Well Past Finished, Far From The End

I linked it in my last post here, but my new blog is at http://mikhaelcohen.blogspot.com

I'm keeping up with Patrick's daily workouts, as well as TKD, and my eating is a little more haphazard at the moment, as I fit myself into this new diet. I'm starting to follow the paleo diet, with some straying toward athletic performance instead. I'll be letting you all know how it goes on my new blog.

Good luck to everyone on the project, as well as off of it!

Day 90 - COMPLETE!

Okay. This is it. Last day. It ended with a stop at Asiana Noodle Shop for some excellent chicken, shrimp, noodles, veggies, and chilled sake with Seabass.

Thank you Patrick, for all of your knowledge, support, and positive attitude (As well as sharing it!). Thank you Sebastian, for the introduction to all of Patrick's wonderful creations (Zen is Stupid, the KWSG, and of course the PCP), as well as your support throughout it. Thank you Will, for listening to my worry and wisdom day after day. Thank you to my family, who were fairly supportive after getting over my awesomeness! Thank you to my other coworkers, who put up with my health-harassment and demanding eating schedule. To all my other friends- I hope to share company soon. Thank you for always being there. Thank you Osamu, for sitting on my blog banner up there, and reminding me how I felt when I started this, and what I have achieved since. I feel terrible having those old pictures of me next to yours, as if I did your image an injustice.

It's astounding that in this 90-day time period, I have reconfigured my body, improved my fitness and health, and the combination of the current payoff and future benefits of both knowledge and willingness to apply will probably add many years to my life expectancy. It's a wonder everybody isn't doing this.

This is me maintaining my balance! No wall for these legs!

Seeing this end is like saying goodbye to an old friend. I'm not sure I've ever had such a relationship with my body before. It's shown me what I really look like, how my limbs really move. It's shown me what I'm capable of, and what I can improve on. It's shown me how easy improvement actually is. The PCP has changed my outlook on people, on health, on society. I feel like I've become part of an elite group, a special club, a fraction of the population very small, but hopefully growing. Something tells me that I'll never stop being asked about the PCP. I'm happy to keep telling the tales.

I think, what shines most clearly in my mind from this project, is that this is a trade-off. Exercise and proper diet, that is. For working an indoor job 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, I'm giving up the life a hunter-gatherer would have. In turn, I must make up for it the best I can to maintain this body through a life it never evolved for.

Another I've learned, is that every project, every self-improvement exercise, is a lesson in patience. Nothing happens overnight. Without patience, most projects could not succeed. Certainly there are times that need to be rushed(that occasional morning I woke up late, for instance), but never the results. What do I mean by patience? I mean being comfortable with consistency and slow-change. I've never been a very patient person, and only over the last couple years have I become more mature in this area. This project has definitely opened my eyes to what patience truly looks like, and better still, I have proved to myself that I can manage it when asked of myself.

What goes with patience? Focus. Focus is a clear requirement for the Peak Condition Project. Not only focus on each muscle group during grueling reps of pull-ups, but focus on diet, mindfulness toward consumption. Focus on the day at hand. When to eat, when to sleep. When to workout, and when to stretch. When to sit and when to stand. When to shave and when to wash. When to cook, when to clean. Combining work, transportation and a social life, I've had to be 100% mindful of all these actions and more. Focus on tomorrow as well. Mindfulness of what food is available, and what needs to be acquired for the health of the next day, be it food or sleep.

SPOILER ALERT: Most of all. There is no spoon. There is no "peak". It is an everlasting project (better called life) to maintain and improve, which can never be completed. There is always another muscle to work or stretch, another spoonful of maple syrup you really shouldn't have consumed. There's always a nutrient you could use more of and one you could use less of, not to mention the ever-constant of aging. This project has "reset" my body, if you will. It is now prepared to venture forth into the world of health and fitness, ready to seize the day!

Relevantly, I wish to share this quote from Stirling Silliphant on Bruce Lee with you. I discovered it around day 40ish, and ever since have recalled it most days:

Bruce had me up to three miles a day, really at a good pace. We'd run the three miles in twenty one or twenty two minutes. Just under eight minutes a mile [Note: when running on his own in 1968, Lee would get his time down to six and a half minutes per mile]. So this morning he said to me "We're going to go five." I said, "Bruce, I can't go five. I'm a helluva lot older than you are, and I can't do five." He said, "When we get to three, we'll shift gears and it's only two more and you'll do it." I said "Okay, hell, I'll go for it." So we get to three, we go into the fourth mile and I'm okay for three or four minutes, and then I really begin to give out. I'm tired, my heart's pounding, I can't go any more and so I say to him, "Bruce, if I run any more,"-and we're still running-"if I run any more I'm liable to have a heart attack and die." He said, "Then die." It made me so mad that I went the full five miles. Afterward I went to the shower and then I wanted to talk to him about it. I said, you know, ''Why did you say that?" He said, "Because you might as well be dead. Seriously, if you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it'll spread over into the rest of your life. It'll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level."

My Stickies on my MacBook Pro have become littered with quotes from Bruce, and if there's anything that motivated me past the valley the most, it's him. He has inspired, I've read halfway through the book "The Art Of Expressing The Human Body", I've watched all his films. I know why Patrick chose him as a role model, and what his existence has done for this project, and in turn for me. I also understand the lesson he taught us with an unfortunate early death. Patrick mentions this in his final PCP post (day 125). Overwork is not what these bodies were built for either, and it's very possible to be detrimental in the opposite direction.

To maintain this body, I plan on occasional exercise during the week, daily jumping rope and furiously learning Tae Kwon Do. I only hope I can avoid most temptations dietary wise, but why would it be hard after what I've been through? What we've all been through. I also have express permission from Seabass to drag him out of bed now every morning for rope jumping.

I look forward to being able to apply this body properly to a sport like Tae Kwon Do. I'm very confident I will excel in time. Patrick recommended wushu, but nobody in Burlington teaches it. (What a surprise)

To followup, I give you my "Pro tips":

• Blender. Every day. Eggs and milk. Cooking eggs is messy, and you lose nutrients in the heating process. Chuck the egg white (or whole egg depending on diet) in the blender with milk. Cinnamon can be a nice addition. I've discovered I like eggs best raw.
• Make most foods 3-4 days in advance if you work a 9-5 or similar shift. It removes a lot of stress from the morning routine.
• Random climbing equipment makes excellent resistance band rigs.
• Yoga mats are good for ab workouts, but the thin ones are too hard on the back after about 2.5 months.
• You can easily get the same results and play video games/persue other hobbies at the same time. I have a level 65 Shaman in WoW that I started in week 2 of the PCP. I've also played through half of Half Life 2, and several other games. I've read a couple books, and worked full time.
• The chicken is an amazing animal.
• There's a large numbered kitchen timer made by CDN. It's function is perfect for exercise.
• Find a quiet place to sleep, lest your rest time be disrupted. Make sure to have daylight in the morning, so you have energy to get out of bed and jump.
• Incline pull-ups are well and good, but buy a real pull-up bar. The kitchen table is ready to fall apart.
• Having a nice body makes you more confident, and may cause you to walk around the house in your underwear, much to your housemates' dismay.

I could go on and on philosophically discussing the benefits of putting your best foot forward in fitness, but you guys already know how I feel! Better than ever! With that, project two starts: My new personal daily blog. 

May the force be with you.

Day 89

Whew!

