It's Journal Time

[djm5255]

Hey all:
Long time lurker, first-time poster finally coming out the woodworks.

I have decided to get myself in shape after a few years of poor eating, lack of exercise and bad sleeping habits. I am currently 29 years old, 5'9, 251 lbs (Down from 257 lbs. on May 13, 2007). Up through college and grad school I was very active and always found time to hit the gym. Once I entered the real world, keeping in shape was no longer a priority as I became consumed with my job, family, etc. Because of the long hours I work, I found myself with little to no energy at the end of the day, and thus, had no desire to workout, which led to the weight I am at today. Moreover, due to my weight I have developed a painful lower back problem, which seems to flare up frequently). I am hoping that this problem goes away as I lose weight.

After going to the mall with my wife, and trying to find some work clothes, I realized that it was very difficult, if not impossible to find pants that fit (I have short legs, with a 42 inch waist-not a winning combo). As a result, I said enough is enough and decided to put an end to my lack of activity, poor eating habits and lack of sleep.

On May 13, 2007, my wife and I joined a local gym. Nothing special, but it has everything I need, and best of all, it has 24 hour access which is great for my schedule. After reading an endless number of posts on here, I was able to formulate a nutritional and workout plan.

Since starting my road to health on the 13th, I have been to the gym every day, and have had zero cheat meals. (This is a big accomplishment for me considering I have a raging sweettooth.)I have been consuming 6-7 protein-rich meals a day, consisting of about 3000 calories total, give or take. I have been drinking at least a gallon of water a day, and have lost six pounds since I began my journey.

My short term goal is to get down to 200 lbs. by Nov/Dec, and go from there. 200 may seem like a lot, but I have a fairly thick frame and I carry that amount of weight pretty well.

I am starting this journal to stay focused, which has not been a problem thus far, but may be in the future as the initial excitement about my new lifestyle wears off.

I have developed a workout schedule as follows:

Monday (legs)

Sets and reps for all exercizes 1x12; 1X10; 1X8; 1x6 (increasing weight for each set)

-Leg Press (squats really bother my back right now, so I'm sticking with these)
-Leg Extensions
-Hamstring Curls
-Standing Calf Raises
-Sitting Calf Raises

-30 to 40 minutes of steady-state cardio (usually elliptical or stationary bike)

Tuesday (Chest/Tris)

-Flat bench Dumbbell Press
-Incline Dumbbell Press
-Cable Cross-overs

-Close-Grip Bench
-Skull-Crushers
-Rope Pulldowns(I think that's what they are called)

-30 to 40 minutes of steady-state cardio

Wednesday (HIIT)

-20 to 25 minutes on the stationary bike, 30 second sprints followed by 30 at a medium pace

Thursday (Back and Biceps)

-Low Cable Row
-Lat Pulldowns
-Bent Over Rows
-Back Extensions

-Straight Bar Barbell Curts
-Incline Dumbbell Curs
-Hammer Curls

-No cardio today

Friday (HIIT)-same as above

Saturday (Shoulders and Abs)

-Military Press
-Side Lateral Raises
-Rear Lateral Raises
-Dumbbell Shrugs

-Ab crunches

Sunday - Steady State Cardio or Rest


A typical day of eating looks like this:

8:00 a.m.
-6 egg whites (scrambled)
-2 slices of 100% whole wheat bread
-1 tablespoon of natty pb
-2 fish oil capsules

10:30 a.m.
-2 slices of 100% whole wheat bread
-4 oz. sliced turkey
-1 tablespoon of non-fat mayo
-Piece of fruit (apple, orange, grapes)

1:00 p.m.
-8 oz. chicken breast
-1/2 cup veggies (green beans, greens, peas)
-2 fish oil capsules

4:00 p.m
-1/2(dry) cup oatmeal
-1/4 cup raisins
-Whey Protein shake

7:00 p.m.
-4 oz. sliced turkey or lean ham
-1 slice of whole wheat bread
-fat free mayo
-1/2 carrots

8:00 p.m.(Workout)

9:30 p.m. (PWO Protein Shake,banana)

10:00 p.m.
-8-10 oz. lean protein (Round steak, chicken breast, fish)
-1/2 brown rice
-other vegetable

11:30 p.m.
-3/4 cup non-fat cottage cheese
-1/2 sliced peaches
-2 fish oil caps
-1 tablespoon natty pb.

