My Journey to Become a Fitness God

So there has been a bit of a gap between posts, but I have been immensely busy the last week with work, studies and the gym. But still I have been able to maintain my diet, no cheating and I have been keeping up my gym sessions. On the plus side I have completed my first level towards becoming a personal trainer. Except yesterday I wanted to celebrate, and that is usually done with food or drink, which I can’t really do either of, so decided today I will spend some time treating myself to an experience rather than food. I had a busy weekend filled with writing session plans, birthdays (one at which people tried to get me to sing Karaoke, I don’t do well with public singing) and preparing for my coaching assignment.

Diet wise this week I have been consuming loads of carbs, 400g of carbs per day, and also getting my protein to be at around 300g-350g of protein per day. One or 2 days I have had to kind of make a couple of changes to my diet to accommodate my busy days, but kept my nutrient ratios the same and stayed away from the easily accessible junk food that surrounds me. It is quite easy to fall into that trap when you are busy, but as I have said before, planning makes all the difference in maintaining your goals.

So far I have been good at waking at 5 in the morning to hit the gym and haven’t skipped a day, I have started very much to enjoy it, it gives me quite a good boost for the day. I have never been much of a sleeper (well maybe as a teenager). I have always felt sleep to be a waste of my time and I don’t really want to sleep a 3rd of my life away, although I do understand the importance it plays in my goals! Nature just don’t require me to have as much and don’t enjoy it as much as some people do. Mornings I have never been fond off and ask my flatmate, I can be very cranky first thing. But when I wake up I am very much reminded by the following quote from Meditations by Marcus Aurelius (my favourite Roman Emperor):

“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: ‘I have to go to work – as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for – the things I was brought into this world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm? -But it’s nicer here… So you were born to feel ‘nice’? Instead of doing things and experiencing them? Don’t you see the plants, the birds, the ants and spiders and bees going about their individual tasks, putting the world in order, as best they can? And you’re not willing to do your job as a human being? Why aren’t you doing what your nature demands? ‘- But we have to sleep sometime…’ Agreed. But nature set a limit on that – as it did on eating and drinking. And you’re over the limit. You’ve had more than enough of that. But not of working. There you’re still below your quota.”

With this quote I take the meaning of work as what you do towards better yourself or those around. Your contribution to life.

And now for the results. Nothing has changed much, but this is what I am aiming for and as I have seen before when I make a big change in my diet, my body takes a week or so to make use of the change of diet.

My measurements for this week are:
Weight: 87.9kg
Neck: 39cm
Chest: 106cm
Waist: 88cm
Hips: 99cm
Left Thigh: 58cm
Right Thigh: 57cm
Left Calve: 39cm
Right Calve: 39cm
Left Bicep: 35cm
Right Bicep: 35cm

You pack your gym bag and you are about to hit the gym, obviously you have your trousers, shirt, trainers and towel in your bag, but there are also a few other things that I can’t go without when heading to the gym. And these are my top 5 things that you will always find in my gym bag.

5. Vibram Fivefinger Shoes

These I recently bought with the thought that I would give them a go and see how well they perform. It was more of a nice to have than a necessity. I did do a lot of reading up on barefoot running and it’s benefits before I bought a pair.

To my surprise, they were extremely comfortable and an absolute pleasure to wear. The first few times running in them were a bit awkward as they have no cushioning and no bridge support, they also don’t have a built up heel like a traditional trainer, so my calves hurt quite severely after my first long run. This is due to the fact that with traditional trainers the calf is shortened, due to the heel and with barefoot trainers there are no heels, so the calf is lengthened to give a full range of natural motion.

They are extremely practical for weight training, especially squatting and lunges as a flat base causes more stability. I am now a complete convert and I am about to buy my second and third pair. Definitely worth the investment, but if you suffer from some injuries in your feet or legs, I would suggest speaking to a specialist first. It did definitely help with my over-pronation, but that is my experience with them.

