9.12.2012

262.2

I've been busy since the weekend moving out of the Greenwood house and back home. I believe I've noted this before, but transitions like this tend to be really bad for me when it comes to maintaining a diet and workout schedule. I essentially haven't worked out at all in almost 2 weeks, basically since I got word that the loan was going south and that at the same time, I needed to get out of the Greenwood house so that she can get it ready to sell. Luckily, this process is coming to a close. I have most of my stuff, other than the larger items such as the TV, my chair, chest of drawers, etc., out of there now and in the storage unit. I still need to get the cable box and modem back to Comcast and I need to close down the utility accounts.

So now I'm essentially living at home in Edmonds for the near future. The condo isn't completely dead. There is a very nice lady at Homestreet Bank that is interested in moving forward with the loan. I need to get her a statement sometime today that provides more context around what I was doing during my 14-month employment gap. I think the chances of this going through right now are slim, but it's worth investing a little more time in the process to see if we can make it work.

9.11.2012

262.0

9.10.2012

263.0

9.9.2012

263.0

9.8.2012

263.2

9.7.2012

263.0

9.6.2012

263.0

9.5.2012

261.6

Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 8.4 oz.
Salad - greens, steak, assorted veggies and fruit, blue cheese, dressing
Red Bull, sugarless, 16 oz.

Very distracted the last few days by this whole mortgage situation and so I haven't been paying the least bit of attention to my diet or journaling.

9.4.2012

262.2

9.3.2012

262.2

9.2.2012

262.2


Food:
3 eggs
5 small breakfast sausages
2 nectarines

9.1.2012

261.0

Food:
2 Donuts
Americano with 1/2 and Splenda
Diablo
Cup of Chili
Cajun
5 Vodka Sodas
Ribs
Whiskey and Red Bull
Chocolate Frosty

8.31.2012 -

261.4

Strength:
Deadlifts


Metcon:
50 DU
5 Deadlifts
200m run
7 pullups

I really want to do a different WOD today, so we'll see.

Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 16 oz.
Chicken
Broccoli
Cinnamon Roll
2 chicken thighs
Gin and Soda 
Chicken Sandwich
Fries
Oreo Shake


11:15 am: 3 days in a row at CF and so I am feeling mighty stiff this morning. I got some extra sleep last night though, and so I feel a little more alert than usual. The Red Bull helps with that, obviously.

I'm not sure what to do about this new coach. I'm pretty sure that the problem here is me and not her. Essentially, her outpouring of positivity and energy at the end of the day is just grating on me and I don't know how to deal with it. To be sure, positivity and energy are great qualities to have, but that doesn't change the fact that it's a bit much for me to deal with. It would be ironic if I wind up moving next door to my CF gym and then moving to another gym because of her, especially after 3 years.

8.30.2012 - Burpees, Situps, Squats

261.2

Metcon:
5 Burpees
10 Situps
15 Squats
X10

15:15


Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 8.4 oz.
Coffee with non-dairy
Pilly cheesteak sandwich
sweet potato fries with tartar
Red Bull, sugarless, 16 oz.
2 Chicken Thighs, fried
Big Salad - greens, cucumber, bell pepper, olive oil, feta and blue cheese dressing
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, strawberries, blackberries, nectarine

Cheats:
Bread on the sandwich
Sweet potato fries
corn meal used on the fried chicken

8.29.2012 - Press + 100m Sprints

262.2

Strength:
Press
5 X 5 at 100

Metcon:
7 X 100 sprints

Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 12 oz.
Salad - greens, veggies, flank steak, blue cheese crumbles, blue cheese dressing
Coffee
Coffee
Almonds
Zuchini, sauteed in olive oil
Chicken meatballs

8.28.2012 - Hang Cleans, KB Swings, Mountain Climbers

263.0

Metcon:
AMRAP 10 Minutes
7 Hang Cleans (#95)
7 KB Swings (#53)
7 Mountain Climbers

7 rounds total



Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 12 oz.
Coffee
Salad - greens, bell pepper, onions, cucumber, olives, blue cheese crumbles, chicken, salami, dressing
3 eggs
4 slices of bacon
4 small breakfast sausages

8.27.2012 - Rest Day

262.6

Strength:
Back Squats
5 X 5 at 195


Metcon:
30 Lunges
30 Russian Twists
30 Squat Hops
30 V-Ups
X4

Food:
Red Bull, sugarless, 12 oz.
Skirt Steak Burrrito
Corn Chips
Red Bull, sugarless, 16 oz.
1 Taco, pork
1 large quesadilla, pork
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, blackberries, blueberrries, strawberrries, nectarine

Cheats:
Tortilla on the burrrito
beans in the burrito
rice in the burrito
corn chips
Tortilla on the quesadilla
Tortilla on the taco

11:20 am - my record of attendance on Monday has been poor, so we'll see if the workout listed above actually happens. If not, I'll try to get the squats in later in the week.

