Andy's Blog

Hibernation

2011-03-01T07:50:00.002-05:00

Been taking it easy over the winter here, but March 1st is my traditional game to get off my @ss. Think that comes from years of running where from Nov-Feb the outdoor activities are limited here in the northeast.

Body Fat measurements this morning: ab/chest/thigh -> 20/8/8 mm -> 12.4% body fat at 150 lb.

Also want to shout out to a cubemate who was just diagnosed with breast cancer. Check out her blog here:

Heather's Update Spot. Wishing her the best thru the start of this difficult journey.

Making Strides

2010-12-29T10:38:00.002-05:00

Ok, not quite the success with the super strict December challenge, but the worst has been a few more nuts and more dark chocolate than usual. Also interesting is how much caffeine that chocolate has. The stuff keeps me up at nite making it tough to get to sleep. Yet another reason to dial that back. But overall, been a little better than average all considered.

Knee rehab coming along. Did some light squats yesterday along with some leg presses and lunges. Muscles were limiting factor as they have not seen those exercises in 5 months. Feeling it today, but still erring on the conservative side.

Also, before getting back into sprints, been doing some easy treadmill work. Mainly consisting of 0.25 mile walk at 4.0 mph + 0.50 run at 6.0 mph + 0.25 walk at 4.0 mph. Been expanding the running section time each time.

What's more interesting / challenging is transitioning to running solely with the vibrams five fingers. Been tough transitioning from the heel striker slap to ball/instep strike. Think I am finally getting the hang of it. Yesterday's effort definitely felt more natural landing on the mid-foot and ball. And the sound of the strike on the treadmill was more like a THOCK THOCK THOCK as opposed to previous heel striking SLAP SLAP SLAP. Feeling the effort much more in the calves than the quads.

Food Pics, Dec Challenge Update

2010-12-20T23:25:00.002-05:00

Pretty standard issue quiche I make about once a month. Vary the recipe a little here and there but the basics are:

Preheat oven to 350F.
Fry 4 strips of bacon. When done remove and let dry on paper towel.
Sautee half an onion and some mushrooms in bacon fat.
In a large bowl, add 2cups of shredded cheese, and some chopped spinach (about 4-6oz, I usually get some prepackaged stuff there)
Crumble up bacon and add to cheese and spinach.
When onions are carmalized and shrooms are done, add those to bowl: mix together.
Grease a 9" pan with butter lightly.
Then I sprinkle maybe 2-3 tablespoons of almond meal and shake pan so it sticks to sides and bottom; this makes a small but effective crust.
Add spinach/cheese/bacon/onion/shroom mix.
Then take 6-8 eggs and beat them separately.
Pour ontop of mix in pan.
Put in oven for 45-55 min until top start to turn brown.
Top with tomatos if desired and enjoy.

Beef roll up with cheese, spinach, bacon + sauteed squash:

3 lb chuck roast seasoned and awaiting braising followed by slow cook in crock pot. Didnt' take pictures of the final product but there was none left after dinner.

So, on to the December challenge. I have cut way down on fruit, nut, chocolate intake. And of course tried to avoid the Holiday pitfalls. Cant say I have been 100% compliant as a relative's wedding derailed me for a day or two, but nonetheless scale is indicated about a 4lb drop in weight and 1% drop in body fat. Calipers will tell the tale in a few weeks, but it is interesting.

Getting back to the gym a little more often as the major crunch at work has finally passed - like a kidney stone. Doing a little bit of treadmill time and the knee is feeling good. Maybe 90% recovered; still erring on the conservative side.

December Challenge

2010-12-03T18:27:00.002-05:00

Utter madness at work over the past few months. Knee recovering well from surgery. Only been making to the gym about 1x/week and started doing about 0.5 miles of walking. Had been revisiting the old Devaney 15/8/4 protocol and had seen some gains. Been so sporadic at the gym, I am unworried about falling into a routine.

Interestingly, despite zero cardio since July (5 months now), through stricter adherance to proper diet the body fat percentage has been falling a bit. I think in October it was around 15%, November 14%, December readings 13.5%.

So made it thru Thanksgiving with minimal fallout from all the temptations. Obviously the month of December is a challenge for all. So this month I am seeing how long I can do 100% Paleo compliance. Meaning zero refined carbs and obvious sweets. I am taking a break from dark chocolate, dairy, fruits and nuts. While the latter are less non-compliant, for me the fruit and nuts seem to keep that body fat up.

Going to be very busy at work thru the end of the year, so gym time will continue to be sporadic at best. A few good food pics lurking around on the hard drive from Hawaiian vacation, so I'll post those when I get a chance.

Post Op

2010-10-02T10:45:00.003-04:00

Ok 10/1 body fat measurements:
ab: 24 mm
chest: 12 mm
thigh: 10 mm
bf%: 15.4%

Still higher than what I'd like. I still advocate that a high percentage of fat loss etc is dependent on diet, but to get below that 10% threshold mandates a certain level of activity. So this summer was a big miss due to one thing compounding on another. Like a two week hedonistic beer guzzling vacation in May/June which rolled into insane work hours through July which rolled into knee injury and subsequent surgery.

After work calmed down, seemed like things were trending in the better direction when the knee injury occurred. Gym time was down and there were a few occassions of drifting off of the paleo reservation.

OK, so knee got scoped, and stiches come out tomorrow. Finally getting around without crutches; still hobbling at a reduced pace. Wont be doing any sprints or squats for quite some time still, but plan on getting my ass back into the gym more faithfully and clamp down on diet miscues.

Got 3 weeks til vacation in Hawaii, so have to look decent for the pics! :)

One thing I am scratching my head about is picking a exercise modality. BBS? 5x5 stronglifts? Return to Devaney 15/8/4? Huge in a hurry? Even after hearing all the arguments and trying them, I still struggle to find one that fits how I roll.

Out of Action

2010-09-22T22:31:00.002-04:00

Wow, been really slackin off lately on the blog. But a few changes of note.

- after getting back onto a normal working schedule, been getting to the gym more regularly. Been trying some different combinations of regimes. I like the intensity from Body by Science slow mo, but also enjoy the variety of exercises from more conventional workouts. I know that the BBS basically dictates one exercise per body part and that secondary muscles aid in hypertrophy. My stubborn desire is to work those secondary muscles as well. That said, I have been performing multiple exercises per body part. However, I have been striving to high intensity (never as high as BBS, though). Last week or two has been down time which will roll into this next week....segway

- knee getting scoped tomorrow. I think this is a result of a skiing injury about 15 years ago. The knee has steadily been getting worse and it finally popped when I was doing interval sprints in July. Convenient timing since my health care benefits at work will drastically change next year.

- Also, been much better with the diet. Not like I ever was way off the reservation. But to get back to 10% body fat from current high of 15-ish, I notice that too many nuts, beer, dark choc def keep that up. A couple of weeks of being super pure, and the tanita scale numbers have dropped.

- a couple new food pics to post once I down load them from the camera, but not available right now.

Updates

2010-09-07T22:41:00.002-04:00

Ok, been slacking posting updates for the last month or so. So standard food p*rn pics for those who care:

Ordered this salad at Pizzaria Uno of all places, but duplicated it myself the other night. Consists of spinach salad, watermelon spears, blueberries, red onion, goat cheese, walnuts and a splash of evoo. Top with balsamic if desired = fantastic.
Finally picked up some real farm bacon from my favorite spot. Halfway through the 4 lb order. Interestingly, the jar of bacon grease has contributions from store bought bacon (bottom) and the more naturally raised pig (top). Interesting stratification. Draw your own conclusion.

Paleo scramble with roasted cauli. Grass fed beef, bacon, onion, bell pepper, mushrooms. Quick, filling, satisfying.

Other updates. Knee outlook not good. "significant" tear most likely means surgery within the next month. Actually it is an old injury that has just got worse and worse. Still trying to get to the gym several times per week.

One of the interesting parts is that since I am unable to do really any cardio exercise, i will have to rely solely on proper diet to drift back to my usual 150-ish weight and back to single digit body fat numbers. Stay tuned.

Some Pics, etc.

2010-08-10T23:23:00.002-04:00

Been getting back into making some solid meals - or rather taking some pics of the more interesting ones.

Found these softball-sized, round green squash at a local farm stand. Stuffed them with browned grass-fed ground meat, onions and topped with a bit of cheese. Into the oven at 350 for about 20 minutes or so and POW - dinner.
One of our favorite grass-fed sources has outstanding strip steak. I think this one is a T-bone, but it was outstanding also. Topped with sauteed onions, shrooms plus steamed brocoli.

Near-perfect 4-egg omelette stuffed with pico de gallo and a bit of american cheese.

The farm that has the grass-fed beef also had a few real-free-range chicken broilers. Roasted that with some veggies on the side. What was surpising was how small the bird was when it's not raised on growth hormones. Managed to be a decent size for two. Seems like Cornish game hens are a little chunkier. But about 1 hour at 325 and it was super moist. Coated beforehand with butter, salt, pepper. Shot of lemon juice into the cavity. Skin was more browned on the far side since the bird tended to list to port.

In other news, MRI confirms my knee is messed up for sure. Follow up appointment with orthopedic surgeon later this week. What will be interesting will be to see if I can get my body fat back to the normal range without humpin on the treadmill. The last two months of humpin on the computer at work have certainly taken their toll on pushing that BF% up a few points.

Few Steps Forward, a Few Steps Back

2010-07-29T23:49:00.002-04:00

Good news is that the crunch at work has passed, so back into the routine regarding spending more quality time at gym and in the kitchen.

Bad news is that my doctor thinks I need to get my knee scoped. Been nagging since a skiing injury over 15 years ago, but really becoming intolerable.

Such is life.

Hoping the local farm has the primo bacon back from processing this weekend.

Shoes

2010-07-24T12:00:00.002-04:00

Think the 12-14 hour days are at an end. Next week will be system reset time and time to get back on the horse.

Shown are some new purchases: The wife's Vibram Bikilas, and my Nike Free Run+.

The Bikilas are best described as like the KSO's, but with additional pads on the soles. They are not too raised - maybe 1/8" inch, and the purist may say they have too much sole. However, they really dont deviate much from the goal of breaking away from the free style shoe. The pads are independent and the side wall is still minimalist. I would suspect the remainder of the shoe will wear out long before the pads.

I am digging the Frees. Planned on doing some sprints in them this week, but (ironically) twisted my knee doing sprints with my old running shoes (Mizuno Wave Rider 11). So hoping the knee recovers soon. Discomfort still lingering.

Anyway, way back I was running with Asics GT-2110, which were fine. Then, I got the Mizunos. I thought my Mizunos were light when i got them a few years ago (11.2 oz), but the Nike Free Run+ are specified at 8.4 oz and I believe it. These things are like air. We'll see how it goes with running, but they may be a good intermediate step to getting used to sprints with my Vibram Sprints.

Also picked up some bison bacon, shown below from Yankee Farms. The stuff is wicked lean and second go around in cooking it, I had to add a little bacon grease to lubricate the pan. Has an interesting taste. Slightly gamey, but good. Regular pork bacon still carries the day regarding taste, though.

Weight drifting up into mid 150s and not looking forward to body fat measurement for August.

Fishing Trip Fallout

2010-06-03T23:03:00.003-04:00

Ok, haven't been to the gym in a month due to expired membership and work demands. Coupled with guzzling beers on a boat and eating from interstate rest stops equals a new record.

Weight up a little 155, but 6/1 body fat measurements are unfavorable
ab: 25 mm
chest: 12 mm
thigh: 10mm
15.5% body fat. super ouch

New gym expected to open 6/17 plus corporate 5k in 8 weeks plus motivation. We'll see what we can do about improving these numbers.

Gone Fishing

2010-05-29T20:44:00.002-04:00

Off on vacation to go fishing in Ontario... actually i am in transit on the way back. And to get back on the saddle with a new gym and new resolve.

Awesome fishing though.

HFCS vs. Sugar

2010-04-29T00:08:00.001-04:00

Interesting article debating which is "better" for you - high fructose corn syrup or sugar.

