Session II: 70515 - 71815

Trying to break the code!!

Survival Protocol

Chapter I: Summer 61915 - 92615



Session II: 70515 - 71815: Looking at the numbers from the past session suggests I'm going in the wrong direction - fat is up, muscle is down and overall weight is up. This means I'm fatter - not by much - but this is why I keep track. Weight and weakness and fat will sneak up on us if we don't remain vigilant. If it is allowed to go unchecked, those two pounds will turn into 5; into 10 and into 20. I've seen it happen. I allowed it to happen to me. In my case it turned into 60 pounds before I decided to do something about it. (And when I did, I never looked back.)

Once the weight creeps up on you, you find yourself in a cycle of confusion that includes denial, depression and dis-ease. Most people turn, frantically to quick fixes; drugs, fad diets and/or emotional

The waaay before pic, c. 1985

eating. This only makes matters worse.

When fat-weight gain goes unaddressed, it can capture you, hold you captive and start consuming you from the inside, like a zombie parasite!

This brings me to imagination and the underlying theme of Survival Protocol. Having been a TV addict, a comic book reader and to some extent a writer, I realize as "Americans" we need an enemy to spur us into action. Fat and dis-ease (I write it like this to emphasize that what we've come to lazily call "disease" is nothing more than an absence of "ease" or health) is my enemy and activity is my weapon against both.

Overweight/over-fat people are headed for ill health. Science has declared that the fat we store in great quantities actually becomes like a living being, an endocrine system... a monster in our bodies determined to keep itself alive at our expense. It drains our energy, destroys our self-esteem and changes the way we think. It steals our freedom and quality of life.

60 lbs. later... 225 lbs, in '95

Hyperbole and war metaphors aside, when "unnatural" fat invades our bodies, it's seen as an invader and the body goes to war against it. "We" our conscious, our mind, must support this effort, by supplying the weapons necessary to defeat these visceral terrorists.

We must increase metabolism, improve supply lines (blood flow) and build and support the forces that are going to ultimately destroy, eliminate and expel the FAT! We must increase muscle and activity. We must deny the invader what it needs to grow.... essentially junk food and junk drinks.

This is the battle cry for Session II. Because my universe (my body) has been relatively calm, I feel
I've slacked and allowed the forces of evil to slip back in. But I've also been keeping track and will rally my forces and come back strong.

This session - with the lower back in better condition, I can accelerate the lifting weight during Option training and for the remainder of the Chapter and possibly through the next one as well. I will probably initiate my build/burn strategy on a monthly basis starting in August during the AM sessions. Muscle is my best offense against the fat villain, so big muscle group building will continue.

This is the Health Revolution - my best bet is exercise, activity and intention.

Who's with me?

Here's the weight chart from the first half of session two. I haven't declared any red zones yet, however I noticed a mid-week trend. It seems like my best days, numbers-wise are Tuesday and Wednesday. This makes sense because Mondays and Tuesdays are cardio classes and sometimes I even lift on those days, and every morning (mostly) I train as well. Wednesdays are really hump days for me, but how do I maintain the low weight/high muscle mass percentages throughout the week?

Day	Sunday 7-5	Monday 7-6	Tuesday 7-7	Wednesday 7-8	Thursday 7-9	Friday 7-10	Saturday 7-11	Ave.
Weight	182.6	181.6	180.4	180.4	181.4	181.4	182.6	181.5
Body Fat %	17.3	17.1	17.1	16.9	17.2	17.3	17.2	17.1
BF wt.	31.59	31.05	30.85	30.49	31.2	31.38	31.41	31.04
H2O %	60.5	60.6	60.6	60.8	60.6	60.5	60.6	60.6
H2O wt	110.47	110.05	109.32	109.68	109.93	109.75	110.65	110
Muscle mass %	43	43.1	43.1	43.2	43	43	43	43
Muscle wt.	78.52	78.27	77.75	77.93	78	78	78.52	78
MM:BF ratio	2.49	2.52	2.52	2.56	2.50	2.49	2.5	2.51

Summary 7-5-15: The day started out slow. Church for me is a workout so I did a little at home. Dragged myself into work, then to the Y for Option #4, easiest of the group, then actually had a chance to hang out with friends for a little while. Rare pleasure.

70515 [Sunday #17] – Deep sleep, triple snooze and really didn’t want to get up – but had to – discipline.

Short kind of jumbled AMX – did the ‘hard stuff’ – overhead squats (knees move in), elevated lunge squat singles [12 lbs], but 2 sets of 5 maybe – wobbly. Bridge pushups 2 x 2 short ROM. Lots of room for improvement here. If I film it will it hurt or help?

Bkft – chicken 2 eggs.

Weigh in – minor change but it’s only been two hours. Tricky to assess, no actual (gym) work yesterday. The OT… etc. and up 4 lbs – maybe more cardio in August, but keep the Options going – I like the way this is progressing. I may be losing focus on the muscle gain by obsession on the scale/weight.

Round I: [N]

Lunch – tootsies 74%, kale, chicken, cabbage, feta.

The Hard Stuff for the mornings: Overhead squat, single leg squat, bridge pushups, ski pole plank, and the regular pushups.

Option 4 today. Going for 80 lbs today, close grip, bent row reverse grip, seated press (65 lbs), pull ups, bent flies, ez curls 40 lbs.

Round II: [N]

Round III: [SL]

YMCA – Option #4: Protocol: 80 lbs barbell, 4 x 15, unless otherwise noted. Close grip bench press: done. First set was actually easy. No left shoulder issue, but something crept up in the right shoulder. Just an annoyance. Easy jump to 90 lbs next round. Bent row – reverse grip – Done, no problem. Advance to 90 lbs. Seated shoulder press – 65 lbs, 6, 10, 2 x 15. This continues to be a challenge. Took long breaks with left shoulder therapy [rotations] between sets. Questioning a move to 70… but will figure that out next time. Got to go slow with the shoulders. Pull ups – close grip, smith machine; 4 x 7. Just one more. Psoas, lower didn’t hurt as much. In fact a lot of muscle pains in the body didn’t hurt as much today. Getting to 7 feels accomplished. EZ biceps curls [outside grip] 40 lbs on the bar, 4 x 15 done, but these were hard rounds, rocking and cheating the weight up at time. Will stay here for a while. Bent flies 30 lbs dbs. 4 x 15. Tough and tiring enough to stay here. 30 minutes easy cardio on the bike. This was a great session. The feeling of making progress is a… REALLY good feeling.

