Cube Zombie Slave To The Cube…But Trying To Find More….

Workout 03-Aug-2010 (aka “dude on the treadmill in front of me…Stop farting!!!”)

Biceps:
Dumbbell Curl
1x15 - 30lbs (Warm Up)
1x10 - 35lbs
1x8 - 35lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x3 - 40lbs

Straight Bar
1x12 - 55lbs
1x8 - 65lbs
1x6 - 75lbs
1x4 - 75lbs
1x3 - 80lbs

Dumbbell Hammer Curls
1x10 - 35lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x4 - 40lbs

Back:
Lat bar pulldowns (Straight)
1x15 - 90lbs (Warm up)
1x15 - 110lbs
1x10 - 130lbs
1x6 - 150lbs
1x6 - 150lbs
1x4 - 150lbs

Lat bar pulldowns (Narrow)
1x12 - 110lbs
1x10 - 130lbs
1x8 - 150lbs
1x6 - 150lbs

Row
1x10 - 110lbs
1x8 - 130lbs
1x8 - 130lbs
1x5 - 150lbs

Cardio:
Time: 35min (30min +5min cooldown)
Calories burned: 452
Distance: 1.99 (2.29 with cooldown)

Notes:
Little late getting this posted...I increased the resistance on the elliptical so the distance was a bit down but I did get a good workout and kept a pace of 158-168 strides per min..

Morning
2 packets of oatmeal with a banana

Midday
2 tuna fish sandwiches (garlic and herb mix)

Dinner
2 roast beef sandwiches with pepperjack cheese

Snack
went to bed early so no snack

Workout 02-Aug-2010 (aka “Insert witty line here…”)

Chest:
Flat Bench (Dumbbell)
1x15 - 40lbs (Warm Up)
1x10 - 45lbs
1x8 - 45lbs
1x3 - 50lbs
1x2 - 50lbs

Incline Straight Bar
1x12 - 45lbs
1x10 - 65lbs
1x8 - 85lbs
1x6 - 95lbs
1x4 - 95lbs

Flyes (Machine)
1x12 - 50lbs
1x8 - 70lbs
1x8 - 70lbs

Triceps:
Rope Pushdowns
1x15 - 90lbs (Warm up)
1x12 - 100lbs
1x6 - 110lbs
1x2 - 120lbs
1x4 - 110lbs

Overhead dumbbell push
1x12 - 30lbs
1x8 - 30lbs
1x6 - 30lbs

Straight bar pushdown
1x6 - 120lbs
1x6 - 120lbs
1x4 - 130lbs

Abs:
2x10
1x9

Cardio:
Time: 35min (30min +5min cooldown)
Calories burned: 506
Distance: 2.11 (2.42 with cooldown)

Notes:
Had a fitness assessment and they didn't want me to eat anything 2 hours before..Not really sure why since they didn't do blood work..But anyway..Made it through weights feeling pretty good. Starting cardio I felt really rundown and almost talked myself out of doing it..But I pushed through and kept a really good pace, ~165 strides per min which increased my mileage a good bit from the last elliptical day.

Starting a fitness challenge soon at work..I'm looking forward to the added motivation

Morning
Bowl of frosted mini wheats

Midday
2 turkey burgers with pepperjack and watermelon chunks

Dinner
2 Chicken sandwiches with pepperjack cheese

Snack
2tbs of cottage cheese and half a peach diced

Fitness Assessment 02-Aug-2010

Resting Heart Rate: 65
Systolic BP: 118
Diastolic BP: 84
Body Mass Index: 33.8*
Body Fat:: 20.9*
Bicep Strength: 91lbs
Aerobic Fitness: 25.4*
Back Flexibility:17*

* Denotes needs improvement

Overall I can see improvement in resting HR and BP from my dr's visit in late June. I expected the body fat to be higher. According to the Wellness Center's little program I need to lose 11lbs to be in the "Fit" category. My goal weight is 240lbs.

Height: 79in
Weight:: 300.1lbs
Chest Circumference: 48.5in
Abdomen Circumference: 49.5in
Hip Circumference: 48.0in
Right Bicep Circumference: 16in
Right Thigh Circumference:24.75in
Left Bicep Circumference:16in
Left Thigh Circumference:24.75in
Chest Skinfold:16.5mm
Abdomen Skinfold:33.4mm
Thigh Skinfold:20.0mm

I can have another assessment in 90 days which I fully plan on taking advantage of.