Read for yourself HERE.

Bottom line: avoid both!

Paleo Fest

2010-04-27T00:04:00.002-04:00

Been in a bit of blog hibernation lately. Truth is that I've been pretty swamped at work plus my gym membership ran out. Currently waiting for a local Planet Fitness to open up next month and then I'll hit it. Been sponging off some friends for temporary guest memberships in the mean time.

Anyway, had a paleo fest which included bacon wrapped scallops, grilled shrimp, caprice salad, sauteed veggies in ghee, grilled chicken etc. Along with a few non-paleo beers. Well received overall and plenty of food to eat.

Was planning on making this sirloin wrap for paleofest, but people were full enough, so made this for dinner tonite.

Here's my bro Jeff doing some bare foot hiking. Primal.

Seems like body fat and weight are slowly returning to the 11%/150lb range like it was at the beginning of the year after ending the Biggest Gainer nonsense.

12% Plus, Ouch

2010-04-03T10:01:00.002-04:00

As suspect, the biggest gainer experiment was making me feel fatter. Confirmed through 4/1 body fat measurements of 20mm ab, 10mm chest, 6mm thigh = 12.2%. Ouch. Well that experiment is over w/regard to overeating and protein shakes. Back to just eating until satiety and keeping the food real.

Some food pictures. Near perfect omelette with home made salsa from Zach, and Springdell farm sausage.

Weather was so nice we ate dinner outside last nite for the first time this year. Massive filet mignon from Springdell, with mashed cauli and sauteed yellow and green squash.

Biggest Loser & Biggest Gainer Ending

2010-03-30T22:46:00.002-04:00

Biggest Loser

A friend of mine had a biggest loser contest at work. It was set up with couples at her place of employment and there were enough people that there was serious cash money involved as a price. It ran about 10-12 weeks and I was in frequent contact with him to see how things were going, offer advice, assurance, and motivation.

My $0.02 was obviously slanted toward the Paleo approach, to not worry about portion sizes or counting calories. Also suggested that he incorporate more heavy, intense lifting for muscle development that burn more fuel. In hindsight, I think he stuck to the diet portion fairly well (by his own admission). He did increase his exercise regiment and was getting a good burn while supplementing that with some running. All while both working full time and with a <1 year old at home.

In the end, he and his wife lost a total of 17.5%. Not as impressive as the unrealistic NBC show, but damn good enough to win first place. Well done Mike and Steph!

Biggest Gainer

Ok, this experiment is coming to an end for now after the 4/1 weigh in. Personally, I just feel like I am adding percentage of body fat points. The semi-reliable Tanita scale has been hovering in the 11+% zone for far too long now. Granted, the last two months have been less than idealic for work-gym balance, personally. However, for now I'm going to focus on returning that body fat % to the sub-10% range.

Tough Month

2010-03-21T23:28:00.003-04:00

On and off frequency at gym lately. It will be like hitting it for 4-5 days in one week followed by 1x the next week. Also gym membership is expiring at my current gym, so I'm looking for something around work that suits my needs.

Diets been pretty good. Haven't had a major excursion off the reservation in a while. Bout the worst thing was having a few Black and Tans to celebrate St. Patricks Day. Tanita scale said 156 this morning and <10% body fat for the first time in a while, so go figure.

Picked up this remote meat thermometer at Walmart. The display is a little cheap, and I constantly have to switch from Celsius to Fahrenheit, but overall I'm pretty happy with it. The base transmits up to 1000 feet (so they say), so it is awesome to coordinate meals with it while either at the stove or on the couch when something is on the grill. Really would have come in handy over the winter when the temp was much colder.

Also we watched a program on Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution on ABC (here is his official site). I really find this facinating and can relate to the struggles he portrays on the telly. Basically, he goes to a grade school in a town that has one of the worst health records in the country and tries to reform the nutrition menu. He starts out by looking at what the kids are fed now and it is indeed revolting.

Obviously, they are conforming to USDA standards which means a lot of refined carbohydrates in addition to almost exclusively processed foods. The old guard from the kitchen staff up through administration, the local radio station, and news paper is reluctant to change and wondering why the hell this guy is interfereing with their 'working' nutritional construct. I'll be curious to see how sucessful he is in upcoming episodes.

Stuff

2010-03-14T22:07:00.002-04:00

Picked up almost $200 worth of pasture fed beef and pig product from a pretty good place. Cat was most interested in the stuff. Got a London Broil marinating in the fridge ready for the grill this week.
In other news, been watching the scale creep up; hit 157 today for the first time in a looong time. Still riding around 10% body fat (per questionable accuracy Tanita scale). But I'm wondering if this Biggest Gainer thing is really going in the right direction. I'm thinking that I'd really like to get that BF% below 10% and work on the problem ab area (always the highest measurements).

Still doing intervals at the gym, plus some super-strict deadlifts today. Didn't preclude me from mashing the shin again.

Biggest Gainer for 3/1

2010-03-09T22:04:00.002-05:00

Another 11 hour day and despite best efforts to get to the gym, it didn't happen. Just a quick update on things.

w/re Biggest gainer here is how the race is going

Andy - up slightly in weight and body fat. Overall lean body mass increase of +6.5%. But that damn body fat % is hovering between 10 and 11%. Not sure if I should switch to the lean-out approach.

Decarlo - down in weight and body fat. Overall -0.6%. Guy has to bottom out soon at 7.something % bf.

Jeff - last record was +1.1% increase. Big 4-0 coming up for him.

Manny - up 0.5%, but dropped an amazing 2% body fat in 1 month based on proper diet, sleep, increased gym attention; way to go!

Zach - up 0.8% due to slight increases in weight and body fat (like me). Wondering if I'm seeing some correlation here.

I WILL make it to the gym tomorrow. I WILL make it to the gym tomorrow.

Did go a couple days over the weekend. Noting that tried a 3 mile chronic cardio run for a change. Checked my records and have done nothing but intervals since the first week of the year. Ran 3 in 22:31, but it felt pretty labored especially at the end.

Hopefully more to come.

System Reset

2010-03-01T22:25:00.002-05:00

Well, sorta back to normal. Considering February a lost month. Nonetheless, got on the scale and got calipers out for monthly update. Despite a turbulent month results are as follows:

Weight: 156.4, Body fat: 10.4% = lean body mass of 140.1lb which is a slight increase over last month, despite not being happy about the slight bump in body fat %.

Made it to the gym the last few days, emphasizing the oly lifts. Scraped the sh!t out of my shins doing deadlifts, but was happy banging out 185x5x5.

On an interesting note, the gym was offering 7 day passes along with candy and Axe soap. That says it all. Here have some candy before you try to lose some weight! And obviously, I'm the outcast not hosing myself off with Axe.

Derailed

2010-02-19T22:07:00.003-05:00

Efforts for biggest gainer, exercise, and blogging in general have been derailed for the last few weeks due to work demands, computer issues, and a touch of a rare cold. No doubt that has slow things down for me. Can't imagine those cough drops are low sugar either. Next weigh in will be 3/1.

Anyway, good article about how the population is getting larger as discussed here w/re Airline Seats. Hard for me to believe that Southwest caved in to that fat ass and actually gave him a voucher. Yes, we all must be politically correct now.

Ironically, I took a look at the site mentioned in the airline article (National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance ) and though I disagree with their whole 'acceptance' BS, there was a good article on why the Low Fat movement sucks.

Hopefully the blog activity will pick up shortly.

Fuel

2010-02-06T10:18:00.002-05:00

Quick update on food adventures.

Got a sampler platter of meats from relatives for Christmas and decided to thaw out what I thought were pork chops. Actually I think it was lamb, but still not 100% sure. Anyway salt & pepper and in the oven til temp > 160F. Tried the apply chutney again, but even with 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar, that was still pretty strong. Aspragus in ghee.
Was reading a post from Eat Like a Caveman and opted to try the bacon spinach omelette. Alas, no spinach in the house. But carmalized the shallots in the bacon grease added a nice sweetness to the omelette.

Off to the gym in a few to keep the fire burning.

Biggest Gainer Update

2010-02-05T23:06:00.005-05:00

Been pretty busy at work lately, but at long last are the 2/1 Biggest Gainer updates.

Starting on 1/8 (ish) the stats for lean muscle mass (LMM) were as follows:
Andy: 148.4 @11.3% BF = 131.6
Decarlo: 174 @7.8% BF = 160.4
Jeff: 187 @11.9% BF = 164.7
Manny: 145 @11.6 BF = 128.2
Zach: 209 @12.5% BF = 182.9 (late entry, stats from like a week ago)

Results as of 2/1 (ish)
Andy: 155.0 @10.1% BF = 139.3
Decarlo: 174.9 @7.8% BF = 161.3
Jeff: 186 @ 10.5% BF = 166.5
Manny: 144 @ 11.6% BF = 127.3
Zach: 209 @ 12.5% BF = 182.9

So, percentage wise this sums up as:
Andy: +5.9%
Decarlo: +0.5%
Jeff: +1.1%
Manny: -0.7%
Zach: +0.0%

Interesting. Now for myself, changes I have made since the contest stare are:
- I'm on the see-food diet, but keeping it in the paleo world
- only doing like 1 IF per week
- trying not to skip meals and sometimes powering down and extra serving
- taking some protein shakes 2x day
- interval sprints only (no chronic cardio)
- amping up the intensity with heavier weights and 5x5 protocol
- going to near failure on some sets

Also been thinking that fruit and nut excess is what drives my body fat up or down. Happy to see it drop a solid 1%. Also thinking that my weight was on the low side when the contest started (don't call me sandbagger).

The 5x5 protocol does get someone tiresome, but like last year I'm seeing some benefits. Like doing deadlifts for 5x5 with 185 today and got 225 for 3 for 1 set last week. For me (the a=1, hahahah) that seems to be what helps. To each his own.

Next weigh in 2/15. Between now and then more food pics and Tales From the Gym coming.

Just Some Notes

2010-01-31T22:24:00.002-05:00

Standard spinach quiche with with cubed sausage links (easier to brown) this morning. Repeat of previously made, but again turned out pretty good.

Been reading several posts on barefoot running. Seems it has been in the news a lot lately. So for ha-has, I did some interval sprints with the vibrams for a change. I guess I have to do some more reading since I'm a dedicated heel-striker. Not exactly easy to change your running stride to strike further forward toward the ball of the foot. In reality it is probably the reverse that is true; that one may naturally land on the ball of the foot, but by wearing cushioning shoes, etc, it has taken years to develop and shift toward a heel-strike landing.

Anyway, been a pretty good month paleo wise. I'd say 2 days of 31 where I drifted off the reservation during customer meetings. Other than than, been thinking more about keeping the fruit and nut intake on the low side.

Biggest Gainer weigh in after baseline for tomorrow, so I'll post results after I collect all of them.

Don't confuse activity with achievement

2010-01-27T22:57:00.003-05:00

A) First off, I'll get the food porn pic off: honey glazed pork loin with leftover veggies. Pork turned out fantastic. Cooked with the fat on top to auto-marinate the meat, 325F for about 2 hours til thermo said 160F. Needless to say, this didn't last long in the house.

B) Next, Zach (who is the 5th biggest gainer entry) sent me this LINK regarding barefoot running. Basically, the cushioned shoed runners strike the heel more and have greater incidents of repetative injuries. Go Vibrams!

C) More good abuse at the gym today. Did a 24 hour IF and pressed on at the gym after not making it due to work reasons:

- 155 on scale this morning

- 10 x 9.5mph intervals

- squats, up to 165

- calf raises up to 90

- DB lunges w/35lb

- triceps pulldowns 150

- super set dips and leg rasises.

D) I thought I heard on sports talk radio that Bill Belichick had told his players "Don't confuse activity with achievement." (actually I think John Wooden had originally said this). Regardless, it is a powerful statement that I am continually reminded of at the gym. It's January and of course that means an influx at the gym. But look around and how many are doing some honest work. Lot of people carrying water around in gallon containers or talking on the cell phone - or both.