So there it is. My goal is to continue to lose weight and retain muscle. I want to be healthy and fit into normal size clothing. Also, I want to take the stress off of my lower back which has been a problem for a few years. I plan on keeping track of my meals and workouts.

Any input would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

[TheKansan]

I am inpressed. Your plan is thorough and well thought out. I wish you and your wife good luck.

[djm5255]

I am inpressed. Your plan is thorough and well thought out. I wish you and your wife good luck.

Thanks. Same to you!

I'm off to the gym to do some cardio. In the past I would be at happy hour pounding beers. Not anymore.

[djm5255]

Well, I did my HIIT cardio on the stationary bike tonight. Started off with a 3 minute warmup. Did thirty second intervals of sprints followed by thirty seconds of medium paced pedaling for the next 23 minutes. Finished off with a four minute cool down. Man, my legs were burning and I was sucking air at the end. Not to mention I was sweating like Patrick Ewing at the end of a double OT game. Ran up to the store and grabbed some more botted water and came home and pounded a protein shake and had a handful of strawberries.

Made dinner tonight: Whole Wheat Pasta w/Meat Sauce using 96% lean ground beef. It might not seem like the best meal healthwise, but it was pretty good as far as I'm concerned.

550 calories; 10 grams of fat; 57 grams of carbs; 56 grams of protein. All in all not too bad.

Macros for the day:

Cals: 2534(a bit low, I know); Protein-42%(257 grams); Carbs-34%(246 grams); Fats-24%(66 grams)

Going golfing tomorrow afternoon, and plan to hit the gym afterwards. Shoulder, abs and cardio on the plate.

[djm5255]

Went golfing today. Ate completely clean. Hit the gym and did a pretty solid shoulder workout. Also did abs and 40 minutes on the elliptical averaging about a 140 heartrate. Been eating clean for two weeks with no cheats whatsoever and not really having any cravings. Tomorrow is a planned day off. May go golfing and may also hit the gym for a bit of cardio.

[djm5255]

Sunday was my off day. I was still able to get some exercise in by walking 9 holes with a heavy golf bag. Felt pretty good afterwards. Kept the eating clean, even while my wife made me take her to Dairy Queen for a Blizzard. I got a water. Didn't even have as much as a taste of the blizzard. That was tough.

Monday: Weigh-in day. Down to 247.5. I'm concerned that I'm losing weight a bit too fast, so I'm going to up my calories by a few hundred. Better than not losing at all, but I don't want to lose muscle at this point in time. Ate well and finished the day off with a killer leg workout which consisted of hack squats, leg presses, leg extensions, leg curls, standing calf raises and sitting calf raises. Just downed by PWO shake and am enjoying some oats w/raisins and walnuts. Tasty. Will get one more meal in before dinner and a bit of cottage cheese.

Tomorrow's workout is chest and tris.

[cawiau]

Don't worry to much about the quick weight loss.
At the beginning you do tend to lose weight quicker than usual.
After time it slows down

[djm5255]

Tuesday:
Ate well today. No cheats and lots of water. I'll be waking up a few times in the middle of the night to make pee pee.

Here is my meal intake for the day:

Meal 1 6 egg whites; whole wheat waffle; 1 tablespoon Natty PB. (2 fish oil caps)

Meal 2 1 slice 100% whole wheat bread; 3 oz. lean roast beef

Meal 3 1 can albacore tuna; 2 slices 100% whole wheat bread; 5 oz.s raw mushrooms

Meal 4 (Pre workout) - 1/2 cup dry oatmeal; 1/4 raisins; 1/4 walnuts; protein shake

Meal 5 (Post workout) - 1 banana; protein shake

Meal 6 8 oz. chicken breast; 1/2 cup brown rice; 1 cup of romaine lettuce; 10 asparagus spears; 10 cherry tomatos; 3 tablespoons of lite vinagrette dressing (2 fish oil caps)

Meal 7 3/4 cup non-fat cottage cheese; 1 tablespoon of Natty PB.


