Cheat Meal

Oh yeah! About to enjoy a cheat meal at Red Robin. I have learned that to stay on course with your eating program, it is good to allow yourself a 'bad' meal once a week! By doing so you control the cravings for sweets, fast food, etc. It also prevents me from binging on food not good for me.

Day 5 Workout

Day 5 is in the books. I did legs and back on P90X this AM. I found out that with all the workouts I did over the past 26 weeks that my legs were neglected jus a little bit. I have never liked lunges and they do lots of them on this workout. Very shakey during leg routines. I have noticed though, 26 weeks ago when I started everything, I was only able to do 6-8 pull ups with about 100 lbs of assistance and the last workout before San Francisco could do 15-20 with 20 lbs assistance, now I can do 8-10 reps per set without asistance. I am excited about that. So it shows with hard work and determination that you can accomplish anything that you set your mind to. You might have periods of time that you fail, but don't give up, continue pushing and the rewards will be worth it.

Day 4 Workout

I have completed my workouts for the day. As I posted earlier today in my 'Goals' post that I did Yoga X, I am still little sore from the stretching. As I said earlier though, that my goal s to improve my flexibility and I will continue to work hard to achieve that goal. I also swam this morning after yoga. That I believe is the best cross training that I can do. This evening I did a 3 mile run. It is my last distance run for the week. Continue working hard and all goals can be achieved.

Goals

During this morning's workout session of Yoga X in P90X series, I realized that I am not flexible. I really struggled with being put in some of the positions and having to stretch. Stretching is something I normally don't do much of. Also I was only able to do 40 min of the hour and half workout. So I have set a couple of new goals within my quest to reach my ultimate goal.
1. To improve my flexibility
2. To add 10-15 min each time I do the Yoga X DVD until can complete entire workout.
These are certainly attainable. I know that yoga will improve my running, and will assist me in becoming a more fit and healthy individual!

Day 3 Workout

Well...day 3 is in the books. Figured with the schedule I have been doing I would be worn out every night, but my enegy levels seem to be increasing. That is a great thing. Today's workouts were great!
AM Workout
P90X Shoulders and Arms
Ab Ripper X
Jogged 1/2 mile, then ran 8-200m sprinters with 200m recovery jog
5 Stadiums

PM Workout
3 mile jog

Already looking forward to tomorrow's workout routine.

Workout routine

I have been asked by several of my friends to post one of my workouts that I designed to train for my race in San Francisco. The following was my routine that I did for the first 4 weeks:
Run 2 miles 21 min
Rest 2 minutes
Spider man push ups 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Jump Rope 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Leap Frogs 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Everest 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Box Jumps 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Burpees 1 min
Rest 2 min
Run 1 mile @ 8% incline 15 min
Rest 2 min
Towel Pull ups 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Ski Jumps 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Wide grip pull ups 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Dips 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Squat Thrust 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Lateral Lunge 1 min
Rest 2 min
Run 2 miles 21 min
Rest 2 min
DB curls 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Kettle Bell swings 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Walkouts 1 min
Rest 15 secs
Split Jumps 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Rows 1 min
Rest 15 sec
Back extensions 1 min
Done
If anyone has any questions about what some of these exercises, please ask.

Day 2 PM Run

This evening had a great 3 mile jog at 8:30 per mile pace to maintain my running endurance while I am focusing on increasing my strength. 

Meal

The following is another one of my meals. This is my version of Shepherd's Pie.

Top View
 

Side View

 The Shepherd's pie is made with ground turkey, seasoned to like, pureed tomatoes and green chilis, then topped with mixture of butternut squash and delicata squash (boiled til tender and smashed together), then covered with little cheese and baked at 350 for 30 minutes.