Does not matter to me too much except to provide extra motivation to really make the gym time a quality workout. Only time it gets to me is when people are lounging around on equipment. Two recent cases come to mind where one guy was chatting away on his cell phone for a solid 30 minutes without doing anything other than precluding anyone from doing any seated rows. Another pair over the weekend was relaxing and having a spirited conversation while occupying the squat rack for 20+ minutes. Of that pair, one of them did 1 set of squats and 1 set of shoulder raises then he went out the door. Does that even count toward going to the gym?

Anyway, next Biggest Gainer weigh in: 2/1

Signs of Improvement?

2010-01-24T11:04:00.006-05:00

It's easy to say that the world is going right to hell, given today's society with lack of personal responsibility or accountability, the decay of the moral fiber of society, etc. And obviously there is the food angle with GMO products, HFCS-laden offerings, the decline of the true family farm and rise of the CAFO monopoly.

Then there's the quick-fix / instant gratification attitude that seems quite prevalent. Like the statin commercials "when diet and exercise are not enough" while emphasizing that statins are the only salvation to lower your cholesterol. When people can't lose weight, it's not their fault, just make an appointment with a bariatric surgeon! I must see at least three ads in the Sunday paper for weight loss specialists; but read the ad closer and it is really an ad for the surgery.

However, I've noticed a few things in the past few months that tend to give me hope that possibly there is a slight course correction for society.

a) I read this article in the Sunday paper regarding antibiotics and livestock. Since more and more antibiotics are pumped into our meat every year, the bacteria are becoming more resisitant (shocking!). There is some discussion about eliminating the antibiotics or limiting the uses to treat only sick animals. And this should be no surprise that the major CAFO overlords are in opposition to this (translation: fear of profit reduction).

b) I see more people at my gym doing some sort of high-intensity training. While 80% of the people are mindlessly doing either i) elliptical, ii) bench press, or iii) curls, I see an occassional interval sprinter. More encouragement by clean & jerks, dumbell snatches and more cross-fit type exercises.

c) I've had more people have honest-to-god discussions with mre regarding nutrition, exercise, etc. I know it's January and a lot of resolutions are still fresh, but either my salesmanship is getting better (unlikely) or there is a real increased interest in eating better and leading a healthier life.

d) About four months ago, my friend Zach hooked me up with a local farmer who raises his steer humanely and on grass. When I first ordered meat from this guy, there was zero back log. Second order (about 8 weeks ago) and the back log was a month. I picked up my purchase and he says his backlog is pushing out in to late spring! So obviously there is a market for his services and he had no problem getting up to full capacity.

e) I notice more people taking an interst in movies like Food, Inc., King Corn, etc. And as a result of movies like that I see more outrage / disbelief that our tax dollars are funneled toward a crop that serves as the basis for HFCS which is directly encouraging the obesity epidemic. Meanwhile, there is pressure to shut down the family farm (like Polyface Farm). What's wrong with that picture? Shouldn't the government be encouraging, celebrating, (and subsidizing!) an operation like Polyface Farm and shouldn't they try to change the HFCS / CAFO construct?

Anyway, a few meal pics that were on the camera. Turkey cutlets grilled with broc:

Clam marinara (sp) with spaghetti squash (S made this)

Mixed Pyramids

2010-01-22T18:58:00.002-05:00

Hooked up with one of my co-workers Mike this morning and had a mixed-pyramid workout as follows:

deadlifts: 95 to 185
squats: 95 to 205
db lunges: 30
calf raises: 45-90

Also showed Mike a few sets of renegade rows and introduced him to the pleasure of Burpees. Did set of 10/10/8

weight at 155 this morning, but not sure it's all LMM

Just gym time

2010-01-18T23:29:00.002-05:00

Sunday off watching SD poop the bed against the NYJ. Back to the gym Monday including
- 5x9mph intervals
- squats 155 x 5 to 205x5, knee felt much better
- leg curls
- lunges 25-35 x 5
- tricep extensions
- dips

Gym was very busy mid-afternoon.

AMPED

2010-01-16T15:55:00.002-05:00

Don't know what it is today, but had a great workout this morning and still rev'd up and ready to roll.

Started off with 10 interval sprints, 2min walk at 4.0mph, 1min run at 9.0mph. Plan on slowly increasing the run speed until I max out the treadmill, but haven't done intervals regularly in a while so working back into it.

Then did some 5x5 protocol exercises (re-baselining a log of weights, so they may be a bit light) including:
- deadlifts, 155
- seated rows, 130
- renegade rows, 25, 35
- BB curls, 65
- DB curls, 35
did a few pull ups also, close grip

Regarding diet, I've been on the see-food diet and have added taking a protein shake (nitro-tech from muscle tech) . That's like an extra 40g of protein a day. woooo-hoooo.

Scale up a bit at 156 this morning, but bf% via tanita scale is saying 10.6%. hmmm.

How I Roll / Getting Started

2010-01-14T22:54:00.003-05:00

I often discuss nutrition and exercise with people, friends, co-workers, strangers, etc. and though I enjoy it, I often find my self saying the same things. I remembered a year ago I had summarized how my wife and I got started and recommended advice. That is FOUND HERE and also HERE.

After digesting that info, there are plenty of links on side written by people who are both more informed and articulate (and also have more time) than me. Browse through them and tune your own program to one that meets your goals. Plenty of food ideas HERE and you'll begin to get the drift: meat, poultry, fish, veggies. It's real simple. Protein and healthy fats plus complex carbs via veggies. Nothing out of a box, no refined carbs, sugars or sweets.

Personally, I think I have the nutrition part down. As I look back on the exercise side, there have been some good periods, but it is a bit status-quo (IMHO). I had played with a bunch of protocols discussed HERE and am possibly still searching for the one that suits my needs the best. But it is my opinion that weight loss/maintenance is 80% diet/20% exercise. Like they say "you can't exercise away a bad diet"

In other news, we got a pineapple cutter from Rosle. I had learned to cut a pineapple a while ago, but this thing makes it easy. It probably gets about 85% of the good stuff and leaves the core and skin intact. Used it tonite to make a fruit salad for a party my wife was having at work.

Hope everyone has a healthy 2010!

Biggest Gainer Baseline

2010-01-12T20:11:00.003-05:00

Ok, the contestants are set and they are (in alphabetical order...drumroll):
NAME / WEIGHT / BF% / LEAN MUSCLE MASS
- Andy / 148 / 11.3 / 131.6
- Decarlo / 174 / 7.8 / 160.4
- Jeff / 187 / 11.9 / 164.7
- Manny: 145 / 11.6 / 128.2

For reference, I'm 5'10", Decarlo and Jeff are both about 6'1", and Manny is a little shorter than me.

That mofo Decarlo (who had the idea for this contest) is coming in at a amazing <8% body fat. The rest of us are over their desired percentage, but whatever. I'm hoping to add muscle mass AND lower that percentage of body fat by employing the see-food diet, interval sprints, and using the 5x5 stronglifts protocol for a while (to move heavier weights).

I'm thinking about a check every two weeks or so, so next update will be around 2/1.

Chowing for Biggest Gainer

2010-01-11T23:52:00.002-05:00

Looks like four contestants for the Biggest Gainer. Just waiting for stats from my bro Jeff. Will post all starting weights after that.

Meanwhile a few meals. Filet mignon with brussel sprouts and the mandatory shrooms and onions. All veggies sauteed in ghee.
Chicken tenders breaded with almond meal and coconut flour mix, fried in coconut oil with ghee sauteed squash:

Thinking about using 5x5 workouts for Biggest Gainer as it tend to use heavier weights.

Biggest Gainer Baseline

2010-01-08T23:54:00.002-05:00

As of this morning my baseline stats for body fat measurements and weight:
body fat measurements (3 measurement average):
ab: 18.3 mm
chest: 8.0 mm
thigh: 6.7 mm
body fat%: 11.3
gross weight: 148.4
lean weight: 131.6

Let the eating begin!

Biggest Loser? How about Biggest Gainer

2010-01-07T22:36:00.005-05:00

The Biggest Loser Rant
Yes we launch into another season of The Biggest Loser. And the contestants get larger time. One guy starting off at 526lb. Ideal weight if one was about 10'6" tall, but he's only 6'3". The sad part is that the guy is only 30 years old. Personally, I try to get calibrated by finding contestants about my height (5'10"). There are two this year: a) Daris, 25 years old/350lb and b) Darrell, 46 years old/420lb. It is getting like The Running Man and I don't think NBC will be happy until someone strokes out.

The Biggest Gainer Proposal
Anyway, I wasn't real pleased with my latest body fat measurement (post holidays) and did a 24 hour IF for 3 of 4 days this week akin to the Warrior Diet. My buddy Decarlo who's been trying to put on weight suggested a contest to try to gain the highest percentage of lean muscle mass. So, I'm game, he's in, his roommate Manny is in, and my bro Jeff said he'd give it a go for The Biggest Gainer. Any other of the few readers want in, just let me know.

The Biggest Gainer Criterion
Simple. At least over the period of time that the Biggest Loser is on the air this round (approx 16 weeks), we're going to see who ends up with the highest gain in lean muscle mass. It would be easy to gain weight by gorging on donuts and ice cream which is why body fat percentage is important. Personally, I don't care if people want to take HGH, or protein shakes, or andro to get there. Actually, it would be interesting to see what works for the 'hard gainers'.

Baseline
So tomorrow morning, I'll take my weight and body fat measurements (I suggest calipers and this site) to determine percentage body fat and my lean muscle mass. Anyone interested who I don't talk to via text, email, or phone, just post weight and body fat % in the comments section. I'll post the guinea pigs results on Monday and away we go.

Periodic Updates
Usually I take my body fat measurement at the beginning of the month and weight daily. For now I suggest that this would be a good period, but I can do it more often if so inclined.

Prizes
Can't say I'm thinking about any kind of meaningful prize other than may be a jar of almond butter, ghee or FAGE, but I am open to suggestions.

Anyway, good way to pass the time over these cold New England winters. Let the games begin!

Back to the Gym Everyone!

2010-01-05T22:59:00.004-05:00

Ah yes. The New Years resolutions are still strong which means that the gym is still packed to the gills. Got caught up in a meeting that ran late and didn't make it to the gym until late afternoon. Big mistake. Literally 3 of 30 pieces of cardio equipment not in use and people milling all over the place. Saw about a handful of regulars otherwise a bunch of newcomers with more people signing up at the front desk.

Got me thinking about my favorite gym stories as I saw a few morons about. Some of the milder ones I've seen lately:

a) just today walking across the parking lot to the gym entrance, I hear a truck with glass-packs roaring across the parking lot. It's some jacked up (and beat up) F-150 doing about 40 mph. So naturally he doesn't want his baby scratched, so he parks it sideways in the crowded lot taking up about 3 spots. Grown man with a mohawk gets out and guess where he's heading. yup to my gym! Lucky day! I see him in the locker room and he puts his flannel shirt in a locker and then heads out to the gym with construction boots on. Does the 40 minutes of mandatory bench press and curls, then leaves.

b) saw another guy doing seated rows. The machine is positioned near a wall on one side. Spent the entire time doing rows and watching himself in the mirror.

c) about a month ago there was a guy with a tank-top doing mostly curls to develop his guns. Somehow we ended our workout around the same time. So I go into the locker room and there he is in front of the mirror with this shirt off posing and flexing. I almost laughed out loud since in addition to looking ridiculous, he had this enormous beer gut that wasn't as obvious with the shirt on.

But several of my all time favorites are:

d) From Manny and Keith (two different gyms, but identical scenarios): person doing a set on some type of cybex/nautilis machine WHILE EATING A CINNABON! Seriously, you can't make this stuff up. And even more remarkable that two unrelated people in two different states saw the same thing at two different gyms!

e) From Decarlo and Manny: some dudes bring a video camera to show the world how diesel they are and film their bench presses. Even more impressive is that they bring a piece of plywood to put on their sternums. Guess they brought some smelling salts to get crazy and slapped each other around - getting amped up for the big lift.

f) From Zach: you know those air blowers that are sometimes found around a sink to dry one's hands? Well my friend Zach says he saw a guy at the YMCA buck naked in front of the sink with one foot on the counter flexing while using the air blower to dry his crotch off. I'm serious, this is too bizarre to make up.

