Fiddleman

Completed my planned workout today (see above). Felt good. As far as miles, I did 1 mile run and 500 m row before getting into the beat down.

Not snarky enough!

When I got there in feb 2013, my weight was about 188 where my "goal" was 180. My starting weight was 360. 180 is a good bmi for my height of 5'11". Since then, my weight oscillates between 175 and 180 and I have put on a lot of muscle from working out consistently. I eat a lot of food daily. I do not count anything, but do know I eat between 200-500 calories a " meal" and eat every 2-3 hours starting at 6am, stopping at 9:00 pm. I still eat a lot of protein, but also have kicked the carbs way up by eating steel oats 2 x a day (mixed with protein). I always try and eat lean and paleo style. No bread, sugar, dairy. Have not " cheated" since a month before surgery July 2, 2012. I think the key is to follow an eating plan that does not cause you struggle. You should not be hungry or lusting after food. Food is fuel. That being said, I do enjoy my double chocolate casein shake every night (50-60 g). First 5 bites are yummy. the rest not so much, but I eat it with a purpose: to allow my body the protein it needs to repair overnight. Currently, my weight has dropped 6 lb from last week (171), so I do need to be careful to keep it stable in terms of balancing food with calorie demands of working out. I feel pretty good about the manner in which I eat protein and veggies every few hours. It seems "normal" to me so I guess I have figured out how eating will work from now on (for me).

Still doing my daily workouts this week: Monday: 1600 m warmup run, mobility work, cross fit warmup exercises A. Six sets of: Clean x 1 rep @ 90-95% Rest 2 minutes B. Three sets of: Clean Pull x 1.1.1 @ 100% (rest 5-10 seconds between singles) Rest as needed C. Back Squat * Set 1 – 4 reps @ 70% * Set 2 – 3 reps @ 80% * Set 3 – 2 reps @ 90% * Sets 4-8 – 2 reps @ 90-95% Rest 3 minutes between sets. D. Three sets for times of: Row 500 Meters Rest exactly 2 minutes I was able to do the 500 m row in 1:35, 1:45 and 1:55 (defn got tired during these) Tuesday: 1600 m warmup run, mobility work, cross fit warmup exercises As many reps in 17 mins as you can of: 40 Burpees 30 Snatches, 75/45 lbs 30 Burpees 30 Snatches, 135/75 lbs 20 Burpees 30 Snatches, 165/100 lbs 10 Burpees Max ******, 210/120 lbs I finished the set of 20 burpees and 30 ****** set. Wednesday (today): 1600 m warmup run, mobility work, cross fit warmup exercises Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 4 minutes of: 10 Handstand Push-Ups 15 Box Jumps (24″/20″ – open hips on box) 20 Shoulder to Overhead (115/75lbs) 25 Pull-Ups 30 Double-Unders Rest exactly 4 minutes, and then . . . Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 6 minutes of: 10 Handstand Push-Ups 15 Box Jumps (24″/20″ – open hips on box) 20 Shoulder to Overhead (115/75lbs) 25 Pull-Ups 30 Double-Unders Rest exactly 4 minutes, and then . . . Complete as many rounds and reps as possible in 8 minutes of: 10 Handstand Push-Ups 15 Box Jumps (24″/20″ – open hips on box) 20 Shoulder to Overhead (115/75 lbs) 25 Pull-Ups 30 Double-Unders Shoulder to overhead, Pull-ups are still my "weak technique due to mobility" exercises. wish me luck!! Everyday I am trying to get the mobility corrected in my thoracic region so these will get better. Lacross ball and roller are my BFF along with any stretch that loosens those tight front and upper back muscles. Learning more about mobility stretching every single day and also starting to really " hear" how my body needs and responds to mobility. Good luck everyone!!

My wife are about to watch the gravity movie, in 3d imax, and we were talking about good movie munchies we could eat that would be vsg friendly, maybe. We talked about taking a cookie dough Quest bar, breaking it up in small pieces, rolling those balls into melted SF 80% cacao. It would be a very thin layer of really dark SF chocolate. Yeah, SF Protein chocolate chip cookie dough theatre munchies!! A winner? Side disclosure: I used to buy the boxed cookie dough munches (and butter finger bites) at the concession stand in past life.

