Speak it, believe it, achieve it!

One of the things I typically get a kick out of is cracking eggs on the inside of my Oster blender pitcher and then dumping the yolk and eggwhite into the milk. It’s just fun! I was thinking this very thought and then duh half an egg shell slipped out of my hand and dropped into the pitcher. For a split second I looked at the surface of the milk and thought, "Will it float?"

It did not.

So I added some granola to my drink to avoid thinking of the drink being crunchy related to that errant egg shell.

I’m not ready to just dump eggs and shells into future blender drinks, but it certainly didn’t bother me this time.

Three thousand calories per day minimum, plus 200 or more grams of protein in that same time period.

Date: Calories, Protein, Sleep                            
11/07: 3093 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 156 lbs.) Week 0
11/08: 3285
11/09: 3507
11/10: 3195
11/11: 3385
11/12: 3303, 288g (Monday a.m. bodyweight: 160 lbs.) Week 1
11/13: 3512, 289g
11/14: 3347, 245g
11/15: 3284, 286g          
11/16: 3815, 237g, bed @: 12:45 a.m., rise @: 9:35 a.m. (8:50 elapsed)
11/17: 3943, 318g, nap: 30 min., bed @: 4 a.m., rise @: noon (8:00 elapsed)
11/18: 3230, 281g, bed @: midnight, rise @: 6 a.m., nap: 10 min. (6:10 elapsed)
11/19: 3850, 265g (Mon. bodywt: 164.5 lbs.) Week 2, bed: midnight, rise 6:06; nap 30 (6:36 elapsed)
11/20: 3734, 326g, bed: 11:45 p.m., rise: 6:30 (6:45 elapsed)
11/21: 4540, 306g, 30:00 nap, bed: 10 p.m., rise: 6:30 a.m. (9:00 elapsed)
11/22: 3273, 294g, bed: midnight, rise: 9 a.m. (9:00 elapsed)
11/23: 3445, 245g, bed: midnight, rise: 8 a.m. (8:00 elapsed)
11/24: 3325, 242g, bed: midnight, rise: 8 a.m. (8:00 elapsed)
11/25: 3677, 226g, bed: 4 a.m., rise: 7 a.m. (3:00 elapsed)
11/26: 3943, 270g (Mon. bodywt: 168.5 lbs.) Week 3

There was a vendor handing out Dymatize product at the recent Maryland State NPC contest. A 29.4 gram packet offers a mere 112 calories, but offers a mighty 23 grams of protein. The rep also mentioned that the cholesterol is less than some whey products (5 mg for Dymatize versus 30 mg in ON’s 100% Whey - the Dymatize is the aforementioned 29.4 grams versus ON’s 30.4 grams, but that’s nothing compared to the big difference in cholesterol).

Cholesterol’s not a factor for me especially as mine was 143 with HDL reading 58 and LDL at 75. That reading was reported in March 2006, of course, but I can’t see how it’s increased.

Note on cholesterol ratio:

Some physicians and cholesterol technicians use the ratio of total cholesterol to HDL cholesterol in place of the total blood cholesterol. The ratio is obtained by dividing the HDL cholesterol level into the total cholesterol. For example, if a person has a total cholesterol of 200 mg/dL and an HDL cholesterol level of 50 mg/dL, the ratio would be 4:1. The goal is to keep the ratio below 5:1; the optimum ratio is 3.5:1.

So if I plug in my old numbers that puts me at 2.47:1? I’m crap at math. LITTLE HELP! ;)

Regardless, Dymatize Elite Whey Protein is great stuff (and available courtesy of Bodybuilding.com, too)!!! See their Dymatize Elite Whey page.

It’s advertised as having “Instant Mixability” and it certainly does - shaker bottle didn’t have any clumps left behind. And it tastes great!

What protein are you currently using?

My eating plan currently involves a cup of oatmeal and a cup of o.j. in the a.m., peanut butter crackers and a strawberry Nutri-Grain cereal bar in the afternoon, a bottle of grapefruit juice and a banana post-workout/cardio, and a Healthy Choice dinner in the p.m. Occasionally I’ll go to the local diner and order some pickles and tomato slices and a black coffee. Definitely gives the waitresses a laugh. I dropped five pounds (unless the digital scales is broken) during the past week and so have upped the calories a bit. Had a nonfat strawberry yogurt… waitasec, sh!t

Sixteen grams of sugar?

