Joker's Journal of Change

J

jokerswild1130

0
Well I have taken the advice of some of the members on this site that I have had the luck to converse with a few times and decided to start my fitness journal. After successfully dieting in 2000 using Atkins, over the last 8 years I slowly allowed myself to slack and gain back the 40lbs. I decided back in August that it was time to get in shape. This led to me returning to the gym on a regular basis, and for a short period of time, doing cardio on a regular schedule. However, as all things do without discipline, this faded around the holidays and the most important compononent, the diet; never really was where it needed to be.

Fast forward to January 1st...the new year, time of the average american's New year's resolutions. This year I went along with the crowd and made a number of resolutions.

First, and most importantly, it was to yet again attempt to quit smoking. I quit January 2nd, and I am proud to say that today marks 52 days as a non smoker. I did have 2 little slipups, but neither lasted beyond a couple of drags. As I went through the drama of withdrawl, I found myself hitting the gym as an effort to combat cravings. I also quit drinking alcohol for the most part due to it being a prime factor the last 2 attempts at foiling my quitting attempts. (Note: Alchohol was used during both of my slipups as well.)

For the month of January I didnt focus on my diet, and allowed myself to use food to some extent to assist in fighting the urge to smoke. During this time, I was working out on a regular schedule and doing some cardio on a weekly basis. Once we moved into February, I felt that I have the smoking pretty much beat and it was time to begin to focus on the diet.

I determined my BMR and current calorie needs using some of the formulas present in the weight loss basics article. I also set up an account on Fitday.com to help track my daily calorie intake, protein, carbs, etc. I also purchased a fitness journal which I plan on bringing to the gym to record my lifts, weights used, and gains. Doing all of that I lost 10-15lbs. (the 5lbs fluctuates a bit)

Lastly, I was sick with the flu and fever for the last week and decided to take a week off from the gym while I completely revamp my workout and recover from the flu. I have decided after speaking to some people here, and a personal trainer I know, to move from my 4 day split workout to a 3x per week FBW.

I plan on hitting the gym tonight for the 1st time with the new workout (details below) weather permitting, and will update people on how it goes. We got hit with a snow storm this morning, and they are calling for freezing rain this evening, so a worst case scenario would be that the gym starts tomorrow.

Here are the details:

age: 33
height: 5'5
current weight: 205
goal weight: 165

current daily calorie needs: 3,110
daily target to lost 2lb per week: 2,100

calorie tracking:

current FBW workout plan:
3 workouts a week (Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday) alternating a,b,a,b, etc
2 HIIT workouts a week (Monday/Wednesday)
30 minutes of steady state cardio after the FBW

workout A
Squats 3x10
barbell shoulder press 3x10
Arnold press 3x10
bench (flat) 3x10
bent over rows 3x10
dumbell row 3x10

workout B
Deadlifts 3x10
Bench (incline) 3x10
seated row 3x10
pullups 3x10
Leg press 3x10
dumbell shoulder press 3x10

I welcome feedback, advice, positive thoughts, encouragement, etc. I will post some pics when I have some substantial changes to show.
 
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In terms of the diet:
I am trying to eat 4-6 smaller meals a day focusing around more lean protein, whole grains, and fruits. I started supplementing with creatine and recently picked up some whey protein to help get my protein intake at a higher level.

Every now and then I will cheat a tiny bit, usually when circumstances dont allow me to bring or eat my regular healthy lunch. I now feel as guilty about cheating on the diet as I did when I cheated and smoked a ciggarette which is definitely progress.

I have switched from white breads (except as an occasional treat) to whole grains or whole wheat breads. I also made the switch to whole wheat pasta as well.

I have basically cut all fast foods, with the exception of occassionally having a plain grilled chicken sandwich. I also plan on adding more homemade smoothies to my diet as well.