3:05 pm: I am flying on Red Bull right now. I can see how people get hooked on this stuff. It's gross but it makes me feel alert and awake in a way I'm simply not used to.

8.26.2012 - Rest Day

263.2

Food:
3 eggs
6 breakfast sausages
Red Bull, sugarless, 12 oz.
2 Donuts
Americano with 1/2 and splenda
Chicken
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, blueberries, strawberries, peach
3 slices of pizza

Cheats:
2 Donuts
3 slices of pizza

8.25.2012 - Rest Day

261.2


Food: 
3 eggs
1 Peach
1 Plum
Americano with 1/2 and splenda 
Diablo - Sausage, bun, pico, sour cream, cheese
Chili, 1 cup - sausage, beans, onions, tomato, cheese
Pizza - too much

Cheats:
Bun on the sausage
Beans in the chili 
Pizza


3:35 pm: I'm having my usual weekend problem: boredom. The smart thing to do would be to go back to the house and pack up some more of my stuff and then start working on cleaning the walls. 

8.24.2012 - Deadlifts & Jumprope

261.2

Metcon:
5 Deads
100 single skips
X5

9:42


Food:
Red Bull, sugarless

Chicken
Brisket
Broccoli
2 eggs
4 breakfast sausages
2 slices of pizza
10 chicken wings 

Cheats:
2 slices of pizza

8.23.2012 - Unintentional Rest Day

261.4

Strength:
Power Cleans?

Metcon:
2 rounds, 2 minutes at each station
Row
Sled Push
Situps
Single Skips
Supermans
Rest

Food:
2 eggs
2 sausages
4 slices of bacon
Salad - chicken, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, bell pepper, blue cheese crumbles, dressing
1 donut, chocolate without frosting
Double Americano with 1/2 and splenda
Large Quesadilla, Al Pastor
1 Taco, Al Pastor

Cheats:
Flower Tortilla on the quesadilla
Corn Tortilla on the taco


9:25 am: The recorded weight is ticking down slightly, but more or less staying in the same range. We'll see if the baseline moves down a little bit next week, which is what I expect will happen. Most morning weigh-ins next week should be between 260 and 261. Aside from the weight, I'm noticing my gut pulling in a little bit in the mirror. I'm also sleeping a little bit better, though that could have more to do with the air mattress than anything else. 

10:25 pm: Very disappointed I didn't make it to CF tonight. 

8.22.2012 - Press (5 X 5) + Push Press & KB Swings

261.2

Strength:
Press
5 X 5 at 95

Metcon:
21-18-15-12
Push Press (#95)
KB Swings (#53)
11:11

Food:
2 Eggs
2 Sausages
4 slices of bacon
Red Bull, sugarless
Salad - lettuce, tomato, cucumber, olives, flank steak, blue cheese crumbles, dressing 
2 chicken thighs
Salad - lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper, feta dressing, olive oil
Dry Sausage and Brie
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, nectarine, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries 

Cheats:
None

8.21.2012 - Back Squats + Front Squats & Strict Pull-Ups

262.2

Strength:
Back Squats
5 X 5 at 185


Metcon:
5 Front Squats (#135)
5 Strict Pull-Ups
X9

13:10

Food:
2 Eggs
3 Sausages
4 Slices of Bacon
Salad - lettuce, cucumber, tomato, red onion, radishes, chicken, ham, blue cheese, blue cheese dressing
2 chicken thighs, boneless and skinless, fried in olive oil
Salad - lettuce, cucumber, blackberries, bell pepper, apple, olive oil, feta dressing, blue cheese dressing

Cheats:
None

8.20.2012 - Rest Day

263.0

Food:
Almonds
Chicken
Broccoli
Cauliflower
Orange Chicken
Broccoli Beef
Salami
Cheese - Brie and Cheddar
Apple
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, peach slices, blackberries, strawberries, blueberries

Cheats:
None


10:35 am: Interesting that my weight has ticked up this morning. I wonder a bit about this greek yogurt mixed with fruit that I've been eating at night. The greek yogurt is almost straight fat, and while it's supposed to be good for you and low carb, I wonder about the calorie count. Maybe I would be better off cutting down the portion size on the yogurt to maybe a couple of heaping tablespoons and just kind of mixing that in with the fruit.Yes, I think I will do that. Also, going to sleep earlier so that I don't feel compelled to eat would be a good idea. Otherwise, everything seems to be going well. I like these mini-workouts I'm doing on my own. I feel like they are helping me recover more effectively and also maintain mobility on my off-days. So that's all good. 

10:30 pm: Too tired for CrossFit tonight. I just could not get myself to go, so I'm calling it a rest day.

