A Time to Fight and A time to Lose

[badboy]

I realize that January 1st may not be the best time to start a long-term training journal, but such is life.

I am pretty much the same as any beginner here. I have been lurking the forums for many months. I have read all the great posts here. I find Gravityhomer's fat loss guide and Marcus's nutrition posts really valuable.

At my heaviest (approximately 8 months ago) I weighed 215 lbs. I was your typical burger/fries eating dude. I was watching my weight slowly creep up and was getting a little irritated. I am 28 and single and I wanted to have a more sexy physique. I have been toying around reading and gaining knowledge over the last few months. I have also been watching what I eat a little closer and I currently have the following stats:

Age: 28
Weight: 195 lbs
Height: 5 feet 11 inches

I have lost 20 lbs in the past 6 months by not eating at fast food joints nearly as often. I have also been actively trying to eat healthier and have been collecting exercise equipment off of craigslist.

I am now ready to knock it up a notch and start really trying to eat healthy and exercise. My goals are to lose weight and gain muscle (original I know). At this point in time I am not interested in bulking hugely. Maybe sometime in the future that will become a priority, but right now I want health.

The only way I will really commit to this is if I can see visual changes. As such, I will do the whole picture thing:


In the future I will lose the heart boxers

I have the book "The Body Sculpting Bible for Men" and I have JSF along with the rest of the net, so I figure I will keep on researching. Any input from more experienced people would be highly appreciated though.

Depending on the calculator used my base caloric needs appear to be around 2200 cals. I want to lose approximately 1-2 lbs weekly so I am aiming to intake around 1700 cals per day. I think I am going to go with a 40/40/20 macro split. I will count cals for a few weeks until I have a better ability to estimate what I am eating.

I have been tracking my food input on fitday and mydailyplate. I am trying to figure out which website I like better. I like fitday's reporting better but the meal thing on mydailyplate rocks.

I am currently weight lifting 3-5 days a week on a rotating system through the following 3 exercise routines:

1 (Chest/Triceps/Shoulders)
DB Bench Press
DB Bench Press (inclined)
DB Shoulder Press
Lateral Raises
Shrugs
Tricept Bar Pushdown

2 (Back, Bicepts)
Seated DB Curls
Inclined Seated DB Curls
Ben Bar Row
Seated Row
BB Pullover

3 (Legs, Abs)
Squat
Dead Lift
Calf Raises
Inclined Crunch
Side Crunch
Cross Crunch

I am generally aiming for 10 - 12 reps and 3-4 sets depending on the exercises. I am not going to post the weight at this point in time .

I have a home gym with limited equipment. I have 300 lb olympic BB, some crapy 6-45 lb quasi-adjustable DB and one of those narrow golds gym benches with a pulldown attachment. I am looking at getting something like a WB-MS or maybe a Titan Killer depending on price after I can afford it.

I am also watching for a recumbant stationary bike to do some cardio with. I bicycled ~ 20 miles a week during the last 3 months of the summer and liked it pretty well (as exercise goes ).

I have a myotape and calipers on the way so I will post sizes when I get it.

That seems like a good brief overview.

Thanks,

B

[badboy]

Just finished workout routine. Had trouble walking up the stairs from the basement so that's a good sign (did legs today).

My dietary breakdown was as follows today:


And I consumed 1725 cal's. I am working on getting the carbs down a bit and the protein up a bit.

myplate is complaining a bit about my protein intake saying my 144 grams is 300+% of my daily value. Seems in the 1 - 1.5 g / lbm to me.

[HalfGorilla]

Originally Posted by badboy

Just finished workout routine. Had trouble walking up the stairs from the basement so that's a good sign (did legs today).

My dietary breakdown was as follows today:
Attachment 33388

And I consumed 1725 cal's. I am working on getting the carbs down a bit and the protein up a bit.

myplate is complaining a bit about my protein intake saying my 144 grams is 300+% of my daily value. Seems in the 1 - 1.5 g / lbm to me.

Hi there. I wish you well in your journey... I agree about getting the carbs down, even lower that your original 40% would be good. Check out what this guy recommends with reagrd to protein, carb, and fat calculations. http://www.romanfitnesssystems.com/4...-calculations/

He's a trainer and damn ripped too

[badboy]

Thanks for the link Halfgorilla. Interesting read. So much to think about.