Finished my Day 88 workout at 7PM last night. Finished my day 89 workout at 7:30AM this morning. Definitely suffered a bit of stamina loss from the gap between, but it was worth it. The lack of stamina killed my ab exercises, but I still managed to tuck 8-minute abs into the workout. (I didn't have enough time later today to complete the workout in the afternoon)

It's been a long time since I had this "last day of school" feeling, and I'm basking in it. It's sad, in a way, to leave something you've become so thoroughly attached to, yet at the same time it's an incredible relief to have a break/move on.

This afternoon I have my introduction to Kung Fu at the studio in the New North End, then I'm going to see Predators with Seabass and another friend. Must avoid movie theatre food for one more day! ARgghhhh. That said, I really wouldn't eat it anyway...

Day 88 - The Soda Bottle

Today I want to explain a manner in which I avoid cravings, which Seabass also did during his PCP. When he was at a Magic: The Gathering tournament, they were giving away these bottles of Jones Soda. If you're unfamiliar with the brand, it's quite possibly the best bulk-made soda available. I was drinking it when they were a much smaller company, based solely out of Canada.

His explanation of this thought process when he was given it was "It's a special event, it's one bottle, it'll be okay." After having recognized the conscious choice about it, he decided to save it. It's stayed on his shelf ever since as a reminder that every food he eats is a conscious choice.

After my interaction with delicious Skittles candy, I was reading the label and commented it was about the same as a bottle of soda.

A couple days later I needed bus fare, and went to buy something at a Mobil station to break a $20. I took a glance at the Skittles, and was very tempted. I then decided, "this will be my Jones Soda". I bought it, feeling stupid-guilty, like a minor buying alcohol with a fake I.D. I put it in the inner pocket of my laptop bag, right next to my spork that I use daily for lunch/snack. Every day I dig past this bag of Skittles for my eating utensil, and the physical contact with it triggers my impulse to eat it, then I'm reminded I have delicious lunch ahead of me with my trusty spork. This is to remind me that this is a conscious choice every time.

It's alright to eat whatever we want, as long as we're aware of the choice we're making. The decision is ours, but whether or not it's a healthy one, we should be conscious of the choice.

Day 88

Unrelated to last night's botched workout, I did find this article this morning on self handicapping that is quite interesting...

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/dont-delay/200805/delay-self-handicapping-strategy-i-can-protect-my-self-image-procrastinating

"By finding or creating impediments that make good performance less likely, the strategist nicely protects his [or her] sense of self-competence"

Basically, by creating an external issue that would keep your performance sub-par, you can't blame yourself. Avoid this trap!

Day 87 - I don't even...

After 5PM's snack, which was delayed, I had nothing but half an apple until 9PM when I started my workout.

Why? Because I meant to workout at 7:30. Then I told myself I'd practice some freedom and workout when I wanted to. BUT I forgot to eat in the interim.

I made it through the legs, but then came the shoulders. I made it about halfway through the super set. Halfway through the fly's, and barely managed some v-sits. I did however complete the crunches, to my dismay. Were my muscles sore? Nope. I was light-headed. I had zero energy, I was perhaps very low on blood sugar. This has however taught me two important lessons.

1. Don't wait til 9PM.

2. Mornings are better for ab workouts without food in the stomach.

I've just finished gobbling down the after workout along with the dinner I should have had already... my hunger has yet to be satiated.

TL;DR - I didn't eat much this afternoon and failed miserably on the workout.

Day 86

Those supersets were daunting... until I did them. They really were quite fun.

Aside from rowing, I haven't used the 15lb'r until today. I started doing curls and realized that I was moving right along, and swapped the 10lb out for the 15. Boy did that make it harder! I was growling my way through it. I feel like I probably could have gotten more out of this if I had switched to heavier bands sooner. Some food for thought for those of you still early on in it. I know I'm skinny, I'll never be able to lift as much as someone of Will's size could at full potential, but I'm intent on getting as strong as possible, no matter how long it takes. I definitely agree with Brett though, the 5lb is too much for the Davinci's for me.

I've been feeling really full lately, not full. Fat. I've been feeling fat lately. Not sure what it is. Going to lay off the super carb-o-matic bowl of whole oats in the morning and switch to bread for a while. On the note of diet... days which I eat the before workout meal, I completely fail at v-sits. My body just hates ab workouts with any food in it. I feel ready to throw up after them almost every day. Find something lighter or wait a while before the workout perhaps?

I've been thieving Sebastian's fan for my room during workouts. It's still hot here. Luckily we're down to 79º now. Getting better. Baking chicken doesn't help much though.

Too hot? Need more sodium? Solution!

What not to eat: http://consumerist.com/2010/06/friendlys-grilled-cheese-burger-melt-is-coming-for-your-arteries.html

2090mg sodium... ohhh boy. BUT! It's low carb!!! I can still remember that melted Friendly's cheese smell...

Day 85

The orange is touching my blue guy! So close!!!

I was gonna wait til the impending thunderstorm to do my day 85 workout, but never mind, forecast kept getting pushed back, did it before the storm. Still haven't seen the storm. It's still 91º. This is ridiculous. It was at least 95º when I was doing my workout, which really gets rough.

Day 84

Going to take tips from Jason's day 83 post, and keep my legs in the air during sit-ups, crossed. I'll also put more focus on the muscles and curl as high as I can. Patrick's right, if I can do so many without any burn, it's a waste of my time.

I'm still in bed at 9:25AM. I'm feeling kinda tired. About to go jump rope though. Until later-

Day 83. OKAY.

5 sets of sit-ups to failure, number 2. I'm not even going to say how many I did...

..

okay, I will. 440.

...

Then I did 8 minute abs...

My yoga mat looks like the public swimming pool. Smells like it too. I'm sweating on my MacBook Pro.

My abs are still able to go on, I don't feel sore. Just tired. I think they've really developed well. The lowers still need work, but I think that's par for the course. I did 4 sets of 100, then another set of 40 before I collapsed, quite literally ready to pass out. I had ringing in my right ear. This heat is killer. 20 seconds later I hit the 8 minute abs.

I found an ab exercise I'll try tomorrow in conjunction with my 8 minute abs, it's a bicycle crunch of sorts. Basically bicycle kicking while alternating arms to the knees. Without putting feet on the ground.

Day 82

The thud after the planks was resounding as I hit the floor. Sweat covered, I lay panting, then limped to the kitchen for the coldest thing I could find. OMFG heat! It's 90 outside, so probably around 94 in here. Just finished my planks. It's hot. Very hot. Skipped 8 minute abs. Too. Too. Too. Hot.

Day 81

All day my body has felt weak and craved food. My eating schedule got thrown off twice today, too. My left knee has had pain all morning. I just tried to do my jumps, and managed about half of them. My right shoulder started to hurt and I made it about halfway through. I'm going to listen to my body and lay down. Hopefully I'll feel up to it later. So. Exhausted.

In other news, Happy 4th of July to the Americans among us!

Day 80! Wow.

I can't believe it's day 80. It'll be almost sad to see it end. It wasn't that long ago I was telling myself "just three more weeks!".

It's really enjoyable seeing Will start the project just as I'm ending it. Mostly because it's pretty much a guarantee that I'll stick with the same habits, although I have the drive to do that anyway. Last night I spent a while reading through the old workouts and realized how far we've come. There's still quite a push to be made in these last 10 days, but man, have we progressed in terms of what we can handle! (Don't worry, I didn't give Will any spoilers!)

I'm planning a celebration expedition at the end of the project... I haven't quite decided, but I think I'm going to go camp out on the summit of Camel's Hump (for you non-Vermonters, it's the mountain on the state quarter) for the night. My current plans are biking there, it's about 19 miles if I'm not mistaken. Not too terrible, but I'm not sure how my knees will feel on day two. It's about a 1.5 hour hike up, but will probably be 2 hours given I just biked there. I'm honestly more worried about my bike feeling up to it.

