Fiddleman

Have you heard of the Panera Bread "secret menu?" This was rolled out to all locations in January 2013. You just need to ask about it at the register as you will not find any of the items on the visible menu. All hidden menu item are " healthy" in the sense they are low carb, high protein and, in my opinion, very tasty. There are 6 options total and the portions are generally large enough for 3-4 meals as a VSG post op. You may need to wait a few months to be able to handle ingredients like spinach. Try it out!!

Hopefully everyone that has access to said images are 18 years or older because of the nature of them being "adult material." Otherwise, VST could get into trouble with various advocacy groups out there that try and protect children from improper access.

Does anyone have a good recommendation of additional complimentary exercise to do on the same day as cross fit workout? I want to do something in the morning at 9am and my Cross fit workout is at 4pm. Do you think it would be good to do some running or an ab workout? I am already doing push, pull and leg weights days, so do not want to do weight lifting on cross fit day. Nor do i want to do something that is going to fatigue arms and legs before cross fit in afternoon. Running does not fatigue if I keep it non HIIT. Thanks for your your thoughts.

Sure - it was so tasty and good for us sleevers (given a person can manage everything in it).

Ouch!!!

Nope - not annoying Nicole. Thanks for posting. That is super exciting to read about your progress.

Still had trouble with back today (vertebrae bruise). Did a WOD (workout of day) with cross fit PT (personal trainer) today. We went down the list and then back up the list. 400 m sprint 120 lb squats 30 s side plank 2 min ghd Sit ups AMRAP 30 toe to bar 30 s side plank 2 min ghd Sit ups AMRAP 1 min full plank 90 lb farmer carry AMRAP=as many reps as possible. Every 4 minutes , no matter what I was doing, I had to stop and do 5 burpees. That was sort of a wham, This was so much HIIT!! I was so tired and breathing hard by 1/2 way up the list the my eyes were closed and I failed on the 2nd 2 min ghd situp AMRAP. Just could not get my body back up. Whew!! Anyways, I was unable to do the feet to toe pull ups so I modified them. Laid on my back and curled my feet up to my head using core strength only, except I could not do it. My spine would not bend. It was sad. Lol. I was not able to do the vups either as they hurt my back. Instead, I did ab mat sit ups . I could do these without back issues. My PT was nice about it. I said I did not mind working out if it caused superficial pain, but the bruised vertebrae pain was not something I could tolerate. It killed my form so she had me modify as stated above. I shared my transformation idea (see post from me started last week in vet forum) with my PT as I cooled down from the WOD. She thought it was a great idea all around. Psyches me that my PT bought into it. Sigh- when is this back issue going to get better? It still is a real pain in the vertebrae in the middle of the back. Arg!! It kind of sucks not being able to do back exercises like the toe to head or the vups. I could do everything else and, furthermore, have worked out hard since this injury every day since last Monday almost 2 weeks ago (not using back). Please send healing thoughts this way...

My center said we could drink before and after surgery, just not the immediate day before in order to have body ready for surgery. I like coffee now, a lot. Drink every day in the mornings.

You might also try a green drink like green essence (from Vitamin shoppe). These are really good at clearing up inflammation, heart burn and those kind of things. It does not need to be green essence, but should be a green drink with ingredients that help with alkalizing the cells in the blood (read: increase the PH levels). Here is a good article: http://thechalkboardmag.com/expert-advice-ph-miracle-alkalizing-green-juice

Agree: Jiffy natural is really good. Had some of that last week before working out on my bananas. I recommend that one also.

I bought some almond and cashew nut butters yesterday. I tried some almond butter on my banana today. Awesome! Nut butters are so good before running, cross fit, yoga, weight lifting and [fill in the blank with your favorite exercise]. As usual, I got onto google for some more searching and found wild squirrel nut butters: http://wildfriendsfoodsshop.com/collections/nut-butters Yeah, I clicked on the link from google as was really intrigued by wild squirrel butter (weird curiosity in me). No, they do not have squirrel nut butter, but they have a lot of interesting and yummy nut butters. Check out the recipes under products menu item. Excited about trying these. Laura I know you want to share in the fun. As an aside, I also found this really nice running blog site: http://www.peanutbutterrunner.com/stomaching-the-run/ Turns out she (the blogger) really loves banana and nut butter with her running. Nice... Really enjoyed reading her blog. Check it out(even if you are not into running or yoga)!!!! Many good ideas.