Had a solid workout at the gym. Hit the chest and tris hard followed by 30 minutes on the elliptical. Although I've only been at it a few weeks, I have noticed an increase in energy. Also, my clothing is looser and more comfortable. I am determined to keep losing and get down to around 200. I still have a long way to go, but I know I can do it.

[djm5255]

Wednesday:

Was running late this morning so I didn't have time to make my eggs as per usual. I grabbed a protein bar and an apple along with my other consumables for the day. It is fortunate that I have a mini-fridge in my office so as not to have an excuse to bring food to work and to eliminate the risk of the ever-infamous office food thief. I will track my meals as I go along, with frequent updates.

Meal 1: Pure Protein bar and one large apple. (315 cals; 20 g protein; 51 carbs; 6 g of fat) + 2 fish oil caps

Meal 2: 3 oz's of lean roast beef and 1 slice of whole wheat bread. (240 cals; 25 g protein; 21 g carbs; 8 g fat) + 2 fish oil caps

Meal 3: 1 can albacore tuna, 2 slices of whole wheat bread and 1/2 cup of raw mushrooms (384 cals; 51 g carbs; 43 g carbs; 6 g fat)

[djm5255]

Well:
I've been slacking on keeping up the journal, but not on my diet and hitting the gym which is good.

Thursday: Hit the back and biceps followed by 25 minutes of cardio on the elliptical. Ate well, but I only hit about 2400 calories, which is low for me.

Friday: Today was a scheduled HIIT day, but I decided to make it my day off instead and move HIIT to Sunday. I strained a muscle in my upper-back between my shoulder blades that is fairly annoying, but I"ll live. Due to my lack of activity, I kept the calories at 2300. Still no cheats, which I am proud of.

Saturday: Had a breakfast of 5 egg whites, 3/4 cup oatmeal, 1/4 raisins, 1/4 walnuts.

My back is still sore, but I'm going to go do my shoulder workout, some abs and some cardio.

[djm5255]

Update time:

I've been slammed at work, and haven't had much time to keep up with the journal. However, I am still hitting the gym and eating well. I will say that I might not be getting enough calories, as I am having problems getting 6 meals in. I'm getting 5 plus a protein shake, which is making me come up short on my calories by a few hundred. Nonetheless, this has been a good week in the gym. Hit the legs really hard on Monday and chest and triceps on Tuesday followed by 30 minutes on the elliptical. I have to go out of town for work on Thursday, so I am going to move my back and biceps workout to today so that I can do some cardio at the hotel on thursday and take my off day on Friday. I don't necessarily like lifting three days in a row, but it will have to work. My biggest concern is going to be eating properly. I plan on packing some healthy foods to take with me, but nonetheless, I will hit up a grocery store if the need arises. I'm not going to let this get in the way of the progress I've made thus far. As of this morning I'm down to 244, so I'm pleased. My pants are definitely loose, and I think I may need to grab a few new pair. However, I'm hesitant to spend too much money on clothing as I plan on losing quite a bit more weight and never again needing to wear the sizes I'm at now. Thanks for reading.

[djm5255]

Time for another update. Well, I have to say that last week was a bit challenging as far as keep up with the diet goes. I had to travel out of town for work on Thursday and Friday, but did a pretty good job of eating clean. Again, my calories were a bit low, but I was able to get 5 meals in a day. I took my rest day on Thursday, as I was exhausted since I woke up at 5:30 and didn't get done working until around 11 p.m. Friday was also a full day, but as soon as I got home, I changed, hopped in the car and went straight to the gym. Granted, it wasn't the greatest workout I've had, but better than sitting on my ass. Saturday was a solid eating and workout day, and Sunday was HIIT day. I hit the HIIT pretty hard, and was exhausted afterwards. So naturally, I decided to mow the lawn right after HIIT. Bad idea. I was hurting at the end for sure.

