I just got back from the gym and I must say, I left everything there and brought nothing home with me.  I feel awesome but exhausted at the same time!  The stress I was feeling has melted away.  At one point, prior to my fourth deadlift set, I felt defeated, like there was no way I'd get through it.  Prior to grabbing the bar and starting the set I decided to visualize myself completing 10 reps.  I then proceeded to complete the set!

The workout:

Exercise	Results (Weight/Sets/Reps)
Deadlift	185 x 4 x 10 *[PB]
Explosive Pushups	BW x 4 x 11
Bulgarian Split Squats	25 x 4 x 11
2 Point Bent Row	35 x 4 x 11 *[PB]
Deadlift from a box	65 x 2 x 20
Dumbbell Bench Press	35 x 2 x 20
Walking lunges	25 x 2 x 20
Seated Cable Row	75 x 2 x 20
*PB=Personal Best

OK, for once I can actually see a difference in my physique and I find that very exciting.  Honestly, I have some older pictures and can see huge differences between those and my latest photos. What stands out to me the most is that my chest seems tighter and my “love handles” have shrunk.  My posture has also improved so much and that's from the confidence these other changes are giving me.  I even had someone tease me today about getting in shape and then he patted my stomach.  Upon doing that, he looked at me and said “You're really getting there!”  It made me feel great.

As I reflected upon these changes I realized that it isn't just the physical that has changed, it is the mental as well.  For instance, this week I was forced (due to the job responsibilities I have) to move my workout schedule around a bit.  Normally I'd be lifting Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday, but this week I'm lifting Sunday, Wednesday and Friday.  Usually, when I do this, I have a hard time getting up for the workout.  Today the plan was simple:  fasted cardio in the morning, weight workout in the evening.  I woke up at 3:30 a.m. for my fasted cardio workout before work and thought “I could just do this with my weight workout tonight and get some extra sleep right now” but I knew that the fasted cardio would be better, so I got up and headed out to the gym.  I had an awesome cardio session and enjoyed listening to music with my new Shure e2c ear buds that arrived yesteday from amazon.com.  That decision set the stage for the rest of the day.  Today is high carb day and I've been enjoying the carbs, but I've also managed, for the first time in weeks, to really maintain my macronutrient ratios.  I honestly believe this is due to the good decision I made when I first opened my eyes this morning.

I will be heading out to the gym later to do my weight workout.  It is my favorite workout in the Fat Loss III series because it involves deadlifts. I absolutely love doing deadlifts.  I feel so powerful when  I can lift that heavy bar off the floor for repetitions.  This particular workout also works my chest and I've missed my chest workouts.  I'm pumped to get back into the gym for my weight workout tonight.  I need the time by myself to just focus on all the things going through my mind these days and to absorb what is happening via this group shred. 

Today I'm not shy to say that I'm proud of my accomplishments.  I am proud of the fact that I will be at the gym twice today.  I am proud of the fact that I've gone 6 days straight eating clean.  I am proud of the fact that I haven't missed a single day of getting my accoutability photos up.  Most of all, I am proud of my change in mental attitude that is accompanying the change in my physique.

Before I sign off, I wanted to mention that I spent some time reading older posts on Christy's blog.  I love the attitude about gratitude.  It is definitely true that when we focus on ourselves and the changes we can make on our own, great things happen.  Even in a relationship with someone else, the tendency is to point the finger at the other person, but if we focus on the changes we can make in ourselves, the other person generally makes the changes in themselves that we want to see and everyone is happy.  It is just smarter to focus on changing the things we are in control of rather than trying to change the things we are not in control of.  The attitude of gratitude takes us right down that path.  Goals, focus and gratitude for what we accomplish is definitely a recipe for success.

Until tomorrow…

Today was a stressful day for me.  I am in the middle of helping with an office move and one of the key vendors (the one that handles the main data connection for the office) is dragging their feet.  Yes, good old AT&T seems to have dropped the ball.  The one thing they are supposed to do well, data connections, is failing them.  They've known about the move for 2 months and even gave an install date of October 19, 2007 and now they say they might not make it by the move-in date of November 2, 2007 (this Friday).

As I did my cardio workout today, I realized that I tend to lose focus on my nutrition when I'm stressed.  Consequently, I tried extra hard today to focus on that part of my regimen.  I am really trying to learn this carb cycling process.  It is a very interesting (to me) topic.  I spent part of the day crunching numbers in a spreadsheet that I created.  I think I've come up with some ratios I can test with.  It will be interesting to see if the fat comes off the way they say it will when I eat the way I am planning to eat.

I normally get my pictures up much earlier, but I was in a rush to get to work today, so that didn't happen at the usual time.  Overall, I'm motivated, but I feel a little down today.  I don't believe it has anything to do with the shred, but it is definitely there.  I am already feeling a bit better as I sit here and write this entry.