 

 

   





 

Finished Product

Day 2 AM Workout

Morning workout complete. I did Plyometrics Workout from P90X. I thought with all that I had done to get ready for San Francisco I was in pretty good shape, well this workout kicked my butt. I dug down and got through it, but was my breathing and HR elevated. Afterwards went to the pool and swam 1/2 mile. I have found that swimming improves my cardio, strength and improved my ability to run further without fatiguing. Remember to start slow with any activity you encounter and gradually build as endurance improves.

Day 1 PM Run

Easy 3 mile jog. Not important on how fast the run is done. Building endurance with a steady pace and gradually increasing your distance, will allow for improved stamina and running strength. Overtime this will lead to faster runs and improved cardiovascular system.

AM workout

Started my new workout program for next 13 weeks. Today was chest and back with P90X. This workout does not require many weights to complete, mainly push ups and pull ups. Then did the Ab Ripper X routine for core. After workout did 1/2 mile jog, followed by 6-200m sprints with 200m recovery. Then 5 stadiums to complete the workout. I am not asking anyone to complete or attempt to do any of my exercise routines. I have built up to doing workouts that are a little on the crazy side. Start slow with any routine you do, adjust the routine to make it your own and adapt it to more functional goals that need to be accomplished. It is not how much are how hard you go, but the fact that you are out doing that will make a change in your life.

Nutrition

This is the kind of meal I eat and have eaten the past 26 weeks while on this journey.


Baked Chicken Spaghetti

The baked chicken spaghetti that I made does not have pasta in it. I made with boiled chicken shredded, spaghetti squash, spaghetti sauce, mozzarella and parmesan cheese.

Next phase preparation

Today I have began my preparation for the next phase of my fitness journey. I have set up my routine for the next 13 weeks. I will alternating P90X and Insanity every 2 weeks along with running sprints in AM 3 days a week, swimming 1/2 mile 2 days a week and running 3-5 miles 4 nights a week. With the weather getting colder, the running will be tougher on my body. Nutrition during this time will be very improtant. I will continue following my Paleo style eating adding beans at night to my meal for some complex carbs. I would enjoy any recipe suggestions that can be used with this style eating. Also I encourage the development of your own workout programs to fit your lifestyle. I found by developing my own, it has allowed me to continue my fitness journey without burnout. If anyone has a workout that they have designed and would like to share for me or anyone else to try, please post. I will be more than willing to try new workouts, for me the crazier the better. Stay focused and determined cause a new "you" could be right around the corner.

Turkey Trot 5K Huntsville, AL

Happy Thanksgiving! Nothing like a morning 5K race to kick off Thanksgiving. Hope everyone enjoys eating today!

San Francisco

On Sunday, 11/18/2012, I ran a 10.2 mile obstacle course race hosted by Men's Health. This was an amazing event and accomplishment for myself. This journey started 26 weeks ago after running a race on May 20, 2012 in North Carolina. I weighed 262 lbs and had over 50 inch waist. My diet consisted of chocolate milk and donuts after workouts and fast food 4-5 times a week. I had my picture made without a shirt on and realized while looking at the picture that my weight was getting out of control. I started by changing my eating to more lean meats with fruit and vegetables. I added some weight lifting in with my cardio 3 times a week. After less than a month I set a goal to come out to San Francisco and run in the Men's Health Urbanathlon. I changed my workouts to consist of running with several one minute exercises spaced at certain intervals throughout my runs. Most of the running took place on treadmill, allowing me more access to types of equipment needed to workout. Typical workout consisted of 3 to 4 rounds of intervals running and exercises. Every 4 weeks I changed my running duration, intensity, grade % and switched up my exercises. Majority of my exercises could be done without weights. I have lost a total of 69 lbs, weighing 193 lbs, and lost over 12 1/4 inches from my waist. I completed the Men's Health Urbanathlon on Sunday in 1:40:42 something that I would not ever have been able to accomplish with the way I was going. My journey to a more fit and healthy individual has just begun. Pictures below are a before picture on May 20, 2012 and now picture Nov 17, 2012.