When it comes to working out, alot of people act like their way is the best and everyone else is stupid.
Have you ever noticed this? Have you ever heard a guy that's into bodybuilding talk down about the workout routine of someone that was training for a triathlon; or a Crossfitter talk bad about a marathoner; or someone that's into yoga saying that the gal going to Zumba class was wasting her time; and vice versa to all of the above? I have! I've even been guilty of it myself at times, and I'm ashamed of that.
Wouldn't it be better to encourage others in their pursuit of fitness and wellness? If someone has a fitness goal, and they're working hard toward reaching it, feeling good and seeing improvements, why not just be happy for that person?
Looking down on people for an exercise routine that's working out well for them is about as silly as arguing with strangers on the internet.
I'm going to try and encourage others and celebrate their accomplishments even when it's not my "cup of tea" and I hope you will to!
Wednesday, February 25, 2015
Wednesday, January 28, 2015
Olympic Lifting
This is a video of Ilya Ilyin of Kazakstan "clean and jerking" 532 pounds!!!
The hotshots down at the local gym can only dream of this level of strength, power, and flexibility.
Olympic Lifting is super interesting to watch (or participate in!). Anyone involved in sports or even just looking to mix up their workouts a little bit ought to at least read up on this.
(Now if you haven't ever tried it, it's not something you want to just go try out after watching a Youtube video. You can pull something pretty quick. Make sure you get a good coach to walk you through the progressions if you're new to it and want to give it a try).
Here are some really good resources.
www.Catalystathletics.com (Excellent coaching, instructional videos, and training programs)
www.Olympusbarbell.com (this site belongs to a great friend of mine that I served in the Army with and his wife- both of whom are incredible lifters and coaches)
Also, here's a few more videos of some VERY strong folks:
Kendrick Farris -United States
Dimitry Klokov - Russia
Lu Xiaojun -China
Lidia Valentin -Spain
Friday, January 23, 2015
The Glories of Jump Ropes
Jumping
rope is a great exercise. It can help with Weight Loss, Cardiovascular
fitness, Muscle
tone, and also helps increase bone density and eye hand co-ordination.
Weight Loss- due to the fact that you can tax all three metabolic pathways depending on how fast you exercise with it and what variations you use, you can absolutely torch stored body jumping rope.
(A word of caution: as with anything else, start slowly. Since it's a "high impact" activity, you want to give your joints, ligaments, and tendons time to adapt, so make sure you "ease into it!"
Cardiovascular fitness- again, taxing your metabolic pathways helps you be a well rounded athlete (who wouldn't want that?). More on this in a future post, but simply put, your body uses energy in one of three ways. The Phosphogenic pathway (think 100 meter dash in the olympics, getting chased by a dog, etc) uses energy very quickly in maximal efforts that you can't sustain for very long, usually within 10 seconds or less, this pathway will be depleted and your performance will dwindle dramatically.
The Glycolytic pathway (half mile sprint, swimming a lap in an Olympic sized pool, etc) generally falls into the 10 second to 2 minute range. It's a maximal effort, but one that you can "hang in there" on for a good period of time.
The Oxidative pathway (5K or half marathon walk or run, long bike ride, rowing, etc) is one that relies on oxygen to convert energy into propelling you forward!
Most people work only one of these pathways in their workouts routines. Jumping rope can help you tax all three, depending on your pace, variations, etc.
Muscle Tone- your calves and shoulders probably get the biggest benefit, but every major muscle group is being worked due to static or "isometric" contractions used to stabilize your skeleton as it bounces up and down like a pogo stick.
Bone Density- the impact of up and down motion causes "piezo-electricity" within your body, which stimulates the formation of "osteoblats", which strengthen your bones.
Eye-hand Co-ordination- try it and you'll see how much timing and rythmn it takes to "jump rope." Like anything, practice will have you jumping rope like this guy in no time (Kidding, but you get the idea).
Furthermore, its a fitness tool that is Portable and Cheap.
Portable- You can take it just about anywhere. You can throw in your car, gym bag, backpack, purse, satchel, back pocket, etc and take it pretty much anywhere. You can use it just about anywhere you can stand up (hallways, hotel rooms, parking lots, garages, driveways, etc).
Cheap -you can get one for a few bucks, and the investment is worth it! Here's what kind I use.
If you haven't been jumping rope, I hope you'll start!