In other news, I did back-to-back IF days on Monday and Tuesday and been doing the 3 mile run every other day. Been focusing on spending roughly an hour at the gym and trying a different routine out. More on that to follow, as well as other goals for 2010.

2010 Start and Lame Turducken

2010-01-03T11:29:00.003-05:00

Starting the year off with the Primal Pancakes (made with almond meal, eggs, heavy cream, blueberries) and apple sausages. My wife made these and they turned out real well. Wonder if coconut flour would be a good addition. I imagine it would.
Now we come to the Turducken, which is supposed to be a boneless duck stuffed inside a boneless chicken stuffed inside a turkey. I was searching all week for one at butcher stores, etc., but failed to find one. The local Stop n Shop had a pre-packaged one for $30 (5lb), so thought I'd give is a go.

This thing was completely boneless which was nice. Placed in a ceramic dish with about 1/2" of white wine in the bottom. Salted and peppered the top, added some butter on top. Covered with aluminum foil, added meat thermometer and placed in 300F oven. Pulled out when thermo said 165F. A little pink here and there, but I think most of that was duck bleed-through to the other meat. Regardless a few more minutes in the oven uncovered to brown it.

Well the good news is that the duck and turkey were tasty. The andouille sausage stuffing imparted a nice spicey flavor to the birds. Bad news is that there was about a pound of stuffing and they seemed to forget about the chicken (literally zero chicken to be found). The duck portion was about 3 oz. Kind of lame for a turducken and didn't live up to the billing. However, we have plenty of turkey to eat for the next few days.

Anyway, got on the scale and it said 154 this morning. Body fat measurements as:
Ab: 19.0 mm
Chest: 7.7 mm
Thigh: 7.3 mm
= 11.6% BF.

All on the higher end of things. So I'm assuming that between the holiday fare and the accident-induced reduced activity, things are reflected in the above numbers. On that note, I'm going to brave the gym today and fight the crowds before the Patriots game starts.

Year in Review

2009-12-30T23:12:00.002-05:00

A few stats from 2009 and comparison to previous years.

Weight:
year / max / min / avg
2005 / 174 / 156 / 165
2006 / 168 / 148 / 156
2007 / 169 / 160 / 165
2008 / 169 / 146 / 155
2009 / 155 / 142 / 148

Body fat (per scale; semi-reliable)
year / max / min / avg
2008 / 13.6 / 11.9 / 12.7
2009 / 10.8 / 8.1 / 9.6

Running miles:
2008: 490
2009: 210
Fastest 3.0 mile: 20:37

2009 bests:
Bench: 185
Squat: 245
Deadlift: 225

I should compare grocery bills as I'm sure that is up. Eating like a carnivore is expensive. A while back lipid panel results were posted in comparison to previous years. Nothing wrong there.

Just starting to think about goals, etc. for 2010.

Holiday Summary

2009-12-29T22:58:00.002-05:00

This kind of sums up the holidays: mostly good, but honestly Santa, I've strayed a little bit. First three weeks of December were especially good, but a little wine here, a little desert here. Oh well. Not all-out-sugar fest mind you, just a little holiday indulgence.

Outstanding sauvignon blanc with clam chowdah:
Parmesian crusted tilapia with lemon butter sauce with capers:

Surf and turf with hollandaise sauce:

And an upside down apple pie:

Pretty compliant Paleo wise the month of December considering the opportunities that were around, especially in the office environment.

Working on a year end summary and goals for 2010.

Food Backlog

2009-12-22T00:02:00.002-05:00

Camera food picture backlog, so here's a few new additions:

Grass fed beef, cilantro frittata with pico. Used some Trader Joe's grass fed beef, but wife and I both agreed that something tasted off about it. Doubt we'll buy that again.

Erno-supplied pork chops with apple chutney and asparagus:

Bison burgers with mango salsa and spaghetti squash:

Old standby london broil, red wine vinegar & garlic marinate. Running late tonite, so dinner wasn't ready til like 10pm...after a mostly IF day:

Picking back up with interval sprints at the gym and reducing time between sets. Also reducing overall time at the gym.

Scored a free scone around lunchtime for my first Paleo transgression this month. Ahh well, going to try to finish the month strong.

Dodging Land Mines

2009-12-16T20:21:00.003-05:00

Well, the eating season is upon us. So far through the month of December, I have stayed 99% Paleo compliant (3 bites of stuffing with the holiday lunch). Tried to bypass the carbs, but the cafeteria staff loaded up my plate. I told the dude serving the turkey "Load me up, bro." But he only gave me 1 extra slice.

The availability of free food this month is astounding including Christmas cookies, soda, no less than three sheet cakes for the holidays (1 retirement party, 1 holiday party, 1 from another meeting), etc.

Did an all-day intermittent fast and was still fasting when I went to someone's retirement party. Only foods available where candy and cake. I was asked no less than 4 times if I wanted a piece. "I'm fine with my water, thanks."

Did make it to the gym today for a quick workout. Actually saw someone else doing dumbell snatches and was impressed. Easy run and a few back exercises, but still not 100% after the accident. Scale still hovering around 150.

Back over 10% and on the Sidelines

2009-12-12T10:26:00.004-05:00

Been on the sidelines inactive recovering from car accident issues. Did make it to the gym yesterday for the first time in two weeks.

Today's body fat measurements:
Ab: 17.6 mm
Chest: 6.7 mm
Thigh: 6.0 mm
BF %: 10.5
Reflects and increase over last month but the same % as two months ago. ah well.

Other food bits of note: Found some coconut flour, so used that for a breading to coat some tilapia. cooked in coconut oil = delightful. Next time, I think I'll prepare a mango or pineapple salsa/chutney to complement it.
More grass fed beef. Got this cut from Springdell farms (Groton, MA). Went there looking for bacon and came back with beef. Got about a 20oz NY sirloin. Only marinated for a few hours but was one of the best steaks I've had in a while. Very tender and flavorful.

This morning's breakfast: eggs, pico and farm bacon thanks to Jeff. Interesting note is that the bacon didn't smoke or leave as much of the usual bacon aroma. Tasty!

Good visit with Jeff. Hammered down the following during his visit:

Caprese salad: destroyed

Approx 3lb marinated/grilled chicken breast: almost destroyed

7egg spinach quiche: destroyed

2lb bacon meatloaf: destroyed

spaghetti squash: destroyed.

Anyway, hopefully back in the swing at the gym soon.

As a side note, been making Dec a 100% paleo compliant month. So far, so good after 11 days, despite the landmines at work.

Thanksgiving: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

2009-11-29T22:32:00.002-05:00

One of the more interesting Thanksgiving breaks.

The Good:
- Actually lost 3 lb over the Thanksgiving break. Stayed pretty compliant paleo-wise and made a few meals for mom. She took us to a local veggie stand that was amazing. We picked up a bunch of stuff there. Here's a pic of about 1/3 of the stand, below.
- Weather was great in FL with highs in the 70's and 80's
- Managed to score some FAGE full-fat yogurt at the local Publix supermarket
- One day I went out for a run and got lost, but felt like I could run 10 miles. Ended up doing 3.5 in 25:50 according to mapmyrun.com.
- Caught up with the relatives and such.
- My 5 year old nephew powered down a whole turkey leg for dinner on Thanksgiving. Couldn't believe it. Maybe there is some Paleo promise there...

The Bad:
- yeah there were carbs-a-plenty to be had. I think I managed to only have a few nibbles and no pie or cake whatsoever.
- Funny, on the plane ride home, the snack choices were: cookies, peanuts, or pretzels. Why not just say "Carbs with sugar, carbs with bad oils, or carbs with salt". My wife asked if there was any fruit available and the stewardess looked at her like she was an alien.

The Ugly:
- sadly, we were involved in a traffic accident the afternoon after I went for a morning run. We were stopped at a light, but the guy behind us did not stop and slammed into mom's poor civic at approximately 35 mph. Had to go to the ER. Not fun. We're both feeling some residual soreness and pain. I'm just hoping there are no long term issues and that my mom gets everything squared away insurance-wise.

Thanksgiving Break

2009-11-21T12:03:00.002-05:00

Ok - going to take a week or so off from the gym to visit family. May bring the running shoes along to get some road time logged in sunny FL. Been having the urge for some chronic cardio lately, but nothing more than a 5k.

Went to the gym this morning and ran 3 in 23 and change. The chronic cardio is funny. I was positioned next to two people literally jogging on the treadmill. One guy (kinda pudgy) had already logged about 6.5 miles in 70 minutes according to the treadmill. The woman on the other side had already worked up a good sweat, but couldn't see her mileage since she had a towel over the display. So I started off at 7.5mph and ramped it up to 9.0mph by the end. Got off and did a few exercises with heavier weights.

So I'm getting ready to leave after about an hour at the gym and both those people were just getting done on the treadmill. The pudgy guy must have put in 10miles at <6mph. Woman was going a little faster, but just amazed me the time they put in.

Weight at 151 this morning. Been lurking over 150 for the past week or two. I'm not too concerned as my bf% went down last month. The caliper measurement post-holiday will be the watermark.

Anyway, back in about a week. I'm dreading the airports and the re-circulated airplane environment.

Changes and Home Stretch for 2009

2009-11-17T22:53:00.002-05:00

Things have been getting kind of routine at the gym. Been doing the DeVaney 15/8/4 protocol and not much has seemed to improve. Running has been sporadic. Diet has been about 85% compliant Paleo-wise, where it used to be more like 95%.

So, gym wise decide to revisit the 5x5 stronglifts program for a bit for a change. I know that will get tiresome, but I like the idea of emphasizing heavier progressive weights. Been also thinking of bringing a small notebook with me to the gym so I can remember what I do.

And now we enter the dangerous time of year. Technically it probably began before Halloween with all of the sweets available. Now we're really entering the danger zone with year end parties, time with family, etc. If there was ever a time for discipline it is upon us.

Been a good week so far and despite more free goodies at work, I've been pretty good about it. Hopefully this will carry over into next week and beyond with travel and time with some non-compliant family members.

Roast II

2009-11-12T22:38:00.002-05:00

Food Items

Despite the first roast being a bit on the rare side, that was quickly devoured. Shown here is the second roast (sirloin roast). Browned all over, salted, peppered and then into the oven at 225F with pan degazed, little bit of red wine (not enough, ran out), celery, onions.

About 4 hours in the oven uncovered and meat thermo was reading 160F. Obviously more cooked than the previous but a bit dry. And a bit tougher than I would have thought. Not bad overall.
A few slices with ghee-sauteed veggies. Oddly, the roast done-ness was defintely asymmetric. Can't remember which side was more done, but I suspec the liquid side was rarer than the top.

Senya made her famous marinara sauce with meatballs served over spaghetti squash. The squash was especially stringy that doesn't show in the picture.

Tonite I grilled some flank steak from the grass-fed purchase not long ago. Marinated and served with steamed cali. Wife loved it so much she ate the other half. That really turned out well with the sear / slow cook method, but was so thin it was done in less than 10 minutes.

Gym Rants:

Been getting to the gym a little more often and been trying to determine the minimum-meathead hour at some Gold's a little closer to my new office location. Seems like 2-4pm is the optimum time. After the lunch rush, but before the afterwork crowd rolls in. Been killing my shins with deadlifts (should include picture). Wanted to run today, but legs were still sore from squats and deadlifts.

A few more interesting sitings at the gym:

- heard a guy ranting away on his blue tooth in the locker room and wouldn't you know but he kept the thing in as he went out onto the gym floor. Guy was having an animated discussion (hand gestures and all) while doing the mandatory chest and arm exercises.

- saw another guy hitting the circuit training machines wearing a nice dress shirt, pants, and loafers. Now THAT is dedication. He was working up a good sweat too; wtf.