My focus was slightly off today, but I managed to eat correctly.  I am excited to get busy with the new way of carb cycling and will definitely detail the results here.  I will post my “stats” on Sunday and then every Sunday thereafter. 

Thank you everyone who has commented.  Your comments mean alot to me and they help me stay motivated.  When faced with food temptations, I always remember that I'm going to have to post a picture and that keeps me on the straight and narrow.

I don't have alot more to say today.  I've got some things going through my mind that I need to get a grip on before I can comment.  Perhaps tomorrow?

Until then…

Even when life continues to happen, the journey towards a leaner body must happen as well.  This past weekend was proof of that and the coming week, even more so.  With the temptations faced and overcome during the weekend, I am feeling confident about the week ahead of me.  I will continue to plan and then stick to that plan and it will workout the way I want.

Today was a cardio only day for me.  I did 40 minutes of cardio in ten 3 minute intervals.  My approach is taken from the New Rules of Lifting metabolic overdrive idea.  I warm up for 5 minutes on the treadmill at a pace of 3.5 mph.  I then up it to 6.5 mph for one minute, followed by 5.5 for two minutes and I repeat that for 10 intervals and follow it all with a 5 minute cool down. 

Today I felt good as I did my cardio workout.  The gym wasn't very crowded so my mind didn't wander. I thought about the people joining me in this RTP Group Shred and the challenges they face. 

I thought about…

…Christy, who is using a walker due to several injuries she's sustained.  Christy seems to have a strong will and great determination to succeed.  She uses visualization to her benefit.  Chrsty is on the right path and I'm very proud of what she's accomplished so far.

…Suzette and how hard she's worked the past year to drop 60 pounds.  Even with some roadblocks in her way, Suzette has managed to overcome them and is just getting stronger and stronger as a result. 

…Dougal and how supportive he's been of everyone in the Group Shred.  Dougal seems like an awesome guy and someone I'd enjoy hanging out with.

…Diane and how touched she was by all the comments the group had left for her.  Diane is absolutely right when she says the support means so much.  It is the fuel that gets you to the next day!

…Debbie and how far she has come. By reading her blog, you can see the determination to change.  It is incredible!

…Miriam and how she's managed to motivate her husband into joining her in getting in better shape.  Obviously her drive is incredible and her husband saw that and couldn't wait to start making gains like his wife!

…Samuel and how I'd like to look like him.  I love how Samuel plans his meals–simple yet effective.

…Katie and how I hope she gets going on this Group Shred.  She's busy moving, but as I stated in my opening, even when life continues to happen, the journey towards a leaner body must continue to happen as well.

…Marbella and how she's seemed to have found that point in her life where she's determined to change.  She reminds me of me and how I felt a few months ago. 

…Joni and how she put herself out there by wearing a bikini in her pictures even thought it seems to have made her uncomfortable.  She looks awesome and I think she should be proud of herself.  I'm sure her husband is very proud of her right now.

…Massimiliano and how dedicated he is to a physical transformation.  He has admitted that being macho in the gym cost him some gym time due to injury and he is not going to let that happen again. 

…Alex and how close he is to a six pack.  This guy has obviously done some hard shredding!

…Andrew, Bec and Josh, who I wish I knew better.  I have not seen their blogs, but they have joined us in this Group Shred.  I wish them all success!

All this thinking about the group shredders made me realize that if I don't succeed, I have not only let myself down, but I've let them all down too.  That's why even when life continues to happen, this journey towards a leaner body must continue to happen as well.

Until next time…

One of my fellow RTP shredders, Christy, has asked me to comment on how my back surgery has affected my workouts.  I am often asked about the workouts I do and am I concerned that I might hurt myself doing the workouts I do after a back surgery.  The answer isn't as easy as one might think.

Five years ago I was playing roller hockey.  I played in a coed league.  I really enjoyed my time on the rink.  Hockey is my favorite sport, so it gave me a thrill to be able to participate.  In the middle of my first season, I was in front of the goalie trying to screen him as the shot came in.  A defender came in and put his body on mine and I ended up rolling backwards towards the goalie.  As the goalie came down to make the save, his stick came forward and my skates rolled up on it and I fell hard on my tailbone.  I could feel an electric shock up my spine, but really didn't think much of it. 

For two years after that incident, I would constantly end up with back pain after doing the silliest things.  The pain would start in the middle of my left buttock and travel down my left leg.  This got more and more frequent and more and more painful.  I eventually got to the point where I could only sleep a few hours a night (2-3 hours).  After much diagnosis that included an MRI, a Mylo CT-Scan and many, many X-rays, the doctor's thought that I had a growth in my spinal canal.  Finally, after having an EMG, I was unable to sleep for more than 1 hour a night.  The doctor told me that surgery was an option, but only if I could not get through the pain any other way.  We tried physical therapy first and when that made it worse, I begged for the surgery.  Two weeks later I went under the knife. 

