Monday, April 30, 2012

Triathlon Prep

Although I have been preparing for this triathlon as far back as the first day I began working out at The Shop, I am officially calling the start date to my training Wednesday, May 2.  Not a lot will change in my training although I will increase endurance training some and continue to work on 15-25 mile bike rides and 5-9 mile runs and maybe I will combine the 2 before the actual event date.  Not sure yet how I will prepare for the swim.

6+ mi run in 53 min.

Monday, July 25, 2011

Month 2 Recap

After 2 months and The Zone is still being practiced in our home. Unfortunately my wife has not had the weight loss success that I have had, but we have both benefited from the constant supply of energy that is achieved when we stay "in the zone".

Although I would still say I am more of an 80%er, I see this as a long term way of eating and have found a way to maintain the balance and still slip in a piece of Reese's Cream Pie, or pizza on occasion.

Current weight 195 (avg)

I wouldn't say that I have hit any kind of plateau, far from it really, but I also don't see myself getting to that perfect body composition or being able to get real lean real quick. It is still a constant struggle to maintain the ratios, and I have found that even when I keep my carbs in check, my fat and protein balance seems to always be high in fat. Part of this may be due to the way I am tracking my diet. I have found an app for my phone that works pretty well. Downside is that if I eat a really lean longhorn steak or burger and just say I eat a steak or burger, the calories and fat content that it produces is quite a bit higher than actual.

Summer heat has been over 100 for the past 2 weeks, so getting a good amount of water and still eating enough good foods has been a little difficult for me. Birthday parties and cookouts have produced some 1000+ calorie meals and I can certainly feel the difference after those.

The major positive factors to this point are plenty. First, there is the obvious weight and fat loss. Second, is the balanced energy production throughout the day. Third, even if I stumble, I have been able to start up again and get close to 80% healthy eating. I have improved my stamina and strength over the past 2 months, so the only real downside is that my wife thinks I am getting too small. I believe that will change when the weather cools off a bit.

Friday, July 1, 2011

Month 1 Recap

Well, it has been about a month since I started The Zone, and I can honestly tell you I am following it about 60% of the time. I really am following Zaleo (Paleo/Zone) about 60% of the time, eating pretty well another 20% (meaning I keep the portions in check and try to balance the macro-nutrients when I can, but I do not hit 40-30-30 every meal. The other 20% is spent eating pizza, cookies, ice cream, cake, and all the other crap that really does me no good, but I crave it occasionally and sometimes it is just out of respect. All in all, I feel that I am on the right track for what my body and mind needs. I could always get better, and some days/weeks have been better than others and I can feel it, but avoiding the major train wrecks is the most important part and/or getting back on the right path if something does go bad is still way more important and realistic than being 90-100% in The Zone. I am still feeling like it is a diet more than a lifestyle, but I am hoping as time goes on the trend will change.

Starting Weight (Average) - 208
Current Weight (Average) - 198

Thursday, June 2, 2011

In The Zone



After 2 years of convincing myself that it was just too complicated and it would never work with my schedule, kids, wife, ect, ect, ect... I have finally entered The Zone. Only on day 3, so not much to report, but it is surprisingly easy to folow, I can eat whatever I want (although good whole foods are recommended) and I have been surprisingly full. Although I do not have it quite dialed in, I am liking this so far.


Just had some steak, cashews, and part of a Larabar as a snack...not too shabby.

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Got up to workout, went back to bed. Got up to run, lazily hung around the house, ate breakfast with the boys, and felt sluggish. 10 till 8 and I decided to run. 2.1 miles with a backpack. 9.13 pace, 152 bpm avg.

Tuesday, April 12, 2011

Got up this morning after eating too much chicken fried chicken last night at the KU post season basketball awards and did The Shop workout from 4.11. It put a hurting on my lungs, power cleans were done as rx'd but not great form. 19:57

Monday, April 11, 2011

The diet is a roller coaster. Weight still fluctuating between 200 and 207. Incorporating more running and still trying to eat less shit. AM ran 3 miles at 8:30 pace, PM walked 4.5 miles slow pace HR 93 bpm