4. Polar Heart Rate Monitor

This is a recent addition to my arsenal, but since receiving it as a gift, it is literally always attached to my arm. The great thing about it is that during my cardio session, be it in the gym or on the road, I can always get an accurate reading of how many calories I have burnt. I also use it for weight training to get a rough estimate of how many calories I have burnt, but as Heart Rate Monitors do no account for the rest in weight training and are calibrated for cardio training, it is not extremely accurate. But still gives me an idea of my intensity.

Remember calories burnt relates to exertion on muscle and cardio works a different set of muscles and tend to work more muscles than isolated strength training exercises. You can use it for classes or spin as these tend to be cardio based. Plus some of the more expensive versions you can calibrate accordingly.

3. Smartshaker

I discovered this shaker last year when I was at a Fitness Expo. Anyone who uses a protein shaker regularly will realise that when you leave the powder in it for the gym and the add water on top, it doesn’t mix too well. Usually requires a lot of hammering at the shaker to get the bottom bits loose. But this is where this shaker is different, it has compartments at the bottom that unscrews where you can store your protein or supplement and thus poor on top of the water.

Definitely makes my life easier and I can store 2 different proteins in 1 shaker. So I can take my Pre- and Post-Workout shakes in one container. They also are a much better quality than the standard ones you get. The only thing to note is that they are double the price of a standard shaker. I think it is worth it.

2. Weight Training Gloves

Grip, something which I suffer heavily to maintain as I tend to get very sweaty hands when I train and it becomes nearly impossible to hold on to heavy weights and my hands keep on slipping. Training gloves provide me with this much needed grip so I don’t kill myself during training and also pads my hands to stop the calluses on my hands from becoming too bad, which can become painful sometimes. I own about 3 pairs, but recently bought a pair of Nike ones which are brilliant. There are so many types out there, the big difference is the material they are made off, leather, nylon or neoprene. I don’t mind them not having wrist supports as I find they hinder my range of movement, but that is personal preference.

And finally the thing that I am lost without:

1. iPhone

From Logging my workout reps and sets, to filling in my food diary and the most important function, listening to music during my workout to give me that extra push, this must be the piece of equipment I feel most lost without.

I like to shut the world out in the gym, put on some house music or heavy metal and hit my workout really hard. I also use an app called iFitness (which is not available anymore) to log my progress. A good substitute is Fitness Buddy. I use My Fitness Pal to log my food consumption in and must say is the best calorie tracker by far. But my favourite app for the gym is Spotify of course, tons of music at my finger tips, so endless motivation to keep me going. A bad day in the gym is usually when I forget my headphones…

So what is your favourite gym gadget?

After last weeks none moving result, I thought I had hit a plateau, but this week my results were very good and I am happy with the 2cm loss around my waist. Not so happy about the fact hat I dropped 1.5kg in one week. I am really paranoid about becoming too skinny as well. So this week I have decided to go even higher with my nutrient values. I have now upped my calorie intake to 3200 calories on my high carb days with 400g of carbs, 300g of protein and 80g of fat.

So far the increase in carbs have given me a good result, so I thought this week pushing the envelope a bit further to see what happens won’t be the end of the world for me. I can always drop it down a bit again.

Training wise, I decided to stick to my intensity from last week and keeping the routine the same as well. I have also decided that going forward I will definitely work in a rest day as I really need a day off from the gym to recover. It means that the following day I have so much more energy and have been doing extremely well because of this on my chest and bicep days. I will see what happens with my weight over the next week and once I have an idea of how this pans out, I can plan my next steps. So far I know that the last 21 days will definitely need to see a reduction in carbs for this 12 week cycle.

Mentally I have been fine, except for Sundays, as this is now my day off from the gym, I tend to have a lot of free time on my hands. Free time equals time that my mind can wander onto food. So all I do is think about and focus on food. Which makes the day quite tough. Next week I decided that I am going to actively try to keep myself busy the day.

And now for the results.

