First off, I would like to say I have been following this forum for about a year now and learned much from all of you. I have been trying to attain my fitness/life goals for about 15 months now and have progressed fairly well for my knowledge level of fitness. I was wondering if any of you people have some free minutes, could you evaluate what i'm doing?

A little background: started out at about 216 miserable pounds. I am also 5'10 (and male). I had no idea of what my BF% was or is for that matter. As of today I am still 5'10 (haha) and 179lbs. I have lost what seems to be a ton of fat and gained muscle.

Here is my workout routine:
Mon. -Upperbody weight day -usually an hour incl. warm up and cool down. this is quite well rounded thanks to my personal trainer friend at the gym.

Tues.- Core and Cardio day- various core stuff. I also do some form of cardio for 30-40 mins. i try to change it up as much as possible so i don't get burned on it. I do intervals and a ton of hill climb stuff for the fun of it.

Wed.-Lower body-again well rounded and warm up/cool down.

Thur.- Cardio/core

Fri.- Total Body workout/Cardio.

Sat.-Usually just a run-30-40 mins. (sometimes i take sat. off as well)

Sun.-Off

My Diet is probably my worst enemy due to my work hours (3pm-11pm)

9am-cup of coffee then off to the gym (i can't eat in the morning never been able too...can't get up any earlier if i want sufficient sleep.

11am-post WO protien shake w/ fruit in it (strawberries or blueberries)

12pm-4 egg whites and whole wheat toast or oatmeal and a banana.

grab and apple or something on the way to work @3pm

5pm-handfull of almonds and an apple or banana

7pm-dinner: tuna sandwich on whole wheat or some small chicken breast w/veggies and some form of fruit.

11pm-some form of chicken or fish with brown rice and veggies or salmon or whatever my wife makes.

All of this is consumed with a ton of water all day.

once in awhile i will indulge in some ice cream or some form of "cheat".however this is infequent.

I am unsure if i want to officially bulk or cut...I just want to be healthy and have some endurance(which is happening). Can i expect to be lean and defined with how i'm doing things...I don't care if it takes longer than the traditional methods. My goal is life fitness, so i'm in it for the long haul. if anyone has any advice on how to better what i'm doing let it fly...i will not be offended by answers.

i will include some before and current pics...if anyone has any BF % guess' maybe that would help. Thanks to all in advance...Justin

Beginning:
http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i44/20fan/May92006-210lbs3.jpg

Now:

http://i69.photobucket.com/albums/i44/20fan/Nov07-3.jpg

For where you are at, it looks like you're right on track to me. Solid plan, pretty good diet. Just kep doing what you are doing so long as it's working. Several people, I'm sure, will be able to tell you how to get "ideal", but if you can stick with what you are doing now, that's what really counts.

If you want to see faster results in the fat loss department, try a raw foods diet, or whole foods. They are extremely effective diets, nice and simple, too.

Excellent progress already, and nice tats! I'm still trying to decide what I'd like to get on ym chest ~ I've got a 1/2 sleeve in progress at the moment :D

I'd critique on your plan but it looks like yours is better than mine! :lol:

Seriously though I'm very impressed with the both your fat loss and the fact that you've implemented a core fitness regieme

Keep up the good work :tu:

call me a "noob" but can someone explain "raw food" diet and the whole food concept to me?

call me a "noob" but can someone explain "raw food" diet and the whole food concept to me?

Raw food = food that is not cooked or processed

Breads, pastries, fried foods and the like have all been cooked, many have been highly processed. Deli meats, hot dogs, bologna, refined sugars, and related items are highly processed, full of toxins (in small doses) and chemicals.

In a lot of food items you'll see "Calcium Carbonate" for instance. The Chemical Structure of that is CaCO3. You know what that is? Chalk. There is a lot of straight up poisonous crap in most cooked and/or processed foods. The human body can survive a LOT of abuse, but having all those toxins and chemicals put into your body on a daily basis will make it break down long before it should, and get sick and diseased more easily.

So what does that leave you to eat? Fruits and veggies. Gotta have meat? Stick to lean meats like fish, turkey, and chicken (not fried ~ defeats the purpose). Another advantage of this diet is avoiding mucus forming foods. Dairy, breads, and to a lesser extent meats all cause mucus to form in the body as a result of their digestion. Mucus is a breeding ground for all sorts of bad bacteria and disease.

So by making fruits and veggies as big a part of your diet as you can, you'll get the nutrition your body was designed for (natural raw foods), minimize mucus formation (breathe deeper and easier, stay healthier), and due to the low calorie nature of raw foods, you can eat as much as you want without weight gain.

If you could get yourself to eat ONLY fruits and veggies, no matter how much you ate you would lose weight. Fruits and veggies have all the nutrition you need balanced with the ideal amounts of natural sugars and fibers.

There's a whole bunch more to the story, but if you can't maintain at least a 50% raw foods diet, chances are you won't like what else is in store. The ultimate goal of this diet, and some of the other factors involved, is optimal health and a life full of vitality well into old age.

Thank you for the outline Doubleoqueso. The good news is I already eat mostly fruits and vegtables. I also eat lean meat ie: turkey/chicken/fish 90% of the time. My food philosophy has completly changed in the last year...I now eat more for fuel rather than pleasure. Portion control and ingredients now are more important than taste. As I mentioned, I do indulge every so often just to keep it from being O.C.D. I'm also not an expert...just a student in this Fitness-thing.