Don’t Have a Keg…

So I started the day with some egg whites, a slice of Canadian Bacon, and a whole wheat English Muffin. Not the best but not too bad…

For my mid-morning snack I went to the vending machine and got a Honey Bun, no icing so I saved some calories there…afterwards realized this wasn’t the best choice for my training. Felt bad. Blamed a co-worker for letting me go to the vending machine. Felt better.

Lunch was a turkey sandwich on whole wheat, carrot sticks….

For my mid-afternoon snack I went to the vending machine and got a pack of mini-doughnuts. Glazed of course…gotta have the sugar rush to go with the fats (hey, if fats aren’t important they wouldn’t be called "essential"). Realized that this wasn’t the best choice for my training. Felt bad. Found another co-worker. Blamed him for letting me go to the vending machine. Felt better.

Dinner - vegetable beef soup, a peanut butter sandwich, and a handful of Reese’s White Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups (mini size). Realized that this wasn’t the best choice for my training. Felt bad. No co-workers around. I’ll blame them in the morning and feel better….

Okay, I’m just kidding about blaming the co-workers. I’m not really the type who blames others for my shortcomings - if I falter in my eating plan, it’s my fault and not anyone elses. The first step in overcoming an addiction is to recognize it. I don’t really believe that poor eating choices are an addiction - but it is certainly a habit. I’ll do better tomorrow and feel better for making the right choices.

By the way, I made up the candy after dinner - but not the honey bun unfortunately.

Take care everyone!

But for how much longer? It’s been three days of my McDonald’s fast and it looks like I’m going the distance this time…I haven’t even cheated by visiting the "King" or that little red-haired girl or made a run for the border or thought about Arby’s or….well, you get the idea!

Okay - I finally have come to the realization (again) that if I keep going through the drive-through I will never achieve my goals. Nothing against the folks at the golden arches, but Big Macs build bellies and not biceps! Well, maybe big, soft, flabby biceps and triceps that flap in the breeze - but not the kind of biceps I want.

So, this week’s goal is to not go to McDonalds, Burger King, Taco Bell, or any of the like at all this week. I can do Subway as long as I stick to a 6" sub on the "6 grams" of fat or less menu (no cheese or mayo, plenty of veggies, of course).

Wish me luck - and thanks to everyone who has sent me some nutrition tips these past couple of weeks. Keep them coming!

Okay - those who actually visit my humble little Bodyspace will notice the sudde spike in my bodyfat %. This morning I decided to start tracking my bodyfat % as indicated by my Tanita scale. I’ve never actually trusted the reading from this thing because it always reads several percentage points higher than when I have my bodyfat % tested using calipers which I have done by someone else using a minimum of 5 folds - it’s a service of the student recreation center that I use - and good practice for the Kineseology students at the university (though it might scare some of them when they see what can happen to the human body in the course of time…but it’s better that they get some warning while they are young! Prevention is the best way to avoid problems later. But, I digress).

So, the good news is that even after I started getting back to eating and drinking normally this week, I’m still down a couple of pounds from earlier this month. Since I am still feeling strong, and my pants are actually starting to slip off my hip without a belt, I’m also presuming the weight loss is fat and not muscle.

Happy weekend everyone! 

Well, unfortunately, my Crohn’s has been acting up for the past couple of days so I’ve barely eaten anything and haven’t been able to hydrate properly either. So, as I’m feeling better tonight I decided "what the heck" I might as well take advantage of my starved and dehydrated state and see what I weigh. Sure enough, I’m down almost three pounds from Monday. I know most of that will come back on as I start to eat and drink normally over the next couple of days, but at least my weight chart looks good!

Okay - despite my last post, I changed my mind and updated my measurements today (I have the day off and other than my workout nothing better to do - lol). A few surprises, and one was not welcome!

I was shocked when I put the tape around my waist and found it to be several inches larger than the last time I checked. Now, some may be because I might be a little "bloated" today - a side effect of my digestive disorder - but most has to be from fat. I then realized that this might be because I was actually measuring my belly instead of my waist, so I lowered the tape and still the increase was there!

