Thread: Workout thread

I eat hard boiled eggs.
I use creatine.
I drink a protein shake (but try to get my protein from foods).
I eat carbs...right before bed.
I train fasted.
I allow myself to have a sweet snack each day (ice cream, muffin, cookie, etc).
I take my wife out to dinner once a week.
I am sure that there is a bunch of stuff that I do that people would say I shouldn't or whatever. But I want to get in shape and still enjoy my life. If I did things that made me miserable then I know that I wouldn't do it. So I do what I do as long as I see results. If something isn't working then I make an adjustment. But I believe everything in moderation is ok.

And throughout the past 10 months, I have gone from 25ish body fat down to 13ish. While my initial goal was to lose weight, my goals changed as I went along and decided that I wanted to get in shape. I stopped focusing so much on the scale and more into pressing with the weights.

What I have learned is that while I think there is a lot of good information out there, try things out and see what works for you. Different things work for different people. I would be miserable without carbs and have a bit of a sweet tooth, so if a snack a day helps me to keep sane then I am going to do it.

Bottom line, is just put the effort in. Burn more calories than you eat and you will lose weight. Throw in a good weight routine and your body will transform. So what if you have to start out with light weights? Just get there and you will benefit from it. If you have a set back, shake it off and start again.

Nicely stated. Doing anything other than "I do what I want cuz I want to" could make one's routine crash and burn. Variety and change are great help in crushing goals.


Speaking of carbs, Mike.... I hit my target weight Friday and have switched gears. Body fat% is my target. Numbers on the scale really don't matter as long as I don't backslide.

Do you shoot for a certain % of calories from carbs and fat.... or if not, have a guesstimate of what I could shoot for. I had a high protein intake as I dropped a bunch of #... but my carb and fat intake was too low.

I am really getting a lot out of this thread. Great discussions. Lots of things to think about, some things to research... and some things to try. Excellent.

You can use a site..
like My Fitnees Pal

and log your intake.

It breaks it all down for you.

A fat shredder phase of a few months would be

50% protein
30% carbs
20% fat

then later..
you switch back to 40, 40 , 20

Some folks are religous..
weighing each portion...
logging everything..


I did it for a while..

until I got to where I knew what/ how much to eat.

Now... I am winging it...

I should probably go back to logging it all for a few weeks
to get back onto it properly.

I dont think I am eating enough... now that I am back to the program..
I'll have to step UP my intake.

It is crazy.. but you have gotta eat in order to lose fat.

Originally Posted by Watchthemiddle

WHAT!!! Creatine is worthless?? Please please please elaborate on that response and tell me why YOU think it is worthless.

I say creatine MONOHYDRATE. Why? Because it's fake. Creatine mono stores water in your muscles and inflates them, so to speak. You load and cycle it but once you quit taking it the gains you saw will disappear. Krealkalyn has all of the benefits of creatine without the water storage and deflation once you quit taking it. I didn't say creatine as a whole is worthless, but the creatine monohydrate is. Creatine powder also breaks down in water which causes it to be less effective. Kre-alkalyn is mostly in pill format and doesn't break down. It maintains the proper pH balance in your body and doesn't do what it's supposed to do until it reaches skeletal muscle. The effects and gains from it are long lasting, unlike mono.

EDIT: I have seen your research before posted on bodybuilding.com and I've seen articles combating it. Most supplement research is very subjective. Different shit works for different people. I took EAS Phosphagen (sp?) for years when I was younger and while the strength and size gains were damn near immediate, I did notice a difference once I quit taking it. Progress is slower with kre-alkalyn, but so far I like it. I've been taking it now for a about two months and while I haven't noticed any drastic gains, I do notice a more steady gain than I did with mono. To each is own when it comes to supplements. Like you and Mike said, it all happens in the kitchen.

Originally Posted by Watchthemiddle

Really??? Not busting your balls or anything, but this is one of the biggest MYTHS ever when it comes to eggs. The WHOLE egg gets such a bad rap its not even funny. The American public is so mis-informed when it comes to diet and nutrition it is no wonder that the obesity rate has skyrocketed in the past 20 years.

Just in case anyone wants to know the facts about the EGG as a whole, let me post some. And in the future, I recommend people do their own research whenever they "hear" something from the media, friends, co-workers, etc. I have always found it best to do my own research then rely on what someone else I know says..unless they are a registered dietician

Eggs:

The yolks contain so many B-vitamins, trace minerals, vitamin A, folate, choline, lutein, and other powerful nutrients... it's not even worth trying to list them all. If you want to know what those nutrients are...go research them and the benefits of them.