A sample day's diet for me looks like:
Breakfast: Kashi GoLean with fresh blueberries
Am snack: sliced apple
Lunch: 4-6oz of grilled chicken with whole wheat pasta
Pm snack: Protein bar
dinner: 6-8oz of lean beef grilled
evening snack: 1 tbs of peanut butter on toasted whole wheat bread
 
Hey joker, I saw that you want to add more smoothies to your diet. If that is the case I recommend getting a protein powder to add to it made of mostly micellar casein. It is a type of protein that is extremely slow absorbing and really fills you up well. I got mine at trueprotein.com, where you can just make your own mix of whatever you want, but I'm sure you can find it in a few other places. When I mix that with oatmeal it fills me up for a while. I also think in general you should add more protein to your diet. Good luck!
 
amp89 said:
Hey joker, I saw that you want to add more smoothies to your diet. If that is the case I recommend getting a protein powder to add to it made of mostly micellar casein. It is a type of protein that is extremely slow absorbing and really fills you up well. I got mine at trueprotein.com, where you can just make your own mix of whatever you want, but I'm sure you can find it in a few other places. When I mix that with oatmeal it fills me up for a while. I also think in general you should add more protein to your diet. Good luck!
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. I did buy whey protein from GNC to use to add some protein along with supplementing some protein bars as well. I will look into casein protein also.
 
After a week of being sick...tonight was my 1st day back in the gym and with a new workout to boot. I felt pretty exhausted after the workout and it was tough hanging in there to do my cardio.

Here are the weights from workout 1:
Deadlifts 3x10 175lbs
Bench (incline) 3x10 70lb dumbells
seated row 3x10 105,120,120
assisted pullups 3x10
Leg press 3x10 180, 270 270
dumbell shoulder press 3x10 60lbs
 
Got in there today (Saturday) and did 20 minutes of HIIT on the bike. 4 min warmup, 4 HIIT cycles and then 4 minutes cool down. Added another 35 minutes of low intensity cardio on the treadmill while watching the end of the Villanova v. Uconn basketball game. I made a shake this morning for brunch with protein powder, creatine, nonfat milk, a banana, a splash of OJ, and a tbs of lowfat plain yogurt.

I am trying to decide whether I would be best served doing my FBW on Mon/wed/fri or if I should keep a weekend workout in there.
 
if you have the spare days, what you could do would be a mon/wed/friday/sunday...then next week do a tues/thrs/sat/ then repeat the other one, that way you are working out every other day if you feel you would benefit more from a weekend workout
 
So I have been averaging between 1900-2200 calories a day in terms of intake with my BMR being 2700. I was sick for a while so after a week out of the gym, I started back on Friday. I am frustrated by the fact that despite eating healthier and tracking my calories to ensure a 500 cal daily deficit I still have not continued to lose weight. I plan on increasing the cardio and moving the daily intake down to 1800 cals a day to see if that has an impact.
 
Got my 2nd workout in this afternoon. By the end I was pretty wiped out but managed to get an additional 40 minutes on the treadmill for some steady state cardio. Grabbed a grilled chicken sandwich on my way home after the gym to get some protein and carbs in my after my workout.

Squats 3x10,8,8 185lbs
barbell shoulder press 3x10,8,7 135/155lbs
Arnold press 3x10 100/120lbs
bench (flat) 3x10,8,7 155lbs
bent over rows 3x10 135lbs
dumbell row 3x10 65lbs
 
Feeling a bit sore this morning. Made a protein shake with whey protein, creatine, fat free milk, and a banana this morning. Im going to try and get into the gym tonight for a HIIT workout. Checked the scale this morning...dropped the 5lbs I had put back on after being sick.
 
I went to the gym tonight for a cardio and HIIT night. Did 20 minutes of HIIT on the bike with 5 1min full sprint/2 min recovery cycles and 5 minutes of cooldown. Then added another 20 minutes on the treadmill at an easier but still fast pace. Came home and mixed some whey protein with water and a tbs of peanut butter to add some additional protein to my diet for the day.
 
