quite a while ago. My old PR being 155 pounds, I warmed up with some lighter weights, hit my old PR, and then failed 6 times on 165. I had my girlfriend record video of each attempt so I could see what I was doing wrong. I was pulling the weight really high, which is good, but I wasn't getting under it fast enough, and my shoulder flexibility was limiting my turnover speed. I corrected for these issues and nailed 165, followed immediately by 175 on the first try.

A 20 pound PR is amazing for this lift, and I'm really happy about it. Since my training protocol dictates each day's lifts based on percentages of 1-rep max I now will be doing heavier weights in my training as well.

Another small accomplishment: I clean and jerked 230 yesterday after my work sets, just to see if I could. My old PR was 225, so it's only a 5 pound jump, but it felt smooth and controlled, and I know I could have done quite a bit more if I had time.

Today is a rest day, but I'll probably do a short conditioning workout since I skipped yesterday's due to time constraints. Feeling good!

Quick Addendum: Supplements

2011-01-25T13:48:00.000-08:00

I mentioned before that I've started supplementing with creatine again, and I wanted to take the time to post all the supplements I am taking, so I can look back later and see what worked, what didn't, and what to adjust.

Creatine Monohydrate, 5g - Increase lean mass & strength, improve muscular recovery

Fish oil (300mg EPA & DHA per capsule), 8-10 caps - Reduce systemic inflammation, improve recovery

Fiber tablets with ChromeMate (2g fiber per tablet), 3 tablets - Keep me regular

Vitamin D (2000 IU per pill), 3 capsules - As an office worker I don't see the sun much. This helps take care of that deficiency.

Acidophilus probiotic (1,000,000 organisms per caplet), 3 caplets - Improve digestion and gut health, allow me to absorb all my nutrients effectively.

Whey protein concentrate - I use it when I'm low on protein for the day, otherwise not a daily supplement.

Magnesium, 400mg - Improve sleep and help regulate anabolic hormones.

If I had to choose a couple which were most important, I would choose fish oil and vitamin D, as they seem to have the best benefit profiles. I'm considering some others such as Alpha-Linoleic Acid and EGCG, but as of now I haven't pulled the trigger on them. You'll also notice I don't take a multi-vitamin. From the research I've seen, and the quality of food (and quantity of vegetable matter) I consume, I don't find any compelling reason to take a daily multi. The only vitamin I'm ever low on is D, so I supplement that on its own, but everything else is fulfilled solely by food.

Monthly goal and mid-week update

2011-01-25T13:40:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208.2

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 208.06

With 6 days left in January it's unlikely that I'll make the goal I set a few weeks ago (203). I underestimated what my average weight was, since I wasn't consistently documenting my daily weigh-ins. So my new average is 208. My weight went up a little bit in the last 2 weeks due to re-adding creatine supplementation to help me recover from my weightlifting sessions, so I'm not concerned. My stomach is looking flatter, and pants are fitting looser, so I know I'm losing a little bit of fat even if it's not reflected on the scale. I'm going to try to hit 205 for this month's goal instead.

So far this week has been good. I did a nice, heavy Oly-lifting session yesterday, along with a short, high-intensity conditioning workout, and I ate roughly 2200 calories, which is spot on for me to lose weight without killing my performance in the gym. So far today I've had eggs and bacon, some coffee with whole milk, and a bowl of chili verde that I made last week (which is really good).

I'm starting to feel some momentum building, and getting used to the fact that I'm going to be a little hungry at the end of each day. Once that becomes the new normal for me it becomes a lot easier to stick to the plan, especially when you know there's a cheat day coming up on the weekend. It really takes the wind out of junk food cravings.

Diet update and strategy

2011-01-21T16:03:00.001-08:00

Since yesterday's post was so focused on training I thought today I'd talk more about diet. This past weekend I went up to the mountains with one of my friends, and let's just say we didn't eat as cleanly as possible (read: crapton of beer & liquor, chips, burgers, and some good stuff like grilled meat). But I knew that would be the case, and used it as a kind of "last hurrah" before I really started focusing on my training. So this week has been really good. I've got lots of food already prepared in the fridge, I've got a big order of grassfed beef coming in next week, and a ton of fresh produce from the local Mexican market. The worst thing I have in my apartment right now is a bar of Trader Joes 85% cocoa dark chocolate, and a few bottles of red wine. So I'm pretty set, at the moment.

The whole "eating less" thing is going pretty good as well. I've started portioning out some of the big meals into measured, calorie-controlled containers, so I can't really overeat. I'm doing well with limiting my nut and fruit intake, and I'm also eating a lot of veggies (either on their own or cooked into something like chili or stir fry). My energy levels seem to have stabilized, and my workouts are going great. I allow for 2 glasses of red wine each night, and that's it, which keeps me sane without hurting my goals.

I'm also (re)integrating one day a week of overfeeding, a.k.a. cheating. Reading back on my posts from 2008 I find that allowing a cheat day helped keep me in line the rest of the week, and to be honest you can only do so much damage in one day, no matter how hard you try. Weekly refeeds help in other ways too, as they upregulate the hormone leptin, which regulates lipolysis (fat burning), and since I'm doing pretty intense training any carbs are preferentially used to restore muscle glycogen instead of just going to fat stores.

I've missed weigh-ins the past few days, but I'm considering moving to weekly weigh-ins (just prior to beginning the cheat day, which I'm planning to be Saturdays) to get a more consistent picture overall picture. The cheat day adds a kink to the daily weigh-ins, since fluctuations in weight of up to 8 pounds (due to depleted glycogen stores prior to overfeeding, and carb and water retention after) gum up the works for a day or two after the refeed. I'll try the weekly ones and see if it works for me, and if not I'll go back to the dailies.

Training goals

2011-01-20T09:36:00.000-08:00

I wanted to post some fitness goals in addition to weight goals for the new year, since I've actually started training for something. As I've said before I've been doing Crossfit for 3 years now, since it's a great mix of modalities that never gets boring. It's also reintroduced me to something I used to do (and enjoy) in high-school: Olympic weightlifting. As I've gotten more and more fit and capable as an athlete I've also gotten a greater desire to compete at something, and I think Oly lifting is going to be the avenue to go down.

So what are my goals, exactly? Well, the only set-in-stone goal right now is to train for a local USA Weightlifting meet sometime in June or July (from the info available the meets haven't been finalized) in the 85 Kilo weight class. This forces me to tailor my training to focus on these lifts (snatch and clean & jerk), and their auxiliary lifts (front squat, overhead squat, press, etc.) instead of doing the generalized Crossfit programming. It's also forcing me to monitor and control my diet, because 85 kilos is 187 pounds, which means I've gotta lose about 20 in 6 months.

As far as my training goes, I've implemented a program from Catalyst Athletics that focuses on the Olympic lifts, but also includes Crossfit-style conditioning workouts throughout, so I don't lose my wind and general fitness as I get stronger and more coordinated in these complicated movements. The program is designed to be 16 weeks of 5 sessions per week, but since I can only train 4 days a week I've modified it to 22 weeks, so I should finish right around the time I'm looking to compete. I'm about a week into it, and I'm enjoying it a lot. I also (finally) bought some real weightlifting shoes and a belt, which both make a huge difference in my stability and balance under tension.

You can see my current maxes on these lifts on the right, but I'll record them here for posterity as well:

Snatch: 155# (70.5kg)

Clean & Jerk: 225# (102kg)

Which leaves me with a 172.5kg total (snatch + c&j). Here are my goal lifts to hit or exceed by competition time:

Snatch: 185# (84kg)

Clean & Jerk: 255# (116kg)

Which makes for a precisely 200kg total. The clean and jerk goal is doable, since I can front squat 255 and jerk 250 currently, but the snatch goal is a bit more lofty. I'm hoping the high volume of Oly work will allow me to hit it, though. If I hit any of these goals before the competition I will adjust up as needed to continue to push myself to constantly get better.

Phew, I know that was a long post, and most of you probably don't care too much about this sport, but it's something I'm coming to be passionate about, and I just wanted to share the direction I'm going.

January weight goal, and plan of attack

2011-01-10T10:58:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.2

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 205.99

First off, I'd like to say welcome back to a few of the bloggers who've dropped off in recent months/years. Good to have you back, and good luck with reaching your goals in 2011. Remember, it's never too late to turn the ship around, as long as there's breath in your lungs.

I've been thinking about goals lately. I desperately want to set big, sweeping goals that lay out my fitness plan for the next 6 months, with the ultimate result being a strong, fast, chiseled me. But I have to fight that urge, because that kind of stuff doesn't really work for me. I'll be hardcore about something for a few weeks, then little things will come up that will vent the steam from my engines. Family issues, illness, work stress, etc. So I'm going to go back to focusing on smaller, more incremental goals, at least as far as weight loss goes. I figure a month at a time should do the trick, as that's what I did in the beginning and lost over 30 pounds.

Seeing as I have less than 3 weeks left in this month I'm going to have to be a bit conservative, so here it is: Be (consistently) under 203 lbs. by February 1st.

Since I'm averaging 206 right now that's just a pound a week. I think a nice, easy, reachable goal to start out the new year will allow me to regain some of that steam, that momentum, that has driven me to lose weight in the past.

Now, how to do it? Well, it's not going to be through exercise. That's one area where I've been pretty consistent for the past year and a half. Exercise has kept me from regaining weight, no doubt, but for me it's not effective for weight loss, in and of itself. No, it's diet. 100%. And while I eat pretty clean on a regular basis I do tend to eat enough to cover my daily energy needs. Which is the reason I've been stuck between 202 and 208 for the past year. It's not enough (for me) to simply eat high quality, natural foods ad libitum. I have to actively track how much I put in my face, and how often I go off the rails and indulge in a cheat.

Since I'm mostly going to be eating homemade food it's really hard to accurately track calorie intake, so I'm going to try something else. Eating by feeling. Instead of eating to full satiety at every meal, I'm going to try to eat to just about 80%, and then stop. I'm also going to start limiting my nut intake, as it's been pretty high lately, and try to focus my meals around lots of protein.