Done, just over an hour including the 30 minutes… probably closer to 90 minutes.

Pre-supps & post supps, protein shake (full scoop) and fruit and peanut butter @ home about 1 hr post workout. Brisk walk from 6-9 (it’s about a mile).

Sundae, dark beer (Love Stout) 1 and grilled chicken salad.

Home & bed. That’s all… good day.

Summary 7-6-15: This was an extraordinary day which started with Jury Duty, which I got postponed… again. There was a crowd of people who came to Functional Fitness at the Y and when that was over there was a fire on the 69th street shopping strip. I got some goodies for my soup and walked home. Walking is getting easier. Breath is getting stronger too.

70615 [Monday #18] – wake 0545 jury duty today – convince myself I don’t have a headache.

Round I:

AMX – the hard stuff including 4 x 30 pushups. Hard stuff two rounds, but gets easier – yet they’re still hard. Got notes to catch up on.

Bkft, fruit, almonds & honey.

Round II: [SLW] – what was that about??

Jury duty rescheduled. Got a warning pain in/near the throat when I swallow. Very slight, which could be from the beer last night. Did I encounter wheat? Just one Love stout – (may have been enough).

The numbers look a little better today. Weight down, muscle up, but small – not too much to get excited about.

Got some unexpected, expected free time today. AM work is done. I’m thinking chores.. always cleaning to do.

Summer 2005, at my strongest, but not very lean.

Meal – spicy chicken, scallions, tea.

What’s the “HARD STUFF”

Overhead squats – I never did these because they were hard, thus my body is not used to them. I’m surprised how quickly the body adapts. It’s a new yet ‘painful’ feeling. I find my knees wanting to move inward. I have to look up the muscle stretch/weakness ratio for that and the correction. Or maybe it’s just concentration and awareness.

Pushups – aren’t hard, but they are included because they must be done.

Elevated single leg lunge squat – once again this was hard for me in the past so I ignored it. I’m wobbly now but I expect to overcome it, gain more core and overall stability and strength.

Pipes Plank – holding the pipes in my fists extended at a distance, I try to raise up and hold a plank. At this point I’m using my knees. I’m looking forward to some amazing results, namely being able to pushup in this position on my toes.

Bridge pushups – it’s hard enough for me to hold a bridge on my hand. I’m using the one-a-day method and yoga blocks. Who know where this will go?

I re-read an entry and realized I haven’t really started crawling – must remember. Okay, ugh… chores.

Meal – bean/goat soup (finished) – spicy two bowls. YGX today, maybe some work before. Option #1 tomorrow is mostly legs. The back is better so I’m going to start going heavier on Romanians and maybe re-introduce heavy dead lift (days) in august. That should be plenty of time to not only heal, but strengthen the back as well.

Soldier walk to the bus… the pace is quickening. Got some triceps and upper back work done before class – including some wall jumps, I guess a description of this will come later.

YGX was extraordinary – it was packed with many new people along with the regulars. YMCA made me feel like a rock star today. Ha ha. Good energy and participation. Pre-stack and post protein/creatine drink… 69^th st. was burning on the way home. (Food shopping for the next soup.)

Second meal – cashews

Third meal – lentils, chicken thighs (done) and sour cream.

Smoked Turkey vegge soup, prepared and cooking – throat still sore – same spot and downward. Some vitamin C – hope it’s not too late.. darn!... there’s barley in Love Stout – this didn’t happen with Guinness.

Back and psoas stretches, chlorella & ACV and tea. Then bed, read, write, think, dream.. I like my blog page… best I’ve done. It’s like my new magazine. Every two weeks an issue comes out.

Summary 7-7-15 – a lot of exercising and fitness today, but the funny thing that has nothing to do with fitness is I sent a happy anniversary text to a friend, but got the wrong number, the person asked “who is this?” I reply, ‘Your wedding photographer.’ Mystery person says they will contact me when they get married. Hmmmm.  Sometimes funny ish happens.

70715 [Tuesday #19] – I can barely describe today’s waking process. I fought a battle to get out of bed that I didn’t win until 0730. I woke up before 0400 and checked the soup (it’s good by the way). Woke again, and stretched the psoas at the edge of the bed –perhaps the psoas stretch should be the snooze activity? Anyway, early Y today so no AM cardio… yet… who knows? Habit might get the better of me.

The sore throat is lingering in the background waiting, like a predator for a weak moment… more vitamin C today & turkey soup, w/ veggies – a winner and tea of course.

2 Rounds completed – chlorella at work. Soup & tea for breakfast… don’t forget the morning stack. (I drink lots of tea on my days off, even when it’s hot out.)

Body is sore today. It’s an Option #1 day and TUGX… not very excited about it today.. I’ll get  up for it though. YGX participation is up over TGX… funny I can remember when no one showed up for Functional Fitness [YGX] in the summer. Monday is a good day – it’s a good class and I’m a good instructor. I can finally give myself some credit.

I want to take Romanians to 100 lbs today. Considering a healthy pull is 3x that, 4 x 15 should be just about doable. Thrusters, still 65 and maybe 80 for lunges. 135 leg curls. Then what? Maybe elevated lunge squats? Catch up with those by doing 2 x a cycle? Perhaps. Energy and strength are building.

Morning Home work – stretch, neck, upper back, toe touches… the reason I started was to do crunches, which I didn’t do.. maybe later.

2 scoops of PB.