I need to up my protein intake so I started the morning off with a protein shake and a Zone bar to start my day with a solid 50 grams of protein. Going to keep my calories between 1800-1900 this week to see if it jumpstarts the weight loss. At 2200 cals, I wasnt losing weight consistently so I plan on playing around with the cal intake and the macros till I find the right balance.
 
Got into the gym tonight for my FBW...
deadlifts 135, 185 185
incline hammer strength bench (prefer dumbells but the gym was packed) 140, 160, 180
assisted pullups
leg press 185, 270, 320, 320
shoulder press 65lb dumbells (up 5 lbs from last week)
seated rows 110, 120, 130
skipped my cardio this evening, but I wanted to get over to the hospital to see my new baby nephew who was born today. I figure I can make up the cardio later on this week...but a new addition to the family needs to come 1st. Grilling up some chicken now for lunch tommorow.
 
I am going to try and get into the gym tonight for some steady state cardio. If I do, its going to be a late night considering I am taking about 50 teenagers ice skating this evening as a reward for their participation in a program I manage. Just had some grilled chicken for lunch and really focused on cutting carbs and increasing my protein intake this week. I was happy to get a few compliments from my sister in law last night who noticed my weight loss. :)
 
It's really great and thoroughly rewarding when people notice your accomplishments. Funny thing about weight-loss...it's not something you can study for, buy with money or just wait patiently for, it's something you have to painstakingly earn each and every day.

And unlike smokers, drug-users or Republicans...food is something we can't just 'say no' to, it's something we have to face & deal with every day. Not easy.

Keep up the good work and just know that over time it'll get easier as you get further away from your old habits. If you're gym has a pool, I'd suggest getting some swimming in as your closing cardio. Few people use their upper-body for cardio and your muscles will at first freak when you ask them to perform work for minutes on end...but it'll really open ya up and help you build a strong upper-body. It's also a refreshing way to finish the night. You can get some good stretching in too!

The course; stay it! :D
 
BikeSwimLaugh said:
It's really great and thoroughly rewarding when people notice your accomplishments. Funny thing about weight-loss...it's not something you can study for, buy with money or just wait patiently for, it's something you have to painstakingly earn each and every day.

And unlike smokers, drug-users or Republicans...food is something we can't just 'say no' to, it's something we have to face & deal with every day. Not easy.

Keep up the good work and just know that over time it'll get easier as you get further away from your old habits. If you're gym has a pool, I'd suggest getting some swimming in as your closing cardio. Few people use their upper-body for cardio and your muscles will at first freak when you ask them to perform work for minutes on end...but it'll really open ya up and help you build a strong upper-body. It's also a refreshing way to finish the night. You can get some good stretching in too!

The course; stay it! :D
Click to expand...


Thanks BSL! As a former member of a swim team and lifeguard I am well aware of the benefits of a good pool workout. I actually try and get in the pool a few times a month for cardio as a nice alternative to the treadmill/bike option. Just checked the scale this morning and I am on track to lose another couple of pounds this week...by Sunday I could be down a total of 20lbs!
 
In the words of Borat....."Nice!!!.....a high five!!!!" :D

I'm feeling a bit lean today too. I set to have a check-up appt with the nutritionist/trainer next week....really hoping for some good numbers! ya think I should start a journal?
 
If you feel up to it. I have found it helping to keep me on track. I dont want to publicly mention how I skipped a workout here....cheated on the diet there, etc. Also a good way to get some feedback from others.
 
Got in for my FBW tonight along with 30 minutes of cardio.
bent rows 3 sets 135
db chest press 3 sets with 70lb dumbells
standing barbell shoulder press 3 sets 95 lbs
squats 4 sets 135, 155, 175, 195
dumbell rows 3 sets 70lbs
arnold presses 3 sets 120,130

had some baked chicken for dinner and then grilled up some chicken for lunch tomorrow.
 
Got into the gym this evening for 20 minutes of HIIT on the bike and an additional 20 minutes of SS cardio on the treadmill. Afterwards enjoyed my cheat meal for the week. Feeling pretty tired tonight....:beerchug:
 
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