I have been doing a lot of thinking about the journey thus far through 'the valley' (as appropriately described) and the inflection point at which we have I arrived. Although only a half way point, I can't help but reflect on the significance of the accomplishments - on both personal and collective levels - thus far.
Diet - not an easy transition, but looking back, it has been easier than I imagined going into this. The thought of no salt, sugar, processed food, or booze was so frightening at the beginning that I almost talked myself out of signing up for the project. How the hell could anyone pull this off with a demanding travel schedule, business obligations, family obligations, social obligations, etc - I didn't think I would make it past week 2. In reality, it has been every bit the challenge I thought it would be, but personally gratifying to learn that it can be done and that I am capable of taking better care of what goes into my body. Of course doing so is easier when you have someone telling you what to do, how to do it, and a community of empathizing co-conspirators.
The workouts - I used to believe the only way to get physical results was to run off the calories and pound free weights. Moreover, I applied the principle that results came from mostly from the output with little focus on the input - for years, I would just up the output to accommodate more input. If I ate a cheeseburger or drank 10 beers, I ran more, if not, I could do less. Conversely, if I exercised more, I could eat that cheeseburger. I thought the system worked - and it seemed to until my mid 30s when the workouts became less frequent and the indulgences more frequent. I would have never guessed that I could get such great results from merely eating properly, swinging a rope and doing body weight based exercises. I am in freakin awe at how rapidly my body has responded to just this - how it has for everyone involved in the project - and it is motivating.
The blogging - putting yourself on display seemed like such a strange concept and ridiculous method to get results, especially from a first time blogger. Yet taking a photo of your body can be sobering (how did I get so damn fat?). And the blogging is refreshingly honest. Strange how telling a few friends and a handful of people I didn't know imposes the discipline to stay focused and on course - if you don't share your goals with others, then there is no one that can call you on it when you start to waffle or stray from the path.
The results - weighed in at 83.2 kg yesterday and am down nearly 10kg in 45 days, which is much more than I guess I had set out to accomplish. It almost feels like I am playing with the house's money now, which I realize can be a trap. I know these next 45 days are going to be as brutal on me both physically and mentally as the first 45 were. Still, as opposed to viewing today as 'the valley,' I'd like to think we are at close to the apex and onto if not the downhill side of this project, then at least a flattening curve - armed with the knowledge of realizing the impact the 'bitter choices' can have on our health and fitness and now focusing making the right ones for 45 more days and beyond!
Friday, October 29, 2010
Wednesday, October 27, 2010
Day 43 - Running on Fumes
Alright - need to take my first mulligan on the workouts. Landed at 7:30 this morning from an 11 hr flight with no sleep, got an hour of face time in at home, a two hour nap and then straight to the office. Moreover, it isn't looking like I will get out of here soon. I am utterly exhausted and will need to spend a modicum of time with the family before they retire for the night. Will hit the rope and abs at home and then double up one of the weekend workouts or do a make up one on Tue. Hate to bargain with myself like this as I have been militant about getting these workouts knocked out in spite of all the traveling. I actually feel really guilty about it - and by telling you all, that I will compel myself to get it done, even though this is fully on me.
Monday, October 25, 2010
Day 41: Ad Out
Was probably a little too arrogant toward the rope and the workout in yesterday's post and got my arse absolutely handed to me this morning. Bravado replaced by humility, agility by clumsiness, and strength by failure. After going 4 days without trippin on the rope - trips at 622, 1089 and 1296. After crushing the pistol/creep combo earlier in the week, I collapsed on the 36th step of set 4 - I could utterly not stand up for about 20 sec. Bravado on the bicycle? - dismantled 30 seconds in on set 3 - hip flexors just would not cooperate, I did manage to go back for a 4th set which ended in failure well before 40 sec. Advantage: PCP. I guess so go the ebbs and flows of the project.
