My get fit + get into shape diary

turbot · 05-12-2006 12:01am #1

I only discovered this section on boards today, so I'm going to begin a fitness diary here; to motivate me, to share my progress, and keep me more focussed.

Me + my background:

I'm a 28 year old guy, almost 29. I weighed myself last week, on the 25th of November and clocked in at 106 kg. I'm about 6ft 3, and fairly broad shoulders.

Basically, for the last few years, and especially recently, by my standards I am fat. Aside from not being able to fit into my 34 inch waist trousers and look good in them, of which I have many pairs (I'll comfortably wear 38inch / 40 inch now) and having folds, I was recently on holiday and some rather motivating friends basically said I'd put on a lot of weight on and one person said I was looking more and more like a certain person I really don't like, who happens to be obese.

When I was 18 years old, to the age of about 21, I was in pretty good shape. I trained 5 days a week + and used to go to the gym, run 5 miles, then do a two hour workout. Girls in school would feel my muscles. I loved it, and felt really good about myself.

While I can reframe and ignore my current body state, this doesn't really make me feel better, so now I'm ultra determined to get in shape, and I'm fed up feeling fat.

My optimal body weight is 85 - 88kgs.

So I have a goal: one of my best friends is getting married in mid February, which is about 11 weeks away, with x-mas in between.

So my first goal is to get myself into decent shape for this wedding, and lose the fat. And from there, get fit including some body building.

So my aim is to reach 88kg by mid february, or lose 18 kgs, or approximately 40lbs to lose, and if I include Christmas and some bad behaviour the a few days over christmas and on new years eve, I have to lose 4lbs bodyfat a week.

I recognise this is an ambitious aim...

I have a lot to benefit by achieving this:

1) I will increase the number of nice clothes I look good in, that I own, and can fit into, by about 200%.

2) I will probably dramatically increase my energy, vitality, confidence and well being by achieving this

3) I envisage this will directly translate to more action with women

***************************************************

Methodology:

It is my intention to stack everything (wise) that will help me achieve this goal together, revolving around the following principles:

1) Strictly adhere to a Low GL Diet

2) Take a range of supplements to help me balance my blood sugar levels and sustain my energy while avoiding caffiene

3) Drink a range of smart teas

4) Train hard and methodically, including to do at least 30 minutes semi-intense cardio 6 days a week, with my real plan to be to do 60+ minutes cardio, and rotate a fat burning weights circuit on top of that working (1/3 of that specified in the awesome book, the body doctor) and rotate this every three days to make for a decent 90 minute - 2 hour workout. This basically consists of doing a load of exercises using mid-weights slowly, to tone, assist muscle mass, and speed metabolism.

5) Use a range of NLP + Hypnosis + Meditation techniques (that I've studied a lot) to keep myself focussed and to help me make the most of my workouts

6) Post regular summaries of whats relevant here, including some kind of weigh in every friday or so.

So here goes! Your comments are welcomed.

Frequent · 05-12-2006 11:20am

I really admire your determination and it's clear that you've thought this through very well, but is this something you can maintain? 6 nights a week is pushing it a little. I wish you the absolute best of luck, but 2 months seems like an awfully short time to achieve such a massive goal.

Maybe I'm wrong, but this is almost a crash approach, and it is possible that you could pile all the weight back on again after the wedding.

turbot · 06-12-2006 10:18am

Here is a relevant summary of what I did yesterday:

Sleep:

3 1/2 hours : Slept at 4.30am and got up at 8am.
3 hours: Slept at 7pm and got up at 10pm.

(This is an area I can do better).

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

Multi-Grain Ryvita + Hummus
Multi-Grain Ryvita + organic bologneise style sauce

Drank 1+ pint of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
Drank 1 pint of water (60%) and apple juice 40%.

Late lunch + late dinner:

Organic Spaghetti bologneise made using egg pasta with veg

Drank a litre and a half of water 60% + 40% diluted apple juice
Drank 2 weak cups of good coffee with xylitol

I did not consume my vitamin stack yesterday (which I will describe later) :-(

Well Being
Had a vortex healing session.
Listened to a hypnosis CD

Learning
- Got a range of advice on the smartest training techniques from my sisters boyfriend.
- Researched fat loss supplements such as Xenadrine EFX / Hydroxycut. My intention is to avoid these because of large caffiene contents and adverse effects on well being / adrenal glands!
- Read through approaches for fat loss and weight loss

Exercise
- Did not make it to gym

Progress:

I clarified a range of training techniques + goals I intend to apply and achieve with my sisters boyfriend:
- Train earlier in the day - First thing in the morning preferably
- Train by running 5kms each day, with my target time to reach being running 5kms in 20 minutes.
- Then do 20+ minutes of x-trainer / rowing machine /
(using intervals of 4 minutes acceptable intensity and 1 minute very high intensity).

I usefully concluded, for now, for me, products advertised as Fat Loss Catalysts are not the way to go, because of their high stimulant content

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to restore a decent sleeping cycle
- I need to organise my PC (and stuff more) to enable better use of my time and avoid time being wasted

- Bologeneise, despite it being the healthiest way of eating it, is not energy food, and left me feeling bloated so this is something to eat less of in future
- I need to be more ahead of myself so that when I wake up, I have the space to train first thing, instead of having to focus on work (which yesterday was then delayed due to PC issues).

