I did a good hour workout today. I think I might have a mild hernia from doing situps last night at the gym so I took it easy on the situps and did crunches instead. My father and I have figured out a rotation of 15 minutes of stretching/warmup, 15 minutes of low weight high rep freeweights, 30 minutes of cardio. Situps and pushups occur in the 15 minute warmup period.
An additional benefit of working out is I get to spend more time with my father. I want to chat with him more while I work out, but I have noticed something interesting. Since I have begun working out, it seems like my mind has to take a backseat while I work out, so carrying a conversation and walking on a treadmill is a bit difficult. I think this is partly because I have to be very mindful of the treadmill due to my weight, I can easily make it stall.
So here is hoping that the sluggish mindfunk goes away, which I am sure it will. I have been doing my diet for nearly 4 weeks now, and starting my workout regime around week 4 has been my plan from the get-go. Hopefully my masterplan of working both my mind out as well as my body out at the same time will begin to reach fruition. Oh and my dad is way too hard on himself, as an afterthought., because I know he reads these :)
Monday, December 5, 2011
Sunday, December 4, 2011
Ketosis dieting and eating out
I find that sustaining a high fat and protein diet can be a challenge, especially if you are in company of those who are not doing the diet. It can especially be a challenge finding a resturant that caters to your lifestyle choice. It seems like almost everything in America has some form of sugars or high fructose corn syrup in it. (I refuse to call it corn sugar, link 2)
However, for carb-friendly dieters,here is a God among resturants, namely Mongolian BBQ (warning autoplying video) This resturant allows you to build your own stirfry from frozen ingredients, such s beef, pork, lamb, chicken, seafood meats, as well as vegetables and a variety of sauces. You take your combined ingredients up to a large circular grill where 'professional grillers' cook it in front of you. While you pay per bowl, and it can get pricey, this style of resturant allows the ultimate in control over your diet, even if you arn't on the ketogenic paleo diet. I went today and noticed they added a nutrition value (including carbs) above the sauces bar for even more control over exactly what you eat.
I had a combination of beef tenderloin and lamb, with shredded carrots and broccoli, grilled together with a 3g carbs/serving chili-garlic sauce. While it wasn't the best creation I have ever made there, it was pretty tasty. Lamb is new on their menu for a limited time, and it has a distinct texture, however the overpowering taste of the chiligarlic sauce made it hard to distinguish and subtle difference of flavor between it and beef.
All in all, the two biggest positives about Mongolian BBQ is the customizability of your meal (you'll never eat the same thing twice) as well as the control over exactly what you eat. Adding the nutrition value to the sauces was a good move and I hope they keep doing that, and keep it updated. If you are on the carb-friendly diet and need a place to grab something to eat, this would be my recommendation.
However, for carb-friendly dieters,here is a God among resturants, namely Mongolian BBQ (warning autoplying video) This resturant allows you to build your own stirfry from frozen ingredients, such s beef, pork, lamb, chicken, seafood meats, as well as vegetables and a variety of sauces. You take your combined ingredients up to a large circular grill where 'professional grillers' cook it in front of you. While you pay per bowl, and it can get pricey, this style of resturant allows the ultimate in control over your diet, even if you arn't on the ketogenic paleo diet. I went today and noticed they added a nutrition value (including carbs) above the sauces bar for even more control over exactly what you eat.
I had a combination of beef tenderloin and lamb, with shredded carrots and broccoli, grilled together with a 3g carbs/serving chili-garlic sauce. While it wasn't the best creation I have ever made there, it was pretty tasty. Lamb is new on their menu for a limited time, and it has a distinct texture, however the overpowering taste of the chiligarlic sauce made it hard to distinguish and subtle difference of flavor between it and beef.
All in all, the two biggest positives about Mongolian BBQ is the customizability of your meal (you'll never eat the same thing twice) as well as the control over exactly what you eat. Adding the nutrition value to the sauces was a good move and I hope they keep doing that, and keep it updated. If you are on the carb-friendly diet and need a place to grab something to eat, this would be my recommendation.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
1 belt notch down
I have been doing the paleo, low card/high fat diet for the past 3 weeks. So far so good, I really haven't cheated too much. The times I did cheat were thanksgiving and the day after (damn you leftovers!) but other than that, so far so good. I have been trying to maintain my carbohydrate intake to under 30g a day, until I feel that I have been fully inducted into the new metabolism (almost there!)
The paleo diet attempts to force your body into a ketogenic metabolism. The way this process works is you have to deplete your excess stores of liver glycogen, otherwise known as your immediate stores of energy. You replenish these stores by eating sugars and carbohydrates. If you do not have enough sugar storage for an extended period of time, your body changes from Glycogenic Metabolism to Ketosis Metabolism.
