I cannot tell a lie. I did not end up going to yoga last night. I really intended to, until I realized how hungry I was. Then, I saw a tweet from my favorite sushi place asking me (okay maybe not me specifically) to come get sushi in exchange for a 10% donation to a charity of my choice. It was an offer I could not refuse.

I didn’t realize how hideous and awkward this picture was until I uploaded it onto my computer. Clearly, my focus at the time was simply getting the comida into my boca. A little love for my girl Sarah right there. Lets just hope I got the words right

Anyways, despite the crap picture, the sushi was very tasty. I got an avocado roll and a philly roll. But despite the deliciousness, this was not a filling meal. Which proved to be problematic considering the fact that there is zero food in my casa right now.

So to distract myself from my rumbling tummy, I did some makeshift yoga to the hum of my space heater. It was lovely. I can’t wait to move and get my workout room all set up. It’s going to be amazing.

And that bringgs me to a plea for advice from you all about my future gym situation. I have several options, and I just don’t know what to do! Here’s the list of options and, if you love me, please choose the one you think is the best choice

A. I could stay with the YMCA because they have gyms all around the Oklahoma City metro area. This is an appealling option because it’s the easiest (requires no action on my part) and because I like the Y’s that are by my current apartment. However, I hear that the ones by new apartment aren’t all that great.

B. I could cancel my gym membership and try to get by using only my workout room and the small gym at my apartment. This is appealing because it would save me $40 a month. But it would mean I’d have to give up a lot of great classes. And since I don’t plan on getting cable, it would take away my ability to watch TV (which I could do at the gym).

C. I could find a new gym in the area I’m moving to. I’ve worked out at a gym close to me before and I really liked it, but that would mean I’d have to pay the sign-on fee, which is usually a pretty big expense.

Okay, what should I do?! I really need the input. 

Moving on. I slept much much much better last night and awoke quite refreshed. I put on my “Love in this Club” playlist on Pandora and shook my groove thang while I was getting ready. That was glorious.

Then I made a lovely bowl of simple oatmeal.

The bowl of oats contained probably 1/2 cup old-fashioned oats, 1 tablespoon agave, 1 tablespoon chunky peanut butter (the homemade stuff I bought awhile back) and one frozen naner.

The frozen banana got all gooey and creamy in the hot oats.

Luscious. I’m getting my oatmeal making routine down now, so it takes about the same amount of time to make as my smoothies do.

Alright I’m off to be productive! I hope you all have a great Tuesday!

Q: Do you have a gym membership?

Ok, so today is the first day of the 90 day challenge.  Unfortunately, I got up a little late and had to hurry to get dressed and take my son to school… no exactly how I wanted to start out.  We did however, get there on time and after I left, I was off to work.

Once in the office, I had my usual breakfast:  Oatmeal, Flax Seed, Wheat Germ, Blueberries, and a pinch of Cinnamon.  I slammed that mix down with a Ultramet Vanilla meal replacement shake, and I was ready to go.

So much for getting back into the swing of things! I couldn’t have been more off my game yesterday if I’d crashed my car into a tree and then drew attention to myself by releasing a sketchy statement about it. I completely forgot the first rule of morning time management: The days you want extra time are exactly the days you won’t get it. Regardless, I skipped doing the dishes and ran out the door at 10:45 to grab coffee before class. For the first time, I forgot my camera. What if yesterday was the day I ran into Emma Watson and explained to her about my blog and she offered to pose for a photo with me?… I like to dream big so that whatever happens in the day isn’t a disappointment. Well that wasn’t the case, but I did get my coffee, sit through an rough hour of “welcome back, now work” class, and hustle on back to my dorm to pick up where I left off. After cleaning, emailing, and blog reading, I made another meal of leftovers.

