Yeah, my updates on this dropped off significantly. I didn't really have anything to add at the time and frankly I went off the reservation for a little over a month. The good news is I've gotten back on course and am now below my post-fast weight again. I feel great. No aches or pains to speak of at the moment.
One huge change I've made in the past two weeks has been in the realm of eating out. Simply, I haven't done it (with a HUGE amount of help from my awesome wife, Natalie) and it has been a significant reason why I'm able to maintain focus. Simplifying the choices to be made makes it much easier to avoid bad choices.
The other piece that has helped has been my focus on moments vs. destination. A journey begins (or in this case, resumes) with a single step, and I've been a lot more successful of late on just focusing on that step in the moment. One of the biggest challenges for me in weight loss is my tendency to look to the future or the enormity of the whole task of reshaping my body instead of just focusing on the choice I'm making in that moment. Hopefully that's going to be a more consistent pattern for me, as it is serving me very well right now, and not just in terms of my diet.
The last two weeks of my life have taught me a lot about who I am and, more importantly, who I want to be. There's no question I need to be mindful of what I'm creating with the choices I make, but looking long tends to distract me from the purpose behind the journey to begin with. (reading that sounds confusing but it made sense in my head, heh).
For my supportive friends on this journey, I also plan on expanding this to other topics soon as I love talking about many things. Thanks for all your help on this journey, your support has been invaluable to me!
Thursday, July 7, 2011
Wednesday, May 11, 2011
Monday, May 9, 2011
Ok, time for the next phase...
While I don't think I have the nutritional side of my transformation locked down, exactly, yesterday reminded me how much work I have to do in the next phase.
My physical conditioning, overall, is probably the worst its been in a few years. To be fair, it was a LOT worse prior to that point, especially before I met Natalie. That said, my core, in particular, needs probably more of an overhaul than my diet did. The good news is I'm not really discouraged by that, because I know I can get results in that area relatively quick. Unfortunately, yesterday slowed that down a bit.
While attempting to mount Freckles for a ride yesterday, her saddle slipped. This was likely due to her being poorly cinched, but regardless I think it torqued my back pretty good. Naturally, I didn't feel it much yesterday at all. This morning was another story. Long story short, both sides of my lower back feel like I've been punched in the kidneys.
So now I have a few days of required R&R to articulate what my physical transformation phase will be like. Its not very complex, and for good reason: it doesn't have to be. So here's my prescription for transformation in the physical conditioning realm:
Once that begins, I may journal my progress a little here, but I hope not to bore people too much.
My physical conditioning, overall, is probably the worst its been in a few years. To be fair, it was a LOT worse prior to that point, especially before I met Natalie. That said, my core, in particular, needs probably more of an overhaul than my diet did. The good news is I'm not really discouraged by that, because I know I can get results in that area relatively quick. Unfortunately, yesterday slowed that down a bit.
While attempting to mount Freckles for a ride yesterday, her saddle slipped. This was likely due to her being poorly cinched, but regardless I think it torqued my back pretty good. Naturally, I didn't feel it much yesterday at all. This morning was another story. Long story short, both sides of my lower back feel like I've been punched in the kidneys.
So now I have a few days of required R&R to articulate what my physical transformation phase will be like. Its not very complex, and for good reason: it doesn't have to be. So here's my prescription for transformation in the physical conditioning realm:
- Approx 4 hours of yoga per week (broken down into hopefully 2 - 1 hour classes and then a few additional sessions of 30-45 minutes at home). This may increase. Why yoga? Quite simply, gaining muscle has never been a challenge. Loosening muscles has been a lifetime challenge for me. My hips in particular, as it is for a lot of men, are as tight as a vice and have a very hard time maintaining any elasticity. This has a huge impact on my riding. Yoga has the added benefit of being a great source of renewal for my spirit.