Day 79

Hurrah! 5x 90 second plank - apparently so tough my timer couldn't handle it. It actually froze halfway through a set. Had to pull the battery to reset it. Always enjoyable after the fact though!

I got some pure cocoa powder from the co-op, and added it to my milk & egg blend. It's okay, but I need to go a bit lighter on it so it saturates and isn't so strong. Very very low calorie additive for the flavor provided. Still not quite cinnamon-class though.

Today I learned to buy spices in bulk. Whole spice bottle worth of chili powder = $1.50ish. Bottle on the shelf - $4.00ish. Take your pick, but the answer's obvious. I got a ton of cinnamon too.

Since I switched to the heavier resistance band, my workouts have been more enjoyable again, and while some sets can't be completed, I'm actually noticing my muscles get far far stronger from it. I go back to the 5 lb'r sometimes and wonder why the hell I was using it for such a long time.

Day 78 - Workout Done!

Day 78 done! More Carbs = Happy Mike! Dry rolled oats = not a great pre-workout snack. Gotta have more moisture.

Yesterday I made an enormous purchase. It's incredible. I can't believe I never bought them before. They're the underarmour compression shorts. Absolutely fracking fantastic. Not only do they make jumping rope far more comfortable (for reasons I won't get into here), but they make the workout better too, more freedom of movement and cooler than the board shorts. They're the 6" Boxerjocks. I'm actually considering the 3" too.

Day 78

Combating laziness, building motivation.

Somebody go do my workout for me so I can watch 30 Rock more.

Seriously, I've cleaned every nook and cranny of the kitchen, including scrubbing every inch of the stovetop and burners, the sink, every dish in the house, the floor, tables, cabinets...

I went food shopping. I read on the history of muesli. I enjoyed my lunch away from the computer.

Still, I'm unmotivated. I'm gonna rearrange the living room, then workout.

Day 77

Ok, I'm pretty much sold on the afternoon/evening workouts now. Way less stressful, as I don't feel the need to rush in the morning. I'm really past the point of needing that early morning fat burn too.

Patrick... I think I got it! Review:

Day 76

DoH! Stayed up all night (til midnight). Gonna go jump rope, then do my workout after work today.

There we go. Workout complete. Today I actually really enjoyed the afternoon workout. On the sit-ups to failure, I went with my gut. Even with my legs raised as Patrick suggested, I didn't have much of a problem. One wonders with my results if I should be asking this but... am I doing them right? I curl my body as far as I can, and my shoulders are off the floor. I was stopping at 50 because of Patrick's earlier email saying don't go past that. It went 50-40-30-30-50. Legs crossed in the air. Maybe I should lift my legs higher next time.

Anyway, good times. I still fail out of the tricep dips and do half sets about halfway through, same with the pull-ups.

My abs feel like a rock when I flex them. I feel my abs and I think they're my ribs.

Day 75 - Indulgence #3

I decided I really need to mentally let loose today. The other item that I've really been craving is a bag of skittles. So I bought a single serving bag from a grocery store before work. I'm hyped up on sugar right now. It was good though. I was pleased to find they don't have HFCS in them. The package was about equivalent to a can of soda sugar wise. 250 calories. Sheesh, that's a lot.

Update: I had my angus burger with sweet potato fries and a burly irish ale last night. All of it was delicious. Despite the fact that I think I ate too much, it didn't hurt my stomach! Also, when it comes down to it, I realized from the first bite I had that my home burgers I make taste almost twice as good.

Day 75

Another half-ass workout day. Why? Because I just worked out 12 hours ago. My body is still sore. My back is achy. I couldn't finish the planks because my lower back was hurting, no matter how much focus I put into my abs. Pro tip: Don't do an evening workout followed by a morning workout.

Indulgence day! So.... I actually skipped the last indulgence. I told myself, make a burger just like the one you're envisioning, you don't need the fries, you'll be happy with this.

But somehow, this angus burger with sweet potato fries has been stuck in my head since then, and has been driving me insane. I spoke with my housemate Will for half an hour last night discussing it, and I determined I was making a big deal out of nothing. I wanted to avoid it, because of the HFCS in the ketchup and honey mustard sauce, and the oil in the fries. I don't really want to imbibe alcohol either, but I'll give myself half a beer. The thing is, I want to make healthy choices, even if it's on an indulgence. But what it comes down to is-- this is an indulgence. My body's not perfect, and thus an imperfect diet won't completely destroy my progress, and will do wonders for my mentality in the coming weeks. So, burger, fries and beer here I come!

Day 74

Update's gonna be a bit late today, I'm going to try an evening workout and see how it goes.

Update: Afternoon workout was rough. Retail legs were not meant for jump roping and pistol squats. Although it's probably the other way around, my legs weren't meant for retail. Soreness in my left shoulder and back limited my shoulder flys and v-sits, something I've never experienced in the morning. So, I think I'll stick with mornings for the time being. Perhaps after the PCP I'll do my workouts in the evening, after I'm not forced to keep a rhythm.

Day 73 - Peanut Butter

There's something you guys should know... I. Love. Peanut Butter.

So this morning I thought I'd spice up my after workout shake with half a spoonful of peanut butter and a dash of chocolate, just to see what would happen.

Suprisingly, it didn't really improve it at all.

But! Afterward, in the shower, I had a taste in my mouth. I realized it was peanut butter, something I haven't had in over 3 months. It occurred to me that I'm going to have a hard time staying away from it. But, I suppose I'll have to.

Doubled the resistance on the lawnmower and pull-down, as well as tricep extension. Went from 5lb to 10lb. I had to take a 15 second rest in the middle of the lawnmower each time, but I think it's worth it to double the resistance. I'm trying to figure out which other exercises I can manage 10lb in.

Day 72

I missed something. Like 2.5 hours of awake time. Rushing through the morning after sleeping 10 hours, my legs couldn't figure out how to jump until partway through set 2. Moving on, I set my workout timer for the "point of no return", where I needed to stop to still have time to cook and get to work. Had to sacrifice sets 1.5-4 of the planks, almost made it in 35 minutes! Barely had time to take pictures and pack my stuff. Okay, so tonight I might go for a quick run and do planks afterward. I've been considering an evening workout, but my legs would be too tired I think, after a full day of retail.

If I keep my curtains open, it's hard getting to sleep. If I leave them closed, it's hard waking up. Maybe I should just keep one open, and one closed? Aghghghhh!

Day 71 - Pose 2

Here you go Patrick... not sure, but I think after about 10 tries I got better. Lighting sucks now though, it's too late at night.

Also... today the jerks who own the parking lot for the school across the street put a fence around it. Now I need to search YET AGAIN for a place to jump rope. OMFG.

Day 71

My direct attempts to change my motivation have caused some good, and some bad. I'm going to continue on my present course for the time being, as trying to step back causes me to focus on it being almost over rather than on what needs to get done.

Apparently my sitting around yesterday made my abs lazy. V-sits are usually cake for me, but today I struggled to get through even 3 sets of them.

I'm very pleased with my progress, and I'm at the point where people are constantly asking me diet and workout recommendations. I go easy most of the time, and suggest taking up jumping rope, and cutting bad things from the diet.

I bought new board shorts to jump in, but they're not as comfortable as my Kirra shorts, so I'm trying to find these old shorts used online, in the right size. Pictured are my new ones. I do like the black and white.

A couple days ago at the grocery I encountered the infamous "it's free, so I should eat it" impulse when offered a sampling of chocolate. I held onto the feeling, and strangled it in its place.