- did an extra set of deadlifts helping spot some guy. He got 205 on the bench for 4 without much problem, a fair amount of help on #5, and then a full on deadlift by me for #6. I couldn't believe he was going for that last one.

Weight:

- still hovering around 149. Exercise weights haven't gone up in a while. seems like I've been in a funk lately.

- had a few troubles with IF attempts, but am going to stay the course on saying no to all the free sweets available at work.

Misc

2009-11-04T22:34:00.002-05:00

Been feeding off of the roast leftovers for two days now. Sauteed some slabs last nite in ghee, tonite in bacon fat. All with leftover veggies. Finally killed the thing after getting a solid six meals out of it.

Gym time yesterday and today. Highlights after almost a week off:
- ran easy pace 3.0 in 23:50
- upper body exercises still at status quo
- went to different Gold's today, what a state of disrepair that place is in. Broken lockers and equipment, but mid-day meathead traffic was down.
- emphasis on squatting deeper, but knee was protesting. Lighter weight (165)
- saw one dude exercising in khaki pants, loafers and a nice dress shirt. What are you thinking, man?
- may try yet a third Gold's tomorrow.

Body weight down to 147.

9.9%, Rare Roast, etc.

2009-11-02T23:39:00.003-05:00

Body fat measurement today, average of 3 measurements:

14.3 abdomen
7.0 chest
7.3 thigh
=
9.9%, which is actually down a bit from the last two months. Shockingly, the scale was over 150 this morning. No doubt due to the gluttony over the weekend celebrating the anniversary. Here I am on the brunch cruise.

On to the chuck roast (grass-fed, about 3.5lb). Salted and peppered while browning on all sides, then deglazed the pan with red wine, onions, celery and a pepper. Put in the oven at 250F with meat thermometer. After two hours I was shocked to see the internal temp at close to 100F. So, like a dumbass, I turned the oven down and super slow cooked it for the next three hours. Internal meat temp was riding right around 135-140F, so I wasn't too worried. But alas, it turned out extremely rare. Even too rare for my taste. Ahh well, live and learn. But it was extremely tender and the cooked veggies with the red wine were delightful.

No gym time today as I chose to battle the leaves in the back yard until the sun went down while the roast was cooking.

Happy Halloween.

2009-10-31T08:48:00.004-04:00

Yes it is the beginning of the eating season. From the sweet-laden Halloween, to Thanksgiving and Christmas. It is no wonder that the New Year weight loss resolutions are so popular. What is scary is the amount of refined sugar that will be handed out today.

Last year we provided low-value kids toys, etc., such as temporary tattoo kits, and such. Some kids didn't take anything and were wondering what the hell was going on. So I told the parents point blank that we were not going to contribute toward the obesity epidemic. Most parents nodded in agreement and others said nothing. Regardless they all know they can just get their fill at the neighboring houses. Oh well.

Nonetheless, hope the kids have a safe and enjoyable Halloween!

Some ideas to hand out to the kids as candy alternatives:

- swedish meatballs

- steak, chicken, lamb tips

- tripe strips

- asic made from beef tallow and lard

- pork rinds

- fish oil tablets

- kettle-bell instructional pamphlets, etc.

Grass Fed

2009-10-30T19:21:00.003-04:00

Finally got around to cooking some of the grass fed beef picked up on Tuesday. Shown is half of the piece of sirloin steak with squash medly and mushrooms. Squash etc. sauteed in the grass-fed ghee and a bit of evoo. Several observations about the beef.

It was much more tender than the super-market jockey-whipped horse flesh they peddle. Even before the balsamic marinate, the fork easily pierced the meat. It also cooked a lot faster than other cuts. I had the meat thermo in the center and as I went out to check it, the internal temp was already 143F - past the 130-ish medium rare range. So a bit over-cooked on my part. Must be having an off week, since I forgot to season it as well. All that aside, it was very tasty and have some leftover for breaky tomorrow.

Nothing new to post at the gym. Work demands and other things have kept me away since Monday. Too many food land-mines around lately with Halloween approaching, and I've stepped on a few lately (doh!)

Trader Joe's Haul

2009-10-26T22:34:00.006-04:00

Stopped by Trader Joe's to pick up various things. Items of interest include almond butter, unsalted unroasted macadamias, uncured bacon, and Kerry Gold butter from grass-fed cows.

Grilled some turkey filets with flax seed oil. Jury is out whether the flax seed oil is a bad actor. Did up the spaghetti squash a little differently. Prepared and cooked cut-side up and brushed with some melted butter. The squash soaked that stuff right up and really added more of a moist, mellow taste.

Was up at 0430 this morning to drive to Logan airport. Shocking how many cars are on the road at 0500. Also didn't help that two tractor trailers and a car plowed into a toll booth. But that was on the other side of town.

Leftover quiche from this weekend for breaky, skipped lunch but didn't make it to the gym until meathead hour. Place was packed, but I just varied upper body routine to whatever was open. Managed last set of dips with +50lb hanging weight. Went for a slow paced run for 3.0 miles in 23:50. First time in a long while done any chronic cardio.

I was thinking of Smoke since someone nearby had some toxic BO and he had written extensively about someone with that condition at his gym. Thankfully they left after about 5 minutes on the treadmill. Had to laugh at another guy doing 2.0 mph on the treadmill followed by the mandatory ab crunches. Then he hits the tanning booth (what's the obsession?!) and takes a well-deserved shower after that exhausting workout.

At least later in the day there is more comedy, but 5-6pm, the place is jammed. I've given up trying to restack weights as I go. It is hopeless.

148 on scale and tabita said <9%>

Also, local food maven Zach recommended a local place that has grass-fed beef to order, like carte blanche. This is good for us since no freezer = limited space. I ordered a 20 lb sampler platter and will pick it up tomororow. Guy running it is Steve Normanton and he has some good recipes on his site as well.

Various Items

2009-10-22T22:20:00.003-04:00

Made one of my favorites, via rolled up balsamic-marinated flank steak with provolone, baby spinach and mushrooms. Was thinking of browning it first, but it was about a 6" diameter cylindrical hunk of meat held together with the last of the butcher's twine: unwieldy. So, no braising per se today. Into oven at 300F for about 90 minutes. Tender and flavorful - another wife-pleaser. Saute/roast cauli with more ghee and some new evoo and garlic. Already looking forward to lunch tomorrow.

Been out of town for a few days on business. Local Marriott did have and exercise room. Where do they get this equipment? I think some of it was designed by ergonomic idiots. Actually some pieces of equipment were damn dangerous with things getting stuck, worn components, etc. Managed to kill an hour or so in there. Tried to burn out the motor on the treadmill, and despite it's high pitched whine of protest, it held true.

Back home and back to the Meathead home base today. Banged out some more 225 squats and leg work. No run. Funny how I saw 1 meathead idolizing himself in the locker room mirror. Big enough guy, but the beer gut is doing well also. Meathead #2 was miffed since meathead #1 was hogging all the time in the tanning booth. People, please! Just take your smelling salts and GTFOH.

Neither meathead looked anything like Sandow (below) who's on the cover of Muscle Smoke and Mirrors. Now that guy looks friggin ripped. Through the first few chapters of the book, describing the Physical Culture and history of body building.

All day IF today and still hovering around 147 lb.

Ghee Whiz

2009-10-16T22:44:00.002-04:00

More food love.

Simple egg scramble: listed in order added to pan
butter or evoo, 1 onion, spoon full of garlic, 2 bell peppers, handful of minced/chopped spinach, 1 lb grass fed beef, 6 eggs (Nellies, not bad for supermarket grade):
Got ghee (grass fed) today, thanks to the local food maven, and immediately put it to use.
Stuff wasn't on the counter for 5 minutes before the cat damn near attacked it (i.e., licking the side and rim).

Cooked a small 3 lb boneless turkey breast (with cilantro-lime marinate) and sauteed some veggies in ghee. Gravy provide with turkey was super salty. Ghee was fantastic, but more concentrated than I thought. Have to use a little lighter hand next time.

Marinate I used was from Appalachian Naturals that was at the local butcher shop. Stuff has mostly natural ingredients with the only questionable actors being agave nector and no so sure about sunflower oil. But, unlike many other sauces, etc. this stuff has zero sugar.

Did hit the gym for 3 days of 4 available this week. Sadly it was later in the day and prime-time for meat heads. Funny how between sets or whatever, I try to organize the weights to where they are supposed to go (my anal-retentive personality kicking in). I'll go in the next afternoon and it is back to random placement by morons who put the 45's on the pegs where the 10's are supposed to go...if they put plates back at all. Even funnier is that the gym fired the one kid who actually did some work around there.

Slightly off the reservation day on Thursday from customer meeting. Heading to NY to visit a vendor next week, but will stop and see my bro Jeff, en route.

Schnitzel Misfire and 225 Trifecta Goal

2009-10-13T23:27:00.002-04:00

First off with the food pics.

After enjoying the Schnitzel at an Oktoberfest celebration a few weeks ago, I thought I'd try my hand at it. More or less followed this recipe to make the breaded veal cutlets, but used almond meal instead and fried in canola oil vs. lard. Have to say I was not impressed; it turned out fair, but was not the delicacy I was hoping for. Made with some aspragus on the side. The wife is going to get a real recipe right from a friend in der Vaterland, so may be revisiting this attempt.

Tonite's meal was much better with chicken w/balsamic & evoo and grilled eggplant with tomatos and mozzarella.

Did an IF today and hit the gym late today due to work, etc. A lofty goal at the beginning of the year was to hit 225 for bench, deadlifts, and squats. Squats are no problem. Did 225 x 3 on Sunday and actually hit 245 earlier this year. Got 225 x 2 for deadlifts today. Actually did that 1 other time previously this year. Bench is still a problem. I may have squeaked out 195 once late last year, but lately 1RM has been hovering around 175.

Getting back into 1 minute interval sprintts and haven't done a chronic cardio test since the August race. Weight still hanging around 147.

Biggest Loser Rant

2009-10-06T23:22:00.003-04:00

Well, I think we are done done done with this show. It was appealing at first for the simple reason that it was inspiring to see such morbidly obese people turn their lives around. But the emphasis on calorie counting drives me insane. At one point this week, the trainer Jillian said to someone "Don't worry about the sugar, worry about the calories!" This is the polar opposite of how I see things.

Then the contestants were 'forced' to eat every meal at a restaurant for a week. Oh woe is us! Good lord, this would be fantastic. They are the paying customers and can order whatever they want per their specifications. It would be great to take a week off of cooking. Not that I mind it, but it would free up gobs of time with shopping, prep, and cleanup.

Another contestant was in a state of panic since she couldn't go to the gym on doctor's orders. She lost 4lb without 1 step on the treadmill. Gee, think nutrition may have something to do with that?

Finally, the no/low fat theme is wearing thin. Banishing things like olive oil and cheese.

I think we'll just start tuning in for the last 15 minutes to see the weight loss.

Body Fat Measurement

2009-10-05T23:44:00.002-04:00

Latest measurements as follows with previous two months:

Aug / Sep / Oct

Chest: 6.0 / 7.3 / 7.0 mm
Ab: 16.0 / 19.0 / 17.3 mm
Thigh: 6.0 / 8.0 / 6.0 mm
BF%: 9.8 / 11.7 / 10.5

So, still not quite back to pre-fishing trip numbers, but I'll take the decrease.

Just Food

2009-10-03T23:08:00.002-04:00

Only made it to the gym twice this week as other things have kept me occupied. But did make a few pic-worthy meals:

London broil with sauteed veggies. Marinated in straight-up balsamic for about 10 hours (should have waited longer), seared on the grill (450-500F) for 1 minute per side, then cooked at low heat for about 20 minutes. Nice brown sear on outer 1/4" with a great medium-rare finish on the inside:
Weather was lousy this morning, so took some time to make a nice spinach quiche with cheddar and Monterey Jack. Senya liked it so much she had two pieces for breakfast and another for dinner.

Still down a few lb from previous week high, despite lack of gym time.

