zaneh's Blogs

Bearded Warrior

2010-03-21T10:03:00Z

This post is for Saturday, March 20th, 2010.

Saturday began Kim's training for the Warrior Dash. We're gonna use the Couch to 5k program for her. Check it out at C25k.com. Her treadmill workout began with a 5 minute warm up, then an interval of 60 seconds jogging, followed by 90 seconds walking, then repeating the interval for 20 minutes. We finished up with another 5 minute walk. I did the routine along with her. It was nice. I still got a little running in but more importantly I rested my knees a bit. Kim was dreading the first workout (her first since before our vacation), but felt great afterward. After the treadmill she had a quick but intense upper body workout. Shoulders, triceps, chest, and biceps all trained in a huge super-set. Two cycles through the routine at a quick pace wiped her out. We both trained abs next. Fast paced with little rest for 12 sets. We began with decline crunches and hammer strength machine crunches in a super set, and finished off with 3 sets of v-sits. Continuing the theme of resting my knees and hips, the only other cardio I did Saturday was about 10 miles on the spin bike and a 2+ mile walk around the lake with Kim.

Great food day on Saturday. I began with some NS granola cereal (I LOVE that stuff), some Fage' yogurt, and a granola bar. I had a protein shake later in the morning and then a grilled chicken breast for lunch. Before we grilled out for dinner I had another 1/2 grilled chicken breast as a snack (trying to work on the protein consumption). For dinner Kim and I had grilled salmon and shrimp with a small salad. Outstanding! So happy to have some warm weather and be able to break out the grill. Finally for dessert I tried a Skinny Cow Chocolate Truffle Bar. Pretty good. The entire day I had around 1800 calories.

Tomorrow we head South to the big city to celebrate my mother's birthday. Her birthday was a few days ago, but she didn't feel well that day so she moved her bday dinner to this weekend. I've already planned out my meal. Salad and raw oysters. Happy Birthday Mom!

Finally, I shot a new pic of myself on Saturday. Well, Kim shot it & I lit it. Anyway, in preperation for the Warrior Dash, I'm growing a Warrior Beard (there's a contest for best Warrior Beard at the run). So I'm gonna shoot a pic every few weeks to document the progress of the Warrior Beard. Here's the Bearded Warrior at about 3 weeks in.

Running & Grilling.

2010-03-19T01:55:00Z

This post is for Thursday and Friday, March 18 & 19, 2010.

Thursday morning I woke early thinking about an upcoming insurance audit and was unable to fall back asleep. So I got up, ate breakfast, worked on some bookwork, and waited on the sun to rise so I could run around the lake. As the sun finally made an appearance I decided it was still a little cool to run so I hit the spin bike for 30 minutes instead. I planned to clean up and go to the gym after the bike, but Kim was getting ready for work as I finished with the bike so I decided to run before the gym. The Jack Russell and I trotted off on a 2.3 mile run and made it back before Kim came downstairs for breakfast. I was sorta tired at this point, so I rested a few minutes with the dog on the front porch and had a small protein shake. Once I felt somewhat recovered I cleaned up and headed to the gym. I began my workout with a run on the treadmill, and it was just terrible. I've never tried to do my treadmill work last (not without resting hours beforehand) and I was beat. I manged to get in 3.2 miles, but it was a struggle. My arm workout afterward was none to impressive. 3 sets of press downs, 3 sets of overhead presses, and 3 sets of rope press downs for triceps. Biceps began with 3 sets of seated incline dumbbell curls, and ended with 3 sets of hammer curls.