8.19.2012 - Rest Day

262.4

Food:
1/2 Protein Shake - Egg Protein, Coconut Milk, Strawberries
3 eggs
4 breakfast sausages
Americano with 1/2 and Splenda
Broccoli Beef
Orange Chicken
Greek Yogurt with strawberries, peach, blueberries, honey, walnuts

Cheats:
None

8.18.2012 - OHS (PVC), Lunges, Dumbbell Bench Presses

262.2

Metcon
25 OHS (pvc)
20 Lunges
15 dumbbell bench presses (#25)

17:05


Food:
Salmon, 10.5 oz
Americano with 1/2 and Splenda
Americano with 1/2 and Splenda
2 chicken sausages
Apple
Salad - lettuce, cucumber, bell pepper, red onion, dry sausage, olive oil, feta dressing, blue cheese dressing 
Diablo
Chili
Chili w/chicken Sausage, cheese, crackers


3:30 pm: I had the salmon around 2 hours ago and already I'm getting hungry. I'll need to go back to the house for a protein shake or something before working out. Should have brought some almonds.  

9:00 pm: This was a home workout. I was going to go to LAF, but wanted to watch the Mariner game, this is really a workout in lieu of a workout. I figured the air squats would be marginally more useful as OHS with the PVC, which is all I had. I also need some heavier dumbbells. I'll have to get on that one of these days. 

11:45 am 8/19/2012: I pretty much could not stop eating last night. The cheat was limited. The main bad part was the bun on the diablo and the crackers I crumbled into my late night chili back at the house. Also, the legumes I suppose, but that's arguable.

8.17.2012 - Deadlift & Power Cleans + Heavy Push Press, Pullups, & KB Lunges

261.6

Strength:
Deadlift
5 reps at 185
5 reps at 205
5 reps at 225

Metcon:
10 Push Press (#135)
15 Pullups (Green)
14 KB Lunges (#35 in each hand)
X3

Forgot to look at my time but it was in the 15 minute range I believe.

Extra Credit:
20 Power Cleans (hang) at 145

Food:
2 eggs
4 slices of bacon
3 sausages
Red Bull, 12 oz., sugarless
Beef Brisket
Broccoli
2 Italian Sausages
Greek Yogurt with honey, walnuts, nectarine, strawberries, blueberries 
Gin & Soda
Popcorn

11:00 am: Not hungry at all right now after the big breakfast. I'll probably go and get a medium-sized salad around 1 pm, or possibly the friday barbeque without any sauce and definitely without the mac and cheese.

Bit of a cheat last night with the burger, but the key here is to make that an isolated event and not carry over to other meals. So, I just have to stay focused on that.

Definitely need to make it in to CrossFit tonight. If I can, it would be good to work on the Power Cleans some more. Ideally, 5 X 5 at 145 would be best, probably from the hang. We'll see. I would also prefer to do my own metcon today, but that will depend on how many people are there and what not.

2:10 pm: Got two servings of brisket, but saving one of them for a snack for later.  

3:30 pm 8/18/12: Added one more note to add last night's movie popcorn to the list for 8/17. That's two cheats in two days. However, everything else has remained stable. 

8.16.2012 - Rest Day

261.4


Food:
2 Eggs
2 Sausage Patties
Bacon
Salad - lettuce, cucumber, chicken and other veggies and blue cheese dressing
2 small pieces of bacon
Burger - Sonora from Uneeda
Garden Salad with some kind of balsamic dressing
Greek yogurt - walnuts, honey, blueberries, strawberries, nectarine

9:50 am: Another day without carbs. Morning weigh-in was heavier, but that type of fluctuation happens. I know that from experience. In the past, my Sunday morning weigh-ins, which are usually a little later in the morning, have been where I've shown the most loss.

8.15.2012 - 150 Pushups

259.4

Strength:
150 Pushups (knees)

Food:
2 Eggs
3 Sausages
5-6 smallish pieces of bacon
Diet Dr. Pepper
Red Bull, Sugarless, 12 oz.
Low Carb Special - skirt steak, carrots, zucchini, lettuce
Chicken Breast
2 Eggs
5 smallish pieces of thick-cut bacon
3 breakfast sausages
Greek Yogurt with walnuts, honey, strawberries, blackberries, nectarine

9:04 am: Today is the eighth day since I started journaling again and already I'm seeing measurable progress. I'm down about 3 pounds, which isn't much, but is pretty good for a week. In fact, 2 - 3 pounds a week is probably as fast as one would want to go. 2 pounds per week is 20 pounds in 10 weeks or 40 pounds in 20 weeks. I don't think I'll drop 40 pounds in 20 weeks, which would be right around the first or second week of January, but I am hopeful to be back down around 240 by the end of October. Ideally, I can maintain that weight through the holidays and then get a fresh start in January. A key to success will be the types of foods I keep in my apartment, especially through the holidays. Also, I'll probably want to start being something of a low-carb Nazi when I go out and during the holidays.

Referencing the numbers above, 40 pounds would be a whole new reality for me. It would have been 1995 or 1996 since I was at that level. How awesome would that be? The key is focus - maintaining focus on what I'm eating and working out almost every day, even if the workout is a mini like the 110 pushups I did on Monday. 