Weight Loss- due to the fact that you can tax all three metabolic pathways depending on how fast you exercise with it and what variations you use, you can absolutely torch stored body jumping rope.
(A word of caution: as with anything else, start slowly. Since it's a "high impact" activity, you want to give your joints, ligaments, and tendons time to adapt, so make sure you "ease into it!"
Cardiovascular fitness- again, taxing your metabolic pathways helps you be a well rounded athlete (who wouldn't want that?). More on this in a future post, but simply put, your body uses energy in one of three ways. The Phosphogenic pathway (think 100 meter dash in the olympics, getting chased by a dog, etc) uses energy very quickly in maximal efforts that you can't sustain for very long, usually within 10 seconds or less, this pathway will be depleted and your performance will dwindle dramatically.
The Glycolytic pathway (half mile sprint, swimming a lap in an Olympic sized pool, etc) generally falls into the 10 second to 2 minute range. It's a maximal effort, but one that you can "hang in there" on for a good period of time.
The Oxidative pathway (5K or half marathon walk or run, long bike ride, rowing, etc) is one that relies on oxygen to convert energy into propelling you forward!
Most people work only one of these pathways in their workouts routines. Jumping rope can help you tax all three, depending on your pace, variations, etc.
Muscle Tone- your calves and shoulders probably get the biggest benefit, but every major muscle group is being worked due to static or "isometric" contractions used to stabilize your skeleton as it bounces up and down like a pogo stick.
Bone Density- the impact of up and down motion causes "piezo-electricity" within your body, which stimulates the formation of "osteoblats", which strengthen your bones.
Eye-hand Co-ordination- try it and you'll see how much timing and rythmn it takes to "jump rope." Like anything, practice will have you jumping rope like this guy in no time (Kidding, but you get the idea).
Furthermore, its a fitness tool that is Portable and Cheap.
Portable- You can take it just about anywhere. You can throw in your car, gym bag, backpack, purse, satchel, back pocket, etc and take it pretty much anywhere. You can use it just about anywhere you can stand up (hallways, hotel rooms, parking lots, garages, driveways, etc).
Cheap -you can get one for a few bucks, and the investment is worth it! Here's what kind I use.
If you haven't been jumping rope, I hope you'll start!
Wednesday, January 21, 2015
Do You Even Need Protein?
Have you
ever heard some dude at the gym bragging about how much protein he takes? Or observed a guy holding up some poor girls' workout trying to impress her by describing the massive
amounts of muscle he’s about to start piling on?
Is it really that important to ensure you’re getting protein, or is it just for “bodybuilders” and bodybuilder wannabes?
Yes, you need it. No, it’s not just for bodybuilders. Here’s why:
Proteins have various functions; they can help in digestion, aid in muscle recovery/repair, help with vision, etc. Proteins are composed of small molecules called amino acids, and there are twenty-two standard amino acids: 14 of these can be created within the body by using other compounds, but eight of them must be obtained directly from food and are known as “essential amino acids.” Each protein is composed of various amino acids put together in varying order with almost limitless combinations.
Basically, protein and
amino acids are the building blocks of muscle. If you’ve ever wanted to “tone
up” or “get bigger”, proteins and amino acids have played, or will play an
important role in achieving this.Is it really that important to ensure you’re getting protein, or is it just for “bodybuilders” and bodybuilder wannabes?
Yes, you need it. No, it’s not just for bodybuilders. Here’s why:
Proteins have various functions; they can help in digestion, aid in muscle recovery/repair, help with vision, etc. Proteins are composed of small molecules called amino acids, and there are twenty-two standard amino acids: 14 of these can be created within the body by using other compounds, but eight of them must be obtained directly from food and are known as “essential amino acids.” Each protein is composed of various amino acids put together in varying order with almost limitless combinations.
Whey protein is an abundant source of branched chain amino acids, which are
used to fuel muscles and stimulate protein synthesis. It's important to ingest protein soon after your workout because recovery is a key
component to any exercise routine. We’re not designed to build lean muscle tissue during the
process of exerting ourselves (Training breaks muscles down, its rest that
allows the body to repair itself given the proper materials to do). This is why
you should schedule recovery days just as diligently as you schedule your
workouts.
Ok so maybe you’re thinking, “Sounds good, how do I get that goodness in me?!” (to borrow a line from Brian Regan). Powered form is the easiest and most convenient way to ingest it. However, there are plenty of food options to meet just about anyone's preferences: Red meat, chicken, fish, eggs, milk, almonds, quinoa, black beans, etc, etc are great sources of protein.