Was granted an involuntary partial egg forbearance when out for a business dinner last evening. Ordered two poached egg whites (obviously not on the dinner menu) and was denied, so I went with the tuna salad, which happened to come with one hard-boiled egg (didn't know this when i ordered, or i would have asked for an extra one. Ate about 30-40gr of tuna and called (figured it was better to eat a little too much protein than too little?) it dinner. Kept the salad for an hour and finished the tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers as the evening snack and called it a night. Eating out is much more difficult than it used to be, but I am enjoying the results.
Morning run, then on a plane bound for edo tomorrow - am really curious to see what next week's 'real pcp starts today' mail will have for in store for us...bacon perhaps?
Was granted an involuntary partial egg forbearance when out for a business dinner last evening. Ordered two poached egg whites (obviously not on the dinner menu) and was denied, so I went with the tuna salad, which happened to come with one hard-boiled egg (didn't know this when i ordered, or i would have asked for an extra one. Ate about 30-40gr of tuna and called (figured it was better to eat a little too much protein than too little?) it dinner. Kept the salad for an hour and finished the tomatoes, cucumbers, and peppers as the evening snack and called it a night. Eating out is much more difficult than it used to be, but I am enjoying the results.
Morning run, then on a plane bound for edo tomorrow - am really curious to see what next week's 'real pcp starts today' mail will have for in store for us...bacon perhaps?
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Boredom
Saw Patrick's email this morning and will make a better effort to post more regularly, even if I really don't feel like I have much to say. So here are some random brain dumps, as I sit struggling with the boredom that comes with a solo Sunday in Germany.
- Spending a week away from the family is getting much harder to do. Thank the tech gods for skype, but BC changes so much from week to week, and it is really hard not having our daily man time.
- Unlike at least one member of Orange Crush, I have nothing against eggs and in fact generally like them. Still, I would like some alternatives for the morning protein - smoked salmon and capers, cold cuts, sashimi, pickled herring, anything. The eggs are getting to be overly mundane, especially now that we get them for breakfast and dinner. On the other hand, all of the hotel staff know what i am ordering before i mutter the first word of the order everyday.
- There are better ways to get your lunch protein than zweibelwurst (raw, minced sausage and onions), and this form of protein should probably be avoided even when in a borderline state of panic for feed. Not that it tastes that bad, but raw minced pork (yes, the meat we are supposed to avoid) can't be that good for you.
- Been really ambivalent toward the workouts this week. Went 4 workouts on the rope without tripping, and didn't really feel any sense of accomplishment. Also, the pistol squat everyday is kind of a bore (though the tendon behind my right knee tells me otherwise), and I think I like partnering it with the creep more than the jump. I still suck at situps - made 25, 25, 20, 18 today - and have no problem with plank after bicycle, v-sits, and leg ups, but plank after sit-ups - helloooo pain. Tony Hawk could probably pull a 720 using my inverted spine as a half pipe from seconds 30 to 40 on set 4.
- Picked an apartment this week for January - place is fat, but in Germany, they come spartan, meaning I have to buy light fixtures, closets, a kitchen and all appliances, etc. What really sucks is that everything is 240V, and the TV's are PAL (not NTSC) which means most everything will have utterly no (or very little) residual value to me if I come back to Japan or move to the US after the year. Did some furniture shopping yesterday, which is really pointless without my wife, to mentally prep myself for the check that will have to be written for said items.
- Retailers are closed on Sundays in Germany by law, ostensibly to conform with a clause in the German constitution that it should be a day of rest and spiritual elevation. If religion isn't your thing, drinking establishments and the red light district are open for alternative forms of spiritual elevation, which seems like a contradiction to me. Still, for a man of PCP prescribed clean living, and with most local friends out of town this weekend, these days are really challenging - managing to get through it without committing ritual harikiri is the goal.
- Apologies if this is TMI, but I thought the healthy living was supposed to make my digestive system more regular? Been very irregular this week and it really seems like there is a giant input / output disconnect - lots of blow, but no flow, which is kind of frustrating.
Congrats to all for hitting the 40 day mark, and to those veterans with 5 more days to go - I can't wait to be in your shoes!
- Spending a week away from the family is getting much harder to do. Thank the tech gods for skype, but BC changes so much from week to week, and it is really hard not having our daily man time.
