Archives for February 2008

Mission 2, Day 15: Perseverance

February 18, 2008 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

Today was a rest day for me. I took the day off entirely. No exercise at all!

I spent the day today watching two hockey games and what I saw made me think about perseverance. The team I was observing has played 34 games this season and lost all but 4. Yes, their record is 3-30-1. However, this team came out today and played with passion, heart and desire. They played like a team that was used to winning rather than a team used to losing. They won their first game 6-1. It was quite a sight to see. They actually seemed to be having fun on the ice. Fun–something that was missing during the season.

The second game was another example of perseverance. They played against a team with a goalie that was just stupendous. He stopped everything shot at him. However, the team persevered. They pressed on and did what they could. Eventually they broke through for a goal. This was followed by 2 more goals. They won that game 3-1. Tomorrow they will play for the tournament championship. Perseverance will carry them through.

It is much the same with a physique transformation. You have to believe. You have to persevere. You will have highs and lows, but you must push ahead. You need to make the adjustments and do what is necessary to achieve your desired results. I'm facing that same issue today. I lost 2 pounds last week and dropped 0.5% body fat, but I also lost some LBM. All of this despite training extremely hard and pictures that show I've obviously picked up some muscle.

With this said, I will persevere. I am going to conquer my own body and find the formula for nutrtion that works for me.

Accountability Log:

Week Begins 2/17/2008
	Sun	Mon	Tues	Weds	Thurs	Fri	Sat
Cycle spot	LC	LC	HC	LC	LC	LC	HC
M1 *	5:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	5:30 a.m.
M2 *	8:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	8:30 a.m.
M3 *	11:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	11:30 a.m.
M4 *	2:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	2:30 p.m.
M5 *	5:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	5:30 p.m.
M6 *	7:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	7:30 p.m.
Weights *	N/A	Lift	Lift	N/A	Lift	Lift	N/A
Cardio *	N/A	PM	N/A	AM	N/A	N/A	AM
Abs *	N/A	FYA	FYA	N/A	FYA	FYA	N/A
Water *	194 oz
Post-workout nutrition *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Pre-sleep nutrition *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Vitamins/Supplements *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Accountability *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Cals	2398
Cals within 5% (+/-) *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ratios (C/P/F)	42/38/20
Total Completed	15
Total Possible	15
Mission 2 Total Complete	222
Mission 2 Total Possible	225
* = Counts towards total
Success!
Failed
Not Counted!

Nutrition Log:

	Mission 2: Day 14 of 100
	Meal/Training Plan: Real-time accountability
	Day 14: February 16, 2008
5:30 a.m.	Meal 1: Protein shake with banana and Udos and oatmeal and 3 glasses of water
5:30 a.m.	Supplements: Animal Pak, Glucosamine Chondroiten, calcium, chromium, glutamine, BCAAs
6:30 a.m.	Supplements: Protein shake, BCAAs, glutamine
8:30 a.m.	Meal 2: Chicken breast, oatmeal , large salad and 3 glasses of water
11:30 a.m.	Meal 3: Chicken breast, large salad, oatmeal and 3 glasses of water
2:30 p.m.	Meal 4: Chicken breast and large salad and 3 glasses of water
5:30 p.m.	Meal 5: Chicken breast, large salad and 3 glasses of water
7:30 p.m.	Meal 6: Chicken breast, peppers, large salad and 3 glasses of water
8:30 p.m.	Supplements: Casein protein shake, glutamine, calcium and 3 glasses of water

Workout Log:

Today was a rest day. There was no workout.

Remember, perseverance brings success.

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

No Related Posts

Push up challenge: Week 8 video

February 17, 2008 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

I do better than last week, but man, do I have a long way to go to hit my goal!

No Related Posts

Mission 2, Day 15: Stats

February 17, 2008 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

The stats are in for the week:

Mission 2 – Stats
February 3, 008 thru May 13, 2008


Date	Weight	BF %	LBM	Fat Lbs	Chest	L. Bi	R. Bi	Abs	L. Thigh	R. Thigh	L. Calf	R. Calf
3-Feb-08	223	13.00%	194.01	28.99	44.00	15.00	15.00	41.75	25.50	25.50	17.50	17.75
	0	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
10-Feb-08	223.5	13.60%	193.10	30.40	44.13	15.00	15.00	41.25	25.50	25.50	17.50	17.75
	0.5	0.60%	(0.91)	1.41	0.13	0.00	0.00	(0.50)	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
17-Feb-08	221.5	13.10%	192.48	29.02	44.50	15.00	15.00	41.50	25.63	25.63	17.50	17.75
	-2	-0.50%	(0.62)	(1.38)	0.38	0.00	0.00	0.25	0.13	0.13	0.00	0.00
24-Feb-08

2-Mar-08

9-Mar-08

16-Mar-08

23-Mar-08

30-Mar-08

6-Apr-08

13-Apr-08

20-Apr-08

27-Apr-08

4-May-08

11-May-08

I am now going to drop my calories by 5% because I'm not exactly happy with the fat loss the past 3 weeks. My high carb days will be at 2897 calories and my low carb days will be at 2375 calories. This represents a 5% reduction over previous levels. When you aren't happy with your results you have to take decisive action and that's what I'm doing.