At Dick's Sporting Goods, I bought a heavier resistance band, and my eyes spotted a "power tower", basically standalone pull-up and swing-away mid-bars (for things like kung-fu situp style leg-ups and chest dips). I think I'm going to buy it. I want it, it would make life soooooo much easier pull-up wise.

Update: Just had another PCP burger for lunch. I absolutely love them in moderation. I figure eating beef once every 3 weeks has to be pretty okay. The bread on this one started falling apart, luckily I was allowed more carbs this week! More bread to patch the hole! May have gone 10-15g over on the beef though.

Day 70 - Laziness

It's official. I've spent all day at my computers with the curtains closed ignoring the outside world. Why? I wanted to let my muscles relax and heal.

What became of it? I feel like a lazy slob.

Going to see Toy Story 3 tonight, should be fun. I'll try to get some stretching done in-between.

Day 70

Patrick, what have you done to me!? I used to be the guy who could sit at his desk playing World of Warcraft for 12+ hours straight, now I can't sit down and do actual work for more than an hour without feeling the effects of being stationary!

This was a good morning. I like good mornings. Making chicken and salmon for breakfast, with some hot cereal and milk. Mmmmm... and a big tomato.

Day 69, Baby!

I'm not the kind to make 69 jokes, but today I think we all deserve it.

I love thrift stores, because it eliminates the need to spend more money. I found a gorgeous Revereware saucepan for $2. The kicker? It's copper-bottomed. About 5 minutes with my industrial-strength PCP elbow grease and steel wool, and the thing looks amazing. I can't wait to cook with it. A similar modern pan new would probably cost a good $30-50. (And yes, there are plenty of bad $30-50's)

It was finally time yesterday to buy new board shorts for jumping rope. The old ones had outgrown their usefulness. At size 32, they were fitting a bit large. Went to PacSun and found some new ones on sale. I managed to actually try on a 28!! It made my body look ferocious, but was sorely the wrong size. Settled on a size 30 Billabong.

I'm going to actually pickup reading food books, rather than exercise books for a short while. I strongly prefer non-fiction over fiction for my reading. I picked up The Omnivore's Dilemma from the library, just need to finish this Dawkin's and I'll jump right into it.

Wasn't that cool? A whole blog with no workout information!

Day 68 - Insomnia Part II

Second night of insomnia on the project, the first was about a month-month and a half ago. I'm still laying in bed, motivating myself. I'll go workout shortly, but I'm starving and my joints still feel like absolute crap.

So.... I can't wait! 22 more days! When this is over, I think I will join in the Kung Fu Body. I can't stop. I'm addicted.

Update: So glad I picked up my workout. About to start on the abs. I know, I know. I shouldn't be on the MacBook between exercises, and I rarely do this, but I was about to pass out from the curls and needed to rest. On a side note, not only did I complete everything but the pushups fully-through, but I also switched from the 5lb band to the 15lb band on the Standing Ovations. Turns out the 5lb is too weak now, and results in me stretching it to the other side of the room. So on quite possibly the weakest morning I've had since starting, I've not only made progress, but "doubled my efforts" as Todd put it. That said, I had to miss work to get enough rest to get this far.

Update #2: 120 Leg-ups!? 4 90-second planks!? Man. I was leaking sweat all over. At the end of the planks as I started to sag, I had to keep shouting to myself in my head "you're stronger than this!" to keep it up.

...

Not irrelevantly, people always ask what I'm doing or why, and many of them ask "P90X?". So frustrating. I see this ad all the time too on anything fitness related, and in my PCP gmail, and I laugh every time:

Day 67

Coffee's good, usually black. Some maple and skim milk in it today though. A little maple syrup doesn't hurt to make things less bland once in a while. Just make sure it's real stuff :) I still feel guilty over little things, like the fact that I've had two spoonfuls of it today. (one in breakfast, one in coffee)

Workouts were good, tiresome. I feel as if I'll never complete the shoulder exercises anymore.

Happy to be home in my own kitchen with my own food. I've been feeling weak pretty often, and Patrick told me to make full use of the AMAYW on the veggies, so I'm going to see if that makes me feel as if my body is rebuilding quicker.

Update: I said screw the guilt and had another black coffee later with a little honey in it. I need to break free from some of this concern. Sunday is now coffee day.

Day 66 - Part 2

So during the graduation, we were stuck on metal bleachers. These things were terrible. Since my ass is so flat now, there was no cushion to relax on. My back was slouching, I was a mess. I then remembered! 'Hey, I skipped planks today. Why don't I focus my ab muscles on keeping my upper body inline during this and keep my posture correct?' So that's what I did, it worked out well. My butt still hurt.

During idle times, I put effort into focusing on different muscle groups, trying to feel them, and trying to flex them and distinguish them from every other group. It's a very fun exercise, and with my abs and back in particular, I think it's helped me isolate them better.

A couple things I wanted to share:

First, I stumbled on this fitness blog of this cross-trainer who does long-distance running (aka 100 miles). Impressed, I continued reading. It was only after reading quite a few blog entries that I realized she's in her mid-40's! http://trailgirl.blogspot.com/

I've also been reading Bruce Lee & John Little's (really, it's written by John Little, it was made after Bruce died) "The Art Of Expressing The Human Body". I think it's a fantastic book on Bruce's training regiment, and so far some of it is becoming integrated into my plans for once the PCP is finished. Particularly Bruce's "Sequence Training Routine (For Total Fitness)".

Day 66

Still in Brattleboro. Annoying my family by spending more time working out and cooking than visiting. Ah well. Went out to a restaurant twice last night, each time conversation frustratingly focused on my diet rather than anything else, as I sat and drank tea. Stupid restaurant "ran out" of coffee. I don't see how they do that, unless they just have one type of coffee.

Anyhow. Going to construct a pull-up bar in the living room, after building a rack for it. Tired of these weak shoulder and back muscles.

Cheers.

Day 65

Skipped my planks this morning. I feel so guilty for it, as if I accidentally killed someone's dog with my car. After yesterday's extreme workout and carrying so much weight in SCUBA gear, I was absolutely exhausted last night. What's more, I only got 5-ish hours of sleep. Finishing my leg-ups I felt sick to my stomach. I actually failed out of the chest dips and push-ups pretty quickly too. Soooooooo sleep deprived.

Turns out, due to a communications error causing me to miss the original checkout dives, I now have to dive with the current class twice a week until the class is over (about a month). I've made the difficult choice to scrap the SCUBA plan. The reason for this being that I need to focus my energies on the PCP and working my body, rather than playing in the water with expensive gear. I'll be jeopardizing my personal fitness goals at this point if I was to put about 8 hours a week into diving. It sucks, but it's a choice I've made. I have far more emotionally/physically invested in getting to "peak condition" than I do money invested in SCUBA diving.

I have high hopes for the coming month! Go Team Running Rats! Go Patrick! Get to the peak!

On a side note: I see my sister's graduation today. I can't wait for my family to see me!

Day 64. Rock on.

Holy crap. My shoulders are weak. I need to do davincis on off-hours to catch up. I'm exhausted after halfway through the second set, and I go down to doing half-sets for the remainder.

Crazy day today! My checkout dives for my NAUI Basic SCUBA certification are today at 5-6PM, then I've gotta go to bed, so I can wake at 5, do my workout, and catch the bus to catch a train to head down to my sister's high school graduation. Then a train back up the next day. Aghghhhh! Of course I'll have my daypack with all my PCP essentials.

Also... it is time. I decided I need to be applying this amazing body to something. I signed up for a Kung Fu class.

Day 62

Whew!
While it doesn't get any easier, it does however always stay relatively the same. Which is always quite a workout!

