Day 80+ Ten days left!

Who doesn't look forward to the last 10 days!? I certainly do. It's a little more than a week away, but it should line me up nicely for a Saturday finish! P90X round 2 is nearing completion, but the Canadian thanks-giving is sneaking it's ugly head around the corner (next Monday). Let's hope I don't blow it in the final week.

Halloween is just around the corner. I'm thinking POWER RANGERS this year... I haven't started making a costume yet, but I think it will go over amazingly well. Last year, Mickey mouse... and the year before Sub-Zero.

Weighed 152lbs this morning, with clothes on. No major changes there. I'm going to start tappin' into my almonds on a more regular basis. Put the peanuts to the curb for a bit, even though almonds are way more expensive than peanuts...Circuit/Cardio today.

Day 79+ Arms+Shoulders

Does anyone know what the picture above is? If you're familiar with Italian food, you'll probably know that it's 3 Manicottis. Unfortunately, that was what I ate for dinner last night, actually I had 4. What a shame. To think yesterday, not only did I do a double (P90X + cardio), but I ate really really well... and then it came time for Tuesday Night Dinner (TND), which I have little control over.

Calories through the roof. Carbohydrates off the charts. All that hard work down the tubes. Oh well, at least it was delicious. I can't say I'm too proud of myself. But on the other hand, I really can't control what other people cook for their TND choices.

It had been a long time since I had Italian food though, it defeinitely went down the hatch without resistance. It's just the guilt I feel NOW that bothers me more than anything. Oh and did I mention garlic bread? *SIGH* Not the best role model, but I guess everyone's human!

Day 78+ legs and cardio

Yesterday I went to the grocery store. I was running low on yogurt, something I have been meaning to axe from the lunch menu for a while, but I am stubborn. Either way, I remember somebody asking about yogurt and plain yogurt vs fruit on the bottom yogurt. Turns out, there is a big difference.

I picked up the regular yogurt I get, store-brand fruit on the bottom low fat yogurt. 190 calories, 33g sugar, etc. etc. Picked up the same size plain yogurt container (checked the serving size and servings per container, see previous post), and it turns out plain yogurt is 160 calories and only 13g sugar. Plus it actually had a bit more protein! Don't quote me, but I think it was 2-3g difference. From 4g for the fruit version to 6g or 7g in the plain.

So I bought 8 and will be eating them from now on. I know I won't get the flavor rush I am used to, but it's better for me to reduce those unnecessary sugars.

I weighed in at 150lbs today - still not gaining. Hopefully not losing muscle mass. I haven't been doing nearly the same quantity of pullups I normally do. But I've still been workout out every day. And I'm still training/workout out with people!

Day 77+ Chest and Back + Nutrition Labels...

Oh how I love to read nutrition labels. They are as much of an art form as say a fine sculpture or a well-crafted painting. But it's not because they are beautiful on the outside, but because they are so crafty made to deceive and gain sales at the same time.

My favorite parts of the FDA nutrition label are the Serving Size, Servings per Container, Total Fat, and the Asterisk. Please, let me explain.

Serving Size: Whenever you pour yourself a bowl of cereal, do you consider it 1 serving? I know I do. It's about how much 1 person eats when they sit down for breakfast, so NATURALLY that seems like a logical serving amount. Until you turn the box of cheerios around and read the label. Hm... 1/2 cup of cereal is 1 serving. Before you pour that milk in your bowl, go grab a measuring cup (you know the kind that made of glass, and have a handle on the side) and pour the bowl you just poured in there. $20 says your 1-serving is actually 3 according to cheerios' suggested size. So all this time you thought you were eating 110 calories, you were actually eating 330 calories (or even more). Cereal has another downfall... it puts that column of w/1/2cup skim-milk. I actually use skim milk... but most people don't. Also, most people (myself included) don't use 1/2 cup. They use again, about 1 to 1&1/2 cups. Meaning anything you thought was moderately portioned... was not.