It's a simple plan, and one that holds some promise. I'll keep you posted on my progress as the weeks go by.

Obligatory New Year post

2011-01-05T13:38:00.000-08:00

Today's weigh-in: 205.6

So, new year, new goals, blah blah blah. I'm big on refining my goals incrementally as I see need to, so there won't be any big pronouncement from me right now. I'm eating clean, now that the holidays are done, and I didn't gain any weight. I'm really focused right now as far as my training goes, and this week I've been really consistent in the gym. I'm working on new skills and strengthening weak ones. So altogether doing pretty well. I do want to pick a specific training goal to focus on for the next few months, and possibly to compete in some sort of athletic endeavor, but I still need to spend the time and give some thought as to what I really want to achieve. So that will be forthcoming within the next few weeks.

Still have the goal of getting under 200 again, so for now I'm chasing that with a passion.

Quick post

2010-12-21T10:55:00.000-08:00

Weigh-In: 204.4

Just wanted to pop in and post something this week. I'm doing pretty well this week, eating clean and back in the gym. It's rough coming back to a consistent workout regimen when you've been out almost a month, but it feels good to be sore again, and my body feels strong. My lung capacity is reduced, but strength stuff feels good, no loss there. My weight has been stable at around 204 for the past week or so, and now that I'm being strict I expect to see that start to drop soon. All in all things are looking good.

Time to get back to being healthy

2010-12-13T16:13:00.001-08:00

Alright, I've let this blog languish for too long. Time to get back into the swing of things.

I've had bronchitis for the past few weeks, and am only now feeling better to the point where I can work out again. It's been almost 3 weeks since my last workout, so I'm going to have to work hard to make up ground. My gym is starting their 8-week Paleo nutrition challenge today, so we'll all be getting weighed and measured tonight. I weighed myself a few days ago and I was right around 202-203, so I'm pretty close to seeing sub-200s again very soon.

Even though I am participating in this nutrition challenge I'm not going to be as worried about being 100% strict as I have been in the past. Of course, the vast majority of my meals will be high quality, natural foods. But I've got a business trip this week, and holiday parties coming up, so it'd be silly to think I won't touch anything of questionable nutrition. So the goal here is 90%+ compliance, and if I do indulge it will be in reasonable quantities, such that I know it won't affect my health, performance, or well-being to any appreciable extent.

So what are my goals now? First goal is to get back to 100% health, and if that means I can't train quite as hard as I would like for a little while that's okay. But I will train, and I will listen to my body. Second goal is to be 195 pounds be the end of the 8-week challenge. That's a pound a week, roughly, totally doable. I'm anxious to get back in the gym and see where I'm at, strength- and endurance-wise. I'll keep you posted.

November wrap-up

2010-12-01T15:05:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone. I know I said I would be posting more often last time, but that obviously hasn't happened. It's a combination of being sick, a lack of motivation, and pride. I didn't make it through the whole month like I planned, and for that I feel like I've failed. That's not true, of course, but it's how it feels. What I want to do today is outline what worked and what didn't, along with some causes and (maybe) some solutions.

What did work

Eating super clean allowed me to recover really well from my workouts, and to do more workouts in general. My sleep was great, I didn't feel tired throughout the day, and I felt more alert mentally. I definitely think this is the way we should eat, ideally, and I plan to continue to model my eating on the Paleo principles.

I did lean out quite noticeably during the first 2 weeks as well, which was a nice boost in confidence and motivation.

Removing grains, dairy, and legumes from my diet helped my digestion immensely, and I experience no heartburn or digestive issues, whereas when I reintroduced these things I was instantly hit hard by indigestion, heartburn, and poop problems (sorry).

What didn't work

Eating super-strict is very taxing, mentally. I seem to be an all-or-nothing kind of guy, and, even though I hate to admit it, I am still enticed by crappy foods. Once I cheat a little bit the flood gates are open, and it's hard for me to close them. With Thanksgiving this helped the wheels to fall off completely. As a result I'm starting to think that a strict adherence to any kind of diet is going to be ultimately self-defeating.

So what now?

I'm going back to what I know works for me: calorie counting and eating mostly Paleo foods, but with the occasional (weekly) cheat meal. I need the accountability that tracking my intake provides, as well as the data I can go back and analyze. My nutritional aims are to keep wheat/rice/gluten/vegetable oils/seed oils to an absolute minimum because I know for a fact that these things cause a lot of havoc in my system. I will also be keeping my dairy intake low, with grass-fed butter, heavy cream, and whey protein being the only things I use on a regular basis. I'm also not going to freak out if I'm out with friends or family and something delicious shows up. I will enjoy it in moderation, and not get neurotic about it.

I will keep intermittent fasting in the mix, since it helps me eat less without feeling deprived. I will limit my booze intake to wine and tequila, with beer being rare, and I will also limit my daily intake to fit within my caloric goals (2200-2500 calories/day). As I mentioned before, my gym is doing another Paleo challenge starting this month and going until February. I'm going to participate, but I'll be using the rules I've outlined here, along with the accountability provided by others working toward the same goal, to optimize my chances of success.

Even though this experiment didn't work out as planned, it did provide a lot of useful information as to where I am weakest, and what to do about minimizing occasional slip-ups. That's good enough for me. I'll weigh in sometime this week and let you know where I'm at.

Whoops

2010-11-18T09:15:00.000-08:00

Wow, I hadn't realized it's been a week since my last post. It gets pretty boring just posting the same old food and exercise stuff, so it was just a matter of laziness on my part. Everything is still going well, though. My gym is starting a Paleo challenge next month as well, so that will help me to continue on this path until I get to my goal.

My workouts have been pretty good lately, but some of the more aerobic stuff still gets me. I'm wondering if maybe I need to add some more quality carbs to fuel my longer workouts. I'll try adding in some yams and banana and see if they help in this regard. Other than that I'm feeling pretty good. My strength numbers keep going up, and I'm injury free, which is really nice. I'll try to limit the gap between posts this time, just to keep myself accountable.

Day 11

2010-11-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

Day 10 food:

Beef barbacoa

Clam chowder

Cantaloupe

Cashews

Cabbage salad

Eggs & Bacon

Banana

Shrimp and chicken soup

Wine

Pretty good eating yesterday, with the addition of some wine. I was pretty stressed when I got home yesterday so I decided to indulge a little bit and had a couple glasses of wine. It's amazing how fast the body reduces its tolerance, as this morning I had a bit of a headache (nothing severe, just minor) when usually that quantity wouldn't have affected me in the least. It just reinforces the fact that alcohol needs to be a (very) sometimes thing.

Didn't get a workout in, but that's alright, I needed to give myself a little break and just an evening to relax. Ended up getting a good 9 hours of sleep as well.

I might get a chance to work out today, but I'm not sure yet, so we'll see. My body is feeling good. I got my back fixed up by my chiropractor over a few sessions and it's feeling great. I'm not dealing with any nagging aches or injuries at the moment, which is awesome. I'm just going to keep on doing what I've been doing as it's working well right now. That's it!

Day 10

2010-11-10T12:07:00.000-08:00

Day 9 food:

Shrimp and chicken soup

Cashews

Cabbage salad

Clam chowder

Almonds

Filet mignon

Crab

Banana

Apple

Grapes

Small bit of 85% cocoa chocolate

Man, today was hard with cravings for junk. I had a really bad sugar/starch craving during the middle of the day, and was gobbling up fruit in the evening. I know I need to limit my fruit and nut intake, but right now they're helping me through the transition. Next week I'll start trying to rein those in to optimize my fat loss.

I got a really good workout, and I hit a new PR for overhead squat (only 5 pounds, but still a PR). I hit my old PR in the front squat, and went down a lot in the back squat, unfortunately. I guess doing all the other squats beforehand kind of sapped me of my strength toward the end. That's okay though, I'm working my back squats on Mondays now and trying to get back up to where I was 6 months ago, and I'll be there soon.

I've come to somewhat accept the fact that some of my lifts are going to decrease as I cut weight, but it's still hard to deal with mentally. I've decided, though, that once I get down to the level of leanness that I am aiming for (hopefully around 185-190 pounds) I'm going to switch my training to a more strength/power approach with less conditioning and more real strength work. I've found that I can pretty much keep my conditioning up using shorter interval workouts (8-12 minutes at high intensity), so I'm not too worried about that. I'll probably attempt to slowly gain weight during this time, which I'm looking to be either 2 or 3 months (haven't decided yet). I would like to be at a solid 200 pounds at 10% body-fat ultimately, and I'm shooting for a 500 pound deadlift and a 400 pound back squat. This is just a general idea I have right now, I'll re-visit and re-evaluate it as I get closer to my leanness goal.

Day 9

2010-11-09T11:53:00.000-08:00

Day 8 food:

Chili

Clam chowder

Pineapple

Apple

Chicken stir-fry

Cabbage salad

Almonds

Cashews

Banana

Shrimp and chicken soup

My workout was good, but I can still feel some inflammation and pain in my lungs when I get my heart rate up, and as a result I can't go as fast as I would like. Once I start breathing heavily my lungs bring up a bunch of clear phlegm and my chest starts to hurt. I used to get this feeling when I was a smoker, but I've been clean of that for well over a year now, so it's most likely just related to inflammation from bad food and lack of rest over the past month. It's definitely getting better, though, so I'm not worried at all.

Food choices have been good, but was extra hungry for some reason, so I broke my fast early and had a bowl of soup late in the evening as well. It doesn't seem to be psychological hunger, so I don't feel bad about feeding myself quality food when I'm actually hungry. I'm eating quite a bit of fruit, which doesn't seem to be affecting me negatively, but I know to get really lean I'll probably need to curtail that a bit at some point.