You can take protein any time of the day, but it's especially important to do so following your workout. For most people, 25 to 30 grams at a time is plenty.
Your body needs protein, so make sure you're feeding it properly!
Ok so maybe you’re thinking, “Sounds good, how do I get that goodness in me?!” (to borrow a line from Brian Regan). Powered form is the easiest and most convenient way to ingest it. However, there are plenty of food options to meet just about anyone's preferences: Red meat, chicken, fish, eggs, milk, almonds, quinoa, black beans, etc, etc are great sources of protein.
You can take protein any time of the day, but it's especially important to do so following your workout. For most people, 25 to 30 grams at a time is plenty.
Your body needs protein, so make sure you're feeding it properly!
Monday, January 19, 2015
Leucine: Why You Need It
Leucine is an "essential amino acid" meaning that since your body can't make it, it has to enter your body via the mouth.
It plays a key role in breaking down protein to repair muscles and other lean tissue in your body. If you're exercising regularly, you need to be taking in Leucine in order to make sure your body has what it needs to repair itself.
The best way to get it, with regard to workout recovery, is in powered form immediately after a workout (most products that say "BCAA" ("Branched Chain Amino Acid" on the side probably has it). If you don't want to do that you can always get it through the common staples of eggs, milk, and red meat, or through the less common dietary selections of Bearded Seal and Beluga whale! Whatever floats your boat.
Either way, Leucine is the key player for an anabolic effect in your body, and will keep you from losing muscle while maximazing fat loss due to muscle mass retention.
It plays a key role in breaking down protein to repair muscles and other lean tissue in your body. If you're exercising regularly, you need to be taking in Leucine in order to make sure your body has what it needs to repair itself.
The best way to get it, with regard to workout recovery, is in powered form immediately after a workout (most products that say "BCAA" ("Branched Chain Amino Acid" on the side probably has it). If you don't want to do that you can always get it through the common staples of eggs, milk, and red meat, or through the less common dietary selections of Bearded Seal and Beluga whale! Whatever floats your boat.
Either way, Leucine is the key player for an anabolic effect in your body, and will keep you from losing muscle while maximazing fat loss due to muscle mass retention.
Friday, January 16, 2015
The Quick Scoop on Creatine
In the late
90’s I remember reading how Mark McGuire was taking “the performance enhancing
drug creatine” in his chase for the home run record, and I think this kind of uninformed journalism is what made people have a completely unscientific view of it.
If you’ve ever enjoyed a steak or a burger, you too have ingested this “performance enhancing drug.”
Creatine occurs naturally in anything with a skeleton and helps to supply energy to the all cells in the body, but primarily to muscles. You can get it by eating red meat, or by taking a creatine supplement (most come in capsules or in powder form).
It works by increasing ATP levels (adenosine triphosphate) in the body, which are the immediate energy source for muscle cells at high intensities of exercise. It doesn’t “build muscle” per se, but it allows you to train harder and recover faster, which aids greatly increasing muscle size and strength. If you want to increase muscle tone or muscle size/strength, make sure you’re taking creatine!
So how and when do you take it?
Take 2 to 3 grams pre workout and 2 or 3 grams post workout. Also, take it with an easily digestible protein (you can mix it right into your post workout protein shake) and a simple sugar (fruit works great!).
Now go get some creatine in you!
If you’ve ever enjoyed a steak or a burger, you too have ingested this “performance enhancing drug.”
Creatine occurs naturally in anything with a skeleton and helps to supply energy to the all cells in the body, but primarily to muscles. You can get it by eating red meat, or by taking a creatine supplement (most come in capsules or in powder form).
It works by increasing ATP levels (adenosine triphosphate) in the body, which are the immediate energy source for muscle cells at high intensities of exercise. It doesn’t “build muscle” per se, but it allows you to train harder and recover faster, which aids greatly increasing muscle size and strength. If you want to increase muscle tone or muscle size/strength, make sure you’re taking creatine!
So how and when do you take it?
Take 2 to 3 grams pre workout and 2 or 3 grams post workout. Also, take it with an easily digestible protein (you can mix it right into your post workout protein shake) and a simple sugar (fruit works great!).
Now go get some creatine in you!
