MVP FITNESS 365

DAY 113 of 365

THE SITUATION

SDL ‘ing tonight (squat, deadlift, and lunges).  Fist pumping like a champ!

WEEK 16 WEIGH-IN – 289.0 pounds

An intense focus this past week was rewarded with a 3.8 pound loss.  Awesome! 

I am now down a total of 32.8 pounds and into the 280’s for the first time in a couple years.  Perhaps even more exciting for me is the fact that this week’s loss puts me back ahead of the 2 pounds per week pace charted on my STATISTICS page.

113 days into my program, and I feel GREAT.  Consistency really has been the key.  So much more now, I feel like I can have a bad day and continue on without giving up on everything.  No ONE day is too important.  Success requires an “over-time approach” that isn’t as apparent when you look at any individual moment of time. 

I am still focused on my short term goal of pushing hard until Vegas (April 16th), but getting under 275 will be the next major milestone on my way down.  It’s a silly thing, but I enjoy playing with my girls on the trampoline in the backyard.  Knowing the official weight limit is 275 pounds, I have been reluctant to join in and push it beyond that.  For how much time the girls spend out there, I am anxious to be able to enjoy it with them once again without fear of breaking the thing.  I don’t expect to see 275 until probably June 1st, but it definitely gives me something to aim for.  

I am 30.8% complete.   -32.8 pounds

DAY 112 of 365

I see it as a small return of my dignity.

I am not fast.  I was at one point, however, and I felt just a bit of it come back to me this weekend.  For the first time at softball in a long while, I felt like I was running easier around the bases, even capable of stretching the occasional single.  I don’t know when the exact point when a painful lumber becomes a gentle run, but I seem to be getting there.  OK, so I likely improved my 40 time from a day-and-a-half to only 24 hours, but you get the idea.

I ran the 400 in high school.  Once around the track – a quarter mile.  I loved the event, and it was my best.  Even out of shape, I could run it full-out until the third turn.  I’d hit the wall there and have to coast the back before kicking it up again for the last 100 meters.  But when I was at my best, I was full-out through that turn – and I KNEW IT at that point.  It was almost a euphoric feeling to sprint into that corner.  It’s the best way I can explain the difference in how I feel now.  It’s hard to understand if you’ve never been a runner, but let’s just say I notice a distinct difference in how I push around the bases.

So Saturday was good.  After the game I came home for a steady state easy paced workout on the treadmill.  Nothing too daring.

Tonight, however, I pushed.  It was an amazing workout.  I upped the intensity across all intervals (both resting and work).  I normally don’t think much of my cardio work, but I really enjoyed it tonight.  It was the culmination of a intense, near-perfect week for me.  I didn’t miss a single workout, ate perfectly according to plan, did not enjoy a meal out once, and even increased my general activity every day.

Weigh-in tomorrow.  I don’t expect a miracle, just the continuation of the nice downward trend I have going.

DAY 110 of 365

Ouch.

I am still hurting from Wednesday’s BRUTAL leg workout.  I was soooo thankful for a day off yesterday, but the bulk of the day was spent whining about how much it hurt to stand, to walk, or otherwise just to move.  I’m not sure if it was the deads, squats or lunges, because when I do ANY of those with only bodyweight, I basically collapse in a (grinning) heap.  I am not sure why I get such pleasure at maxing out my muscles, but if that is the case, I must be deliriously happy today.  It’s as if I am starting my very first workout.  DOMS is kicking my ass.

Ahh, the sheer joy of being able to grind my lower body into dust, yet still have enough left to complete an upper body beating regardless of my leg pain.  Gotta love the upper/lower split.

So now I am unable to move ANYTHING on my body.  Sweet.  Should make for an interesting doubleheader in softball tomorrow.

Vegas, baby – just around the corner.

DAY 108 of 365

1:29 AM.  Anyone see a pattern developing?

I REALLY need to work on getting more sleep.  It is CRUCIAL to the success of my program.  The problem, as always, is that I lift very late at night.  And even now, hours after the fact, my heart is pumping like crazy.  I had a brutal workout, worst best in a long time – and I still feel it.  I guess I could lay in bed and hope sleep finally catches up on me.  Whatever!?  Here I am for now, updating my blog.

So, as I mentioned above… brutal workout.  It was leg day, the first of the new Phase III.  Apparently, I had completely forgotten what pain really is.  When you go back to back to back with squats, deadlifts and lunges, well, you feel it.  And I did.  A LOT.  I literally had to crawl to a nearby machine and claw my way onto my feet afterwards.  Not kidding at all.  I was the last one in the gym at 11:00pm as they were closing, and thank God no one saw me trying to stand. 

Looking forward to it again.  Loving leg day all the more now (as if I needed more of a reason). 

Off to bed.

DAY 107 of 365

2:16 AM.  I am not sleeping – obviously.  Sigh. 

Well, I had another great day.  Intervals tonight on the treadmill.  I actually started with the intention of just walking for about 20 minutes, but that poor excuse of a workout quickly faded after my warm-up.  I can’t think of a single time when I got off the treadmill or came home from the gym wishing I hadn’t just worked out.  So I upped the intensity and sucked it up.