My measurements for this week are:
Weight: 87.9kg
Neck: 39cm
Chest: 106cm
Waist: 88cm
Hips: 101cm
Left Thigh: 58cm
Right Thigh: 57cm
Left Calve: 40cm
Right Calve: 40cm
Left Bicep: 35cm
Right Bicep: 35cm

The whole point of this is to keep on experimenting with my body and see where it leads me. I am already getting clearer pictures that I might not be as unresponsive to a high carb intake as I first thought.

The last couple of days have been immensely difficult, I have had constant cravings for bad food. At one point I passed the biscuit aisle in a shop and thought I could murder a packet of Oreos! It was calling out to me like a child stuck in a well. My mind is increasingly focused on food, which is not a good thing. Worst of all I have not made any changes in a week in my bodyweight or my waist, which psychologically very much adds to the strain. Physically I have reached a plateau and mentally I have hit a wall.

Considering all of this, I can see some great physical changes happening. More definition, specifically on my arms and back, I am much stronger in the gym, I broke my benching record and hit 76kg for 8 reps. So I am gaining some ground.

I also decided to take a day completely off from the gym on Sunday as my body was really feeling the strain, I still stuck to my diet with the fervour of a Westboro Baptist, but just decided to rest up for the day. Although I spent the whole day thinking of food, it is when I start watching the food channel that I should be concerned.

Even though I feel like this at the moment and the current increase in carbs, fats and calories might have made me plateau, I decided to stick to my current diet this week, but am increasing my intensity on my cardio. I don’t want to change something after a week, as I might not have seen the full effects of the diet yet. If things are still the same by the next weigh in, I will then proceed to make my changes. Adapt or die, it’s natural selection’s first rule though.

My measurements were the same as last week:
Weight: 89.4kg
Neck: 39cm
Chest: 108cm
Waist: 90cm
Hips: 102cm
Left Thigh: 57.5cm
Right Thigh: 57.5cm
Left Calve: 40cm
Right Calve: 40cm
Left Bicep: 35cm
Right Bicep: 35cm

So let’s see what next week brings.

tfj

Train Hard, Eat Better

After any weight training session I consume a post-workout shake to ensure I get my nutrients and protein required for the muscle to effectively recover and re-build. I have only tried a few (tried to make some but can’t seem to get a nice home made version). On one of my supplement shopping expeditions someone recommended Kinetica Recovery shake. Looked at the breakdown and thought they were right for my current regime. My first purchase was the Orange and Mango flavour as I was told that this is quite nice. I must say it was one of the most awful flavours I have tasted to date. I did though finish the batch and decided that I liked the nutritional breakdown, so will try their other flavour, Blackcurrent, which I must say was a vast improvement! A lot tastier!

It contains 3 types of carbs to ensure that you get quick and slow releasing carbs for sustained energy and to replenish glycogen. It has an isolate whey protein to provide you with the nutrients to build muscle and also has added Vitamin C and E. Contains added L- Carnitine and L-Arginine, but unfortunately has no L-Glutamine or Creatine, so I have to add these myself.

Mixability I would say wasn’t the best, it could sometimes clump a bit and leave a bit of gritty powder behind. If I did try to get it to mix well, it would require a lot of shaking.

I thought this wasn’t too bad value for the product and would recommend it, depending on your goals. Just don’t get the Orange and Mango, I couldn’t taste any Mango in it.

Nutritional Information Per Serving

Total Calories: 267kcal
Protein: 24.8g
Fat: 0.3g
Carbs: 41.3g
Of which sugars: 29.7g

One I would invest in again, although it is not my preferred post-workout supplement.

tfj

Train Hard, Eat Better

So I have completed 4 weeks on my current diet. Results so far has been very good and I am happy with what I am achieving. Saying this, I still went ahead and changed my diet, as this is all about experimenting and seeing how food and training affects my body.

The new 4 week program has seen a significant increase in carbs (up to 300g-350g per day), a reduction in protein (down to 250g) and increase, be it very small, in fats (70g).