Wednesday, January 14, 2015
How I Lost 50+ Pounds (Part 3: The Mental Game)
Another aspect of weight loss that is arguably the most important of all, is the mental aspect. How do you stick with a plan until it becomes the new normal?
Well, there are several methods that I used, none of which are "original." Any person that has ever been successful at anything probably has done similar things. If you haven't tried these though, I encourage you to!
#1. Write out your goals and put the list in a place where you'll see it often.
Whether it's "Lose 25 pounds", "Run a half-marathon", "Hike the Appalachian Trail" or "deadlift 400 pounds", writing it down where you can see it will keep it at the forefront of your mind. Stick it on the fridge, onto the bathroom mirror, save it as your computer desktop or put it on your desk at work.
Your mind is alot more powerful than you probably give it credit for- use that to your advantage and remind yourself often.
#2. Tell someone else your goals. Sometimes we want something, but we're afraid of failure or that someone will "feel sorry for us" if we don't achieve our goal, so we tell no one.
I'm not saying to brag about feats yet to be accomplished, but to confide in one (or a few) supportive friends that will help keep you accountable.
As I mentioned before, I had a good friend named Branden Mann that helped me tremendously. As a born and raised northerer, he didn't suffer from my affliction of having the tendency to sugarcoat the truth in the name of politeness. He was never rude, but he was very clear and concise when holding me accountable. If I wanted to get something at dinner that he wasn't eating he'd say something like "I thought you said you wanted to eat exactly what I was going to eat. I don't eat that because its bad for you and it'll make you fat. Put it back." GRRR! He was right. If I would have had a cheerleader (Go ahead! you've earned it!) instead of a mentor (Stop. Put that back!), I might never have made much progress. Thankfully, Branden was as strict as I asked him to be, and his example changed my life.
Now you may not have the luxury of being in as close proximity to your accountability person as I was (we lived in the same metal box in Iraq, and we were liasons to our brigade: he worked 6PM to 6AM and I worked 6AM to 6PM and were usually able to eat one or two meals a day together), but this is still an important aspect that I'd recommend to anyone.
#3. While fixing your plate/ordering at a restaurant, ask yourself, "Are these food choices going to help me get closer to reaching my goal(s)?"
If the answer is "NO", find something else to eat! Or, modify it. If you're at Outback ordering the Alice Springs Chicken, get the veggies for the side instead of fries...stuff like that.
If your written down, verbalized goal was to lose 25 pounds, you're not going to help yourself get there by eating plates of fries (exception: we'll go over "cheat" meals in another post, but there is the occasional time to indulge a bit).
#4: When you lay down to go to sleep at night, ask yourself, "What did I do today that will help me achieve my goal? Did I eat the right foods? Did I drink enough water? Did I exercise (or take rest day if you been working out hard)? Etc.
Questions force your mind to work for answers, and this will help lead to action.
#5: Set short term goals for yourself. The kind I'm talking about here is discipline goals, i.e. "Let's get through today without making a bad eating decision." Then try a week, etc. Branden and I used to try and see how long we could go without having a "cheat meal". I usually made it to the 14-18 day range and he'd be in the upper twenties, and onece, about about 35 days he figured he out to eat something fun just so he didn't get too strict about it (!!!!). Yeah, there's no fat on that dude.
Now there's need to be that strict unless you really want to be, but applying that principle on a small scale would help.
Be constantly looking at how your current choices are affecting your future. Simple concepts, but hard to put into practice!
You can do it though! Try some of these things, put your mind to it, and you'll probably shock yourself at your progress.
Well, there are several methods that I used, none of which are "original." Any person that has ever been successful at anything probably has done similar things. If you haven't tried these though, I encourage you to!
#1. Write out your goals and put the list in a place where you'll see it often.
Whether it's "Lose 25 pounds", "Run a half-marathon", "Hike the Appalachian Trail" or "deadlift 400 pounds", writing it down where you can see it will keep it at the forefront of your mind. Stick it on the fridge, onto the bathroom mirror, save it as your computer desktop or put it on your desk at work.
Your mind is alot more powerful than you probably give it credit for- use that to your advantage and remind yourself often.
#2. Tell someone else your goals. Sometimes we want something, but we're afraid of failure or that someone will "feel sorry for us" if we don't achieve our goal, so we tell no one.
I'm not saying to brag about feats yet to be accomplished, but to confide in one (or a few) supportive friends that will help keep you accountable.