Next 24 hour goals:

- Go to gym + run 5km + apply body doctor workout to upper body
- Measure my weight and bodyfat
- Stick to Low GL Diet
- Prep to train earlier in the morning
- Take vitamins
- Record custom self hypnosis audio to help me focus
- Meditate for same reason

justsomebloke · 06-12-2006 11:42am

hey good look with the weight loss, however 4lbs a week is too much weight to be losing every week, you should be looking to lose 2-3lbs a week at most. In the first couple of weeks you can lose more due to fact that quite a bit of it will probably be excess water loss.
So don't try and do too much or you may end up actaully achieving less, yes i know you want to look good for the wedding however you should be more worried about how you are going to look for the rest of your life, so stick with a level that will help you maintain the fat loss as long as possible, if not the rest of your life

turbot · 07-12-2006 10:02am

Here is a relevant summary of what I did yesterday on Wed 6 Decemebr:

Sleep:

3 1/2 hours : Slept at 5am and got up at 8am.
3 hours: Slept at 5:30pm and got up at 8pm.

(This I must improve).

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

Multi-Grain Ryvita + Hummus

Drank 1+ pint of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
Drank 1 pint of water (60%) and apple juice 40%.
Drank 1 coffee with xylitol + Organic Goats milk

Late lunch

Went to a meeting for a drawn out pub lunch...
Over the course of 4 hours I ate
One club sandwich
Drank 2 cups of coffee with 2 sugars each

Snack - had a granny smith apple.

Late dinner:

I had a plate of mixed chow mein.

I did not consume my vitamin stack yesterday (which I will describe later) :-(

Well Being
Went to a meditation group.

Learning
- Nothing of particular relevance to fitness

Exercise
- Did not make it to gym (my meeting went on for hours too long.... twas a delayed day :-(

Progress:

- The meditation part got rid of some stress
- Although being out for most of the day, my diet + the food I consumed was not too bad
- I became more aware I have to orient my routine to permit time to train properly in the morning, which in practice is sometimes interrupted by impending deadlines

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

As yesterday:

- I need to restore a decent sleeping cycle (did this last night)
- I need to organise my PC (and stuff more) to enable better use of my time and avoid time being wasted
- I need to be more ahead of myself so that when I wake up, I have the space to train first thing, instead of having to focus on work (which yesterday was then delayed due to PC issues).
- Clearly schedule for myself when I will go the gym

Next 24 hour goals:

- Work hard + productively to get ahead of myself
- Go to gym, today, at 5pm + run 5km + do 20 mins Interval X-Training + apply body doctor workout to upper body.

- Measure my weight and bodyfat
- Stick to Low GL Diet
- Take vitamins
- Record custom self hypnosis audio to help me focus, get to the gym, stick to optimal diet, get ahead of myself
- Meditate for same reason

turbot · 08-12-2006 9:50am

My "optimised" way of making porridge that I think is yum is:

Into a pot put

1) Lots of organic oats (a mug full)
2) Two tablespoons of organic natural yoghurt
3) A shredded apple
4) A tablespoon each of organic sunflower, pumpin and linseeds / flaxseeds that have just been ground up
5) 100grams of chopped fresh strawberries
6) A teaspoon each of organic sunflower, pumpin and linseeds (non ground)
7) A small sprinkle of xylitol (a sugar alternative)
8) Enough boiling water to make it all a soft consistency
9) A small sprinke of sultanas
10) Sometimes some mixed nuts
11) A half tea spoon of cinnamon

Then mix it all up and stir it on a medium heat for 5 minutes, and then put a lid on and turn it down and let it continue to heat gently for 30 mins.

As it is served, you can put more xylitol + goats milk over the top if you prefer.

This is really really yum - and the ingredients, except for the small amount of rasins that to taste nice, are optimised for low glycaemic load.

If I only have some of the ingredients at anyone point in time, I just use those.

I find this to be very warming and filling, and the beneficial metabolic effects are obvious.

turbot · 08-12-2006 10:01am

Here is a relevant summary of what I did yesterday on Thurs 7 Decemebr:

Sleep:

7 hours: Went to sleep at 1am, got up at 8am
1 hour: Siesta @ 1.30 pm for an hour

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

3 pcs Multi-Grain Ryvita + Hummus

Vitamin Stack (to be described)

A bowl of "power porridge" - recipe described above (except no strawberries or sultanas) at 10.30 am,

Drank 2+ pints of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
Drank 2 cups of Yerba Mate

Late lunch

I had another bowl of power porridge

Late dinner:

10pm - I had some good quality king prawn fried rice, with some noodles, soy sauce, natural yoghurt, and lots of lightly cooked broccoli.

I had more Puerrhh Tea + more Yerba Mate

Well Being
While I didn't record a hypnotic trance for myself per se, I did do some very useful self hypnosis

Learning
- Nothing of particular relevance to fitness

Exercise
- Did not make it to gym (as I was about to leave, my little sister called and really needed my help with something ) :-(

Progress:

- The self hypnosis part really got rid of some stress
- My diet and the food I consumed was pretty good in and low GL

- I became even more aware I have to orient my routine to permit time to train properly in the morning, which in practice is sometimes interrupted by impending deadlines and/or staying up too late!

