Progress Journal: Week 1& 2 of Spring Training Completed!

The Aftermath of Eating all the Things...

I am unrepentant and unapologetic about eating all the things so now we are dealing with the aftermath.  Right now I'm about 6 pounds scale weight above where I left off before my food scale broke and deciding to EAT ALL THE FOOD over the holidays.

So right now it's about getting back into the habit of waking up early for gym time, getting in my water, and food preparation.  I

First Training Cycle of 2015 is COMPLETED!

I'm actually really pleased with the way things have gone this past 2 weeks.  I feel strong in the gym and my food intake has been on point.  

I feel great.  Weeks 1 & 2 of my Spring training are complete and I am now heading into Week 3 and I will have my marching orders from Roxie.  A lot of my anxiety that I had about food has gone away.  There are no binges and no quest bar dreams. Really if I craved anything it was salad and that was a welcome for me. I have had a free meal each week and it has been trail mix, burger, and fries.  LOL!  I love my trail mix.

I told myself that if I had problems with bingeing and such that I was going to have to re think competing as a goal because I don’t think it’s healthy and I don’t want to set myself up for problems later on down the line.  I also think this was a great opportunity to learn about some unhealthy habits that I had such as anxiety about food.  Not a good thing.

Goals

After doing my measurements for my update I have decided that by the end of this 12 week Spring Training, I want to lose:

• 8 pounds (My coach hates when we get hung up on the number but it's where I like to be around normally)
• 1.5 inches off of my waist 
•  2 inches off of my navel.

I am very excited about seeing something like a hamstring in my back photos..and I can see some Quad action as well..  I also notice my shoulders look better.  As we chug along here I cannot wait to compare my last year pictures with this years pictures.

This week I got a little behind on my food prep but that wasn’t an issue.  I subbed some foods out that I really like and it was fine. They are also higher fiber foods and I had a salad out which I would rather have than a quest bar.

I have been drinking water, lemon, a dab of honey, and cayenne pepper/cinnamon in the mornings for my digestion instead of coffee. (I have that later…LOL)  I have been reading about alkalinity and fat loss…it may be a bunch of hooey but I notice my sugar cravings aren’t happening.

I will post my pictures after Weeks and 3&4

Staying Motivated to achieve your best year for your Health and Wellness!

Tip#1 - Have a Destination and avoid the March to Nowhere (or Buttonwillow)

Losing Weight is a terrible goal. It’s generic and not specific. If you were taking a vacation and I asked you, “Where would you like to go?” What if you responded with “California”. That could mean San Francisco, Los Angeles, San Diego, Buttonwillow, Kettleman City, or Modesto. Some of those places are awesome and some not so awesome. You need to have a specific destination or else you could end up in Buttonwillow and then you will give up and quit.

What should your destination look like? I believe the best goals are Functional in nature or if cosmetic not number specific.

Examples of Good Destinations on a Roadmap

Incorporate more fruits, vegetables, and whole Foods into my every day diet
Exercise 4-5x per week
Improve Upper Body/Lower Body Strength
Decrease Body Fat
Improve Flexibility

The Best Thing about all of these goals? The byproduct of all of these goals is that you will see a reduction in body fat.

Tip #2 - Roadmap to your Destination

Using our analogy of taking a trip (and avoid ending up in Buttonwillow), suppose I asked you this question: “Well how do you plan to get to your destination?” 

Then you said, “Well I don’t really know. I’m just planning on taking a bunch of freeways and seeing where I end up.”

That’s not the most efficient way to get anywhere but unfortunately that’s what most people do when it comes to their health and fitness goals. They buy every new diet book, follow all the fitness people on social media, join a gym, and they are off to the races. No direction, no roadmap, just trying a bunch of things to see what sticks.

I call this technique throwing oatmeal against the wall. You just want to see what sticks.

There is a better way.

Yesterday we talked about destination. Now we need to put those destinations on a roadmap and decide which is the best direction for us to use to get where we are going. Using our examples yesterday here are some examples of a roadmap with direction.