Cheesy Broccoli, Tofurkey Slice, Acorn Squash With Caramel Mustard

I think from now on I’ll just cook everything on the weekend and only eat “leftovers” all week long because they’re always the best. The broccoli was simply steamed and mixed with a slice of cheese from Trader Joe’s. The acorn squash was delicious with the caramel mustard, which I definitely had a heavy hand with(how could I not?). And the Tofurkey roast was still mighty fine, though I made sure not to overdo it again because apparently too much Tofurkey is rough on the stomach! Cost for calorie, these aren’t so bad to buy on sale after the holidays eat throughout the week. Here’s hoping to more in the future!(besides what I still have as leftovers )

I don’t know where my head was because I almost left my room and went to class without any of the books I needed. In history we got back our 3 midterm essays, all of which I did really well on and lifted my spirits. Then we got our final paper topic–yikes! That’ll be 12-15 pages of get-me-out-of-here. After class I “had” to dash back to my dorm to pick up stevia packets for a coffee before epic poetry(going to class without a coffee would be dangerous). Unfortunately, as New Englanders know, the weather was awful in the afternoon and my plans to grab something at Whole Foods were no more. I headed back to my dorm, at which point I was struck with a Jimmy Neutron brain blast.

Pumpkin Oatmeal With Butter Toffee Peanut Butter And Shortcut Cream Cheese Frosting

I loved this recipe so much, I had to post it immediately. That is seriously going to change the way I eat anything carby(probably not for the better but oh well). Oprah had some awesome guests on, including Sugarland, all singing Christmas songs! It was pretty awesome–I wish I’d known to tivo it. Afterwards I had to get out even if it was raining. Naturally I chose the bookstore.

Coffee At The Bookstore

I realized I forgot all my cold-weather clothes at home, as well as an umbrella and q-tips. Again, where was my head? After perusing I couldn’t find any good coats, and the umbrellas were a bit much(and I completely forgot about the q-tips ) so I left empty handed. I was still feeling a bit snackish, though, so I dug up this bar back at the dorm.

Lemon Ginger Gnu Bar

Wowza! I think this bar had the most flavor out of any of their bars, and I really really liked it. The lemon and ginger were both loud and it made a fun study snack. While doing some work before dinner, I realized I hadn’t heard from my friend if we were doing dinner. That’s because I forgot to turn my phone on in the morning and it’d been off all day… wtf. After getting some texts and finding out I was too behind for the rest of the world, I ended up grabbing something and eating in.

Vegan Roasted Vegetables, Sweet Potato, Wildwood Teryaki Tofu

Do you see the sun? It needed to come out at some point. Before I dug into this, I realized, I took my only fork home before break and forgot to bring it back. What’s wrong with me? Chopsticks and my baby spoon it was. Unfortunately, the flavors were not nearly as sunny; this was one of those meals that just felt like a waste after eating it(except the sweet potato, which would take a lot to feel like a waste). I wish this tofu had half the flavors on the ingredient list but in the end it tasted much like their savory flavor and wasn’t teryaki at all. As for the veggies, I tried to ignore the massive amounts of olive oil, but I had to stop 3/4ths the way through and throw out the rest. I don’t mind healthy fats, but I’m not a big fan of olive oil :-/ Nuts, peanut butter, avocado–all good. But this was too much to an absurd amount.

The night just went downhill from there. Heroes was OK but nothing to draw my attention, and my stomach just felt off, which I’m going to go ahead and blame on the vegetables. I did some light reading but realized I was tired. Could I go to bed at 9 and be asleep at 10? Was that allowed? Why the hell not, so I shut down my computer early, and figured out what to have right before sleeping.

2% Greek Yogurt With Strawberry Jam And Strawberry White Chocolate

Well the night wasn’t a complete bust; I removed 1oz plain and replaced it with 1oz full fat yogurt to give the base a 2% taste. Then I swirled in strawberry jam(technically ”conserve”) and topped with a shaved Divine bar and some more jam. Just what I need before going to be–sugar. Midway through this I realized I forgot to brush my teeth, and so went to the bathroom to do that. In the 3 minutes I was in there, my roommate must have came home and grabbed something, locking the door and leaving. I was locked out in my pajamas, glasses, barefoot with a toothbrush–glorious. I freaked out for a minute and tried running outside to find him but no luck. Thankfully, one of the RC’s on the other side of the dorm was home and called campus services on my behalf. She also lent me slippers to wear while I waited outside(in 40 degree weather) for the campus security to show up. By the time I got in my room, i completely missed Big Bang Theory and was quite livid. The only thing I could do from wanting to tell someone off was eat this.