- Target of 4-5 days a week of high intensity interval training or HIIT(some call it surge training). Most sessions won't go over 15 minutes, but right now they wouldn't have to. The goal here is twofold. One is to improve my cardio capacity without having to do an hour on a treadmill or eliptical trainer. The other is to target full body exercises that will help strengthen my core. If anyone in interested in what this entails, I can provide a few sample workouts. They are very simple, but very intense, as the name implies.
Once that begins, I may journal my progress a little here, but I hope not to bore people too much.
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
iLance update...
2.0 is still going well, but my body is still recovering from the fast, it seems. In spite of eating incredibly well, I've actually gained a little bit back. Part of that was expected, as I think my muscles lacked water and glycogen. But I figured over 4 days I might be over it a bit.
I know things will improve some once I get my fitness routine back in gear. I'll share some details on that once I have a few days of it under my belt. Basically it will be a combination of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and yoga (though not at the same time ;) ).
Ultimately I need to pay less attention to the scale and enjoy my new focus. I've conquered some great temptations this week and more importantly, I'm just treating my body right from a nutrition perspective. The weight will follow in due time.
I know things will improve some once I get my fitness routine back in gear. I'll share some details on that once I have a few days of it under my belt. Basically it will be a combination of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and yoga (though not at the same time ;) ).
Ultimately I need to pay less attention to the scale and enjoy my new focus. I've conquered some great temptations this week and more importantly, I'm just treating my body right from a nutrition perspective. The weight will follow in due time.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Fast done...solid food slowly comes back
Today is Nat's birthday and also our 5th wedding anniversary, so it was a special day on many fronts. I officially broke the fast today with a very nice meal including scrambled eggs with mushrooms, some fresh strawberries and half a grapefruit. I also had a few juices during the day, including a large one following a great anniversary trail ride at Latta Plantation.
The evening saw a little temptation with us attending a Knights game. I was by no means a saint, but 1 16oz beer and half a pretzel qualifies as the epitome of restraint for me given that I had just come off a fast of nothing but juice. The rest of the day was great, diet wise, so I'm not going to fret my modified dinner.
Final tally for the fast was 13 pounds over 10 days. I think it actually could have been more if I had juiced a little more and maybe prevented my body from slowing down so much. But I'm definitely not going to complain. Its a great start to my reboot of iLance and I feel great about the results and how I feel. And frankly, that's all that matters.
The resolve I showed during that time gives me a huge boost to my confidence about being able to stay on track and achieve the results I want. It wasn't easy, but I was very surprised at how much by body seemed to support (as opposed to fight) some of the changes. My hunger levels have been great and I'm already feeling some of my stamina coming back. Though, to be clear, my energy levels were great during the fast, my gas tank was just low if I wanted to do any kind of exercise.
Now its time for the next gear, where my eating continues the groove it was in before the fast, and 2.0 continues to build.
Thanks to everyone for their support. I will continue posting, if you're interested, but it likely won't be daily, unless I have something substantive to offer. You guys are more of a source of strength than you'll ever know. Of course, Nat knows, because she is my "Why" for all of this.
Since a few people have asked, the following sources, while no means exhaustive, served as my inspiration for this project:
Join the Reboot
Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead (don't wait for the DVD if you're wanting to watch this, its available instantly)
The evening saw a little temptation with us attending a Knights game. I was by no means a saint, but 1 16oz beer and half a pretzel qualifies as the epitome of restraint for me given that I had just come off a fast of nothing but juice. The rest of the day was great, diet wise, so I'm not going to fret my modified dinner.
Final tally for the fast was 13 pounds over 10 days. I think it actually could have been more if I had juiced a little more and maybe prevented my body from slowing down so much. But I'm definitely not going to complain. Its a great start to my reboot of iLance and I feel great about the results and how I feel. And frankly, that's all that matters.