- Unlike at least one member of Orange Crush, I have nothing against eggs and in fact generally like them. Still, I would like some alternatives for the morning protein - smoked salmon and capers, cold cuts, sashimi, pickled herring, anything. The eggs are getting to be overly mundane, especially now that we get them for breakfast and dinner. On the other hand, all of the hotel staff know what i am ordering before i mutter the first word of the order everyday.
- There are better ways to get your lunch protein than zweibelwurst (raw, minced sausage and onions), and this form of protein should probably be avoided even when in a borderline state of panic for feed. Not that it tastes that bad, but raw minced pork (yes, the meat we are supposed to avoid) can't be that good for you.
- Been really ambivalent toward the workouts this week. Went 4 workouts on the rope without tripping, and didn't really feel any sense of accomplishment. Also, the pistol squat everyday is kind of a bore (though the tendon behind my right knee tells me otherwise), and I think I like partnering it with the creep more than the jump. I still suck at situps - made 25, 25, 20, 18 today - and have no problem with plank after bicycle, v-sits, and leg ups, but plank after sit-ups - helloooo pain. Tony Hawk could probably pull a 720 using my inverted spine as a half pipe from seconds 30 to 40 on set 4.
- Picked an apartment this week for January - place is fat, but in Germany, they come spartan, meaning I have to buy light fixtures, closets, a kitchen and all appliances, etc. What really sucks is that everything is 240V, and the TV's are PAL (not NTSC) which means most everything will have utterly no (or very little) residual value to me if I come back to Japan or move to the US after the year. Did some furniture shopping yesterday, which is really pointless without my wife, to mentally prep myself for the check that will have to be written for said items.
- Retailers are closed on Sundays in Germany by law, ostensibly to conform with a clause in the German constitution that it should be a day of rest and spiritual elevation. If religion isn't your thing, drinking establishments and the red light district are open for alternative forms of spiritual elevation, which seems like a contradiction to me. Still, for a man of PCP prescribed clean living, and with most local friends out of town this weekend, these days are really challenging - managing to get through it without committing ritual harikiri is the goal.
- Apologies if this is TMI, but I thought the healthy living was supposed to make my digestive system more regular? Been very irregular this week and it really seems like there is a giant input / output disconnect - lots of blow, but no flow, which is kind of frustrating.
Congrats to all for hitting the 40 day mark, and to those veterans with 5 more days to go - I can't wait to be in your shoes!
Thursday, October 21, 2010
Motivational Issues
Like the rest of team orange crush, with the exception of AC, I have had my share of motivational challenges this week. Started for me on Tue when I failed to get up for the morning workout (sick kid all night) and sat most of the day at work dreading the 15 min for skipping rope or 45min jog that awaited me. Was especially unmotivated given the early flight to Europe on Wed and that I might not get much time to spend with my wife and BC (the little guy).
However, was lucky enough to beat my family home, which gave me time to bust out the run - for some reason runs are still much more therapeutic for decompressing from a crap day - and I have found that even though I am not running nearly as much, that I still feel good and have had no physical issues completing the 8k. The mental ones, though, have cropped up and I thought about mailing the run in at 5, 6 and 7k only to push through knowing i would feel guilty about not doing the full 8 i left the house to do. I consider that progress as a month ago i would have said f#ck it and pulled up short.
Landed in the furt yesterday and again had no time to workout before the flight, and had to go straight to the office upon landing, so i wasn't able to get it done until later in the night, which sucked given the jet lag and all. Was crushed to see that dinner has been reduced again! this time, taking away the banana, so until someone posts a new shake idea, i went with an the apple, milk and two egg whites separately, which was very underwhelming - no that isn't strong enough - it SUCKED. Missed the evening veggies and went to bed, but woke up today early and feel like I am back on schedule I think as the workout is done and I have nothing to worry about making time for.