Embrace the Pig

2009-10-01T23:07:00.003-04:00

I don't know why the pig is so maligned. Cloved foot? Bristled hide? Filthy habits? I don't know. But it tastes wonderful. Continuing the Oktoberfest celebration (in September) with some fried bratwurst and eggs. Bit of sauerkraut on the side. Not a bad combo, but some may not like the taste.

Continuing with the pig theme, I made a bacon meatloaf with steamed cauliflower. The bacon really makes the meatloaf. I really just shot from the hip on the recipe, and it turned out great. Here's the ingredients:

2lb grass-fed ground beef
1 small onion
8 mushrooms
1 bell pepper
(onion, mush, & pepper sauteed in butter before adding to meat)
6 strips of bacon, fried and crispy
2 shredded carrots
1 egg
1/4 cup of almond meal
mix and bake at 350 for about 50 min.

Finally the gym is clearing out. Must be the kids heading back to school or something. Walked in there at 3pm and there was 1 other person there (on the elliptical naturally). Went up in some weights via 15/8/4. Legs were still feeling the inroads from squatting 225 on Monday, so no run.

Surely as crappy choices last week made the weight go up, three straight days of puritan Paleo living have dropped 4. Picked up some veal patties today at the meat store so Schnitzel is coming!

Mark's Daily Apple Take on the Biggest Loser

2009-09-29T23:33:00.002-04:00

He sums it all up here. How TBL methodology for weight loss is flawed and how they are striving more for the shock and awe value (i.e., jumping the shark).

Some Food Pix

2009-09-29T22:56:00.006-04:00

After getting some love from Marc at Feel Good Eating (Thanks Marc!), I feel obligated to post some recent food pix. Now Marc can cook and always has new ideas for Paleo-friendly meals; I'm just a hack. But if I can make some of this stuff, anyone can.

From this last weekend, we attended the local Schnizelfest. Stood in line for about an hour and a half for the following meal. Didn't mind; band playing, nice day out, etc. Although the wife almost got taken out by a large woman (240lb) who almost fell into us while slammin some Coke down. But that's a rant for another day.

Anyway, what we have here is going clockwise from nearest-beer location is knockwurst, bratwurst, sauerkraut, potato salad (with bacon - I swear I only had a taste), breaded & grilled schnitzel. Although the grilled schnitzel was overcooked and dry, the rest was pretty damn good. As a matter of fact, I cooked some brats on Monday to keep the Oktoberfest celebration going. Look for my attempt at schnitzel in the future.

Next we have some Ribeye with sauteed onions and peppers, caprice salad. In talking with the local food maven, he indicated that it is the acidic liquids like vinegar and lemon juice that really help to break meat down that makes it more tender. So I soaked the ribeye in some balsamic vinegar for 1+ days. Threw on grill via sear each side, then slow cook and viola! Was probably a pretty tender cut of meat to begin with, but damn near cut-with-a-fork tender.

Then there's today's standard Paleo fare: meat and veggies. Grilled steak tips and steamed broccoli. Been thinking more and more about making more of my own marinates. A lot of the store bought ones are just loaded with sugar. And this is also true of the pre-marinated stuff from the meat shop.

Paleo Regression

2009-09-28T23:40:00.003-04:00

Well the scale had been sneaking up the last few weeks and today it hit 150. Hadn't been there since March and it was as low as 141 about 8 weeks ago. (I'm 5'10" for those keeping notes or anyone who cares). And I don't think I've packed on 9 lb of muscle.

Been a little toooo careless with the diet of late. Think it started out with the Hedonistic fishing trip, then a snack here, a few labor day parties, some other festivals where there were too many temptations and here we are. Good time for self-examination. It seems like there is always some get together or free food at work that I know I should not be eating. And a little cheating here and there adds up.

So, apparently I have to return to the mantra of Constant Vigilance and kindly say no thanks to the temptations. Or WWJED? Or WWSTBFD? etc.

No gym time since Friday due to work and other obligations, but back is packed and ready for tomorrow.

Eat Your Carbs, Bitch!

2009-09-20T22:26:00.002-04:00

RANT:

Pet peeve a): people who operate an automobile oblivious to the world around them including other drivers;
Pet peeve b): people who use the automobile as their personal restaurant. Sit down at a table and enjoy your food!

So, we're cruising through a parking lot trying to navigate to a local meat shop when this woman in an SUV pulls out in front of us facing in our direction and blocks our path. We're sitting there wondering what the hell is going on when I say outloud "Come on, lady! Let's go, while we're young!". At this point, the woman reaches over to the passenger seat and brings a big old pizza slice up to her mouth and chomps down on it - all while still blocking our path. This prompts my wife to utter another comment which was "Yeah, eat your carbs, BITCH!". I just had to laugh out loud. Finally we got around the clueless soccer mom and spent about $150 in meat for this week's enjoyment.

Okay ... in other news. Been feeling some good progress back with EF 15/8/4. Made it to the gym 4 times last week with a few intervals. Intervals were limited after doing squats one day that left me pretty sore.

Saw the lovely Jillian doing a show on QVC while channel surfing. She was pimpin her fitness CD's and actually had some good points about aerobic weight training and explosive movements. Plus she talked a bit about leg exercises as being worthwhile due to the increased growth hormone response from this large muscle group. Why this stuff never makes it onto the dialogue of Biggest Loser is beyond me.

Nonetheless, it made me think to increase the tempo of my 15/8/4 to cut down on the rest intervals and speed up my workout. Will be mindful of that this week.

Blah

2009-09-19T09:41:00.003-04:00

Have not felt like writing much lately. Still getting to gym and eating right. Just not much to say lately.

Biggest Loser Time Again

2009-09-15T23:03:00.002-04:00

Can't help watching Jillian and Bob try to whip these people into shape. A few observations for this season.

- Wondering if this show has jumped the shark. Even larger people, more intense harrassement by the trainers, etc.
- Is America getting fatter than ever? At least four people over 400 lb, with 1 woman topping out at 476!
- One woman could not even complete a 1 mile run; put her in the hospital for a week
- The mentality that the motivated ones 'can do this on their own' at home nauseates me. So the not-as-motivated ones get rewarded by staying at the ranch. We must equal the field, you know!
- Very saddening to see people in their 20's with such poor health.
- Again, tired of the show pimping all kinds of products, dictating the calories in - calories out mantra, glossing over nutrition.

Anyway, more sprints and 15/8/4 for me at the gym.

9/11

2009-09-10T23:20:00.001-04:00

Never forget September 11th... I don't have the words to eloquently discuss what 9/11 means. But I'd suggest a little self-reflection.

Blood Work, etc.

2009-09-10T23:09:00.002-04:00

Blood work results in and comparison to previous years:

Year: 2005 / 2007 / 2008 / 2009
CHOL: 168 / 163 / 161 / 161
TRIG: 98 / 100 / 29 / 36
HDL: 24 / 38 / 46 / 49
LDL: 125 / 117 / 120 / 116

LDL reading didn't have particle size discriminator. Curious how similar my panel is to last year and to wife's numbers.

I'm more convinced that some at the gym are using some un-natural assistance. One dude there who's about my size. I'd run into him a few years back at another gym, but now this dude is benching like 250. Of course, he's still glued to the cell phone, just like previous years and can't bother to re-rack weights...just like previously.

Also watched an intersting show on BBC regarding some normal weight women trying to slim down to fit in size-00 jeans by trying various crazy diets. One resorted to binging and purging and required psychological help. When the 5 week experiment was done, they immediately binged like crazy and put some of the weight back on immediately. They were going through hell only ingesting 1000 calories or less per day, had zero energy, etc. There's a better way people!

Fuel

2009-09-08T22:44:00.002-04:00

Tonite's dinner. Marnated steak, sauteed mushrooms in butter and garlic, grilled eggplant, spinach salad with mozarella:

Did make it to the gym. Diggin the EF 15/8/4 protocol like getting reaquainted with a long lost friend. Also getting used to weight training first, followed by intervals second.

Body weight still up a few pounds after fishing vacation - 146 today.

Getting Back in the Swing

2009-09-05T21:23:00.002-04:00

Been getting back into the swing of things. Some changes of note:
- back to intervals for a while with the occassional chronic cardio
- switching (back) to 15/8/4 ef methodology
- going to try to set up some kind of spreadsheet to track results so that I'm not typing over and over here (actually do this already for running which goes back years)
- as always, try to up the intensity. Smoke is always good for motivation. That guy is on a mission.
- switching to doing cardio after weight training
- catch up on superhumanradio + other blog traffic

Legs and triceps at gym today followed by intevals. 145 on scale. Went to a co-worker's cookout and had some great beer (Hoegaarden), which is a fantastic white beer. Has a hint of wheat and lemon. A little bread for burger and dog.

Fishing Trip Payback

2009-09-01T23:47:00.002-04:00

Two weeks of sorta-non-complance reveals itself via monthly body fat calculation:

chest: 7.3 mm
ab: 19 mm
thigh: 8 mm
= 11.7%

Compared to last month of

chest: 6 mm
ab: 16 mm
thigh: 6 mm
= 9.8%

Guess I have to get with the program.

At gym today:

Mixed it up and did weight training first and then some intervals on the treamill
deadlifts, back, and curls + interval 'sprints' of mainly 9 mph, but legs were so stiff from squats yesterday and deadlifts today, that couldn't go much faster.

Time for an IF

2009-09-01T00:05:00.002-04:00

Fair amount of time away from the gym in the last few weeks and starting to get back into the groove. Also had not done a 24 hour IF in a while, so today was the day! Weight this morning was still hovering around 147.

At gym:
- ramping back up on interval sprints, 2 min walk at 4 mph, 1 min run at 9.0/9.0/9.5/9.5/10.0/10.0/10.5/10.5/11.0/11.0 mph, etc. Running sprints felt great. Was also catching up on past episodes of superhumanradio. Several good ones I missed.

Did a exercises in 15/8/4 fashion
- squats: 135/165/185, legs were really tight
- leg extensions 85/100/115
- triceps pulldown 100/110/120
- dip machine 85/100/115
- floor wipers 10/10/4

Also noticed the gym had a member's appreciation day on Sunday including bagels and pizza on the menu. I actually mentioned this to one of the trainers and he just shook his head in sympathy. Seems like the flood of meatheads continues with dudes working out in doo-rags and Timberland construction boots.

Lazy Weekend; Just Food

2009-08-30T12:49:00.003-04:00

No gym time this weekend. Just enjoying the weather and running errands.

Last nite's dinner, ad-lib Paleo meatloaf
- 2 lb grass fed ground beef
- 4 slices of farm raised bacon
- 1 yellow onion
- 2 carrots shredded
- 1 small bell pepper
- freshed minced cilantro
- chopped garlic
- celery
- almond meal

Into oven at 400 for about 35 min. Had some mozzarella slices + tomatoes with balsamic on the side:

Primal pancakes this morning. Wife got the recipe right off of Mark's Daily Apple:
Found this picture on the hard drive of a fruit salad I made a while ago, but don't think I posted it. Real simple:
- 1 pineapple
- 1 cantaloupe
- 1 melon
- grapes
- strawberries
- blueberries

147 on scale this morning. Weather is too nice out; going for a bike ride.

Better Half's Lipid Panel

2009-08-29T14:16:00.002-04:00

My better half just got her blood results back from her physical. We've both been pretty Paleo-compliant for over a year (ignore my hedonistic vacation). Her results:

CHOL: 176
TRIG: 38
HDL: 71
LDL: 99

Have to get my blood work done shortly. Will be interesting to see the results.

Back From Fishing

2009-08-27T23:12:00.003-04:00

Well back from fishing in Ontario with the in-laws for a week. Hammered on a bunch of walleye. Too many to count the number of fish on the line. Mostly 1-2 pounders, but Bill landed a 4-pounder; nice fish.

Here's the haul on the first day that we kept for dinner:

Fried walleye shore lunch with bacon, mushrooms, peppers, potatoes (yeah non-paleo, but whatever). Tasted great.