Round III: [LW] same as round two… To the Y.

Yogurt – throat pain seems to be moving but increasing, only when I swallow though.

YMCA – Option #1 – brutal on the legs, but satisfying and mostly successful. Going for it was the right thing to do. Protocol: No single weight, 4 sets of 15 (or 20 for lunges) Romanians 100 lbs 4 x 15 – the weight made a difference but the low back didn’t flinch. Go + 10% 110 next time and inch up to 200 lbs. NO RUSH (I say that now) Thrusters – still at 65 lbs. 4 x 15… first set was 12, felt the chills and quit – but got the next 3, I think I should go to 70 lbs. even if I have to start at 8 reps again, (or lower). The shoulder held up as well. I did shoulder rotations and stretches between sets. That probably helped. Lunges – 75 lbs. 4 x 20 – exhausting – put a knee down on the 4th set. The whole process of picking up the bar and getting off my back was stronger than last time around. Leg curls 135 lbs (cable) 4 x 15 done but hard. Maybe add the brick next time. Don’t be a wimp.

Protein drink and BCAA’s after. Walk to the 42 (my slow cardio). Pre-supps done also. I don’t know what made me think I could do more. This is a tough day made tougher by increasing the weights. Ok, so on Romanians, increasing 10% per round would look like 8 weeks to 210 lbs. and half that time to 310. That’s enough time to get strong. So imagine 12 weeks… or 90 days to 310. Hmmm, nice goal to set, let’s see how it manifests.

Second meal – T-burger, shrooms, scallions. TUGX next.. still in workout gear. Trail mix before class… third meal.

Good class, not high intensity, made it through. Draught Horse, shrimp salad and iced tea (1).

Aqua Box was sat – seaweed after and tea @ home, not very hungry. Close to bed time already.

4 vitamin C (2k) and tea. Throat is getting worse, but not bad yet – still fighting it back. hot & humid – sweating it out whatever it is.

Back bends on the ball, psoas remains tight. Hard stuff, work and massage tomorrow. Chlorella and ACV – check. Psoas stretch over the bed w/ ankle weights a good thing to do before bed, I think.

Until tomorrow, g’nite.

Summary 7-8-15: Happy Birthday Onyx Java. Got the hard stuff out of the way early. Increased the pushups count… I’m in the 30’s now. Then relaxed the rest of the day and finished things off with a massage, by Keanne. Thanks darlin’

70815 [Wednesday #20] – Double snooze – slow moving – I guess – so… first day back to work. Massage day.

Got the “hard stuff” done, especially the 4 x 31 pushups… not bad. Not nervous and they are getting stronger and stronger. Two rounds of the other stuff – I really need more than 30 minutes to do all of this, and I’m only doing a few reps of each.

Round I:

Throat’s still sore, annoying – more than before. I’m having Miami beer flashbacks and taking love stout off the beer list. Oh well. There might be other factors involved. Being wheat free has probably reduced my tolerance.

Lunch – Park’s 88%, no dark turkey meat today… boo!!

Throat has gotten worse today, [day 3]. Not weak, but annoyed!! Trying to pinpoint this thing. No other symptoms. 

Today I calculated how long it would take me to get my deadlifts up to 300+ lbs. This is a theory mind you and it depends on whether or not my body can grow 10% stronger every week at the Romanian (straight legged) deadlift. Next Session I’ll take it to 110 lbs. 4 x 15 reps – which should be doable. Option #1 comes around every 8-10 days so this could take nearly 6 months. Session 2 120 Session 3 130 Session 4 145 Session 5 160 Session 6 175 Session 7 190 Session 8 210 Session 9 230 Session 10 255 Session 11 280 Session 12 310 I keep thinking that at some point I’m going to plateau – still I want to know what that point is. 4 x 15 @ 310 lbs is hard for me to imagine… I’ll also be adding weight to the other Options as well… this could get interesting.

Round III: good stuff, double-ish

Home: tea, yogurt, massage time. Hot, humid and rainy.

Great massage, must ice neck/back. throat is more intensely sore, seems deeper too, down lower in the esophagus.

Dinner; turkey soup – Damn Good!

Tea, iced the back/neck. Feel like sleeping but must let the feet hang for psoas stretch before sleep.

Pretty good break day. Good confirmation of muscle density from Keanne (MT).

Fruit before bed (berries). Chlorella, ACV, psoas stretch and that’s the day.

Summary 7-9-15: early calisthenics with the toob around my legs and after-gig Option training… upper body work with very good results. Feeling beasty!!

70915 [Thursday #21] – Wake, 2x snooze – calisthenics with the ‘toob’ [rubber band] – good sweat. What are these numbers about? No lifting and no protein drink yesterday. Is this the cost of a break day?

AMX Calisthenics w/ toob. This seems to bring the sweat, (but it was also a pretty humid day). Didn’t realize how pliable the rubber is, so I adjusted it a few times… WOW!! Then the weigh in – disappointed, but trying to be patient. Weight ratios and physique don’t seem to be aligning with my image. The body actually looks better to me than the numbers suggest. Keep reminding myself… the numbers are a guide.

Bkft – turkey soup, and a new batch [stack] of vitamins – mostly the same as last time. Still trying to weed out some of the supps I feel that I don’t need, or are redundant.

Round I: [BFS]

Lunch Park’s 96% - the usual. Seems they only serve the turkey breast now.

Option #2 Day – start with incline bench and raise the weigh to 80 lbs.

Round II: - and out to the Y.

Round III: YMCA – Option #2. Thought: I’m getting stronger on paper. Reality… I’m getting stronger and putting the results on paper.  