Until later…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

No Related Posts

Mission 2, Day 14: Nutrition is 80% of the results

February 17, 2008 By Michael Mahony, ISSA CPT Leave a Comment

As I went into Mission 2, just a mere 14 days ago, I decided that water was going to be the only drink (besides my protein shakes) that I would have during this mission. In the past I would drink milk or a small amount of juice as a way of getting a little bit of carbs in my diet. This time I decided to eliminate all of that to avoid the sugar. So far it is working quite well. I am extremely well hydrated and I seem to be shaping up much faster than before. This all got me thinking last night about nutrition and its role in a transformation.

I truly believe that 80% of our results come from our nutrtion, 10% come from training and 10% come from the amount of rest we get. Food is the fuel our bodies use to change and morph into something better. Training is how we shape the body of our dreams. Rest is when our bodies do the changing. Together those things work to get the transformation process to happen.

I've really been focusing on keeping my eating clean and only having a cheat meal once every 12 days during this mission. It has been a tough road, but my boring menu has enabled me to hit the numbers I am looking to hit each day. The simplicity of it all has outweighed the boredom of the menu itself. I'm pretty simple when it comes to food anyway, so this works very well for me.

I am excited to see my results this coming week (tomorrow is stats day). As Tom Venuto stated in his response to my post on the Burn the Fat Inner Circle, if I am still gaining weight and body fat this week, I will need to cut my calories back. My current plan is to continue cycling the carbs and doing refeed days, but at a 5% reduction to the previous weeks if I have continued to gain in both weight and body fat percentage. These small, but decisive adjustments, are necessary to keep the transformation moving ahead.

Accountability Log:

Week Begins 2/10/2008
	Sun	Mon	Tues	Weds	Thurs	Fri	Sat
Cycle spot	LC	HC	LC	LC	LC	HC	LC
M1 *	5:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	3:30 a.m.	5:30 a.m.
M2 *	8:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	6:30 a.m.	8:30 a.m.
M3 *	11:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	9:30 a.m.	11:30 a.m.
M4 *	2:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	12:30 p.m.	2:30 p.m.
M5 *	5:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	3:30 p.m.	5:30 p.m.
M6 *	7:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	6:30 p.m.	7:30 p.m.
Weights *	Lift	N/A	Lift	N/A	Lift	Lift	N/A
Cardio *	N/A	AM	N/A	AM	N/A	N/A	AM
Abs *	N/A	FYA	FYA	N/A	FYA	FYA	N/A
Water *	194 oz	220 oz	194 oz	220 oz	220 oz	200 oz	220 oz
Post-workout nutrition *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Pre-sleep nutrition *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Vitamins/Supplements *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Accountability *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Cals	2450	2946	2421	2409	2417	3012	2421
Cals within 5% (+/-) *	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Ratios (C/P/F)	38/42/20	48/39/13	42/42/16	41/42/17	30/39/21	50/39/11	41/41/18
Total Completed	15	15	14	15	15	15	15
Total Possible	15	15	15	15	15	15	15
Mission 2 Total Complete	118	133	147	162	177	192	207
Mission 2 Total Possible	120	135	150	165	180	195	210
* = Counts towards total
Success!
Failed
Not Counted!

Nutrition Log:

	Mission 2: Day 14 of 100
	Meal/Training Plan: Real-time accountability
	Day 14: February 16, 2008
5:30 a.m.	Meal 1: Protein shake with strawberries and Udos and oatmeal and 3 glasses of water
5:30 a.m.	Supplements: Animal Pak, Glucosamine Chondroiten, calcium, chromium, glutamine, BCAAs
6:00 a.m.	Workout: HIIT cardio session and 6 glasses of water
6:30 a.m.	Supplements: Protein shake, BCAAs, glutamine
8:30 a.m.	Meal 2: Chicken breast, oatmeal , large salad and 3 glasses of water
11:30 a.m.	Meal 3: Chicken breast, large salad, oatmeal and 3 glasses of water
2:30 p.m.	Meal 4: Lean beef (6 oz) and large salad, 10 baby carrots and 3 glasses of water
5:30 p.m.	Meal 5: Chicken breast, large salad, cucumber and 3 glasses of water
7:30 p.m.	Meal 6: Ground turkey, brocolli, large salad and 3 glasses of water
8:30 p.m.	Supplements: Casein protein shake, glutamine, calcium and 3 glasses of water

Workout Log:

	Workout Log:
	HIIT Cardio	20 minutes
	FYA Level 1 workout	10 minutes

I will be modifying my lifting schedule starting this next week. I will lift on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. I've made this adjustment so that weekends are not lifting days at all. I like the new schedule better. Shortly I will discuss a new technique that I've learned from the New Rules of Lifting book and will be utilizing during the start of my bulking phase.

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!