Mentally I feel really good. I'm more sociable, have much reduced anxiety, and I can focus at work a lot better. I've also decided that I'm going to continue being fairly strict beyond just this month. I realized that when I give myself leeway to cheat I go off the deep end and end up back where I started, and I don't want that to happen again. The only thing I'm considering adding back in after this month is over is a little bit of high-quality dairy once in a while, and a little alcohol. What I've realized about alcohol is that if I have beer or liquor in the house, I will drink it. Wine seems to be okay to keep around as I don't go crazy with it. So what's the solution? Only drink beer or liquor outside of the house, and never alone. What that means is that if I want to have a few drinks I will need to go out with either my girlfriend or my buddies, which will improve my social life (which is a bit stagnant right now) and also keep me from going off the deep end. When I go out I almost never drink too much, especially because it costs a lot more, and I'm usually driving. I think this will also allow me to enjoy the times that I do drink more, as it will coincide with conversation and comradery instead of just being something "that you do."

But again, this month is strict, so I won't initiate that plan until December. So I'm going to keep on eating good food and getting good workouts, and keep on posting.

Clean weekend

2010-11-08T11:12:00.000-08:00

Days 5&6:

Over the weekend I didn't really keep track of my individual meals, as I tend to eat in a more unordered fashion. That said I still only ate the good stuff, no cheats this month. I spent most of the weekend cooking a ton of stuff for the rest of the week, including:

Chili (beer and corn free)

Beef Barbacoa

Cabbage salad with bell peppers, cucumber, and cashews

Manhattan-style clam chowder

Mexican shrimp and chicken soup with fresh tomatoes, onions, and chilis

Barbecued beef heart

I also stocked up on fresh vegetables and fruits, although after I cooked everything I found I had gone through a large segment of my vegetable stores, so I'll probably go shopping again this week. Doing all of my cooking for the week on one day during the weekend makes it so much easier to stick to eating clean. In the morning I simply go to the fridge, look at my options, pick 2 entrees, and load them into tupperware. Then I grab some fresh fruit (an apple, some strawberries, melon, etc.) and some salad (or some frozen veggies if I don't have any made) and I'm all set for the day. In my desk I keep some nuts and canned fish just in case I need any extra calories, so I have absolutely no excuse to cheat.

We did a really tough workout on Friday night, but what's funny is that I wasn't even sore from it at all. The clean eating and good sleeping are really boosting my recovery ability, and my body is re-adapting to the intense workouts. I didn't get any workouts in over the weekend due to the gym being closed, but I stayed active and I'll be hitting the gym tonight.

So far, so good.

Day 5

2010-11-05T14:53:00.000-07:00

Day 4 food:

Chili

Cashews

Pulled pork

Pineapple

El Pollo Loco chicken

Dried apricots

Pickles

Another good day in the eating department. I had planned on a workout, but the gym was packed yesterday so I spent the time training others. Usually I just teach a 1-on-1 during one class on Thursdays and work out during the other class (we have 2 on Thursday nights) but I ended up doing a 1-on-1 and helping out with the group class, since it was pretty packed. No big deal, we've got a doozy of a workout this afternoon, so having an extra recovery day probably can't hurt.

Mentally I'm feeling clear, I'm getting my work done, and my mood is really good. The only issue I'm having is craving sweets once in a while, or at night. The urge usually passes pretty quickly, though, and I haven't succumbed to it (nor will I), so it's more of an annoyance than anything. The more days of super-clean eating I put behind me the easier it will be to deal with those mental cravings.

Day 4

2010-11-04T12:15:00.000-07:00

Day 3:

Eggs and turkey breast

Cashews

Deviled eggs

Sausage

Salad

Olives

Pork rinds (not a great choice, I know)

Sunflower seeds

Banana

Pulled pork with homemade peach bbq sauce (more tangy than sweet)

Carrots, celery, and bell peppers

Wednesday I attended a memorial service, and ate what I could from what was available. I think I did pretty well, all things considered. I did break my fast earlier than normal because I wanted to eat something before the memorial get-together, and I think it paid off well since I didn't have any crazy cravings for junk and just ate a modest meal of sausage, salad, deviled eggs, and veggies, and felt good about it. Mentally I felt a bit spacey early in the day, and it seems that caffeine hits me a lot harder now, but everything started leveling out as the day went on, and I felt pretty good.

I wasn't planning on working out but my brother wanted to go for a run and didn't want to go alone, so I joined him. We just ran around the park across the street from my parents' house for a half-hour, at a pace where we could have a conversation, and it was really good. I've always gotten injuries from running, but since we were on grass and moderating the intensity I didn't have any issues, I'm not even sore today.

Day 3

2010-11-04T11:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the late post. I was busy all day yesterday, so you'll get two posts from me today.

Day 2:

Chili

El Pollo Loco chicken

Cashews

Apple

Did a workout but hit a wall hard after about 15 minutes, so I stopped. I always forget that there's a pretty gnarly adaptation period after eating crap food. My brain was foggy, didn't have any energy to push through the workout, and felt pretty crappy in general. Thankfully, since I've done this before, I know it will pass. My body is flushing water like crazy due to the lower carbs and lack of grains, so I feel lighter and look leaner. I just can't push the intensity on my workouts yet.

Day 2

2010-11-02T09:57:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 210.6

Okay, that's the last weigh in for a month. Let's see what I can do by focusing solely on diet and performance and not the scale. Here's what I ate yesterday:

Spicy Chicken & Shrimp soup

Chili

Red apple

Baked Tilapia with toasted almonds

Eggs with bacon, sauteed mushrooms, and spinach

Handful of cashews

I didn't break it down into breakfast/lunch/dinner since I don't really eat that way, but that's the basic order in which I consumed the foods. Last night I cooked up some pork loin chops with a homemade peach barbecue sauce so I'll have some good food for the next few days.

Cravings aren't too bad, once in a while I'll see some Halloween candy around the office and get a sugar pang, but other than that I feel good so far. I've been doing some mobility work with my bad shoulder and it's feeling a lot better, so I'll hit the gym tonight and see how it feels in a workout.

Day 1

2010-11-01T13:19:00.000-07:00

I know I said I'd do my initial weigh-in and measurements yesterday, but I just flat-out forgot. I'll try to do measurements tonight, and get a weigh-in tomorrow morning.

The first day of a total diet clean-up is always tough, and today's no exception, especially with all the candy that's flying around the office post-Halloween. But my resolve is strong right now, and I'm drinking lots of water, taking my fish oil, and eating my clean, home-made food. I made a bit of an oversight mistake in that I forgot that the chili I had made last week contains some beer and some corn meal (as a thickening agent), but I'm not wasting good quality food just because of a few not-perfect adulterants, so I'll finish it this week and my next batch will be Whole30 approved.

Other than that I'm going for 100% adherence. I realized this morning while I was putting my lunch together that I didn't stock up on enough fruits and vegetables this past weekend, so I'll have to go shopping to restock the fridge. Also, I forgot to bring some nuts with me to work to have with my afternoon meal. If it sounds like I may have been a bit lax in the planning department, it's because it's true. I'll remedy all those things within the next few days, and I'm not going to let any little crap like that cause me to get derailed. What matters is my mental state, and to be honest I'm really, really ready to clean up my diet and start feeling, sleeping, and performing better again.

Tomorrow I'll post what I ate today, and will continue to do that for this month to have a nice little record for posterity.

Whole30 challenge

2010-10-25T12:14:00.001-07:00

No weigh-in today, sorry. So, this month has been pretty sub-par. I'm basically in maintenance mode, allowing a lot of not-so-good foods to slip in. Time to clean it up.

I'll be participating in the Whole30 challenge during the month of November. This means no sugar, dairy, grains, peanuts, liquor, beer, or wine for the whole month. After last month's alcohol fast, and the subsequent re-introduction into my life, I find I'm better without it for the most part. I've been eating more and more things with sugar in them, and as a result I've been craving sugar more and more often. The sugar cycle is an endless one, unless pains are made to break it. I'm going to go 100% strict this time, not even allowing any of my little vices like pastured butter or heavy cream in my coffee. Just gotta go whole-hog and see what happens. One of the rules is no weighing yourself or taking measurements during the challenge, so I'll take my last weigh-in for a while on October 31st, along with some measurements, which I'll repeat after November is over so I can have some data (I'm a computer programmer, I live and die by data).

My training will stay the same, doing Crossfit workouts 4-5 times a week along with additional strength work 3-4 times per week. I'm not going to be counting calories, and I'm going to just eat as much as I desire. I'll also continue to do my intermittent fasting protocol, so as to not mess with too many variables all at once. I think I'll probably do a couple of Crossfit benchmarks this coming week so I can compare before/after numbers and see if/how my fitness improves. I'm also interested to see if cleaning up my diet will help with my nagging shoulder injury (which I suspect is partially being aggravated by inflammation due to bad food sources).

This blog might end up being used as a meal and workout log for a while, just to keep on track and give myself some perspective. I'll try to update it more frequently than I have in the past month, for sure.

That's my plan, wish me luck.

October goals

2010-10-05T11:08:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 206.8

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 204.41

Sorry for the long gap in between posts. I just haven't had a lot to say. As expected my low weigh-ins were not to last, but that's okay. I'm still closer to my goal than I was, and today's weigh-in was exceptionally high for some reason. It should stabilize around 204-205 within the next few days.

Well, we're 5 days into October and I haven't posted my goals yet. Here we go:

* Weigh 200 pounds by November 1st

* Continue doing Crossfit 5 days a week.

* Continue working ring muscle-ups

* Snatch 165 pounds

Now that I can do muscle-ups I have to work on doing them more efficiently and with less rest in between repetitions. Last week I did 5 in one day, but I needed a good 10-15 minutes in between attempts to be successful. I also want to focus on my Olympic weightlifting total, and my snatch is currently much worse than my clean and jerk. I'm going to be using Saturday mornings as skill work, so I'll practice both of these movements every Saturday this month.

I tweaked my shoulder (again) last week, so it's a bit tender, but I've been taking care of it and it should be 100% by the end of the week. On Saturday my Crossfit affiliate is hosting the Barbells for Boobs fundraiser, and the workout associated with it is called "Grace", which is 30 reps of Clean and Jerk at 135 pounds. I need my shoulder to be solid for that one, so if I have to baby it a bit this week then that's what I'll do.