Deep Chocolate Vitatop

I’m not sure how well that worked, but heating it a little extra and just holding it in my hands for warmth made me happy. I totally didn’t get to bed early like I had planned, and the entire night felt like a waste. I maybe got 20-30 minutes more of sleep than normal–maybe. When I woke up I just needed to run it out, so I grabbed this and just left:

Amazing Grass Berry Energy Bar

I swear I always run farther than planned when I have an Amazing Grass bar. Stock up while they’re still on sale! I was first thinking 8, then pushed it to 10, then settled at 12. 3 days in a row? I think that’s a new favorite distance. My time was a little slower(1:41:11) but not bad. I was very pleased that my room wasn’t locked when I came back this time, and I was able to get in and make a quickie breakfast.

Pumpkin Oatmeal With Smart Balance And Maple Syrup, Plain Chobani With Blueberry Jam And A Double Chocolate Pillow

Is there anything better than opening up a new jar of PB? I bought this Sart Balance with agave to replace the one I had with molasses–it’s just better! And perfect on some salty oats with maple syrup. And the yogurt–yum! I love the combination of chocolate and blueberry but it’s so hard to find in foods unless I make it myself. The pillow cookie made a perfect, rich cocoa topping.

How about a question of the day, shall we? Tell me either your worst story of being locked out(fortunately this hasn’t happened too me more than 2 or 3 times in my life) or your most annoying roommate story(I realize my roommate could have been a lot worse so now I want to hear about those who were). And here’s to December not being as bad as November ended!

I hope everyone had a fantastic, long weekend.  As you know, I was away for Thanksgiving visiting my uncle in Niles, MI and then off to a quick jaunt to Chicago.  I wrote a bit about my trip here, if you’d like more details.  I took over 200 photos, many of which turned out beautifully, if I do say so myself:

Thanksgiving 2009 – Michigan & Chicago

My eating & exercise while I was away?  Not too bad, but not great, either.  Some highlights:

• We didn’t eat 3 meals a day, but when we did eat, we had heavier meals.  I’m hoping that the net calories work out to about the same that I would’ve normally consumed, but we’ll see for sure on the scale tomorrow.
• I didn’t track any points, but I  tried to make wise choices whenever we ate.
• We got tons of exercise, especially in Chicago.  On Saturday alone we walked over 2 miles, which was great.

So, that’s about it, as far as the Thanksgiving report.  I’m so glad we went away, and I’ll definitely go back again as many times as I can.

Getting back on track for the week:

1. I went grocery shopping at Trader Joe’s on Sunday and got tons of great, healthy food.
2. Sunday I made the quick soup that I posted about, along with the HG crock pot chili that I love (I don’t think I’ve ever posted that recipe, so I’ll do that soon).  I felt so organized by making two dinners like this that I can have for lunch and dinner all week.
3. I’m going to ease back in to working out this week.  I still have some congestion in the mornings and at night, but during the day I’m feeling back to normal.  Baby steps on working out is the best plan, I think.  So this week, it’s all about the Wii – Fit Plus and EA Sports Active.  I contacted Jimmy and told him I was going to slowly work my way back to the gym, and would probably put off our training sessions until the first of the year.  I don’t want to go too fast with working out and wear myself out, so I think this is a good plan.
4. Track everything.  Scale Warfare and I are still emailing our food journals daily, which is such an awesome way for both of us to stay accountable to someone besides ourselves with our food intake.
5. Catch up on all of your blogs!  I really missed reading them while I was away, but I really didn’t have computer access on the trip (other than my iPhone), so I’m going through some withdrawal. 

I hope everyone is doing well and embracing the holiday spirit that’s swirling in the air!

Yesterday was my “off day” which was really nice after 4 days of solid activity. But, I did have a big accomplishment in that I signed up for a gym with a pool. Xsport fitness has a 4 lane pool and an endless pool ( kind of like a treadmill). The gym is also less than a half mile from my house! I’m set now. So tonight, it’s time to swim. It should be interesting since I haven’t swam laps since high school and I wasn’t competitive then.

My annual gym membership started yesterday and I feel pretty good, particularly since the distressing weight gain of the previous week.

Yesterday I tried a different gym class – in fact, I tried two. Ab Blast and Dance Aerobics.

Ab Blast was ok – full 40 minutes spent on the mat doing various kinds of crunches. I struggled with the points I had to keep my legs in the air… argh, but otherwise my abdominal muscles don’t hurt today.