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

As yesterday:

- I need to organise my PC (and stuff more) to enable better use of my time and avoid time being wasted
- I need to be more ahead of myself so that when I wake up, I have the space to train first thing, instead of having to focus on work (which yesterday was then delayed due to PC issues).
- I need to clearly schedule for myself when I will go the gym

Next 24 hour goals:

- Work hard + productively to get ahead of myself
- Go to gym, today + run 5km + do 20 mins Interval X-Training + apply body doctor workout to upper body.
- Organise my stuff more

- Measure my weight and bodyfat
- Stick to Low GL Diet
- Take vitamins
- Record custom self hypnosis audio to help me focus, get to the gym, stick to optimal diet, get ahead of myself
- Meditate for same reason

turbot · 09-12-2006 4:36pm

Sleep:

6 hours: Went to sleep at 2am, got up at 8am

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I took my Vitamin Stack

I made a bowl of "power porridge" recipe described above (except no strawberries or sultanas) though I didn't eat it until 12, which was a mistake.

Drank 2 cups of Yerba Mate
Drank 2+ pints of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk

Late lunch

I had a toasted club sandwich.
I had more Puerrhh Tea +

Late dinner:

9.30pm - I had an indian dish at a restaurant, consisting of rice, prawns, chicken, lamb - which was rather tasty. I only drank water with my meal. .

Late dinner:

Snack - I ate a few bits of chocolate ( 5 after eights, and prob a bar of chocolate + a 3 biscuits) at my friends house, over the course of a few hours.. around 2 - 5 am.

Well Being
I went to a friends house and did a really cool fire + meditation ceremony ... as well as drinking chinese high quality tea, and some hibiscus tea.

Learning
- I did some research on alkalizing diets, to estalbish which supplements were best, and read some amazing accounts of people losing 1/2lb a day by alkalizing, with the principle being that fat often binds up unhealthy substances, so to get rid of it, a serious detox is neccessary, just as much as exercise and smart good.

- I also uncovered that some of these companies are not very ethical - for example - there was one site that seemed to independently review various supplements, and when I looked up the domain name owners, it was registered to the company who's products got all the best reviews.

Exercise
- I did various stretching exercises, and some ab exercises

Progress:

- My diet and the food I consumed was pretty good in and low GL
- The combined meditation was fantastic
- I made serious progress in organising my stuff - and yet there is more to do
- I achieved a really strong sense of well being last night..

- I became even more aware I have to orient my routine to permit time to train properly in the morning, which in practice is sometimes interrupted by impending deadlines and/or staying up too late!

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to clearly schedule for myself when I will go the gym
- I need to change my habits where this is a negotiable option; for example yesterday I spent most of my day with my mum, and didn't get to go before hand.
- I figured out some useful approaches using alkalization to support my process
- I need to recognise that may b

Next 24 hour goals:

In practice, because my mum is visiting, I wont get to my gym before it closes at 6 ;-(

So - either way I will:
- Work hard + productively to get ahead of myself
- Schedule to go the gym tommorow
- Organise my stuff more
- Stick to Low GL Diet
- Take vitamins
- Drink more water + detox fluids (I've seen various alkalizing-diets reccomend 6 litres a day... because of how it enables a profound detox that also leads to fat loss!)

And tommorow I must:

- Measure my weight and bodyfat
- Record custom self hypnosis audio to help me focus, get to the gym, stick to optimal diet, get ahead of myself, detox more

turbot · 10-12-2006 2:03pm

Sleep:

7 1/2 hours: Went to sleep at 7am, got up at 2:30pm

2 1/2 hours: Slept at 10pm, woke up @ 12:30am

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I took my Vitamin Stack

I drank 1+ pints of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
I drank about a litre of water 60% with apple juice (40%)

Dinner

Late dinner:

8.30pm - I had a beefhotput with mashed potatoes, a slice of wholemeal bread and some water.

Snack:

2am - I had some oat cakes with an avocado, and a few more with some hummus and a 1/2 piece of ham.

I drank more diluted apple juice.
I drank about a litre of hibiscus tea w/ xylitol

Well Being
I listened to two motivational CDs, which left me, ahem, motivated.

Learning
- Nothing relevant

Exercise
- I walked about 3 miles
- I did various stretching exercises

Progress:

- Again, I spent hours organising several things that will speed everything else up

- I became even more aware I have to orient my routine to permit time to train properly in the morning, which in practice is sometimes interrupted by impending deadlines and/or staying up too late!

- I really am feeling more of a sense of well being and energy

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to clearly schedule for myself when I will go the gym

Next 24 hour goals:

Today, my plan is to:

- Go to the gym and do a decent workout (including a 5km run)
- Measure my weight and bodyfat

- Drink six litres of water / healthy detoxing fluids
- Listen to another motivational CD
- Record a self hypnosis audio CD
- Continue with organising my life more - to buy me more time in general

LundiMardi · 10-12-2006 2:12pm

Hey, good luck with this..

I have to say though, it really does seem that you're not eating enough, from what i'm reading you're only really having one meal(what i would consider a meal) a day and then something small for breakfast and then again in the evening. This won't really help your metabolism and definitely will not help with the weightloss you aim to achieve.

Also, you haven't been able to make it to the gym as yet, what are the reasons for this? Why the messed up sleeping pattern?

Obviously you don't have to answer, just curious is all;)

brianthebard · 10-12-2006 2:27pm

I was wondering about the sleep patterns too, is it a polyphasic system your using?

turbot · 10-12-2006 7:18pm

LundiMardi + BrianTheBard,

Thanks for your comments.

BTW, to anyone reading this, your comments are most welcome. They help keep me in check.

Publishing my intentions and my progress has helped me keep focussed, and at least apply good nutrition ;-) So I'd reccomend it if you're considering.

LundiMardi;
Somedays I don't eat enough, often during the first part of the day. This is rarely intentional; and often caused by impending deadlines, or several distractions in a row.