Friday's workout was brutal. I met DJ at the gym for a treadmill workout. 10 minute warm up, then his 5x5x5 for 15 minutes, followed by 10 more minutes of a recover walk, then repeating the 5x5x5, and finally a 10 minute walk to recover again. Brutal. I did well until the final 5 minutes at the highest speed (8mph). I got in about 2/5 of the time at 8, about 1/2 at 7, and the rest at 6. During the final cool down walk I realized it was Friday and I had to train legs. WHAT? I've NEVER forgotten leg day before. I've been so geared towards cardio training and was so happy to have someone to run with this morning that I absolutely forgot it was leg day. I contemplated waiting until tomorrow, but ended up deciding to go ahead and train after the HOUR on the treadmill. 3 sets of leg extensions, 3 sets of leg presses, & 3 sets of hack squats for quads. Hamstrings began with 3 sets of seated leg curls, 3 sets of hyper-extensions, and finally 3 sets of stiff leg dead lifts. After the workout I got on the elliptical for 20 more minutes. More of a final cool down than any real cardio work.

I've been trying to balance my food intake better. Lower sodium, more protein, same calories. Everything I look at has something I don't like in it now. If it has low sodium, high protein, decent calories, then it's loaded with cholesterol. Low in fat, carbs, and calories, then it's full of sodium. AAAHHH!!!

I rolled out the grill for the first time since last fall today. Grilled chicken (just chicken, nothing else, no marinade, nothing) and made a wonderful small salad. I had some shrimp yesterday for lunch and was very happy with it as well. I think I'm gonna try to have only 1 or maybe 2 NS meals per day. I'm good on non NS breakfasts now, I just happen to really dig the NS granola, muffins, and pancakes. NS lunches will be easy for me to do without. As long as I've got time I can grill some chicken/fish/shrimp and have a salad every day. The lunches were always my least favorite. I plan on still eating NS dinners pretty consistently for awhile. I love the veggie fajitas, some of the new wraps, the pizza. It's just so easy to have these meals and not have to worry about what to do for dinner.

Pic below is yet another from Costa Rica.

So Much Sodium!

2010-03-18T08:11:00Z

This post is for Wednesday, March 17th, 2010.

Today I switched things up a bit. I ran around the lake before going to the gym. No big dogs on the run today, just me and Jumping Jack Flash. Pretty easy run overall. I'm still not used to running on real ground, up and down hills, uneven dirt roads, etc. I'm finding it akward trying to set a pace. I'm all over the place with it now. Starting to fast, finishing to slow. Hills are throwing me off. After the run around the lake I changed and headed to they gym. I ran 3.3 miles on the treadmill (plus the 2.2 at the lake for a total of 5.5 miles) before starting my back workout. I began the workout with 2 sets of pull-ups (just awful), followed by 3 sets of pull-downs, 3 sets of T-bar rows, 3 sets of seated rows, and 3 sets of straight arm press downs. Between the second and third sets of the pull-downs I realized I was about to cry. Over the years I've had lots of "experiences" during workouts. I've vomited often, passed out, bled, even shed a tear while actually exercising, but this was the first time I've ever almost cried from shear exhaustion WHILE RESTING between sets. I laughed at myself, got some water, and moved on. Good times. After the workout I jumped on the elliptical machine for a final 10 minute cardio session for the day. BB showed an almost 4000 calorie burn for the day. WooHoo!

Good food day calorie wise. Not so good on the sodium front. We went shopping last night to find some lower sodium items for me to eat. Got some chicken and shrimp to eat either at lunch or dinner. EVERYTHING I looked at was loaded with sodium. Guess I'm gonna be eating lots of salads, veggies, and grilled chicken/shrimp. The protein shakes that I've used on and off for years are LOADED with sodium. So last night I found the brand I used way back in college, Designer Protein. Much, much less sodium and calories.

Below is yet another pic from vacation. This is "Pinchy." He(she?) was on the steps leading to our room one morning. I bent down to get a pic and the claws came up, ready for battle. I haven't unloaded my camera gear yet, so that's why I'm not posting any food pics right now. Maybe this weekend I'll get motivated and unpack all my stuff.

Running With the Big Dogs, Canceling NS, and Another Costa Rica Picture

2010-03-17T12:13:00Z

This post is for Tuesday, March 16th, 2010.