Workout 01-Aug-2010 (aka “You can’t see it..But this is my surprised face”)

Weigh In:
300 (down 4lbs from last weigh in and down 15lbs since 7/2/2010)

Legs:
Leg Extentions
1x15 - 95lbs (Warm Up)
1x12 - 110lbs
1x10 - 125lbs
1x10 - 140lbs
1x8 - 155lbs
1x6 - 170lbs
1x4 - 185lbs

Seated Press
1x10 - 200lbs
1x10 - 240lbs
1x8 - 280lbs
1x6 - 320lbs
1x4 - 340lbs

Leg Curl (Hamstrings)
1x12 - 80lbs
1x10 - 110lbs
1x6 - 125lbs

Shoulders:
Dumbbell Press
1x12 - 25lbs (Warm up)
1x8 - 30lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x3 - 40lbs

Front Raises
1x10 - 25lbs
1x6 - 25lbs
1x4 - 30lbs

Cable Laterals
1x10 - 30lbs
1x4 - 40lbs
1x4 - 40lbs

Dumbbell Shrugs
1x12 - 50lbs
1x10 - 60lbs

Cardio:
Time: 35min
Calories burned: No clue
Distance: lost count of laps

Notes:
Another workout at the Wellness Center and I went ahead and joined up since they were having a special. Today was also weigh in day. I checked at the Wellness Center before working out and I thought the scale was off so I didn't really think much of it. After working out I went to work and checked on the scale there since it's been the one I've used since I started working out. 300lbs on both...I'm honestly speechless at this. I didn't think 15lbs would come off this quickly. I'm certainly not going to say it's been easy. I bust my ass every day I workout. I've been worried about losing muscle instead of fat but looking at my log book I'm adding weight every workout and adding reps. So I don't think it's muscle that I'm losing.

Today was a bit different for cardio. The last time I did my leg workout I don't feel like I got a good cardio session simply because my legs were so tired. So today I hit the pool for some laps. I'd forgotten how much of a workout swimming is. I enjoyed but I'm not sure if I got as good of a workout as I would have on the elliptical. I was certainly breathing hard and felt like I got a workout but with no little digital readout telling me how many calories, how many laps, etc I'm just not sure if it was comparable.

Morning
Egg white omelet with 1 yolk, 4 sausage patties, half glass of milk

Midday
chicken breast with leftover sauteed bell peppers, tomatoes, and potatoes. glass of milk with 8 vanilla wafers

Dinner
2 Turkey burgers with pepperjack cheese and brussel sprouts (I know..Strange combo..The fries I thought i had in my freezer went missing)

Snack
2tbs of natural peanut butter and half a glass of milk

Rest day 31-Jul-2010

Today was a rest day as well as cheat meal day. I like the way I have my rest days setup. I start my workout week on Sunday and this allows me to take off Wednesday. Then workout Thursday and Friday with the next rest day on Saturday. Originally I had Saturday and Sunday as rest days but two days off back to back really had me itching to workout again. It was rather by accident that I found this pattern..But I'll go with it for a while and see what happens.

Really funny thing happened when I was getting ready to leave the house. I was tightening my belt up and I just got back down to the second hole a couple of weeks ago and I noticed it was tighter than usual. So I panic'd a bit thinking that I'd gained some inches back..I looked down and I was in the third hole of my belt! I've had this belt since 2003ish and I've never used the third hole...It was tight, but not uncomfortable. I ended up going back to the 2nd hole but it's really nice to see how progress manifests itself

Cheat meal was at Buffalo Wild Wings. I didn't go overboard but it was sure good

Morning
Bowl of frosted mini wheats

Lunch
1 roast beef sandwich with pepperjack cheese and a glass of milk

Mid-afternoon Snack
medium size soft pretzel and medium blended lemonade from Barnes and Noble (If i snack during the day it's usually a nutri-grain bar and some green tea..But I was feeling pretty hungry and didn't want to overdo dinner)

Dinner
Garlic mushrooms with ranch dip....Buffalo chicken wrap with potato wedges (didn't finish all the potato wedges) and lemonade

Snack
1 slice of cheesecake from Buffalo Wild Wings and glass of milk

Workout 30-Jul-2010 (aka “That’s a lot of potatoes!!”)

