FatBloggers.net A little push to lose the tush.

According to my scale at home, I have already lost 2 lbs since Tuesday. I owe part of that to my personal trainer, Mikki. I get 2 sessions per week as a part of the Weight Warriors challenge. Let me tell you, she is wonderfully brutal. She has me doing exercises that I had never tried before. Guys, I did ‘assisted’ pull-ups! I’ve NEVER been able to do one, so I hadn’t tried the assisted version. Another exercise that I was shocked I could perform, triceps push-ups. Ooh, both burn GOOD!

Here is what Mikki wrote about me in her blog:

We began on Monday, the beginning of the beginning. John did awesome, he put out the effort to meet each and every challenge I gave him. Each rep and set was tough but he stuck with it, soreness and all. John has a visual goal, so we are using heavier weights and less reps. We begin with 15 minutes of a cardio warm-up, next is the strength training session followed by an additional 30 minutes of cardio. He was instructed to add another day in between to round out a 3 day strength training week as well as 45-60 minutes of cardio on the off days, totalling 6 days per week. This schedule is not for the weak at heart, but John is ready to rock and roll.

The reason I haven’t been going anywhere recently, according to Men’s Health magazine, was that my body was bored. With Mikki cracking the whip… my body isn’t bored anymore!

Did anyone else notice that the gravity field was stronger today? Well, if only it were that easy to blame my gain on anything but me. However, we all know the fault here lies completely on me. Lemme see… just what did I do?

Oh yeah… I guess I should’ve skipped the Celtic Kiss I fixed for myself one night. Oh, and the several brownies I’ve had over the week. Plus other sweets and stuff. Good grief. I knew I had a bad week when I had a minor gout attack hit me Sunday evening and finally go away last night.

Of course, on the upside, I did situps 3 nights, pushups 2 nights, leg lifts 1 night, a 20 minute slow walk with my wife and our dog on Sunday followed by a 30 minute fast walk by myself and a 20 min walk today at lunch. My workout buddy got the flu on Friday and had to miss the last two days. Hopefully he’ll be back tomorrow to start in on our workout plan.

I’ll just have to push myself harder to stick to core and avoid the sweets. They are really my downfall right now. I have been enjoying more fruits and veggies, but I haven’t avoided the chocolates and desserts either.

Starting weight: 319.0 lb
Previous weight: 284.8 lb
Current weight: 287.6 lb
Current loss/gain: +2.8 lb
Total loss/gain: -31.4 lb
Distance to 50: 18.6 lb
Distance to WW Goal: 37.6 lb

Cross-posted to WebCudgel.com

Update 2.6.2008:
My workout buddy finally came back to work today after the flu, but was still too weak to deal with working out.  So our plans are postponed until Monday when we attempt to start fresh (again).  He also already signed us up for a 2 mile fun run on March 8th.  Unfortunately, I don’t do any work or exercise on the Sabbath and can’t seem to convince him of that.  So we’ll see how I can get out of this without hurting him.  After all, I’ve always wanted to do a charity run, but they’re almost exclusively on Saturdays when I observe the Sabbath.

found a great list of fifty easy ways to lose weight. there are quite a few really good things in there, some of my favorites:

53. Passionately kiss your partner 10 times a day. According to the 1991 Kinsey Institute New Report on Sex, a passionate kiss burns 6.4 calories per minute. Ten minutes a day of kissing equates to about 23,000 calories — or eight pounds — a year!

13. Serve your dinner restaurant style (food on the plates) rather than family style (food served in bowls and on platters on the table). When your plate is empty, you’re finished; there’s no reaching for seconds.

18. Avoid white foods. There is some scientific legitimacy to today’s lower-carb diets: Large amounts of simple carbohydrates from white flour and added sugar can wreak havoc on your blood sugar and lead to weight gain. But you shouldn’t toss out the baby with the bathwater. While avoiding sugar, white rice, and white flour, you should eat plenty of whole grain breads and brown rice. One Harvard study of 74,000 women found that those who ate more than two daily servings of whole grains were 49 percent less likely to be overweight than those who ate the white stuff.

25. Eat slowly and calmly. Put your fork or spoon down between every bite. Sip water frequently. Intersperse your eating with stories for your dining partner of the amusing things that happened during your day. Your brain lags your stomach by about 20 minutes when it comes to satiety (fullness) signals. If you eat slowly enough, your brain will catch up to tell you that you are no longer in need of food.

26. Eat only when you hear your stomach growling. It’s stunning how often we eat out of boredom, nervousness, habit, or frustration — so often, in fact, that many of us have actually forgotten what physical hunger feels like. Next time, wait until your stomach is growling before you reach for food. If you’re hankering for a specific food, it’s probably a craving, not hunger. If you’d eat anything you could get your hands on, chances are you’re truly hungry.

the whole thing is well worth a read, so go check it out.

