The first week of my experiment is over (actually the first 6 days) and the results are in.  I had to modify my body fat percentage, so it won't be matching up to my last stats sheet.  I am now measuring with three different measurements (Omron, Accumeasure, FatTrack II) and then getting the average and that's the percentage I'm going with.  Here are the stats:

This week I lost 3 pounds on the scale.  I dropped 1.77% in body fat, increased 1.245 pounds in LBM and dropped a whopping 4.245 pounds in fat this week on my new nutritional plan. 

During this week I ate at exactlyl 3 hour intervals.  I did not miss by even 10 minutes.  I did not go without any meals. 

On a side note, I compared myself to several other pictures of people who post their body fat percentage and I feel that this new percentage calculation method is much more accurate in that area. 

Needless to say, I am not changing much this week.  I feel like I've hit the sweet spot and there's really no need to mess with success. 

Until later…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts

Today was cardio only day.  I was looking forward to this day because I get to spend some quality reflection time.  A typical Saturday for me starts out like this.

I get up at 5 a.m. and hit the gym by 5:30 a.m. to avoid the crowds (hate crowds).  I strap on my MP3 player and I either listen to a podcast or music and do a good 30 to 45 minutes of cardio.  Since I'm doing PACE and it has been a few weeks, today I added 6 minutes to hit the 30 minute mark. I caught half of a podcast involving Dexter Jackson and Jay Cutler (two of my favorite body builders) discussing the next Mr. Olympia (2008), a show I am going to be attending when it occurs this September in Las Vegas.  It was an interesting listen and I learned alot about Jay's attitude.  He wins because he doesn't discount the abilities of his competitors.  He knows that he has to be on his game or he can lose his title of Mr. Olympia.  He came close to losing it this past year, but managed to pull things together enough to walk away with the victory. That's right, he was losing after the first night and managed to win it during the final posing.

I admire people with this attitude.  Nothing is a guarantee in life.  Hard work and dedication are required to maintain the progress we are all seeking.  At times we get down, but we can't allow ourselves to fall off the horse.  We have to keep riding ahead towards our goals.  If, for some reason, the horse bucks us and we land on the ground, we pick ourselves back up, get back on the horse and continue riding.  It is imperative that we be in charge of our own destiny.  Jay Cutler clearly understands this.  He will not rest on his laurels and neither will I.

I am at a new height of motivation today.  I am ready to conquer new goals and new dreams.  I am no longer willing to blindly stick to a goal I know wasn't for me in the first place.  It is my destiny we are talking about and I am in control of it.  I will not allow setbacks to slow me and I will not allow my own weaknesses to destroy me.  I've learned this week that I have more will power than I ever imagined possible.  I have learned that when I put my mind to something and give myself a good reason to accomplish that something, I can move mountains on my way to doing it.  God has given me the strength to accomplish great things and I'm only now just realizing it. 

As I think back to the start of this journey I am amazed.  Mike Groom wasn't even on my radar and now I consider him one of my best online friends.  Christy Murphy was recovering from an accident and couldn't walk without assistance and now she has a goal to run a marathon.  Lilla have lost 20% of herself during this time period.  Joni has dedicated herself to her goals and has been making incredible progress.  Suzzette has been making huge changes in her appearance and her hard work is paying off.  Lynda has gotten very focused and is also making progress.  Debbie has made major physique changes and is motivating everyone else to do the same.  I could name something about every single shredder, but the fact is that everyone has done great and wonderful things.

Today was a great realization for me.  I am ready to conquer anything that is put in my way.  Tomorrow I am going to get my website completed.  It has been lingering for weeks.  It needs to be done so that I can get my eBook out and selling.  I can see now that there are people out there who need the information I have provided in this eBook.  I believe we are all providing an awesome pool of inspiration to alot of unnamed people.  Think of that the next time you think about quitting.

Accountability Log:

Nutrition Log:

Workout Log:

Thought for the Day:

I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength. (Philippians 4:13)

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts

Today was a fun day.  I started out doing the 300 workout with my trainer.  That was a tough workout for sure, but I enjoyed the change of pace alot.  I can see how that workout is building endurance and strength (see log below). 

In the middle of the day I taught my chess class.  I brought the new chess sets with me and the kids were extremely excited.  I'm happy because when I started the class (there are 40 kids), 30 of them didn't know the moves.  As of yesterday, only 10 still don't know all the moves and most of them are in Kindergarten or First Grade, so this is a good thing. 