Long term severe reduction of calories will kill your metabolism. No way around it. The body will adapt to whatever is required to maintain homeostasis. If you eat 500 calories all the time for the remainder of your life, your body will reward you with burning fewer calories and down regulating the efficiency of your metabolism. Homeostasis for your body will become 500 calories a day and this is not enough long term. For the masses, this is packaged up nicely as"starvation mode." Everything needs a nice label right so it is easier to discuss, no? In reality, your body is the most complex system ever conceived that is constantly balancing itself through complex anatomy of interactions controlled by hormonal communications. Calories in versus calories out is the most basic way to think about reduction of body fat, but oversimplification is prone to fallacy when trying to precisely control desired outcome. Considering the hormonal responses in the body, you really need to be thinking about the impact of nutrition and supplementation on hormonal communication, a very deep dissertation not to be taken lightly. Understanding and addressing the hormonal imbalances in the body through delicate attention to nutrition is going to be 90% of the effort in eliminating stored fat. Also important is to reduce the overall inflammation in the body by eating foods that increase the pH levels (eg reduce acidic levels) at the cellular level. Fortunately, the initial post op diet of high protein and low carb has much of these characteristics built in. It is important to determine an approach to balanced eating after the initial post op diet to create the ideal metabolic response. Might I suggest researching topics that simplify control of the hormonal responses like eating low glycemic foods, intermediate fasting (5:2 diet is a form of IF) and eating glutton free foods. For me, a paleo diet has created an ideal metabolic response in the body after the initial 6 months. As for a plan to increase daily caloric load to minimize entering into "starvation mode, " you might consider: Month 1: 300-500 Month 2-3: 400-700 Month 4-6: 600-900 Month 7-8: 900-1100 Month 9-12: 1200-1600 Post 12 months: 2000 Slowly increase calories over the months to reset homeostasis in the body every couple months to a higher daily caloric load. You want the body to get used to eating 1600-2000 calories a day long term where you are neither gaining or losing weight. This assumes a standard amount of physical activity. The calories may need to be higher to fuel more intense physical activities. All in all, remember that nutrition is going to have a far greater impact on body composition then physical activity. These are just my thoughts on the subject.

Long term severe reduction of calories will kill your metabolism. No way around it. The body will adapt to whatever is required to maintain homeostasis. If you eat 500 calories all the time for the remainder of your life, your body will reward you with burning fewer calories and down regulating the efficiency of your metabolism. Homeostasis for your body will become 500 calories a day and this is not enough long term. For the masses, this is packaged up nicely as"starvation mode." Everything needs a nice label right so it is easier to discuss, no? In reality, your body is the most complex system ever conceived that is constantly balancing itself through complex anatomy of interactions controlled by hormonal communications. Calories in versus calories out is the most basic way to think about reduction of body fat, but oversimplification is prone to fallacy when trying to precisely control desired outcome. Considering the hormonal responses in the body, you really need to be thinking about the impact of nutrition and supplementation on hormonal communication, a very deep dissertation not to be taken lightly. Understanding and addressing the hormonal imbalances in the body through delicate attention to nutrition is going to be 90% of the effort in eliminating stored fat. Also important is to reduce the overall inflammation in the body by eating foods that increase the pH levels (eg reduce acidic levels) at the cellular level. Fortunately, the initial post op diet of high protein and low carb has much of these characteristics built in. It is important to determine an approach to balanced eating after the initial post op diet to create the ideal metabolic response. Might I suggest researching topics that simplify control of the hormonal responses like eating low glycemic foods, intermediate fasting (5:2 diet is a form of IF) and eating glutton free foods. For me, a paleo diet has created an ideal metabolic response in the body after the initial 6 months. As for a plan to increase daily caloric load to minimize entering into "starvation mode, " you might consider: Month 1: 300-500 Month 2-3: 400-700 Month 4-6: 600-900 Month 7-8: 900-1100 Month 9-12: 1200-1600 Post 12 months: 2000 Slowly increase calories over the months to reset homeostasis in the body every couple months to a higher daily caloric load. You want the body to get used to eating 1600-2000 calories a day long term where you are neither gaining or losing weight. This assumes a standard amount of physical activity. The calories may need to be higher to fuel more intense physical activities. All in all, remember that nutrition is going to have a far greater impact on body composition then physical activity. These are just my thoughts on the subject.

It was an incredible movie experience that transforms all expectations one has about the emotional responses a movie can trigger. Total immersion. The last movie that did this for me was Avatar. Sorry, I can not give you a synopsis as not wanting to ruin it for others before they have a chance to see it. Definitely go see it in IMAX 3d if you can.

It was an incredible movie experience that transforms all expectations one has about the emotional responses a movie can trigger. Total immersion. The last movie that did this for me was Avatar. Sorry, I can not give you a synopsis as not wanting to ruin it for others before they have a chance to see it. Definitely go see it in IMAX 3d if you can.