[cross-blogged at ...love is the movement]

One of my co-workers has volunteered to be a workout buddy.  This gives us both accountability since he wants to get back into a regimen just like I want to start one.  However, I have a feeling that I’ll be completely wasted by the end of next week.

We’ll be starting Monday at lunch with a 1.5 mile walk/jog, then 20-30 minutes weight training at the fitness room in his building (I work in the executive offices where there is no fitness center), then I walk/jog/crawl back to my building.  He works in the other building so he’ll start off by jogging over to my building where I join him for the trip back.  He gets in the full 3 miles before weight-training whereas I only have to do half.  I’m sure I won’t get anywhere near a jog on the trip back.

Now he plans for us to do this Monday through Thursday.  He’s already given me a list of specific stretches to do before he gets to my building.  He also has given me homework of 30 situps every night until we start (he says this will help with any back issues I may have starting out).

I just completed 27 situps (my abdominal muscles then called for a revolt so I quit).  I followed up with 10 pushups (on my knees, I’ve never been able to do full body pushups).  I’m now gonna crash for the night.

If I don’t post Tuesday night, it will be because I couldn’t even move my mouse I’ll be so tired.

We’re halfway through January, but this is really the first weekend I’ve had a chance to sit down and do any reflecting about the previous year and give some thought to this new one.  Weight loss highlighted 2007 for me, and although I’m returning to a dieting mode right now, I’d like to focus more on health and well-being this year.  Losing weight was just the start.  Some health dragons I would like to keep at bay include:

• Enjoying eating without overindulging.  Just finding that balance seems to be so difficult for me.
• Regular exercise.  I hate going to a gym, and would rather do something outside.  Makes it really difficult for me this time of the year.  I’m definitely looking forward to better weather when I can get on my bike again.
• Maintaining positive outlook.  The events of the last two years or so have taken it’s toll on my own emotional well-being, but I believe I’ve been able to get a handle on that.  Being happier has done wonders for my motivation to get and stay healthy. In fact, it’s proving to be the key factor in my own physical health. 

For so many reasons, I’m looking forward to a great 2008. 

What kind of health goals do you have for this upcoming year?

There is an article over on SavingAdvice.com about “There’s no such thing as Free Exercise“.  It is an excellent discussion of the costs of entering an exercise program of ANY kind.

Everything you choose to do that is healthy may have a way of affecting your wallet.  It is not limited to exercise, as it includes diet as well.  It is cheaper in most cases to eat unhealthily than to choose the right foods.  Healthy foods cost more.  Prepackaged foods cost less.  Salads and other good choices in restaurants cost more.  Combo meals and larger portions cost less.

However, despite all this, can we really put a price on our extended life and health?  What price would you pay to see your kids graduate or get married or have grandchildren?  What price would you pay to have a clean bill of health when you see the doctor?  How much money will you save on insurance?

It may hit our pocketbook early on, but the long-term effects of gaining a healthy lifestyle far outweigh (pun intended) the dollars we pay now to get there.

Courtesy of the good guys at MensHealth.com

Remember last Christmas when the dog chewed the wires on your new PS3 and your nephew threw up at dinner? Here are five ways to head-off holiday disasters this year.

1. Forget about your diet. Want another twice-baked potato? Eat it. A slice of cheesecake and a few cookies? Sure. Don’t stuff yourself till you’re sick, but have a little bit of everything you love. And then get a jumpstart on your New Year’s resolution by eating right and working out tomorrow.

2. Skip today’s workout. Taking a day off helps your muscles grow. Get in a workout the day before and after Christmas with this 15-minute bodyweight routine that you can do anywhere.

3. If you receive a 5-foot tall wooden giraffe, say thanks for the thought and planning. Then deflect attention from yourself by asking how and where the giver found it.

4. Laugh at her family’s jokes. If a conversation falls flat, ask her parents about their recent trip to the Grand Canyon or share that you’re training for your first marathon. Stick to neutral topics and you’ll be fine.

5. Volunteer to run an errand and take her with you so you can get out of the house. Spending time by yourselves will get you away from your cousin’s poodle that likes to hump your leg and from Uncle Jim’s criticisms about your job. You’ll return saner, knowing you can make it through the last few hours

I had a chance to visit with one of the Trainer-ettes (we don’t have any male personal trainers at my gym) this week about my lifting routine and the plateau of sorts I have found myself in. She gave me a new routine that would ’shock’ my metabolism into action again with the added benefit of being more new, and less routine.I am getting to the gym 4x per week, so she suggested that I have one dedicated cardio day and bust out the following fat-burning juggernaut.

