Final Push - Diet Mountain Dew

OK, so it’s now week 2 of getting serious and still no real progress. Probably did not help that I ate everything in site over the weekend and chugged a gallon of Diet Mountain Dew.

Trying to begin working out during lunch this week. I am not sure that I can keep it up without working out an arrangement with my Boss. The last 2 days it has taken me 1:15 to get a quick workout in and I am left feeling rushed and did not really get as much done as I would like. Need closer to 1:45 to finish everything. Will be discussing with him this week and hopefully I can come in early or leave later and take a longer lunch.

Weight was at 177 on Monday, hopefully I can drop off some this week as I am really going to try and up my workouts and keep away from nuts as much as possible. Although it’s difficult as those little buggers are so freaking good.

I do have some good news, since beginning strength training about a month ago I noticed the pull on the swim is much better. This is from doing pushups, dips and sometimes fooling around with weights. Roughly 20 minutes at the end of each run is all I have been doing but it is paying off big time. Typically towards the end of a hard 800 my hand will begin to wave and wobble a little through the water but it was pulling straight and strong with every stroke. Now I just need to work on my form a bit and perhaps I might actually get back down to my 1:50 X 100 Meter time instead of the 2:05 mark that I have been hovering at for the last couple of months.

OK, need to go fill up on some more water and flush out that mountain dew poison that I so love.

On On

Weds June 23rd Check-In

Worked out again with the kids and was glad that Amy came along as well. We did it indoors this time with the same amount of running time just around the gym instead. Also had to make a few modifications to the plan because of lack of resources. Ended up adding in many, many more crunches which I have a feeling is going to hurt at some point today. Also played about 45 minutes of basketball first and followed it up with a slow 30 minute recovery swim for 1400 Meters.

I also stubbed my index finger which is swollen to about 2 times it’s normal size. It is throbbing to my heart beat which is blows but on the plus side I had to take my ring off prior to swimming before so it would not slide off. No chance my ring is coming off now.

Weight: 175

Breakfast: Skipped
Lunch: Chicken Roulade w/Bacon & Swiss, Steamed Broccoli & Cauliflower
Snack: Carbmaster Strawberry Yogurt
Dinner: Turkey, Pepperoni w/American in a Crepe
Snack: 2 oz peanuts

Tuesday 6-17 Check - In

Weight: 176

Breakfast: No
Lunch: Crepe filled with 2 eggs, 2 bacon and 1 slice of cheese
Snack: Atkins Bar
Dinner: Crepe filled with grilled chicken, 1 bacon, 1 oz swiss
Snack: 1 oz peanuts
No greens today, I just completely skipped them. Need to make up for that today.

Was not feeling good on Monday so I called work and slept in. Ended up sleeping until around 11:30 which is what I needed I guess as I have not been sleeping well lately. Headache eventually cleared up as well which allowed me to get my workout in.

Very proud of both of my kids and my nephew. I pushed them pretty hard last night and they all responded. The plan I put in place I was hoping would cover roughly an hour and we finished up in 1:01 with a total distance covered according to my GPS of 3.29 miles. It was pretty hot out though so we did make sure to take a short 2-3 minute water break between each interval. We plan to do 4 workouts per week alternating between the two. I have posted the plan below and please feel free to critique it. We used a soccer field at a school near my house so the laps are around the field.

Day One Arms-Shoulders-Core

1. Warm-up:
a. 10 Minute Slow Jog
b. Stretch
c. Break
2. First Interval
a. Bands
i. Forward Band
ii. Pushups Military
iii. Back Band
iv. Pushups Std
v. Side Band
vi. Side Plank
vii. Side Band
viii. Side Plank
ix. Lap
3. Second Interval
a. Legs and Shoulders
i. High Knees
ii. Farmers Carry
iii. Butt Kicks
iv. Overhead Carry
v. Sprint Forward/Back
vi. Farmers Carry
vii. Karaoke
viii. Overhead Carry
ix. Lap
x. Dips
xi. Lap
4. Third Interval
a. Alternate Sprint/Core
i. Sprint Up/Back
ii. Crunch’s until the other returns
iii. Sprint Up/Back
iv. Leg Lifts until the other returns
v. Repeat each 1X
vi. Easy Recovery Jog
5. Stretch/Cool-down


Day 2 Legs-Core

1. Warm-up:
a. 10 Minute Slow Jog
b. Stretch
c. Break
2. First Interval
a. Bands
i. Forward Band
ii. Pushups Military
iii. Back Band
iv. Pushups Std
v. Side Band
vi. Side Plank
vii. Side Band
viii. Side Plank
ix. Lap
3. Second Interval
a. Legs and Core
i. Bear Crawl
ii. Step Ups on Bench
iii. Crab Crawl
iv. Calf Raises
v. Wheel Barrel (1 Person up and back)
vi. Step Ups
vii. Wheel Barrel (1 Person up and back)
viii. Frog Jumps
ix. Lap
x. Forward Leg Dips
xi. Lap
xii. Reverse Leg Dips
xiii. Lap
4. Third Interval
a. Alternate Sprint/Core
i. Sprint Up/Back
ii. Crunch’s until the other returns
iii. Sprint Up/Back
iv. Leg Lifts until the other returns
v. Repeat each 1X
vi. Easy Recovery Jog 5 Minutes
5. Stretch/Cool-down

Final Push - Monday 6-21 Check-In

Hope all of you other Fathers had a great weekend and spent some time with your family. With 2 kids I am still learning as I go and it does not seem to get easier as they get older. It’s a good thing I had such a good Dad to teach me the basics. Although I don’t always follow right in his footsteps I strive to and perhaps one day I will figure it all out.