BrianTheBard + LundiMardi, I don't know what a polyphasic system is, and there is no particularly cool name to describe my sleeping pattern, except that I don't have a regular one. This is something that has evolved from:

1) Working for myself and often finding I can get more stuff done at night
2) Semi-frequently having projects with tight deadlines that I stay up to do
3) Having a variety of friends who party pretty hard - for example, it's not unusual for me to go out at say 10:30pm, and only return the next day at 9am, or even 3 or 4 in the afternoon. This is often good fun, though throws my out of a pattern.

Overall, this is another area I'm intending to improve, and for a long time it seemed quite useful, though some mentors of mine have convinced me that a proper pattern is the way to go.

As to why I haven't gone to the gym as much as I'd intended:

- In the morning, I've often had urgent deadlines for work I need to complete, so can't justify doing a 2 hour work out until it's done.
- In the evening, I do various meditation practices, and/or someone visits, meaning that my available time to train doesn't correlate with the gyms opening hours.

I know I can do better and I intend to.

turbot · 10-12-2006 7:57pm

So today I did a weigh in.

The last time I weighed myself was on the 25th of November, and I clocked 106.2 kg. I didn't measure my bodyfat at this point.

Today, I weighed myself, and clocked 104.0 kg. I also checked my bodyfat, which is 34 %, measured electronically.

So in just over 2 weeks, I've dropped 2.2kg.
I can calculate (though not measure) that by doing so, I've reduced by bodyfat from 36% to 34%, which is a 2% difference!

Subjectively, I feel like I've increased lean muscle mass, though I have no way of measuring this yet.

The only other indicator of progress is my belt buckle, which I would now naturally close using the 2nd last hole from the end (better than the last hole, which was the case 2 weeks ago). The difference is about an inch.

Given that during this time, I've really only exercised moderately and eaten a good diet, this is a step in the right direction, though not quite as big a step as I'd hoped.

From I personal pespective, I'm pleased that in the last 2 weeks, I've massively reduced my intake of coffee / caffiene / chocolate / sugar / non-nutritious food.

If I sustain my recent activities and rate of progress, then it will take me another 16 weeks to achieve my goal, which in my world seems like a long time.

Thus, I'm going to do my utmost to combine my low GL nutrition plan with drinking lots of alkalzing / detoxing drinks, and doing a decent amount of exercise each day, meaning that I must burn at least an extra 1000 calories during my workout.

A workout to achieve this would be a 5km run, and then 30 mins on an x-trainer on high (doing interval training) and then do a set of weights, which I hope will double my rate of progress and leave me fitter and more toned also.

turbot · 12-12-2006 2:43am

Health + Fitness Diary: Sunday 10 December

Sleep:

7 hours: Went to sleep at 6:30am, got up at 1:30pm

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I took my Vitamin Stack (to be described soon)

I drank a pint of hibiscus tea.

For breakfast I made 3 1/2 scrambled eggs, with lightly friend onions and mushrooms, served on organic oat cakes; a low GL breakfast for sure.

I also drank 1 pint of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
Over the next few hours I also I drank about a litre of water 60% with apple juice (40%)

Dinner

I had an apple. I also drank a half litre of water during my workout.

At 6:30pm, I also had 2 x Xenadrine EFX pills, which are a fat loss catalyst.
They made me really hyper.

Late dinner:

At 10:30 pm, I had some basmati rice, with two lightly cooked tuna steaks, mixed with soy sauce, 1 shredded cucumber, and some organic yoghurt.

(This is derived from a russian recipe using rice + soy sauce + sour cream and you should try it - it's a really tasy way to eat rice).

I then drank another pint of Pu-errh Tea with xylitol.

Then, to help calm myself down from the Xenadrine, I drank a litre of organic honeybush tea with some madagascan vanilla. It helped!

Well Being

Again - I did some exercises that put me in a good mood - basically writing down 100 things in my life that I really appreaciated. This made me feel really good. I'd reccomend it.

Learning
- Nothing relevant, except that based upon my weigh in (having lost 2kgs in 2 weeks, I had to up the intensity of my workouts).

Exercise
- I ran 2 1/2km at the gym + did some ab work
- I did various stretching exercises

Progress:

- Well, I did a weigh in, and it seems as in my last post, I've lost 2kgs, and dropped 2 % bodyfat in two weeks, which is going in the right direction.

- The combination of eating well / meditation / self hypnosis and avoiding crap foods really is making me feel better.

- I became more determined to do more exercise to reach my goals
- I'm more habitually organising my space - which is helping lots

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to use more of my time more constructively
- If I take Xenadrine, I need to do something with all the energy it releases, otherwise I get so hyper it's disfunctional
- I've resolved to drink 6 litres of fluid a day, to boost my energy and help me detox.

Next 24 hour goals:

My plan was to:

- Go to the gym and do a decent workout (including a 5km run)

- Drink six litres of water / healthy detoxing fluids
- Listen to another motivational CD
- Continue with organising my life more - to buy me more time in general

turbot · 13-12-2006 12:28pm

Health + Fitness Diary: Monday 11 December

Sleep:

7 hours: Went to sleep at 5:30am, got up at 12:30pm

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I took my Vitamin Stack (to be described soon)

I drank 1 litre of Honeybush Tea.

For breakfast I made oatcakes with hummus, and finished off my rice with Tuna dish.

I also drank 1 pint of Puerrh Tea with Xylitol + Organic Goats milk
Over the next few hours I also I drank about a litre of water 60% with apple juice (40%)

I had another 2 x Xenadrine EFX's.