Last night I took a crack at a full body push-up, to kind of gauge just how out of shape my body is. I could do about 1. I may work on this on my off days, to improve my balance and strengthen my upper body. It's fun actually being able to support my body weight upside-down. Also- bald headstands are uncomfortable.

With each passing day I feel leaner, and it's particularly noticeable in my thighs/butt, as I lose more and more fat. I like it, and it drives my motivation to get outside and jump in the morning.

Patrick- Quick note. Today's workout did not seem to have the correct instructions for sit-ups. I just said screw it and did 120 sit-ups straight through, no breaks.

Day 61

Last night after work I ran about 1.5 miles. My knees and legs were tired, but afterward I felt better! I proceeded to do 4 sets of 15 v-sits later on. It really feels motivating to do extra workouts just for your own well-being, rather than the PCP.

I think I understand what the valley is now. At least what it was for me, and what it meant to go in and out of it. I went into it just following a program to get my body into awesome shape, and now coming out of the valley I have new-found inspiration, new goals, and a changed mindset.

I have a new understanding of the Peak Condition Project, being that it is rebuilding my body to be in the shape I need it to start working toward the "Peak Condition", but rather the "Peak" Condition is never an actual point I can arrive at, I can only strive for the best I have on a given day, and my body can always improve.

Day 60

April 15th - June 13th = 60 Days

It doesn't feel like it's been that long.

2/3 of the way! That's it for today!

Day 59

Hasn't been a great week for the legs. My right knee acts arthritis-ey when it's cold or rainy sometimes, and on some winter days makes me incapable of running. This morning it was pretty painful, and after about 40 minutes of nursing it I dragged my ass out of the house and jumped. Mid-way through jumping I stopped noticing it, but it came back later (I can feel it right now). Sucky.

It looks like I should be doing my SCUBA checkout dives this Thursday. It may prove to be a minor physical challenge to do the workout the next morning before I have to catch the bus at 7:45AM. But what's life without challenges?

I've started watching Bruce Lee movies. I saw the documentary "A Warrior's Journey" last night and it was excellent. Patrick, I understand why he is your role-model, I've never found someone as inspiring, as hard-working, and as independent of a learner. As my legs got tired this morning, I thought about the scene from the unfinished film with him so light on his feet, and it just made me push further.

On a related note: I want a jumpsuit.

Day 58

Oh. My. My legs. They are done.

Yesterday I couldn't finish my shoulder lifts because my legs were shaking. Today I couldn't handle jumping rope without tripping constantly. Dammit legs! You have a very basic job, do it!

I made a wrap today with chicken, lettuce, tomato and onion. I look forward to it. It's not wrapped very well, I'm not a pro.

Day 57

Wow... I've lost... 21 lbs since the start of this project.

For my build, I think that's pretty impressive. Of course, what excites me more is the amount I've gained in muscle.

I've started making sandwiches again. Always delicious.

Day 56 - Indulgence #2.... NOT!

This was almost going to be an indulgence today. It started out as a PCP friendly meal, and ended that way too. Grass Fed VT Beef, Organic Tomatoes, Onion, Lettuce, Mustard (cost the meal a bit less than 200mg sodium though), and Organic Whole Wheat Bread (not sliced, round!).

A couple spices in the meat and some onion chopped into it, and it was grilled on cast iron. First red meat I've had in over 60 days, and believe me when I say, this was the best tasting sandwich I ever remember eating.

It was a task constantly weighing everything throughout the process, but wasn't too bad. Ended up 10-15grams over on the meat and bread I think.

Day 56 - Long Post!

Day 56! Quite a lot of progress!

I had a bit of a slump, but I'm feeling pretty good about everything now. I'm starting to get to the point where I'm wondering how I'm going to keep this up once it's over.

Here's a comparison from when I thought I was making progress, to the progress I've made in 41 days since.

Day 14 (What I think is flexing, hard to tell!!!):

Day 55 (Last night):

Everyone's looking a lot better than when we started this crazy journey. It's amazing to see the progression. I get asked about it more and more every day now. Some people are honestly interested in it, some people think it's too hard to give up all that corn, salt and sugar (you know, the entire American diet?). That's okay. As Seabass was telling me today, it's not for everyone and people have to make choices on their own regarding how far they're going to go with their health.



Okay, this is a fun story from today. Before reading this, please keep in mind I'm not a violent person, and have not been in a physical conflict since middle school (over a decade).

This morning I get up on time for the first time ever on my days off. I have my iPod mini's 16 minute playlist all setup, and put on my new sneakers.

I jump rope on the sidewalk in front of the house. Yes, I sometimes get in people's way. But only for 15 minutes a day, which is how I justify my right to take up space on it. I face in one direction, otherwise rope gets caught in the grass on either side.

Part-way through the first song (probably 2 or 3 minutes) I have this 30-ish, completely out of shape man walk around me looking very upset and talking to me. He has one of those taller builds that looks like the fat's given up sticking and is slowly trying to escape downward. I pause the iPod and pull an earbud out, stopping my jumping. He's complaining that I'm in the way, and he said 'excuse me', but I can't hear him because of the earbuds. I apologized for not hearing, he's still mad. I replied that there's plenty of room to walk around (you know, the grass, 2 sidewalks, and road in between).

He tells me "we can settle this right here". I'm trying to tell whether or not he's comprehending the situation. I explained calmly that this is the place that's best for my jumping. He asked why I couldn't jump in the driveway, and I explained it isn't flat. NOW he asks me why I can't jump on the sidewalk across the street. (Umm.... I could, but what if you were walking there? Again, he doesn't comprehend the situation, but selfishly thinking I'm in his way, not others'.) He asks why I can't turn around at least once every five minutes, and I try my best, honestly, to explain to him why I may still be facing the wrong way when he walks up next time and I may not see him.

Through this whole conversation, he's right in my face, standing above me a little bit height wise. I don't want a confrontation, and was edging around it best I could.

So he tells me if I can't stop for him next time, whether or not I can hear him, he'll smash my f!@#in' head in.

Whoa, wait a minute. Hitting someone from behind because they're doing no harm but jumping rope?

He walks away down the street. The whole thing definitely was teetering on the fence between argument and fight.

I live across from a public school. The crossing guard woman tells me he's just looking for a fight, and not to mind him. She's a very friendly older woman. He turns around, saying "excuse me!?" and raving about how good his hearing is. Now they're shouting back and forth at eachother, while I change my shoes because these new ones aren't so comfy to jump in. He threatens to call her boss when he gets back.

I don't know how they left the conversation, but I went back to jumping and I was so angry at people being violent and stupid, that I did 500 extra jumps added to my 16 minutes.

So, that's the wonderful story about the dangers of jumping rope. Beware!

I need to find a new location to jump in now. Sigh.

Day 55

Hey guys!

Royce asked me how I avoid cooking. Pretty easy, really.

• All veggies and fruit are eaten raw, no exceptions. They taste so delicious raw!
• Eggs are eaten raw and blended with milk (I often add cinnamon), except when location/diet forbids a blender and/or milk. Then I eat hard-boiled eggs I made a while ago, which are refrigerated.
• Chicken is cooked on a 3-4 day basis, baked in the oven. Then refrigerated. (Took me a while to figure out how to pack it in the fridge without it getting gross. It involves packing it in an air-tight container with paper towel.)
• Grain is cooked on just about a weekly basis, I make about 2 cups dry. Last week I used red wheat berries, plain oats and some other grain I don't remember. Boiled about an hour at 3-1 ratio to water, then tossed in a Rubbermaid air-tight container.

Also - I only use locking containers. The ones without locking lids are just accidents waiting to happen.