Option #2 Today’s Protocol: 80 lbs… Made a 15 lbs jump. Pretty ballsy. 4 x 15, starting with incline bench press. Incline press: done. The first set was hard. Left shoulder was hurting, which meant, lateral plate raises, stretches and rotations between sets. Got everything done. The shoulder really needs to be warmed up before and during this station. Bent row: surprisingly easy. Realizing that this is really working. 4 quick sets. Going to 90. Bench press – done with the shoulder warmed up. Nothing to it. Tempted to go to 100 even, but I’ll baby-step my way up. Although I usually push more weight, this strategy calls for more reps. Doing 15s make 10 seem easy and those 5 extra reps make a big difference. Lat pull down – cable 75 lbs. 4 x 15 – went for it and made it. It was easier than last time, but I still had some soreness in the later sets. Straight arm pull downs; - 4 x 15 70 lbs cable. Right weight. Done. New one for this regimen.

Pre-supps and post protein drink… walk to 42 [bus].

Meal 2 – beef and 2 eggs. Window closes at 19;30. Tea time, regardless of the heat and humidity. Maybe that’s why water weight is dropping, why I’m looking tighter and fat seems to be going up.

Feels like the throat is getting better. Day 4. I should throw back a few more vitamin C’s with the next meal.

Tired, the bod better be processing that protein I gave it.

Meal 3 – turkey soup in the window. Vitamin C after… got a little boost from the meal.

Looking at the last two weeks, I seem to be peaking [best numbers] on Wednesdays, but not this Wednesday (or so I thought, I was wrong). Apparently I think it has to do with the cardio combo Monday & Tuesday and the lifting, when they are combined. Although it might also be because of my days off. Two possibilities to look in to.

The usual nightly rituals including acv and chlorella and psoas stretches at the edge of the bed. Made it to bed earlier than usual. Maybe the extra hour will help.

G’nite.

Summary 7-10-15: HAPPY Birthday Ichiban Son – Just realized after a week I haven’t mentioned the sore throat in these summaries. So if you haven’t been reading the full text, I believe I got a sore throat from the beer I drank Sunday (it contains barley) so it’s off my list. Today the throat started to feel better. In other news – the “Hard Stuff” and a semi-vanity workout at the Y, nice weather and more walking. Otherwise… not much else going on.

71015 [Friday #22] – double snooze, although I got to bed early. The double seems to be the norm. Good cool overnight too. Comfortable.

Although I was dreading the “Hard Stuff’.. I got it done after an extended wake-up-warm-up… Overhead squats 2 x 10 with better form. 4 x 32 pushups, I split up the pushups with elevated lunge squats (btw, 10 lbs dumbbells for overhead squats and lunge-squats). Let’s say 4 sets of them and understand that one leg is a set of 10. Ski pole planks feel more solid and 2 x 3 bridge pushups. Feeling slightly better. I’m getting higher off the blocks.

Weigh in – fat’s up, H2O down, minimally. Muscle is steady. Not getting it, but still trying to be an observer. It seems I won’t get the ratio the way I want to, if I get it at all. It will be the

Occasional YMCA selfie... 7-10-15 Wolvie's Birthday

way it will be. Que sera, sera.  I know to expect weight gain taking post-workout protein shakes, so I’m going to set a limit of 185 lbs, then I’ll switch to a burn protocol. Unless that 185 is a clear increase in muscle mass, and my pants don’t get tight.

Turkey soup for breakfast. Vitamin C first thing. Sore throat is way better. Barely noticeable. So, 5 days of an annoyance and wondering if this was going to develop into something, due to a pint of beer. Thanks immune system… you came through.

Lunch – park’s 88%. Chicken & salmon, cabbage, greens, doubled the broc & cauli. Will eat it later, not hungry @ 11:45 – but can munch on some seaweed strips.

Y today.. vanity, shoulders, triceps, biceps, forearms, abs maybe some crawls and kicks. Think all cable work. I may just improve it.

Round II:[BF] (How did that happen?)

YMCA Vanity Day: Here’s the plan… 4 shoulder exercises 3 triceps exercises 2 biceps exercises 4 x 15 each round, unless noted. Lateral Flies: 20 lbs dbs – 4 x 15: Good work, may have to stay here, too bad the y doesn’t have 22.5 lbs dbs. Triceps press down: 80 lbs cable 4 x 15. Good weight I can do 90 next time. DB curls – 20 lbs – 4 x 30 total, alternating curls. Might be tough to get 25, but I should try. Front shoulder raises – 20 lbs 4 x 15. Better stay with this weight. Triceps cable pull-overs on stability ball: 70 lbs cable, first time trying this and OUCH! So it must be good. 4 x 15 rough reps. This was nuts and also worked hips and core. I must master this. Biceps cable curls 50 lbs. 4 x 15. Inside elbows hurt, as usual. Maybe add a brick next time. Front raise (rev grip) – 15 lbs dbs. 4 x 30 (alternating) I could probably do 20s earlier in the workout. I love doing these… it’s the visual. Triceps kickbacks 25 lbs dbs. 4 x 15 each side. Lying shoulder laterals – 12 lbs. 2 x 6 each. I have to admit this was too heavy. I need to do these because it hits right where my shoulder is weakest and most painful. I may add this to the Hard Stuff workout. This will help condition my shoulders.

Pre-supps and post BCAA’s with protein shake. 90 minutes. Walk to the 42.. which I think will be the norm during the week. (I might as well walk home on weekends, the way the buses run).

Meal – 2 Beef & 2, eggs + 4 vit C.

Meal – 3 Turkey soup.

Dull pain in throat, flares sometimes.. and some sneezing today. I wonder if this thing is trying to trick me. Still, and always stepping up the immune system as best I can.

Normal night time stuff, chlorella, no ACV, psoas stretch off the side of the bed and lights out. No music tonight.

Note – I may tend to over explain this stuff, but when I think that I may be looking back on this blog and/or these notes years from now, I will probably forget exactly what I did. Further, there may actually be people ‘reading’ this and wondering what the heck I’m talking about, so I want to explain as clearly as possible. I need to start filming stuff.

 

Summary 7-11-15: Pretty normal day at work then Option #3 afterwards. Throat still ‘sore’ but not much. Muscle mass % remaining steady.