Fringe was pretty cool to watch on Netflix. I also liked house of cards.

Fringe was pretty cool to watch on Netflix. I also liked house of cards.

My wife are about to watch the gravity movie, in 3d imax, and we were talking about good movie munchies we could eat that would be vsg friendly, maybe. We talked about taking a cookie dough Quest bar, breaking it up in small pieces, rolling those balls into melted SF 80% cacao. It would be a very thin layer of really dark SF chocolate. Yeah, SF Protein chocolate chip cookie dough theatre munchies!! A winner? Side disclosure: I used to buy the boxed cookie dough munches (and butter finger bites) at the concession stand in past life.

Even more impressive!!

Even more impressive!!

You ain't seen nothing until big country and pokey chick banter about gravy and bisquits.... Oh the horrors. Lol.

You ain't seen nothing until big country and pokey chick banter about gravy and bisquits.... Oh the horrors. Lol.

Wow, you are so precise, down to a 10th of a mile.

Wow, you are so precise, down to a 10th of a mile.

In the last week I have started a regimen of beta-alanine and creatine. My goal is to improve strength and metabolic conditioning with a dedicated supplementation program that includes these. I understand both of these take a while to load into the muscles (1 month for beta-alanine and 1 week for creatine). Both products i am using are from NOW foods. I like that the creatine is in crystallized form rather then powder form as was the last creatine I tried from AST. Ended up stopping the AST creatine after a while because it gave me terrible nausea . The NOW creatine does not do this. I am excited about the power and strength properties that will come from the use of creatine and the endurance / stamina that will come from the use of beta-alanine. Beta-alanine builds up carnosine in the muscles which acts to increase the pH levels after and during intense workouts. An increase in pH levels is a decrease in the acidic state that leads to muscle fatigue. there is very little carnosine in the muscles naturally so beta-alanine is a non essential amino acid that increases the carnosine levels safely and naturally. Sounds good to me if it translates into more pull-ups, faster. More info on beta-alanine and carnosine as it relates to exercise: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20479615 And let me not forget caffeine / theanine as an excellent supplement, as long as it is not overdone (100-300 mg a day of caffeine is good for daily work working out where 600 mg is good for competition) . The body adapts to the stimulation provided by caffeine and breaks are necessary to get the proper benefits of caffiene during a workout or competition. The theanine helps to reduce the overstimulation from caffeine and create a more pure form of energy, less jacked up jittery feeling. I have found pretty much every other pre workout supplement to be a waste of money in the type of strength training and metabolic conditioning I do from week to week. Believe me, I have tried quite a number of the last year and have given up on them. Sorry gpc and Vitamin shoppe. That is the way it is. Caffiene, beta-alanine and creatine are pretty much the only ones that have shown real evidence to Improving athletic response and are backed by a plethora of research and published scientific studies. Here is essentially my daily supplementation plan; Beta-alanine (10 g) - NOW foods Creatine monohydrate (20 g while loading)-NOW foods Fish oil (5 g in morning)- stronger faster healthier (sfh) fish oil is awesome. No comparisons. BCAA (30 g throughout the day)- xtend is the best! 100-200 g caffiene with theanine (1 hour before daily cross fit) Opti men multi vitamin - 2 a day. They recommend 3 but I am not so good about remembering the 3rd one at dinner. 1500 mg Calcium (ba chews) whey isolate (40 g, morning)- muscle milk liter Compound Protein stack ( 40 g, post workout) - BSN Syntha powder Casein (50-60 g, bed) - gold standard double chocolate is very good. My daily "treat" I eat modified paleo style and hit about 2000-2500 calories a day. More strict then traditional paleo as I focus on lean protein and veggies. I also try and hit 1 G protein per .92 * ideal body weight. This works out to be about 160 g for me at 175 lbs. most protein comes from shakes, but I do get at least 2 solid meals of some lean protein and veggies a day, sometimes 3. I eat about 7 meals a day of between 200-400 calories. I do not track, but have built up a pretty good understanding of proper measurements. Hope this info helps other post ops into fitness and nutrition.

I just had a yummy beet chicken salad that my wide taught me how to make a couple weeks ago. And....I made it myself!! Joy joy. 3 oz chicken (I use canned chicken for convenience). 1 small beet sliced into cubes. 3 slices of cucumber cubes. .5 ounce blue cheese crumbles 1 tbsp Tsatziki sauce (we made a vsg friendly version) Throw in a bowl, mix and enjoy. The only thing that is missing is some farrow or quinoa to round out the nutrients. I failed to locate some to add.