Oh - and I switch things up on Wednesdays (my day off, and the jump-rope only day). I often make fish, this week I'm thinking of making a burger with grass fed beef (from VT = awesome), whole grain bread and tomatoes and lettuce.

Day 54

Today I made an omelet with 1 egg, onion and tomato. Used way too much veggie for the egg, and ended up with a semi-pile. This was my first warm meal in probably a month's time. It was nice, but not particularly extravagant.

I was much better at push-ups today, but still not there yet.

My triceps still look flabby sometimes, and I need to focus on those next time I do the triceps workouts. I don't know if that's fairly normal though.

I can't wait for my new converse to arrive tomorrow, I hope they'll be comfy to jump rope in. Or run. I'll be happy to have a very basic shoe again, as all I have right now are running shoes and boots, and Vibram FiveFingers, which are slightly too small, and thus uncomfortable to do sportsy stuff with.

Update: My stomach seems unhappy about having eaten heated food, odd. Feels uncomfortable, I'm not sure I want to do that again.

Day 53

Hooray! I completed my full workout immediately after waking up, made breakfast on time, and enjoyed it all! I love the shoulder workouts by the way, they have a really nice burn.

I think I was getting too much sleep too, which has been remedied by staying up late playing a couple computer games.

So anyway, feeling a lot better about it all! Keep going going going!

Day 52

I had a whole long whining blog post written about how I skipped part of my workout today and was all unmotivated this morning and slept too much, but I'm gonna replace it with this and just say:

I now completely understand the "PCP Valley".

Day 51

I'm really getting tempted to start doing these in the evenings instead. At this point I'm waking up at 6AM and laying around for an hour or so before starting. I think my motivation is starting to get to an all-time low, and any suggestions for lifting it would be appreciated. :)

Update: Thanks everyone! I did make it through. I like my new resistance band, it's different from the old one. Changing things up feels good. My jump rope's soon to break too, it's wearing pretty damn thin. Still can't complete push ups. I go back to the kiddie ones after I collapse, as the chest dips wear me out (and I actually collapsed on the last set of those today too!)

I did the straight 15 minute jumping again. Without 10-20 second breaks in between sets, I sort of feel like I may not be hurting things. I will however pick up a timer, once I can afford one. (Read: VERY BROKE)

Day 50!

I like even numbers! Woot!

Thanks Osamu! It's great to hear your support! I'm too happy to be a part of this!




I'm hungry, breakfast time...

Day 49

Almost to 50! It'll be sort-of a sigh of relief. Even being pumped for the halfway point, this week has gotten me down. It'll be nice to be "more than halfway".

I need to get a better timing device for my jumps. Like a big clock to bring outside with me.

Also- today while cleaning I pulled my Joe Rocket motorcycle jacket from when I was 19 out of the closet and tried it on. Amazingly, it fit perfectly, unlike earlier this year, when I had to suck in my gut a little to zip it (it's a really tight fit). Happy about this. Maybe it's almost time to get another bike. :P

Rest!

Ok, I'm resting for about 13 hours. Starting now. Cheers.

Day 48

So Patrick, in the kung-fu's do we just go as high as we can with the legs straight, or bend them to go higher?

Woke up this morning the least motivated I've felt yet, my lower back is sore too. It's taking all I can to get out and jump. It's downpouring out. Going to see if I can do the swing-the-rope-by-my-side indoors style and not make too much noise.

Ugh, need to leave for work in an hour and a half and haven't started yet. Forcing myself outside now, wish me luck!

Update: Dragged myself through all of it, telling myself I could stop any time. Seems to be good reverse psychology. Very happy for the off-day tomorrow, after walking to work the last two days, walking home once, and all the workouts, my legs are ready to collapse and my body's tired. Jumping in the downpour was actually quite nice, once I was in the middle of it.

Day 47

Went to the park this AM to work out, as I still don't have a proper pull-up bar. I think once I have some spending money I'm going to actually build one in my bedroom from 4x4's and 2x4's. It's pretty terrible not having a wide-enough door frame in the house. I've been doing incline pull-ups this whole time, and it's time for change.

The bar at the park wasn't fantastic either. I only managed one full set of 10 pull-ups, then about 4 more before my arms gave out. Not terrible considering I never do them, but obviously I need work. In contrast, the kung-fu sit-ups were pretty easy, but I was forced to bend my knees a little, and could only bend to about 90º, not any higher.

I thought I'd post a weight update today of the last 47...

That's all for now. Cheers!

Day 46

Today I tried to beat 328 jumps in 2 minutes. I couldn't, the two chances I really had at it I ended up tripping up and wasting time. About halfway through my arms were so tired of jumping fast that I almost stopped jumping, and had to slow it down.

Walking to work today made me realize I shouldn't take the bus so much. The hill is a great walk.

Day 45! BOOYA!!!!

HALFWAY! There are now more days of workout and diet behind me than in front of me, as Patrick put it.

This project has already taught me about myself and my own body more than 25 years of life in America did. IN 45 DAYS! It's incredible. Such a consistent workout regime has helped me cover leaps and bounds. On top of that, I don't even view most supermarket trash as food anymore. I'm eating a healthy diet, one that my body actually needs.

Happy and fruitful project indeed! Let's keep rocking it, team!

Obligatory flexing photo:

Congratulations

I just want to congratulate the "Graduating Class". Good job everyone who's on Day 89-90! You all look fantastic! I'm ecstatic to even be half-way through.

Day 44

I think the theme of this week has really been going back to the basic foods I started with, keeping my living space clean and tidy, and paying a good amount of attention to how I do the exercises and focusing on muscle groups. I'm getting better, slowly. The real challenge is staying mindful about how they're done, rather than my mind just saying "do it! do it!".

My midsection is doing really well. My legs are doing really well. My arms always feel weaker. I think I'm not focusing enough on the correct muscle groups when doing my upper body workouts. My left arm still lacks the coordination of my right, so I've been giving it every task my right is usually given.

Day 43

Just updating pics today, didn't get em up yesterday.

Lots more eggs and protein in the diet now. Also, after this morning's workouts I was dripping with sweat. This was the first time really since the project started (I don't sweat much). I'm sure that's a good sign.

Arms gave out on push-ups again, as they do every time after chest dips.

Spent the last hour convincing my housemate Will not to back out. I think he's solidly in on this now! I look forward to seeing him start soon.

Each time someone asks me about the project, it only solidifies my will. I think it's really the diet that turns people off, they can't stand thinking about eating food without HFCS, salt, or butter. Also alcohol. Clearly I need to start meeting people more fitness minded. At least I live in the right house. I can't thank Seabass enough for the support he's given me, especially when I'm being insecure about changing things (aka missing 15g of protein or replacing jumping with the bike).

Day 42

It's almost ironic this day number comes one day after Towel Day.

Skipped jump roping this morning (haha, another pun). About to leave on the bike to bicycle two towns over, figured that'd be a good replacement, and I might jumprope later in the day.

I will go faster and try harder with 8 minute abs, and see what I come up with.

Update: Biked about 10 miles today, felt more productive than jumping rope. Too bad I don't have time for that every morning!

Day 41

8 Minute Abs...

I honestly feel like this is too easy. I don't feel like it gives me much of a burn, even striving for the correct muscle groups. I've started doing them after my standard ab workouts now though, and will continue to do it. I'm sure it will get tougher as my normal exercises do.

My body also is starting to feel like I'm eating too much as this week ends, or not working out enough. I don't know what to do about this.

I had a long conversation with a coworker Sunday night. I think too many friends and family see the first two weeks of suffering (eating half, then eating quadruple) and they think that's all this program is about. Everyone looks at me like I'm starving myself, and it takes two hours of conversation to convince them otherwise. I'd say it's the only aggravating part of this project.