Dinner

I had an apple. I also drank a half litre of water during my workout.

I had another pint of Pu-eerh Tea, plus 6g of creatine mixed with water and apple juice.

At 7:30pm, I also had 2 x Xenadrine EFX pills, and a maximuscle cyclone bar.

I drank another litre of water, and then had another maximuscle cylcone bar.

Late dinner:

At 11:30 pm, I made a salad consisting of shredded cucumber, organic carrot, red onion, green beans, with flaxseed oil, hummus and lemon juice.
I also made a chicken paella, with lots of veg that was yum.

I then drank another pint of Pu-errh Tea with xylitol.

Then, to help calm myself down from the Xenadrine, I drank a litre of organic honeybush tea with some madagascan vanilla. It helped!

Well Being

I listened to another motivational CD. I did various meditation exercises to calm me down after the workout + xenadrine, which helped, though the Xenadrine made me so hyper I'm going to use it more sparingly...

Learning
- I researched various supplements.
- I'm going to avoid cylclone bars in the future, except when I'm super busy.

Exercise
- I ran 5km at the gym, doing intense interval training, oscillating from 19km / hour to 12km / hour to 6km on occassion. Total time for 5km - 28minutes.
- I did 12 minutes on an X-Trainer.
- I did various stretching exercises

Progress:

- I trained harder at the gym today than of late.
- I'm more habitually organising my space - which is helping lots
- I drank more fluids than normal

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to use more of my time more constructively
- If I take Xenadrine, I need to do something with all the energy it releases, otherwise I get so hyper it's disfunctional
- I've resolved to drink 6 litres of fluid a day, to boost my energy and help me detox.

turbot · 13-12-2006 12:38pm

Health + Fitness Diary: Tuesday 12 December

Sleep:

5 1/2 hours: Went to sleep at 5:00am, got up at 10:30am

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I took my Vitamin Stack (to be described soon)

I drank 1 litre of mixed chinese teas (as they are primary ingredients in many fat loss catalysts) with Xylitol + Organic milk.

I had some Paella I prepared the night before.

I had 5g of creatine mixed with water + apple juice.

I had some freshly juiced cucumber / apple / celery / carrot juice.

Dinner

I had another 2 x Xenadrine EFX's.

I had some more Paella.

I had 5g of creatine mixed with water + apple juice.

Late food

I had another pint of Pu-eerh Tea, plus 6g of creatine mixed with water and apple juice.

I had some Paella + salad.

I drank another litre of Pu-eerh Tea, plus another pint of apple / carrot juice.

Well Being

I did some more meditation exercises to partially offset the effects of the Xenadrine. I did another appreciation rampage exercise, which put me in a good mood.

Learning
- I researched various supplements.
- I read a chapter about Alkaline / Acid balance of a book.

Exercise
- I did 20 minutes on the highest intensity level on an X-Trainer, as fast as I could.
- I did some ab work various stretching exercises

Progress:

- I drank more fluids than normal

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to use more of my time more constructively
- I need to vary my diet more on days like this
- High Intensity Training is ok - but I need to train for longer to better achieve my goals
- I need to take Xenadrine earlier in the day, because it keeps me awake for hours after. Once I use up what I have of Xenadrine, I won't take any more.

turbot · 22-12-2006 11:50pm

Since my last post, approximately what happened was:

On Wednesday 13th I did something pretty similar to Tuesday.

And

The Xenadrine seemed to make me really hyper, which was both good and bad, though not especially appropriate for the kind of work I do.

From doing intense workouts - I could really feel heat through all my muscles for the next few days, which I took as a good sign, and felt good for.

The cumulative effect of eating really well, and working out a lot, put me in a very good mood... I was feeling rather blissful and alive. So much so that I was totally compelled to party, which is what happened.

So on Thursday I went out at 10pm and I got home at 7am.
On Friday, I went out at 1am, and got home at 7am again.
On Saturday, night it was the same as Friday... and yes each of these occassions did include some moderate drinking and I'll say no more.

On each of the above days, I ate pretty well - though I drank a bit (three guinesses thurs, 2 glasses wine on Friday, 3/4 bt wine on Sat + 3 shots of Vodka)

All of these left me feeling a bit hung over, so I drank lots of fluids, ate really well, and it took a few days for me to re-vitalise fully, during which time I continued to eat well, albeit possibly less that I should though this was not intentional.

Also, I stopped taking Xenadrine, because I was literally too hyper to work from it, and also figured that after taking it for 6 weeks, the Adrenal crash would not be worth it, so I've decided only in moderation, if I am about to run 5km, or do I really intense workout. I haven't taken any since.

Whats interesting is... I've really been eating less and it's been easy: For example, yesterday I had two bowls of power porridge, an apple, about 2 litres of chinese tea, and 2 litres of water, and 1/2 a litre of apple juice.

Plus, instead of eating to change my state, I'm realising that proper exercising is much better!!! This is a positive change of thought process.

During this week though, I haven't really been to the gym except tonight, mostly because I've been busy working and discovering secondlife.com was a major distraction.

PROGRESS:

On the last weigh in, on 10 December, 12 days ago, I weighed 104kg, and measured 34% bodyfat. I was disappointed by this difference, and in the days that followed did extra-intense workouts.

AND

Tonight I did a weigh in and clocked 99.9kg!!! With my bodfat levels being 31.3%.