Dance Aerobics was ok – alot of coordination which I spent too much time getting to grips with. At least it kept me moving for about 50 minutes.

This morning I used the Wii Fit Board to exercise and I have to say, it was tough. I did various Yoga and muscle workout poses (lunges, sit-ups, stretch and holds) for about 22 minutes, Hula Hoops for 6 minutes and Jogging for 3 minutes. I was very sweaty and breathing heavily through most of it.

If I have time I might go for a gym class this evening. Let’s see cos’ I have alot to do before my in-laws arrive from abroad tomorrow!

Stats:

Weight – 97.3 kg

Is it really necessary for us as human beings to live our lives with our hectic schedules, and when we leave from our 9-5 job, still go to the gym?

Yes, it is important for your health to stay fit, but where do you draw the line? I know people who leaves the flat at 7am, they go for a jog then, then go to work, then after work they go to the gym for an hour or two, and to top off the day, they go for dance-lessons. I mean come on! Shouldn’t you be able to go home, make yourself a nice meal, sit down and relax in front of the TV or even with a book. Is it really worth it to have a flat if you only sleep there from 10pm to 6am?

The point is that all of us take care of our bodies in our special way… My way is sitting in front of the TV with a glass of wine before going to sleep. It is a way to forget about all your worries and stress and just relax. That is why the government pays for Leisure Facilities isn’t is? To use it! If they wanted us to be on the run all the time, they would have probably spent their money on replacing parks, playgrounds, sportgrounds, etc. with gyms…

I am not picking on people who gym, I would also like to join one. But if you can’t make time for yourself, you need to think about your priorities. Life is only so long, and before you know it, you are dying of trying to stay fit.

So, is it really worth it? When you lay on your deathbed, are you going to think about going to the gym? Or are you going to regret the time you wasted that you could have spent with yourself, or with loved ones.

Think before you die trying to stay fit!

I heard this today and just checked out the evidence.  Bodyworks has been bought out by cityfitness (and profitness in Christchurch has been bought out too) .

 I thought one of their locations has closed, but an email to members states that it is still open but now under the name cityfitness.

Has this affected anyone?

So, I was not looking forward to Thanksgiving in the first place… I made bread that did not rise enough and was a bit to “garlicee” and salty, the Pumpkin pie crust was great, but the filling a bit too spicy… However, people ate it
Anyway, I waited till about 5 to actually appear at my friends’ place. I did not think it could actually be fun, I really thought it would be horrible, boring and awkward, but it was good. The food and the games and the fun. BUT I binged and purged. I do not know why. I did not really eat too much there, but the piece of pie and the ice cream were a suboptimal idea at almost 12pm… I went home and binged… and purged… ridiculous. Why? I promised my nutritionist that if I would do that I would not work out at all during the entire weekend because it is too dangerous for me. But I eventually went running on Sunday and to the Gym as well… which could be acceptable if I hadn’t had another slip-up Saturday night and again. Ridiculous. I had a great day. It was a beautiful and sunny day. My friend’s friend took me out for a Harley ride and it was simply amazing. But home alone I slipped. I made pancakes and all… binged and purged the food I still had and wished again I had not done it.
It is so difficult to get away from it. I wished I never had this illness. I wished I was normal and had real problems… ruining my health is really self destructive and I am scared to die, because I am finally coming back to life. Which is painful, because it shows me how many people I have been hurting and lost to Bulimia.
I need a new start. Again. But again just tonight I slipped again. 3 times in 5 days. Wow. It’s been a while.
I think there are many factors:
a) stress
b) that professor
c) feelings about Cedar Springs
d) stuff I have to do (paperwork and such)
e) making decisions
f) friends (here and abroad)
g) alcohol/spendings = other addictions
h) men (the ones I am dating, the one I lost, me realizing that I can actually chose, that I do not have to take whoever shows interest, weird isn’t it?)
i) the future

–> I am simply scared and yes, b/p relieves me if even only for a little while.

And Yes, I want to quit, but it is just not as easy at it may sound.

On my way to my 6:00am Fitness Boot Camp session, I was thinking about how many clients would show up to class after the long Thanksgiving holiday break. It made me think about “committing” to a fitness (exercise) and health (diet and lifestyle) program and seriously taking the all-important steps in regard to changing your life.