Kleen Kanteen = Dinner to go!

I bought one of the insulated (double-wall) 20oz Kleen Kanteens last night, because I'm going to a friend's house tonight and need to take my dinner with me. It perfectly fits 200ml of milk with a banana and egg white blended. Excellent product.

Day 39

A friend of mine was surprised that I'd post such lame photos, to which I replied along the lines of "it's pretty motivating to feel good about posting pictures of myself like this online, knowing full well they're ridiculous."


Fooling around with pictures this morning...

The Denim Ad

The Bodybuilder Double-Curl
(I'll try to get better at this one)

That about sums it up actually. While I'm looking better, there's still a lot under the surface that needs to get done! Keeping at it!

Day 38

One more week! That'll be an awesome benchmark! Halfway! To what, though? Will this continue? Perhaps my peak condition will continue until the day I die. Maybe I'll enjoy unfortunate culinary creations for a week, then do another 90? Who knows. I know for a fact that I have no idea what it will feel like when day 90 rolls along. Days don't roll though.

Something of note: Since this project started, like clockwork, I wake around 2-4 AM every day. I don't have much trouble passing out again, but I usually have an incredible urge to urinate, and then feel very thirsty. Thoughts? Maybe I'm not drinking enough water, but I already drink 3 times the average person's daily water. Sorry, average american.

So, that is all. I'm very tired now, and had dinner late. Should I skip my evening snack? That looks like a lot of protein to miss. Should I take a nap now, then eat in an hour and a half? I think that's my gameplan. Peace.

Day 37

Bicycled a ton yesterday, and went running. Today my legs could hardly stand the jump ropes (pun intended). About to do the pistol squats, I'll tell you how that goes.

Ok, got through everything but the push-ups. Arms gave out almost immediately after the chest dips, rested a couple minutes then got through 2.5 sets and collapsed. The side crunches are fun.

Day 35

Man, I need to get to sleep. Pictures are updated. Always looking better!

Day 34

Hey guys!

Sorry it's been a couple days.

Yesterday was my birthday. 25 now. When this year started I told myself that I would be a lot happier with the concept of aging if I could accomplish a lot this year. So far I've been doing well.

• I've learned to SCUBA dive.
• I've hiked several mountains.
• I've given blood whenever possible.
• I've read several books, including a couple by Richard Dawkins. Michael Pollan is next, I'm really interested in reading more of his stuff.
• Last year I started teaching myself Japanese, but didn't get very far. I plan on furthering that this year. I may also take a look at other languages. Perhaps even take a class!
• I shaved my head. I've been wanting to do that for 2 years.
• I finally have a laptop and a desktop again. It's been a long time.
• I'm now responsible for a real apartment and real bills, not just renting a room.
• I've kept an amazing job for a long amount of time.
• I've become more mindful.

AND OF COURSE - THE PEAK CONDITION PROJECT!!!

This morning I looked at my daily photo (I take daily ones, but only post weekly images). I was incredibly surprised, thinking back to only a couple months ago. I continue feeling like this is really going to be the change I've needed for a long time.

Next up - VIDEO BLOGS!

Day 31

Longer than average blog post!

Well, results are really starting to show for me. I know that I'm not even halfway, so it's just a motivator to keep on going! I'm finally understanding what I'm supposed to get out of this project, which is as much as my body can deliver, not as much as is prescribed. I know that whatever workout I do, I benefit myself, and the further I can push, the better I'll become.

The double-katanas are incredibly difficult to complete (ESPECIALLY AFTER THE ELEVATED TRICEP DIPS!), but I'm within a few of it and I'm sure my muscles are just getting stronger each time I do them.

Today the leg-ups hurt extra. It's probably because I did them yesterday, combined with all the legwork today. It wasn't my abs that got tired so much as my legs. I was absolutely exhausted after it all.

Finally people are starting to become impressed by results (I.E. This morning Seabass told me I was really starting to look ripped, and it made him feel terrible. :D )

I also have more and more people asking exactly what I do each day, and they think I'm done listing things after the jump ropes and squats.

To summarize, I'm really enjoying myself. :)

I hope you all are feeling just as excited about the project. It's a pleasure to be in it with you and your blogs are great to read!

Day 30 - 1/3 through!

By the way, did anyone mention it's day 30??? Booya! 1/3 through!

Day 30

Yep, this was last night's dinner. Egg white, milk, banana and an apple. I almost tossed the apple in too. The banana really made the volume of it expand.

Day 29 - Breakfast

So for breakfast(after my workout) I threw a whole egg, an egg white and my milk serving into the blender. It was actually pretty tasty.

Apparently heating the egg actually leads to protein breakdown/causes the structure of the protein to change, and from what I've read can be the cause of allergies. If nobody has a good argument against it, I may continue to eat them raw.

I'm aware of the salmonella argument, but it seems the risk of this basic sickness is surprisingly low (.003%).

Day 29

Just about to start my exercises. Got 9-10 hours of sleep, and still feel wiped. This exhaustion is causing my motivation to wane. Perhaps all the egg in my new diet will help my body feel better?

UPDATE: I just buzzed my head again, and after the workouts I can clearly see my abs coming into view. This helps.

Day 27 - Indulgence

I just took my first sip of this coffee flavored milkshake. It tastes super-sweet, like ice cream tends to. These are some of the best shakes I've ever had. After I ordered, I looked at the menu and it all seemed so foreign to me, ordering food instead of cooking it. I'm definitely already well-in-tune with the PCP, as I had hardly the urge to order anything.

After a couple sips of this, I already feel like my stomach's not going to be very happy with me. Ah well, we'll see how it goes.

Also- the double katanas were incredibly hard. I almost couldn't finish.

STATUS UPDATE: 20 minutes in, my stomach isn't happy. I shouldn't have finished it, but i made myself because I wanted to remind myself why a whole (american) serving of most foods isn't healthy. I'd say it was a good flavor, but not too exciting. I chose a milkshake because there's not as much terrible in it than some other foods I could have had.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Day 26

New thoughts, same feelings.

We're almost a third of the way through now, and it's been an exciting trip thus far. I'm starting to enjoy my level of fitness and while waking up in the morning has become a drag at times, I think I just need more sleep.

My daily food has been relatively constant the entire time, chicken for protein, rice and 7-grain cereal for carbs, tomatoes, cucumbers and carrots for veggies. I use some spices here and there, but I'm not very demanding on my taste buds.

I had a long conversation with a chef that works nearby. The gist of the conversation was me explaining the PCP, and him explaining that it sounds nice but he likes his taste buds and is very fond of good food. I think a lot of chefs could actually give a pretty good shot at cooking without additives. It seems to me that with some thought a good chef could create some pretty nice dishes out of what we've been eating. In fact, it could taste even better. Most views on culinary taste these days seem to be stuck in a rut of how much salt and oil you can implement while still able to eat it. I've kinda gotten this reaction from a few people, and I think if I myself was more creative in my cooking habits it might impress better.

Today I told my coworkers that I'm surprised I haven't been exercising and eating like this my whole life. I feel so incredibly healthy, and my body is starting to look a lot better. I feel really fit.

Hopefully soon enough people will actually feel like undertaking a project like this when I talk to them about it, instead of saying "yeah, that sounds hard". It's like me trying to sell someone on donating blood. They say they might sometime, and never take the half hour to.

I tried to get my "muddy shake" from Muddy Waters today, but they stop serving shakes at 5. Apparently they don't have many after-work milkshake customers. I'll get one tomorrow morning after breakfast.


- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Day 25

Ok, wow. My muscles gave out on the pushups, I could barely complete them.

