taf1968 Land of the Lost (Abs) Blog

Hit the gym this morning for some legs, shoulders and abs.  I have one crappy knee (sports injuries caught up with me . . . so did 40 ) so my leg days aren’t as intense as some guy’s are.  Still get a decent workout, with some squats, extensions, step ups, and hammy curls.  Finished off with a great shoulder workout and some abs–then hit the elliptical for 20 minutes of light cardio.

It’s been a long time since I posted progress pics . . . I plan on taking some new ones at the end of this month.  A little worried about doing it, because I have not been keeping up with my workouts as consistently and as mentioned I am struggling a bit with diet since I had a kidney stone last month.  I have to completely revamp a lot of the foods I was eating for so long and it’s been a challenge to try and keep the progress going.  A little concerned that it will look like a step backward intitially until I can get things on track again.  We’ll see.

Well, here’s one aspect of losing 20+ pounds that I never really considered . . . I have gotten to the point that I have to get my wedding ring resized!  It’s been getting gradually looser since the start of the year, and now I am running into problems with it just slipping off when I tuck in my shirt, get things out of my pocket, sleep, etc.  So I will have to go in and get it sized a little smaller or risk losing it.

It’s my grandfather’s wedding ring . . . my mom let me have it after he died and it’s kind of my way of having him with me every day.  I’d be absolutely devastated if I lost it.  So will have to take care of this problem soon, but it’s definitely a good issue to have in many ways.  Now I’ll just have to keep the weight off long term. 

Good workout today as well . . . there is a new 24 Hr Fitness that opened up not too far away (not the regular one I go to) and it has some really cool equipment–and lots of it as well, so not much waiting around for lifting or cardio.  Lots of new Hoist and Life Fitness machines as well.  So I drove over there and checked out the new stuff.  Did a good Back/Biceps/Abs workout.  Will probably go back and do some cardio tonight!

I’m in a position where I have to make some diet changes . . . and not sure how I am going to approach it.  Here’s the background: When I first joined BodySpace in January, I set a goal to lose lbs and bodyfat–a goal I met and surpassed.  The diet I used was TKD, or Targeted Ketogenic Diet where I was low carb the majority of the time, with extra carbs targeted around my workouts.  I was rally happy with the keto approach, although I decided to go off it and give carb-cycling a try just to see what the results would be.

Here’s where the train comes off the tracks. 

On Labor Day, I took my son to a baseball game . . . and as we were leaving, i got an excrutiating pain in my side that doubled me over.  I’ve had that pain only once before–and yes, it ended up with me spending the afternoon in the ER with my second kidney stone ever.  If you’ve never had one of those . . . consider yourself VERY lucky.  I have a high tolerance for pain, but stones are miserable.  Anyway, I went through some tests and they narrowed down some probable causes to diet.  The key thing I need to avoid is "Oxalates" . . . which are found in a lot of the foods that I like to eat (and MANY of the foods that I ate consistently on keto, which the Dr thinks led to this stone).  The highest oxalate foods are things like: Nuts (almonds, walnuts, peanuts, etc), peanut butter, cocoa powder (I only like chocolate flavored whey powders), and spinach.  But also high in oxalates are: whole grains, brown rice, beans, broccoli and others.

So my predicament is:  I have to think about revamping my diet significantly and maybe trying to find a new appreciation for foods that I really don’t like all that much.  I am experimenting with non-chocolate flavored whey–I hate vanilla and have never really liked anything except chocolate!  Also, the whole "non-whole-grain" thing to avoid oxalates goes against conventional wisdom with regard to healthier foods.  Rice would need to be white rice, not brown according the the info I got.  Bread should be white and not whole grain/wheat.  Things like that.  I am not a big carb guy–and I know that some of the foods I may have to eat more of are the ones that are seen as great for keeping in shape.

So at this point . . . I’m just getting into the research on what foods I should avoid and which ones are better.  I don’t think I can totally avoid some of the "semi-bad" choices–life would be too boring.  Maybe just being conscious of the worst things and trying to be as good as possible will be enough.  My dad has kidney stone issues as well . . . his reaction is that he just puts up with having a stone every few years and being miserable for a couple days rather that "punish" himself by not eating the things he enjoys. 

