For the record, I was ready to go on the 1st, but I was waiting to get my body composition done at the Wellness Center. Great way to start off...with an excuse! Anyhow I am embarking on a fitness/dietary regimen for six weeks and plan to reassess on the 21st of February. My reasons? I have always wanted to do a program like this but have never been able to hold it together and overcome the barriers like school, work, and injuries. I'm done with graduate school and have significantly less stress and assignments to worry about. My place of employment allocates time for its members to work out; a blessing! As far as injuries, well hopefully I can manage as I have had a long history of back and neck problems. I have been patiently working up to this point for sometime by going to physical therapy, stretching, and learning about my body. I've been focused on correcting many of my muscular imbalances by creating a greater foundation and decreasing the likelihood of injury myself. Without going into a lot of detail, it has been many years of frustration dating back to when I was 14 when I was laid up in bed for a few days because of a back injury. I feel like the planets have aligned (thank you Mayans) and I have made many preparations to overcome the barriers of time, injury, and temptation.
For time, I have set up a rower and pull-up machine in the garage if I do not make it to the gym at work. 30 minutes on the bike/rower is a lot better than nothing; especially mid January. My kiddos are my priority; if I need time to exercise I will make it before or after they get up.
For injury I have been doing static stretches and cardio for the past 4 weeks getting ready so I could hit the ground running. I purchased a foam roller, physiostick, and even KT tape (in Black, sorry no pink Brennan)! Sleep is paramount for proper recovery of muscles; I'll do my best to go to bed time at a decent hour.
For temptation I have planned meals for breakfast, lunch, and dinner to avoid falling off the band wagon and consuming accurate portions. I have 2-3 main courses for each meal to stay ahead of the game. I grill chicken on most Sundays, dice it up and put into the fridge. My loving wife, my greatest supporter, dices the onions for me; the tears are too much. I'll dice up some red bell peppers, banana peppers, and others to have ready for salads at night.
My workout program is simply a randomized High Intensity Interval Training or HIIT as most people put it. It has been incorporated into several popular training programs like Crossfit, P90X, and Insanity with T.J. Abs. I don't think that is his name but it is close enough. I like the tabata ichi program since it is time efficient (about 35 minutes long), I can increase the difficulty of exercises as I get stronger, and it allows me to attain aerobic and anaerobic benefits simultaneously while burning more calories. Now to the TOP TEN, here are the basic rules that I will live and die by for the next six weeks:
1) Exercise for at least 20 minutes a day- includes walking or anything that will elevate heart rate continuously for 20 minutes.
2) Consume estimated caloric intake 1900 kcals per day- this will change as I lose weight.
3) Veggies and Protein for Dinner- no need for carbs late in the day.
4) No Soda or Alcohol - enough said, liquid calories add up.
5) Eat a big Breakfast- prepared the night before with some TLC
6) No supplements! Besides a basic protein powder and multivitamin for insurance, everything I need comes from natural sources called food.
7) Incorporate functional fitness to burn extra calories. Elevators are not allowed unless I am carrying heavy equipment which I often do at work; stairs only! Always walk if it is within reasonable walking distance. Park farther away than normal from the entrance to my work (when I arrive in the morning). This should add up over the course of six weeks for my energy expenditure.
8) Set Short Term Fitness Goal every 6 weeks- lose 9 lbs of fat mass of current 45.5 lbs of fat mass. That is 1.5 lbs per week, realistic and attainable through caloric restriction and moderate exercise. Long term goal would simply to double that of 18 lbs of fat mass in 12 weeks while gaining a pound or two of lean mass.
9) Post my calories, exercises, or tidbits at least every other day- include any notes that might help me later on.
10) Get body comp the first and last day to measure progress. This might include a before and after photo (ughhh)…..Good luck to me! I would like to thank my family ahead of time for putting up with me the next few weeks!