Here's to a good month.

Another bout of sickness, but the clouds are parting.

2010-09-22T14:09:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 201.6 lbs.

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 205.56 lbs.

So, yeah, I've lost a lost of weight the past few weeks. Unfortunately this was partially helped along by a vicious attack of stomach flu on Saturday night, which ultimately kept me from consuming any real amount of food until Tuesday. Add to that the fact that I was sick most of last week, and we're not talking about a good weight-loss scheme. But I'm feeling pretty much 100% today, and I've got my appetite back, so I'm trying to get some extra calories for the next few days to build my strength up.

I did still manage to get my Crossfit Level 1 certification on Sunday, even without the benefit of any sleep the night before (and with a very strong desire to curl up into the fetal position throughout the day), so I'm super happy about that. I learned a lot, and aced the written test, only missing one question (out of 45 scored). We're having a trainers' meeting next week to figure out how best to apply the new trainers in the gym, so we'll see where it takes me.

I did get one easy workout this week, on Monday. I felt wobbly and weak, but it was good to get moving again after being sick for so long. It's going to take me a week or two to ramp up to my previous levels of intensity and consistency, so I have to be patient there, but all in all things are looking up.

Doing awesome

2010-09-16T11:52:00.001-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 204 lbs.

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 207.15 lbs.

Well this week has turned out great for weight loss. On Tuesday I hit 205.6, Wednesday I was 204.6, and today I was 204.0. These little spurts of weight loss are a nice mental boost for someone who's been trying to lean out for so long. I think the combo of intermittent fasting along with alcohol restriction has really done most of the work, because I haven't gotten to work out a day this week. I'm finally feeling good enough to get a workout in, but I had minor oral surgery this morning and they said I can't exert myself today because of the risk of bleeding. So I have to wait until tomorrow to get a workout, but that's okay, cuz I know I'll be getting at least a good workout or two at the Crossfit Level 1 certification this weekend, being held at Crossfit 714 (my gym). I'm super excited about finally attending a cert, and I'm glad I got this flu thing out of the way. I'm already under my goal weight for the month, so now I'm going to just make sure I keep it that way and not regain. All in all everything is going great, and I finally have some good momentum in the right direction.

Out sick

2010-09-13T09:51:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207 lbs.

Ugh. The throat issue I mentioned in my last post turned into a full on fever/flu deal, and I was stuck in bed for most of the weekend. In addition to that I seem to have developed an infection on my gums which hurts tremendously. I'm feeling better today, and I've got an appointment with a gum specialist tomorrow, but it made this weekend not a lot of fun.

Weight is down mainly because it's hard to eat, but I've made sure to get enough food to sustain me without issue. Hopefully I'll get these issues resolved in the next few days and get back in the gym.

Don't blow it!

2010-09-09T11:33:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.6 lbs.

Average: 208.52 lbs.

My morning weigh-ins have started to come down, as expected. My workouts have been intense this week, and my eating has been spot on. I've been just about perfect with my calories every day, and the intermittent fasting is going well too. I got a good 9 hours of sleep last night, so I'm feeling pretty good today. I thought I would be really sore from the past couple of workouts I've done, but the good rest and quality food seems to have taken care of that for the most part. My performance in the gym this week has also been markedly improved. The only bad thing in my life health-wise is I woke up at 4:30 this morning with a sore throat, which I handled by gargling some Listerine. I went back to bed, and when I woke up again at 8:30 it was feeling a lot better, so I'm hoping it's just from being irritated (the other night I hung out with one of my buddies who was smoking) and not from any kind of infection. I'm taking the day off from the gym to rest up a bit more, and hopefully I'll be alright tomorrow. All in all everything is going really well right now. All I have to do is not blow it!

Current status and monthly goal

2010-09-07T12:04:00.001-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 209.8 lbs.

Weight is still high, although it should begin a downward trend pretty soon. I've been eating super clean (most of the time, had a big calorie blast on Saturday), so it doesn't have a say in the matter. As of September 1st I haven't had any alcohol, nor will I for (at least) the rest of the month. This always helps a lot with weight loss for me, and it's been really easy this time for some reason. I've been sleeping great, training hard 4-5 days a week, and I'm injury free, so it's time for a hard push in the right direction.

The goal for this month is to be under 205 pounds by October 1st. My weight has been fluctuating between 208 and 210 for the past few days, so I don't think it's unreasonable. I'm still doing 16 hour fasts on weekdays, although on the weekends I usually only go about 14 hours, which is still fine. That's why it's called "intermittent" fasting, it doesn't have to be perfect every day to work. I tracked my calories a couple of times last week, and on an average weekday I've been getting around 2200, perfect for me to lean out.

I know I've been a bit lax on updating the blog and commenting on others' posts, so I'll try to be more active on here this week. That's it for now.

Current plan

2010-08-24T09:36:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.8

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 208.8

Sorry it's been so long since I last posted. I've kind of been treading water, to be honest. It's the same thing that's happened so many times in the past: get some momentum, start doing really well, start building good habits, and then get derailed a few times due to life stuff. But I'm past that now, and I'm ready to get another good streak of fat loss going.

I've been consistent with my exercise, so that's not an issue at all. To be honest, that's the easiest part of fitness for me. I love going to the gym, and I love hitting new PRs and tackling workouts that I've never done before. Eating/drinking is the problem area, as always. A few weeks ago a bunch of the members of the gym went up to Mammoth Lakes and Yosemite national park for a camping trip, which was amazing, but when you're camping it's really easy to let your diet slip. And slip it did. Lots of beer, marshmallows, cookies, etc. We were super active (I even did downhill mountain-biking down Mammoth mountain) so I didn't gain anything, but it did take me off the rails on the mental side a little bit, and it's taken me a few weeks to get my bearings and get rid of any left-over garbage food that was in my house.

So heres my current regimen. 16 hour daily fasts on the weekdays, which gives me an 8 hour eating window, between 1PM and 9PM. I usually work out around 6:30PM so that allows me 2 meals prior to working out, and 1 big meal after. Then, I just stop eating at 9. This helps me in that it prevents me from consuming calories not because I'm hungry but because I'm bored or just used to having a little something extra in the evening. It prevents me from having that extra glass or two of wine, or those couple extra handfuls of nuts that I really just don't need. There are also other physiological benefits to fasting, such as improved nutrient partitioning and increased insulin sensitivity, but for me the main thing is calorie restriction. I'm also still sticking to mostly Paleo foods, with a little dairy added in. This ensures I'm not hungry, and that I'm also getting good nutrition for the amount of calories I am taking in. I'm not counting calories, but I'll probably be getting around 2000/day, which is perfect. I'll update my goals in a later post.

Quick update

2010-07-29T14:00:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208

Well, it looks like physicsdiet crapped all over itself and lost my data for the past 2 months. Hopefully they can get it back, but for now I don't have an average, although it was close to 208 yesterday. My weigh-ins have been pretty level all week, which means I need to tighten the belt a bit more and cut a few more calories if I want to continue on the downward slope. Obviously I'm not going to hit my goal of sub 204 in 2 days, which is a bummer, but to be honest I'm just happy I haven't gained weight with all the stress in my life this month.

I'm almost settled into my new place, and I've got all my cooking and kitchen supplies out of their boxes. I've been eating really healthy stuff all week, except for a couple beers each night (and probably too many peanuts). I'll be more careful tonight.

My workout on Tuesday didn't go very well. It was a Crossfit Hero workout, which are always brutal (they're named for fallen military, fire, and law enforcement officers). It was supposed to be 5 rounds, but I stopped myself after 3 due to lack of energy. I don't know what the deal was, but I just wasn't feeling it. I took Wednesday as a rest day, and I'm hoping today's workout goes better.

That's about it for me. I just wanted to update with some news to keep myself accountable.

Achievement Unlocked!

2010-07-23T10:04:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.4

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 208.31

So far everything is going well this week. I've been super busy packing up my apartment and getting ready to move, but I've still done 3 workouts this week. Last night I also achieved one of my long-term goals:

I've been able to do muscle-ups on a pull-up bar for a while now, but the rings add an additional level of difficulty. Getting lighter has definitely helped me to get to this point, and I can only imagine how much easier it'll be when I weigh 15 pounds less than I do now.

Anyhoo, diet has been good. I haven't been watching what I eat as closely as I should, but it's more of a quantity issue over quality. The quality is good, as I really only eat what I make, and I make good stuff, I just haven't been super strict with controlling how much of it I put in my face. And that's the way it's going to be until I get settled in to my new place. Once the move is done and the stress from that is gone I can worry about it, but for now I just need good fuel. And, to be honest, my weight is still going down, so I'm obviously not overeating. If the weight-loss slows or stops then it'll be necessary to tighten the old belt, but for now I'm in a good place.

200th Post

2010-07-20T10:17:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.6

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 208.59

Yay 200 posts! Anyway, I had a lot of fun this weekend at the Crossfit Games. I ate like crap, though, so I was really surprised when I weighed in at 209 yesterday, and even more surprised at today's weigh-in. I guess all the activity made up for the caloric excess.

Also, it's official: I'm going to be getting my Crossfit Level 1 Certification. My gym is hosting a cert in September, and I'll be able to go for half price, which is awesome. Also, once I get that, I'll be able to actually train people on my own, although I probably won't initially. I've committed to helping out one day a week at the gym, and in return I don't have to pay gym dues any more, so that will save me a nice bit of cash as well as allow me to learn all the aspects of training other people.

In weight-loss land I've got 11 days to lose 3.6 pounds. Oh, and I'm moving this weekend. So, yeah, probably not going to happen, but I'll keep eating clean as much as possible and try to get in at least 3 good workouts this week, and hope for the best.