Today I decided to cancel the auto-delivery of Nutrisystem. I have almost two month's worth of food remaining (a month of my food, and quite a bit of Kim's last order) so I'm not stopping the program quite yet. I am planning on transitioning myself off slowly though. My training, healthy eating, and blogging will continue as usual. Just no more auto delivery.

I ran outside again along with my treadmill work today. I took one of our big dogs (the 70+ pound Zoey) along with Jumping Jack Flash and I on the run. She did great for the first mile. She was dragging me along behind her at a full on sprint. The next 1.2 miles she was behind me. She wanted to stop and drink from every mud puddle, sniff of every leaf/tree/whatever so she could rest. I let her drink some, but dragged her away from her sniffing rest spots. I'm gonna try to take Daisy running tomorrow (she's around 80#s). Along with the outside running I got in 3.7 miles on the treadmill. I varied my treadmill work by doing the fast paced part of the run first, then slowing over the rest. The first miles was less than 8 minutes (hey, that's fast for me), the second mile was 8 minutes even (still fast for me), but the third mile slowed considerably. I think the third was just under 9 minutes. The remaining time on the treadmill was at a nice, slow, 10 minute mile pace. After the treadmill I trained shoulders. 3 sets machine military presses, 3 sets dumbbell side lateral raises, 3 sets of smith machine upright rows, and finally 3 sets of shoulder shrugs. The weight training is still good (probably intense for most) but it's become almost an afterthought with all of the cardio I'm working on. Never thought it would be this way, but I'm very happy with it now.

My sodium intake was still higher than I wanted today. Protein was much better (I added 2 protein shakes). More salads/fresh veggies instead of frozen veggies to help with the sodium issue. Still a little hungry at night. I've gotta work on that. Either another protein shake, cereal, or something.

Pic is another from the Costa Rica vacation. This is our first morning on a deserted beach called Playa Biesanz. One of the most beautiful places either of us has ever seen. Later this same day I proposed. An absolute perfect day!

Warrior Dash

2010-03-16T09:03:00Z

This post is for Monday, March 15th, 2010.

After a few days of entering my food on the BodyBugg food log I've come to a couple of realizations. The first, which I already suspected, is that my protein consumption is low. Very low compared to what I used to take in when training hard. No problem to correct that. I'll replace some snacks with protein shakes and all should be good. The second realization is the amount of sodium I'm taking in. WHOA! Super high & we don't even own a salt shaker. Most of the sodium is of course from NS foods. I knew they were high, but when combining them with some of the vegetarian burgers, frozen veggies, and granola it really totals up. Not much I can do about the amount of sodium in the NS meals so I'll have to really watch my choices concerning veggies & proteins.

Hopefully the protein shakes will help me with feeling weak and HUNGRY at night. Last night we had to go to shopping for Kim some work related books and we were both so hungry (I'd already had dinner) we stopped to eat on the way home. I had a salad with fat free dressing and a dozen raw oysters. That helped, but I still had to eat another snack before bed. I feel positive the hunger is a result of my workouts. Yesterday I ran 3.6 miles at the gym, trained chest (12 sets total), & ran a little over 2 miles around the lake after lunch. I'll try the shakes tomorrow and see how it goes.

Kim and I have decided to enter our first race. It's called the Warrior Dash. Basically you run 3.22 miles and have to navigate 11 various obstacles throughout the course. Sounds fun. You get a "warrior helmet" and shirt upon completion. They have prizes for best costume, best warrior beard (since I forgot my razor on vacation and have a beard going already I've decided to see what kind of warrior beard I can have ready for the race, which is over 2 months away). I'm excited, I think Kim is too.

My Jack Russell looked like he had run in the Warrior Dash when I found him setting on the front porch after my run around the lake. He was covered from end to end in mud. He even had mud in his eyes. No clue what he was chasing, but he looked like he had fun. No pic of the dirty dog, I just grabbed him and gave him a bath as soon as we came in the door.