Made a pair of massive six egg omelettes with ham, bacon, sausage, cheese:
In addition to a lot of beer, are some of Canada's best poutine = french fries with cheese curds and gravy:

All in all, a relaxing trip - despite being stranded on the lake and the usual airline hassles. Ventured a bit off of the paleo plan and the scale was up to 149 this morning. But I'm back on track today.

Went to the gym and ran some intervals and did some EF 15/8/4.

Race Day

2009-08-13T22:28:00.003-04:00

Ran the Cigna/Elliot Corporate 5k Road Race today. Complete results already posted at Coolrunning.com. Finished 400 out of 5000 in a time of 21:18 / 6:52 pace. Beat last year's time by almost a minute. Big benefit was starting near the front where I didn't have to weave around a bunch of slower runners, but not many passed me, so it was a good location. Overall, I was happy with the improvement and the performance considering chronic cardio has been way down this year and I really only trained for about a month beforehand.

Guy who won broke the course record finishing in 13:53.

Post race with a bag full of bananas and water they were handing out. The orange tag on the shoe is an RFID they use to time the race. Disposable and very cool.
Among other free stuff they were handing out were ice-cream sandwiches! As well as coke, power-ade (carbo-aid!) and HFCS yogurt.

Senya made a spinach and grass-fed beef scramble we enjoyed for dinner:

Race Pace and Beef

2009-08-11T23:25:00.005-04:00

Ran 2.0 miles at race pace (~9mph) in 13:30. Just did some light upper body exercises at the gym. Wondering if there are some at the gym who have some chemical assistance because there are some swollen dudes there.

Last nite's dinner of grass fed beef (top round) with mushrooms, onions and roast cauliflower. Beef was a little tough, maybe have to bust out the hammer and tenderize the next one.

145 on scale - funny how a few days off the track with nuts and such makes such an impact.

Sox Nausea and More Food

2009-08-09T23:02:00.008-04:00

What's nauseating is the fact that the Red Sox were up 3 full games at the All-Star break, and now trail in the division by 6.5 games after getting swept by both the Rays and the Yankees. Absolutely awful. Could only scratch together a TOTAL of 2 runs for the last 3 games - combined. Despite all three starters pitching well. Like I said pathetic. For crissakes, may have to watch pre-season football soon.

Anyway. . .

Been hammering down the local farm fresh eggs. And recently found a roadside stand that has farm fresh bacon in Littleton, MA. Here are both in another attempt to make the perfect omelette (1/2 shown). The bacon seems meatier, less salty, and almost definitely fewer nitrates. The guy we get the eggs from had to go into the house to get some - said that they had just been laid that morning.

Another turkey cooked that had been lurking in the freezer. Went via the oven route this time, stuffed some bacon under the skin also this time (thanks to Marc's suggestion - Feel Good Eating). Probably should have followed Marc's beer can chicken recipe more closely. Also found a use for some Minutemaid also lurking around. These cans have been in the fridge for at least 18 months. Opened can and poured contents down the sink. Refilled about 1/2 the can with beer and shoved can up the turkey caboose. A little uncertain whether the turkey is supposed to be vertical or horizontal. Well, I put the beer can in with the opening at the 12 o'clock position, so it wasn't like the beer was pouring liberally into the cavity. Was a little tougher than I thought to get stuff under the turkey skin, but put at least 3 strips of bacon in.

Nonetheless, it was very juicy, and the added bacon flavoring is always a good thing. I was reading somewhere on a cooking blog that one guy uses bacon grease and a hypodermic to shoot right into the breast and lets that soak for a nite prior to cooking. Now that's adding bacon flavoring!

Few slices of turkey with mashed cauliflower and julienned squash (sauteed in coconut oil):

For dessert, mashed up some over-ripe bananas, added some vanilla extract and a handful of black berries and blueberries and put into freezer. Quite frozen by time turkey and dinner were complete, but tasty.

Took a break from nut/choc fast and had both also - blame in-game stress disorder.

143.2 / 8.6% on scale.

Blog Stall

2009-08-08T22:31:00.003-04:00

Crazy time with what seems like home projects and stuff, so bloggin has been stalling. Completely missed out on Mark's Daily Apple Primal Health Challenge. But coincidentally, I've decided to cut down on snacking on nuts and dark chocolate. Plus my chronic cardio has ramped up for next week's race. Body weight has dropped a few more pounds and was actually below 142 one day last week. Looked back through health records and last time I was at that weight was about 1990-1991. Graduated college around 140 - friggin ridiculous.

Anyway, more 5x5 today

Deadlifts: 165, tweaked back
Renegade rows: 40
Seated rows 130
BB curls 75
DB curls 30

Ran 2.0 in 14:44 on partial hills course, still feeling squat hangover plus back precluded going the full hill course.

Sat; 143.4 / 8.6% bf per tanita scale

Treadmill and Squats

2009-08-05T21:10:00.002-04:00

142 on friggin scale this morning, a new low.

Due to schedule, etc. ran on the treadmill at the gym
Mile 1: 7:10
Mile 2: 7:00
Mile 3: 6:55
last 0.1 mile: 0:40
------------
5k: 21:45, odd considering it is flat, no hills or wind resistance

More 5x5
- squats: 175
- seated calf raises: 90
- leg press #2: 280 (didn't remember weight prior, need to move up)
- triceps pulldown: 130
- dips: 3x10
- abs: 3x10 leg raises
- planks 1 min per side + center

More Chronic Cardio

2009-08-02T23:27:00.003-04:00

Mostly a weekend working around the house, but ran my local 5k course again, back to the gym tomorrow.

First mile: 6:35
Second mile: 8:00, friggin hill is killing me
Last 1.1 mile: 7:05
--------------
5k: 21:40

I'll have to look around for a running map software that shows the elevation changes; the second mile is brutal.

9.8%

2009-08-02T00:33:00.003-04:00

Monthly caliper measurements

chest: 6 mm
ab: 16 mm
thigh: 6 mm
= 9.8% body fat

YTD results. Have to look back on WTF happened in April that made things jump up.
JAN: 10.2
FEB: 9.3
MAR: 9.6
APR: 9.3
MAY: 10.8
JUN: 10.2
JUL: 10.1
AUG: 9.8

No run or gym today. Worked outside like a dog from 12:30 - 7:30, but the day was perfect, so can't complain too much.

Just a Run

2009-07-30T19:21:00.002-04:00

Manchester race in two weeks, so been trying to duplicate the time (6pm) and conditions (outdoors), and length (5k) of the run. Got the idea from the book Body by Science. Althought the 5k course around my neighborhood has hills much greater than the flat race course, this can only help.

First mile: 6:50
Second mile: 7:45
Last 1.1 mile: 7:25
-------------
5k: 22:00

Lamb Tips

2009-07-29T22:43:00.003-04:00

Got some lamb tips from the butcher. Was a little unsure how long to grill them, but after consulting my bro Jeff, I got some guidance. Did a quick sear and turned the heat down to medium. Tips were on the smallish side, so was really winging it regarding cooking time. Plus, it was about 8:15 when I put these on, so I could not see the doneness too well.

Despite the uncertainty, I guessed about 5 minutes before turning them and I must say: they turned out fantastic. Cuts also a bit uneven in size, but mostly a nice pink in the middle. Slightly gamey, but they were really good. Served with sauteed onion, mushrooms and garlic plus some spaghetti squash.

Continued 5x5 at the gym and moved up in weights across the board:
- no run
- deadlifts: 165
- renegade rows: 40
- seated rows: 135
- bb curls: 75
- db curls: 30 (could not remember what weight I used last time)
- seated curls: 60

146 on scale, tanita says 9.2% bf

Running with Hills

2009-07-28T23:19:00.004-04:00

Ran the local 5k Hills course around the neighborhood. Mostly casual pace, but pushed on and off.
First mile: 7:00 (mostly downhill)
Second mile: 8:10 (severe uphill grade)
Last 1.1 mile: 7:30 (downhill and uphill return)
-------------
5k Hill: 22:40, so a couple more weeks to improve that time. Race on 8/13 which is pretty flat, but has a hill at the end for a net uphill rise over the entire course. Followed todays run up with a massive contrast shower.

Had a physical yesterday. Overall, things are good. Blood pressure down from usual 120/80 to 105/70. Not a big change, but it is in the right direction. May get bothersome knee scoped after race and vacation but before the socialized medicine debacle becomes law. Will get blood work done next week.

A few meals. Had leftover mozarella and salad, so another day with caprese sald. Sundried tomato seasoned grilled chicken. Tomato was right off the back porch and tasted fantastic.

Egg and grass fed beef scramble with mushrooms, yellow bell pepper, spinach, garlic, pico de gallo - good for breakfast AND dinner.

Sunday Exercise Stats

2009-07-26T22:25:00.002-04:00

5x5
- bench: 135
- incline db press: 40
- cable flyes: 60
(all good weights for 5x5 for now)
- dips, slow down explode up
- incline raises: 15 (up)
- bb rows: 65 + 10 last set
- db press: 15, poor RHS (shoulder)

2.0 miles in 15:10 on hills course

145.0 weight, 9.2% bf.

Lazy Saturday

2009-07-25T18:21:00.002-04:00

I think I am finding out that nuts is my kryptonite. First off, I love the things - equal opportunity nut lover (excluding peanuts) as long as they are unsalted and unroasted. After a few weeks of giving them a break, the Tabita scale has been indicating a lower of body fat %. Took in several handfuls of cashews last nite and a bit of dark chocolate last nite and BAM, scale say 9.9% this morning. Coincidence? Hmm.

Anyway, ran a bunch of errands today that took longer than expected. Wanted to run the 5k hills course around the neighborhood, but I felt the need to take another day of rest. Lounged around and took a nap in the hammock on a perfect afternoon.

Earlier, though we visited a roadside farm stand that had pasture-fed beef, pork, veggies, etc. (Springdell Farm). Picked up two pounds of ground sirloin/hamburg and a pound of bacon. Will try that out and if we like it, will be hitting it more.

Found that place on farmfresh.org. Can just punch in your zip code and what you are looking for (poultry, beef, eggs, farmer's markets, etc.) and it will list places nearby. Will be exploring that more in the future.

Pix

2009-07-24T23:06:00.003-04:00

Have this over my desk at work. Also posted recently on the SoG site:

Insalata Caprese with marinated and grilled chicken tonite. So good - I could eat more now.

No gym time today, but will tomorrow.

Just Exercise Stats

2009-07-23T23:04:00.002-04:00

5x5 with legs and tris:
- ran 2.0 in 14:11
- squats: 155 + 10 reps on last set = move up
- leg press machine #2: 280, + 10 reps on last set = move up
- leg extension: 100, + 10 reps on last set that were tough = status quo
- triceps cable pulldown: 120 + 10 = move up
- overhead triceps press: 45 db + 10 = move up
- dip machine: 100 + 10 = move up

Nothing of note at gym, actually quiet today with usual weights unracked, plates laying around, etc.

Pace improving plus some rants

2009-07-21T23:31:00.002-04:00

Another day where the tanita scale register sub-9% body fat. whoo-hoo. That's about 8 days in a row. Seems like taking a break with post-dinner nuts and dark chocolate may be doing the trick. It is so easy to just plow through half a bag of pistachios. And unsalted, dry roasted nuts from Trader Joes are plentiful, tasty, and tempting.

So more gym time with 5x5 for back and bi's
- ran 3.0 in 21:29 and 5k in 22:09. Time is dropping, but don't know if I'll be able to knock off 3 minutes in 3 weeks for the race.
- deadlifts: 155
- renegade rows: 35
- seated rows: 130
- bb curls: 65
- db curls: 30
- machine rows: 55

Been only resting about 30 seconds between sets. This keeps things moving right along. I should really try to start expanding the number of reps on the last set to see how close to moving up in weight I can go.