As for boxing DVDs, the prices look fairly reasonable on Amazon to pick up some exercise focused boxing DVD. You could also watch boxing movies about Ali, Tyson, foreman etc. I am sure those would help. If you have a playstation 3 , Xbox 360 or Wii there are probably some good boxing arcade games as well as training exercise type games that will help you master the basics and become good. These are generally cheap if older and in the used section at the gaming stores like GameStop (one of my favorite retail stores). If you are more into kickboxing, I know Jillian Michaels has one. She is really popular with the girls on VST. With all these options, you may be able to save the costs of hiring an actual boxing trainer until you are more advanced in your techniques. Just a suggestion.

I have spent a fair amount of time reviewing these 4 options on you tube and Amazon. Right now, I am leaning towards the power-block adjustable dumbbells set because of durability, ease of use and handle grip. Cost is a factor too, but not the most important thing. Note that with Amazon prime I can get free 2 day shipping on some of these. Yeah!!! I am leaning *away* from Bow-flex because there are many reviews on Amazon that it can be dangerous if the plates slip ( see 1 star reviews). This will be my goal weight gift from my wife. I like that these take up a small real estate and are cost effective over time when considering one needs to own 25-30 or more individual dumbbells. I currently own 4 or 5 dumbbells that range from 15-35 lb and will need to graduate higher soon. I am mostly an at home fitness guy with the exception of doing cross fit with my PT 2x a week. On 3 other days, I am doing traditional strength training with push, pull and leg days at home in my workout room. What do you think. Do you own any of these and can vouch for them?

Okie dokie - it looks like I am not going to get any more feedback on this topic. After more review, I think my mind is made up to get the Ironmaster 75. It is expensive at 500+ dollars, so think it will take some time to save up and purchase it. At home, I currently have 20 and 30 lb dumbbells. 20 lb is good for most push exercises involving the upper body, but 30 lb is a little too heavy for me with regards to exercises like the dumbbell fly. I think I will go out and purchase 25, 35 and 45 dumbbells from sears to get me through a few months. I want to continue to workout at home for the most part. There is more flexibility and we save on membership dues. As i am already part of cross fit gym, we do not want a second membership. The cross fit gym has a rack of dumbbells (and kettle balls), but cross fit is not about sitting on a bench working muscles in isolation. Cross fit is all about killing the WOD!!! Eventually, I will want the adjustable set at home because I do not really have the room for these separate dumbbells in my workout room and need a better shelf for storage. I have a cheap flimsy rack thing that is already full with 20, 30 and some lighter dumbbells like 5, 8 and 10. Too bad it is so expensive to live a fit life. Do not get me started on the costs of buying healthy lean Protein and supplements. Lol. Sheesh!!

I ended up doing an ab workout with the PT roller. Man I love that product. The inventor and CEO of the product is a trainer also and like to teach others about massage and core workouts using the PT roller. I tried the level 1 DVD core workout, but it is way to easy. Still fun and a good massage, but not enough of a core workout for me. I am going to get on Amazon and buy the level 2 DVD. This roller is truly awesome for massaging out your tight muscles after running and strength training. If you do not have a high quality roller, consider buying one!

You can buy Pure Protein from costco, target or online at Amazon. If you buy from Costco, you get all 3 primary flavors bundled together. I am not such a fan of the Peanut Butter chocolate, but like the okie dough and chocolate crunch. Target carries a box of 12 of a single flavor.

I will do it. My android VST needs much more functionality to match the iPad version. Do not worry; I am on the VST a lot during the day. I have the Motorola Razor.

Omg - arsenic in be water... On the west coast we are dealing with radioactive water from Fukushima Japan: http://www.washingtonsblog.com/2012/07/radiation-in-west-coast-of-north-america-could-be-10-times-higher-than-japan.html See the nice stream of red radioactivity hitting us? It is coming in the form of rain also. http://www.king5.com/news/environment/High-levels-of-radiation-detected-in-Northwest-rainwater--125391598.html Hopefully we have controls in place to remove this from our drinking water. I have already heard cases of thyroid cancer are way up on the west coast.

That is really good, especially for only 4 months.

I do not think the commercial Precor c95xi models fold, but that may be just true of my c954i. It is a beast to lift, let alone move.