As I mentioned before, I had a good friend named Branden Mann that helped me tremendously. As a born and raised northerer, he didn't suffer from my affliction of having the tendency to sugarcoat the truth in the name of politeness. He was never rude, but he was very clear and concise when holding me accountable. If I wanted to get something at dinner that he wasn't eating he'd say something like "I thought you said you wanted to eat exactly what I was going to eat. I don't eat that because its bad for you and it'll make you fat. Put it back." GRRR! He was right. If I would have had a cheerleader (Go ahead! you've earned it!) instead of a mentor (Stop. Put that back!), I might never have made much progress. Thankfully, Branden was as strict as I asked him to be, and his example changed my life.
Now you may not have the luxury of being in as close proximity to your accountability person as I was (we lived in the same metal box in Iraq, and we were liasons to our brigade: he worked 6PM to 6AM and I worked 6AM to 6PM and were usually able to eat one or two meals a day together), but this is still an important aspect that I'd recommend to anyone.
#3. While fixing your plate/ordering at a restaurant, ask yourself, "Are these food choices going to help me get closer to reaching my goal(s)?"
If the answer is "NO", find something else to eat! Or, modify it. If you're at Outback ordering the Alice Springs Chicken, get the veggies for the side instead of fries...stuff like that.
If your written down, verbalized goal was to lose 25 pounds, you're not going to help yourself get there by eating plates of fries (exception: we'll go over "cheat" meals in another post, but there is the occasional time to indulge a bit).
#4: When you lay down to go to sleep at night, ask yourself, "What did I do today that will help me achieve my goal? Did I eat the right foods? Did I drink enough water? Did I exercise (or take rest day if you been working out hard)? Etc.
Questions force your mind to work for answers, and this will help lead to action.
#5: Set short term goals for yourself. The kind I'm talking about here is discipline goals, i.e. "Let's get through today without making a bad eating decision." Then try a week, etc. Branden and I used to try and see how long we could go without having a "cheat meal". I usually made it to the 14-18 day range and he'd be in the upper twenties, and onece, about about 35 days he figured he out to eat something fun just so he didn't get too strict about it (!!!!). Yeah, there's no fat on that dude.
Now there's need to be that strict unless you really want to be, but applying that principle on a small scale would help.
Be constantly looking at how your current choices are affecting your future. Simple concepts, but hard to put into practice!
You can do it though! Try some of these things, put your mind to it, and you'll probably shock yourself at your progress.
Monday, January 12, 2015
How I Lost 50+ Pounds (Pt. 2: Eating Habits)
In my last post I mentioned several reasons that helped me lose over 50 pounds back in the day, but today I wanted to go into a little more detail on the eating side of things.
First, I like to refer to it "changing your eating habits" rather than "going on a diet."
Most people think of a diet as doing something extreme for 30 days or so, then going back to their old ways. You'll certainly lose weight by drinking only green tea and eating steamed raisin skins or whatever, but once the diet is over, you'll probably gain most of it back because you can't survive the rest of your life doing that, even if you did have the willpower. Also, most diets involve depriving yourself of so many types of foods that your body really isn't getting the nutrients it needs to stay healthy, and thus are not sustainable for the long haul.
So here's a quick, generalized list of some things I used to eat regularly, and what I changed to.
Breakfast (Before): Sugar filled granola bars, pancakes with syrup, biscuits and gravy, eggs, white toast, sausage, bacon, cappacino's, latte's, coffee (with plenty of sugar)
Breakfast (After): Steel cut oats with sliced strawberries and a drizzle of honey, 4 eggs and 2 pieces of bacon, the occasional piece of whole wheat Ezekiel bread with a little honey, a scoop of protein, milk, coffee (black or with a little Sugar in the Raw)
Mid Morning snack (Before): candy bar, honey bun, donut, soft drinks, chips
Mid Morning Snack (After): nuts, scoop of protein, blueberries, strawberries, bananas, peanut butter and celery
Lunch (Before): Fast food (a staple of mine was the Steak Quesadilla from Taco Bell, or sacks full of JR Bacon Cheeseburgers from Wendy's), fries, soft drinks, multiple sandwiches
Lunch (After): eggs, bacon, pulled pork, salads with meat on top, grilled chicken, fish, red meat (without any sides besides veggies)
Mid Afternoon Snack (Before): same as mid morning snack (before)
Mid Afternoon Snack (After): same as mid morning snack (after)
Supper (Before): meat with all the sides, soft drinks, fried chicken, pasta, pizza, fast food, anything that comes with fries or onion rings
Supper (After): any kind of meat and veggies, salads with any kind of meat on top
Late night snack (Before): Totino's pizza, ice cream, wings and fries
Late night snack (After): eggs, protein, low fat cottage cheese
If you'll notice, I basically kept alot of the meat, added more veggies, and cut out alot of the breads and sugars, etc. Also, these changes are sustainable for the long haul (I still eat like this 5 years later).