Today was a relax day. I have lifted weights the last three days so I took a break. My biceps are feeling good and I should be ready to hit it hard again tomorrow.

Most of my time today was spent learning more about nutrition and trying to figure out what foods have what type of characteristics.

I only consumed 1625 calories today, and that was hard to do since I wasn't working out. I did some playing around and realized that in times past when I had been trying to lose weight I had been only consuming around 1100-1200 calories. Not good. No wonder my body didn't want to take anything off.

It was actually hard to consume 1625 calories today. I wasn't very hungry. Eating these slower digesting foods really allows you to very easily go 3 hours between meals. I also am noticing that I get hungry faster when I do get hungry.

Macros for today:


This is closer to what I am aiming for. Much of what I eat (morning star sausage links, turkey slices, starkist tuna) are high in sodium. Going to work on finding lower sodium sources of protein.

Purchased an olympic plate tree today. Glad to have the plates off my floor. Called around about a Body Solid SBL460P4. Also kind of like the G5S. Right now I am a fan of plate load systems like the SBL460P4, but I don't know how fast that would get old and having a stack system like the G5S might be the way to go. I used cable Cybex stuff at the club and it was fine.

Tomorrow I start my three set routine over and am going to work on adjusting the weight with the findings from the last go of the routines.

Overall I feel optimistic. My friends wanted to go out and eat at Panda Express but I didn't go with them because I want to study the Panda Express menu a bit and figure out what fits into my diet, if anything.

Weight today is 193.4. Going to weigh in daily but fully expect fluctuations. Just need a daily reminder.

Later,

B

[HalfGorilla]

Cool, keep it all up. Well done about the not going out for food.

[badboy]

Today was a great day. Weighed in at 192.4, but mostly it was dehydration this morning. Consumed 1770 calories with almost perfect 40 40 20 split. Did a workout routine and all things went in the right general direction.

Off to bed. Should start regular workout days of Sunday Tuesday Thursday now. May add more stuff to my routine as it only took 40 minutes. Body is starting to like protein more it seems.

B

[badboy]

Another good eating day. 1710 calories with a 39/41/20 split. No workout tonight.

[badboy]

Yesterday (5th) I ended up at Quiznos with friends. I tried really hard to mentally figure out what would be the most healty food to eat. I did the 2 for $5 thing and took a turkey pesto bullet and a chicken salad. After getting home I checked myplate and found that mean to be 825 cals with 87 carbs and 28 protein and ~ 7 fat. Even though I ate out, my overall result was 1910 calories and 34/48/18 split with me missing my mark by not getting enough protein.

When I started my conversion, I stopped drinking pop. If its carbonated, I am currently not drinking it. I don't know why, but I have really lost my appetite. Food still sounds appealing, I am physically not hungry. I am having trouble getting my 1700 calories a day so I don't feel bad about the 1910 cals.

I have a body weight of 191.2 this morning. Worried I am losing lbm. Going to try to slow down the weight loss a little bit. I have lost 3 lbs in the last 6 days, but I am not going to re-evaluate this to next Sunday so I can have a solid week of evidence to consider along with the dialy fluctuations in my body wight. Also still awaiting my myotape. The size 38 pants I purchased ~ 1.5 months ago are fitting too lose now, which is good.

Today I did the bicep workout and it went really well. Weights increased and I felt good. Also craving my protein drink after the workout a lot.

Today I consumed 1595 calories which was hard to do (wasn't hungry). I got a 35p/38c/25f split.

B

[badboy]

Had a bit of an emergency here this weekend. Ended up on a plane for the whole weekend. As such, eating was much harder. I tried to hang out with the things I knew like salad and such with chicken or fish.

Should be back on schedule now. Due to the weekend troubles the stress took my appetite pretty much away.

Overall, this changes nothing. I am still working on my goals and exercising. I fully expect there are times when I will have to roll with the punches.

Later,

B

[TheThirdMohican]

Originally Posted by badboy

Had a bit of an emergency here this weekend. Ended up on a plane for the whole weekend. As such, eating was much harder. I tried to hang out with the things I knew like salad and such with chicken or fish.

Should be back on schedule now. Due to the weekend troubles the stress took my appetite pretty much away.

Overall, this changes nothing. I am still working on my goals and exercising. I fully expect there are times when I will have to roll with the punches.

Later,

B

It is working through these times and not getting thrown off that is the key. Keep it up!