71115 [Saturday #23] – 2X snooze – took a minute to realize today is Saturday. No need for extreme AMX this morning. More movement, stretch and rotations, which since I don’t wake up stiff as often, I don’t think to do.

Still a dull soreness in the throat. Thought I was through with that – but, day 6 and first thing I took some vit C, 2k mg. All other issues aside, I’m not sore from the last two days’ workout. Today is Option #3 Legs day!!! And heavy too. Already looking fwd to it…. Tea.

Round I:

Weigh in: Something’s happening with these numbers… analysis?? Muscle mass % seems to be steady. Hmmm….

Bkft – turkey burger – it didn’t do the trick. Realize now the importance of eggs.

Round II:

It’s an O-3 Day. Leg press, back squats, shin flex, front lunges, 1-leg lunge. 370… 100? 70-80, 80? 20-30.

Round III:

Lunch Park’s – 87% Salmon, hot peppers, etc.

YMCA – Option #3 – legs, heavy: Inverted Leg Press: Smith 320lbs. + bar. 4 x 15 – done, plus 4 x 40 calf presses/pulses. Looked hairy early on, but came through strong. That 50 lb was a big jump. Next time add 20. Back squats: 100 lbs. this was too big of a jump to pull from the floor. Tried the first set all four would not go like this. Next time, add 10 pounds and go from the rack. I’ll need Olympic Options in the future. 4 x 15 done… ready to advance. Shin Flex/calf raises 55 lbs flex 4 x 25, no wt calf raises, 4 x 50. Reduced the dumbbell weight due to thin sneakers. Anyway, I choose this weight by how I feel, I may do 55 today and 85 next time around. This one isn’t progressive. Front Lunge 80 lbs, barbell – big jump, reduced the reps to 4 x 10 and here I stay. Getting a bit better at holding the bar, but want to get and keep my elbows higher. Semi leg extensions (Frank Legs) 4 x 25, 105; 120; 135; 150. Had some extra energy left, (But not for single-leg elevated lunges.

Pre-supps, post drink & BCAAs. Walk to 42 got hungry.

2 scoops of P-butter and a fruit “shake’ (more like pudding) + Gainer – haven’t had this since taking the protein – wondering the results of taking both. Got to use this gainer stiff up, then finish off the chocolate barrel.

Nap, tea, beef, more tea, cashews, throat pain fading… it’s been coming and going. Chlorella, ACV. Cathartic writing, thinking, imagining.

Tomorrow? Hard stuff, Or break? If I break HS comes on the same day as O#4 and Functional Fitness. It’s too early to be skipping it. Got to knock out 33’s (pushups), hit the lunge squats and add the shoulder raises to the mix. But I’m off so I can sleep late and stretch things out.

Happily single on a Saturday Night. 


SESSION II - Part 2

Here are this week's numbers. I've decided that anything above 31 lbs of body fat is red zone. So most of this week has been in the red zone. What's happening is typical; fat weight is going up along with muscle mass, However while the percentage of muscle mass drops, the actual muscle weight rises. Fat weight as well as percentage is rising and my ratio is suffering. If I looked solely at the numbers I'd be freaking out, because I'm not meeting my numbers goals. On the other hand, the visuals (as you will see in this session) are very encouraging. Fat continues to be the enemy and I'm wondering if my scale is pulling a George Bush on me; trying to scare me into thinking there's more enemy than there actually is. It will motivate me... but if I don't see the results at some point I have to ask... What's the point? 

  

Day	Sunday 7-12	Monday 7-13	Tuesday 7-14	Wednesday 7-15	Thursday 7-16	Friday 7-17	Saturday 7-18	Ave.
Weight	182.6	181.6	179.8	181.4	182.6	182.6	183.4	182
Body Fat %	17.2	17.1	16.7	17.2	17.6	17.4	17.6	17.3
BF wt.	31.41	31.05	30.03	31.2	32.14	31.77	32.28	31.5
H2O %	60.6	60.6	60.9	60.6	60.3	60.4	60.3	60.5
H2O wt	110.65	110.05	109.5	109.93	110.10	110.29	110.59	110.11
Muscle mass %	43	43.1	43.3	43	42.8	42.9	42.8	43
Muscle wt.	78.52	78.27	77.85	78	78.15	78.34	78.5	78.26
MM:BF ratio	2.50	2.52	2.59	2.50	2.43	2.47	2.43	2.48

Summary 7-12-15: Mental health day. Hard stuff in the morning. Walking and wandering in the evening. Still pushing up the pushups. Decent day.

71215 [Sunday #24] – Mental health day – slept in. Tea, Round I before the hard stuff… lunge squats and becoming more stable, over head squat – slightly better, ski poles stronger, almost doing kind of pushups on the knees – speaking of which 4 x 33 pushups. Don’t want to get too cocky – but they are becoming easier… so maybe slow down a little bit. I don’t want to regress, but speeding through won’t give me the ‘best’ results. Bridge pushups – did 3 sets for the first time [2 x 3] and got 4 on the 3^rd set. This will be ultra slow because I need to open many core muscles and strengthen so much of the shoulder muscles. Nice way to start a week.

Bkft was the protein drink after the heard stuff… do I still take 2 more meals within 3 hours? Sure. It will probably be easier so early in the day.

Oh – the body, especially the hammies were sore from yesterday, but not debilitatingly so.

Shower & the numbers (PS – lots of other twisting and stretching and stuff during the Hard Stuff. Same numbers as yesterday

Meal -2 Beef & eggs… more tea. Good sweat.

Meal -3 Turkey soup – finished – in the window. Maybe more tea but who knows? Try to clean up a little. Ponder, think, imagine.

Chicken salad w/ berries @ White Dog.

Round II –

Walked down the Schuylkill banks wandered and chilled at 30^th st.

Home – finished the beef, had a gainer fruit smoothie. Sore throat keeps coming and going (a week now) I’m too aware of it. Chilled at home – old movies, Chlorella & ACV before bed. Read, write, imagine.