In fact, the egg whites have minimal nutrients compared to the yolks.

Even the protein in egg whites isn't as powerful without the yolks to balance out the amino acid profile and make the protein more bio-available.

Yolks contain more than 90% of the calcium, iron, phosphorus, zinc, thiamin, B6, folate, and B12, and panthothenic acid of the egg. Yolks contain ALL of the fat soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K in the egg, as well as ALL of the essential fatty acids (EFAs).


"Egg whites are good but the yolks contain all of the cholesterol and saturated fats"


No, this is FALSE!

First of all, when you eat a food that contains a high amount of dietary cholesterol such as eggs, your body down-regulates it's internal production of cholesterol to balance things out.

Buttttt, if you don't eat enough cholesterol, your body simply produces more since cholesterol has dozens of important vital functions in the body.

There have been plenty of studies lately that indicate that eating whole eggs actually raises your good HDL cholesterol to a higher degree than LDL cholesterol, thereby improving your overall cholesterol ratio and blood chemistry.

Another misconception about cholesterol....

high cholesterol is NOT a disease! Heart disease is a disease...but high cholesterol is NOT. Cholesterol is actually a VERY important substance in your body and has vitally important functions...

t

Lastly, the yolks contain the antioxidant lutein as well as other antioxidants which can help protect you from inflammation within your body (the REAL culprit in heart disease, not dietary cholesterol!), giving yet another reason why the yolks are actually GOOD for you, and not detrimental.

If you drink a protein shake it has all of the EAAs you need in addition to anywhere from 8-12g of BCAAs. I take ZMA, which has Vitamin B6. I also take Vitamin B12 capsules daily. I do appreciate your information about eggs, though. I, like many apparently, was misinformed.

Originally Posted by PAINTERDAVE

You can use a site..
like My Fitnees Pal

and log your intake.

It breaks it all down for you.

A fat shredder phase of a few months would be

50% protein
30% carbs
20% fat

then later..
you switch back to 40, 40 , 20

Some folks are religous..
weighing each portion...
logging everything..


I did it for a while..

until I got to where I knew what/ how much to eat.

Now... I am winging it...

I should probably go back to logging it all for a few weeks
to get back onto it properly.

I dont think I am eating enough... now that I am back to the program..
I'll have to step UP my intake.

It is crazy.. but you have gotta eat in order to lose fat.

Thank you. I started tracking intake on LiveStrong.com's MyPlate October 2nd. I track it religiously, want to be able to look back and see what changed should I start getting less than my desired results.

Much appreciated. Through the initial shed phase, dropping from 255# July 4th to 199# Friday.

40/40/20 won't be hard to work with. Pretty close to where I'm at now after recently raising my fat intake, which was definitely down too low. I'll look back at the past week to see how close my carbs have been to 40%.

Originally Posted by PAINTERDAVE

You can use a site..
like My Fitnees Pal

and log your intake.

It breaks it all down for you.

A fat shredder phase of a few months would be

50% protein
30% carbs
20% fat

then later..
you switch back to 40, 40 , 20

Some folks are religous..
weighing each portion...
logging everything..


I did it for a while..

until I got to where I knew what/ how much to eat.

Now... I am winging it...

I should probably go back to logging it all for a few weeks
to get back onto it properly.

I dont think I am eating enough... now that I am back to the program..
I'll have to step UP my intake.

It is crazy.. but you have gotta eat in order to lose fat.

I always allow myself a eat whatever the heck you want day (usually Sunday). Just to allow my body to recomp.

I am probably closer to eating 40/40/20 now. When I started I was tight with everything. Now I relax and just go with it. I gained a bit when I was living out of a hotel for a few weeks. So now I am going back to strict calorie intake, but not too worried about measuring everything. We'll see what happens. Biggest piece of advice I can give is to drop the liquid calories. Sodas and alcohol are just empty calories. Most people would lose weight just by eliminating those two things.

I will be happy to stay around 13-15% until Jan/Feb...then really cut for vacation time in May.

Originally Posted by Mike

I eat hard boiled eggs.
I use creatine.
I drink a protein shake (but try to get my protein from foods).
I eat carbs...right before bed.
I train fasted.
I allow myself to have a sweet snack each day (ice cream, muffin, cookie, etc).
I take my wife out to dinner once a week.
I am sure that there is a bunch of stuff that I do that people would say I shouldn't or whatever. But I want to get in shape and still enjoy my life. If I did things that made me miserable then I know that I wouldn't do it. So I do what I do as long as I see results. If something isn't working then I make an adjustment. But I believe everything in moderation is ok.

