Today's Weigh In

Today I got a new workout and another weigh in. My numbers were good, just not as dramatic as I was expecting. My pants are fitting better so I thought that it would be a lot different. Whatever the case, here they are in inches:

Neck: Stayed at 17
Chest: Dropped a full inch to 46
Bicep: Gained 1/2 an inch to 15
Forearm: Dropped to 8 from 10. That seems like a lot.
Stomach: Dropped a full inch, to 45 1/2
Hips: Dropped 1/2 inch
Thighs: stayed at 18 (I had dropped 1 1/2 last time)
Calves: Dropped 2 inches to 14

Weight: Down 3 lbs to 244.

Not so bad over all. I have been getting about two days of cardio and two of weight lifting. Stacy said if I was to up the cardio by a day that really help the weight loss. It's probably time to start adding a day of outside running anyway.

Eggs and Oatmeal

Again. *sigh*

The Opposite

Today was the complete opposite of the post below. I woke up early and was at the gym at about 7 am. I felt good, rested, had food for energy, and hopped on the treadmill, and felt like I ran into a brick wall. It was a struggle to get through 40 minutes.

Tomorrow I get a new workout from Stacy. It's been a month and they change the exercises in the workout every month. I get measured again as well. I'm kind of excited to see what changes have happened.

Great Workout That Almost Didn't Happen

My schedule at work this week has been pretty messed up so I have been getting up early, then getting home late, not sleeping well, tired, blah blah blah, insert whining noise. I was able to hit the treadmill for about 40 minutes yesterday and it felt good, but when I got up today, I had to battle myself to make it to the gym for weights. I'm really glad I went though because it was a great workout and I ended up spending a couple of hours there. Warmed up on the treadmill, lifted weights, then ran for another 20 minutes on the treadmill at the end. It really felt good. I'm glad I went also because I get a bi-weekly weight check/measurement on Monday.

My plan from a couple of posts ago was to lift weights 3 days a week and run/cardio at least two. Given all of the things the family has going on (work, kids, church, worship team, board meetings, etc.), it seems that two days of weights and two of cardio is more likely to happen. If a third day of something happens it shall be considered a bonus.

Now for rice cakes and peanut butter. I had three Chipotle crispy tacos for lunch. Good stuff. It was the first time EVER that I have eaten there and not ordered a huge burrito.

Weights got upped again

Stacy upped my weights again yesterday. It was a good workout, then I ran on the treadmill for 25 minutes when done with weights. It surprised me how good that actually felt. Probably helped them feel better today too. She told me to be afraid because the workout gets changed next Monday.

My uniform was noticeably looser today.

It's a Monday

I didn't do much over the weekend. Nothing in fact beyond eating good (healthy) food. Sunday I didn't pay as much attention to what I was eating, but still had no major goof ups.

Today would have been a weights day, but Stacy had a sick kid so we rescheduled for tomorrow. I did 40 minutes of interval like training on the treadmill, then abs and Roman Chair exercises for my back.

Weights tomorrow.

Dinner

I wanted a hamburger tonight, so I cooked one at work. I had a regular bun too. Not whole wheat. It was AWESOME!!!!!!!!! Then a really large plate of salad, a brownie bite, and a small muffin. I know I cheated with the burger's bun/brownie/muffin, but it feels like I just ate a feast. Especially when you think that I didn't have a monstrous helping of fries with it.

Snack a couple of hours before dinner was string cheese, Greek yogurt, and a protein shake. Two hours later at dinner I was hungry. My duty belt is noticeably loose today too.

Another Cardio Day

Another 40 minutes on the treadmill. Gonna need to run outside pretty soon.

Today I ate my eggs inside two ground corn/whole wheat tortillas. Needed sausage. 2 1/2 hours later I had a protein shake and now I'm starving again.

Paying for Monday

Today was a weights day before I headed to work. On Monday Stacy had me up most of the weights I was lifting, and I felt it today. I had a hard time with what felt good on Monday. Also, I ran out of time again and couldn't get all of the exercises in. Still managed to hit all of the major areas though. I was burping up oatmeal and eggs through the whole workout too.

It is MUCH easier to eat according to her plan when I'm at work. I'm on the dot time wise and have a relatively easy time sticking to the meals I planned/brought with me. It's harder at home, which is the opposite of what I thought it would be. Staff dinning at work is like walking into a convenience store, whereas home has mostly pretty good stuff in the pantry. I think home is hard because there is so much going on it is easy to forget when to eat.

And, I'm giving up alcohol for 60 days. Lets see what that does to my weight and mental status. ;)

Seriously Sore

Feels good though. And it's not the kind of sore I was when we started. It felt good to push myself yesterday.

Tomorrow is a weights day and I'll get the workout in before I head to the office. It looks like my work outs are shaping up to be weights 3 days a week, and 2-3 days of cardio a week. The Masochist said those are good numbers to achieve. 80% of this stuff she said though is nutrition. It's crazy to say after this short an amount of time, but I think that my body actually feels different.