Training has also changed, I have increased my cardio intensity by a small amount. I have also reduced my rep range to about 6-8 on most exercises. Focusing on heavy movements and I have also split to 4 weight sessions a week instead of 3. Legs and shoulders each now have their own session as I feel these parts are lagging a bit.

Mentally I am still determined as ever, but cracks are starting to show. I am having quite a few cravings, especially carb cravings in the evening. Otherwise, I know what my goal is, so feel determined to reach them.

I have been dealing with quite a bit of bloating and stomach cramps, so have cut caffeine to a bare minimum, to see if this is the problem. But it seems not. I have a feeling it might be one of the proteins or the large quantity of protein I have been taking.

My measurements for this week are:
Weight: 89.4kg
Neck: 39cm
Chest: 108cm
Waist: 90cm
Hips: 102cm
Left Thigh: 57cm
Right Thigh: 57cm
Left Calve: 40cm
Right Calve: 40cm
Left Bicep: 35cm
Right Bicep: 35cm

I will re-adjust depending on my results after this week.

tfj

Train Hard, Eat Better

What a busy week studying, working and training, been a bit demanding and I haven’t been able to write as much as I would have liked to.

So down another week, and it really doesn’t feel to hard at the moment. Enjoying the diet, have my goals to work for, so my motivation is quite high. Food has been good and I have stuck to my diet completely, and it doesn’t feel too much like a diet, the only thing is the constant eating which is a bit of a problem for me. I also had to cut out a portion of protein as I have been having problems coping with 7 to 8 meals. This weeks results have been a bit sharper than expected, personally I feel like I have lost too much weight again, although am happy with the results of my waist measurements. This might be due to higher intensity cardio sessions (boxing and sprinting) and the removal of a protein portion.

My measurements were:
Weight: 90.1kg
Neck: 40cm
Chest: 109cm
Waist: 92cm
Hips: 101cm
Left Thigh: 57.5cm
Right Thigh: 57.5cm
Left Calve: 40cm
Right Calve: 40cm
Left Bicep: 35.5cm
Right Bicep: 35.5cm

I have had weirdly an increase on my chest, which is great, as the optical illusion means it makes my waist look smaller. So not complaining at all. I will see how the diet goes this coming week as next week I am decreasing my protein intake and increasing my carb intake. I am also changing my workout structure a bit, focussing on lower reps, but higher weights. Aiming for the 6-8 rep range. Cardio will also increase by about 5 minutes to compensate for the loss in reps during my workout.

Hopefully I will have a bit more time this week to blog and can put some information on about what my workouts looked liked in the last 4 weeks and where I am heading in the next 4.

Train Hard, Eat Better

Success! It seems that my macronutrient and calorie ratios are on the mark. I have achieved my goal of only losing 0.5kg for the week and on top of that I was able to knock off another 2cm around my waist. Extremely happy with the results and I am continuing for the next 2 weeks on my current ratios and will then change things up again to prevent my body from hitting a plateau.

Saying all of this, it hasn’t been without it’s bumps in the road. Yesterday was the toughest day so far on my diet, I hit the “why-point” as I refer to it. The “why-point” is when you start to feel a bit down with constant thoughts of “Why am I doing this to myself?”. I am impressed that this only hit me after 14 days, I used to reach it at around day 7. My friend is also dieting and she hit the why-point about 4 days before me, I immediately picked it up in her demeanour. I had to constantly remind myself, that this is all in achieving my dreams and that this feeling does not compare to all of the self loathing that you experience when you are overweight and that the sense and joy of reaching your goals. All you need to do is push through these feelings and thoughts. Helps that I have my support on this.

Today I woke up feeling a lot better, I only had one moment of weak thoughts when I walked past a plate of biscuits and thought “Just one wouldn’t hurt and would be so good”! Nonetheless I didn’t touch them. Towards the evening I started feeling extremely agitated with everything, when this happens the smallest things can set me off. Luckily by the time I got into bed the agitation had subsided.