So thats a 4.1 kilo loss in 12 days, or put different 3/4 of an lb a day, which is over double my rate of progress than before. I'm happy with myself, and encouraged to continue.

So what I'm doing seems to be working... despite my partying.

I attribute my progress significantly to

1) Balancing my blood sugar with low gl foods
2) Doing high intensity, full body workouts designed to boost my metabolism
3) Drinking lots of water and chinese teas
4) Taking smart supplements (especially chromium picolinate / hca / 5 htp / some hoodia gordoni / mutltivitamins / vitamin b / essential fatty acids)

Comments appreciated!

turbot · 06-01-2007 3:09am

Hello everyone who's been following this:

Well since my last post, I partied quite a bit the few days before xmas, leading to a somewhat more moderate xmas feast than usual, and again a couple of days of celebrations for new years.

So while I didn't exactly maintain my good habits over xmas and new years, I had a fun and restful time, and I was pretty moderate compared with other such festive seasons in years gone by.

Calibration:

So today I went back to the gym, for the first time this year, and upon weighing myself, clocked in at 102.5kg. So if I'm to reach 88 kg by mid February, I have to lose a bit over 2kg a week. I think I can do this providing I do what worked before xmas, and keep it up.

Over xmas and even recently, I've had many friends who say that I look like I've lost weight, and certainly, I'm feeling a bit better for it. I find that making the most of myself is satisfying!!!!

Except, I intend to do more, specifically - eat even more heathily, take more smart supplements, do much more exercise, and go for it.

So today I woke up and had some museli for breakfast, had a pretty healthy vegetarian meal + salad in cornocopia for lunch, and for dinner, I had a small indian with chicken pieces / aloo gobi and also some salad.

I also had an acupuncture session, which I really liked...

And I went to the gym, ran 5km on a running machine in about 28 minutes, though it seemed less strenous than the last time I did that, and meditated in the jacuzzi.

I also drank some Puerhh Tea.

What I did well:
- I did a good workout, albeit a quick one
- I bought loads of healthy low gl food in the health shop
- I followed a low GL diet
- I relaxed more as I ran, which made it more enjoyable
- I made progress to organise my place more, which in the long term, frees up my time

How I can improve tommorow:

- I'm going to prepare a bunch of twice daily supplement portions, to keep me going for six weeks. I call these my vitamin stack, to be described.

- I'm going to go to the gym again, and do at least 30 minutes on the x-trainer, bring my mp3 player this time, and also start doing weights

- I'll eat really well, and archive my activities here fully to help keep me on point

- I've decided today that, in terms of alcohol, it's fun to either share a bottle of really good wine on worthwhile occassions, or not drink at all. (Tonight I had a glass and half of wine, encouraged the two people I live with who made dinner, and it's just made me feel tired, not better) So tommorow I'm going to do some self hypnosis to reinforce this decision.

As always, your comments are most welcomed and even invited!

turbot · 06-01-2007 3:50pm

OK - here is a tip I find very practical and effective, based mostly upon what I've learned from Patrick Holford, my favourite nutritionist.

What I understand from him is that vitamins and supplements are not drugs, rather, they are concentrated foods. As such,for most vitamins and supplements, its very hard to take so many they are actually bad for you. And you are better off having the right nutrients in your system than not having them at all.

Thus:

I've researched different supplements / vitamins in depth, and created a twice daily "supplement stack" to assist me in achieving my goals. I mentioned this before, and now I describe it:

Tip 1:
Taking lots of vitamins and supplements can be time consuming and inconvenient, so for me, periodically I'll spend an hour preparing twice daily portions, that I then store in small polethene bags. Then each morning and lunch time, I can simply take one of these bags, pour the supplements into my hand, and consume them quickly and conveniently.

So here is my supplement stack - part 1, for when I wake up :
(manufacturer in brackets)

WAKE UP SUPPLEMENT STACK (taken when I wake up)

Vitamins:

2 x Optimum Nutrition Muti Vitamins Tablets (Higher Nature)
1 x Vitamin B Complex Tablet ( Holland & Barret)
1 x 1000mg Vitamin C ( Holland & Barret)

Fat Loss / Diet / Exercise Support:
2 x 750mg HCA Tablets (Higher Nature)
500 mg Hoodia Gordoni (no brand - sourced via Deva Ethnobotanicals)
1200 mg Lecithin (NSI)
1 x 200mg Chromium Picolinate Tablet ( Holland & Barret)
3 x 700 mg Creatine Monohydrate (Bodyfortress / Holland & Barrett)

EFAs/Oils
1000 mg Flaxseed oil capsule ( Holland & Barret)
250 mg Pumkin Seed oil ( Holland & Barret)
250 mg Evening Primrose ( Holland & Barret)

Amino Acids
100mg 5HTP (NSI)
3 x BodyFortress Amino 1000 (Holland & Barrett)

Anti Oxidants
1 x Green Lightening (Natures Way)
1 x Red Lightening (Natures Way)
2 x Blue Lightening (Natures Way)

Misc Energy / Brainfood:
900 mg Licorice Root (can't remember)
10mg Vinpocetine (NSI)

*************************************

LUNCHTIME SUPPLEMENT STACK (taken around lunch time or before dinner)

Vitamins:

1 x Optimum Nutrition Muti Vitamins Tablets (Higher Nature)
1 x Vitamin B Complex Tablet ( Holland & Barret)
1 x 1000mg Vitamin C ( Holland & Barret)