So, despite my somewhat lower weight and body fat my waist is still expanding. I know that as we age there is always some "settling" but I’m thinking that maybe it’s time for a reality check. I’ve been basing some of my beliefs about my waist size because my pants still seem to fit - but maybe they don’t! Could it be I’ve become one of those guys who we see all the time with the giant belly hanging over their belt? The horror!

At the very least I need to stop skipping ab day, be honest with myself about how I look, don’t get tempted to avoid cardio and most importantly stop stopping at McDonalds, etc. for dinner (or worse a snack before). I’ve got to keep reminding myself that food is fuel and not comfort!

On the plus side though, my chest is still larger than my gut or hips. I just hope my excess bodyfat doesn’t start coming off from my chest and shoulders first. I wonder how this will effect my quest for 18" arms this year? Oh well, good health is more important than good looks -right? right?

Well, I noticed it’s been a couple weeks since my last "official" weigh-in so I stepped on the scales this morning and found that I was down a pound since last time. Not very impressive on the surface, but considering that I pigged out a little this past weekend - an out of town trip and a party with friends - I’m not too upset, at least I didn’t go back up in weight!

I’ve noticed that my weight does vary from day to day (I weigh myself before each workout and note in in my training log) which I realize is from water weight and other factors - but as long as I am seeing a consistent downward trend I’m happy.

My bodyfat % is another thing - I’ll have to get that properly tested by the end of the month. From my Tanita scale I believe that is moving down, too! I think I am going to limit my measurements to once a month to avoid too much discouragement. It’s always a little disappointing when after a workout out I’m feeling pumped and then discovering that I’m not as big as I thought…

Missed last night because of work - so tried to push it a little harder tonight. Deadlifts, I think I wrote before, are one of those exercises you love to hate. They can be so grueling but so satisfying at the same time. And, if I find I can still move in the morning it’s so much better. My chest workout on Monday was tough enough that I had a little tightness through Tuesday - just a reminder of how much I’ve been slacking through the holidays. Well, at least they are over now and it’s dedicated lifting until at least Memorial Day!

Tried a new twist, at least for me, with my cardio tonight. I biked for one minute at a relatively slow and easy pace, then pushed hard for one minute, slowed back down, pushed hard again, etc. I was able to keep this up for about 15 minutes - just shy of my 20 minute goal. I’ve been told if I do this consistently, at least four times a week, I’ll find my bodyfat start to drop.

Of course, it will help if I stop going to McDonald’s for breakfast. But, gosh darn it, Sausage McMuffins with Egg are just so tasty…(lol).

BTW, got the arms up to 16.75" today - pumped - so I know some new growth is coming soon! Let’s see a quarter inch each week and I’ll be sporting 18" guns by April.

Woo-hoo!

Well, according to my log it’s been nearly three weeks since I’ve done a complete workout - yikes! But, things went well tonight and I feel pumped both physically and mentally. The gym was way to crowded with all the New Year Resolutionist (most will be gone by mid-February) so I decided to dust off the old bench and work out at home. I forgot how nice it is to be able to workout with out five other guys waiting for the bench…only so many can work in at a time after all. So given my current workout doing 10 sets of my main exercise and with a two minute rest in between, well, let’s just say no one likes an equipment hog. So I may just workout at home on bench day. I’ll probably go into the gym for leg day of course. Oddly enough, there’s never a wait for the squat rack - unless someone is doing curls with it (aaargh).

Well, not so much a new goal as a rededication to an old goal not achieved. This year is the year that my arms reach a muscular 18" (flexed). I’m not getting any younger and for whatever reason the 18" mark has always been my ideal arm size. Why am I blogging about this goal? It’s my hope that putting it in writing will help me with the motivation I need when the rest of my life activities start to get in the way.

My secondary goal is to actually see my abs - but that one will have to wait until number one is achieved - since I believe that cutting will involve a loss of mass overall. Though there’s no doubt that in the long run I’ll be better off without at least 20 lbs of my current mass (the part that’s around my waist, thighs, and butt that is).

Happy New Year and here’s to everyone achieving their goals, too!