When it comes to health and fitness, it’s way too easy to make excuses and continue to be lazy, not mindful of the big picture – your Wellness.

Those of us who have pledged to live a healthier life through regular exercise, eating a more balanced diet and making certain lifestyle changes know the investment in ourselves are paying off huge dividends. What’s that old saying, “ Nothing we don’t have to work hard for is really worth having.” A quick note for the less enlightened, once a health and fitness program becomes routine (like brushing your teeth in the morning), even though it is indeed work, it doesn’t really seem like it because the results we see and feel are our motivation and it becomes something we crave, simply because it makes us feel and yes… look so good! 

If you are like most people, chances are you’ve let yet another year pass you by, in regard to improving your health and fitness. Well folks fortunately in most cases, it’s never too late to start moving in a healthier direction before years end.

There’s really no need to continue your bad habits and say, well I’ll start first thing in the New Year. Try again, I’ve heard that one a million times! It’s that exact thinking that got you in such poor shape in the first place and it’s that exact mind set that let another year pass you by. The time is now! Start today. Why not?

If you have been committed to a health and fitness program this year you should be proud of yourself for holding yourself accountable, but now’s not the time to slack. It’s ultimately important that you push on, stay focused, continue with the same intensity and finish the year strong, charging into the New Year feeling better than you have ever felt in your whole life!

It’s also an awesome feeling to be a role model to those who have neglected their health and find themselves facing a New Year un-fit, un-healthy and un-happy. Leading by example (walking the talk) is a great feeling and will give you an awesome sense of accomplishment and confidence, and you know what? You deserve it.

Implementing a new fitness, health and lifestyle management program now or continuing the one you’ve already started will give you the motivation and mental drive to blast through the holidays and into the New Year with a healthier and happier life clearly in site.

So get fit, stay well and thrive in 2010.

_____________________________________________

Have a question? Ask a Health and Fitness Professional: info@thefitnessunderground.com

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My insomnia staged a full-fledged return last night. Oh, I managed to go to sleep at a decent hour, but at midnight, I was wide awake, and after an hour, moved to the family room sofa to read. And fell asleep there for a while. Woke after a half hour and decided to go back to bed. Baaaad decision… Once I hit the bed, I was wide awake again, and so, after another hour, I returned to the family room sofa to read, and once again, I fell asleep. Grand total of sleep: 2 hours and 15 minutes, give or take a minute or two…

So I am really tired. Bordering on exhausted. But nonetheless, I had a very busy day. My in-laws left this morning, and shortly after their departure, I headed out for a quick 2-mile run at Bear Creek.

Run Totals:

Time: 26 minutes

Distance: 2.18 miles

Pace: 11:55

Speed: 5.04 mph

RunKeeper Shared Fitness | Running Activity.

I spent the rest of the day catching up on chores: changing bed linens, cleaning bathrooms, shampooing carpets, disposing of Thanksgiving leftovers, and doing endless loads of laundry. But I accomplished a lot, and by the time I was due in the gym, I felt reasonably good, if not wildly energetic. Mike eased up on me a bit and kept the weights low (thank you, my friend) and after the session was over, I joined Jae in the cardio area for 15 minutes on a stepmill. Yay, me.

In the gym, with Mike:

Time: 5:30 p.m.

Training Partners: Barry and Jae

Warm-up: YTA’s, shoulder warmup

Chest, Biceps & Core:

Ring push-ups: 10; 10; 10

setted with

Crunches, legs in the air: 20; 20;20

setted with

Side crunches: 15/15; 15/15; 15/15

Bench Press: bar (45 lbs.) x 10; 55 lbs. x 10; 45 lbs. x 10

setted with

Reverse crunches on bench: 15; 15; 15

Incline dumbbell flyes: 15 lbs. x 12; 17 1/2 lbs.  x 12; 20 lbs. x 5…..

setted with

EZ-bar curls: 25 lbs. x 12; 25 lbs. x 12; 25 lbs. x 12

Cable curl machine: 15 lbs. x 10; 15 lbs. x 10; 15 lbs. x 10

Stepmill:

15 minutes Fat Burner program, level 10. 1.5 miles

]]> http://fat2fitmama.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/week-32-weigh-in/ Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:10:48 +0000 fat2fitmama http://fat2fitmama.wordpress.com/2009/11/30/week-32-weigh-in/

My love/hate relationship with my gym has come to an end. No, I have not decided to jack it all in and just scoff myself into obesity (tempting as it is). I bit the bullet and thought I need a change – so I signed up for a new gym. Come January I will no longer have to endure the doors hinged the wrong way, the flashing spin instructor, the temperamental air-con, the lack of equipment and last but by no means least annoying girl.