And throughout the past 10 months, I have gone from 25ish body fat down to 13ish. While my initial goal was to lose weight, my goals changed as I went along and decided that I wanted to get in shape. I stopped focusing so much on the scale and more into pressing with the weights.

What I have learned is that while I think there is a lot of good information out there, try things out and see what works for you. Different things work for different people. I would be miserable without carbs and have a bit of a sweet tooth, so if a snack a day helps me to keep sane then I am going to do it.

Bottom line, is just put the effort in. Burn more calories than you eat and you will lose weight. Throw in a good weight routine and your body will transform. So what if you have to start out with light weights? Just get there and you will benefit from it. If you have a set back, shake it off and start again.

I'd like to see a picture of you. If you feel uncomfortable with posting it in this forum, please feel free to pm them to me.

Originally Posted by Mike

I eat hard boiled eggs.
I use creatine.
I drink a protein shake (but try to get my protein from foods).
I eat carbs...right before bed.
I train fasted.
I allow myself to have a sweet snack each day (ice cream, muffin, cookie, etc).
I take my wife out to dinner once a week.
I am sure that there is a bunch of stuff that I do that people would say I shouldn't or whatever. But I want to get in shape and still enjoy my life. If I did things that made me miserable then I know that I wouldn't do it. So I do what I do as long as I see results. If something isn't working then I make an adjustment. But I believe everything in moderation is ok.

And throughout the past 10 months, I have gone from 25ish body fat down to 13ish. While my initial goal was to lose weight, my goals changed as I went along and decided that I wanted to get in shape. I stopped focusing so much on the scale and more into pressing with the weights.

What I have learned is that while I think there is a lot of good information out there, try things out and see what works for you. Different things work for different people. I would be miserable without carbs and have a bit of a sweet tooth, so if a snack a day helps me to keep sane then I am going to do it.

Bottom line, is just put the effort in. Burn more calories than you eat and you will lose weight. Throw in a good weight routine and your body will transform. So what if you have to start out with light weights? Just get there and you will benefit from it. If you have a set back, shake it off and start again.

This is exactly why i said "diet" is the worst 4 letter word out there. So many people think just eating a salad a day and drinking water is going to help them lose weight only to fall flat on their face 2 days later and splurge on every piece of junk food in site.

You HAVE to allow yourself the things you like. The most important saying I have ever heard (and I am sure we have all heard it throughout the years) is "everything in moderation". This can not be said enough. For you its a small treat a day. For me its a cheat meal or cheat day a week.

Cheat meals or a day can do wonders for your mind as well as for your body.

WHen you eat clean ...say 90% of your meals a week....the cheat meal or day totally re-vamps your metabolism. I don't know the exact science behind it, but in a nutshell all of the added calories speed up your metabolism that much more and give extra fuel for workouts in the days to come.

I too try and train fasted. I actually feel stronger during weighted workouts and faster during cardio runs.
I sometimes eat a sandwich at midnight right before bed. I know it's not going to hurt me and if anything give me energy when I wake up in the morning for my workout.
I love my cheat days. I try and eat as clean as possible 6 days a week, think about what I am craving, and eat it on my 7th day. It keeps me sane and on track. Some weeks I don't even want that cheat meal or day because my body usually yells at me afterwards because it is not used to the junk.
I take creatine on and off
I consume 90% of my food and calories from whole foods.
I don't really get tempted by sweets...it's salty foods for me that are my weakness..CHIPS!!
I never leave home for work without my lunch box. It is packed to the gills and I always plan and make a lot of food ahead of time.
I do 90% of the grocery shopping for my family. That also helps me plan accordingly and puts the responsibility on me to make good decisions for planning my meals
I am constantly researching. Not for the latest fad, but for knowledge. What I have found doing my own research is that there is nothing better than good ol old school training and eating.
If it comes in a box, I try to stay away from it
I eat 7-10 servings of fruits and veggies a day
I carb load ...and carb cycle everyonce in a while.
I get 4-7 hours of sleep on average. This is one thing I wish I could change.