I weighed myself this morning and am down to 242.2, which is almost 16 lbs. in a month. I continue to get compliments from friends and co-workers about the weight loss. I am still working toward my goal of 200, and am not stopping until I've reached it. Wednesday will be the one-month mark since I started training and eating properly. I am proud to say that I've had zero cheats in that time period. I now satisfy my sweettooth with oats mixed with raisins and a packet or two of splenda. Better than scarfing down a candy bar. Well, I will continue to update as I continue my journey.

[djm5255]

Well I haven't updated in over a week, so here goes the condsensed version:

All in all, I've stayed the course with my diet and workout. The only stray was on Saturday night where I had planned to do shoulders and cardio, but due to the fact that I ended up playing in a poker tournament until midnight (finished 3 out of 150, yeah!), and didn't get to the gym until 1:00 a.m., I just decided to do a 40 minute shoulder workout and call it a night.

I do find that I am having problems getting all my calories in on the weekends, as I generally stay up quite late on Friday and Saturday night, and sleep until noon or one on Saturday and Sunday. It makes it difficult to get all my meals in. Perhaps I should set an alarm and wake up and eat and go back to sleep.

Well the good news is that I continue to gain strength and continue to lose weight. I am down to 239, which is the first time I've been below 240 in a year or so. I'm happy with my progress and am still focused on my goal of 200. Still haven't had a true cheat meal, nor have I had the desire to do so. In a weird sort of way, I like to torture myself by putting myself in situtations where there is junk food, just so I can turn it down. I'm a glutton for punishment.

The bad news is that I have done something to my right shoulder in the midst of all this working out. It's weird since it's not effecting any of my lifts, nor does it really bother me when I'm lifting. It's more a dull pain aching pain that I'm aware of whenever I'm not in the gym. It's actually effecting my sleep, as it is quite bothersome. If it doesn't improve within the next few days I'm going to have to go see a doctor.

That's all for now. I am planning on posting some update pictures in the new few days.

[djm5255]

Well my diet hasn't been as good as I'd like for it to be the last few days. I've been relying on too many protein shakes and not enough solid food. My macros are still pretty good, but I don't feel the same satisfaction with the shakes as I do with food. Did a chest and triceps workout the other day and my right shoulder is killing me right now. I think my rotator cuff is getting messed up from close grip bench press. I enjoy doing them, but am going to lay off them for a few weeks to see if that helps my shoulder out.

[djm5255]

Well here's my semi-weekly update:

So I finally gave in a bit on Saturday and had a few adult beverages. Had 6 rum and diet cokes, but kept the diet pretty clean. I know it wasn't good for me to drink, but I needed to let loose a bit as work has been quite stressful. Got back on track with a good workout on Sunday, Monday and a really good chest/tris workout last night. I tried something a bit different on Monday with my leg workout. I've been doing most of my leg exercises one-legged, i.e. one legged leg press, extensions, curls, etc. I really feel it a lot more than with using both legs.

My weight loss rate is decreasing, but my clothes continue to get looser and looser. My lifts are increasing as well, so that may be a sign that I am putting muscle on, while losing fat. I'm still having some issues with my right shoulder, but not as bad as they have been. Weighed in at 237.6 this morning, so the prgoress does continue.

My brother and his wife are coming in this weekend for the wedding of a mutual friend that we will all be attending. I am pretty sure i will have a few drinks at the wedding. Tonight is HIIT night. My legs are still sore from my leg workout, so we'll see how that goes.

[djm5255]

It's been a while since I've updated. Things have pretty much gone according to plan. I will say that I've become less strict about my diet as far as counting calories and macros. I have a good idea as to what I'm putting into my body, but find that it's less stressful to not have to count constantly. The good news is that I weighed in at 230 on the dot this morning. I feel good and was able to go out and buy a new pair of pants two sizes smaller than what I wore before. I am about halfway to my goal of 200, which I hope to achieve by November or December. Last week I posted some progress pictures in my bodyspace in case anyone is interested. Will probably post some more pictures in the near future.