Mar 17
I have been faithfully following my workout routine for a while now, and have so far lost a staggering one pound (margin-of-error plus or minus one pound).
Ugh.
Honestly, it’s probably actually working, but the payoff is not being reflected on the scale. I have been doing exhausting full-body workouts every other day, pushing myself to the point of (nearly) puking every time. My body is constantly sore from head to toe, and when I wake up most mornings I can barely move. This past week the soreness was actually getting so bad that I decided to take a few extra days off to help recuperate (and avoid potential injury). Hopefully my body weight is hovering steady due to a combination of both fat-loss and gains in new muscle and bone-density… rather than simply a total lack of progress. I imagine that I look slightly better in the mirror, but I can’t say for sure. I definitely feel better, though… excruciating muscle soreness aside.
Clearly my diet has significant room for improvement, but at least I am making some effort. However, because I am doing so much weight-training I am trying to eat a lot more protein than before, and as such I probably am taking in many more calories than I should for a pure weight-loss approach. I also have largely abandoned all cardio workouts since my full-body circuit has my heart constantly pumping as hard and fast as it does on the treadmill, and I am sweating even more. I wouldn’t have expected that doing weighted lunges or step-ups could be so aerobically intense. Even worse, I finish most of my workouts with weighted jump squats (to improve speed and vertical leap) that always threaten to empty my stomach onto the gym floor. At the end of my gym session I can barely stand, let alone ride a bike or elliptical. My days off are apparently crucial for allowing my body to recuperate and rebuild, so I am extremely wary of filling them with cardio sessions. I worry that doing so may actually cause me more harm than good.
My current routine has been vigorously attacking muscles that I had never bothered to exercise before. Presumably that is where all the pain comes from, and hopefully it will ease up soon, but eventually I expect that the new muscle will start arriving at the expense of my unsightly belly fats and not simply as an addition. I’m going to Hawaii at the end of the month and after that it will be coming up on pool-season here in Vegas. I need to get this bod ready for public consumption asap.
March 17th, 2010
How many weeks have you been on this full-time? Also, like I said in the original post, it’s really hard to ignore the scale in this situation. If your goal is strictly fat-loss then you’d be doing a completely different workout…aka no weights. I know it sounds really meat-head-esque, but I would highly recommend a really simple protein shake for post-workouts. The whole process of lifting weights breaks down your muscles (that’s the point) so that they will naturally rebuild themselves stronger. Getting protein into your body as quickly as possible post-workout is crucial for the “rebuilding” part of the process. For example: I started lifting 3 times / week starting around October of last year (including taking protein post-workout). At that time I was doing 115lb for my 3 sets of 8 reps Bench Press. My last recorded Bench Press was 3 sets of 8 reps at 230lbs on Feb 17 (I moved on to a new workout that doesn’t include Bench since then). I really believe the protein helped a lot. So if you want more details let me know. I bring my protein to the gym with me, leave it in the car, and drink it on the way home. Super easy. Anyway, let me know.
March 17th, 2010
I’ve been doing this routine for 3 weeks – 10 workouts. However, I have been strictly using dumbbells so it is much more difficult to gauge an increase in strength. I added 10 pounds to my lat pull and 10 pounds to my bench, but I am not trying to max out or anything. I do 3 sets of 12 reps for each exercise (double that number (72) for legs) so I necessarily use a lighter weight that actually allows me to do the exercise without breaking down.
I will give the protein a try. I just hate that it makes me automatically feel like a musclehead douchebag.
March 17th, 2010
I think it should also be known that Jason will workout and go get Burger King or Arbys…
March 17th, 2010
haha… that’s eric. C’mon Zurek, you know that I’m a T-Mad guy at heart.
March 17th, 2010
FYI, I take this: http://www.gnc.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3509954&CAWELAID=327834426
With this: http://www.silksoymilk.com/products/silk-light/chocolate
I take half (6oz and 1.5 scoops) right before the workout and then I take the other half right after the workout in my car.
Let me know if you have any questions.
March 17th, 2010
Jim is lying. I work out with him and he can’t even bench 160 pounds. I on the other hand have a super ripped 8 pack and bench around 290 pounds. what what
March 18th, 2010
I ended up buying this at Walmart. It was significantly cheaper than what you linked, Jim, and seems somewhat comparable. My ratio of protein/carbs/fat per scoop (not sure if a ‘scoop’ is a standard measure between different brands) is 26/3/2 while yours is 20/7/1.
Aside from taste, the other big difference seems to be that mine also contains some weird “recovery blend” that contains creatine. Some people seem to say that is a bad thing, others say it is a good thing. I have no idea…
Anyways, I’ll give it a try. It was only $12 for two pounds so it’s not a big deal if I switch to something else instead.
March 18th, 2010
Yeah I’m not an expert or even that knowledgeable on different brands and comparing them. I simply walked into GNC, bought the one that was front-and-center and got good results. I haven’t tried different kinds or anything. As for the creatine question…I guess that’s up to you. Just take it for a couple weeks and see how you feel. Drink a lot of water throughout the day. Personally, I take my creatine on the side with this:
http://www.gnc.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3480831&CAWELAID=326907638
March 20th, 2010
Don’t know if it was the protein or the placebo effect, but I did my first workout with the protein powder and 1) was able to lift more and 2) wasn’t nearly as sore afterward. I drank one scoop’s worth (w/ 8 oz of water) before my workout. Did all of my lifting, drank a second scoop’s worth, then did my cardio.
Feeling good… and hopefully soon I’ll be looking good too.
March 22nd, 2010
Nice work. Just keep taking it. Another nice side effect from taking the protein: typically after workouts I’d be super hungry and go out and have a huge lunch. If weight loss is one of your goals, eating a huge lunch isn’t exactly a good thing. When I started taking the protein it pretty much filled me up for my lunch. So for lunch now, I’ll just have the protein and then something extra like hard-boiled eggs or yogurt or a small portion of leftovers. Much better than going straight to a fast-food place and having a huge meal.