11:10 PM:  Had to skip crossfit tonight, but I went ahead and did a bunch of pushups.

8.14.2012 - Power Cleans & Situps + Extra Credit Metcon

259.2

Strength:
10 Power Cleans at 155
25 Pullups (Green)
21 Ring Dips (Blue)

Kettlebell Presses
3 X 7 at 35

Metcon #1
Alternate Power Cleans and Situps at the top of every minute for 10 minutes. Score is total number of situps.
5 Power Cleans (#135)
Max Situps

115 Situps

The power cleans were super easy at #135, which helped a lot with the situps. Afterwards, I added a couple 10 pound plates and did 10 more.


Metcon #2
100 single skips
10 dumbbell bench presses (#25)
X5

Not for time. It would be helpful to have some heavier dumbbells around but these weren't bad.  

Food:
Almonds
Red Bull, Sugarless
Salad - chicken, lettuce, cucumber, onion, blue cheese
Beef Jerky, 4 pieces
More Almonds
1 chicken breast
Greek Yogurt (full fat) - walnuts, strawberries, blackberries, nectarines, honey

8.13.2012 - 110 Pushups

262.0

Strength:
110 Pushups

Food:
3 Eggs
4 slices of bacon
3 sausages
Red Bull, sugarless
2 fish tacos, no tortilla
2 chicken sausages
1 small slice of brie


Big breakfast today and completely forgot about lunch. It's after 2 pm as I'm writing this and I'm just now getting a little bit hungry. So what to do? I don't want to be starving going into my workout tonight. Maybe the thing to do is to get a couple of fish tacos without the tortillas after work and then go into the 7 pm class. 

Update: too tired after work. Took a nap and then got up and did some paperwork. 

8.12.2012 - Rest Day

261.0



Food:
3 Eggs
4 slices of bacon
Grande Iced Latte
Tall Americano with 1/2 and Splenda
Salad - Lettuce, Bell Pepper, Cucumber, Blueberries, Apple, Feta Dressing, Blue Cheese Dressing
2 Italian Sausage
Chocolate

8.11.2012 - Back Squats, Bench Press, & Inverse Rows

261.4 

Strength:
Back Squats
5 X 5 at 135

Bench Press
5 X 5 at 135 

Inverse Rows
5 X 5

Dumbell Shrugs
1 X 10 at 65

This was a deliberately light workout, especially with the squats. The idea with these off-day workouts is to keep things fairly light. I want to get my body moving, work some muscle groups, and build up volume over time, but I also don't want to push things too much and overtrain. I want to be able to get back in the gym tomorrow and the next day as well and I want to be able to do my core CF workouts during the week. The off-day workouts are supplemental, and that's it.


Food:
2 string cheese sticks
Chicken Sausage
Red Bull, sugarless
Double Tall Americano with 1/2 and splenda
Double Tall Americano with 1/2 and splenda
Almonds
Chicken Sausage
Chicken Sausage
Salad - lettuce, red onion, cucumber, blueberries, red pepper, olive oil, feta dressing, blue cheese dressing
Gin and Soda 
More Gin and Soda
Cheese 
Summer Sausage Slices 
Wings w/ranch, 15

8.10.2012 - Deadlifts + Metcon

262.0

Strength:
Deadlifts
5 reps at 225
3 reps at 255
10 reps at 275

Power Cleans (hang)
5 X 2 at #155

*Next Power Clean workout will be 5 X 5 at #140 (hangs)

Metcon:
7 KB Presses each arm (#35)
15 KTE
60 single skips (20 DU)
X4

8:57


Food:
3 eggs
3 sausages
bacon
Brisket
Pulled Pork
Squash
Grapefruit
Red Bull & Gin
More Gin
Salad - chicken, lettuce, cucumber, red pepper, blackberries, blueberries, red onion, olive oil, feta dressing, blue cheese dressing 
Yogurt with walnuts, blackberries, blueberries, and honey
Apple

I had a thought yesterday, which is that stability is good for me. I seem to operate better when I have structure and stability. Chaos, while stimulating, tends to throw me off track. Trying to do too much in the first half of the year really threw me for a loop and got me off track. Crossfit, diet, job search, PMI, and Toastmasters divided my attention and more importantly, my focus. This is odd, because I'm actually bored quite a bit. It's not like I'm busy, busy, busy all day everyday. But it seems like, when it comes to focusing on self-improvement activities, that there's only so much I can have going on at any one time. Other things going on throughout this year included: buying a new car, looking for a condo, dating, breaking up, and dealing with family committments. Of course, a lot of this is just life. I can't expect to live a monastic existence free from daily pressures and normal, ordinary stuff that people have to deal with. What if I had kids? Talk about a time sink. But it does seem like, when it comes to self-improvement, which in my case is mostly about working out and keeping the weight off, that I am easily distracted. If I have too many things going on, I simply lose focus. I don't pay nearly as close attention to what I'm eating, I don't journal my workouts, and I don't think about goals for fitness and weight loss.