Pic is another from Costa Rica....

Off Day

2010-03-14T11:52:00Z

This post is for Saturday, March 13th, 2010.

Today ended up being an off day all around. I tried to ride the spin bike. I actually changed clothes, climbed onto the bike, and was about to begin a ride when my father called. We needed to inspect a roof to try to find some leaks, so I never began the workout. I did climb some ladders, stomp around on a roof, but that was the extent of my exercise for the day. I really didn't mind missing a day of training. My legs are SORE from Friday's leg workout. Bike and treadmill tomorrow.

Since I missed out on training, I decided to have a meal off last night as well. We ended up at a tiny local Mexican place. I had a delicious carnitas burrito, beans and rice. So I guess I had an off day all around.

Pic is another from Costa Rica...

Awful Leg Workout

2010-03-13T11:09:00Z

This post if for Friday, March 12th, 2010.

Friday = Leg day for me at the gym. I began the day with 30 minutes (9 miles) on the spin bike. I ate breakfast and a snack before going to the gym to make sure I had enough energy to make it through the workout. At the gym I ran 3.6 miles on the treadmill and was then ready to train. This would end up being one of the worst leg workouts in memory. It seemed to take forever. I felt hot again the entire time. By the end of the workout I couldn't use my towel to clean off the machines after each exercise because the towel was so wet it wasn't doing any good. I had to use my sweatshirt to dry off the last few machines. I lost over 4 pounds during the running and workout. Anyway, I did 3 sets of leg extensions, 3 sets of hack squats, 3 sets of horizontal leg presses, 3 sets of seated leg curs, 3 sets of stiff leg dead lifts, and 3 sets of hyper extensions. Every rep was difficult and deliberate. I guess usually when I train I feel so strong I catch a groove and power my way through a lot of the workout. After all of the cardio that's not really an option. The rest of the day I was useless. I didn't even attempt a third cardio session late. I sat on the sofa and watched days worth of stuff on the DVR.

I only have cardio and abs tomorrow. Maybe I'll recover well over the weekend.

Pic below is from Costa Rica.

Running Hot & A Monkey!

2010-03-12T08:24:00Z

This post is for Thursday, March 11th, 2010.

I began the day backing up about 65 GB worth of photos and video from our trip to Costa Rica. At least I'll sleep better now knowing everything is backed up here and off-site as well. I'm in the process of finding a relatively large RAID network storage device, I'm just not looking forward to paying for it.

After finishing up with the backup I met my mother at the gym for our morning workout. We began on the treadmill. I ran about 3.7 miles and again I was dying it felt so hot. I know they can't turn on the AC yet, but it's awful for me in there now. After cardio we trained arms. 3 sets of triceps press downs, & 3 sets of overhead presses. Biceps followed with 3 sets of dumbbell curls & 3 sets of cable curls.

Later in afternoon Kim came home from work and had about 2 hours before she had to be back so we changed and went back to the gym so she could get in her first post vacation workout. We started with about 20 minutes on the treadmill. I ran intervals and got in a little over 2.3 miles bringing me up to around 6 miles on the day. She trained shoulders quickly afterward. 3 sets of dumbbell military presses and then 3 super sets of side lateral raises/front raises. Again, I felt HOT while in the gym. Last evening I hit the spin bike for only 15 minutes. I felt tired and knowing I have to train legs on Friday I decided to only do half the regular amount on the bike.

I had a good food day. NS along with some granola and a PB sandwich. I've decided that I'm gonna stop tracking food on NS. I'm gonna switch the food tracking to the BodyBugg website. I hope to slowly make the switch back to normal food over the next few months and I'd like to already be using the food tracker there when I do. I think when I do begin mixing non NS meals into the diet again I'm gonna begin mostly with high protein meals (chicken breasts, the occasional steak, etc.) but still keep the calorie count under 2000. This will probably occur when the weather is nice enough for me to roll the grill back out and begin cooking outside. Anyway, I've still got a few months to figure it out.