On the flight over here, I was thinking about the best way to deal with the time change meal wise. My strategy has been to eat the breakfast at home and get a good lunch en route, which leaves me with about 6-10 hours until my next 'meal' in this case the dinner (or breakfast when i land back in tokyo). To deal with all the extra time, I have been eating an apple or other fruit every 2-3 hours and then landing and re-calibrating to the current time zone. It puts me way over the daily fruit allotment, but i am not sure I could last without it. I am not sure if any of you travel, but would be curious to hear alternative strategies to toy with.
Working to keep it in perspective - that everyone is looking great and better each week and we started this thing to see it through to peak condition and not just good condition, because there are times i know i for one feel like saying that good is enough.
However, was lucky enough to beat my family home, which gave me time to bust out the run - for some reason runs are still much more therapeutic for decompressing from a crap day - and I have found that even though I am not running nearly as much, that I still feel good and have had no physical issues completing the 8k. The mental ones, though, have cropped up and I thought about mailing the run in at 5, 6 and 7k only to push through knowing i would feel guilty about not doing the full 8 i left the house to do. I consider that progress as a month ago i would have said f#ck it and pulled up short.
Landed in the furt yesterday and again had no time to workout before the flight, and had to go straight to the office upon landing, so i wasn't able to get it done until later in the night, which sucked given the jet lag and all. Was crushed to see that dinner has been reduced again! this time, taking away the banana, so until someone posts a new shake idea, i went with an the apple, milk and two egg whites separately, which was very underwhelming - no that isn't strong enough - it SUCKED. Missed the evening veggies and went to bed, but woke up today early and feel like I am back on schedule I think as the workout is done and I have nothing to worry about making time for.
On the flight over here, I was thinking about the best way to deal with the time change meal wise. My strategy has been to eat the breakfast at home and get a good lunch en route, which leaves me with about 6-10 hours until my next 'meal' in this case the dinner (or breakfast when i land back in tokyo). To deal with all the extra time, I have been eating an apple or other fruit every 2-3 hours and then landing and re-calibrating to the current time zone. It puts me way over the daily fruit allotment, but i am not sure I could last without it. I am not sure if any of you travel, but would be curious to hear alternative strategies to toy with.
Working to keep it in perspective - that everyone is looking great and better each week and we started this thing to see it through to peak condition and not just good condition, because there are times i know i for one feel like saying that good is enough.
Sunday, October 17, 2010
The Bloshake
After three days of unsuccessfully trying to eat the new 'dinners' like a meal, I gave in and went with the bloshake for the last two nights. Definitely the way to go - the cinnamon is nice, dare i even say tasty? Was even able to get through the evening veggies this weekend and still feel like I could eat some more.
Was also surprised to hit the scale and see i have broken through the 85kg barrier (84.8) and though I may not much better week to week, I am certainly feeling it. Feeling very lucid and not exhausted or apathetic, though there is the occasional spell of boredom. I do wonder how much more PCP speak my wife can tolerate!
Was also surprised to hit the scale and see i have broken through the 85kg barrier (84.8) and though I may not much better week to week, I am certainly feeling it. Feeling very lucid and not exhausted or apathetic, though there is the occasional spell of boredom. I do wonder how much more PCP speak my wife can tolerate!
Thursday, October 14, 2010
30 days down...almost
Been a few hellacious days on the job pushing my mealtimes from regular to sporadic and my sleep from plentiful to a few hours a night. Remarkably, my energy level has been good and my appetite hasn't generated the usual cravings for late night comfort food such as katsu dons, pizza or yakitori. Missed the afternoon fruit yesterday and didn't do the banana, apple and egg white dinner until close to midnight, so I missed the evening veggie snack. The stomach felt really uncomfortable after dinner and falling asleep wasn't easy, also complicated by a sick child and early morning meeting notes running through my brain.
As I was re-fueling at lunch today (third day in a row of assorted sashimi and spinach salad), I realized that my eating habits lately have seemed more clinical and that it isn't just the comfort food that I not craving, but that there has been an absence of cravings in general. I am definitely enjoying eating, but I have had utterly no cravings for things that I know I like - such as gai pad kaprow, yakisoba, or a bacon cheeseburger. I know I need to mix it up, but the sashimi hasn't gotten old, but haven't really savored it either. Speaking of sashimi, does uni qualify as protein and does having some tamago throw me over any daily egg threshold?