The resolve I showed during that time gives me a huge boost to my confidence about being able to stay on track and achieve the results I want. It wasn't easy, but I was very surprised at how much by body seemed to support (as opposed to fight) some of the changes. My hunger levels have been great and I'm already feeling some of my stamina coming back. Though, to be clear, my energy levels were great during the fast, my gas tank was just low if I wanted to do any kind of exercise.
Now its time for the next gear, where my eating continues the groove it was in before the fast, and 2.0 continues to build.
Thanks to everyone for their support. I will continue posting, if you're interested, but it likely won't be daily, unless I have something substantive to offer. You guys are more of a source of strength than you'll ever know. Of course, Nat knows, because she is my "Why" for all of this.
Since a few people have asked, the following sources, while no means exhaustive, served as my inspiration for this project:
Join the Reboot
Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead (don't wait for the DVD if you're wanting to watch this, its available instantly)
Thursday, April 28, 2011
Day 10...I did it!
(hat tip to my friend Howard French for that quote)
Day 10 is here! My last day of fasting. I don't know if it was the prep work in the days prior or what, but this wasn't nearly as hard on me physically as I thought it might be. I thought hunger would have been a lot more of an issue, but it really wasn't at all. No bad headaches or nausea, either. My stomach did talk to me on occasion, but it was very mild.
The challenges were definitely more mental, especially yesterday at lunch. I got in my truck, just to get out of the office for a few minutes, and was so ready to just find a place to eat some solid food. What kept me from straying? I couldn't really think of anything in the area that I would have considered "worth" going off course (pardon the pun). I wasn't craving anything specific, which was probably a good thing. So I plugged in my iPhone and cranked up Solsbury Hill, by Peter Gabriel, as loud as I could. That song really helps keep me inspired about accepting change in my life and forging my own path.
My final tally won't be til tomorrow, but right now I'm at 12.5 pounds. Now I get to start planning to add solid food back in tomorrow, which is also my 5 year anniversary of being married to the most incredible support system (and Wife) in the world.
This is just the reboot phase of the iLance project. There will be a lot more (or less!) to come. Thanks to all of my friends for their support. You guys have helped keep me focused, inspired, and accountable during this stretch.
Monday, April 25, 2011
Day 7 - Thoughts on Exercise
One thing I don't think I appreciated regarding the juice fast is the impact of exercise on my body. In general, I feel like I've tolerated the fast very well, physically. This weekend, though, I discovered one of the under-appreciated facts of this dietary change, my energy tank ain't what it used to be.
On Saturday and Sunday, we went trail riding & hiking at Latta Plantation. For the first half of the time spent, I was fine. But then I noticed my stamina starting to fade a bit. My guess is that what little glycogen my body had in it was pretty much spent at that point, and fat just doesn't metabolize like sugar does. At least I'm hoping it was grabbing fat and not catabolizing muscle.
Of course, both events occurred on days when I likely wasn't drinking as much juice as I should, and I have little doubt that played a role in my fatigue. It also affected my hydration levels, adding another drag on my energy levels.
All in all, pretty easy lessons to learn, though. And being down 11 pounds after 6 days definitely makes the down sides a little easier to take. I just need to take better care of my hydration levels, juice more to account for any additional exercise, and I think I'll be fine.
On Saturday and Sunday, we went trail riding & hiking at Latta Plantation. For the first half of the time spent, I was fine. But then I noticed my stamina starting to fade a bit. My guess is that what little glycogen my body had in it was pretty much spent at that point, and fat just doesn't metabolize like sugar does. At least I'm hoping it was grabbing fat and not catabolizing muscle.
Of course, both events occurred on days when I likely wasn't drinking as much juice as I should, and I have little doubt that played a role in my fatigue. It also affected my hydration levels, adding another drag on my energy levels.
All in all, pretty easy lessons to learn, though. And being down 11 pounds after 6 days definitely makes the down sides a little easier to take. I just need to take better care of my hydration levels, juice more to account for any additional exercise, and I think I'll be fine.
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