Went to the lake on Friday night and had a pretty good time. Ate too many peanuts as usual and sipped a couple of beers around the camp fire Saturday. All-in-all a great trip and had lots of fun. Thanks Bro and Sis for the invite and we will surely come back anytime you will have us. I was pretty excited to try wakeboarding for the first time. Turns out all I did was boat dragging. Could not figure out the timing on turning the nose of the board up to get me out of the water. Still fun though and I there was no doubt that I was properly hydrated after several attempts.

I was also a little disappointed that I did not bring my goggles to the lake for some open water swimming practice. Woke up this morning in serious pain in my thigh and head from the board hitting me as I fell. Opted to stay home for the first part of the day from work to heal up a bit. However, my head still feels like it’s in a vice and I am more or less planning to just try and get through the day.

My Nephew comes in this week and I am planning to work both him and my Son out. They are both planning to try out for sports in their Freshman year of High School and practice starts soon. Figured this might help them get a leg up. Plus I will do the workout right along with them so I kill two birds with one stone.

Weight: 176

Diet -- Did not log it all but it came down to lots of chicken some greens and snacking on some peanuts.

That’s all for now.

On On

Final Push - Thursday June 17th Check In

Phew, day 4 down and I think I have fully made the switch back to Ketosis. Energy levels were higher for most of the day and no headache. Had planned to attend a triathlon class last night but decided I would rather hang with the family. Had a good time at dinner with them and they were nice enough to go to the bike shop to swap out a seat. I am still trying to find one that is somewhat comfortable and keeps the blood flowing to all of my extremities.

Spoke to a guy at the Trail Store that has done several triathlons including Iron Man and he recommended the Selle saddle. The model escapes me right now but I mounted it last night and went for a short ride to test it out. Stopped a few times and ran speeds all over the map trying to get a feel for it. First impressions are pretty good. Will be curious to see how it does on rides exceeding 30-40 miles. Thanks to the Trail Store in Lyndon though for helping me out and love the loaner saddle program they have.

Weight: 175

Breakfast: Skipped

Snack: Strawberry Carbmaster Yogurt

Lunch: Mixed Green Salad w/Ranch, 6 oz grilled chicken

Dinner: Mixed Green Taco Salad, way to much cheese, sour cream, guacamole and what looked like around 6 oz of ground beef. The downside to eating out is that in the end you really just do not know. I always skip the shell and beans in taco salads and since this is a small family restaurant I would not expect they would have to many additives though. I know one thing, I was full when I got done.

Snack: My nemisis – shelled peanuts. Started in on these dumb things and ended up eating probably 3 oz of peanuts eating blindly while watching game. BTW…Celtics had that game and choked it away in the 4th. It was pretty clear they missed Perkins.

Activities: 45 Minute Bike Ride with a couple of stops to adjust seat. Road my 5.5 mile running loop twice so 11 miles.

Final Push - Weds June 16th Check In

Seems I am getting back into Ketosis. Energy was improving some today but really fell flat on my run. At roughly the 3.5 mile mark I just had no gas in the tank to keep going. Walked for about 1-2 minutes then picked it up again. It was pretty warm out and the sun was beating me up pretty good. Could have been a hydration issue rather than nutrition but I just felt weak overall which is not typical. Finished up the last 1.5 miles and then walked it out to cool down. Added my typical strength stuff to the end to cap it off and then on to the shower.

On a side not…strong ammonia smell in my sweat which means I am burning protein for fuel again. A good sign that the liver is doing it’s job and burning some protein to create glucose.

Planning a short run tonight followed up with a Triathlon group training class held at Core Studio’s. Hopefully energy returns prior because this class has left me feeling pretty miserable in the past.


Weight: 177

Breakfast: Did not partake again…I am seeing a trend

Lunch: Pulled Pork – again, Mixed Green Salad w/ 1 slice bacon chopped, sliced almonds, shredded swiss

Snack: Strawberry Carbmaster Yogurt

Dinner: Bacon/Swiss stuffed chicken breast (4 oz), Green Beans

Snack: 1 oz peanuts

Exercise
Run: 5.5 Miles
Strength: Dips, Pushups, Core

One Final Push! Tuesday Check-In.

Tuesday June 15th

Weight: 177

Breakfast: No -- Not sure why I have been skipping. I typically never miss breakfast.

Lunch: 4 oz Chicken Salad, 1 cup steamed Broccoli, 1 slice american cheese

Snack: 1 oz peanuts

Dinner: 6oz pulled pork, 2 cups of Mixed Salad Greens w/Ranch, Sesame Seeds, 1 oz shredded Swiss, 1 slice bacon crumbled.

Exercise: 1.5 hour spin class

A long day at work and still not used to being back at it.

One Final Push!

I think I have discussed this before and mostly in an effort to motivate myself. So now is the time, I am highly motivated and need to get over this hump. My original goal of 175 has been met and I seem to be hovering right around that weight. After my return from a week in Disney where I ate non stop my weight is at 178. Not a big deal as I expected some gain, particularly after consuming what might have been the largest cinnamon roll in history.

Enough chatter though, I am planning to make a push to 160 and need to keep my blog up so that I can stay motivated. Will try to update each day with what I ate and what type of exercise I was able to put in.

Monday June 14th 2010

Weight: 178

Breakfast: NA

Lunch: Small Mixed Green Salad w/Ranch, 3-4 oz Chicken Salad

Snack: Carbmaster Strawberry Yogurt

Dinner: 2 Eggs, 4 oz pulled pork

Snack: 2 oz peanuts

Workout:
Run: 4.43 Miles
Strength: 30 Min (Core, Dips, Pushups, Freeweights)

Planned to run outside but the temp was pretty high so I headed off to the gym. Turns out it may have been hotter in the gym and with no breeze it was pretty miserable. Next time I just need to HTFU and stay outdoors. I hate treadmills!