Okay, so if you scroll down, you’ll notice that I don’t have any photos today. You may also notice that it’s been over two months since the last time I blogged on this subject.
I took the last two months off.
If there’s one thing I’ve decided, taking a break from working out hard and eating super healthy is a good thing. It lets me worry about other more important things in life, and it also allows my body to reset itself at it’s current spot.
For awhile I was hovering in the 185 lbs range. I got as high as 189 at the end of last July which is when I decided I needed to start eating and acting healthy. From August 09 through January 09 I was very dedicated to working out and eating healthy. I think I lost about 20 to 25 pounds of fat and gained 10 to 15 pounds of muscle. Which got me to 175 lbs at the end of January.
For the last two months I have hovered around 175. I haven’t really worked out at all, and I’ve pretty much eaten whatever I wanted to eat (lots of junk). I haven’t really gained weight, and my scale says that my body fat percentage is about the same (which means I haven’t really lost muscle or gained fat).
I think it’s healthy to allow your body to readjust – especially when you’ve been working really hard and made major strides. That way it can reset itself and be ready for the next big push to change it.
That is where I’m at now. I just got back from a trip to Utah where I ate so much junk I got disgusted with myself and the food.
Last night I made a 30 day workout plan that includes 5 resistance training workouts a week and 5 cardio workouts a week. I am also supplementing my workouts with healthy eating, and I will be back on my “high carb, low carb, no carb” diet for four weeks (I start that on Sunday).
So…. what I did today:
This morning I did three sets of pullups and three sets of hanging leg raises. This evening I went to the gym and did the elliptical for 30 minutes (heart rate around 130- 140) and then stretched for 10 minutes and then did crunches, planks, and side planks for 10 minutes. Then I went to the row machine and did that for 20 minutes, after which I stretched again.
I will be keeping a daily blog of what I do for the next 30 days.
I am committed to finally getting all the way to the six pack so I can cross it off my list and spend my time focusing on more worthy pursuits. 
{ 3 comments… read them below or add one }
True or False: “taking a break from working out hard and eating super healthy is a good thing.”
Yes (i.e., True and False) – cycling your workout intensities is beneficial for your body. It is good to give your body different levels of intensity. But, the idea of “cold turkey” 180° pump to slump is a very bad idea. Your body likes working out and eating healthy much more than the alternative and sending it into a three month carb coma is damaging. Don’t kid yourself into thinking that all the tests you need for your body are a scale and body fat %. The body’s physiology is much more complicated than that and the benefit of a healthy lifestyle (or conversely risk of an unhealthy one) runs too deep for even for the most sophisticated medical tests to pick up. It seems like your forgetting the story of the tortoise and the hare – three month spurts of on again off again workouts are better than nothing, i guess (the hare still crosses the finish line), but they’re not nearly as effective as consistency (i.e., mr. ninja turtle). Your success will be seen when you can move away from thinking about healthy living as a phase, or a burden, and embrace it as a way of life. You’ll see greater benefits in the long-long run, but you won’t even see the most substantial ones which might make it harder. I’m not saying don’t set short term goals – everything in life needs that, but I’m saying that a mentality of “i’m going to get through the next 30 days and then pig out for 30 days” just doesn’t make sense. I’m glad to hear you’re back on the horse and I wish you the best.
haha thanks for the speech Lyle…
I totally agree with what you said. I think I may have made my situation out to be much more drastic than it probably was. I’ve still been thinking about being healthy and working out. I have played sports through the last two months, as well as doing pushups, pullups, some hanging ab workouts, etc… but it was never structured and it wasn’t super consistent.
As for eating, I can’t help but think about whether things are healthy or not (it is now part of the my eating process), but for the last two months I hadn’t made as much of an effort to only eat healthy food.
Now I’m making it a very high priority to get all of my workouts in, and to eat as healthy as I can. I’m not going to splurge like I have been doing. I recognize that if I want to achieve my goal it will take pigheaded determination and follow through. That is what I’m bringing this time.
shoot amazing stuff dude.