Enough about that. Yesterday was an exemplary eating day and my goal for today is to do the same. No Schultzy's or Pagliacci's tonight or tomorrow, and no ice cream. There will be cake (and ice cream) on Sunday and for several days next week, which is fine, but I need to compartmentalize that so that the entire week doesn't become a huge carb-fest. It would also be a good idea to get some extra workouts in, maybe do a spin class at LAF. I know CF'ers tend to scoff at spinning and step aerobics and what not, but as supplemental activities, I think they're fine and useful. One spin class every two weeks added into my CF mix would help with endurance. Plus, it's more fun than CF. I like CF and I'm in it for the long haul, but sometimes it's a real grind. Also, CF'ers tend to be close minded if you ask me. No, globo fitness classes aren't as effective as CF, but they do have the advantage of being a lot cheaper. Also, it's been pretty well-established at this point that diet is more important, especially when it comes to weight loss, than one's workout routine. So what makes more sense, paying $200/mo for CrossFit or doing globo classes and putting that extra money into improved diet? I think the answer is fairly obvious.

8.9.2012 - Rest Day, Haircut

262.6

Today will mostly be a rest day.  I have an appointment to get my hair cut at 6:15, so I'm not going to make it in to CF today. I may do some light exercises, pushups, air squats, etc., but nothing major. Although, I do have a thought in the back of my head to go to LAF tonight after my haircut and do some bench presses. I know I'm really weak in the bench press and right now, with my increased body weight, it would make sense to build that back up again. It'll help with pushups, burpees, and any of the overhead pressing movements.

On the weight, at least I know now how bad it's gotten. An achievable goal I believe is 255 by the end of September, and then reevaluate and see what I think I can do by the end of the year. To get even more granular, let's say 258-259 by the end of August. I know from past experience that the weight comes off slowly for me. Diet and Exercise combined seem to do the trick, but even there it comes off slowly so I need to make sure I'm not putting too much pressure on myself. If I can maintain the diet though, I should start feeling better and seeing the stomach pull in within a week or so. This is something else I know from past experience.

Food:
2 Eggs
Bacon
3 Sausages
Red Bull, sugarless
2 fish tacos w/o tortilla 

Yogurt - honey, walnuts, blackberries
2 pieces of pastrami
2 string cheese sticks
No carbs so far!

Super important to be strict on the diet and keep away from the carbs. Right now, that's all I'm asking myself to do - stay away from the carbs! Do I want my shirts to keep bulging? Do I want to keep struggling to run at CrossFit every day? Do I want to keep fighting my own body? The answer to all of these questions is no.

One other thing: keeping a daily journal on here is critical. This is how I keep myself accountable and how I measure progress. It worked in the past and it shouldn't be any surprise that when I stopped journaling, that this is when I stopped making progress and started regressing. 

Light Workout:
5 rounds
10 Step-Ups
10 dumbell presses (#15)
10 Air Squats

Not really a workout but just enough to break up the stiffness and move a little bit. 

8.8.2012 - Press, Hang Cleans + Metcons

Time to start journaling again. I suppose I'll have to start weighing myself again as well. Not looking forward to that, but no getting around it. 

Strength:
Press
5 reps at 95
3 reps at 115
1 rep at 125


Very, very weak in the press. I should note that pushups have been weak lately too. On the press, I maxed out at 155 a couple of months ago and I feel like I've been weak ever since. Overall upper body strength doesn't seem like it's been good at all. Burpees especially have been tougher than usual. It's like there's no strength in my arms to push off the ground. I almost wonder if I have some sort of injury.

Power Cleans (hang)
4 X 5 at 135 

These felt really good. My hook grip was strong for the first 2 sets but not as much in the last two. The cleans felt really strong though and the bar was just flying up, so that's good. 


Metcon:
10 Rounds, 1 minute each
20 seconds of Deadlifts (#205)
20 seconds of V-Ups
20 seconds rest

56 Deadlifts
54 V-Ups

Food:
Eggs, 3
Bacon, 4 slices
Sausage, 1
Red Bull, sugarless
Skirt Steak Burrito
Coffee, 1 cup
Corn Chips
Salad - Gyro meat, lettuce, cucumber, red onion, olives, banana peppers, feta cheese, feta dressing, olive oil
Apple
Cheese
2 pieces of pastrami

Assorted Health Issues/Burnout/Afraid to Look at the Scale

I'm at the point right now where I'm a little bit afraid to look at the scale. I know I've gained some pounds and I'd be surprised if I'm under 255 right now. What makes me afraid is that it could be a lot worse than that. 

It seems like my two periods of sickness in the Fall/Winter + the Holidays really did me in. Not only am I not maintaining my diet with any degree of commitment, but my dedication to working out, which has worked so well for me in the past, has flagged. I guess I'm just tired of working out like a freaking demon all the time, day after day after day. That's actually okay I think. If I could maintain 3 days/week with consistency and a low-carb diet, I would lose. My guess is I would lose 15 lbs/year on that kind of regimen. 