10 min. on the elliptical (moderate intensity)
Bench Press (Chest) 12/10/8 at 125 lbs/130 lbs/135 lbs
Seated Row (Back) 12/10/8 at 120 lbs/130 lbs/140 lbs
5 min. Balls to the Wall on the bike
Leg Press (Quads/Hams) 3/15 at 260 lbs.
Ab Machine (Abs) 4/25 at 130 lbs.
5 min. Balls to the Wall on the bike
Barbell Curl (Biceps) 12/10/8 at 75 lbs/80 lbs/90 lbs
Triceps Press (Triceps) 3/15 at 95 lbs
5 min. Balls to the Wall on the bike
Standing Calf Raise 3×15 at body-weight
Overhead Shoulder Press 12/10/8 at 75 lbs/80 lbs/85 lbs
Finish up with 10 minutes on the elliptical at an easy intensity.

I guess it paid off…

Anton, a drum roll if you please…

Starting Weight (Dec. 22, 2006): 392 lbs.
Starting BMI: 51.7
Weight Today (Sept. 27, 2007): 320.8 lbs.
Current BMI: 42.3

Weight Change This Week: -2.8 lbs.
Total Weight Lost: -71.2 lbs.
NEXT GOAL: the 75 lb. magnet (3.8 lbs. to go)
WeightWatchers Challenge: 302 lbs. by Thanksgiving

The wife and I were watching Wyatt Earp on AMC tonight, you know the one with Kevin Costner? Since we are like most Americans, we hold conversations during the commercial breaks in our favorite programs. But tonight an ad came on that, at first, I wasn’t sure I heard them say what I thought I heard them say. Fortunately for us, this is basic cable and if you miss one flim-flam ad, you are sure to catch it again in the next break.

Well, tonight we (you and I) were lucky and I get to point you toward the diet pill website with a million dollar URL.  http://eatallyouwantandstillloseweight.com/

This handy-dandy pill called Akavar 20/50 promises:

A Major medical breakthrough has shattered the weight-loss barrier and a new generation of fast-acting caloric restrictors has been born… an entirely new generation of powerful, foolproof, bio-active weight loss compounds that automatically reduce caloric intake… eliminating traditional dieting, calorie counting, strenuous exercise, fad diets, supermarket “miracle” pills, Japanese wonder diets, rubber suits, belts, creams or anything else you have ever tried before. But most significantly, this new generation of potent compounds has eliminated diet failure and replaced it with guaranteed success. Akävar™-20/50 makes up for years of overeating, years without exercise, years without being able to push away the extra dessert or midnight snack and, most importantly, years of embarrassment and lack of self-confidence.

My had to practically restrain me from ordering a bottle of these babies for the unheard of price of $39.95 (plus S&H) when I found that they had the backing of the Salt Lake City Chamber of Commerce!

What was the phrase that was uttered that caught my attention you ask? You are lucky to be able to see its paraphrased version on their website.

“And we couldn’t say it on TV if it wasn’t true!” 

The September 2007 issue of Men’s Health magazine again lists a number of criteria to determine your fitness level. At first glance, these 5 exercises elicit a response of, Oh, hell no! But then I began thinking about it, and I think that by this time next summer, I could successfully accomplish a couple of these feats of strength and agility.

1) Single Leg Squat - Stand on a bench. Hold your arms in front of you and flex your left ankle so your toes point up. Keep your torso upright, bend your right knee and slowly lower your body until your left heel touches the floor. Pause 1 second, then push yourself up.

0 reps = Out of Shape
1 rep = Average
3 reps = Fit
More than 5 reps = MAN Fit

2) 1-Mile Run - Go to your local track and take 4-laps.

More than 10 minutes = Out of Shape
8 minutes = Average
7 minutes = Fit
Less than 6 minutes = MAN Fit

3) Vertical Jump - Against a wall, extend your arm and mark your reach with chalk. Then jump as high as you can and make another mark. The space between marks is your vertical jump.

Less than 16″ = Out of Shape
16-18″ = Average
18-24″ = Fit
More than 24″ = MAN Fit

4) Chin-Up - Start from a full hang, hands shoulder-width apart, palms toward you. Pull your chin over the bar, and then lower your body back down.

0 reps = Out of Shape
4 reps = Average
8 reps = Fit
More than 9 reps = MAN Fit

5) Push-Up - Assume the classic push-up position: legs straight, hands beneath your shoulders. Brace your abs. Keeping your body rigid, lower yourself until your chest touches the floor. Then push back up until your arms are extended.

Less than 20 reps = Out of Shape
20-34 = Average
35-44 = Fit
More than 45 = MAN Fit

So, how would you do?