Finally, a fun "cheat meal" per week is a good way to have something to look forward to and even building up for energy reserves for the week ahead!
Changing your eating habits doesn't mean you necessarily have to forsake all the foods you love for the rest of your life. Rather, its just a matter of cutting back on some of the unhealthy ones and saving them only for special occasions.
First, I like to refer to it "changing your eating habits" rather than "going on a diet."
Most people think of a diet as doing something extreme for 30 days or so, then going back to their old ways. You'll certainly lose weight by drinking only green tea and eating steamed raisin skins or whatever, but once the diet is over, you'll probably gain most of it back because you can't survive the rest of your life doing that, even if you did have the willpower. Also, most diets involve depriving yourself of so many types of foods that your body really isn't getting the nutrients it needs to stay healthy, and thus are not sustainable for the long haul.
So here's a quick, generalized list of some things I used to eat regularly, and what I changed to.
Breakfast (Before): Sugar filled granola bars, pancakes with syrup, biscuits and gravy, eggs, white toast, sausage, bacon, cappacino's, latte's, coffee (with plenty of sugar)
Breakfast (After): Steel cut oats with sliced strawberries and a drizzle of honey, 4 eggs and 2 pieces of bacon, the occasional piece of whole wheat Ezekiel bread with a little honey, a scoop of protein, milk, coffee (black or with a little Sugar in the Raw)
Mid Morning snack (Before): candy bar, honey bun, donut, soft drinks, chips
Mid Morning Snack (After): nuts, scoop of protein, blueberries, strawberries, bananas, peanut butter and celery
Lunch (Before): Fast food (a staple of mine was the Steak Quesadilla from Taco Bell, or sacks full of JR Bacon Cheeseburgers from Wendy's), fries, soft drinks, multiple sandwiches
Lunch (After): eggs, bacon, pulled pork, salads with meat on top, grilled chicken, fish, red meat (without any sides besides veggies)
Mid Afternoon Snack (Before): same as mid morning snack (before)
Mid Afternoon Snack (After): same as mid morning snack (after)
Supper (Before): meat with all the sides, soft drinks, fried chicken, pasta, pizza, fast food, anything that comes with fries or onion rings
Supper (After): any kind of meat and veggies, salads with any kind of meat on top
Late night snack (Before): Totino's pizza, ice cream, wings and fries
Late night snack (After): eggs, protein, low fat cottage cheese
If you'll notice, I basically kept alot of the meat, added more veggies, and cut out alot of the breads and sugars, etc. Also, these changes are sustainable for the long haul (I still eat like this 5 years later).
Finally, a fun "cheat meal" per week is a good way to have something to look forward to and even building up for energy reserves for the week ahead!
Changing your eating habits doesn't mean you necessarily have to forsake all the foods you love for the rest of your life. Rather, its just a matter of cutting back on some of the unhealthy ones and saving them only for special occasions.
Friday, January 9, 2015
How I Lost 50+ Pounds (Pt. 1)
In the spring of 2009 I was the heaviest that I've ever been, weighing in at a little under 280 pounds. It was an "athletic" 280 since I was in the Army and lifting weights regularly, but I was carrying far more body fat than I should have. I can remember coming into to the little billeting area during a field exercise at Fort Riley Kansas to change my shirt. I remember taking it off, looking at my stomach and thinking, "Wow, I'm huge. I really need to change some things."
Although I didn't do anything immediately, I can trace my weight loss journey back to that moment.
A few weeks later, I went to a Crossfit training class taught by a guy named Pat Sherwood (an ex-Navy SEAL who has an amazing ability to break down complicated metabolic processes into easy to understand layman's terms), another guy named John Gilson (founder of a company called "Again Faster" that makes performance training equipment of which I have a garage full of now, who was also a great teacher), and a couple of other very knowledgeable people.