Still managing to hit the gym early morning knowing that if I don't get it done, the need to do so will be lingering over me all day. I am with the consensus that doubling up the legs and abs has upped the intensity and difficulty of the workouts. I personally dislike the lunges/jumps sit-ups/plank more than the squat/creep leg raise/v-sit combo and am still hitting failure short of the sit-up rep target.
As I was re-fueling at lunch today (third day in a row of assorted sashimi and spinach salad), I realized that my eating habits lately have seemed more clinical and that it isn't just the comfort food that I not craving, but that there has been an absence of cravings in general. I am definitely enjoying eating, but I have had utterly no cravings for things that I know I like - such as gai pad kaprow, yakisoba, or a bacon cheeseburger. I know I need to mix it up, but the sashimi hasn't gotten old, but haven't really savored it either. Speaking of sashimi, does uni qualify as protein and does having some tamago throw me over any daily egg threshold?
Still managing to hit the gym early morning knowing that if I don't get it done, the need to do so will be lingering over me all day. I am with the consensus that doubling up the legs and abs has upped the intensity and difficulty of the workouts. I personally dislike the lunges/jumps sit-ups/plank more than the squat/creep leg raise/v-sit combo and am still hitting failure short of the sit-up rep target.
Monday, October 11, 2010
Heartland Redux
Need to start off with a non-PCP topic - Received the definitive word this week from the boss man that I will need to relocate to the furt for (at least) a year - an idea that had been kicked around for a while, but one I never thought would materialize with the immediacy that I am now facing. It is probably happening so fast that I have not really had time to reflect on the fact that I will be packing up my family and leaving a city that I have surprisingly spent most of my career in - maybe it's ambivalence, but the move just hasn't really set in. So in some respects, the timing for (over) indulgence uno was perfect (read the email upon landing on Sat morning), even though there were probably better ways to blow the pass.
My wife's mother is always kind enough to come to Tokyo when I am on the road to help with the little guy, and she usually stays for a few days after I get back to help with jet-lag. which allows my wife and I to get a night or two of adult time. We chose last night for a dinner out and for me to cash in the indulgence ticket. Making the decision on what to indulge in was harder than I thought as I was craving japanese comfort food like ramen or yakitori, something sweet like creme brule, reece's or chocolate mousse and of course any one of a number of different types of booze. Not having Jasper's foresight to do a little of everything, I went for a tried and true remedy - vino. Had three glasses of one of my favorite value whites a grand vins bourgogne (Patrick said 2 would be ok, 4 I would get sick, hence the trio) while my wife and I talked about the things we will miss most in tokyo and laid a preliminary game plan for the furt, all in all a great evening. The vino tasted excellent - actually, I think my taste buds have improved over the last few weeks without the consistent bombardment of salt and chili pepper. Could have happily ended the indulgence as planned at that, but fortuitously received a call from a couple mates to meet for a night cap and accepted....one half of a maker's neat (tasted too sugary) and two glasses of pinot (williams selyem) later, my better judgment kicked in and called it a night. Was up early this am to workout with Blo, and though the indulgence was comparatively little (by historical standards), I definitely felt like crap. However, I do agree with the other posts that in the greater scheme of things, the indulgence was nice, but relatively un-eventful - happy we got the opportunity, but could have easily made due without it. I would like to say I won't waste it again, but that would probably be nonsense.
On the new exercises, I may be in the minority here, but I didn't really mind jumpin and creepin around the gym - those who are lucky enough to watch me in action, however, may have a problem with it. The plank and v-sits are definitely not easy, but I seem to get through them much easier than the plain vanilla sit-ups. All in all, I am starting to feel in a much better rhythm at the gym. Also, I don't know if it is increased vanity or elevated sense of awareness, but I catch myself becoming one of those guys that stares at themselves constantly while working out. I am beginning to see results, or at least think I am. Checked in at 86.3kg yesterday, which is down nearly seven from day one, though the visceral area still seems to have a long way to go.
