I need to come clean

Did you notice how I haven't posted anything since February?  Yeah, that wasn't because I forgot.

The truth is, I gained some weight I gained most of my weight back.

That was one of the hardest things I've had to say in a while.  When I had the gall bladder attack back in February, I was already feeling downtrodden because I wasn't seeing any more results from Carb Nite.  It wasn't that the diet stopped working, it was that I was going about it the wrong way.*  The visit to the hospital gave me an excuse to dial back my diet and exercise regimen "while I figured things out."

The only problem is that I never did.

I stopped exercising all together.  I cancelled my membership with my fancy gym**, I stopped cooking my own food, I started eating fast food all the time, and started drinking a lot of soda.  I didn't notice until it was too late that my shirts and pants were tighter, I got out of breath easier, my back pain came back, and that places and things that I used to fit into just wasn't happening anymore.

I think stress and depression are to blame for me pretty much letting go of everything I had worked so hard for.  However, the only person that can fix the stress, depression, and lethargy in my life is me.  

So here is THE PLAN:

Phase 1

• Return to Carb Nite.  When I started Carb Nite, I was doing it the right way.  I'm going to watch carb intake and keep it under 30g a day.  I'm also going to be watching macro-nutrients in respect to keeping a 2:1 protein to fat ratio.
• Strive for Paleo.  As I have said before, Paleo dieting and CNS are natural bedfellows.  While striving to eat low carb, I'm also going to try and eat clean.  Basically, even if the diet soda has no carbs in it, I won't be drinking it.  Which takes me to the third part...
• Drink lots of water.  It serves so many purposes.  Water acts as an appetite suppressant, it helps flush waste from the kidneys, and it keeps the body hydrated (duh!).
• Walk at least twice a week.  It doesn't sound like much, but I'm taking advice from Hark and I'm starting small.  He was so right when he reminded me that jumping in too much too fast would only cause relapse.  These aren't going to be short walks either.  I'm going for at least a mile each time.

Phase 2

• Maintain all aspects of Phase 1.  After I have reached a level of routine with Phase 1 and results are hitting a peak, I will start into Phase 2.  This process should begin within 4-6 weeks.
• Increase walking to three or four times a week.  Still striving to at least walk a mile or two each time.
• Start to add strength training.  At first, it will simply be two days a week.  One day of upper body, and another of lower body.

Phase 3

• Maintain all aspects of Phases 1 & 2.  After I have reached a level of routine with Phases 1 & 2 and results are hitting a peak, I will start into Phase 3.  There is no definite timetable for this as results vary from person to person and even from one personal attempt to the next.  My goal is to start this phase after being on Phase 2 for 6-8 weeks.
• Divide strength training into 3 days per week.  Instead of doing one day of upper body and another of lower body, I will divide the workouts into three days where I try to focus on one from each group.  The strength training sessions will be slightly shorter, but will provide more attention to individual muscle groups.
• Start Intermittent Fasting.  This will be for my Ultra Low Carb days where I may not have any carbs in that day, or only eat once throughout the day.  This will help to break through some plateaus that I will be hitting.  I will still supplement with lots of water and multivitamins on those days.

Phase 4

• After a period where I am hitting an unbreakable plateau (which happens to everyone), I will take a break from the Carb Nite portion of the diet.  John Kiefer, author of The Carb Nite Solution, has updated his stance on how long CNS can be done from 6 months to indefinitely, but I'm going to take some precautions anyway and revert to the Mark Sisson teaching on carb intake (that the body can be maintained safely at 50-100g carbs per day).
• One month of Paleo.  This part of the diet is still going to be crucial, as this should be a lifestyle more than it is a diet.
• Possible return to just walking three or four times per week.  This will all be determined on how I feel at the time.
• After one month has passed, return to Phase 1 and repeat.  I'll keep doing this until I get the results I want!

Everything said and done, this is going to be a slow process, but I am committed to making myself healthier in the long run.  

Last, but not least, I want to thank any of the people that still read the blog for sticking with Hark and I.  We may not be the best at updating, but we appreciate all of the feedback we get from you guys!