Crossfit Games 2010

2010-07-15T22:55:00.000-07:00

Just one post shy of 200, but that's not important. I just wanted to post a quick update to let everyone know about the 2010 Crossfit Games that are going on this weekend at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California. I'll be there live (hell yeah!), but you can check it out in free, streaming HD at live.crossfit.com. Watch the fittest athletes in the world compete for the title of "World's Fittest Man/Woman," along with CF Affiliate teams, and Masters (50+) athletes. Lisa, one of the athletes at our gym, is competing in the Master's division, so I'm super psyched to cheer her on, as well as all the awesome athletes I see every day on crossfit.com.

I know this doesn't have anything to do with my weight loss, but it's awesome and you should check it out and be inspired by these amazing athletes. Because I say so :)

Slow and steady

2010-07-13T10:59:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208.4

PhysicsDiet.com average: 209.43

This weekend was a pretty good one, nutrition-wise. I ate out for lunch on Sunday with my girlfriend and cousin, but I made sure to eat a smaller lunch portion of food, and only about half of the french fries. I had a few beers as well, but only a few. The rest of the weekend was spot-on, although I didn't really get any exercise.

We're almost half-way through the month, and I'm still weighing in at 208, so that's kind of a bummer, but looking at my physicsdiet.com chart I'm weighing in more below the trend-line than above, which is really good. My average loss is slower than I would like, but to be honest that doesn't matter in the long run. I'm still going to shoot for 204 by the end of the month, regardless. It's just nice to see that I am making progress even though sometimes it feels like I'm spinning my wheels. It says my daily deficit is only 315 calories, so it looks like it's time for me to get a little bit stricter with tracking what goes in my mouth. I would like to have a 500-600 calorie daily deficit, so I'll be more watchful about snacks or other things sneaking in that are keeping me from losing fat faster.

Doing better

2010-07-09T09:45:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208.4

PhysicsDiet Average: 209.77

Good weigh-in today. My shoulder is also starting to feel better. I've been making sure to take the time to stretch it a few times a day, along with icing it at night. I did a workout with 70+ pull-ups yesterday and, while it didn't feel 100%, it didn't flare up either. Comparing this to last week, I did a workout with 50 pull-ups and had to stop because of the inflammation and pain, so there's definitely some good progress in the right direction.

My diet has been perfect since Tuesday. 98% paleo foods (small amount of cream in my coffee today), 15 hour fasts daily, a small amount of wine, and making sure I eat enough to fuel my workouts but still lose weight. This weekend should be good, since there's nothing really going on and I can make sure to cook my own food.

With 22 days left in the month I feel that my goal of a 204 weigh-in by August is still doable. I'm moving out of my apartment at the end of the month, so that's really the only life event that might get in the way, but it definitely doesn't have to if I don't let it. So I won't let it.

Back on track, again :-)

2010-07-07T10:26:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 210.6

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 209.89

My weigh-ins have been a bit high for the past few days, but it's totally my fault. Fourth of July weekend will tend to have that effect on all but the most stalwart dieters, and I'm no exception. The good news is that I'm totally back on track as of yesterday, with a day of perfect eating, which I plan to continue throughout this week and weekend. If it takes losing the weight via fits and spurts then so be it. Who knows how this will affect my monthly goal, but it's still early enough in the month to make up any lost ground.

My nagging shoulder injury is still taking it's toll, unfortunately. I worked out yesterday, but that aggravated it pretty bad, so I'll have to stick to exercises that don't rely on any pressing or ballistic motions (which means pull-ups, kettlebells, and push-ups are out). I'm taking good care of it, making sure not to sleep on it, and massaging it a lot, so I'm hoping it will start feeling better soon. Other than that I'm feeling pretty good, so there's no reason I can't improvise some shoulder-less workouts in the meantime.

July goal

2010-07-01T09:52:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 209.4

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 209.98

Weight spiked a bit due to having a nice big cheat meal last night, lots of carbs and salt. My body definitely needed the calories, though. Now that we're starting a new month I guess it's time for a new goal. Looking back on my previous successful weight loss I find that on average I lose 5 pounds a month. So I'm going to shoot for 204 pounds by August 1st. That should put me right around 14-15% bodyfat, which is a level of leanness I've never had before, and it's also the point where I should be able to see more drastic changes in my body, which might be nice.

I tweaked my shoulder and upper back a bit in my workouts this week, so I'm taking today off from working out, and I'm also going to hit up the chiropractor. Recovery is definitely reduced on the smaller amount of calories I'm taking in, so I have to be careful not to overtrain or push my body past it's limits. I know my athletic gains will be limited during this weight-loss phase, but that's okay. There will be plenty of time to get fitter after I'm lean.

Goal achieved

2010-06-30T11:15:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.6

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 210.04

I'm just going to call it a day early: I reached my goal for this month! While the average I'm using doesn't reflect it, I have weighed in at or below 208.4 for the past 3 days, so that's good enough for me. Now, I won't be surprised if I see an uptick within the next day or two, because I've been consistently weighing less and less for the past few days, and it's bound to fluctuate back up at some point. Just gotta keep eating the way I have been and everything should even out nicely.

I took yesterday off from Crossfit due to my shoulder being a little tight and tender from bench press on Monday, so instead I went to the beach by my house and went for a jog. I jogged half of the distance no problem, but had an issue with shin splints and had to walk back, unfortunately. Still, I covered over 3 miles, and my shins are feeling okay today, so no harm done. I'm hoping that losing 20 pounds will help me to overcome the shin splints (which have always plagued me when running) simply by not putting such a pounding on my body. I'm back in the gym today for some Olympic weightlifting, which I love, so it's looking to be a good day.

Going strong

2010-06-29T13:28:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 208.2

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 210.31

I'm pretty happy with my current pace and progress since I recommitted myself to losing these last 20 pounds. I'm down 5 pounds in 2 weeks currently, which is probably the fastest I've lost weight, ever. I know it's healthy, though, because I'm eating a ton of quality food, and my workouts haven't suffered at all. In fact I just hit 4 new personal records yesterday. I'm just gonna keep doing what I'm doing until it stops working, basically, and hopefully that won't be for a while.

Intermittent fasting for the win

2010-06-24T11:54:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 212.2

PhysicsDiet.com average: 211.14

Got a pretty big uptick in weight today, but I'm sure it's not a problem, because I'm still eating great. Yesterday's food choices included eggs and bacon, pot roast, strawberries and cantaloupe, zucchini and onions, and steak with spinach and grilled onions and garlic. No alcohol either. Limiting my alcohol intake to 1-2 glasses of wine max per day is helping out a ton with keeping calories lower and improving my sleep. The intermittent fasting has helped a lot too, at least from a mental standpoint. Johnny from The Lean Saloon noted in this post that IFing is basically just turning off the food valve for a while. So late-night snacks and alcohol are out of the question after my feeding window is closed (usually about 9PM), and for some reason it's not difficult. I don't understand all the physiology and psychology around it, but it seems to be working pretty well for me, so I'm going to continue with it as long as I'm getting positive results.

I did end up taking yesterday as a rest day, so I'll be back in the gym today, tomorrow, and hopefully Saturday. My body is recovering really well from workouts with all the good sleep and clean eating, and I'm feeling really good overall.

Really quick one

2010-06-23T12:03:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 209.0

PhysicsDiet.com Average: 211.02

Everything is going pretty well so far. I definitely think my goal of 208 by July 1st is doable. The last 2 days of workouts have been pretty brutal, so I'm going to take a rest day today instead of tomorrow to let my body recover. Other than that not much to report, just wanted to post an update.

Good weekend

2010-06-21T10:02:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 210.6

Average: 211.4

A new week, and good news to report. I didn't fall off the wagon this weekend. I mentioned on Thursday that I would be going out that night, which could have started the weekend off badly, but I didn't let it. I had some beers, then got right back on track the next day with perfect eating. Ate perfectly all weekend as well, even forgoing my dad's homebrewed beer on Sunday. Now I officially have a full week of good eating behind me, and the momentum is building. I've been using physicsdiet.com (almost wanted to write Science Diet, but that's pet food) to track my weight on a daily basis. It uses a weighted average to compute a more realistic average weight without the huge fluctuations that a 5-day average can have.

I'm down almost 3 pounds since last Monday, which is great. I don't expect that kind of loss to continue but it's a good mental boost. I'm doing a bit of intermittent fasting today, so I'll only be eating between 1pm and 9pm, which works out well for my schedule. Workouts are planned for Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday this week. Everything is on track to finally get rid of this last 20 pounds and finally be lean.

Doing great

2010-06-17T09:51:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 212.6

Weight is down a bit, though not as much as I expected seeing as my carb intake has drastically been reduced. I've continued to be spot-on with my diet and exercise. Today is a rest day from workouts, and I need it bad. I'm going out with an old friend tonight, so I'll have a few beers with him, but I've planned it so that I can get right back into strict eating tomorrow without falling off the wagon. I can feel myself building some good momentum in the right direction so I've gotta ride this all the way.

Quick post

2010-06-15T11:23:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 213.4 lbs.

Okay, so the weight's a bit high, but not too bad. I ate really clean yesterday, got a good workout, and I can feel my body recovering from the lack of nutrition, so I feel like I'm on the right path. I've got all good foods lined up for today, and another hard workout this evening. I'm still a bit bloated from the bad stuff, so I'll probably drop a few pounds in the next few days simply by cutting out starches and alcohol. We'll see.

Crap food, good fun, going clean

2010-06-14T17:08:00.000-07:00

Hey there. So I come in here and make a big deal about being back in the game, then I'm gone for two weeks. Sorry about that! I've just been really busy at work and traveling, but I'll try to give a little more focus to this now that I'm back and not overly taxed.

I don't have a lot of time today, but I just wanted to post something. I went to Davis this past weekend for my brother's graduation, which was really fun, but man, I did not eat right. We stayed in a hotel without a fridge, so pretty much all of our meals were eaten out. I had pizza, pasta, ice cream, cinnamon rolls, granola, crepes, basically all the crap I don't eat in my every day life. Not a whole lot of other options were available, unfortunately, but I definitely could have tried to make some better decisions. But what's done is done.