Summary 7-13-15 busy and active day today. Two visits to the Y for Option and functional fitness. Thighs were sore, throat was sore, did a lot of walking, but actually felt strong in the gym. Ready to take my upper body regimen to the 100 lbs point. Woo hoo!! Eval pic…

71315 [Monday #25] – Rolled out of bed around 0600 – day off. Sore body. Throat is okay but soreness seems to be lingering. Lame workout. Mostly stretching my neck and laying on the floor. Energy low – soreness high. Cup of tea. Round I – early.

The numbers remain steady. Weight is down a pound, muscle is up a point, but probably a dropin muscle weight. The salad, iced teas and gainer drink didn’t seem to have an adverse effect.

Need to get more food and thinking it’s time to add fruit, an apple maybe to the gym bag. A sugar blast before workouts.

Option #4 Today – I have to check. I think I can push close grip to 90 lbs and make it through, as with the reverse grip rows. Seated press I think I can introduce 70 lbs today. EZ bar curls (inside grip0 stay @ 40 lbs. (on the bar) and shrugs and flies, (bent) if time allows.

What’s for breakfast? 2 turkey burgers and fruit gainer shake. Seems like a lot, but the right micronutrients. I need energized muscles today.

Round II @ the Y for O#4. Then Round III. Kind of felt head achy during this but strong! Pre-supps. This is one of my favorite Options. Upper Body 4 x 15 mostly.

YMCA – Option #4 Close grip press 90 lbs. done, ready for 100s. Bent row, rev. grip – 90 lbs done – 100 next. Seated press 70 lbs barbell 10 – 12 – 2 x 15 – staying with 70, but much improvement. This took a lot out of me. Pull ups, close grip (Smith) 4 x 8 – added 1 each. By this time I needed something not as tough. Barbell shrugs – 90 lbs. alternate inside/outside grip, chin down, chin up…. 4 x 15 done. Ready for 100 + EZ curls 40 lbs on bar 4 x 15 done, better than last week (inside grip) add 5 lbs, but inner elbow. Skipped the bent flies – strong, but the energy left after the shoulder presses and pull ups.

Protein drink and BCAAs – rode home. Got some food.

Home – granny smith apple – first in a long time. Not sure if this will count as a meal.

Next meal – salmon (2) and lentils w/ butter.

Sore throat still lingering, but slight. “thighceps’ sore so I coated them with icy-hot and now. They burn… cup of tea. YGX in a couple of hours.

Good stuff going on – the back is fine. No pain or soreness, shoulder is coming around. It was strong today and handling heavier loads. I broke the 100 lb barrier on a few exercises and calves are starting to split. Making gains like I’m 20 years younger… Part discipline, part ignoring the myths of age.

Round IV & V: Double play (DP). Natural detox, maybe that’s what I was feeling earlier. Ate nothing out of the ordinary though.

Most recent (2015) so here's 30 years of progress & regress. The ups and downs of life.

Next: Functional fitness at the Y. Mas agua! Ironic how I’m feeling so strong. Maybe it was the shakes or chlorella doing its job.

YGX was okay… sluggish… hammies never did loosen up. Did I mention 2, 1 mile walks to 6-9 today (for the bus). I should be okay. Small meal when I get home. Test those eggs and hearts. This didn’t happen – but I munched on blueberries, almonds and peanut butter. Sore throat flared up during YGX. Had a vitamin lodged right in the tender spot earlier this morning. Maybe that brought it back. I think I need to find a way to strengthen the muscles in this area and/or open it up. I think it’s constricted more so than when I was younger. I wonder if there’s fat around my throat.

Took 4 Vit C’s for the night. Maybe go back later for chlorella and ACV. I think chlorella did the job. So maybe a break for a couple of days and just use ACV.

I’m writing a lot more not even a month and I’m halfway through my notes book. It’s a good sign that my finger nails grow fast and strong. I may have mentioned that before. 

Summary 7-14-15: Group Fitness at temple today. Some hard stuff in the morning. The day cleared up. My cardio game has become sluggish, which is probably due to lifting. I may just have to force the energy. I’ve got enough fat reserve.

 71415 [Tuesday #26] – wake up, 0630… dreary, rainy. Low energy. Was there a time when I was excited to get out of bed? If so, I need to recapture that.

Hard Stuff AMX – focus on the pushups, 4 x 34… becoming more challenging. Lots of stretch and rotation in between with lunge squats – 12 lbs. , 10 each side. 2 x 10 Overhead squats. I figure I’ll space the rest out during the day. Another day off. Throat, ok.. hard to call.

Weigh in before (shower) and after test. After is much better. Weight is steady so that at least doesn’t fluctuate. The numbers are great today. Muscle mass, which hasn’t budged in about a week hit 43.3%... sure would like to see 44%. (weighed in before tea too, I suspect that makes a difference… or not.)

I think I found my answer. Lots of walking and lifting. I think I ate a lot yesterday. I doubled my portions of turkey burgers and salmon and made those 20 minute walks to the bus terminal, twice.

So far, hearts & eggs and tomatoes and scallions for bkft. Gainer & fruit shake, 2^nd meal. Chill, chores & Temple today and studies vaccine videos.

Round I [N] – late.

Round II:

TUGX… not bad, not overly intense. Did more overhead squats again, 15 lbs… yikes. I’m making it through these sessions but “cardio” energy isn’t there.

Meal at the Draught Horse, salad and salmon, actually very good too, but don’t order iced tea here. I opted out of the post-TUGX protein drink, I didn’t work that hard. Option #1 tomorrow. BTW throat doesn’t hurt now – legs feel okay. Good thing too O#1 is legscentric. I skipped the pre & post workout supps today.

Aqua – good fun. Chill at la casa. Work tomorrow 3 Option #1.