As I strode up to the desk last night (I saw them shuffle backwards, in an attempt to not have to deal with another complaint from me), and said “I want to hand in my notice”, I was overcome with a wave of sadness. It felt like I just ended a 5 year-long relationship.

We have been through thick and thin – well chubby to thin(ner) – together. Suddenly the backward hinged door was endearing, and the smile of the sales guy who I harass weekly bought a lump to my throat, and I am sure even annoying girl will not seem quite as annoying when I next see her. I am now plagued with memories of all the “good times” and I have gym-quitters-remorse. Mostly I worry that the new gym will not provide as much inspiration for my blog as this gym has.

Actually my new gym is completely bonkers, and probably crawling with pretentious types. It’s all flashing lights, disco beats and strange new classes – which my coordination-ally challenged self,  will no doubt embrace – and then share on the blog. Bring on January and my 1st Bikini-Bootcamp class …

I spent the day assembling a cross bike, which is a combo between your normal stationary bike and an elliptical trainer. I got it from an outlet for fifty bucks. It was so cheap that I didn’t even bother to test the thing in the store. The only thing I checked was how the bike part of the machine rolled. I’ve had a stationary bike before, but it was one that had the magnetic wheel, something or other, that really sucked. It felt like riding a bike with your legs asleep. I wanted this one to be like the spinning bikes at the gym, and it was. How it actually differs from the other models, I do not know. Alls I know is that it is more pleasant pedaling one without the magnetic shit thing…

This is what it looked like at one point...

I was afraid that I would have to assemble the thing with my Leatherman, since all my tools are at the summer home, but the box came equipped with the tools necessary to complete the project. I started to assemble the thing at around noon. At two o’clock the thing was assembled and I took it for a spin. It was horrible, my knees kept hitting the elliptical poles and pedaling it was like pedaling a Russian WW2 motorcycle. Since the machine was so outrageously cheap, the store had a no return policy. I would’ve actually paid someone another fifty bucks to haul that monstrosity out from my living room. I also purchased a spike mat, a thing you lay on and it relieves pain and relaxes you. Like acupuncture it works for a number of different things. It releases endorphins, which was the biggest reason why I bought the thing, to fight my depression. I tested it, and it was fucking nirvana. I fell asleep after only a few minutes and woke up thirty minutes later refreshed and happy.

I took another look at the cross bike after my nap. I changed the seat position, and pedaling started to feel more smoother. In fact, it was almost a joy to pedal it, but the elliptical part of the thing still ruined the whole ordeal. So I unscrewed the elliptical pole things from the pedals and took them off completely. Now it worked as a spinning bike, and pretty well too. The problem was that without a handlebar, it was pretty hard to pedal and sit up straight. I looked at all the parts I had left and designed some changes to the thing. I turned the elliptical pole things to a magazine rack and a thing I could hold on to while riding. It worked great. The problem was that when I was finished I glanced at my clock. It was 10 PM. I didn’t want to start exercising that late, so I just grabbed the spike mat and my iPod and went to bed, where I am typing these words right now. Synchronize CHECK!!!

Increasing the amount of exercise one does at the gym may promote a healthier body in the long run, but it’s bloody tiring in the immediate aftermath!

Think about it…there are people out there that get paid to develop equipment that will allow other people to voluntarily torture themselves for 30 minutes or more. A nondiscriminatory device that attracts fat and skinny people alike….genius…just pure profitable genius!

I’ve successfully made it to the gym twice in a week! So far so good!

I was a little more relaxed today, since I had been there once and already had an idea what I was doing. So I dropped my stuff off in a locker and headed to the second floor where they have a 30 minute full-body workout area (which actually only takes me 20 minute; at first I was concerned, but I think they’re counting the steps in that and I don’t do steps. Not since the horror that was my college aerobics class. Our instructor was a nazi and the step sessions were pure torture. I swore never again.)