Below is one of the monkeys we ran across in Costa Rica. Once we knew where to look, they were everywhere. Quality isn't great. It was very early in morning (not much light) and deep into the forest so even less light.

Spin, Run, & A Sick Baby

2010-03-11T09:03:00Z

This post if for Wednesday, March 10th, 2010.

I woke up and hit the spin bike to begin my cardio for the day. I've been making up my own riding routine for the past few days as I watch SportsCenter and I've been going a little further (mileage wise) than usual. Typically I get 8.5 miles in during a ride but the past day or two, not following a DVD workout I've logged 9+ miles each ride. Must be because I don't slow down so much during the cool down when not using the DVD. After the bike I cleaned up and headed to the gym early. 3.3 miles on the treadmill and then I trained back. It was HOT (to me anyway) in the gym and I felt like I was dying on the treadmill. The workout was quick (only 9 sets total) beginning with 3 sets of pull-downs, then 3 sets of T-Bar rows, and finishing with 3 sets of serratus exercises (straight arm press downs).

After finishing up at the gym I raced home, cleaned up again, and then rode with my parents to visit my sister and her family. Oliver (nephew) has a double ear infection and a terrible cough. We relieved the parents so they could go out and eat lunch and get a little break from the sick baby. He woke after they left and was in a rather good mood, to be so sick. We played, had lunch at FireHouse Subs (I had a turkey sandwich on wheat, no mayo, no cheese, lettuce and onions, plus some delicious Cholula hot sauce) and then headed back home in the rain before Atlanta rush hour began.

The rest of my meals for the day were NS, plus a peanut butter sandwich instead of dessert late in the evening. I've also been eating 90 calorie granola bars in the place of my snacks. I'm still on a granola kick. The snacks have kinda fallen in the time just before or just after training, so it's worked out well with regards to keeping me from feeling so hungry during/after workouts.

Only 2 cardio sessions on the day. I've felt a little sore from the running so I decided to lay off the third cardio session and rest.

Pics of Oliver playing with his grandparents (my sister has taken to calling the grandparents "The Saints" for all of the help they give to her by taking care of the baby) below.

Left for Vacation With My Girlfriend, Came Home With My Fiancee

2010-03-09T08:12:00Z

Yup, we got engaged while on our vacation! Along with the engagement (you can read more about it on my personal blog over the next few weeks here) we had a wonderful trip. We saw dolphins, monkeys, sloths, falcons, butterflies, hummingbirds, and countless iguanas. I ate like a king (maybe more like a fool) and loved every minute of it. I discovered a new delightful treat (new to me anyway) dulce de leche (caramelized condensed milk). I LOVE it. I ate it on everything I could spread it on. We zipped through the canopy, rode horses, sailed during sunset, and hung out on a couple of beautiful beaches. Our hotel/resort was fantastic. Kim cried when we arrived because it was so beautiful, and she cried when we had to leave. What a trip! I shot over THREE THOUSAND photos (OK, so that's really not that many for me, last vacation I shot over 1o00 per day) and hope to have some posted later tonight. I'll post a link when they're available.

Monday morning I returned to NS (I now have a wedding to get ready for!) and the gym. I trained chest, ran 3.3 miles, and biked 8.5 miles. It wasn't nearly as bad as I had expected. Today we (mom & I) trained shoulders after cardio. For cardio I ran 3.5 miles (back to normal) on the treadmill and then ran 2.2 more miles at home around the lake. This was my first "trail" running experience. Quite different from running on the treadmill. It'll take some getting used to, but I ran the trail we usually walk with no problem. I outpaced the Jack Russell (he let me win) over the 2+ miles. 6 months ago I couldn't run from my living room to the kitchen. Crazy.

Anyway, good trip, but good to be home. Good to be back eating right and training. Photos soon!

Ok, one photo. This is the view we woke up to on the first morning.