The latest health issues are late season allergies and some sort of tweak to my back that resulted in me taking a week off. The truth is, I was happy to take the time off.. As I said above, I'm tired of it. I don't want to quit, but maybe I could do something else for a while. It might be fun to work out on my own for a couple of months and focus on strength. I might do some spinning classes as well.

I'm buying a plyo-box on Wednesday and I'm ordering some dumbbells from Amazon. The plyo-box is 16", which is a good height for weighted step-ups, which is mostly what I want it for.

2.22.2012 - Rest Day

253.2

Rest Day

Food:

Cappucino

Banana

Skirt Steak Burrito

Gyro Plate - gyro meat, hummus, pita, salad

2.21.2012 - Tabata Bear Complex

252.2

Metcon:

Tabata Bear Complex (#45)

20 Seconds On

10 Seconds Off of the following:

Deadlifts

Hang Clean

Front Squat

Push Press

Back Squat

X8

Total Score = 343 reps

Food:

Nuts

Apple

Taco Salad - Pork, lettuce, pinto beans, sour cream, guac, cheese, shell

Progenex Shake

Salad - Pork, greens, cucumber, blackberries, cheese, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing

2.20.2012 - Strength + Metcon

250.8

Rest Day

Food:
Nuts
Coffee
*Taco Salad - steak, pinto beans, lettuce, tomato, sour cream, guac, cheese, taco shell

Rotisserie Chicken

Yogurt with honey, blackberries, and walnuts


*given that I ate this taco salad today, I need to be careful and not let the rest of the day go to shit food-wise

2.19.2012 - Strength Day

250.2

Strength:

Back Squats

worked up to 1 rep at 285, mostly doing sets of 2 and then a few 1's.

This wasn't a true max effort, but the 285 was a little bit difficult

Dumbbell Shrugs:

5 X 10 at 65

Shoulder Raises

2 X 5 at 30

Bench Press

5 X 2 at 175

Low Row

5 X 10 at 120

Chest Supported Row

4 X 3 at 225

1 X 3 at 245

1 X 3 at 265

Food:

Fish

Flank Steak

Cappucino

Progenex Shake

Banana

2.18.2012 - Rest Day

251.8

Rest Day

Food:

Fish

Flank Steak

2 pieces of pizza

4-5 drinks

Spicy chicken sandwich

Fries

Oreo Cookie Shake

2.17.2012 - Strength

252.6

Rest Day

Food:
Fish
Beef Brisket (no BBQ sauce)
Pulled Pork (no BBQ sauce)
4 small bites of mac and cheese
1 bite of bread
1 bite of potato salad
2 cups of coffee with non-dairy creamer

Flank Steak

Bowl of chili (w/beans and sausage)

2.16.2012 - Rest Day

252.2

Rest Day

Food:
Salad - greens, cucumber, blackberries, flank steak, cheese, blue cheese dressing
Low Carb Special with extra steak
Fish
Salad - greens, red onion, cucumber, blackberries, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing, feta cheese
Yogurt with honey and strawberries and walnuts

2.15.2012 - Back Squats + Power Snatches, Lunges, Box Jumps

251.4

Strength:
Back Squats
3 reps at 225
3 reps at 245
3 reps at 255


Metcon:
5 Power Snatches (#115)
20 Walking Lunges
20 Box Jumps
X4

12:30 (approximate)

Food:
Nuts
Flank Steak
Salad - greens, broccoli, cucumber, olives, chicken, turkey, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing
Progenex Shake
Salad - greens, cucumber, blackberries, flank steak, cheese, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing

2.14.2012 - Rest Day

251.4

Rest Day

Food:
Nuts
Prime Rib
Brussel Sprouts
Aparagus
Salad - Pork, lettuce, tomato, guacamole
flank steak
cheese
sausage

2.13.2012 - Front Squats & Deadlifts + Short Metcon

251.6

Strength:
Front Squat:
5-5-5

155-165-175

Deadlift:
2-2-5

225-275-315

Metcon:
AMRAP 5 Minutes
20 Double Unders
10 Situps

5 rounds

Food:
Ooba's Low-Carb Special w/steak
8 corn chips
Coffee with 1/2 and equal

Salad - flank steak, greens, cucumber, onion, blackberries, apple, cheese, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing

Chocolate

2.12.2012 - Rest Day

253.4

Rest Day

Food:

3 eggs, scrambled w/red pepper and cheese

Americano with 1/2 and splenda

Ribeye Steak

Salad - greens, cucumber, orange pepper, apple, blackberries

Chocolate

2.11.2012 - Rest Day

253.0

Strength:

Back Squats

3 X 5 at 245

Good Mornings

3 X 5 at 115

Deadlift

1 X 5 at 310

Bench Press

5 X 5 at 165

Chest Supported Row

5 X 7 at 195 (lower grip)

Food:

4 eggs

Sausage

cheese

Protein Shake

Popcorn (w/butter)

Nachos

None of the strength work listed above happened. I'm going to keep it in place for now since this is still what my next strength workout needs to look like, but the reality is it may not happen until next week. What happened was that I detected signs of overtraining in my mental state, and so I decided to go see a movie instead of going to the gym. The food thing kind of went to shit. The worst part was the popcorn (w/butter). The nachos were bad, but the main thing there was the corn chips. The important thing here is to make sure I get back on track right away. The big failure in the past has been letting everything go to shit once I have a bad meal or two. The reality is that the cheat meals are part of what will happen. I just need to make sure they aren't part of the daily routine.

2.10.2012 - Push Press & Air Squats

254.8

Metcon:
10 Push Press (#105)
20 Air Squats
X6

9:53 - not bad actually. Some of the younger studs did it in half the time or better, but I'm not too unhappy about this.

Food:
Coffee w/non-dairy creamer
Nuts

2 chicken breasts

small salad - greens, broccoli, cucumber, olive oil, balsamic, sesame dressing

Steak

Salad with blue cheese dressing

Veggies

2 eggs

chicken sausage

cheese

Good food day yesterday - try and keep it up today. Need to cut down on the coffee with non-dairy creamer. Also considering getting a food scale and starting to count calories again. I know I shouldn't be focused on weight per se, but what the heck is going on here? 254.8? Seriously, I was at 251 two weeks ago. I assume increased water retention from stepping up the WODs is part of what's going on, and maybe I haven't emptied my bowels to the extent needed, but I have to wonder if I'm simply taking in too many calories. If I don't see a downward trend by the end of next week, I'll have to look into calorie counting. For today, I think I will stick to the one cup of coffee I'm drinking now and then lunch will be two chicken breasts and a small salad. I'm going to have to be careful over the weekend as well.

2.9.2012 - Rest Day

253.4

Rest Day - no WOD

Food:
Nuts
Coffee
Salad - greens, cucumber, peppers, beats, onions, cheese, egg, chicken, ham, turkey, bacon, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing
Salad - greens, cucumber, apple, blackberries, avocado, chicken sausage, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese dressing
Yogurt - honey, walnuts, strawberries

Good food day yesterday. Need to keep it up. Forcing myself to take a rest day today. This is good because it means I'm getting back into the swing of things with CrossFit again where I have to hold myself back from overtraining. Gotta remember that diet is the number one priority right now.

2.8.2012 - Strict Helen

253.8

Metcon:
"Strict Helen"
400m Run
21 Kettlebell Swings (53/35)
12 Strict Pull-Ups
X3

15:40

Food:
Salad - greens, chicken, salami, blue cheese, banana peppers, cucumber, green pepper, red pepper, broccoli, egg, balsamic, olive oil, blue cheese dressing
Banana
Coffee
Progenex Shake
Salad - greens, apple, blackberries, cucumber, onion, cheese, Italian Sausage, Bacon, Balsamic, Blue Cheese Dressing
Yogurt - honey, blackberries, walnuts

Pretty good food day. The workout sucked, but that's mostly about body weight I think. Last spring I was doing well and then it all went downhill and then the weight gain happened mostly in November and December I believe. Target right now is to get back down around 240 by the end of March or so. That should be doable. Then it's only 5 more pounds to get down to 235, which is my baseline low. Then I can start making forward progress again. Ideally, I would like to be under 230 by the end of May.

2.7.2012 - Back Squats + Metcon

252.4

Strength:
Back Squats
1-1-1-1-1

#265 on the final rep. Could have gone heavier, but this was fine. I'll squat again on Saturday and getting my body used to that heavy weight will make things easier.

Metcon:
300m Row
Bear Crawl (4 room lengths)
11 Wall Balls

12:32

Food:
Nuts
Coffee

Salad - greens, broccoli, cucumber, jalapeno, olive, chicken, ham, turkey, cheese, blue cheese

Banana

Progenex Shake

Salad - greens, cucumber, onion, apple, blackberry, cheese, pork, balsamic, olive oil, feta dressing

Dark Chocolate

2.6.2012 - Kettlebell Swings & Planks

253.8

Metcon:
10 KB Swings (#70)
1 Minute Plank
10 KB Swings (#70)
1 Minute Side Plank
10 KB Swings (#70)
1 Minute Side Plank

20:40

Admittedly, the planks were pretty weak. I think I'm just too damn heavy right now. Gotta get back down to my fighting weight.

Food:
Nuts
2 chicken breasts

small salad - greens, cucumber, broccoli, balsamic vinaigrette

2 cups of coffee

Banana

Progenex Shake

Salad - greens, pork, blackberries, apple, cucumber, cheese, olive oil, balsamic, blue cheese

Chocolate

Interesting that the weight has actually gone up. I seem to remember this happening before, so probably not a big deal. It could very well just be a result of increased water intake.