As for that indulgence thing, I kind of decided on something, but don't really feel I'll be indulging, but rather just following PCP. I don't really have a craving for anything.

Day 24

Dragged my feet this morning, I was too excited playing with geeky gadgets to start working out. Drove myself to anyway, and happily finished without any remorse for the time spent.

I have sort of a crick or whatever in my neck today, I think the workout helped it, but it was doubtful at first if it would improve.

Day 22!

I didn't get a lot of sleep these last couple days. The insomnia started with the stupid street cleaners towing everyone who was dumb enough to leave their cars on the street. Street cleaning at midnight should be banned.

So I've completed 3 weeks. It hasn't felt like very long at all. Just about all aspects of the PCP I'm finding enjoyable. I get a great kick out of saying "I can't have that" when offered food, or when it's even suggested. I'm also paying a lot of attention to what other people eat, and scolding them in the manner you'd scold a smoker.

All my chicken has been baked in a ceramic roasting pan. It's delicious with chili powder and cinnamon.

I'm still doing incline pull-ups, as I've yet to find a good pull-up bar. Our doorways are too narrow. I might put it in the hallway... if I can find a proper stud.

So the PCP has also really increased my mindfulness as a whole. I'm getting much better as remembering daily/weekly tasks at home and work and getting them done. I think it's from the responsibility of doing the exercises and food prep daily. I think it's also really improved my posture. I asked my roommate about it and he said he actually noticed it. I stand up and I walk straighter.

I'm on a pretty busy street, and when I jump rope in the morning, a lot of people stare at me while driving by. I like this. I'm thinking of actually jumping rope all the way downtown and back some morning, when I'm really feeling energetic.

Speaking of energy, I have a lot of it these days. I feel it really improving.

I'll leave you with a before and now shot...




And a glamor shot:

Day 19

Almost to.. day... 20.... woooooo! Can't wait!

Day 18

Not enough sleep makes exercises a lot harder. Only lost an hour, but geez it had an effect.

Day 17

Nothing to report. All is going according to plan.

Need to buy food.

Exercises have a good burn.

My hair is now fairly blue-colored.

Day 16

Today I took Patrick's advice in his last email to heart, and put more effort into paying attention to my form, and the way I use my muscles during exercise.

I also noticed the change in the push-up style today. It was much more difficult to do full pushups with all the other upper body exercises, and I almost(but not quite) worked my muscles to exhaustion. The forward shoulder lift was as difficult as ever, and I'm still taking 2-4 second breaks between reps on the last set, as when I get to that point I can barely pull the band, even with a 5lb band on one foot.

It's interesting having never paid so much attention to my body and it's form, and I'm continuing to notice the way it's developed, and the fact that my right seems to be underdeveloped compared to my left, but not in a manner as substantial as would be required to notice it before now. Keeping this in mind, I'm trying to focus on that side more.

Day 15

Ah, time for bed. Did my morning routine, then spent the whole day off playing video games and watching BSG Season 4, as the weather wasn't nice enough to hike til the afternoon. Felt good to have a day off.

My lunch and dinner basically are usually cucumber, tomato or carrot, with chicken and rice. I've still been learning how to cook the chicken to my liking, I've never had to cook so much to eat so often. Tonight I baked it with carrots and onions in a ceramic roasting pan. It was fantastic. I only wish I used enough veggies for the rest of the meals! Generally my lunch and dinner have been a lot more plain.

Time to lie down in bed with the Nintendo DS, and go to bed.

Day 14 - New Photo!

Again with the snow! Had to jump in the snowy sleet. Wasn't that bad, but the rope stiffens.

I was happy to just jump rope today, but was really hoping to get a hike in. I guess not. Terrible weather.

I've been waking every night dehydrated, regardless of the amount of water I drink. Apparently my body's using a lot of it.

I can see some change in my photos, but it might just be wishful thinking. We'll see after the next couple weeks!

Day 13

So I woke up this morning.... at 6. I went to bed at 10. Doing well there. Fell back asleep. Alarm went off at 6:20AM. Got up, saw it was slightly wet out, and jumped rope before it rained. Came back in, finished other workouts. Showered. Cooked breakfast. Looked out the window.... to find it's snowing. Sigh. Anyhow, I got up before it snowed at least.

I can't believe I managed to save myself enough time this morning to sit at the computer! It's sort of a trap though, the more I use it the more time I waste.

I'm finding some muscle groups are keeping up just fine, others are struggling to. The shoulders in particular, which haven't done much more than support me on my bike and let my arms hang from them at the computer, are really feeling it with the davinci and the forward shoulder raise. I can barely finish all the reps, and sometimes need to rest a couple seconds between reps. Otherwise, I've been finishing all the reps, and sometimes doing extra.

Day 12

I got 9 hours, still felt like 6. Today I cooked more chicken. Kind of getting a little tired of it, but it's the cheapest per pound. I'm getting pretty close to not buying organic, free range. But it really bothers me to do so. There's just so much needed!

Other than that, things are starting to become routine. I'm finding I'm able to focus on everyday things again, instead of just PCP. Who knows, I might even sit down and play video games again some day.

Boring post, I know. But I'm headed to bed!

Day 11

Highly relevant to Patrick's recent reminder on sleep, I'm beginning to feel more tired, despite my 8 hours of sleep. So tonight we'll be shooting for 9 hours. It was so incredibly rough getting out of bed this morning that I hardly had time for workouts, breakfast, and prepping food before I was sprinting for the bus.

Day 10

I'm now taking up about 2/5 of the fridge with food. I just went shopping again, and hope it'll last a couple days. This is getting to be pretty extreme, and I'm getting a lot of amusement from it. I'm feeling hungry in-between meals now, which I assume means my metabolism is ramping up from eating all of this and the exercise.

I won't be spending on anything but food for the next 3 months at this rate... I don't mind that, but it's not something I'm used to.

In other news, I've abandoned the chin-up bar in the doorway, as the kitchen table works better.

Well, off to cook lunch for tomorrow...

Day 9

Almost to the double-digits! YEAH!

I'm posting early today, with a couple things I've figured out/found helpful.

1. Cooking in advance. Last night I pulled out the cast-iron double burner grill and cooked enough chicken for 3 days worth of meals. I also have a large container of rice cooked, for the same meals. The only meal left out of the prep work is breakfast. All I have to do for these meals is measure out the proper amounts, and add fresh veggies. The best part about cooking it all in bulk is eliminating the guesswork in how much to cook to end up with the proper weight. I can't get enough storage containers.

2. The small measuring cup (250ml max) has become my new drinking glass. I see no need to dirty more dishes than necessary.

3. Door anchors. The location for the standing ovation wasn't prime. So I built my own door anchor out of a sling of old climbing webbing and a carabiner. This allows me to stand near the center of my room, rather than in the closet.

4. Anything on the floor really requires something like a yoga mat to be comfortable. I have a really basic mat, so it's not too cushy, but takes the sting off my back in exercises like the leg-up.

Finally, I'll share with you guys where I work out. I was given the largest bedroom in our new apartment, which was a burden at first with how little it retains heat, but I found a use for the floor space!

Day 8 - The Gorging

I really felt like I gorged myself this morning on breakfast. I made myself a fairly monstrous breakfast sandwich with bread, sliced tomato and cucumber, and two fried eggs... the leftover bread was eaten with the help of the milk. I'm dreading having to eat lunch!

Also, the davincis kicked my ass. It felt good to push myself though!

Update: Holy crap food. This... is a lot more than I was eating. On the other hand, no more hunger pains! For lunch I had most of an onion, with chicken(dark meat) and rice. Also, part of a cucumber.