Biceps:
Dumbbell Curls
1x15 - 25lbs (Warm up)
1x10 - 30lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x4 - 35lbs

Straight Bar Curls
1x10 - 35lbs
1x10 - 40lbs
1x5 - 50lbs
1x6 - 50lbs
1x4 - 55lbs

Hammer Dumbbell Curls
1x10 - 35lbs
1x4 - 40lbs

Back:
Machine Pulldowns (wide grip)
1x15 - 90lbs (Warm up)
1x12 - 110lbs
1x8 - 130lbs
1x6 - 150lbs

Machine Pulldowns (narrow grip)
1x10 - 90lbs
1x10 - 110lbs
1x8 - 130lbs
1x4 - 150lbs

Cardio:
Time: 30min +5min cooldown
Calories burned: 479
Distance: 2.00 miles (2.33mi total including cool down)

Notes:
Worked out at the Wellness Center in Garner today. I really like the facility and they have a pool, sauna, steamroom, and really nice free weights and cardio setup. I'm very tempted to join there. It's a lot closer to the house so I can go workout on the weekends without driving all the way to work. I have one more guest pass so I'll workout there again Sunday and make the decision then to sign up or not.

Cardio today was limited to 30 min. I couldn't make the machine do the program I wanted for 40 min. I'm not sure if that's something that I can change or not..But I kept a higher than normal pace to compensate for the missing 10 min. Also took advantage of the spa and steam room after my workout...Tomorrow is a rest day for me and also cheat meal time. I'm not sure where I'll go or what meal it will be but I'm looking forward to the day off.

Morning
Had the day off so I slept in

Midday
4 sausage patties and 3 egg omelet with OJ

Dinner
Chicken breast with sauteed green peppers, tomatoes and potatoes

Snack
12 vanilla wafers and a cup of milk

Workout 29-Jul-2010 (aka “GOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAL[s]“)

Chest:
Flat bench dumbbell
1x14 - 35lbs (Warm up)
1x12 - 40lbs
1x10 - 40lbs
1x7 - 45lbs
1x6 - 45lbs
1x2 - 50lbs

Crossover cable (machine)
1x10 - 60lbs
1x8 - 80lbs
1x8 - 80lbs
1x6 - 80lbs

Decline Bench Press Dumbbell
1x8 35lbs
1x8 35lbs
1x8 35lbs

Triceps:
Machine rope pulldowns
1x12 - 80lbs (Warm up)
1x10 - 100lbs
1x6 - 100lbs
1x5 - 110lbs
1x3 - 120lbs

Machine straight bar pulldowns
1x10 - 80lbs
1x10 - 90lbs
1x6 - 100lbs

Cardio:
Time: 40min +5min cooldown
Calories burned: 727
Distance: 3.01 miles (3.34mi total including cool down)

Notes:
I'm learning that I need to create little goal throughout my workout to keep myself motivated and interested. Today I challenged myself to lift more than I did the last time I worked my chest and triceps. So I flipped back in my little log book and off I went. I didn't plan on benching the 50lb dumbbells (which max out the weight at the gym at work) but I was able to do it twice..Well, I actually did it 4 times but 2 of those were really sloppy so I didn't count them. I did 2 good, solid reps with 50lb dumbbells..I'm really stoked about that!

I've also had an ongoing challenge to break 3 miles during cardio. I don't look at the distance until I'm completely done. I do this because I want to keep a steady pace throughout the workout and not realize I'm very close to making my goal and push at the end. I want to push the entire 40 min. I kept my pace ~158-162 strides per min and was able to maintain that pace for a full 40 min and I broke 3 miles! I came soooo close Monday with 2.99 miles. Today I finally broke it...I'm happy but also realize I have to push for 3.25 now . All in all this week's workouts have been really good. I workout like that workout is going to be my last.

Morning
2 packs of oatmeal and a banana

Midday
Chicken breast with sauteed bell peppers and brown rice (leftovers)

Dinner
1 chicken breast with the last bit of peppers and a glass of milk

Snack
2tbs of cottage cheese with a peach

Rest Day 28-July-2010 (aka “Which way did you say it was to the couch?”)

