On Sunday (March 29, 2009) I started my new training regime which can be found here:
http://www.t-nation.com/free_online_article/sports_body_training_performance/totalbody_training
I did the following:
Squats on the Smith Machine
1st set - 185
2nd set - 225
3rd set - 285
Weight pull-ups
1st set - 6 (25 lbs)
2nd set - 5 (30 lbs)
3rd set - 5 (25 lbs)
Dumbess Press/Flat Bench
1st set - 70 lbs
2nd set - 80 lbs
3rd set - 80 lbs
Straight bar curls
1st set - 80 lbs
2nd set - 90 lbs
3rd set - 100
Shoulder Press/Straight bar
1st set - 80 lbs
2nd set - 95 lbs
3rd set - 205 lbs
Tricep Push Downs
1st set - 90 lbs
2nd set - 110 lbs
3rd set - 130
Three sets of abs.
Eating more fat and lots of protein. Feeling strong, sleeping well, body functioning overall very well. But not as lean as I like to feel. Started cardio today as well.
Monday, March 30, 2009
Thursday, March 26, 2009
New Course/Learning Experience/Outside Expertise
So, my endless efforts and constant shifts in approach have proven fruitful. While they haven't brought me to my goal, they have taught me inestimable lessons.
I had cut my calories too early in the process. Taking in 1800 or so calories while at 9.3 body fat left me no where to go in terms of calorie reduction. Any added training (especially cardio) resulted in my body conserving fat. In point of fact, once I realized this and stopped dieting and exercising for a few days (this took place after 2 weeks of energy balance and intensified cardio and lowered calories - see previous posts) my body fat dropped to 8.9%. My muscles seemed to inflate as if to say they were starved.
At the behest of Marc Plano (my personal trainer and expert in fat loss) I've taken a week off from both exercise and dieting. As much as this is psychologically difficult, I trust that this course is wise in that it's given my body the opportunity to reset its thermostat. My goal now is to stack on muscle, to literally gain muscle weight and some fat weight. I'll do this by weight training three days a week and doing a minimal of cardio all while incorporating more fats and calories in general into my body. Summer is still 8-12 weeks away, so, it's really propitious that I'm not at 5-6% bodyfat since it's about 28 degrees outside and impossible for anyone to see me in such peak form.
Tomorrow I go to pick up my nutrition and exercise plan. I'm excited to learn more about my body and the process of radical fat loss. My only fear is that I'm going to stack too much muscle on my short frame.
I had cut my calories too early in the process. Taking in 1800 or so calories while at 9.3 body fat left me no where to go in terms of calorie reduction. Any added training (especially cardio) resulted in my body conserving fat. In point of fact, once I realized this and stopped dieting and exercising for a few days (this took place after 2 weeks of energy balance and intensified cardio and lowered calories - see previous posts) my body fat dropped to 8.9%. My muscles seemed to inflate as if to say they were starved.
At the behest of Marc Plano (my personal trainer and expert in fat loss) I've taken a week off from both exercise and dieting. As much as this is psychologically difficult, I trust that this course is wise in that it's given my body the opportunity to reset its thermostat. My goal now is to stack on muscle, to literally gain muscle weight and some fat weight. I'll do this by weight training three days a week and doing a minimal of cardio all while incorporating more fats and calories in general into my body. Summer is still 8-12 weeks away, so, it's really propitious that I'm not at 5-6% bodyfat since it's about 28 degrees outside and impossible for anyone to see me in such peak form.
Tomorrow I go to pick up my nutrition and exercise plan. I'm excited to learn more about my body and the process of radical fat loss. My only fear is that I'm going to stack too much muscle on my short frame.
Saturday, March 14, 2009
Sensory Acuity/Ideal Weight
So, something great has come out of the energy balance of the last two weeks. I've come to realize that I'm in synch with my body, that I can actually feel if my bodyfat percentage is down, whether or not I'm in energy balance. This dawned on me this morning. A couple of weeks ago I knew intuitively that I had broken through to single digit body fat before having my BF reading taken. Both last week and this week I knew that I would not be any lower. In fact, I could tell that I'd be just a hair higher this week. Moral of the story; Know thyself! There is a spiritual awareness of your body's health, it's fitness, its leanness, etc. Also, one can tell just about how much food to eat to keep that nice tension, the buzzing of the metabolism and the burning of fat. This sensory acuity is precisely what it takes to become a master in the art of losing body fat.
I'm keeping my calories stable this week (around 2,000 more or less). I'm going to cycle my carbs every third or fourth day (i.e. refeed) and I'm upping my cardio to 40-45 minutes a day. We'll see how we're doing by Wednesday or Friday of next week. I've got a good feeling.
As of this morning I weigh 158 lbs. My ideal weight at 6% bodyfat (provided I don't lose any lean muscle, of course) would be 154 lbs. If I were to take this to the limit and attempt to reach 3% body fat, I'd way 147 lbs. I simply do not have enough muscle on my body to look good at that weight. So, I'll be content with 6% or a little below that.
Such calculations are determined using the following formula:
http://www.burnthefatinnercircle.com/members/240.cfm?
It's also important to keep in mind what Tom Venuto has brought out in Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle - namely, "It’s very difficult to lose more than 1.0 - 1.5 pounds per week without losing some lean body mass. Seeing the numbers makes the case for slow weight loss even more clear."
This means I'll have to inch-worm my way down in bodyfat and weight, perhaps losing no more than .5 lbs of fat a week until I'm at 154 lbs. (i.e. eight weeks of work).
I'm keeping my calories stable this week (around 2,000 more or less). I'm going to cycle my carbs every third or fourth day (i.e. refeed) and I'm upping my cardio to 40-45 minutes a day. We'll see how we're doing by Wednesday or Friday of next week. I've got a good feeling.
As of this morning I weigh 158 lbs. My ideal weight at 6% bodyfat (provided I don't lose any lean muscle, of course) would be 154 lbs. If I were to take this to the limit and attempt to reach 3% body fat, I'd way 147 lbs. I simply do not have enough muscle on my body to look good at that weight. So, I'll be content with 6% or a little below that.
Such calculations are determined using the following formula:
http://www.burnthefatinnercircle.com/members/240.cfm?
It's also important to keep in mind what Tom Venuto has brought out in Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle - namely, "It’s very difficult to lose more than 1.0 - 1.5 pounds per week without losing some lean body mass. Seeing the numbers makes the case for slow weight loss even more clear."
This means I'll have to inch-worm my way down in bodyfat and weight, perhaps losing no more than .5 lbs of fat a week until I'm at 154 lbs. (i.e. eight weeks of work).
Friday, March 13, 2009
Stuck in Energy Balance?
It's Friday and the scale hasn't gone down. (158.5) I've been keeping my diet flawlessly (around 2,000 calories or a bit less) and cycling my carbs every 4-5 days so as to refeed my body. I've cut down my cardio to a half hour a day. My last two bodyfat reads for two consecutive weeks were 9.3. If today I'm not lower than that, I'm going to keep my food intake the same and do more cardio. It's the moment of truth and I've decided to approach it very scientifically and dispassionately. If I don't get the results I want, I will have gotten some great information in terms of what does not work. I'll be blogging the results later in the day.
UPDATE
I was right.
UPDATE
I was right.
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