At any rate . . . I am going to try and come up with a diet that will still allow me to train and continue to make progress.  But it may get a whole lot harder and less enjoyable.

Legs and shoulders yesterday . . . decided to try some new exercises for both, and boy I am feeling it this morning!  Going to be a long, sore day.  But there’s something very satisfying in barely being able to walk down the stairs and to get a coffee mug out of the cupboard.  LOL.

So far so good on switching from keto to more of a carb-cycling approach.  I admittedly have not gotten to the gym as consistently as I would like, mostly due to end of quarter business crap that has been going on for the last few weeks.  But my weight has stayed consistent, and feeling pretty good.   Planning to really hit things hard in October and to get some new progress pics then.

Well . . . I’ve been on Keto (TKD) since Jan 1st and I have made good progress.  Actually dipped below my target weight goal and have done pretty well on loweing bodyfat.  Still have a little more fat to lose before I’m happier all around.  I’ve decided to switch things up a little bit and try something new on the nutrition front just for a change of pace and "scenery".  Been reading up on carb cycling and I think it’s worth a try, so I’m going to give it a shot for a month or so and see how I respond. 

If anyone has any advice or thoughts on carb cycling, I’d welcome any feedback! 

Been fighting a head/chest cold for about a week . . . seems like it’s finally on the way "out" but it came at a really crappy time when I was trying to step things up.  I’ve had zero energy all week and just haven’t felt like lifting–plus tried some light cardio a couple times but that just made me feel worse.  Appetite has been bad, too.

Hope I feel better tomorrow so I can get to the gym and try to do something remotely productive.  This is making me nuts.  

Almost skipped my workout today . . . have been working crazy hours and absolutely getting killed at work with closing out the quarter.  Just could not get going this morning to hit the gym at 5am like I usually do.  Worked all day, non-stop–got home and ate dinner then just felt like crashing out for the night.  Had zero energy. 

But . . . I logged into Bodyspace, looked at my progress pics, and just HAD to get off my butt and get to the gym.  Went for an hour, did a pretty good back, bicep and abs session.  Much more satisfying than going to sleep, I must say.  Now I just need to get back to my regular routine in the morning.

I have been traveling for work and have not gotten in my typical workouts this week.  So this morning, I decided I would get "caught up" with more of a full-body lifting session.  Man . . . did I bonk hard at the end.  I was cranking through sets and feeling pretty good, but got really light headed on my last few tricep/bicep supersets.  Had to rest a little longer between sets–felt like passing out and felt like crap for about 20 minutes after I got home. 

Not sure what the deal was.  I drank my usual pre-workout shake (whey & maltodextrin) and started out great.  Maybe it was "just one of those days"?  Anyway, tomorrow will be cardio and then back on my normal split for the rest of the week.  As crappy as I felt . . . it was still great to get in the workout.  I hate missing them.

Started the day off with 2 hours of jujitsu . . . which was great, because I have been busy with work and other things and have been slacking with my martial arts training lately.  This was the first time in about a month that I have gotten to the dojo.  Great class . . . it’s always such a blast to go and train, so I need to stay committed to doing what it takes to get in there more consistently.  Have been good about getting in my morning training sessions at the gym, though.  So far so good there.

Spent the rest of the day doing yard work with my wife and kids.  It was a true "Chamber of Commerce Day" in Denver today.  Started off a little chilly, but it was awesome from mid-morning though evening.  Pulled out a bunch of crappy bushes, moved some river rock, planted some new bushes, plants and flowers.  I’m exhausted now, but it felt fantastic to burn all that energy today.  Have to hit the gym tomorrow morning for an hour of cardio.  Pretty sure I won’t have any trouble getting to sleep.

Well . . . we’re celebrating my 40th bday today (a week early).  I’ve been pretty good since Jan 1 with my diet and am actually slightly below the goal weight I set for June 1st.  So I’m going to go ahead and cheat a little today as a bit of a milestone birthday reward.  I was due to post some progress pics anyway, so figured I better do that before I have some cake & stuff this afternoon.

I kinda thought I’d look leaner at 185 lbs than I actually appear in the photos . . . but overall I gues I’m pretty happy with my progress.  You always wish it was more and I know it’s not an easy fix.  So today I’ll have some fun with family & friends, then I’ll be back on the diet and in the gym tomorrow.