Okay, so I know nothing about nutrition. I better review CT’s eating recommendations again. Duh. No booze and no Krispy Kremes, though, so I’m feeling good about that. Didn’t think I’d be able to say no to my friends Dunkin’ or Krispy. And I’m losing waist inches.

Date | Calorie count | Wednesday weigh-in | Week

8/22: 1329 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 172 lbs.)
8/23: 1078
8/24: 1027
8/25: 1029
8/26: 1492
8/27: 1275
8/28: 1317
8/29: 1369 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 170 lbs.) Week 1
8/30: 1224
8/31: 1473
9/01: 1428
9/02: 1263
9/03: 1349
9/04: 1400
9/05: 1139 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 168 lbs.) Week 2
9/06: 1233
9/07: 1452
9/08: 1047
9/09: 1136
9/10: 1298
9/11: 1332
9/12: 1480 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 163 lbs.) Week 3
9/13: 1499
9/14: 1360
9/15: 1184
9/16: 1453
9/17:
9/18:
9/19: x (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: x lbs.) Week 4

Oh, yeeeeaaaaaah!

Broccoli or Krispy Kremes? Gee, let me think about that. A black coffee or a frigging nice steamy venti vanilla latte? Thirty minutes on the Life Cycle or a double-cheese with pepperoni and mushroom pizza and BEER with friends? Decisions, decisions.

Seriously, I’m enjoying (well, almost) this whole food plan or managing my calories thang. Basically, I eat the same thing each day which makes counting the calories pretty simple. Breakfast is one cup of oatmeal and a cup of orange juice, lunch is a pack of peanutbutter crackers and a Nutri-grain bar, snack is a banana and a bottle of grapefruit juice, and dinner is typically a Healthy Choice frozen dinner. Tonight I opted for the last of my frozen broccoli with a goodly amount of McCormick’s parmesan herb thrown on top. I think I’m getting some chili powder next time I’m at the grocery. That’d pop my broccoli.

I’ve been consistent with my eating in the past few weeks. Might just creep back down to my high school weight of 155 lbs. I was 150 lbs. at 15 years of age. Wouldn’t that be an idiotic kick? Yes, to thirty years later have made absolutely NO cumulative bodybuilding progress? D’OH!

The first ten to 15 pounds that I gained after beginning to lift that plastic and concrete Sears adjustable weight set was all lean tissue. Since 165 lbs. and seventeen years of age to now, however, I believe there’s been a sea change or body composition shift to weaker and pudgier/blurrier. The defined pec line between my chest and my ribcage has been replaced by a blurrier less line-like demarcation. Not Good. And my waist has grown from 30" as a 15-year-old (yeah, I took measurements when I first started lifting with Arnold-like aspirations) even with my naturally wide hip structure, to a full-on Buddha-like 37" (allowing that gut to relaaaax).

My waist is down two inches and my weight has been two pounds lower each week. Hopefully all fat as I’ve been lifting three times a week with five sessions of cardio as well.

I feel a sense of accomplishment at maintaining the consistency of food intake and effort output (cardio and lifting). My Arnold dreams are just that. Hell, even Arnold has apparently bid farewell to that dream if you believe the images that can be found on the Internet of the 60-year-old Oak. Not sure I believe (or want to believe) his physique has changed that drastically. Anyway, I’ve put aside the 20-inch arms quest and am now focused on the Holy Grail of the ripped torso. :)

I was between 176 and 179 (possible dyslexia there?) when I looked in the mirror and said, "Woah. Blurry man begone!" Since I’ve actually been paying attention to the poundage, it’s gone like this:

8/22: 1329 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 172 lbs.)
8/23: 1078
8/24: 1027
8/25: 1029
8/26: 1492
8/27: 1275
8/28: 1317
8/29: 1369 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 170 lbs.)
8/30: 1224
8/31: 1473
9/01: 1428
9/02: 1263
9/03: 1349
9/04: 1400
9/05: 1139 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 168 lbs.)
9/06: 1233
9/07: 1452
9/08: 1047
9/09: 1136
9/10: 1298
9/11: 1332
9/12: 1480 (Wednesday a.m. bodyweight: 163 lbs.)

And the march towards… uh, where? The march towards lower bodyfat continues! I weighed 170 lbs. this evening. I started counting calories and eating clean (okay, eating NOTHING) by way of achieving the old slimmer waistline.

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