Just another tick toward Vegas.  Hoping to break into the 280’s this week.  I will need a big push, but the possibility is there.  After three straight decent losing weeks, that may be a stretch.  Either way, I keep pushing.

Squats and deadlift tomorrow.  FINALLY, the real work begins.

DAY 106 of 365

Update, update.

DAY 104

Double header in softball.  I usually get maybe 1-2 balls hit my way at third in a weekend.  I don’t know if these teams were trying to pick on me, or if they were a completely dead pull hitting team, but DAMN!  I had three shot my way just in the first inning.  I think I counted 14 balls in my direction over the two games. 

OK, so I had two shots redirected off my glove into the outfield, and another one up the line that I just wasn’t fast enough to get to.  Yeah, there was also the one that I just couldn’t get out of my glove in time to make a throw.  OK, and the maybe two more that I played perfectly but apparently threw too late (although one is VERY debatable on the play at home).  Let’s see.  That leaves me with 8 grounders that I handled cleanly and threw out the runner, including a game-ender.

Not the best night of my life, but we won both games, and I didn’t completely blow it.  The point is that I worked my shoulder – a lot.  I was ridiculously sore afterwards.  I intended to do cardio on Saturday, but I didn’t feel like I needed it.  I was exhausted.  I also was at bat 8 times, and hit 7 grounders, resulting in sprints up the line to first every at bat.

No extra workout necessary.

DAY 105

Great day, although VERY light in calories.  (I ended up skipping lunch because of a busy, busy schedule.  I hate doing that.)  I did get in a fantastic 22 minute interval session at night, just as scheduled.  Zero problems.

DAY 106 – TODAY

I started a free 7 day trial of Lifetime Fitness today.  What an amazing gym!  Yeah, I already have a gym closer to home, but this place …wow.  My family spent the day there swimming.  I might be tempted to add a second gym just for the tennis and swimming.  No kettlebells though.  No TRX either.  Sigh.

So, I started Phase III of my program today.  All new exercises. I so enjoyed hitting the gym with new stuff to do tonight.  I struggled through the overhead press without a spot (one of the few exercises I actually repeat), but I will make that work.  All in all, a great active day topped off with a pretty tough upper body lifting session.

The only bad to the past few days is that I finished my original flavor SURGE.  I absolutely NEED that stuff post-workout. I have half a container of the chocolate stuff, but it is horrible tasting.  I guess I’d better get online and order more.  Not sure at all what I’d do without it.

So my 28 day mini-challenge for the upcoming Vegas trip is doing great, on track, and going smoothly.  6 days down.  22 to go.  Ahhh, Vegas baby.

WEEK 15 WEIGH-IN – 292.8 pounds

Another 3 pounds lost as I continue to inch along toward my goals.

And that is how it feels too.  Slooowwwwwww going.  That isn’t to say that I have anxiety about getting there.  In fact, just the opposite.  I KNOW this is a done deal.  Even with a few slip-ups since I started back in December, I am still just a single pound off the pace of 2 pounds per week.  And while I am pained by the enjoy the slow and steady weight loss, I also continue to gain strength, endurance, and fat loss.

All that sits between me and my goal of 230.8 by December 8th of this year is TIME.  It isn’t a matter of IF, or even of WHEN. 

It simply IS. 

I am 28.8% complete.   -29.0 pounds

DAY 103 of 365

As much I like the solitude of the gym an hour before it closes, it was actually a nice change of pace to get my workout in before dinner tonight.  I got to see all new people (even if a bit packed), different music was being played, and there was no one coming by to take my workout sheet and re-rack my weights before I was finished.

Tough workout though – upper body today and the last workout of Phase II.  I pushed hard, and my body pushed back.  I was actually hindered today with the lack of a spot in the bench and overhead press.  That is a big difference from previous weeks when my weak shoulder was the limiting factor.  Shoulder felt awesome today, even when pushed to failure in most exercises.

I have nothing but Vegas on my mind.  It is fueling me over the remaining 25 days.  Smooth sailing… 

Bring it.

DAY 102 of 365

I spent a good chunk of my afternoon at the park, running (and climbing) after my girls.  It was just a gorgeous day.  I do wish that I would have had time to dust off my Rollerblades, but the girls kept me busy instead.  Maybe tomorrow.

My nutrition was right on target – 1842 calories.  I have been trying to keep between 1800 and 2200 on average each day.

Kettlebell circuits tonight.  I am still getting used to the idea.  No doubt, it is a fantastic diversion from the treadmill.  I love combining the metabolic conditioning of the circuit with the resistance training feel of the kettlebell.  There is just something gladiator-like about picking heavy objects up above your head for reps.

I completed two circuits tonight (at 15 minutes each) for a total 30 minute workout. 

My only complaint about using a single kettlebell for all of the workout is that some exercises are incredibly easy while others feel like I am actually at the gym hitting my upper body.  I have to keep reminding myself that the key here is to use a very light weight.  It is cardio.  The purpose is NOT to build muscle or get stronger.  Kettlebell circuits should not feel like resistance training.  When I tell myself that (over and over), I am able to work up quite a sweat throwing the weight around. 

So check off day 2 of my mini 28 day challenege.  I am going to push hard towards Vegas in April and the end of these next 4 weeks.