The 4-day crapfest also made me feel like crap, and I (once again) understand how my food quality affects my quality of life and energy levels. I'm all crapped out, so to speak. Eating badly for that long caused my body to crave healthy foods like fruit and healthy meat, so that's what I'm giving it now. And I'm going to keep giving it those things because I know that's what my body and mind need. I don't have any crap food in my house, and I made a 4-pound grassfed beef pot-roast last night, so I don't even have any excuses. Just gotta get momentum going.

I got 1 workout in over the weekend, which was less than I would have liked but we were still pretty active, with lots of walking and swimming. My brother (who is going to Physical Therapy school in the Fall) helped me out with a shoulder issue that I didn't even know I had, but was limiting my ability and range of motion, which is awesome. He fixed it up with some stretches and I banged out my first muscle-ups (on a pull-up bar) in over a year. I mentioned in my last post that my goal is to get a ring muscle-up, so now I'm one step closer, and I hope to get one this week. Woo-hoo.

First weigh-in of summer

2010-06-03T10:37:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-in: 212.4 lbs.

Looks like my estimate for my weight from yesterday was accurate. Which means by July 1st I need to weigh in at less than 208.4 lbs. to reach my goal.

If anyone is interested in what my workouts look like you can check out the twitter feed on the right-hand side of the blog. It's linked to my beyondthewhiteboard account, so whenever I post a workout on there it gets tweeted. I'm pretty much just doing the workouts from the crossfit.com main-site, with a few other workouts on main-site rest days.

I skipped breakfast this morning as I wasn't particularly hungry, but I've got some homemade carnitas and guacamole for lunch, along with fresh strawberries and a cabbage/cucumber/bell pepper salad. I've also made sure I have healthy snacks (nuts and jerky) in my truck for after workouts so I won't be tempted to stop at any fast food places on the way home.

I think I've got my bases covered, so hopefully I can crush this goal and build some nice momentum.

Time to get back on track

2010-06-02T12:53:00.001-07:00

In response to Kevin's call for former FATties to get back to business, I'm back. It's been six weeks since my last post, and I've been doing alright. I haven't weighed myself in the past few days but I think I'm somewhere between 211 and 213. I went to Chicago a couple weeks ago and ate out every day, so I did gain a pound or two there. However I am still very active with my Crossfit workouts, and I'm setting new personal records almost every time I do a workout. For me, focusing on performance goals has allowed me to increase my strength and endurance while allowing me to eat a bit more and still maintain my weight. But that's the problem. I don't want to maintain my weight. I want to continue to lean out, but my head has not been in it from a diet perspective.

I've started using Sparkpeople again to track my daily intake. Yesterday I had 2600 calories, which is just a few hundred too high to lose weight at a steady pace. I can maintain weight on around 3000 calories without much trouble, so I want to be around 2400 per day to maintain a nice 1 lb./week loss. Just cutting out one serving of almonds or a glass of wine should get me there pretty easily, I've just gotta watch out for temptations at work, where there is a constant influx of crap food available for free. I'm pretty good at resisting those temptations, simply from doing it so much the past few years, so I definitely think it's doable.

I've been a little lax on the Paleo front recently, but I've begun tightening that up as well. I've found that some things, like rice, don't seem to bother me or affect my performance, but any sugar or refined grains send me into a gnarly sugar-craving cycle. That means that if I cheat with those things I'm much more likely to continue cheating, rather than just having one serving and being done. So my cheats need to be smart, and infrequent.

So what are my goals? Lose 4 pounds by July 1st, for starters. Simple, concise, doable. I'm going to take this in small steps. My ultimate goal is to weigh 190, but if I focus on "lose 2 pounds here, 3 pounds there" I think I'll get there a lot faster than thinking over a longer term. Looking back on my older posts it seems that's what has worked for me in the past. Other goals include entering everything I eat into Sparkpeople, even if it's bad. As far as my fitness goals, right now my main goal is to finally get a muscle-up on the gymnastics rings. It's the only basic Crossfit skill that I still cannot do (not counting one-legged squats, which don't come up too often). I'm currently in training to become a part-time trainer at my Crossfit gym, and one of the requirements is to be able to demonstrate the basic movements, so that's the one I'm gonna focus on.

I'll post a weigh-in tomorrow, and shoot for at least 3 new posts a week. Anyone else out there who wants to join in on the summer fun please feel free.

Paleo challenge wrap-up

2010-04-14T12:24:00.001-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 210 lbs.

So we finished up our 6 week Paleo challenge on Monday, and I officially lost 4 pounds, but I was weighing heavy on Monday and have since dropped another 3 pounds (water, food, etc.), so I'm pretty happy with the results. My average weight (using physicsdiet.com now) is 211, so I'm legitimately down 5 pounds since late February. My body fat was calipered at 18.1% as well.

I thought that once the challenge was over I would be really tempted to eat non-Paleo stuff, but it turns out that I'm really not. I did cheat a couple of times during the challenge, and it always made me feel awful. I don't like feeling awful, so that keeps me from cheating. I'm just going to keep eating as Paleo as I can as much as I can, and splurge a little here and there as needed. I'm definitely avoiding low-quality crap such as fast food and baked goods, because they just make me feel terrible, but other things like good ice cream or quality beer are not off the table.

I also have a new goal: 205 pounds and 15% body-fat by June 1st. I have 6 weeks to get there, which is doable. I've been monitoring my calories for the past few days, making sure I get enough to fuel my workouts but not slow down the fat loss.

In performance news, we did a workout on the first day of the Paleo challenge, which we then repeated after we were done, to compare how eating real food affects performance. I dropped my time by over 2 minutes from the initial assessment, and this was after having a terrible cold during the 2nd and 3rd weeks of the challenge which cost me a lot of cardiovascular capacity. If anyone is skeptical about Paleo eating, I can tell you that it works very, very well.

Quick update

2010-03-17T16:27:00.000-07:00

Hey there everyone. I'm back in action on the weight-loss front. I've been sticking to the Paleo diet pretty religiously, and I've been rewarded with some more weight loss. Today I was 206.6 lbs., closing in on the 100s again. Not that I mind being 200+, but for my current level of lean mass 190 is going to be the sweet spot I think. I've been eating a ton of good food too. Last night I made a big grass-fed tri-tip roast in the Mexican barbacoa style, and it's delicious, so I've got lunch for the next few days. I also made a really good dessert with dates (which I hate), walnuts, and cocoa. Check out the recipe here, and try them, they're amazing. I added dried coconut as well, which made them extra good, but they're great on their own too.

That's about it for me, and I hope everyone else that reads this is doing well.

News

2010-03-11T11:07:00.000-08:00

So, I felt like I should post an update here to let everyone know what's going on in my life. On Monday, March 8th, my grandma passed away. She was 83 years old. She helped raise my brother and I, and was like a second mother to us. She'd been dealing with advanced Alzheimer's for the past few years, but she never forgot us. I will miss her tremendously.

On the day she passed I didn't worry about staying on my diet, so I had some non-paleo foods, but I got back on the wagon immediately the next day. I drove up to Sacramento with my brother on Tuesday because he goes to school up there and my mom didn't want him to have to drive by himself after everything that happened. I stayed with him for a day and flew back down yesterday. I'd never been up there before, so it was nice to get away, at least for a little bit.

I weighed myself this morning, and was surprised to see 207.8 show up on the scale. I've dropped close to 9 pounds since the first of the month. Not sure if it's healthy weight loss, but I've been eating enough food, so I don't know. I was really sick for a few days last week, and I could only eat fruit during those days as everything else tasted repulsive to me. I also haven't been able to take my creatine for a week, so I'm sure some of the loss is water. But it's encouraging to see the number on the scale move again. I haven't worked out in a week, and won't be able to get back into the gym until tomorrow, but it goes to show that eating right trumps working out every time.

What I'm up to

2010-02-25T14:12:00.000-08:00

I resurrected my workout log thread on the Crossfit message board, and there's a ton of info there that I don't feel like re-writing for this blog, so just check it out here.

I'm not going to be weighing myself daily during the 6-week paleo challenge that I'm participating in. The goal isn't how much weight I can lose, but how much I can improve my performance. The weight will take care of itself if I focus on good food and hard work. I'll keep you posted as the challenge gets going.

Quick update

2010-02-12T14:14:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 215.2

5-day Average: 216.3

Not a ton to say today, just wanted to check in. The weight is coming down nicely, but I haven't had a chance to work out since Monday due to an upper-back injury that's keeping me down. I'm rehabbing it but it feels like I'll still be out until next week. As long as I keep a close eye on my eating it shouldn't prevent me from losing weight, it just bugs me to not be able to train.

See you next week.

New month, new goals

2010-02-04T12:27:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 216.6 lbs.

Since it's February I've started reducing my alcohol intake even more, as I said I would in my new year's post. I've actually decided to go a tiny bit stricter than I laid out then. Instead of allowing 3 days a week with alcohol, I'm only allowing two: Friday and Saturday. And I'm still sticking with a 3-drink max. That reduces my alcohol intake from ~40 drinks a week (prior to January), to 21 a week (during January), down to 6. That should put a decent dent in my empty calorie intake.

I took shipment of another batch of grass-fed beef, this time 15 pounds of just ground beef. I find myself using the ground beef much faster than the other cuts, so I needed to restock. I've find a chili recipe that is amazing, and I eat it every day for lunch. I've done so for the past month and I still look forward to it every day. I've got the chest freezer up and running, but it's looking a little empty with only 25 pounds of meat in it, so I'm thinking of finding a good source of pastured chicken and possibly some organ meats. I love beef heart, so that's the first thing I'll be looking for.

Everything has been looking good on the diet and exercise front this week. I've been trying to listen to my body more, and I think that's working out pretty well. I work out pretty hard, so sometimes when my I'm super hungry, I know I should just eat a big-ass meal. It's my body's way of telling me that it needs food to run efficiently and to recover for the next workout. It also works the other way. Sometimes I just won't be hungry in the afternoon, so I'll skip lunch and then eat a regular dinner. It all balances out, and I know that as long as I'm eating quality food 90% of the time there's no way I can fail.