Fat Loss / Diet / Exercise Support:
2 x 750mg HCA Tablets (Higher Nature)
1200 mg Lecithin (NSI)
1 x 200mg Chromium Picolinate Tablet ( Holland & Barret)
3 x 700 mg Creatine Monohydrate (Bodyfortress / Holland & Barrett)

EFAs/Oils
1000 mg Flaxseed oil capsule ( Holland & Barret)
250 mg Pumkin Seed oil ( Holland & Barret)
250 mg Evening Primrose ( Holland & Barret)

Amino Acids
100mg 5HTP (NSI)
3 x BodyFortress Amino 1000 (Holland & Barrett)

Anti Oxidants
1 x Yellow Lightening (Natures Way)
1 x Green Lightening (Natures Way)
2 x Red Lightening (Natures Way)
2 x Blue Lightening (Natures Way)

Misc Energy / Brainfood:
900 mg Licorice Root (can't remember)
1 x Reishi Mushroom (cant remember)
10mg Vinpocetine

*****************************************

So I prepared a 3 week supply of the above just now.

What I'd like to have included, though didn't have any was Co Enzyme Q10, and some milk thistle. Also in the past I've included more Essential Fatty Acids, although my recent research shows that there is massive variations in quality control in this area, so I'm going to figure out a good value brand I can buy.

I purchase my vitamins and supplements as economically as possible, usually waiting for a Holland & Barret sale and then I buy a decent amount of what I need that is reduced. Also, I sometimes order from the states, from sites like www.vitacost.com which works out about 50% cheaper than Ireland, with wider variety, even after including shipping, handling and duties.

So I find this approach works well for me... I'd especially reccomend preparing portion packs in advance as it makes sticking to goals more easy and convenient.

turbot · 08-01-2007 2:31am

Health + Fitness Diary: Saturday 6 January

Sleep:

7 hours: Went to sleep at 6:00am, got up at 1pm

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I had some rye-seed bread with some hummus.

I drank 1/3 litre of mixed chinese teas (as they are primary ingredients in many fat loss catalysts) with Xylitol + Organic milk.

I took my supplement stack.

I then had more rye-seed bread, with avocado and went to the gym.

I started to drink a bottle of pepsi, but after a few mouthfuls poured it away.

At the gym, I drank about a litre of water.

Dinner

I made some lentils, tofu and quinoa, and ate it with some cucumber, which was quite nice.

I had my later supplement stack.

Later

I drank most of a bottle of wine at a party, (nice Rioja) and I confess eating a small bag of chips, plus most of a chicken shish kebab.

Well Being

I relaxed as I ran in the gym, and I meditated in the Jacuzzi.

Learning
I read some of a Blazing Salads recipe book.

Exercise
- I ran 5km in about 28:30
- I did some ab work various stretching exercises

Progress:

- I ran 5km 2 days in a row... and plan to make this the basis of my aerobic exercise.
- I brought my MP3 player which made exercising more fun
- I found a kickboxing class that is due to start a few minutes from where I live!!!
- I prepared a 3 week supply of my supplement stack, described above
- I noticed that my rate of recovery seems to be improving

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I need to get to the gym earlier to stretch more, and warm up more effectively.
- I need to put more good dance music onto my MP3 player.
- I ought to drink more fluids...
- I've realised that ... curiously ... a workout seems to make me more aware of some emotional issues that I need to process, and so I need to incorporate various techniques to help me process these better
- Given the mood I was in, the party cheered me up, so I can't say it was a bad idea, though after drinking, it's usually smarter to take some charcoal

turbot · 11-01-2007 5:01am

Health + Fitness Diary: Sunday 7 January

Sleep:

7 hours: Went to sleep at 7:00am, got up at 2pm

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I had 1 1/2 slices of rye-seed bread with some lentils + quinoa from the night before.

I drank a pint of apple juice diluted with water.

I took my supplement stack.

I drank some chinese tea (with organic milk and xylitol).

I went to the gym, fairly hungry, and ate 2 / 3rds of a maximuscle diet bar, until I realised it had loads of caffiene.

I drank 1/2 a litre of water at the gym.

After the gym, I drank almost 1/2 litre of squeezed orange juice.

Dinner

I ate the rest of my quinoa and lentils and tofu.
And I had some rice, with some turnip / carrot / parsnip, plus a tuna steak (lightly heated) with avocado, cucumber, soy sauce and some yoghurt.

I drank another pint of chinese tea. I took another supplement stack.

Before I went to bed, I drank a litre and a half of alkalised detox teas (5 x different kinds of detox teabags, brewed in volvic, plus an alkalising supplement).

I also had a fried egg plus some rye bread.

Well Being

I relaxed as I ran in the gym, and I meditated in the Jacuzzi.
I watched a DVD on my projector after working out, which was soothing.

Learning
Nothing worthy of mentioning

Exercise
- I ran just under a kilometre (intending to run 5km) before stopping because my knees and groin were sore
- Instead I did 20 minutes on the X-Trainer, on level 10 (max) on an interval / strength training program. I stretched.

Progress:

- I'd been to the gym three days in a row
- I took my supplement stack
- I began taking my detox tea
- I ate a fairly low GL diet
- My hangover was pretty mild, considering!

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- Again I noticed emotional awarenesses were brought to my attention after working out.

turbot · 11-01-2007 5:08am

Health + Fitness Diary: Monday 8 January

Sleep:

6 hours: Went to sleep at 5:00am, got up at 10am

1 hour: from 1pm to 2:30pm.

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I had an ultralife detox sachet.