Today I learned that many of my fellow gym patrons do not follow simple rules, like how to do the 30 minute workout. There are 10 stations (plus 10 of those diabolical steps) you start on one then procede to do them in numerical order from there. The green light means go, red light means rest and switch. Pretty easy huh? Nope. There were maybe 7 or 8 other people up there with me and I was the only one attempting to use the machines in order. I say attempting, because if no one else is going in order you can’t either. And let me tell you, it’s more painful to go out of order because you end up doing to many arm machines in a row.

I finally managed to do all the machines and decided to head back to the locker room to grab my water bottle and iPod before using one of the eliptical (sp?) machines. As I walk into the locker room, what do I see? Naked people! Ok, maybe more person than people, but nakedness! Yes, I know it’s a locker room and there are showers and people change and everything, but I would have been perfectly happy going through the entire course of my membership at the gym without seeing anyone else’s boobies.

Compared to that the rest of my workout was fairly uneventful. I spent 30 minutes of the eliptical machine before leaving, and I learned that it really is easier to workout when listening to music. I forgot my iPod last time, so I made sure I had it with me this time and it made time go so much faster! Plus I made an awesome workout playlist. It has 51 songs, so I can’t share them all with you, but here’s what played today:

AC/DC – Rock and Roll Train
Third Eye Blind – Semi Charmed Kind of Life
Bon Jovi – Have a Nice Day
Sugar Ray – Answer the Phone
Def Leppard – Rock of Ages
Big & Rich – Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy
Bon Jovi – Bad Medicine
My Chemical Romance – Desolation Row
Relient K – Chap Stick, Chapped Lips and Things Like Chemistry

The music definitely made the workout much more enjoyable and I’m actually looking forward to my next workout! I think I might like this gym business!

I’m an advocate of non-apparatus training techniques in situations where you do not have the ability to use an apparatus. This may be due to an injury which prevents the range of motion necessary to perform certain apparatus-based movements or it may be that you simply don’t have access to the equipment necessary to perform apparatus-based exercises. Whatever the reason for using them, non-apparatus techniques can be a great way to achieve muscular development. However, I would not recommend replacing an apparatus-based routine with a completely non-apparatus training routine.

I’ve used a variety of non-apparatus training methods over the course of my career and I’ve been intrigued by the high level of interest that such methods receive from the general public. Given the high level of interest in these methods, I’ve outlined my top recommendations for a non-apparatus training routine. We’ll begin with an upper body routine in this post, and in the next post, I’ll share my lower body recommendations.

Upper Body

Pull-Ups/Push-Ups

Alternate chin pull-ups with raised push-ups. You’ll want to do 3-4 total sets of each exercise while alternating between exercises for each consecutive set. Neither exercise will detract from your ability to perform the other because you’re working completely different muscle groups.

You can use a swing set, monkey bars, or other playground equipment for a chin pull-up bar.

It’s fairly easy to find a pull-up chin bar. It might be something you fashion from items around the house or you can find one on a school playground. When you do your pull-ups, you’ll want to bring your chin in front of and just over the bar. When you come down, don’t go all the way down into a complete hanging position. You’ll want to stop about 3-4 inches short of a complete hang and then begin to pull yourself up again. This is to keep your muscles under tension and you’ll learn across exercises that the time your muscles are under tension is extremely important for muscle growth. You’ll aim to complete whatever number of reps you can do and then repeat that number for each pull-up set.

For the push-ups, you’ll want your legs raised. You can prop your legs on a wall or stairs, whatever is convenient in your training area. For each push-up, your chest will nearly touch the ground. When you come up, you want to push until your arms are about 85-90% straight. Don’t lock your elbows. You’ll aim for as many as reps as you can get and sustain across each set. You don’t want to drops reps each set.

Leg Raises/Crunches

To target the abs, you’ll do leg raises using the pull-up bar. From a hanging position, you will contract your abs and raise your legs from a vertical position up to a horizontal position where they are extended straight out in front of you. You may also use traditional crunches to target the abs.

In the next blog post, I’ll share my lower body non-apparatus training recommendations.

Until then, keep training hard.

Jack King

I always wonder, besides burning my calories to keep fit and lose weight while using the gym equipment, can the energy that I work be used for greater causes? e.g. the gym equipment is designed in such a way that whenever we run on treadmill , it will squeeze orange juices to be sold for raising education funds.