They went over alot of different things on the subjects of working out and nutrition, and it was a great couple of days of training. Some of it I still use and some I dont, but the point is it took me from the "thinking" phase into the "doing" phase.
Within a year, I weighed 220 pounds, which is a much healthier weight for me. (I've since made alot of changes in my workout routine and now weigh in at 230, but it's a 10 pound differential that I am very happy with due to the quality of the weight.)
So here's 3 very broad things that I did during that year that really helped me out (I'll try to write in more detail in future posts):
1. I cut out sugar except for a once a week "treat." I used to drink alot of soft drinks and sports drinks, both of which have alot of sugar, but I stopped doing that. (I actually switched to Diet Coke for awhile during my "weaning" process, but now I hardly ever drink that either). There are also some pretty good options out there in the sports drinks department that have alot less sugar in them than some of the more popular brands, but have the electrolytes that you need to replenish your body after a workout. Also, any sports drink should be saved for when you're exerting yourself, or about to. They're not really designed to be sipping on all day like coffee.
2. I reduced my carbohydrate intake alot. "Carbs" are in just about anything tasty here in the U.S. Bread, pasta, fruit, anything with sugar, etc. Carbohydrates are absolutely essential to good eating habits and good health, but you don't need as many as we generally eat here in the U.S.
When I first started my weight loss journey, I stopped eating things like pancakes (regularly, anyway), and starting eating 4 eggs, 2 strips of bacon, 1 piece of whole wheat toast with honey, and 2 strawberries. That was pretty much a daily routine. That's the only thing I changed for awhile, and lost 20 pounds in about 2 months. I hit a plateau for awhile, but then the rest came off with some more changes that I'll describe in #3.
Try to find ways of reducing carbs. Instead of eating, say, two turkey sandwiches, just eat one sandwich with twice the meat. Little things like that can add up.
3. I verbalized my weight and fitness goals to a friend of mine named Staff Sergeant Branden Mann, and asked him to help me hold me to it. He knew way more about this kind of thing than I did, and I had noticed over the past few months how disciplined he was with his eating. He was (and still is!) very lean and muscular, and had great strength, endurance, and energy. Furthermore, he showed me a picture of himself back in his college days, and his "old" physique reminded me of my own. I figured if he could do it, I could do it too.
We were on separate 12 hour shifts working as liason officers between our squadron and a larger brigade on a base in northern Iraq, so it was easy to work around that regimented schedule and transfer the discipline from my work life into my off time. I tried to eat at least one meal with him a day if our schedules allowed, and he'd always tell me exactly what to eat. At breakfast it would be something like an egg white omelette with spinach and no cheese, and lunch and dinner always involved chicken breast and almonds. Some days we very few carbs, while other days we'd eat more in the form of whole wheat wraps or something. Sometimes I'd whine, but he knew what he was doing and I started to see great results. After awhile, I started to pick up his methods on my own, and now, over 4 years later, I've kept the weight off by continuing to use the basic principles he showed me by example.
I'm very thankful for him and his patience and willingness to teach me about sports nutrition while holding me accountable. Thank you so much Branden! You've helped me so much more than you'll ever know.
If you can, verbalize your fitness and/or weight loss goals to someone who is really knowledgeable and who you know will hold you accountable, then take their advice and try and to learn all you can every time you're around them. (this doesn't have to apply to just weight loss: if you're a Crossfitter or track athlete or marathoner, etc,, find someone who's closer to or has surpassed the goals that you've set for yourself and pick their brain every chance you get.)
Anyway, these are just 3 really broad things I did; I'll try to go into more detail in the future.
As always, feel free to ask any kind of question that you like. I might not know the answer, but I could probably at least tell you how I've dealt with that issue in the past, or at least point you in the direction of someone that would know.
Thanks for reading!
-Jacob
P.S. If you're interested in what supplements I'm taking now, or want to check out some possibilities for your own fitness goals, check out my Advocare link.
If you want to hear about how to get big discounts on this stuff, and even earning some extra income by telling your friends about it (I've tried just about every supplement company out there and never got a nickel out of them!), shoot me a message on Facebook or email me at: jakephillips116@gmail.com. If you use supplements, its a win/win situation.
Although I didn't do anything immediately, I can trace my weight loss journey back to that moment.
