agitated seabass

Yay! new bumper plates have arrived. This completes my weights set.

I am learning the power snatch technique at the moment and so these and the power cleans require a low starting weight. They also need the bar to be at a good starting height which these plates will provide.

I have bumper plates at 15kg and 25kg but it is going to take a while to build up to that kind of weight for either of these moves.

These will also be good for the the bear complex which is a person favourite exercise of mine.

Looking forward to trying them out tomorrow, pity it is not a weights day today.

Thee are from ebay and cost about £30 for the pair, not a bad price.

Purchase win 🙂

INTRODUCTION

Ok, so my health kicks have not really worked this year and i have not completed a proper one in some some. So, I have a surfing trip booked in the first week of November which gives me 2 months to get in shape.

Started on 1st September and completed week 1.

EXERCISE

Week 1 exercise schedule in brief:

• Monday: 1 Hour weights session at home
• Tuesday: 25 minutes cardio set on the treadmill followed by 1 hour hurricane class at H3 gym
• Wednesday: Rest day (Caused by ill pets and birthday meal)
• Thursday: 1 Hour Weights at Home
• Friday: 30 minutes abs class followed by weights class at H3 gym
• Saturday: Cardio 5k Parkrun at forest fields with a jog there and back (a few km)
• Sunday: A stroll round the park on the pitch and putt course then 1 hour weights session followed by 1 hour Hurricane cardio class at H3 gym (it hurt!)

FOOD and Nutrition

Week 1 food schedule in brief:

3 of my most recent protein shakes (See previous post in diet section) per day with a non carb meal in the evening. The evening meal is generally consisting of a leafy salad with a bit of branston pickle and home made dressing (Olive oil, various mustards and hot sauces), meat (Usually one piece) and a few fried eggs. I add 50g of mature cheddar which goes on everything for taste.

Kcal per day:

• Average of 1575 Kcal
• Ranging from 1315 Kcal to 1869 Kcal

The lower range was sticking to the plan and the higher range days added in a number of pieces of meat (meal out and a bbq)

Average food makeup per day:

• Carbs 49g (10g Sugar)
• Fats 88g
• Protein 154g

Food timings:

• 10am shake
• 1pm shake
• 4pm shake
• Meal between 6 and 8pm

RESULTS

Over the 7 days here are my stats:

• Weight: Decreased by 2.6kg
• Upper body fat: Decreased by 0.6%
• Lower body fat: Decreased by  1.2%

Not a bad start but the first week always throws up some good numbers. Week 2 should be more representative.

I am aiming for a kg a week fat loss. With this low carb diet I am feeling very low on energy but I am hoping this will improve as my body gets used to using fat as energy instead of carbs.

I am very happy with the low level of sugar i am consuming. I am not monitoring sodium levels completely but the rough estimates i have looked at put me well under the RDA even with meat, eggs and cheese in my main meal.

I drink at least 2-4L of soda water a day depending on exercise. this does have a higher sodium level than flat water but the amounts are negligible.

All my muscles hurt and i have been shown what little abs i have (my worst and most hated exercise) but i am enjoying the diet of meat, fried eggs and cheese. Lets see how week 2 goes……

For the past 3 ish years, I have replaced breakfast and lunch with protein shakes during the week. I try and use them as much as possible and for the most part it does offset my overeating, which still happens more often than id like. So i have maintained my weight for a few years now and if i really concentrate i can lose weight when i want.

I carry a cool-box in the car with all the ingredients for my shakes. Up until recently they have been made up of the following:

• One scoop (12.5g) of unflavoured protein
• Two scoops of chocolate slim fast powder (42g)
• 150ml of skimmed milk

For the past month i have modified that recipe to substitute the cows milk with Almond milk. I found i could increase the quantity from 150g to 250g (filling me up more) and still achieve my target thickness. The flavour did suffer but with such a different taste with the almond milk a significant change was inevitable.

The last few days i have been experimenting with alternatives to slim fast powder. The amount of sugar and price were concerning me. The pros for slim fast were the added vitamins and minerals. As the almond milk has added vits and mins i have decided to ignore this factor.

So i have added straight cocoa powder and xylitol to the mix and removed the slim fast. I am still playing around with the amounts but here is a breakdown of the different versions of the shakes and their properties:

Per shake, my intake of sugar have dropped from 27.8g to 1.2g. The calories have also decreased significantly by 56.3Kcal. Protein has increased slightly and fat has nearly doubled.

From what i have seen sugar and carbs  are the enemy and fat is all good as long as the Kcal are under control. High protein in my diet is key to filling me up but even with 3 protein shakes a day and two or more portions of meat for dinner, my protein levels are bang on for the RDA of a high protein diet.

Having shakes instead of solid food does take some getting used to but now 2 or 3 a day keeps hunger down pretty well and is more healthy than most foods in my opinion. Chocolate flavour is essential for me to motivate me to stick to the shakes!

Pricey at £2 a bar but daaaaammmm good. If it was the same price as a mars bar or yorkie id choose the Atkins bar. As far as protein bars go I think it makes the number one spot.

It doesn’t taste like chocolate. It taste quite nasty. £2 a go…..I want my money back.

So, I live in premier inns during the week around the country. But these hotels push the all you can eat meals at you with very little healthy options. Curry night, pie night, fish & chips night……fine if your there on for a few days out of the year for some sort of holiday or event, but if your there two/three/four times a week, every week…..thats just asking to end up clothes shopping at big & tall.

Some meals are good if you can order off menu. Get rid of the chips and add in some veg. Great, but that will be extra! *sigh*

To be fair a lot of premier inns will give you veg instead of chips at the same price but you get whatever they have left in the freezer. Vegitables are not a part of the menu at all so you have to hope for the best and see what you get. Sometimes I order my meal with no chips or onion rings but ask for veg and a plain side salad, its 50:50 whether I get exactly what iv ask for.

As I dont want any carbs with my evening meal and they only give you a small selection of veg if your lucky iv had to maximise my meat options to fill me up. Otherwise I find myself raiding the vending machine or the 24 hours macy Ds. Mixed grill fills you up but its not much good on the old limited calorie allowance. They did a surf, turf and chicken dish that was awesome! That with veg and salad was perfect and a reasonable price too. It was the only thing there that worked with my calorie allowance but they cancelled it nationwide, sometimes I think just to annoy me for ordering off menu. My regular inn was one of the only ones that had a veg option actually on the menu and they took that off too, they told me they werent even stocking veg anymore! YOU WHAT???!

So with my new gym membership im targeting different premier inns near Pure Gyms. The first one I try also has a toby carvery down the road. Why didnt I try this place before?? It has solved my problems.  Not only is it cheap, you get to choose exactly what you want on your plate. A mix of 4 meats, I ignore the carbs amd fill up on a great choice of vegitables.  Marvelous!

So thats what im going to be eating most of the week. Luckily I like to eat the same thing every day and I only want a choicen when i can take advantage of it; on holiday. I will target 800 kcal for my evening meal, mostly veg.