Tuesday, May 10, 2011

Nine Years To Live - Update

It's been five maybe six months since I began the change of my "way of life." It' s been the best thing that's ever happened to me, although it's given plenty of everyday set backs as well.

 

In the grand scheme of things, I look 70 times better and feel 200 times better. I began at a soft pudgy 215 and now I'm a semi chiseled 195. Didn't want to drop that much weight. I wanted to "bulk up" but after trimming up and realizing how limber, quicker and stronger I was getting I quickly decided that lean and tight was better than "big and meaty." I'm 37, so now my knack for burning fat isn't near as efficient as it once was and big controlled forced burns of fat were hard to accomplish until about month four because I had smoked for so for so many years and just couldn't get very good quality cardio minutes without keeling over or barfing in the bathroom. Getting more than 20 minutes of cardio would probably have sent me into cardiac arrest.

 

I decided to compensate the lack of cardio use by cutting the calories to 4000, (down from 5000,) and utilized long steady sweats on the heavy bag and jump rope. I found this actually very effective as my waist line gradually began to shrink and as my waist line began to shrink, my cardio spurts got longer and longer until I was running 2 miles just to break a sweat. A lot of this I can contribute to Chuck Mason at Snap Fitness who showed me 3 easy exercises that would just blast your fat and continue to burn it even long after you left the gym. 

 

1) Jump Rope

2) Static Platform Leaps

3) Shadow Boxing with Bands

 

Within a month of doing this, I had more wind and noticed a huge difference in my body. Veins were popping out. Muscle fibers were visible even without flexing. It was the "result" everybody looks for to get them over the hump.

 

My diet, simple and redundant.

 

Breakfast

1.Protein Pancakes

2. Orange

3. Yogurt

4. Occasional eggs and liver mush

 

Lunch

1.Turkey Burgers/Sandwich

2. STARCH

3. Apple

 

Supplemental Meal

1. Protein Shake

 

Dinner

1. 3 breasts of chicken/turkey sausage

2. Pasta/Veggies

3. Some of whatever the kids were having

 

My work out - 2 Muscle groups a day

Forearms and Abs once a week, sometimes twice.

 

I still have a long way to go and I'm not where I wanted to be at this point but nevertheless a very big improvement from where I was last October.

 

Now, here are some of the set backs and compromises, I have had to endure to get where I am....

 

1) Budget - My budget for this has become three times as bloated since before.

 

1)FOOD - I am having to keep the refrigerator stocked and had to plan my workouts to follow a meal because I have found if I don't have fuel my workouts suffer. I am also having to cook two dinners. One for the kids and one for me which has made me lock off more time to do so and more money to cover the "spread." Eating healthy costs about average $60.00 more a week than the old days of debauchery and fast food.

 

2)TIME - Killed me... When I have kids, I only get from 8am to 3:30pm and now I have them full time so it's grueling to keep any kind of routine besides theirs. I chose to go to Snap Fitness when I first made the plunge. (24 miles from my house,) This in itself has become a problem. My business has really picked and my work is deadline based so time to edit is 70% of my work and I don't get paid until I finish. With that said, I am sacrificing an already short work day. 

 

Including round trip, about two hours of my day. This not only over a week effects the time between paychecks but also cuts into time to do laundry, mow, clean house, and now five months in, (on the books,) I see it has really "disrupted," my workflow, finances and time.

 

3)Budget II-

With the price of gas sky rocketing to $4.00 a gallon the trip to the gym is not only eating up my time, but also eating up my dough. I'm spending nearly fifty dollars a week, I go 5 times a week just to get to the gym. Which breaks down to about $10 a day, I'm burning to get to the gym and back.

 

This right now is not working. I have the kids full time right now so my Budget at home is bloated and the cost of my "change of life," is costing me about the same, so my plan from here is continue with the building of the 9 Year Gym and actually work out from the house 3 days a week and go to the gym 2 days a week. I figure with the amount I am spending on gas going back and forth over the course of time will pay for the $2000 investment of the weights that I never bought, because for a little while it seemed more rational just to take my rump shaker to the facility. Now.... Not so much.... 

 

My work  out is that of a Boxers at this point. Toning, Stamina, Fat Burning, so your basic Run, Jump Rope, Heavy Bag cover the cardio and weight training is all 3 sets of long reps so it can be accomplished anywhere I can find about 90 - 130 pounds of weight minus the legs that obviously would be covered on my Gym Days.

 

 

Key Points of my Nine Years To Live:

 

1) Can not remember the last time I ate fast food.

2) My Energy levels are through the roof which means I'm able to utilize a lot more of time because I never sit and I never wear out.

3) My Mentality and attitude is largely improved which has shown in parenting, work, relationships.

4) Self-Esteem - Well.... I've never really had a problem with that, but I feel, it shows through on other people now. For instance, I'm taken more serious because when I walk in a room now, I look like I am "A Bad Ass," that takes good care of himself which in turn makes the "client" relieved.

5) The flexability, agility, and stamina I once had as a 14 year old is back.

 

6) I'm gonna' live forever. I'm never gonna' die..... Or at least I think that for the moment.

 

So I look ridiculous in this first picture but you can see the definition in my arms and chest that has formed and even my chicken neck is slowly disappearing.

 

The second picture-  ummmmm, would never happen or even dream of happening had I not chosen to work on my speed, reflex, stamina, flexability. 

Posted via email from Diary of A Shoot Stuff Guy

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