Wednesday, July 14, 2010

My strategy...

... consists of cross-training.

On a side note, I've always known what was healthy or not healthy to eat.  The worst thing about gaining weight is knowing that I could've just maintained a smart diet and none of this would've ever happened.  I'm not saying it was the end of the world but I kind of let myself down.

Well I'm done beating myself up and I'm taking action.  Hindsight is always 20/20 right?  Time to leave the sedentary life of sitting in front of a PC monitor and becoming more active.

During work today I realized that the day before I did not have enough calories.  I don't count my calories every day but I have to remember to eat and snack healthily in between meals.  Mental note: Go to Costco for some grocery shopping.  Fiber one and Trail Mix bars are great snacks.  They are high in fiber and low in calories so they fill you up!
You'll also notice the Stacey's Pita chips, AMAZING after work snack, and Honey Bunches of Oats for my breakfast!  All supplied by Costco!  All my other groceries are from Pathmark and other supermarkets.

So I made it to Costco before they closed tonight!  I was at the gym doing my chest/biceps/abs routine.  On the way home I caught some flak from the wifey because I didn't come home as early as she had hoped.  It's all good though, we accomplished our nightly responsibilities regardless!

Okay sorry about that little tangent.  Back to my plan.

I've always been a weight lifter.  I focus always on proper form and consistent training.  Those are the only two things that help develop a lean/healthy muscle.  Not the high intensity 3 sets of 2.  Always do 3 steady sets of 10 reps.  Every set raise the weight so you keep your muscles from plateauing.  I've done P90X, and his technique is amazing.  Keep your muscles guessing every day and your body will not adapt to the exercise which will cause you to hit a wall.  If you can't complete a steady set, reevaluate your weight choices and go lower next time so you can complete the exercise, note it and then hopefully the week after you'll be able to complete the next level.  This is the foundation of all my weight lifting exercises, form, consistency, and diversity.  The aim of my weight lifting is to keep the calories burning while I'm sitting all day in the office.

The cross training comes in from me doing running and cycling as my cardiovascular workouts.  Back in 2006-2007 my Bally's membership ran out and I decided just to run.  So for a whole year I focused on lapping our local park every other day.  That, mixed with my years as a technician, and eating properly kept my body in the best shape.  But like I said in my previous post 09 rolled around and so did my weight :-D.

Now I'm into snowboarding in the winter, but for spring/summer/fall I'm in to cycling so lets talk about that.  Whether it be on my mountain bike during the weekends or my road bike during the week.  My personal goal for the road bike is to be able to ride centuries (100+ miles) on the weekend.  The goal for my mountain biking is to take in the wilderness while working on my strength (climbing) and endurance (lapping trails).



Mountain Biking Weapon of Choice: Specialized Rockhopper Comp Disc

                     Road Biking Weapon of Choice (borrowed from my older brother): 2007 Trek 1500

It's a work in progress but wish me luck.  Anything of worth (at least to me) will be tracked right here for you guys.

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