My measurements for this week are:
Weight: 91.4kg
Neck: 40cm
Chest: 108cm
Waist: 94cm
Hips: 102cm
Left Thigh: 59cm
Right Thigh: 58cm
Left Calve: 40cm
Right Calve: 40cm
Left Bicep: 35.5cm
Right Bicep: 35.5cm

Very happy with my results this week, hoping to keep I up over the next couple of weeks. Food are not too dull as of yet, and I am continuing with my nutrient and calorie ratios from the previous week.

Training has been going well and seeing some good progress in certain areas.

In my monthly quest to try at least 1 new protein, I was told to try BSN Syntha-6 as it is quite tasty apparently. So during my monthly supplement shop I decided to grab myself a tub and considering that the small tub was quite pricey, I opted for the larger 2288g Tub. I was a bit weary at the start, as it is a bit higher in fat and carbs than a standard whey concentrate, but thought this might come in handy as a lean meal replacement. I had never had Chocolate Peanut Butter flavour protein before so decided to go for a tub of this rather. I am a massive fan of Peanut Butter.

Nutritional Information Per Serving

Total Calories: 200kcal
Protein: 22g
Fat: 6g
Carbs: 14g

Too my surprise it was the best tasting protein I have had to date. Very flavoursome and now more like a treat to me. It mixes very well water and almond milk. The one gat thing about it is, if you severely reduce the liquid, to about a 3rd of the recommended amount it has a thick consistency, almost like pudding. This is my favourite way of having it and I have added berries or nuts to it, to make it even more like a dessert.

I would recommend this to anyone looking for a lean meal replacement or a better tasting protein. I have also tried to the cookies and cream version and find it better than any other cookies and cream protein I have had, although would say that the chocolate peanut butter one is still my favourite.

Definitely will be buying this again… and again… and again.

tfj

Train Hard, Eat Better

Every year I try to gain a new skill, this year I decided to do something that I have never done before, but always wanted to do, boxing. It is a good skill to have and it is a great calorie burner.

It all came about by coincidence, a trainer at the gym told me on the way home on the bus that one of the trainers at the gym is an excellent boxing coach. I decided to have a chat to him about it and he suggested I come in for a session. I told him that I had never done boxing before, I haven’t even thrown a punch in my life and that I personally think I am very uncoordinated (I have the habit of knocking things over or bashing my head on doors). Most tall people would tell you that they feel quite uncoordinated and being 6ft3 I am no different.

My first reaction when I realised that I would be doing this was, “Oh God, the entire gym is going to see how uncoordinated I am!” It’s the same fear that most first time gym goers experience, which I went through as well, that fear of looking like a fool, looking inadequate or feeling that you don’t belong.

I have memories of feeling ashamed that I had to do pushups on my knees, commonly referred to as a “girlie pushup” or when I tried to finally do a pull-up and had to jump to do one pull-up. Or the time I finished my maximum bench of 20kg only to be followed by a guy that warms up with 40kg loaded onto a bar.

It is not an uncommon feeling amongst anyone attempting to go to the gym for the first time. We struggle with the fear that we will not be as good as the person next to us or make a fool of ourselves, or that people would judge us for being overweight and this can be true of anything we attempt in life. Remember everyone had a first time in the gym, everyone stood there thinking; “I have to do pushups on my knees and the guy next to me does 20 standard ones”, “I can’t do even one pull-up” or “I feel so fat in my t-shirt, look how thin he is”.

I still see people struggling with pushups or benching 20kg. And it puts a smile on my face as I realise how far I have come and it makes me proud that I kept at it. Now I am that guy that uses 40kg for a light warm up. Remember everyone was once a beginner, just keep on fighting through it, I promise it gets better.

I then realised how stupid I am of being afraid of people thinking I look like a fool boxing, because in a year, I will be better at it and someone will look at me and go, “I want to be able to do that”! And if I didn’t try it, I wouldn’t have discovered how much I love it. I had the same fear of yoga classes and spin classes.

One important thing that this journey has taught me is that if I live my life in fear or cloud my mind with self doubt, I will never experience new things and hold myself back from achieving the things I want to achieve.