An hour later, I took my supplement stack, and then:

I had 1/2 slice of rye-seed bread with some lightly fried mushrooms, red onions and three eggs. I had a small amount of organic lentil and redpepper soup. I sprinkled 1/2 a capsule of xenadrine efx over this.

I drank a pint of chinese tea + organic milk and xylitol.

Lunch:

I went into town and had a small salad plus a bottle of ame.

Gym:

I drank 1/2 a litre of water at the gym.

Dinner:

Immediately after the gym, I had my supplement stack.
Then I had some carrot, parsnip and turnip mash, plus a tuna steak, plus basmati rice and some cucumber + soy sauce and yoghurt.

Later

I drank more chinese tea.

I drank a litre and 1/4 of mixed alkalised detox teas.

Well Being

Well - even 1/2 a capsule of xenadrine
I meditated in the Jacuzzi.
I noticed that I felt very hyper. I ascribe this to lots of exercise plus the effects of detoxing and taking some xenadrine.

Learning
Nothing relevant except that even a small amount of Xenadrine makes me feel very wired.

Exercise
- I ran a kilometre and a half, before stopping, partially because my knees and groin were sore
- I did 12 minutes on the X-Trainer, on level 10 (max) on an interval / strength training program.
- I did some ab work and stretched.

Progress:

- I'd been to the gym gour days in a row
- I maintained a good diet
- I drank chinese tea / detox tea and detox supplements
- I was in a good mood, albeit a hyper one
- I did a more thorough stretch
- I bought some essential fatty acids

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I've decided that it's smart to go into town and eat something healthy in one of the vegetarian restaurants.

turbot · 11-01-2007 5:29am

Health + Fitness Diary: Tuesday 9 January

Sleep:

8 hours: Went to sleep at 5:00am, got up at 2am

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I made power porridge.

I took my supplement stack:

I drank 2 pints of chinese tea + organic milk and xylitol.

Lunch:

I had a salmon, mashed potato and and salad.
I had some oatbiscuits + hummus.

I drank a firefly drink (green tea + peach)

Gym:

I drank 1/2 a litre of water at the gym.

Dinner:

After the gym, I had my supplement stack.
Then I had some chicken, rice and a tomato / butter sauce.

Later

I drank a litre and a half of alkalised detox tea.

Well Being

I did an Agni Hotra fire ceremony / meditation (one of the most powerful forms of meditation I know). Afterwards I felt great.
I meditated in the Jacuzzi.
I stretched well.

Learning
I read reviews about EFA supplements.

Exercise
- I did 20 minutes on the X-Trainer doing interval training at level 10 and pushed myself as hard as I could
- I did some ab work and stretched.
- I later did more ab work, of a pilates nature, after the gym.

Progress:

- I'd been to the gym five days in a row
- I maintained a good diet
- I drank chinese tea / detox tea and detox supplements
- I was in an ok, then great mood

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I've decided to do as many Agni Hotra meditations as is conveniently possible

turbot · 11-01-2007 5:48am

Health + Fitness Diary: Wednesday 10 January

Sleep:

3 1/2 hours: Went to sleep at 5:00am, got up at 8:30am

(did Agni Hotra)

4 hours Went to sleep at 8:50am, got up at 1pm.

Nutrition:

Breakfast + Brunch:

I made power porridge.

I took my supplement stack:

I drank 1 1/2 pints of chinese tea + organic milk and xylitol.
I had a cup of weak, organic coffee with xylitol

Lunch:

I had a little more porridge
I had some hummus + organic oat cakes.

I drank 1/2 pint of chinese tea

Gym:

I drank 1/2 a litre of water at the gym.

Dinner:

After the gym, I took my supplement stack.

Then I got some healthy chinese, consisting of:

Lamb starter with some lettuce.
Some lightly fried Brocolli with garlic
Some mixed seafood chow mein (I only ate half the portion)
I had a pint of apple juice diluted with water.

Later

I drank a litre and a half of alkalised detox tea.
I had some sultanas and some cashew nuts as a snack.

Well Being

I did two Agni Hotra fire ceremonies / meditations (one of the most powerful forms of meditation I know). Afterwards I felt great, though these are strong.. and the effects are somewhat intense.
I meditated in the Jacuzzi.
I stretched quickly

Learning
I remembered why I'm such a fan of Agni Hotra ceremonies
I realised that I have to give my legs more recovery time as my knees were feeling slightly sore.

Exercise
- I ran 5km in 32 minutes, which was slower than I expected.
- I stretched briefly.
- I later did more ab work, of a pilates nature.

Progress:

- I'd been to the gym six days in a row
- I maintained a good diet (though it was difficult today...
- I drank chinese tea / detox tea and detox supplements
- I did two Agni hotra ceremonies

Lessons + Ways to improve in future

- I'm going to do more Agni Hotra ceremonies
- I'm not going to attempt to run 5km every day, because I feel my body needs more time to recover, so I'll probably alternate using the x-trainer two days in a row, with jogging every third day. I intend to do longer workouts also.
- After the gym I felt really quite stressed... which I attribute to the adjustment after Agni Hotra (it's a kind of personal development fast track), with doing interval jogging wherein I was pushing my heart rate high
- I had some fairly strong, inner resistance(?) to pushing myself of a nature that could encourage me to binge. I handled this... though it was not so easy. Again, instigating long term behavioural changes requires overcoming old patterns, so this is to be expected. To deal with this tommorow, I plan to record a self hypnosis CD for myself to assist me.
- I really have to put better music onto my Mp3 player