Servings per container: I love factoid for an entirely different reason. This is a number the manufacturer can manipulate in order to display or not display something legally on their label. By law, any food containing over 0.49g of saturated or trans fat MUST BE DISPLAYED ON THE NUTRITION LABEL... anything less, is optional. So a company which might have normally suggested 5 servings per container (but be forced to show 0.8g trans fats 100calories, might decided to double their servings per container to 10. And have the label show 50calories but 0TRANS FAT! At this point they can even put "Fat Free" on the label (assuming there are no other fats). How dastardly food companies are.

Another one of my favorites is Vitamin Water. Only 50 calories per serving. Oh wait... there are 2.5 servings in a 20oz container! Who stops at 2/5ths the way finished of a vitamin water?! NOBODY! So why put 2.5 servings? Because 50 calories looks healthy, when you're really about to drink 125calories.

Total Fats: Most people don't realize that there are lots of good fats. I believe fat is an essential food, because our body has a difficult time producing certain length fatty-acids (don't quote me on that). But either way, it's wise to stay away from saturated and trans fats due to their high calories and artery clogging capabilities... but mono saturated fats are "healthy" and they aren't even ON THE LABEL! So what we (as consumers) have to do is add up the saturated + trans fats and subtract them from the "total fat" to determine the monosaturated fat content. I almost think it would be better if they just had the three columns and omitted Total fat. But put Monosaturated fat in a good column, like protein or vitamin section.

Then we have the all mighty asterisk! "*" If you haven't seen this little bad boy on a food product, you haven't been looking hard enough. I don't think there is a single FDA food label on the planet that doesn't have this. Typically it's followed by *Based on a 2000 calorie diet. But not everyone should be eating a 2000 calorie diet...Body builders need more and little kids need less. Dieters also.

Its not only the label that bothers me. Some of these less-fat and fat free foods get me too. Fat free (like I mentioned above) just means the serving size is small enough that the grams of fat per serving is less than 0.5g. But tells you nothing about the TOTAL FAT in the container. Doritos are notorious for this. 6 chips per serving, but fat free! Hey hey! lets eat them all then.. Oh wait, there are 15 servings per container? 6x15 = 90chips... if the fat is hovering around 0.4g x 15 = 6g of fat. But because it's below 0.5g we don't even know what type of fat we're eating. And I doubt there's a person on this earth that eats 6 Doritos and stops.

Then we have the all mighty reduced fat. All this means is that the product in question has 25% less fat than the previous product. Which may or may not even make it healthy.

So next time you're shopping in the store and you think something is healthy... take a step back. Does it come in a bag? Does it come in a box? Chances are it's not that healthy for you. It's not to say healthy food can't come from a package... it's just that a lot of manufacturers pay people LOTS AND LOTS of money to out smart you, the consumer and you know what - they do a damn good job.

Watch what you eat people. And be good!

Day 74+ Kenpo Cardio Plus

I think everyone can relate to this cartoon in one way or another. I refer to it as the slippery slope effect. Where you just start sliding and crashing to an eventual slump where you're not working out anymore. Often this is caused by a simple missed day (if it's exhaustion or a schedule conflict - it could be anything), but then the difficult part is getting back to the gym, or back pushing play, or waking up early to go for that morning jog.

If you find yourself on this slippery slope, the best thing you can do is GET BACK TO THE GYM. In all honesty, the shorter the time between missing days, the faster you'll get back on schedule and the less used to the "relaxed" attitude you had on the day off. If you miss multiple days in a row - it's going to be a lot more jarring on your body + system than if you just miss one or two days.

It also helps that if you're doing a diet + fitness program, that you don't give up on BOTH at the same time. For example, if every one's going out for pizza on Friday. You'll be better off making it to the gym and sacrificing your diet for 1 day, than throwing in the towel and saying "Today is a complete waste day" and forgo diet + exercise. Likewise, if you skip a workout because you're exhausted or because you have some kind of scheduling conflict, keep your diet on track. This will help motivate you to get back in the gym the next day.