Summary 7-15-15: Work days are pretty much the same. I update this blog and imagine what my workout session will be like. (In between all the important work I have to get done.) I get my lunch… I eat my lunch. It’s not very exciting. Today nothing special happened. That’s probably a blessing – too much excitement would throw me off my schedule. Counting the months…

71515 [Wednesday #27] – Only one snooze today. Got up and did a moderate workout. I need to generate more energy. Got some ski-poles work done, back stretches and what’s become the ‘normal’ wake up routine. Keeping away from the cardio, which I will pick up again in August. Meanwhile the numbers go back to (there’s that word again) normal which is not where I want them. I need more active days like Monday. I think it’s more days off than cardio sessions that improve the numbers. But the Bod is still looks tight and even tighter so I have to not fret the numbers… stick with the mirror and the fit for now.

Bkft – 2 eggs & egg white omelet w/ tomato, scallions & shrooms. (Not hungry at the gig. This will be breakfast for a while. Last time my diet was heavy in eggs I dropped lbs.)

Round I: [N] – headed out.

Lunch – Park’s 90% - doubled up on the cauli and broc – eat later. Low – e, but not very hungry either. Got (food) reserves in the bag (seaweed & apple) for the gym. Eggs are holding me over. More omelets for breakfast. Get more fixins. Got to prep the kale and potatoes after the gym.

Round II [BFF&S] Pita combo. I’ll take it though. It’s not a loss. Keep it movin’.

Round III: [SS] – Off the gig to the Y. Rock some legs 110!! (It’s come to this, I’m bragging about 110 lbs. Can’t live in the past though. This regimen might get me to a 400+ dead lift.)

YMCA – Round IV: [SF&S] Much variety. There was a comment, but I can’t remember.

Option #1 – Going over 100 lbs Finally. At least in one area. Protocol – largely 4 x 15, but as I’m moving up in weight I have to make allowances. It still takes (close to) 60 reps to advance. Sometimes if I cheat and go forward, it takes me a few sessions to get to the required reps/sets combination, but that’s okay. I can see and feel it working. Romanians; 110 lbs 4 x 15 done. Elbows inside got sore, so I added some wrist curls between sets. Feels like real weight now. Either I’ll get stronger or I’ll plateau… probably both. Thrusters – 70 lbs. 4 x 10 (one of those adjustments, but I feel like a beast when I finally conquer it.) stay here. The left shoulder still lags, so rotations and stretching and some raises between sets still help. Back lunges 85 lbs barbell 4 x 10 – jumped to 85 lbs… big jump. Stay here. Had to back off on reps. We will take this to 20 reps. Pulled it from the floor and up off the trapz too. More of this… get stronger. Leg Pump (semi-extensions) – Cable – 25 @ 150lbs; 20 & 25 @ 165 lbs. 20 @ 180 lbs. This is best left for last. Leg Curls – cable 135 lbs + brick. 2 x 15, 2 x 10 – barely believe I failed here. But here I’ll stay. Bent dumbbell row 30 lbs. This is a make up for the last time… 4 x 15. Pretty tough. I can go to 35 lbs or alter the arms and/or speed to make this tougher. Will decide next time around.

Pre-supps and protein drink after and apple very soon after. Rode home, got food. Food prep at home.

Meal – 3 hearts & read potatoes… super good!!

p-butter 2 scoops – of course I had tea and will probably have another (nope, opted out).

Okay, more food prep.

Tomorrow – Hard stuff… 35 pushups. Scary. Kind of, but I should be strong enough. Otherwise, break day. If I do go to the Y, might as well do cardio… I’ll figure it out.

Psoas stretch… almost forgot. 

Summary 7-16-15: after being aghast at the numbers, I finally settled down. I can’t help trying to mentally or physically trying to control these digits and I have to let it go. Straight home from work and fought over whether to work out or take a break. I figure I don’t lose either way. Of course I did something, mostly in the ways of practice. I can always stretch and I set up a band for shoulder therapy/strengthening. Studied some energy healing techniques at YT University… something else to practice and consider for a next career.

71615 [Thursday #28] – 2x snooze. Might be postponing the Hard stuff til this eve. Pushups 4 x 35, I’m pretty dedicated to these on schedule. (Hope I don’t jinx it by writing/bragging about it. They weren’t that difficult.

Weigh in gave me a WTF moment. I did a before after test again and BF was up at 18% before I wet my feet. What is this saying? (Besides don’t rely so much on the scale.) Maybe that’s the message I’m not getting. After yesterday’s tough workout, protein shake and apple & dinner, I expect better (stop expecting)! I’m still hung up on my stats. Yes, let go. Don’t stop taking them but get out of trishna (clinging).

Round I: [H] –pre-breakfast.

Bkft – omlete (veggie)

Round II: [N] – I’ve started stretching a bit at the gig. Legs. Well and glutes too. Getting my leg up onto the pass-on table, I’m sure it will do me good. I have to give stretching more credit and more time and focus.

Park’s 71% - crab, turkey, hots, greens… got kind of tired of the same mix. Finally, right?

Straight home from the gig. Gainer shake, did some exercises, lunge squats off the bench, started with the 12s but when weightless when the psoas started hurting. That area is still getting conditioned. Some shoulder work with the bands, some calisthenics with the band around my legs… nothing extreme. Haven’t been to the park in a while. It rains every week…. That’s just an excuse I imagine.

Round III

Meal (dinner) hearts, potatoes & kale. Two teas, bedtime stuff. Good thing I write this down, otherwise I’d forget the chlorella and the ACV. Psoas stretch too. Lasting longer and feeling less pull on it. Maybe I need more weight – or just let the legs hang longer.

Rare Round IV: Right before bed. G’nite.

Summary 7-17-15 – Another day in paradise. Throat still sore, very minor and it seems to come and go. Option #2 today… always a challenge because the left shoulder is still healing, trying to be strong and trying to keep up. Elevated the weight a little bit – less than I wanted, but that turned out to be the right thing to do. Got some more coconut water, and considering a fast. More about that later.

71715 [Friday #29] – 2x snooze.. K27 tapping.. the usual slow roll out of bed.