The results of the surgery were sort of shocking.  It turned out that I had a ruptured disk.  The rupture went inward and was pressing on the nerves, causing the pain I was experiencing.  The official name of the procedure I underwent is lamenectomy. 

After having the lamenectomy, I left the hospital three days later with a walker.  It took me about two weeks to completely ditch the walker, but I walked slowly and with alot of pain.  I was out of work for 12 weeks.

When I returned to a normal life, I knew that I needed to workout in some form or another.  I found a book called The Miracle Seven that used muscle tension to help build and sculpt your physique.  I worked diligently at the exercises and found that I made some good progress.  I did that for about 18 months.  At that point, I decided I needed more and joined 24 Hour Fitness.  I began working out with weights on a regular basis.

The back surgery issue made me very cautious during my workouts.  I believe that because of the back surgery, I made an extra effort to do my exercises with proper form. I knew that if I wasn't careful,  I could hurt myself.  I was especially careful because I hadn't experienced any back pain since my surgery, which at that point was a year and a half in the past. 

The more that time went by, the more I sought out challenging workouts.  I found a series of great workouts from http://www.global-fitness.com.  In one of these workouts, I was asked to do squats and in another I was asked to do deadlifts.  I fell in love with both exercises.  At the same time, I realized that I would have to do the squats and deadlifts with perfect form to avoid injury and to be able to lift big. 

It is my belief that my back surgery has made my back even stronger.  At the same time, I realized how stupid it is to be macho.  I suffered for 2 years with pain in my back because I was being macho.  That lesson was an important one.  While at the gym, I looked around and saw so many guys trying to lift heavy and using terrible form.  I realized the dangers in doing things that way and decided to focus on doing things the right way.  I don't rush my weight increases.  I study the exercises I use before I attemp it.  I use good form on every repetition.  At the same time, I push myself to the brink every time I workout.  As Adam has said, I don't stop at a pre-defined set of reps, instead, I push myself to complete each set to failure.  I have seen what it is like to be unhealthy and in bad physical shape and I've vowed to push myself as hard as I physically can to avoid ever being like that again. 

To anyone suffering back pain, surgery isn't the only answer, but sometimes it is the answer.  Regardless of the path you take, it doesn't mean you can't workout again.  Whatever path you take, the goal is to get your body “back to normal” and normal should include a good workout several times a week.  Just be careful.  Make it a point to do the exercises correctly.  Don't rush the weight increases–they will come in due time.  If you workout your muscles correctly you can't help but gain in strength.  With strength gains come bigger lifts.  There is no such thing as a dangerous lift, only a dangerous lifter.  I've learned that by doing the deadlift correctly, I can make continual strength gains.  If I do my squats with correct form, I don't risk injury. 

Do not let your current physical situation get you down.  You can do anything you put your mind to.  That's why I'm involved with this RTP Group Shred.  I'm inspired by Adam's progress and his attitude.  I need to be held accountable as that's the only way I'm going to reach my goals.  That's the purpose of this blog–to keep me accountable.  I've tried the daily pictures routine in the past and failed, but I'm not going to fail this time. I can honestly see the importance of the daily pictures and this time it is going to happen without fail. 

I didn't plan to write a novel, but this topic is important to me and one of my RTP friends wanted to hear it, so I didn't want to give a half-hearted answer.  So, Christy, I hope that answers your question.  Bottomline:  my workouts are better because of my back surgery.  You have to take it all one day at a time and the forward progress you make will bring you to the point you need to be at.

My workout log for today:

Exercise	Weight/Reps
Front Squat	175 x 10 175 x 10 (last rep form not good) 155 x 10 155 x 10
Chin-ups (assisted)	(155) 10  (155) 10  (155) 10  (155) 10
Step ups	30 x 11 30 x 11 30 x 11 30 x 115
Dumbbell push press	45 x 10 45 x 10 45 x 10 45 x 10
Back Squat	70 x 20 70 x 20
Lat pulldown	75 x 20 75 x 20
Step ups	15 x 16 15 x 16
Dumbbell overhead press	30 x 20 30 x 20

I'm noticing something that I need to find some advice on.  My current schedule for lifting is Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.  My low carb days are Sunday and Wednesday.  For the past two weeks, my strength on Sunday is bad.  This is proven by the fact that my Thursday workout (which is the same as my Sunday one each week) always has me feeling much stronger.  It dawned on me last night that it could be because of the lack of carbs during the previous three days (Wednesday to Sunday is my longest low carb stretch of the week).  I wonder if this means I need to move my low carb days to different days?  Perhaps it means I shouldn't have more than 2 days in a row of low carb days? Perhaps it means I should just tough it out?  I will find the answer and post here when I do.

Until next time…