A few weeks later, I went to a Crossfit training class taught by a guy named Pat Sherwood (an ex-Navy SEAL who has an amazing ability to break down complicated metabolic processes into easy to understand layman's terms), another guy named John Gilson (founder of a company called "Again Faster" that makes performance training equipment of which I have a garage full of now, who was also a great teacher), and a couple of other very knowledgeable people.
They went over alot of different things on the subjects of working out and nutrition, and it was a great couple of days of training. Some of it I still use and some I dont, but the point is it took me from the "thinking" phase into the "doing" phase.
Within a year, I weighed 220 pounds, which is a much healthier weight for me. (I've since made alot of changes in my workout routine and now weigh in at 230, but it's a 10 pound differential that I am very happy with due to the quality of the weight.)
So here's 3 very broad things that I did during that year that really helped me out (I'll try to write in more detail in future posts):
1. I cut out sugar except for a once a week "treat." I used to drink alot of soft drinks and sports drinks, both of which have alot of sugar, but I stopped doing that. (I actually switched to Diet Coke for awhile during my "weaning" process, but now I hardly ever drink that either). There are also some pretty good options out there in the sports drinks department that have alot less sugar in them than some of the more popular brands, but have the electrolytes that you need to replenish your body after a workout. Also, any sports drink should be saved for when you're exerting yourself, or about to. They're not really designed to be sipping on all day like coffee.
2. I reduced my carbohydrate intake alot. "Carbs" are in just about anything tasty here in the U.S. Bread, pasta, fruit, anything with sugar, etc. Carbohydrates are absolutely essential to good eating habits and good health, but you don't need as many as we generally eat here in the U.S.
When I first started my weight loss journey, I stopped eating things like pancakes (regularly, anyway), and starting eating 4 eggs, 2 strips of bacon, 1 piece of whole wheat toast with honey, and 2 strawberries. That was pretty much a daily routine. That's the only thing I changed for awhile, and lost 20 pounds in about 2 months. I hit a plateau for awhile, but then the rest came off with some more changes that I'll describe in #3.
Try to find ways of reducing carbs. Instead of eating, say, two turkey sandwiches, just eat one sandwich with twice the meat. Little things like that can add up.
3. I verbalized my weight and fitness goals to a friend of mine named Staff Sergeant Branden Mann, and asked him to help me hold me to it. He knew way more about this kind of thing than I did, and I had noticed over the past few months how disciplined he was with his eating. He was (and still is!) very lean and muscular, and had great strength, endurance, and energy. Furthermore, he showed me a picture of himself back in his college days, and his "old" physique reminded me of my own. I figured if he could do it, I could do it too.
We were on separate 12 hour shifts working as liason officers between our squadron and a larger brigade on a base in northern Iraq, so it was easy to work around that regimented schedule and transfer the discipline from my work life into my off time. I tried to eat at least one meal with him a day if our schedules allowed, and he'd always tell me exactly what to eat. At breakfast it would be something like an egg white omelette with spinach and no cheese, and lunch and dinner always involved chicken breast and almonds. Some days we very few carbs, while other days we'd eat more in the form of whole wheat wraps or something. Sometimes I'd whine, but he knew what he was doing and I started to see great results. After awhile, I started to pick up his methods on my own, and now, over 4 years later, I've kept the weight off by continuing to use the basic principles he showed me by example.
I'm very thankful for him and his patience and willingness to teach me about sports nutrition while holding me accountable. Thank you so much Branden! You've helped me so much more than you'll ever know.
If you can, verbalize your fitness and/or weight loss goals to someone who is really knowledgeable and who you know will hold you accountable, then take their advice and try and to learn all you can every time you're around them. (this doesn't have to apply to just weight loss: if you're a Crossfitter or track athlete or marathoner, etc,, find someone who's closer to or has surpassed the goals that you've set for yourself and pick their brain every chance you get.)
Anyway, these are just 3 really broad things I did; I'll try to go into more detail in the future.
As always, feel free to ask any kind of question that you like. I might not know the answer, but I could probably at least tell you how I've dealt with that issue in the past, or at least point you in the direction of someone that would know.
Thanks for reading!
-Jacob
P.S. If you're interested in what supplements I'm taking now, or want to check out some possibilities for your own fitness goals, check out my Advocare link.
If you want to hear about how to get big discounts on this stuff, and even earning some extra income by telling your friends about it (I've tried just about every supplement company out there and never got a nickel out of them!), shoot me a message on Facebook or email me at: jakephillips116@gmail.com. If you use supplements, its a win/win situation.
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