I do believe that people who can afford to go to gym, will be more than happy for doing that.

For myself, I thank the generosity of my agency for providing free gym.

I attribute my fatness to three things:

(1) Getting out of the Army.  Back in 2005 I was training in Ft. Gordon, Georgia where I was working out ALL THE TIME.  I was a fun 185 pounds with a great build and ate whatever I wanted.  I was also running about 25 miles a week.

(2) Getting divorced.  In 2005 my wife and I also seperated.  Depression sets in.  Laziness sets in.  Get divorced + stop running 25 miles a week = ???

(3) Writing!  I started writing from home.  Was home all day.  Worked out sometimes but mostly stayed home.  Staying home + eating at home all day + Getting divorced + stop running 25 miles a week = BLAH!!!!!

A few weeks back I was in Vancouver interviewing a bunch of movie stars on the set of a film.  I noticed that (A) they had some BRIGHT SHINY TEETH and (B) they were skinny as all hell.  It depressed me being the big, fat guy – so I started laying out a routine. 

I need to lose weight and fast.  But as any health professional will tell you, “You didn’t put it all on in a day, don’t expect to take it off that fast.”

FINE.  I won’t expect to take it off in a day.  But if I’m going to take the time out to get skinny I am going to set a goal weight and attain it.  If I attain that goal weight early?  Then I need to MAINTAIN it.

Welcome to my blog.  My name is Ryan McLelland and I am a fatty fuck. 

My friends will tell you that I’m just “a bit overweight.”  Maybe they actually believe that.  That’s because I actually wear my weight sort of well.  Though right now I see this big beer keg I call a belly and want to puke.

Diet, exercise, tons of water.  That’s what any professional will tell you.  Add in “establishing a caloric debt” for those who want to get fancy.

There’s tons of aides out there.  Slim Fast.  Weight Watchers.  Nutrisystem.

There’s healthy habits like portion control and treating your body right.

So I’m thinking that for a year I may go veganesque.  What the hell is veganesque?  I think I’m going to cut out meat and chicken.  I may continue with eggs and seafood on a nice moderate scale.

Since my honeymoon this year (what?  for those who don’t know me you expected me to still be divorced!?!??! Shame on you!  I”M A CATCH!  Least that’s what my wife Lauren tells me) I’ve cut done ALOT on the drinking.  I want to cut out alcohol for a full year as well.

No meats.  No alcohol.

365 days to get down to 165 pounds.

Starting January 1st.

Do I think I can do it?  Without this blog – absolutely not.  I am the KING of starting something only for, a month later, I’ll be eating a double cheeseburger with a side of a Miller Lite 6-pack.

I”m thinking writing will be my guide.  If I have to write about it everyday perhaps I’ll be able to stick with it.

Why 165?  Well even at my healthiest I still had a tiny bit of flab.  I think I once got down to 173 – though my goal was 165.  I never reached that goal.  And if I’m going to do this I will STRIVE to meet the goal.

So it is November 30th.  Tomorrow starts “Pre-Season”.  I’ll be ‘warming up to my diet’ and thinking about the things I have to do for DAY ZERO: JANUARY 1st.  It’ll be here too soon enough.

The family and I are home from our Thanksgiving travels, and I’m ready to hit the ground running today…figuratively speaking. I’m taking the day off from training, as I do most Mondays, but for those if you who want something fun and effective to help work off some of the indulgent Thanksgiving calories, here you go:

10:00 treadmill running, 2% incline
3x following rotation:
10 pushups
10 squat jumps
10 straight leg ab crunches
Finish with a 5:00 treadmill hike, 3% incline

I think I’d be okay if I never ate again.  I need to be checked into detox and I feel like I just had my last bird binge before I am forced to go into withdrawal.  Disgusting.  I really just want to go to the gym and return to my routine of normalcy, but I’m afraid my ass cheeks will hang out of my running shorts and there will be more jiggle than cranberry Jell-O.  Sick.  I’m contemplating just continuing this lifestyle of eating and watching movies and football and think I can buy a couch that will last me for at least a few years, giving me some time to grow.  When the couch is smaller than my ass, then I will know it is time to order a new one.  “Stop judging me,” I’d say, my mouth full of potato chips, “I ran a marathon.”