Round I –

AMX stretch and stuff. Outer rt elbow soreness over night, and I felt this coming yesterday. So more wrist and forearm work. Also more opening in the upper-upper for better front squat holds. Foam rolling for the quads, I need to do more of this.

Tea time, throat sore when swallowing.

Weigh in: MM goes up, fat is down… normal.

Bkft – 2 eggs + whites, spinach omelet (et al) sour cream.

Round II – [N]

General eating during work days (less I forget in the distant future). Homemade trail mix, dried papaya & pineapple chunks, yogurt covered peanuts, cashews, almonds, butter scotch chips. Today I had cherries too. I usually munch on this from 0800 to about 1100… which is when I get lunch.

Lunch – Park’s (food bar) 91% - grilled chicken, teriyaki salmon, cabbage, avocadoes, spinach and lately been adding cauliflower and broccoli.

YMCA – Round III –

Option #2 This morning I thought I’d be pushing 100 lbs on all barbell work. Luckily I looked at the time outing where I’d worked with 80 lbs. Sooo, I upped it to 90. Glad I did too. Incline Bench Press – 90 lbs, 4 x 15 It’s best (for me) to do my weakest exercise first, when I’m fresh and possibly strongest. I got all the reps, but it was tough, especially the first set. Left shoulder has to be therapied b/w every set, but it helps. There’s very little if any soreness by the last set. Going to baby-step it up to 95 next time.   My issue in on the inside, especially doing curls Bent Row – same. The weight here is no problem. I must mind the negative though to protect my elbows. Forearm work b/w sets. I want thick forearms but I need those epicondyles (especially the medial/inside) to be on point. Go to 95 lbs and stay with the program. Flat Bench Press – Don’t know why this concerns me (maybe because I injured both shoulders doing this on two different occasions). The shoulder is warmed up by this time… and I rocked it, 4 x 15. The baby weights are beginning to mature. Left shoulder is good here. Note – I should ice the shoulder when I get home. If I write it down, I’m more likely to remember to do it. Lat Pull Down wide grip – 82.5 lbs. cable. I’ve learned (I think) to reset my muscles b/w sets. I was expecting a tougher go, but it wasn’t that bad. I’ll take it to 90 next time. Face pulls (cable) – a “guest” exercise, b/c I had some energy left over. 70 lbs – done. Go for 80 next time. Reverse grip (supine) shoulder raises; 20 lbs 4 x 20 (total). This is vanity. I like the way my biceps look doing this (they pop). I can also use the front delt work too.

Pre-supps & post protein drink (full scoop) & BCAA’s. walk to market and load up the back pack with coconut water (adds 12 lbs to the pack) and walk to the 42 bus.

“Meal” – 2 apple.

Meal – 3; hearts & potatoes & kale.  Tea.

Shoulder therapy, randomly with bands/toobs.

Meal – 4; T-burger, tomatoes, shrooms & spinach. Felt I needed it too. Do your work protein – build my body!!

I can chill the rest of the eve. Clean dishes. I kind of like waking up to a clean kitchen.

I still have the closing ceremonies. I think the psoas is lengthening and strengthening, little by little. Work and pushups tomorrow, but no lifting. I have to adjust my lift schedule due to TUGX & work Tuesday. Extra break day or two lift days in a row? I can probably do Sunday & Monday and just the class on Tuesday… and back to lifting Wednesday. I’ll figure it out and you’ll read about it here.

Chlorella, no AVC tonight. Tunes. 

Summary 7-18-15: This is day 30 – it’s only been a month into this new Boot Camp season. I thought I wanted to maintain my weight between 173 – 178 lbs and I’m about 10 lbs over. My ratio has dropped and the only thing I can think of is having added the post workout protein shake, but there could me more to it. I feel like I’ve gone down this road before – the protein drink weight (fat) gain road. Fat weight is up, but muscle weight also. So I have to figure out what I want because it doesn’t seem I can have both. Maybe where I’m at is healthy… ever think of that? Maybe a 3:1 ratio isn’t the most healthy place to be? Hmmm, something to ponder, or is it an excuse. I’ve never been there so I don’t know. My best numbers came when I was recovering from the back injury.

71815 [Saturday #30] – Pre-wake, then one snooze. Got up a little more active today. No meridian work though. I did do a set of overhead squats and got to the pushups – priority, [4 x 36]. First round was strong, but have to keep my mind out of the failure fear. Must keep doubt from winning.

The digits… eh! Comes with the territory. Lift more, eat more, weigh more. I think the fat weight is a matter of the scale’s settings – so I may never see 3:1 on that. Bod looks tight, (still too fluffy at the bottom of the belly) – pants still fit. Measuring day in about 2 weeks – that will give me a clue which direction to take things.

Round I:

Round II: [BFL] – Lunch, Park’s 90%, crab & salmon, etc. cheese, peppers – The Saturday mix.

Throat still hurts when swallowing. This is the only symptom of what ever was triggered 2 weeks ago. (I think if I was really sick I’d have more symptoms.)

Round III: [SN] Go home.

Tea, wrist work with the bands. Noticed my right forearm is (or seems) way bigger than the left. I need to focus on left hand work and making it do more. I am already having lefty carry more weight in the gym. I haven’t done a Lefty day in a while.

Tried some lemon-syrup-cayenne elixir… not bad. Test batch, first 10 oz, I guess I felt full. This is supposed to be some kind of fasting drink. I’m not sure I can fast and train/teach classes. If I do this fasting thing, it will be a matter of faith too.

Actually got back out of the house, hiked down to 6-9 to get some food for the soup… and back with a heavy backpack. I call myself preparing to fast… ha! I ate fruit & nuts. Mostly chillin’. I’m going to have to try this fasting thing though. Maybe just take some time off and do 24 hrs. at a time. Just the drink and see what happens. Not even tea… just the elixir of life. Maybe no supplements too.

Chlorella & ACV before bed.

End of Session 2