Notes:
I didn't intend on taking a rest day today..But the workout I'm on calls for a rest day on the 4th day...I also forgot my shorts this morning and I'm really sore from working my legs yesterday. I met with a nutritionist today at work and she really liked my mindset as well as the changes I've made. It's nice to get reassurance that what I'm doing makes sense and should be beneficial. One thing I noticed this morning, I woke up extremely hungry. I'm thinking this is because I worked legs yesterday and on days I work large muscles I'm thinking of sticking with cottage cheese as a before bed snack. This will give me some good, easily digestible protein for my muscles to use for repair overnight.

I ended up going out to lunch today with some co-workers. I didn't overeat and I feel like what I got was fairly healthy and it wasn't a large portion..Since I didn't get a workout today I adjusted dinner to something a bit smaller instead of what I had planned. Over all I'm feeling really good about the progress I've made. Tomorrow I'll be back in the gym as normal.

Morning
bagel with cream cheese

Midday
Thai Villa noodles with beef and a sweet tea

Dinner
2 roast beef sandwiches with pepperjack cheese and a glass of milk

Snack
don't know that I'll have a snack tonight.

Workout 27-Jul-2010 (aka “It’s time to play the game!”)

Shoulders:
Front raises
1x15 - 15lbs (Warm up)
1x10 - 20lbs
1x8 - 25lbs
1x8 - 25lbs

Press
1x10 - 25lbs
1x8 - 25lbs
1x10 - 25lbs
1x7 - 25lbs

Cable lateral raises
1x10 20lbs
1x10 20lbs
1x10 20lbs
1x10 20lbs

Legs:
Squats (Dumbbell)
1x10 - 30lbs (Warm up)
1x10 - 35lbs
1x8 - 40lbs
1x5 - 40lbs
1x4 - 40lbs

Lunges
1x10 - bodyweight
1x8 - 20lbs
1x10 - 20lbs
1x8 - 25lbs

Cardio:
Time: 40min +5min cooldown
Calories burned: 695
Distance: 2.93 miles (3.28mi total including cool down)

Notes:
Cardio after lunges and squat sucks! All in all a really good workout..I pushed the cardio hard because I didn't want to stop because I worked my legs. So the total distance was a bit lower I still feel like it was a good workout. I'm always worried working out my shoulders since my right shoulder has had issues in the past (Shoulder Impingment) so I tend to take it light and not push myself. Today I bumped the weight up and after a proper warm up it felt ok..But something I'll have to keep my eye on. The last thing I want right now is an injury.

Morning
2 packs of oatmeal and a banana

Midday
2 salmon sandwiches (Starkist packaged salmon, honey wheat bread)

Dinner
1 chicken breast with sautéed bell peppers and brown rice with a side salad

Snack
12 vanilla wafers with glass of milk

Workout 26-Jul-2010 (aka “Ya’ll gonna make me lose my cool up in here!” )

Back:
Pull downs (wide grip)
1x15 - 80lbs (Warm up)
1x12 - 100lbs
1x6 - 110lbs
1x6 - 110lbs

Pull downs (narrow grip)
1x10 - 100lbs
1x6 - 110lbs
1x6 - 110lbs
1x6 - 90lbs

Dumbbell Row (each side counts as 1 set)
1x8 35lbs
1x8 35lbs

Biceps:
Dumbbell curls
1x14 - 25lbs (Warm up)
1x12 - 30lbs
1x10 - 35lbs
1x7 - 35lbs
1x4 - 35lbs

Hammer curls
1x8 - 30lbs
1x6 - 35lbs
1x4 - 35lbs
1x4 - 35lbs

Cardio:
Time: 40min +5min cooldown
Calories burned: 719
Distance: 2.99 miles (3.32mi total including cool down)

Notes:
Nothing really to note today...Good workout..I like keeping a log of what I'm doing..This is the second day of the journal and I find it's make me work harder and push myself. I'm debating whether I should up my cardio. I think 40 min is pushing how long I can do it without getting frustrated. For now as long as I'm making gains I'll stick with 40 min. I've also started spec'ing out a new workout. Some different exercises so I don't get bored and plateau.

Morning
bagel with cream cheese

Midday
2 tuna sandwiches (Starkist Tuna Creations Sweet and Spicy flavor..Which tasted sort of like the chicken and rice MRE with tabasco sauce..Luckily that was my fav )

Dinner
2 bowls of frosted mini-wheats cereal ( I was so exhausted when I got home I passed out on the couch for 2 hours..so no cooking)

Snack
12 vanilla wafers with glass of milk