I've adjusted my goals to hit a 215 average by Valentine's day, which should be easy. I've also adjusted my weight training goals a bit. I hit one of my goals, which was a 225# clean, so I increased that to a new, loftier goal. I also added the snatch as one of my targeted lifts, because I'm so bad at it it's not even funny. That's all for now, hope everyone is doing well.

Number crunching

2010-01-29T09:47:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 217.2 lbs.
5-Day Average: 217.2 lbs.

Looking at my weigh-in this morning, I was a bit disappointed. I've been eating clean, working out hard, and sleeping well. Taking my fish oil and creatine. So why isn't the weight going anywhere?

So I busted out my tape measure, and took some measurements to compare to those I took at the beginning of the month. Turns out I've lost an inch off my hips and 2 inches off my waist, without changing my other measurements significantly. This means that I have indeed lost fat, just not weight, which also means that I've increased my lean body mass. This makes me very happy. There's nothing worse than working hard and not seeing any results, and sometimes it's easy to get lost in what the scale tells you. But you've always gotta remember that the scale is not the only way of measuring progress.

Looking back on some older measurements, from when I was at my lowest weight, and I'm only an inch bigger in the waist and hips than I was then, but I'm almost 20 pounds heavier. This means that in the past year I've probably gained 12-15 pounds of muscle, and between 5-8 pounds of fat. Thinking of the weight gain in that sense makes it much easier to swallow.

Another way of measuring muscle gain was to compare body fat percentages. At my lightest I was about 18% body fat, and now I'm at about 20%. 18% @ 196lbs. means 161 lbs. of lean mass. 20% @ 215lbs. means 172 lbs. of lean mass. So that's in line with my estimate above.

I find it fun to play around with numbers, and it helps to see everything from a different perspective than just the scale weight.

Weird weigh-ins, beef review, and goal check

2010-01-19T11:29:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 214.8

5-Day Average: 217.8

Good weigh-in today, but the past few days were really bad for some reason. I stayed within my calories every day but one, but my weight shot up and stayed up from Thursday until Monday. Hmm. Hopefully today's wasn't a fluke, but I doubt it was since I ate great yesterday and worked out hard. We basically did 3 workouts: a 2000m timed row for warm-up (did it in 8:11), 5x3 deadlifts for the main workout (got up to 365# for 3 reps), and finished with as many rounds as possible in 5 minutes of 10 lunges, 10 sit-ups, and 10 kettlebell swings (using 53# kettlebell, got 4 and a half rounds). I like this set-up since it lets me get a decent cardio workout, a good strength workout, and a nice anaerobic burner at the end.

I received my grass-fed beef last Thursday, and I've been putting it to good use. The first thing I made was a big crockpot of Texas-style chili (no beans). My girlfriend said that it was the best chili I've ever made, and she loves the flavor of the grass-fed meat. I have to say I agree. It actually has much more beef flavor than the store-bought grain-fed meat. I also used some sirloin in a stir-fry which was pretty good, although I should have marinated the meat for longer. All in all I'm quite happy with the quality of this meat, and I think I'll be making this a regular part of my life.

I've got 11 days to bring my average down to 215, which still looks doable. Looks like small changes can make a big difference. Just gotta stay consistent.

Grass-fed beef and crushing goals

2010-01-12T12:23:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 215.2 lbs.

5-Day Average: 216.3 lbs.

The weight is continuing to trend downward. I guess this whole "eating clean" thing works pretty well. I also got a great workout yesterday, which pushed me to my limits and allowed me to tap into those strength reserves that you don't really know about until you need them.

On the food front I bought a share of a cow. That might sound a bit strange, but it's true. I paid for 1/11th of a grass-fed steer from a farm in South Dakota. The basic idea is that 11 people buy a share each, and once all the shares are paid for the steer is slaughtered (humanely, I might add) and shipped to your door in dry ice. I've been looking for a good source of grass-fed beef for a while now, and this fit the bill nicely. I should be receiving roughly 25 pounds of beef sometime this week, according to the email I received today. I purchased a chest freezer last month for just such a thing, so now I have to actually set it up and make sure it works! I'll let you guys know how the meat tastes when I get a chance to try it. If you're interested in something like this, visit the site. Total price for me was about $190, not bad for beef raised in its natural environment and fed the food it was designed to eat.

It looks like I'm well on my way to crushing my February weight goal of a 215 lb. 5-day average, so let's just hope nothing funky happens with my body to cause it to stall.

Doing pretty dang good

2010-01-11T16:33:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 216.2 lbs.

5-Day Average: 216.8 lbs.

It looks like my plan of conservative weight loss seems to be working so far. I'm averaging about a pound less than I was at the start of the year (I don't have any numbers from 12/31 to 1/4 so I can't really analyze my averages during that time). I've been counting calories online during the week, and trying to keep a running tally of calories during the weekend. I ended up having 2 cheat meals on Saturday due to unforeseen circumstances, but everything else has been really good.

On Friday I hit a new PR (personal record) with a 215# power clean, which was 20# more than the last time I attempted a max. I went and ran 400m sprints at the track on Saturday, but was only able to do 2 before my calves and hamstrings got too tight to function well. I did get another PR of 1:31 on my first sprint (down from 1:45 the last time, which was probably over a year ago), even though it's still terribly slow. My brother used to run the 400 in 51 seconds, if my memory serves, so I'm definitely not going to be winning any track meets in the near future.

Today my body feels good, and I'm ready to hit today's workout after I get off work. All in all I really have nothing to complain about right now. Let's just hope it lasts.

Obligatory new year goals

2010-01-06T12:47:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 215.4 lbs. (no 5-day average since I kind of slacked on weighing myself)

Happy New Year to all the fitness and weight-loss bloggers out there. Since it is a new year I would like to start by laying out some goals, both short and long term, that will get me to where I want to be. I took the time to reflect on the past year, and came up with a few things. First, I gained about 20 pounds; actually, looking back on my post from exactly 1 year ago I gained 17.2 pounds. This has some good and bad sides: I'm much stronger now than I was a year ago, but I'm also a bit fatter. The upside, though, is that I think I can lose the fat without losing strength through my Crossfit training.

I thought also about the habits that I used to have when I was successfully losing weight, versus what I've been doing lately, and came up with a few things. First was that I drink more, and more often, now than I did then. Also I have not been good with calorie counting. Gym attendance has been roughly equivalent, so my weight gain is close to 100% food/drink related. So then I thought "What can I do to remedy this?" and came up with a few simple daily goals that will allow me to lose at least 1 pound a week, but don't put a ton of stress on my mind.

So here they are:

1) Limit drinking to 3 drinks per day through January. 1 drink is one 12oz. beer, 1 shot of 80 proof alcohol, or 5 oz. of wine.

2) Starting February, limit drinking only to 3 days per week, and maintain goal #1 on these days.

3) Count all calories, get no more than 2500/day including alcohol.

4) Take fiber, creatine, fish oil, and vitamin D supplements every day.

5) Workout every day except Thursday and Sunday.

Now, let me explain that I have a very high alcohol tolerance, and 3 drinks does not even begin to affect me. But I averaged my recent intake to be about 6-7 drinks per day, and this has prevented me from dropping weight. Plus, it's just not a good habit to have. The ultimate goal is to take drinking from a habit to an occasional splurge, and I want to do it slowly so as not to cause myself undue stress, and also to allow new, healthy habits to form in the meantime.

Counting calories has been a great tool in the past, and I think it's crucial for me to lose weight. It's not that hard either; once I do it on a daily basis for a week or two it just becomes second nature.

My exercise goal is just to get 5 workouts a week. I can move my rest day from Thursday to Wednesday, so long as I get my 5. I just want to be consistent here.

I have some other goals as well. I know for me that the most motivating success stories are the ones with pictures in them. So I've made plans to take pictures of myself every Saturday morning and post them to the blog so I can see my changes over time. I've also made a goal of adding at least 1 run per week into my workout routine. I feel that running is a weak area of mine, and I would like to shore up that weakness a bit. I might do a 5k, or I might do sprint repeats. I just need to run more.

I think that's it for now. None of these goals are very hard for me, to be honest, and that's the way I like it because that means I can actually achieve them. I like having daily goals as well, because it's really the day-to-day stuff that gives us the results we want, and completing daily goals allows me to feel like I'm actually moving forward. I'm on day 3 right now, and feeling good. I'll keep you posted.

Thank goodness the holidays are almost over

2009-12-29T11:34:00.001-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 217.2 lbs.

5-day average: 217.7 lbs.

Okay, so this past week did not go so well. Lots of candy, fudge, and chips. Very little exercise. I got 2 workouts in last week, on Monday and Tuesday, but all the Christmas stuff prevented me from going later in the week.

Thankfully that's all over. I ate great yesterday and did a good Olympic lifting workout. My muscles felt amazing afterward. They just crave activity now. Also, I find that when I eat crap food I get really stiff in my muscles and joints, and my flexibility (which is usually decent) goes to hell. If I eat right and take my fish oil (10 caps a day, now) I don't have any issues. Just something I noticed.

The year is coming to an end, and I'm glad. I know it's cliche but the new year does provide a fresh start, at least mentally, and that's what a lot of us need right now. A fresh start, and a kick in the pants.

Better than expected

2009-12-18T15:46:00.000-08:00

Today's Weigh-In: 218.2 lbs.

5-Day Average: 217.4 lbs.

After all the fuss I made yesterday, it looks like my back is starting to get better quicker than I expected. I guess it was just the muscles getting used to my spine being straight again. It's a little sore today, but nowhere near the level of pain I was in yesterday. I went for a short run to test it out, and also did some squats, push-ups, and stretches to see how it felt. It felt pretty good, so I'm really happy that I won't be out of commission much longer. My lower back fatigued pretty quickly during my run, but that's most likely due to the fact that I haven't been running much in the past few weeks and I did heavy deadlifts twice this week.

I have a Christmas dinner to attend tonight, but I'm going to stick to mainly meat and vegetables. I really want to get under 215 within the next 2 weeks.

