As promised, my Fitness Challenge is over and here is a writeup. I really wanted to be able to get my body fat tested again right after so I could compare and contrast with where I was before I started, but unfortunately have not been able to find a good time to go to the body fat testing truck. Now with my work schedule the way it is, I might to be able to until after the year ends. So what did I get out of my 1.5 months? My weight may or may not have increased. My early morning nude weigh-ins fluctuate between 156-160 from seemingly day to day, so I am questioning the validity of my scale (again, damn you Brookstone!). I'm carrying a little less fat in the abdomen area (sorry, no pictures for your viewing pleasure) which would suggest to me that while my weight has stayed the same, I have lost some body fat. I can see some outline of the abs!
I have increased the amount of weight I push and pull compared to what I was doing at the beginning, so that is good. Next time I'll keep track more scientifically, probably bring a notebook to the gym to notate what I do. Food however, has been my biggest problem. Most days I was able to track and eat my goal of 3200-some calories. But other times I'm not sure I even broke 2000. Ironically this would be on weekends when I would wake up late, have breakfast, and maybe nothing until dinner, which would be massive. In the workday I would have been prepared from the night before, making sure I had packed fruits and yogurts and lunch and nuts and everything I would need. This massive calorie variation could not have been good for my body at all, and is the biggest thing I need to address for next time.
So after taking this past week off from the gym (both because of crazy work schedule and being a little sick), I'm already planning my next phase. My torso is... thin. I feel almost scarily so, so I'm going to see about bulking that up. I'm not sure what exercises there are to increase size in the abdomen area -- maybe I'm just genetically locked in this way? I'm going to see about pumping my arms a little bit as well, as I usually neglect them for my much more important (or so I feel) muscles in the lower half of the body. On the food front I want to try and eliminate as much saturated fat as I can, and see if I can decrease the amount of added sugar and sodium I intake. As such, I will be cooking more basic meals and eating more raw vegetables. I'll probably spend the next few days formulating a plan; increasing consistency in all aspects will be key to make sure this all works out the way I want it to.
I have increased the amount of weight I push and pull compared to what I was doing at the beginning, so that is good. Next time I'll keep track more scientifically, probably bring a notebook to the gym to notate what I do. Food however, has been my biggest problem. Most days I was able to track and eat my goal of 3200-some calories. But other times I'm not sure I even broke 2000. Ironically this would be on weekends when I would wake up late, have breakfast, and maybe nothing until dinner, which would be massive. In the workday I would have been prepared from the night before, making sure I had packed fruits and yogurts and lunch and nuts and everything I would need. This massive calorie variation could not have been good for my body at all, and is the biggest thing I need to address for next time.
So after taking this past week off from the gym (both because of crazy work schedule and being a little sick), I'm already planning my next phase. My torso is... thin. I feel almost scarily so, so I'm going to see about bulking that up. I'm not sure what exercises there are to increase size in the abdomen area -- maybe I'm just genetically locked in this way? I'm going to see about pumping my arms a little bit as well, as I usually neglect them for my much more important (or so I feel) muscles in the lower half of the body. On the food front I want to try and eliminate as much saturated fat as I can, and see if I can decrease the amount of added sugar and sodium I intake. As such, I will be cooking more basic meals and eating more raw vegetables. I'll probably spend the next few days formulating a plan; increasing consistency in all aspects will be key to make sure this all works out the way I want it to.
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