___________________

*On CNS, it is possible to eat low carb, but not lose weight.  The diet I was keeping had my ratios backwards, and I believe that is why I wasn't losing.  Instead of keeping a ratio of 2:1 proteins to fats, I had a 1:2 ratio.

**Even though I cancelled my fancy gym membership, I found a local gym that doesn't have all of the nice equipment, but it has the necessary equipment.  Instead of paying $30 a month, I now pay $45 a year.

Quick Update from Andy

I'm using this as a final excuse to delay going to the gym, so while you are enjoying reading this, also put some shame on me for not being where I need to be.

I just finished reading a new book called the Carb Nite Solution by John Kiefer.  After a couple of months of talking it up by a friend and how awesome it was, I decided to look into it and see what the idea and concepts of it are.  I'll write a review about it later, but I just want to throw out there that I think the author is really on to something here and I'm going to give it a shot.

The past few months, like most of you know, have been a struggle for me with diet and exercise.  I fluctuate from taking excellent care of myself to not taking care of myself at all.  I like myself better when I take care of me, but it's really easy to just not.

I've got two things keeping me motivated to get things done.  The first is that I'll be running in the Tough Mudder again this year, providing I don't have to drive more than 6 hours to get to it.  The second thing is that I'm finally putting myself back out there with women.  It's been just Madix and I for the last year and a half, and frankly, I need someone to talk to and someone to care about me in an affectionate kind of way.  Yeah, I know how it sounds, but since I'm delaying the inevitable, I might as well be brutally honest.

That's all I have for today.  Thanks for sticking with me.

-Andy

Change is Hard

Please stand by for rambling and a tiny bit of venting:

I have to admit that I've gotten used to this lifestyle that I'm living.

Lazy.

I've been trying to make a real commitment to changing my habits that I've formed over the last year and and half.  Since moving away from my family and out on my own with my son, I've only gotten worse.  I don't know if it's that I had less to maintain for the 6+ months that I lived with them and the co-dependency I picked up from having an instant babysitter anytime I was unable to make dinner or needed to run off to the gym or if it's something else.

All I know, is that I've really tried to live a better lifestyle since returning home from Tough Mudder and it's never seemed so hard.  I've been returning to my health and fitness roots in Mark Sisson and the Primal Blueprint, but so far I have fulfilled very little of what he has asked of his readers.

For instance, on Day 1, he suggested that we have a "pantry purge" where we throw away/donate all of the unhealthy foods in our kitchen.  My pantry isn't the worst, but it still needs a lot of improvement, but I still have yet to actually get up and do it.  It's those kinds of things that are really causing me to struggle.

An excuse that I've made for not purging my foods is my son.  I am fooling myself in thinking that he won't adjust well to not having his comfort foods in the house.  My wife was against me putting him on this diet with me, and so is my immediate family.  The part that gets me is that I know this is a safe and healthy diet for him, and I don't want him to end up like me.

Isn't childhood obesity at an all-time high right now?  So much so that is't being called an epidemic?  Hell, our current First Lady is leaving her mark on the U.S. through her fight to end childhood obesity...

I think writing about this is giving me the motivation to at least get the objectives for Day 1 completed.

In other news, I had to re-stock my multivitamins and used the opportunity to order the Primal Blueprint 90-Day Journal.  I'm hoping that a visual guide like this will give me the daily motivation and insight I need to get myself back on track.  I'll be sure to update on how it's working after in comes in.

Thanks for reading through this with me.

- Andy

Fatnician Frisbee Fun

Uploaded this video to Youtube today.  Didn't feel much like writing anything this week.  You might want to turn down the volume a little bit.  It was extremely hot outside today (over 103°F with high humidity) and I think I might have been on the brink of heat exhaustion when I made this video.  I was out of breath too...

Anywho, a brief explanation of what has been going on with me lately.

We need to talk...

You might notice that I've not been around on here much in the last month.  This has been both intentional and unintentional.

I had to take a look back at what I had been doing with the blog and what I was doing in my personal life.  Let's be honest; that last post was pretty awful.  I felt that I needed some time to sort out my priorities and what I wanted to convey to my readers on this site.  Now I want to update you guys from where we left off.