I've been trying to get more sleep, as I know it's a huge factor in both weight loss and muscle gain. Getting more sleep than I had been, but it's shockingly rare for me to get more than 6 to 7 hours (trying hard to decrease the number of nights I get 5 or fewer hours). Part of it can't be controlled. I work until 8 PM Tues thru thursday night and til 930 Saturday and Sunday nights, but get up at 415 AM mon, wed and friday for gym classes. Having training sessions at 8 AM tues and thurs has been nice. I enjoy "sleeping in" until 630 those days.

Wondering if there are a lot of others who work out that run into the same thing. I suspect the answer is "yes".

Originally Posted by Watchthemiddle

This is exactly why i said "diet" is the worst 4 letter word out there. So many people think just eating a salad a day and drinking water is going to help them lose weight only to fall flat on their face 2 days later and splurge on every piece of junk food in site.

More great words of wisdom. Brand new to this stuff, but learned in my first several attempts to get going the past few years that I can't maintain anything that isn't fun. That applies to food intake, exercise, and many other things.

The D word blows. I hate saying it... and I'm not on one, anyways. Too many meals in my day to call it that and I don't live on lettuce and berries. Tried the "salad a day" thing. Amazed that I lasted a month. I know it wasn't "stupid".... my heart was in the right place.... but it was doomed for failure. By the end, I was THIS close to hating everything in the salads but the green onion and salsa.

I eat whatever I'm in the mood for. I have days that are close to 40/40/20 on protein/carbs/fat.... then there are days like today : 36.54/28.74/34.72. Ideal? No. Cheat day? No... just under 2300 calories, which I could have every day and never gain an ounce. I made a menu with exactly what I was in the mood to eat, including a monster breakfast.

I usually eat light in the evening, but that is preference... and nothing more.

Originally Posted by keithbishop

I've been trying to get more sleep, as I know it's a huge factor in both weight loss and muscle gain. Getting more sleep than I had been, but it's shockingly rare for me to get more than 6 to 7 hours (trying hard to decrease the number of nights I get 5 or fewer hours). Part of it can't be controlled. I work until 8 PM Tues thru thursday night and til 930 Saturday and Sunday nights, but get up at 415 AM mon, wed and friday for gym classes. Having training sessions at 8 AM tues and thurs has been nice. I enjoy "sleeping in" until 630 those days.

Wondering if there are a lot of others who work out that run into the same thing. I suspect the answer is "yes".

Personally, my sleep schedule is less than adequate for my liking. My daily routine sucks, but it's what I have to live with. I wake up at 0330, lift from 0430-0515, do cardio from 0515-0545, then work from 0630 to 1630-1830. I "try" to go to sleep by 2030 so that I can get at least seven hours, but once I get home between spending time with my wife and son and studying for promotion testing I usually don't get to sleep until 2200 or so. I don't really start to feel it until about Thursday but in my head I know I'm hurting myself more than anything. Sleep is one thing I will always want more of.

Today was a perfect example of what I said in the last post about it catching up to me. I was on 12 hour shifts all week from 0600-1800 and was lifting from 0430-0515 then going to work while cutting out cardio. This morning my alarm went off and I pushed it out one more hour. Even after a shower and driving to work, getting my tools and other random shit together, I was still completely dragging ass and couldn't shake the sleepy. Thank goodness for vitamin B12.

Originally Posted by SeeingRed

Today was a perfect example of what I said in the last post about it catching up to me. I was on 12 hour shifts all week from 0600-1800 and was lifting from 0430-0515 then going to work while cutting out cardio. This morning my alarm went off and I pushed it out one more hour. Even after a shower and driving to work, getting my tools and other random shit together, I was still completely dragging ass and couldn't shake the sleepy. Thank goodness for vitamin B12.

That requires tremendous dedication to work out at all with those long shifts.

Thanks for the heads up on ZMA. Mine should arrive in the mail any day now. Even one extra hour of sleep most nights would help me reach my goals faster.

This has been another great week. Took a couple months, but I finally got my buddy who talked me into joining the gym a couple years ago back in the gym himself. He's been taking a few classes and will meet me in the weight room wednesday at 5 AM. Looking forward to working out with him again.

Ran into one of my cousins at the grocery store Thursday night. She said she was really glad to see me because she and her husband have been talking about joining Genesis. We had a nice talk. Sounds like I'll be crossing paths with them soon. Told her I'd join her for any class she wants on Mondays. Doesn't look like our work schedules would allow me to attend classes with them the rest of the week.

Working out is contagious, especially when people see drastic turnarounds like yours.