One last note: Never start a diet/workout "TOMORROW" always start a workout today. And this applies to getting back too. Don't tell yourself "I'll start tomorrow" because tomorrow is always in the future. Start TODAY that's NOW time. If you start today, you have no excuses. Plus, you gain an extra day!

Day 73+ Dentist Appointment

Today after work, I have a dentist appointment, so it's going to be a hit on the schedule again. This is probably the first missed day in about 2 to 3 weeks, which I feel pretty good about. In all honesty, I probably COULD have gone after the dentist... but I'm just going to use it as an excuse to take it easy today.

I've sorta been on a "reduce sugar" parade. A lot of people have been asking me how to lose weight, at work, yahoo! answers, at the gym, and friends back home. And my best answer for them is to reduce the amount of sugar + carbs you eat and increase your exercise. And for the most part this is true. It's a bit more complicated than that though... There are hundreds of workouts and diet plans, and not all of them are super effective for everyone. So I guess the idea would be - find one that works for your schedule/lifestyle and give it a try... if in 3 months you don't see results, attempt a new one (I say three months because if you're only putting in 2 weeks of effort then slacking off, no diet plan or exercise plan will work. You need a somewhat long commitment).

Speaking of sugar - I wanted to let people know about SODA, POP, COLA, COKE, PEPSI, SOFT-DRINK, whatever you call it. I want to explain what happens inside your body when you decide to drink one:

In The First 10 minutes: 10 teaspoons of sugar hit your system. (100% of your recommended daily intake.) You don’t immediately vomit from the overwhelming sweetness because phosphoric acid cuts the flavor allowing you to keep it down.
20 minutes: Your blood sugar spikes, causing an insulin burst. Your liver responds to this by turning any sugar it can get its hands on into fat. (There’s plenty of that at this particular moment)
40 minutes: Caffeine absorption is complete. Your pupils dilate, your blood pressure rises, as a response your livers dumps more sugar into your bloodstream. The adenosine receptors in your brain are now blocked preventing drowsiness.
45 minutes: Your body ups your dopamine production stimulating the pleasure centers of your brain. This is physically the same way heroin works, by the way.
>60 minutes: The phosphoric acid binds calcium, magnesium and zinc in your lower intestine, providing a further boost in metabolism. This is compounded by high doses of sugar and artificial sweeteners also increasing the urinary excretion of calcium.
>60 Minutes: The caffeine’s diuretic properties come into play. (It makes you have to pee.) It is now assured that you’ll evacuate the bonded calcium, magnesium and zinc that was headed to your bones as well as sodium, electrolyte and water.
>60 minutes: As the rave inside of you dies down you’ll start to have a sugar crash. You may become irritable and/or sluggish. You’ve also now, literally, pissed away all the water that was in the Coke. But not before infusing it with valuable nutrients your body could have used for things like even having the ability to hydrate your system or build strong bones and teeth.

Day 72+ Legs and Back

Well, I have to be honest. Yesterday's TND (Tuesday night dinner) was fantastic. Two of the people who are regular participants had what they called a "MEATGASM" feast. This meant basically all meat. The official menu actually read "Meat, Meat, Green Shit, More Meat" (there was an optional salad, which nobody ate). The only down side of this mean, which I covet so much, was the chocolate dessert. Normally I would pass on such a thing... but this was "sexual chocolate" and everyone was being wimps and wouldn't eat the phallic one. So I told them to man up, nobody did, so I ate it. Thankfully it wasn't well endowed. So my consumption was minimal, but I really should be setting an example for the people I workout with, and keep telling "Not to eat sugary foods" because nobody likes to be a hypocrite.

On another note, I think I might flip back to having eggs in the morning. I will still continue to eat powerbars in the afternoon, but lately I have been having a sensation that I want my 6pack to be more defined (or return, or however you want to phrase it). So starting soon, I think I'll start cooking eggs in the morning and waking up a bit earlier to do that.

Aside from that, I weighed in at 152lbs this morning, not too shabby after the Meatgasm... The best "____gasm" there is...

Legs and back should be a challenge trying to get us all doing the moves at the same time especially pullups.