Did anybody complete the Primal Blueprint Challenge?  I know that I didn't.  I was able to keep up with the exercise, but the diet fell through the floor.  I felt horrid for leaving off without any further update, but I knew that anything I would type would be short and boring, or a complete lie.  I haven't lied to you guys yet, and I don't plan to start now.

In short, I've not been following the best diet.  I have been exercising on a regular basis, and I have added some interesting things to my workout that I can't wait to tell you guys about.  As a result of this, I have neither gained nor lost any weight.  I want this to stand as a testament that losing weight is 80% diet and 20% exercise.


I'm trying my skills out in video form now as well.  I've already made one that needs some editing done, and as soon as I get it ran through all the hoops I'm going to send out to you guys.  I've also been talking with a guy who wants to be my personal trainer.  I've watched him work out a few times before and he really knows what he is doing.  I'm going to give him a try here soon, and I hope to pick up some new tips that I can also pass on to you.

Be on the lookout for new posts coming soon.  We're going to be talking about new websites, new exercises, and new diet tips.  Stick around for the show, because it's going to get good.  As always, thanks for reading and for your support.

- Andy

Creatine in Your Routine

Normally, when words like Creatine are mentioned in a discussion about fitness, one of the first images that people think of looks something like this:

I suppose that it is possible for somebody to look like that after taking creatine.  The question we have to ask ourselves is, "What else were they taking?"  Could you imagine somebody who takes creatine looking any different?  Could you imagine them looking like... me?

Yes, I have been using creatine.  For the past six weeks I've been "juicing it up"; and you know what?  I feel fine.

Here's the rub on the taboo supplement that makes people shudder:

Creatine is the most popular and commonly used sports supplement available today. There are numerous studies backed by anecdotal evidence that support the efficacy of creatine supplementation. For the majority of the population, including both elite athletes and untrained individuals, creatine supplementation increases fat free mass and improves anaerobic and possibly aerobic performance.

- Bodybuilding.com 

Creatine is, and always has been, a natural component of skeletal muscle. The only reason that creatine may seem like something new is a recent boom in scientific research in the area since the early 1990s. In a sense, creatine was rediscovered when world-class athletes became wise to the option of utilizing it to enhance their physical performance.

In truth, however, creatine was identified as an indispensable part of skeletal muscle some time ago. Nearly two centuries ago (1835) a French scientist and philosopher named Michel-Eugène Chevreul isolated a component from skeletal muscle that he gave the name Creatine after the Greek word for flesh, or Kreas. A few years later (1847) a German scientist named Justus von Liebig proposed that creatine is necessary to support muscular activity when he observed that wild (active) foxes contain more intramuscular creatine than foxes kept in captivity. Liebig later went as far as lending his name to a commercial extract of meat that he asserted would help the body perform extra “work“. Indeed, Liebig’s “Fleisch Extrakt ” could reasonably be considered the original creatine supplement – complete with marketing strategy.

In fact, meat and fish are the richest natural sources of creatine. Carnivores therefore, receive their creatine directly via dietary channels. Conversely, herbivores (and strict vegetarians), since they abstain from consuming these sources of creatine, are solely reliant on their body’s natural ability to synthesis creatine from basic components. Omnivores, on the other hand, have at their disposal both avenues from which to fulfill their daily creatine requirement.

 - CreatineMonohydrate.net

So, now that we've got it out of the way that our bodies naturally produce creatine, and that we also obtain it from meat that we eat, let's talk about how I've been using it and what it has done for me.

First off, I started using creatine on a six week cycle.  For the past six weeks, any time I have did any kind of strength training, I have had 5mg of Creatine Monohydrate mixed into a water bottle.  I normally started drinking this water right before I went to the gym and usually finished it right before my last station.  Other than that, my routine has stayed the same, including my regular multi-vitamins and drinking a protein shake right after my workout.

I did not go through a "Loading" phase with it like a lot of people do.  I started out with 5mg every time, and only on the days that I did strength training.  Now that my six weeks of using creatine are over, I will go without using it for four to six weeks.