40 Minutes On The Treadmill Today

I don't mind the treadmill. Here pretty soon, I will change up the treadmill with running on some bike trails, or at Cronan Ranch. My legs hurt.

First Weigh-In Results

Yesterday was my first "lets see how you are doing" weigh in. I was pretty skeptical because it has only been two weeks, and she has me eating like a horse. A healthy horse, but a horse none the less. Drum roll........... (in inches):

Neck 17.5 down to 17
Chest 49 down to 47
Bicep 14 up to 14.5
Forearm 10.5 down to 10
Stomach 47.5 down to 46.5
Thigh 19.5 down to 18
Calf 15.5 up to 16

Weight 248 down to 247.

I was pretty suprised. Stacy said that inches usually change first instead of weight because we are burning "inner fat" and building muscle at the same time. She said that the gut should start to dissappear much quicker when my inner fat is gone. Yee Haw.

Breakfast today

3 whole eggs, 3 egg whites, 1 cup of oatmeal. With a slice of low-fat American cheese on the eggs. Ugh. I will never want to eat again when I'm finished. But will be hungry in two hours. Weird.

UPDATE: I couldn't finish the oatmeal.

Today's Adventure

So today was a workout day. The gym at work is where I worked out as I didn't really have time to make it to Powerhouse Gym. I wasn't able to do all of the exercises The Masochist wants me to because of time and equipment contraints either. But still managed to work up a sweat and hit the major groups.

I fudged a little on my eating at lunch though. I had some leftover raviolis, a HEAPING plate of salad and two cookies. Tasted really good though. It was still a much smaller portion than I would have had were I not afraid of retaliation by The Masochist.

So Why The Masochist Thing.........

Stacy is my personal trainer. She is also a female body builder who is training to compete professionally this year. I'm taller than she is, but I believe she could break me in two. With her pinky fingers. I was so sore for the first week and a half that I almost couldn't walk down stairs. That is how she got the name.

My training is something like this: lift weights three days a week and do cardio for three days a week. The eating is completely different than I have ever done. 5-6 meals a day, smaller ones, but more filling because of WHAT I'm eating. I know that this has been the go-to plan for people for a while (I even read about it), but I had no idea how much different it was actually going to be compared to my regular eating habits. Breakfast is lots of eggs with a cup of whole grain oatmeal. A snack mid-morning (or before the workout), lunch for right now is a sandwich with 6 ounces of lean meat on whole wheat bread, another snack mid-afternoon, then a "normal" dinner. As long as normal is healthy protein/carb/veggie, and then another snack before bed. That is a LOT more food than I would normally have ever eaten, and it suprises me that I'm starting to get hungry in between the snacks and meals. Stacy said that might happen as the workouts progress.

It all begins......

In my never ending quest to be healthier (not HEALTHY, just healthier), I came to the determination that it was time to do something different.  I have long been associated with bouts of healthy eating, weight lifting, running, then nothing, then running, then hurting myself, then nothing, then running, and so on.  In one of my most recent "hurt myself" episodes, I was just about to run a half-marathon when my back tweaked on me and my doctor said that I needed to give it a rest to let it heal.  When I told him that it would probably give me a chance to let my knees quit hurting too, he cocked his head and said without missing a beat, "Your knees hurt because you are fat.  Not because you are running."  That was the moment that really got me thinking.

I have never minded exercise.  Eating either.  But I can really say that I enjoy different kinds of exercise.  I have never really known what it is to combine exercise and eating for a healthier (remember, not HEALTHY) end result that was sustainable in real life.  It was always one or the other.  Like most people, I do something for a while pretty intensely and then get bored and quit.  So my exercise adventures go great for a while, then nothing.  I have read plenty, but book knowledge ended up only being that.  I came to the conclusion that I needed a coach to help me put it all together.

Last week on Monday, I went to Powerhouse Gym in Placerville and met with Evelio Fleitas, the owner of Titan Personal Training.  Really nice guy.  We talked for a while about goals (I told him that really I just wanted to live longer.  Seriously.), and I ended up signing up.  He didn't waste any time getting me in the gym either.  The moment I signed the paper he took me out to meet the personal trainer I would be working with, Stacy Alway.  Really nice lady.  For a masochist.

One thing I know for sure is that I do best in being healthier when I have accountability.  The more I tell people about my goals and how I'm going to get there, the more I don't want to be seen as a slacker for not achieving them.  That is what got me to the verge of a half marathon.  It didn't keep my back from going out, but it sure helped get me close.  Besides, I think we can infer from the doctor's comment that my back would be better if I wasn't fat.  So, the purpose of this blog is accountability.  I'm going to post thoughts on workouts, food, things I learn, goals, weigh-ins, etc.  Even pictures along the way to show progress.  I don't really desire to be a muscle bound individual.  I really just want to be healthier so that I can live longer.