My wife's mother is always kind enough to come to Tokyo when I am on the road to help with the little guy, and she usually stays for a few days after I get back to help with jet-lag. which allows my wife and I to get a night or two of adult time. We chose last night for a dinner out and for me to cash in the indulgence ticket. Making the decision on what to indulge in was harder than I thought as I was craving japanese comfort food like ramen or yakitori, something sweet like creme brule, reece's or chocolate mousse and of course any one of a number of different types of booze. Not having Jasper's foresight to do a little of everything, I went for a tried and true remedy - vino. Had three glasses of one of my favorite value whites a grand vins bourgogne (Patrick said 2 would be ok, 4 I would get sick, hence the trio) while my wife and I talked about the things we will miss most in tokyo and laid a preliminary game plan for the furt, all in all a great evening. The vino tasted excellent - actually, I think my taste buds have improved over the last few weeks without the consistent bombardment of salt and chili pepper. Could have happily ended the indulgence as planned at that, but fortuitously received a call from a couple mates to meet for a night cap and accepted....one half of a maker's neat (tasted too sugary) and two glasses of pinot (williams selyem) later, my better judgment kicked in and called it a night. Was up early this am to workout with Blo, and though the indulgence was comparatively little (by historical standards), I definitely felt like crap. However, I do agree with the other posts that in the greater scheme of things, the indulgence was nice, but relatively un-eventful - happy we got the opportunity, but could have easily made due without it. I would like to say I won't waste it again, but that would probably be nonsense.
On the new exercises, I may be in the minority here, but I didn't really mind jumpin and creepin around the gym - those who are lucky enough to watch me in action, however, may have a problem with it. The plank and v-sits are definitely not easy, but I seem to get through them much easier than the plain vanilla sit-ups. All in all, I am starting to feel in a much better rhythm at the gym. Also, I don't know if it is increased vanity or elevated sense of awareness, but I catch myself becoming one of those guys that stares at themselves constantly while working out. I am beginning to see results, or at least think I am. Checked in at 86.3kg yesterday, which is down nearly seven from day one, though the visceral area still seems to have a long way to go.
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Days 21 - 22 - YoYo
I noticed on the PCP home page Patrick's recent brain dump on eating your water and hadn't really noticed that i had indeed been drinking much less water. Prior to beginning this project, i would suck down anywhere between 5-8 liters of water a day - typically going through 1.5 cases of volvic (1.5 ltr bottles) a week. Seemed like I was always thirsty and that the water was not having any impact in suppressing my appetite. For the past 2 weeks, am at 3-5 liters daily. A liter or so in the am before working out, but then it is generally a bottle in the morning and one in the afternoon at work. Curiously, I am not feeling as thirsty even though I am downing 2-3 more coffees than normal.
Now that we are a quarter of the way through this, week 3 ended well and week 4 started poorly. Woke up ridiculously early tuesday and took to a run in place of the skips. It was my first run in about a month and I had previously been going for 30-50k a week since April as part of my efforts to bring the weight back down under the even c-note, so I was very curious how it would feel. Went for an easy 8k and felt unusually spry - there was some definite muscle soreness from the time off, but my legs felt lighter and the breathing never really got out of control. Not sure how long I could have kept it up, but felt like i could have pulled off another 5 with no problem. Meal wise, I ate out for all three, and managed to stay on program (still have trouble ponying up 35 euros for 2 eggs, whole wheat bread, milk and veggies for breakfast at the hotel, but by avoiding my friend mr. booze, I have been feeling unusually flush these days) and was happily in bed by 9pm.
Day 22 did not start well - where I felt spry and agile yesterday, today I was the drunken sailor on shore leave in the china shop. I was the exact opposite of a 'demon on the jump rope' tripping all over myself every 100 - 150 skips, almost like i forgot how to skip during yesterday's run. I also fumbled around with my bands way too much during the workout, could barely manage the incline pull-ups and failed (again) to knock out all the sit-ups (4x25?) getting only 20, 19, 20 and 15 done with what was definitely more than 20 sec of rest. I guess it was just one of those mornings. On the exercises, I am not sure how everyone else is faring, but I am just not good on pull-ups and sit-ups - these are my turn to the left.