Screwed up back

2009-12-17T11:42:00.000-08:00

Ugh. Just when I start to get some motivation behind me something bad happens. Somehow I screwed up my upper back. It wasn't from lifting, because it was bothering me on Monday during the day (and I hadn't worked out since Saturday). I was sitting at my desk, and my neck felt tight, so I moved it around to try to crack it and loosen it up. What happened instead was it locked up, and I couldn't turn my head to the left. I figured "okay, that sucks, but it'll go away." Well the neck pain did go away, but I could feel my upper back and left arm getting really tight and sore. I've had issues in the past where my back being out of alignment has caused pain down my left arm, so I pretty much knew nothing was actually wrong with my arm (but it hurt like a son of a gun). I went to the chiropractor yesterday, and he re-aligned my spine. This has caused the pain in my arm to disappear, and my neck feels fine as well. But my upper back is crazy sore today, and I can feel that it's the muscles and not the spine. So I'm thinking that it's caused by my spine being so out of alignment for so long that the muscles sort of got used to the bad configuration. But it's got me sidelined from exercise, because I really can't do much of anything without excruciating pain. Right now I'm rocking NSAIDs, and when I get home I'm going to use my foam roller and jacuzzi to help loosen it up. I'll probably go back to the chiro early next week for a follow-up, but I'm hoping it doesn't last that long.

I guess there's a lesson in this: if you don't take all aspects of exercise recovery seriously you can jack yourself up. I'm usually pretty good about my recovery, but I know I should be visiting the chiropractor every few weeks at least, and I haven't been. Lesson learned.

New PRs and a change of direction

2009-12-15T10:03:00.000-08:00

I know, I know, it's been a long time since I posted a blog entry on here. Looking back at my last post, it was right before my last Crossfit Total. I ended up getting 870 (325 back squat, 170 shoulder press, and 375 deadlift) which surpassed my goal. Yesterday I did the Total again, and this time got a score of 905 (335 back squat, 170 press, 400 deadlift(!)). I finally reached one of my oldest goals, which was a 400 pound deadlift. I went for 405 as well but it just didn't go up. I just looked back at my first CFT score (from this post) which was 670. It feels great to know objectively how much stronger I am now than I was then.

Now for some bad news. I pretty much weigh the same as I did in January 2008, when I did my first Total. This morning I weighed in at 217.4 lbs., the highest I've been in a while. 2 months ago I weighed in at 207, so I've gained 10 pounds since then. It's time for me to buckle down and start using this blog (once again) as a resource to help me along on my journey.

I'm going to be changing the format of my blog posts a little bit, to reflect the changes that have occurred both mentally and physically since I've started this quest. Most of the posts on here are focused solely on weight, and, while that is important, I've come to believe that things such as athletic performance, quality of rest, and quality of food are just as important to me. Let's face it, I could have 6 pack abs and be completely unhealthy, but that's not what I want. I want to be strong, powerful, quick, agile. I want to have good indicators on all my bloodwork. So what if I never get "ripped." This is really about so much more than that. So my posts will reflect that mentality, with a focus on performance and food quality as a means toward health and fitness, and not just some arbitrary number on the scale.

That being said, I do need to lose some fat. My body fat percentage is higher than I would like, and it's hindering me in some aspects of my athleticism (mainly bodyweight stuff). There are only 2 weeks left in the year, so I'm not going to go for some drastic cut to meet an arbitrary deadline right now, but I want to be consistently under 215 by the new year. That's easily doable, and it gives me that bit of momentum that I'll need to see this through. I'll try to post a couple of times a week as well, to keep myself on track.

Food and fitness

2009-10-13T14:04:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 207.4 lbs.

The weight is still trending downwards at a nice clip, so that makes me happy. I got another personal record yesterday (I cut over a minute off my Fran time), which is awesome. I still need to work on my pull-ups, but I figure as I get lighter they'll get easier by default. I made buffalo wings at home last night, and they were really good. I heated up Frank's Red-Hot sauce (1/2 cup) with butter (2 tbsp) and chopped garlic (1 clove) in a saucepan until everything melted together, then I brushed the sauce onto chicken wing pieces (and a chicken breast) and baked at 400 degrees for 45 minutes. The wings were delicious, and the breast came out so juicy and flavorful I couldn't believe it. So I'm definitely adding that to my list of easy, delicious recipes.

I'm taking today off from working out so I can be ready for the Crossfit Total tomorrow. The CFT consists of max effort lifts (1 rep max) for back squat, deadlift, and shoulder press, and it can be really draining on the body. You add up the weights for each lift, and add them together for your score. You get 3 attempts to get a max on each lift. Last time I got 750, but tomorrow I'm hoping to get at least 850, since I've added quite a bit of weight to my back squat and deadlift since the last CFT. I'm also hoping to break 400 lbs. for my deadlift. I got 395 a few weeks ago, so it's definitely a possibility. I'm going to have to adjust my strength goals on here to account for my new strength levels. Yay!

Weight loss on a weekend? Yep.

2009-10-12T10:16:00.000-07:00

Weigh-In: 209.4 lbs.

I had a good weekend. I stayed totally paleo and was rewarded with a 1 pound loss this morning. I'm now down 7 pounds this month. I did heavy squats yesterday for my workout, and I've got a date with Fran tonight. I'm hoping for a new personal record, since I haven't hit one on this workout in well over a year. Overall everything seems to be going according to plan. I did have some major carb cravings this weekend, but they passed and now I feel fine.

I've been trying all kinds of new vegetables lately. Last week I tried yellow squash, and yesterday I made some brussels sprouts. I roasted them in the oven with fresh garlic and onion, drizzled with olive oil, and sprinkled with salt and pepper. They were really good! I ate them with scrambled eggs and some sunflower seeds. I know that sounds like a bizarre meal (it was lunch, too) but it was delicious. It's definitely worth it to take the time to try out new things, you might find something you really like.

2 months already?

2009-10-07T09:22:00.001-07:00

Weigh-In: 210.2 lbs.

Whoa, has it really been 2 months since my last post? Sorry about that, folks. I haven't been slacking of on the fitness front, but I guess I haven't really felt the desire to write about it lately. But I'll try to recap and bring you all up to speed with where I am.

I did let the diet slip a little bit for a few weeks, and got up to 216 lbs. But some of that weight was muscle, and I've been hitting personal records like crazy. I got my deadlift up to 395, my shoulder press to 165, and my push press to 215. I've been working on my grip strength so that I can start getting better numbers on pull-ups. And I've still been hitting the high intensity workouts hard, so my conditioning is still improving.

As of October 1st I decided to do a 30-day Paleo diet challenge. Many of the Crossfit sites and affiliates have been doing this, with great results, and so I figured I would give it a shot. The diet excludes all grains (including corn) and grain products, all sugar (except for what's found in fruit), all dairy (although I do allow butter), legumes, any artificial ingredients (including sweeteners), and alcohol. So what does that leave? Meat, veggies, fruit, nuts, seeds, and oils. There's actually a lot you can do with that list, and I've been trying to include as many new recipes and foods into my diet as I can. As of today I've lost 6 pounds in 7 days, while still eating enough food to keep me quite full. I expect the loss to slow down considerably soon, as much of it is water weight, but I do feel lighter and less bloated. My hope is that I'll get close to 200 lbs. by the end of the month, and use that momentum to blast through into the 190s.

Crossfit + Paleo = fitness and fat loss. I feel better than I have in months. My sleep is so much better (with vivid dreams), I wake up at 7:30 every morning without issue, I'm getting stronger and leaner, and mentally I'm much more focused. I know that part of that has to do with the "no alcohol" part of the Paleo diet, but I've done alcohol-free months before and haven't felt the same way, so I know it has something to do with eating quality food and staying away from the stuff that would serve to damage my body. I urge anyone who really desires to get lean and fit to check out Crossfit and look into the Paleo diet. You won't be disappointed.

New personal record

2009-08-06T11:57:00.001-07:00

So yesterday in the gym I set another new personal record! One of my goals for last year that I did not reach was to squat 300 pounds. Well, it's 8 months late, but yesterday I squatted 310 pounds for one rep with perfect form! My one-rep max on the squat was stuck at 260 for over a year, but in the past 2 months I've added 50 pounds to it. Not sure what to attribute it to, whether it be the 2 weeks of rest I took after my injury, dialing in my form, or just increasing my strength through neurological adaptation, but it feels great to finally squat 1.5x my body weight. According to my body fat tester I'm at 22% body fat, which means that I've put on about 4 pounds of muscle in the last 2 months while staying at the same body weight. I'm stoked to see where my deadlift numbers are at now, so hopefully a max effort DL workout will show up in the near future. I really want to get an 850 on the Crossfit Total (1 rep max of back squat, deadlift, and shoulder press). I'm at 310 squat and 160 press, so I would need a 380 lb. deadlift to reach that goal. Last time I maxed I got 345, but that was only about a week into my current training regimen. We'll see how it goes. Getting stronger rules :)

Back to work

2009-08-04T11:36:00.000-07:00

Today's Weigh-In: 206.8 lbs.

Yesterday was my first Crossfit workout since being admitted to the hospital. I took it pretty easy, not a whole lot of volume for my first day back. I've definitely lost some cardiovascular endurance, but I know that will come back quickly as long as I stay consistent. I didn't have any trouble completing the workout, and my abs and hip flexors seem to be working just as well as they did before, so I'm glad. I was worried that I would lose a lot of strength or capacity in the damaged muscles. I'll be keeping the volume pretty low this week just to give my body a chance to adapt and to risk reinjuring myself, and then start increasing my intensity as I see fit.

As far as diet goes I've got one good day in the bag so far. I need to build some momentum in this area, so I think I'll forgo any cheat meals this week, and keep my alcohol intake to a minimum. It's just so much easier to stick to a good eating plan when you've got a week or two of good days behind you and you start seeing some real progress. I haven't really felt that momentum for a while so I'm hoping I can get some steam behind this thing and get back under 200 pounds.

I'm going to try to be posting more often now that I'm healthy, so stay tuned for more.