[badboy]

Thanks TheThirdMohican

Today was back to normal. Consumed approximately 1620 calories with a 42 protein 35 carb 23 fat split. Not trying as hard to get 100% perfect splits and worrying more about keeping it close.

Did a really really good workout today. Also took body measurements with my myotape. Will post them when I have more time.

Off to bed.

B

[badboy]

Today was a good day. Consume ~1650 calories. Weight is strange. Yesterday morning I was at 189 and was pretty happy to break into the 180s. Today I was at 194. 5 pounds of hoping seems like a lot, but whatever. Keep working and see what happens.

Today isn't a normal workout day, but I had some extra time and energy so I did a routine. Routines are starting to happen faster. Need to get a clock with seconds so I can time rests.

Did some body measurements:
Bicep L: 11/12
Bicep R: 11/12.25

Forearm L: 10
Forearm R:10.5

Gut 39.5
Hips 38

Thigh L: 21.5
Thigh R: 22.5

Calf L: 15
Calf R: 15

All my weights are increasing on my routines. I am also getting a better idea of what I am capable of.

Have been working out for a couple weeks. In ~ 1 month I am going to start switching some exercises in and out to mixup stuff.

Got the myotape and the body calipers. Need to figure out how to find my body fat percents.

Time for bed,

B

P.S. Only tracking food on myplate. Seems like it is the best, mainly for its food database.

[badboy]

Today I took a well needed break from weight lifting. I have been working out pretty hard, and my body felt like it needed some time off. Plan on going to bed early and getting some good sleep in.

Today I consumed 1640 calories with a 41p/42c/16f split. Been having to much fat for a bit, so didn't try hard to correct it. Also coworkers keep going to Mcdonalds over lunch and I am addicted to the McDonalds Southwest Salad with grilled chicken (no dressing) for a 320 calorie 30 carb 30 protein lunch. Not bad for eating out.

Today my meals were as follows:
Breakfast: Peaches, Quaker Oats, Dannon Light and fit yogurt, and 2 morning star sausage patties.

Morning snack: Half an Odwalla Banana Nut Bar

Lunch: McDonalds Southwest Salad wth Grilled Chicken, no dressing

Lunch-Dinner: Kashi Go Lean Crunch

Dinner: Chicken Breast,

Evening Snack: Whey Shake.

Tomorrow I will probably be too busy to weight lift. Saturday evening will find me pumping iron again.

Still tracking my calories on myplate, but starting to get to the point I don't need to wonder/worry as much since I have a better idea what food contains.

Later,

B

[badboy]

Eating healthy is becoming easier. I consumed 1620 calories today with a 40p/39c/21f split. Been craving peanut butter (natural), so trying to eat it daily for my fat but not too much since it is easy to OD.

Went cloths shopping today. Purchased a medium for the first time in a long time. Even though I am not seeing a ton of weight loss yet, I feel better and can fit into mediums. Also my size 38 jeans are fitting looser than ever before Won't be long and I will be shopping in the 36's.

Didn't do a weight training session today, but I did one yesterday (Friday). I will do another one tomorrow (which is now today I guess).

Can't wait for Feb pictures to do some comparisons.

B

[badboy]

Really didn't want to workout today, but did anyway

Also tried making John's Stir Fry. I put the recipe up on myplate and it came up with too much fat for my eating plan. I took most of the oils out and did some other tweaks (added more mushrooms) and it worked out great. I put the mix into some low carb high fiber wraps and called it Fajitas. It was very tasty and will definitely be on my menu again soon.

Weighted in at 188.9 this morning. Hopefully I stay in the 180's for a while now.

Some of the exercise routine is going better. For instance, I started out doing 3 sets of 8 reps on the deadlifts and today I was able to do 3 sets of 10 reps. Time to up the weight next routine

Later,

B

[badboy]

Nothing exciting to report today. Not lifting today and trying hard to watch what I eat. Been really noticing my body is not only used to eating ever ~3 hours, but it is starting to demand it. Meeting some friends for a healthy dinner tonight at 6:30 and haven't eaten since 3. My body made it clear this wasn't an option but a few almonds was all it took to be happy until 6:30.

Been thinking about what to do in my weight routine next. Going to start doing more compound exercises. Also shopping craiglist for a power cage.

Consuming 1730 calories with a 48p/40c/22f split today.