Now that we are a quarter of the way through this, week 3 ended well and week 4 started poorly. Woke up ridiculously early tuesday and took to a run in place of the skips. It was my first run in about a month and I had previously been going for 30-50k a week since April as part of my efforts to bring the weight back down under the even c-note, so I was very curious how it would feel. Went for an easy 8k and felt unusually spry - there was some definite muscle soreness from the time off, but my legs felt lighter and the breathing never really got out of control. Not sure how long I could have kept it up, but felt like i could have pulled off another 5 with no problem. Meal wise, I ate out for all three, and managed to stay on program (still have trouble ponying up 35 euros for 2 eggs, whole wheat bread, milk and veggies for breakfast at the hotel, but by avoiding my friend mr. booze, I have been feeling unusually flush these days) and was happily in bed by 9pm.
Day 22 did not start well - where I felt spry and agile yesterday, today I was the drunken sailor on shore leave in the china shop. I was the exact opposite of a 'demon on the jump rope' tripping all over myself every 100 - 150 skips, almost like i forgot how to skip during yesterday's run. I also fumbled around with my bands way too much during the workout, could barely manage the incline pull-ups and failed (again) to knock out all the sit-ups (4x25?) getting only 20, 19, 20 and 15 done with what was definitely more than 20 sec of rest. I guess it was just one of those mornings. On the exercises, I am not sure how everyone else is faring, but I am just not good on pull-ups and sit-ups - these are my turn to the left.
Monday, October 4, 2010
Day - 20
Just touched down in the village of frankfurt a.m. for a week - not my favorite city, but weather is good, which makes the runs around the main river very enjoyable. Had a good weekend and even managed to go to a birthday blowout on friday night and not sniff a drink of anything but perrier - though i have taken to smoking more cigars. Food prep getting better as well and am experimenting with different spices, but think i am beginning to overdo it. Was very grateful to fish for tossing out the raisin bread suggestion which has made breakfast carbs much easier to consume. Haven't really noticed many changes physically this week - feel the same strength wise, body functions are still eratic from all of the travel, and i am perpetually fighting jet lag so the sleep has been all over the place.
Friday, October 1, 2010
Day 17
Survived Shanghai, but feel some level of guilt for the PCP infidelity, even as minor (it was just a kiss of baijiu) as it was. earlier in the week Bill posted some body comp stats from his workout with Patrick that made me curious about my own. for the last year, i had been avoiding the scale - probably because i set out to lose 5 kg when i hit 94, and ended up gaining 5kg by Feb this year, which put me at my heaviest since my freshman year of college when i played football and was actually trying to gain weight. So at tonight's workout i finally stepped up to face the music -
Weight - 89.3 kg
Body fat - 18.5%
Visceral Fat - 6 (the guy at the gym told me this isn't a %, but a number on a scale of 1-10 and i assume higher is worse)
Muscle wght - 69.6 kg
bone density - 3.6
B/E calories - 2138
Like bill's comment, when i started this project, 89kg would have been a very satisfying outcome. however, it is early in the project, there is a truckload of work to be put in and i now feel there is much more to measuring this project's success than the just the ending weight. still, i guess it is good to have something to measure against and am curious to see these numbers again a month or two from now.
Weight - 89.3 kg
Body fat - 18.5%
Visceral Fat - 6 (the guy at the gym told me this isn't a %, but a number on a scale of 1-10 and i assume higher is worse)
Muscle wght - 69.6 kg
bone density - 3.6
B/E calories - 2138
Like bill's comment, when i started this project, 89kg would have been a very satisfying outcome. however, it is early in the project, there is a truckload of work to be put in and i now feel there is much more to measuring this project's success than the just the ending weight. still, i guess it is good to have something to measure against and am curious to see these numbers again a month or two from now.
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