My Diet Lately

So my diet the last 3 weeks has been atrocious! I had a death in my family during that time and between eating out and going to a random bar just to take a break or visit with family & friends; my diet completely went out the window. It was more of a convenience-thing than a comfort-thing, there were a lot of errands and I didn't really feel like shopping or cooking afterwards. Another thing, there were a lot of people bringing  my family food, most of which weren't the healthiest dishes. I been feeling kind of crappy and I know my diet is the main reason.The only thing I was a little surprised about was that even though the wheels fell off diet-wise, I only gained 6 pounds total. I decided yesterday I'm getting it back under control. I hit the grocery store hard and loaded up on healthy stuff. I'm looking forward to getting my act together. The main thing I've learned during this whole process is that diet accounts for at least 85% of losing weight and getting healthy.

100 pounds... gone!

After five consecutive and very frustrating weeks of weighing-in at the same weight it finally happened; I dropped from 376 pounds to 368, getting me to 100 total pounds lost!!! It is crazy how much better 100 sounds than the 92 I was stuck at when I plateaued. It took a little longer than I wanted, but it feels great to finally be halfway there. I'm not gonna lie I was getting discouraged with not dropping LBS for so long. I can't really nail down what kick-started it but here is what's happened the last few weeks:

Two weeks ago I was pretty bummed; I was worn-out, my shoulder was hurting, and I basically stayed at the same weight for the third straight week. I went to Workshop to meet up with Paul on the 10th and as I was getting dressed, he called apologizing cause he had to cancel. I told him it was cool and that I wasn't in the mood to workout anyways. The next day he sent me a text saying that after really looking at my workout log he decided that I needed a break. I had been going 8 months straight without having a break... I was thrilled! Let's just say I completely shut it down: no cardio, no weights, no Paul. It was beautiful! The wild thing was I scared I would put on 10+ pounds during the break... and when I weighed-in at the end of the week... nothing, no change at all! I still can't figure that out.

So after my week-long break I got after it again. I really focused on my diet and I was pretty excited to get back into the gym... it sounds funny saying that cause I couldn't imagine saying that a year ago.Whatever happened, I began to lose the weight again and I hit a huge milestone at the end of the week... crazy!

Side notes: This past week I went to have my first physical and blood work performed since I started this whole weight-loss thing. I'll do a post real soon about my results. 

I also started taking Green Tea Extract, I'm not gonna go and say it helped me have a big week as far as weight loss goes, but I will keep taking it and see what happens.

Green Tea Wikipedia

I keep it 100!

                                                       

Sorry...

So I have been pretty slow on posting anything new lately... so here is what's been going on: I weighed in at 380 three weeks ago, which was a total of 88 pounds lost. I was pretty excited with my progress until I "plateaued". The following week I gained 3 pounds, the next week...I gained 3 more pounds!!! I'm not gonna b.s., my cardio stayed the same and my diet was pretty much consistent. It's kind of embarrassing working that hard only to weigh in and go the opposite way of my goal. I decided to try something new to mix it up, so instead of walking on a treadmill for 20 minutes each morning, I been doing a mini-circuit that includes: throwing a medicine ball, jump roping, and suicide sprints. In the evening my circuit involves: running, stairs, 50-yard sprints, tire flips, and jump roping. I know it sounds like a lot, but I couldn't even jump rope or do that many stairs 6 months ago. I see it as progress. Paul also has me doing planks now during our workout sessions, planks! I been doing the new routine for a week. I'm not supposed to weigh in everyday, but I lost that 6 pounds I gained plus another 5 when I checked on Wednesday... so I guess it's working!

Oh, so my friend Milad picked me up a 2XL shirt as a "test shirt" I started out wearing 5XL polos and 6XL tees. I definitely am a 4XL now, I know for a fact I couldn't squeeze into a 2XL when I first started working out. So I tried it on:

This thing will fit by November!

Finally broke into the 300's!

It's been awhile since I posted, and since it's raining like crazy outside and work is slow, I figured I would let y'all know about my progress so far. I'm at 389! It feels fantastic to finally be below 400; I can remember feeling discouraged because I was floating around 420 week after week. Getting below 400 pounds was something I was really looking forward to, my next goal is getting to 100 total pounds lost. I am at 79 so I know it's right around the corner.

455 Pound Trap Bar Lift

I forgot to post this video a few weeks back; but I hit a new PR on the trap bar... 455 pounds! I hit 405 back in February, so I'm pretty happy with a 50 pound improvement. I have to say  I went in a little cocky thinking I would hit 500 pounds, I know now just how much weight that actually is. I have a whole new respect for what 500 pounds is and for those people that can lift that much weight... it felt like I was lifting a house.

At least this didn't happen to me afterwards:

 

It's a Sledgehammer

I had a crazy crash about a month ago and I just got my bike back from the shop, I'm really excited to go riding again. I'm gonna start biking a few times a week to mix it up when it comes to my daily cardio. The weather has been beautiful and it's fun to be out with all the healthy people that live in Austin. We rode 18 miles Sunday and another 9 yesterday after my workout with Paul. I definitely notice that it takes less effort now that I'm 70 pounds lighter, and I have a ton more stamina. I am excited to hit some actual trails soon and I plan on doing the Urban Assault ride this Summer. My friends and I started a cycling group last year as an excuse to hang out together while doing something active... no golf here! We're all official on Facebook, Twitter, and even the World Wide Web, I included a link to the page to check us out.

Fat Guy Cycling Club

129 To Go

I received this email from Paul this morning:

129 lbs to go:

129/4=32.25 weeks

129/3=43

129/2=64.5

33/4=8.25 months

43/4=10.75

64.5/4=16.12

So you can keep everything in perspective. So instead of saying this is where I want to be in a year, you say I will lose 129 lbs in 9 months. Which means losing 3 or more lbs every week. No problem...

- P

So basically: 129 divided by 4/3/2 pounds a week tells me how many weeks it would take. That number divided by 4 (weeks in a month) tells me how many months that is.

Somewhere between 255 to 275 pounds is my ultimate goal. I know these guys are professional athletes, but this is what I want to emulate:

David Tua 5'10 255 and Prince Fielder 5'11 275... badasses!