To break it down further, in essence, your body has multiple stores of energy. Your body can burn blood sugars for an immediate boost of energy, your body can burn fat cells for a more sustained access to energy, your body can even burn muscle as an emergency store of energy. Metabolism is "the sum of the physical and chemical processes in an organism by which its material substance is produced, maintained, and destroyed, and by which energy is made available."
When you drastically reduce the amount of carbohydrates you consume, your deplete your excess storage of liver glycogen, or a form of stored energy. Once your body has sustained this diet and lifestyle for an extended period, typically 2-4 weeks, your body starts producing extra ketone bodies which can be found in blood, urine and other bodily fluids. The science behind the process is complicated, but your body has to get energy from somewhere, so it breaks down fat tissue into several components. One of the components produced is Acetyl-CoA, which is processed in the liver to become ketone bodies. The breakdown of these fatty tissues for this new source of energy is what causes you to lose weight.
The result is when you start this diet, your body is initially starved for energy. You deplete all of your excess storage of fast energy, leaving you with no real other source of energy. For roughly 2-4 weeks, people following the induction process tend to feel sluggish, tired, slow and mentally cloudy. (I can personally attest to this)
As for me personally, I have dropped a belt notch already, and even this new belt notch is now loose. I honestly don't believe in weighing myself, I think it is more about how you feel than actual numbers. If I had to make a guess, however, I would say I started ~360-370, and I have probably dropped a good 20lbs, if not more. I definitely feel different. I have started working out as well, focusing on low to MISS or LISS training.
Those that know me know that I have been down this path before, once with great success, but ultimately I put the weight back on. There is nothing I can do to prove that it won't happen again. All I can say is actions speak louder than words. If I can quit smoking after chain-smoking for 10 years, I can drop the weight and keep it off.
The paleo diet attempts to force your body into a ketogenic metabolism. The way this process works is you have to deplete your excess stores of liver glycogen, otherwise known as your immediate stores of energy. You replenish these stores by eating sugars and carbohydrates. If you do not have enough sugar storage for an extended period of time, your body changes from Glycogenic Metabolism to Ketosis Metabolism.
To break it down further, in essence, your body has multiple stores of energy. Your body can burn blood sugars for an immediate boost of energy, your body can burn fat cells for a more sustained access to energy, your body can even burn muscle as an emergency store of energy. Metabolism is "the sum of the physical and chemical processes in an organism by which its material substance is produced, maintained, and destroyed, and by which energy is made available."
When you drastically reduce the amount of carbohydrates you consume, your deplete your excess storage of liver glycogen, or a form of stored energy. Once your body has sustained this diet and lifestyle for an extended period, typically 2-4 weeks, your body starts producing extra ketone bodies which can be found in blood, urine and other bodily fluids. The science behind the process is complicated, but your body has to get energy from somewhere, so it breaks down fat tissue into several components. One of the components produced is Acetyl-CoA, which is processed in the liver to become ketone bodies. The breakdown of these fatty tissues for this new source of energy is what causes you to lose weight.
The result is when you start this diet, your body is initially starved for energy. You deplete all of your excess storage of fast energy, leaving you with no real other source of energy. For roughly 2-4 weeks, people following the induction process tend to feel sluggish, tired, slow and mentally cloudy. (I can personally attest to this)
As for me personally, I have dropped a belt notch already, and even this new belt notch is now loose. I honestly don't believe in weighing myself, I think it is more about how you feel than actual numbers. If I had to make a guess, however, I would say I started ~360-370, and I have probably dropped a good 20lbs, if not more. I definitely feel different. I have started working out as well, focusing on low to MISS or LISS training.
Those that know me know that I have been down this path before, once with great success, but ultimately I put the weight back on. There is nothing I can do to prove that it won't happen again. All I can say is actions speak louder than words. If I can quit smoking after chain-smoking for 10 years, I can drop the weight and keep it off.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Week 3 of ketogenic metabolism
Hello all,
I have decidec to be active in documenting my weight loss progress, work out regimin and progress.
Started the day with a small snack of turkey sausage and coffee. Once I finished my daily 'waste time on the internet' I was off to tackle and take charge of my life.
I started the workout portion of my lifestyle change. I went to my father's house and walked a few miles on the treadmill, followed by low weight/high rep weightlifting, focusing on my arms and abs. My goal is to tone righte now, build a little bit of muscle. I don't want to rip myself out yet, just get down to a healthy, managable weight.
I have decidec to be active in documenting my weight loss progress, work out regimin and progress.
Started the day with a small snack of turkey sausage and coffee. Once I finished my daily 'waste time on the internet' I was off to tackle and take charge of my life.
I started the workout portion of my lifestyle change. I went to my father's house and walked a few miles on the treadmill, followed by low weight/high rep weightlifting, focusing on my arms and abs. My goal is to tone righte now, build a little bit of muscle. I don't want to rip myself out yet, just get down to a healthy, managable weight.
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