B

[badboy]

Todays update: I am having trouble getting enough weight with my 25lb each adjustable dumbells. My need to invest in some new hardware.

Consumed 1705 calories with a 38p/40c/22f split. Body seems a little hungrier, but nothing bad or enough to make me change.

Looking forward to making stir-fry fajitas tomorrow

Did a workout today and moved all weights up to reset my reps to 8. Some exercises had sneaked up to 14 reps. Now they are 8 with more mass.

B

[badboy]

I am making a small change to my diet right now. I don't like consuming so much protein. I have been reading things like:
http://exercise.about.com/cs/nutrition/a/protein_2.htm
http://www.fitnessspotlight.com/2009...-build-muscle/

And talking to a dietitian. I am not convinced that it is helping that much or is incredibly healthy. I am thinking of limiting my protein to around 100-125g a day and limiting my fat to around 35-40g per day and filling the rest of my caloric needs with carbs. I know the 40/40/20 split is pretty popular, but I don't like the idea of OD'ing on protein. Still reading and learning more. Any links people want to throw share would be appreciated.

Today I consumed 1651 calories composed of 36g fat, 190g carbs, and 150g protein. Unless I find something to convince me otherwise, I will start decreasing the protein tomorrow. My main concern is body health. I don't want to hit my kidneys too hard. My split today was 36/44/20.

Did another exercise set today. Feels good. In general I think I may be getting too much sugar as well. Trying to limit intake to < 50g a day.

Later,

B

[badboy]

Been a few days since an update, so I have stuff to say

In some of my last posts I hinted that I would be dropping down the protein. After more reading and researching, I have decided to limit my protein intake to 150 grams a day. I will also be limiting my fat caloric intake to 20% of my daily calories, and I will makeup the rest of the needed calories in the form of carbs.

It has been ~3 weeks that I have been working out and watching my diet. I started out at 194 pounds. Today I weigh 190 pounds. A 4 lb loss over 3 weeks isn't amazing. I actually weighed 190 lbs a week ago, so I lost 4 pounds in the first two weeks and have been holding steady all week.

Last Thursday I consumed 1650 calories with a 38/42/20 split.
Last Friday I consumed 1670 calories with a 36/44/20 split.
Saturday I have no idea because it was a cheat day. This is the first "real" cheat day I have taken since starting my healthier living.

It was my step-dads birthday and we went out to eat Saturday night. I had fettuccine alfredo which has to be one of the worst foods for you. I finished it off by splitting a dessert with my parents. It was interesting eating a meal like that having been healthy for so relatively long. It actually wasn't as good as I though it would be. It tasted fine, but it wasn't as "wild" as I was expecting.

Maybe it has something to do with me getting better at cooking. For example today (Sunday) I am back on my healthy living. For Dinner tonight I took 2 oz of whole grain spaghetti and mixed in 6 oz of chicken, 1 cup stir fry veggies, 2 cloves garlic, a little chicken broth, and some low-everything spices. The result was a really good tasting meal with 412 calories, 3g of fat, 49g of carbs, and 41g of protein. The bonus is it only has 215 mg of sodium and 6 g of sugar.

Now something else interesting. Yesterday I went cloths shopping and made some shocking discoveries. Previously I was wearing 40/32 pants. I have been working out, and my current myotape reading around my hips is 37 inches. I figured I would be good for 36-38 inch pants. I went to Macy's and tried on some American Rags that were 36/32 and they were too big around the waste! I ended up buying 34/32 jeans! I also tried on some Levis just to see what was going on and ended up with a pair of 34/34 Levi's. I am pretty stoked. I don't understand how a 37 myotape means I wear 34 pants, but I couldn't have gotten into those pants 2 months ago.

Overall, I wish my weight was going down faster, but I am really impressed with how my body's looks are changing. When I flex, I can see things moving under my skin, which is pretty new. I still have a healthy tire around my middle, but all it takes is a little patience and that will start dissipating.

I realize scale weight isn't everything, but it is one of the things I am trying to change.

Overall, I am happy with the way things are going considering it has only been ~3 weeks. I do have a cruise coming up Feb. 5th so I will be gone for a week. I don't plan on counting calories on the cruise, and I will relax my eating a bit, but I won't be going AWOL.

Time to go weight lift

B

[badboy]

Things are progressing well here. Around 1750 calories and a pretty good split.

Currently lusting after a power rack/bench. Maybe use some tax rebate to better my health

B