Couple of rants at the gym. Certain people are curious to me. In the last week I saw:
- one kid doing about 20 sets of pullups on the squat rack. In between sets he would practice his golf swing in the mirror. I don't care what he does, but he tied up the squat rack for about an hour.
- another guy who did only curls the entire time I was there. Big guns, but maybe he works the sh!t out of one body part per day
- another guy who did deadlifts for the entire time I was there. Ramped up from 185-ish to 315 in 10 lb increments. Form was suspect from 225 on up.
- more kids laying about on two benches texting away.
- I find it odd that people go to the gym to lift weights, but can't seem to find the energy to re-rack the weights. Like people who leave 225 on a bar to show how diesel they are.
- Even better are people who take 1-45 lb plate off a bar and leave the other plate on the other side then leave. Nice safety hazard.
- Curious that people who do re-rack the weights will put a 25 right behind a 10 lb plate, and then put a 5 over that.

Odds and Ends

2009-07-18T23:00:00.005-04:00

Hit a rough patch at Chunky's movie theater with 'dinner' there on Friday. Massive headache and felt unwell afterward. 147 on scale this morning, but not too much to lose sleep over.

Went to gym this morning for more 5x5 including
- ran 3.0 in 22:23 and 5k in 23:03. May try the 5k hills route tomorrow
- bench: 135 still down, but will keep plugging away
- incline DB press: 40
- cable flyes: 60
- dips
- front DB raises: 12.5
- upright BB rows: 65

A few meals from last few days. Marinated NY strip with sauteed mushrooms, onions, peppers, and steamed broccoli:

After the gym this morning, made a massive 3 egg omelett. Followed the details for How to Make the Perfect Omelette. Despite liberal buttering of the pan, it stuck a little too much and I destroyed the shape, but it tasted great. Added pico de gallo, pesto, and cheese. Also had a couple of leftover steaktips with spicy bbq sauce on the side:

Lastly, I listened to Superhumanradio podcast #330 that discusses fat burning during fasting. This is in line with what I have been doing lately. I usually skip lunch and go to the gym instead. I've found that the workout is improved compared to eating a priori and apparently there is a benefit of increases fat burning. Sounds great. Recommend listening to this one.

Guest was Mark McCarty with Oasis of Hope.

- Mark recommends fasting prior to exercise for fat burning to get lean and stay lean

- Mark also recommends fasting post exercise to enhance post-exercise ketosis

- Carl recommend eating prior to training for bulking phase

- Mark emphasized eating low-fat foods (something I disagree with)

- Work based on some research at die7stufen.com (the seven steps)

- Mark hypothesized that ingestion of carnatine plus hydroxycitrate (?) emphasized fatty acid oxidation

- recommends brindalltrim from nutriguard.com

- also spoke a lot of medical jargon I couldn't catch or didn't understand like free-form amino acids.

5x5 Thurs

2009-07-16T22:56:00.002-04:00

Ran 2.0 in 14:15

40 deg leg press: 4 plates/side, could not use squat rack since the Marky Mark was showin everyone how diesel he is with pullups and practice golf swings
db lunges: 30lb ea -> move up
calf raises superset with leg press
triceps pulldowns
no love for dips - no place available, crowded gym.

144 on scale and 5th consecutive day of Tanita scale indicating <9% bf

Mid Summer Classic

2009-07-14T23:55:00.003-04:00

All-Star break for MLB today and happily the AL won again for another close game. Too bad Bud Selig is still the commissioner. That reptile makes me want to gag every time I see him. Steroid scandal was allowed to flourish as he turned a blind eye.
Nonetheless, did make it to the gym today and continued 5x5 plus some interval running:
2.0 miles in 14:40 with intervals of alternating laps at 7.5 mph, 9.0 mph
- deadlifts: 155
- seated rows: 130
- renegade rows: 30
- db curls 30
- bb curls 60
- machine curls: 55

145 on scale, tanita scale has shown sub-9% bf for 3 days in a row. Seems like my break from nuts and chocolate may be working, although it is tougher than I thought. Doesn't help with my better half buying some at the store.

Made chicken cordon bleu with steamed cauliflower for dinner. No pic (posted that before).

Listened to a good podcast from superhumanradio regarding intermittent fasting and fat loss (episode 330). Basically says to exercise in a fasted state to help burn fat. I've been doing this more often and have to say I usually have a better workout without eating beforehand.

5x5 Revisit

2009-07-13T00:18:00.003-04:00

I was thinking about the 5x5 and although it is not as intense as the body by science workout, it can work one set of muscles once a week if scheduled properly and increases the volume of work. Having tried the BBS, it is a good reminder to amp up the intensity.

I'm thinking of a 3 day cycle with every other day off working a) chest/shoulders, b) back/biceps, and c) legs/triceps, with runs and various other workouts such as smoke challenge thrown in occassionally.

Today in order was:
- DB incline press: 35
- Flat BB bench press: 135
- Dip machine: 100
- DB front raises: 12.5
- BB front rows: 55
- DB shoulder press: 15 (shoulder getting better, but RHS still weak)
- Cable flyes: 50

Followed that by a 2.0 mile run in 14:20 and a good contrast shower.

Also been thinking of not moving up in weight until I can get at least 10 reps on last set with current weight. Last time, I think I increased the weight too quickly.

Broke by chocolate + nut fast today, but will start again tomorrow.

Just Food

2009-07-11T00:45:00.003-04:00

Just getting over the KB455 Smoke workout. Went golfing instead today. Shot 103 - not bad for second time playing in 2+ years. Sank a 75' putt on 18 to nicely close out the day.

Anyway a few food pics from this week.

Shrimp marinara with basil and garlic over spaghetti squash (made by Senya):
Shrimp in coconut oil with lime zest, cilantro, and julienned squash:

Garlic grilled chicken with steamed broccoli. Also made a mint-cilantro pesto since we got about 3 lb of home grown cilantro from friends, yum:

Classic spaghetti squash and meatballs tonite:

455 KB Smoke Challenge

2009-07-07T23:08:00.004-04:00

The Smoke Challenge was attempted today - really a Lite Smoke Challenge since I did not quite complete it, per spec. Time series of exercises plus a 2 mile run. Didn't sound too bad, and didn't look so bad so...

Here are the split times and total in the order they were performed including reps/set. All time includes all rests, walks between stations, cleaning sweat off of roll ball, debating the meaning of dropping my stomach lining on the gym floor, etc.

a) 2.0 mile run, TIME: 14:35
b) 100* kb swings, TIME: 10:20, REPS: 20/15/15/15/15/20
c) 100 prisoner squats, TIME: 4:55, REPS: 50/50
d) 50 stability ball rollouts, TIME: 6:05, REPS: 15/15/10/10
e) 100 bodyweight squats, TIME: 6:10, REPS: 35/35/30
f) 105 pushups, TIME: 8:05, REPS: 35/20/15/15/10/10

*goal is 200

Summary: 2 mile + 455, TOTAL TIME: 50:10

For me the run was the easy part, I could def knock some time off there. Today was the first day I had tried kb swings AND stability ball rolls AND prisoner squats, so it was a good learning day and set a baseline on which to improve. Actually, I'll do some research to make sure I was doing some close approximation to proper form.

MikeZ commented about 20 minutes of pain. I think anyone who can do this in under 30 is badass. I think I'll be feeling it tomorrow.

Goals

2009-07-06T00:11:00.003-04:00

I like how MikeZ publishes his goals for the month and am thinking of doing the same. A month is long enough so that a reasonable goal is achievable, but short enough to keep that end of the month goal in mind. I'll have to think a bit more about my short term goals for now.

Personally, I have a physical at the end of the month, and will see if I can abstain from the nuts and dark chocolate between now and then.

Exercise for week of 20090705

2009-07-06T00:06:00.005-04:00

Going to switch back to 5x5 aka stronglifts for a while to change up the routine:

Sunday
- Seated rows 130
- Lat pulldowns: 115 -> drop to 100
- DB rows: 50 -> move up
- Reverse flyes: 85 -> move up
- Bench press: 135
- DB press: 35 -> move up
- Dips -> use weight belt
- Cable flyes: 60

Wednesday
- Military press: 70
- DB front raises: 12.5
- BB rows: 65
- DB Shrugs: 50
- BB curls: 65
- DB curls: 30
- Seated curls: 60

Saturday
- Squats: 155 -> move up
- Calf raises: 120 -> move up
- DB lunges: 35
- Triceps extension cable: 120

Ran 2.0 on Saturday in 14:40 still feeling smoke challenge fallout.

4th of July

2009-07-04T10:23:00.002-04:00

A few runs. Ran 5k yesterday on the treadmill: 23:15 again. Was going to do some other exercises, but having a gym-identity-crisis figuring out what protocol really works best for me. Repeat (for me). More on that later.

Ran the 2 mile hills course near the house in 15:19. Better than last time, but still working on getting that time down to last year's mark.

Heading out soon to enjoy some time with friends on the 4th of July.

Fattening with Age

2009-07-01T23:55:00.002-04:00

July 1st already, where does time go. Anyway, time to check the body fat %. Today's readings per caliper measurements (average of three) are:

Abdomen: 17.3 mm
Chest: 6.3 mm
Thigh: 6.0 mm
for a BF% of 10.1%

Down a little from last month, but not much. I actually tracked the measurements in excel and made some nice graphs, but have yet to figure out how to inport them into here.

Another interesting point is how the body fat calculation from this tool determines body fat percentage as a function of age and caliper measurements. Since my age is closer to 42, I noticed that the BF% number was slightly higher than if I had input 41 as an age. For the same caliper readings, I calculated body fat percentage from ages 11 to 71 (+/- 30 years). If I was age 11 the calculation shows a BF% of 6.86% where age 71 is 13.47%. The curve is pretty linear with a BF increase of 0.11% per year.

However - Richard (my pseudo-twin) in this post seemed to point out the opposite effect. I'll have to look into that to see if the calculator I use is correct.

Food, etc.

2009-06-29T22:50:00.003-04:00

A few meals posted.

Picked up a slab of london broil, marinated seared and slow cooked at 250F along with 2 bell peppers, celery and a red onion. Tasty, but actually a little tough. Was in a rush to make this last week and didn't let the marniate soak long enough (<1 hour).
Pterodactyl sized chicken breast in evoo and balsamic + some spices with steamed broccoli, pine nuts and some parmesian. Spices were a little salty, but chicken moisture was A+.

Grilled a 10 lb turkey on Sunday. Tough to sear since the turkey is a non-prismatic shape. Nice crispy skin. Meat was pretty juicy and the wife was pleased, but next time, I'll up the moisture content via beer can insertion as Marc recently did here.

Loads of juicy turkey with spinach and broccoli (farm fresh)

Went for a run outside on Saturday, hilly course around the neighborhood. Tough 2 miles in a pathetic 15:57. Been waaaaay out of practice for any running, sprints or otherwise.

Ran 5k today in 23:15. Still have to knock a solid minute off of that to get close to last year's race time. Followed that up by:

- Squats 135x15, 185x8, 205x2 (faded)

- DB lunges 25x8, 25x8, 30x6

Took an Erno-approved contrast shower and went back to work

Vibrams

2009-06-26T18:47:00.005-04:00

Well the week has been quite busy between work and getting the car repaired, so gym time has been non-existent. Did manage to swing by a shoe store in Nashua that had some vibrams. I tried on the classics and the sprints - which were the only models they had for european size 42 or 43. Apparently the place has a hard time keeping them in stock.

Due to my high arch, I opted for the sprints shown below. More of a neutral color (I think it is called putty). The classics in khaki looked sharp on line, but the only color in classics they had were brown. No KSO's in my size at all. I like the center arch velcro on the sprints that keeps the middle of the shoe in close proximitaty to the foot. With the classics, it felt like the middle part of my shoe was out in the breeze more than I was comfortable with. Who knows, maybe that will change as I get used to these.

PaNu

2009-06-25T23:07:00.002-04:00

New blog mentioned by Conditioning Research called PaNu (for Paleolithic Nutrition). The author is a doctor and although his chosen specialty is radiology, he discusses the Paleo approach to nutrition in simple and straight-forward text. Recommeded to check out and just added to my blog roll.