I watched two awesome hockey games today.  Pittsburgh vs. New York was very exciting, with Pittsburgh coming back from a 3 goal deficit to win with just a bit more than a minute remaining in regulation.  Dallas vs. San Jose was also exciting, with San Jose tying the game with 3 minutes left to force overtime.  Dallas won the game a few minutes into overtime to take Game 1.

My workouts are starting to show some results in the area of muscle gain.  I am certain that those of you who have been watching my progress will be happy to know that I have definitely lost alot of fat this week and gained some muscle.  I have switched up how I am calculating my body fat percentage.  I am now using 3 methods and getting the average of those 3 methods.  This has brought my body fat percentage back up to a higher level, but I feel it is honestly more realistic.  What is interesting is how consistent each of the numbers has been all week long.  I guess I'm getting better at doing those types of measurements.

Please note my ratios today are different than the rest of the week. This part if the big secret to my experiment and I am really interested in how it affects my results for the entire week.  This day is where I made some major modifications to some other popular nutritional approaches to come up with something I think is spot on correct.

Accountability Log:

I'm amazed that I've managed to be 97.8% compliant during Mission 2 despite being sick for 2 weeks and missing alot of my marks during that time.

Nutrition Log:

NOTE:  Please do not think that I am playing games by keeping my nutritional information a secret during this time period.  I assure you that I've got everything logged and will be revealing what I did at the end of the experiment.  I just don't feel comfortable doing something as extreme as I am doing and revealing it to others UNTIL I can comment on how I would change things or do them differently.  I don't want others trying this until I'm sure of what I did.

Workout Log:

This 300 workout was tough.  It involves (obviously) 300 reps and you do these with no rest between exercises.  Lilla's buddy, Craig Ballantyne demonstrates this here.

Thought for the Day:

There are many factors that can be changed up to make a workout better.  Don't just stick to a few, try them all.

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts

Day 4 of The Experiment is done and over with.  The results so far are amazing.  I'm down alot of weight and fat all in just 4 days.  Sunday's Stats should be awesome.  I'm looking forward to it. 

All I can reveal at this point is that I've made a major adjustment to my protein and carb intake along with my fat intake.  You can see this if you look carefully at my Accountability Log and the macronutrient ratios I'm currently running.  I've borrowed ideas from several different places to come up with this approach and so far I'm happy with it.

My workout today was fun and a tough one.  I'm enjoying the mix of working with the trainer and doing the strength training.  It seems to be a good mix for my body.

I don't have alot to report on today.

Accountability Log:

Nutrition Log:

Workout Log:

Thought for the Day:

Time is something you never have enough of, so never waste it.

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts

Today I had a cardio only day.  It felt good to just get on the treadmill and go for 24 mniutes.  I'm amazed that I've lost 4 pounds so far since Sunday.  I've also slowed the LBM meltdown that was happening with my previous approach.  I still have some work to do in that area and so I'm slightly changing up my experiment–nothing major, just a move to keep the LBM intact.

I had a fitness test today.  First they did a ton of measurements and took blood.  Next they had me do push ups.  They had a bubble thing they put under your chest area and asked you to hit that with your chest for one complete push up.  I hit 63 push ups (amazed myself actually).  The woman said this was an all time record for them.  Next they put me on a treadmill at 3.0 mph and a 10.0 incline.  They had me walk for 3 minutes.  As I was walking she explained that at 3 minutes I had two options:  (1) get off the treadmill and be done with the test; or (2) up the speed to 6.0 mph and run another 3 minutes.  When she explained that not a single person had ever done the running part, I had to try it.  I completed the entire 6 minutes and ended up with a heart rate of 159.

The rest of the day was pretty routine stuff.  I had ordered 20 chess sets for the chess class I'm teaching and those arrived tonight.  I had to go through the box and confirm everything was there.  Tomorrow I will sort out the pieces into complete sets to deliver to the kids on Friday.  I also got a large demonstration board to help with the teaching.

Accountability Log:

Nutrition Log:

Workout Log:

Thought for the Day:

Trying new things is an effective way to burn more fat.  Keep trying new things!

Until tomorrow…GET BACK TO LIFTING!

Related Posts:

• No Related Posts