1.Incorporate more fruits, vegetables, and whole Foods into my every day diet
2. Exercise 4-5x per week
3. Improve Upper Body/Lower Body Strength
4. Decrease Body Fat
5. Improve Flexibility

Roadmap
Grocery shop once per week, eat veggies with each meal, use fruit as dessert
Begin exercising 3x per week CONSISTENTLY
Strength Train 2x a week including a Strength Class at the gym
Take Measurements every 6 weeks
1-2 Yoga Classes per week and 5-10 mins of Flexibility Work after each workout

This is enough to keep you busy for about 12 weeks and everything corresponds with our destination. Roadmap with direction!

Tip #3 - It won't be easy so get your mind right

Despite what the gym salespeople, magic bean hawkers, and those informercials try to tell you, fitness isn’t easy.  It’s not supposed to be easy.  It’s easy for you to give your credit card to these people selling you the dream, but the actual WORK of fitness is hard work.

Sorry but 10 minutes a day of exercise isn’t going to cut it if you want to make real changes.  I would never discourage anybody from starting where they are and if all you got right now is 10 minutes, I would rather you do that than zero but this isn’t easy.

It’s not easy to get up early in the morning and go workout when you would rather stay in bed.  It’s easier to order take out than it is to cook all your meals, put them away, and then do the dishes.  It’s not easy to tell people “Nope I’m good.  No wine for me tonight or cocktail.”  It’s not easy.

And your workouts?  Sometimes they will be uncomfortable and they will burn.  You’ll be sore and tired.  It’s not easy but I don’t know anything that is worth doing that is easy.  

If you want easy and comfortable prepare not to see much change.  It’s just that simple.

Tip #4- It will take longer than you think

Tip #5: - It isn't going to happen overnight. As a matter of fact it will take you about 12 weeks to undo the holiday damage and 6 months to 1 year to see substantial 

The two biggest lies in Fitness are: it's easy and you can get quick results

I am so tired of reading stupid 3 day, 5 day, and 30 day results "programs" that "health coaches" are peddling for their Multi Level Marketing scams. Real results take time.

Why? Because if you don't understand the journey, then you won't be able to hold on to whatever results you get which is why these multi level marketing programs are so successful. It's the process that teaches you the good habits, discipline, and what actually works for your body and lifestyle. You get none of that with Quick Fix programs

Many of those people whom you admire on Social Media have been working out for YEARS to achieve those results. It didn't just happen overnight or in 30 days like some may claim.

There isn't a magic number of sessions that will get you there either so beware of these salespeople that tell you that they can get you a 6 pack in 10 training sessions. That takes time and THEY aren't getting you anything. You have to do the work but that's tomorrow's tip.

High Intensity Interval Training: What you can use to spice up your routine and increase your fat burning!

I am a big fan of High Intensity Interval Training.  It’s a short and to the point workout and it gets you GOING.  Make no mistake about it though: It is tough!   I do a 10 minute HIIT workout as part of my own fat loss program and it is the LONGEST 10 minutes ever.  I wanted to highlight some FAQ’s about HIIT training.

Benefits of HIT Training

• Works from the cellular level - HIIT increases the mitochondria which is the energy center of a cell. The increase in mitochondrial density increases the amount of energy available to the working muscle meaning you can run longer...faster.

• Leads to more effective fat burning and carbohydrate breakdown -  In the February 2012 IDEA Fitness Journal it was reported that: Fat Burning was significantly higher after 6 weeks of interval training (Perry 2008) and In as little as 2 weeks, there was a significant shift in fat burning after 2 weeks (Talanian 2007)

• Exercise Post Oxygen Consumption or “Afterburn”:  After an exercise session, oxygen consumption is elevated as your body tries to recover from your session.  What’s also elevated? Your caloric expenditure.  This means that even after your workout is finished you are still burning calories at an elevated rate.  

Isn’t that awesome!  Less time and also a great Return on Investment.