As far as my strength training is concerned, these are the results after six weeks of using creatine monohydrate:

• Lateral Pulls and Rows:  Started at 140 lbs x 20 reps, Ended at 160 lbs x 25 reps, Equals 20 lbs increase in weight and 5 repetitions increase.
• Double Bell Squats: Started at 90 lbs x 40 reps, Ended at 100 lbs x 60 reps, Equals 10 lbs increase in weight and 20 repetitions increase.
• Bench Presses: Started at 105 lbs x 25 reps, Ended at 110 lbs x 25 reps, Equals 5 lbs increase in weight and no repetitions increase.
• Shoulder Presses: Started at 130 lbs x 25 reps, Ended at 160 lbs x 25 reps, Equals 30 lbs increase in weight and no repetitions increase.
• Planks: Started at 30 seconds x 3 sets, Ended at 45 seconds x 4 sets, Equals 15 seconds increase in time each set and 1 extra set -or- 90 seconds increase in total time.
• In addition, I can see more definition of muscle in my calves, thighs, stomach, chest, shoulders, and upper arms from six weeks ago.

I am very pleased with the results of this first round.  I had hoped that I would be able to increase my weight more in my bench presses than what is shown, but I'm okay with that.  My maximum effort lift is just short of half my body weight right now, which is where I hope to get it and then maintain it at that level, if not go above it.

In my next cycle of creatine usage, I plan to up the dosage just a little bit.  I am going to try a small "loading" phase, and also use it on a daily basis.  I hope this will aid in my road to a healthier me in the future.

After all, isn't that what we're all trying for here?

My Journey to Stop Smoking

October 11th, 2010, at 2:00 P.M.

That was the last time that I smoked a cigarette.  It was a Marlboro Menthol Light.  It tasted wonderful.

It's surprising what you can remember.  I remember more about my last cigarette than I do the last Christmas.  I remember that I got my son an art easel for Christmas; or was it a tent?

Last September, the hospital I work for put up a flier for class at the local health department.  It was called the Cooper-Clayton Stop Smoking Class.  The hospital was gearing up for a change in the smoking policy (as in they were getting ready to stop it on campus, all-together), and they were offering to pay for this class for any of the employees who were willing to take it.  My wife had finally discovered after being together for four years that I had been a smoker for three of those years.  My options were quit or be alone.

I don't like being alone.  So I signed up.

The first class began on October the 4th on a Monday.  I went in expecting them to tell me that I had smoked my last cigarette on the way there, and I would be expected to respond with outrage mixed with disappointment.  However, I was informed that my assignment for the week would be to smoke like I normally do and log it.  I walked out of that first class not knowing what to expect.  Of course, the next week was a wake-up call for me as I looked back at the log and noticed how much I really was smoking. 

My instructor told me that I would be able to smoke even after the first week if I really felt the need to, but that we should try to abstain from it.  I wanted to go above and beyond in this class, not because I wanted to impress anyone, but because I wanted to live longer and prove that I had the will-power to do something this intense.  I don't remember where I wrote down that last entry for the cigarette, but I'll never forget that date.

The next twelve weeks got easier and easier as they passed by.  The Cooper-Clayton method to stop smoking involved weekly lectures and support topics, coupled with the person using either Nicotine patches, lozenges, or gum on a step-down process.  By the end of the twelve weeks, I wasn't even using the patch anymore.  I didn't feel the need for it and I felt great.  I didn't get winded walking up stairs anymore, my tri-annual strep throat didn't come back, and my wife told me that I was more cheerful than she had ever seen me.

This class has been the first thing that has actually got me to stop smoking and "make it stick."  I had tried quitting cold turkey and using Chantix in the past, both of which lasted a few months but I always wanted to smoke very badly up until the point that I gave in.

This time, I don't want to smoke.  It holds no power over me anymore, and I believe that it can be this way for everybody, as long as they have the will-power to want to stop.

If you're interested in the Cooper-Clayton Method to Stop Smoking, please click the link below:

http://stopsmoking4ever.org/

A Confession to Make

When I started this blog with Josh, I may have weighed 382.4 pounds.  But I actually weighed more than that before starting the site.

What started me back on trying to lose weight and become a healthier person was this:

On October 14th, 2010, I weighed myself.  My weight on that night that scared me more than anything else was 400.7 pounds.  I lost 18.3 pounds before I ever started the blog.