Info dump

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

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

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

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

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

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

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.