Some Caution about HIIT

It’s not supposed to be done every day

More is not better.  High Intensity Interval Training is awesome but it is also strenuous.  You should not be able to perform 5 HIIT sessions in a week.  If you are, then I doubt you are doing true HIIT.  It takes a toll on your body as it should.  It’s high intensity exercise.

Save your joints and other tissues and  only perform HIIT workouts at a maximum of twice per week.  I have noticed some gyms and boot camps offering HIIT workouts 5x per week and telling members it is fine to perform these exercises every day.  Think of this as the Law of Diminishing Returns.  More = Diminishing Recovery and performance.  

Remember: You should be working on other components of fitness in addition to HIIT to avoid injury and to improve performance while doing HIIT.

Don't Start off with HIIT if you are new or just coming back to exercise

I have watched clueless trainers start a new client off with intense exercising.  This is after the client told them they sit all day and haven’t exercised in 3 years, but they want to show off so they preach “HIGH INTENSITY INTERVAL TRAINING” during the session.  

No.  

First you need to improve form, technique, range of motion, movement patterns, and conditioning before launching into HIIT.

Give yourself about 8-12 weeks before incorporating a HIIT workout into your routine.

Start Slowly and add on from there

10 minutes is plenty to start off with and then you can add gradually.  I really don’t believe in anything longer than 20 minutes.  After you are finished, then you can finish up with some lower intensity steady state cardio to give the joints a break and to allow yourself to recover.  Your heart rate will remain high and you will still be burning calories at a higher level.

Types of HIIT

High Intensity Interval Training can be performed on the traditional cardio machines such as: the treadmill, a bike, or the stepmill but you can also use equipment such as dumbbells, barbells, kettle bells, medicine balls, or even your own body weight.

The possibilities are endless. Stay tuned for a sample HIIT workout!!

Progress Journal: Welcome to Spring Training 12 weeks of Fat Loss (Week 1)

Welcome to Spring Training!!!

Well I am officially back on plan as of today.  Since I am from San Francisco and we are the world champions in baseball, I think it’s only fair to use this analogy of Spring Training as it relates to training.  

One of the most important parts of a training program is RECOVERY and REST. Along with flexibility, I think this is one of the most overlooked components of fitness.

This last month and a half of not weighing and measuring anything worked wonders.  I bought a new food scale and did not get angry when it was time to meal prep yesterday.  I actually welcomed it.  I also spent this last week eating whatever and doing whatever.  I needed the break.January 5

Now I am ready to go and I’m calling this my Spring Training.  Baseball players use Spring Training to get in shape, get the rust off, and work on the fundamentals.  So shall it be for me over this next 12 weeks.

I love deadlines and timeframes because it keeps me motivated knowing that I have a target date to reach.

12 Week Goals

• 90% compliant with plans
• Fat Loss in the Mid Section
• Stronger in my Back/Biceps (I have this thing about wanting guns and I am determined to have them)

January 5 was Day 1 and it felt really good to be back ALTHOUGH my HR was near 160 on the elliptical which hardly ever happens...LOL.

We won’t even talk about what happened with the scale this morning, but this happens every year and every year it’s usually all gone within 5-7 days.  I bet it will be even better this year with an actual plan to follow instead of my not eating enough plan.

I'm not showing any pics until I've completed 4 weeks...LOL! Then we can see the first comparisons.

Results of the First Week

Feeling really awesome and strong in the gym. My cardio conditioning is back where it was and my lifts feel really good. I also think it was a good idea to eat all the things because that took care of all of my cravings. I'm about 3 weeks out from putting my shorts back on.

Due to circumstances, I am sending in my update to my coach this next Saturday. I feel she will get a better idea of where I am after 2 weeks on plan.

I did drop 5.6 pounds of scale weight despite it all.  That was probably all water weight.  I expect to see big drops these 2 weeks and then my body will head into it's happy spot and the real work will begin.

I'm excited to see where I go this year.  Stay tuned!  I'm determined to do it better.