Pretty good day on the food.

2.5.2012 - Rest Day

253.4

Rest Day

Food:

Chicken Friend Steak

2 Eggs

Mashed Potatoes

Gravy

Banana Bread

Tall Americano

Salad

Chicken Wings

Chocolate

2.4.2012 - Strength Day

252.4

Strength:

Back Squats

3 X 5 at 225

Deadlifts

1 X 5 at 305

Power Clean

1 X 3 at 165 (2 from the hang)

Bench Press

5 X 5 at 160

Chest Supported Row

3 X 5 at 195 (lower grip)

Very good strength day. The squats and the bench both felt strong. Missed the good mornings though, so I need to make sure those get added in next time. The power cleans were kind of a last second thing I just felt like doing. The chest supported row felt pretty easy. I can probably go up 20 pounds next time.

Food:

3 eggs

Bacon

banana

Progenex shake

2.3.2012 - 500m Row X 2 + AMRAP Hill Run, Front Squats & Push Press

252.2

Metcon:
Part 1:
500m Row X 2
*Rest as needed between sets

1:49, 1:56

Part 2:
AMRAP 11 Minutes
1 Hill Run
20 Front Squats (#115)
10 Push Press (#115)

9:44 am: Part 2 of this WOD is pretty extreme. With loads as prescribed, I see 1 complete set happening plus maybe 1 more hill run.

Final: Took off on my second hill run with about 2 minutes left on the timer.

Food:
Nuts

Salad

Pork

Italian Sausage

Summer Sausage

Cheese

Hot Chocolate

2.2.2012 - Rest Day

251.6

Metcon:
5 rounds of:
200m run
10 Pullups
20 Broad Jumps

Got stuck in traffic coming out of Redmond and so I called a last minute audible and opted for a rest day. I could have still shown up late, but decided I wasn't feeling it.

Food:
Nuts
Coffee
Salad
Italian Sausage
Banana
summer sausage
cheese
dark chocolate

Overall, a pretty good food day. For the week so far, my diet has been pretty good but not great. There was the chicken tikka masalla and naan bread on monday, the taco salad on tuesday, Ooba's on Wednesday. All the same, one thing that is sticking to me is reduced nighttime cravings for sugar. I think this is due to going to bed earlier, having more regular hours, sleeping better, having more going on during the day to occupy my brain, and reduced sugar intake overall.

2.1.2012 - Front Squats + Tabata Deadlifts & Thrusters

251.4

Strength:
Front Squats
2-2-2-2
#205 max for 2 reps

Metcon:
Tabata Deadlifts and Thrusters

Deadlifts - 33 at 185

Thrusters - 30 at 75

Food:
Apple
Banana
Shrimp Tacos
Rice
Black Beans
coffee
Spicy Chicken
Rice

Note: Obviously if I had cut the rice and black beans it would have been a pretty good low-carb day.

1.31.2012 - Rest Day

252.0

Rest Day

Food:
Beef slices
Taco Salad - pork, rice, black beans
Cobb Salad

1.30.2012 - Clean & Jerks + AMRAP

252.0

Metcon Part 1:
32 Clean and Jerks (#105)
8 situps at the top of each minute
4:59

Metcon Part 2:
AMRAP 10 Minutes
7 Push Press
5 Burpees (8)
9 Box Jumps
10 Air Squats

Completed 4 rounds even

Note: I scaled the burpees from 8 to 5. 8 was just too much. I can barely do burpees right now.

Food:
Apple
Banana
Nuts
2 chicken breasts
small salad with vinagrette
Chicken Tikka Massala
Rice
Naan Bread

1.29.2012 - Rest Day

251.0

Rest Day

I didn't weigh myself this morning so the entry above is from yesterday. I'm going to try and track this stuff every day again. The last few months have been tough, very stressful, but now I have some stability again and I need to get back to the methods that have worked for me in the past.

Food:

3 chili dogs

Tall Americano with 1/2

Banana

Apple

1.28.2012 - Back Squats, Bench Press, Rows

251.0

Strength:

Back Squats:

5 at 135

5 at 185

5 at 205

Inverse Rows:

2 X 5

Barbell Rows:

2 X 5 at 135

Bench Press:

5 X 5 at 155

Chest Supported Rows:

3 at 175

3 at 205

Body weight is out of control. Need to get serious about the diet again and working out regularly 4 days each week.

1.12.2012 - Ramping up the blog again

????

I'm at the point right now where I'm a little bit afraid of getting on the scale. The good news is that I'm starting a new job next week, so that should bring some stability to my life, which is good news for getting back on the diet.

Starting tomorrow, I'll record my weight every day again along with my workouts and what I eat. I've been eating a lot lately, almost compulsively, which obviously isn't good. Right now, losing weight is the number one thing I can do to increase my overall level of fitness, so getting the diet back under control is key.