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So, where have I been? Actually, since I don’t have too many readers yet, the more accurate question might be “Where are the missing entries?” Well, I mentioned on the previous days that I was dealing with a sore throat and the onset of a cold, right around my birthday. That was not a good combination. Here’s how it affected my plans…
Workout
Day 14 was a rest day, and it was a good thing, because I felt lousy. Originally I was hoping to sneak in a workout on the treadmill, but since my cold was in full swing I didn’t even consider it. The exercise I got that day consisted of walking around a couple of stores picking up groceries and cold remedies.
Day 15 was supposed to be the beginning of my week, and back to the Aerobic Phase 1 workout. I stayed home sick from work that day. My low-grade fever was gone, but I was still a little stuffy and drained of energy. By mid-afternoon I was able to take a brisk walk on the treadmill for 45 minutes, using a programmed course that had some pretty steep inclines. I needed some activity to make sure I could get proper sleep that night and keep my legs from fidgeting.
Day 16 should have been a resistance workout, but it was time to catch up on things that were left undone around the house for the previous few days. Have I mentioned that Tony says in the book it’s OK to skip a workout now and then? Actually, if I am unsure about working out on a particular day, every once in a while if I skip it I will be that much more anxious to work out the next day.
Nutrition
My calorie counts were pretty low, matching my activity level and my lack of appetite. I did manage to eat some more birthday cake, until today when I sliced and put the remaining half in the freezer. I have done this before, and every so often I can pull out a slice of cake as a treat. It defrosts in about 30 minutes.
Even in my weakened state, I managed to cook another recipe from the book, something called yam tempeh stew. I made a couple of small substitutions, because I used red cabbage instead of parsnips, and lima beans instead of peas. It’s what I had available. I will be eating this for lunch all week, and it tastes pretty good. I have had tempeh before in stir fry, so it wasn’t a new food for me.
Health and well-being
I seem to be recovering from this cold in record time compared to the people around me. I may have seen it coming and slammed it with preventative measures, or maybe the healthy diet and exercise are making a difference. Whatever the reason, I will be very grateful if I get through this after just a few days of discomfort.
I have a confession to make. Actually, it’s implied in the “About” section of the blog. Before I heard about Tony Horton and P90X, Jillian Michaels taught me a lot about health and fitness through her DVDs and her (now ended) radio show, which I heard as MP3 downloads. Recently, I saw some “coming soon” announcements online that she was bringing the show back as a podcast. Perfect!
The first episode is available for download. You can find it in iTunes, or copy and paste this RSS feed on the iTunes “Advanced…” menu. Like her previous show, it sounds like this will be a mix of Jillian’s health and fitness tips, commentary on a health-related topic, some banter with her producer Janice (which was very personal and relevant this time around), phone calls from listeners, and emails.
Listening to all the radio show episodes (just as the show was ending its run, sadly enough) gave me a whole new perspective on “America’s Toughest Trainer.” She is much more well-rounded than the little woman we see yelling at contestants on The Biggest Loser. She really is very knowledgeable, she cares about her contestants and clients, and she practices what she preaches. Right after the podcast was announced, there was an opportunity to send a USB “thumb drive” to the show producers, and they were offering to load it up with the old show MP3 files. I can’t find that web page anymore. Hopefully there will be another way to hear these shows sometime soon.
Workout
Today’s strength workout went well, just like the previous one. I wanted to make sure I got in some calorie burning to offset the coming storm, so to speak. In comparison it wasn’t much, but it will help me get stronger, anyway. I really like using my P90X videos for the warmup and cooldown, too.
Nutrition
Severe calorie blowout warning! For my birthday, at breakfast I had four small chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast, with ham, sliced banana, and real maple syrup (one tablespoon). By the way, Tony uses real maple syrup too, in some of his recipes in the book. That stuff they call “table syrup” is just not worth it, people!
For lunch, we went to our favorite barbecue place. The usual routine is to share a huge platter of nachos piled up with meat, cheese, salsa, sour cream, and some decorative greens. After that, we’re pretty full, so we pick at our entrees and bring most of it home. I planned for this by bringing home some pretty safe choices: Sliced beef brisket (lean) and pulled chicken (in a little barbecue sauce). My sides were sweet potato fries, which I ate at the restaurant, and baked beans, which I brought home. So my plan to taper off the bad stuff by Monday is right on track.
For dinner, I had my vegetable soup and a grilled cheese (toasted and microwaved), then we had the birthday cake! My daughter did a great job icing it after I baked it. Let’s just say I had to do some quality control tasting along the way.
It turns out I was about 500 calories over my limit today. There were some estimates in there, but that’s a good ballpark figure. My percentage of protein relative to total calories was really low, since I carb-loaded on cake and icing. On days like this, I make my best guess at the damage, and move on. I know tomorrow will be better.
Health and well-being
I got a good night’s sleep, at last! Unfortunately, this afternoon, the sniffles and stuffiness started getting worse. I’ll do my best to get through this cold as quickly as possible.
I don’t particularly like how I feel after I overindulge for a meal or two. During the holidays, there were too many days like this. Tomorrow I need to get back on track. Chicken soup is low in calories, right?
Workout
Big news… I tried the yoga routine, at last! Well, I had only skipped the first week, but it feels like more because of all the times I missed during P90X.
Once again, this is supposed to be a 35 to 40 minute workout. It includes many poses familiar to P90X graduates, along with a couple of new ones. In principle, it’s pretty simple: Do these poses, in this order, first on the right side, then on the left side. Repeat three times. In practice, for someone who is still not a yoga master, it was difficult to make the transitions from one pose to the other, once I got past the familiar plank/chaturanga/upward dog/downward dog. I had written down page numbers on my photocopy of the routine to use for reference, and I only needed to check a couple of poses, but working from instructions and a picture (rather than a video) was sometimes difficult.
After a couple of repetitions of the routine, I placed the workout sheet on the floor next to my mat, where I could see it easily, and got through it pretty well. I didn’t think I would say this, but I prefer being led through the P90X yoga routine in all its length and repetition. I guess I could skip some sections for the time I am doing this program and still get the same benefits, or more. I suspect the Warrior-level routine looks a lot like P90X anyway.
After yoga, since I had some extra time, I took a 20 minute walk/run on the treadmill. I guess it’s normally not recommended to do cardio or strength training after a stretching routine, but I really didn’t feel too stretched out, if you get my meaning. In my early days with P90X, I tried a short cardio session before yoga, but I didn’t like being sweaty when I started the routine. I guess hot yoga isn’t for me.
Nutrition
Uh oh, my birthday weekend has begun! I had a big burger and onion rings for lunch, with a shared ice cream/cookie dessert. Hey, at least I shared (just like the other day, only more so). I ended the day with a 600 calorie surplus. Tomorrow is my actual birthday, and I know food is not a reward, but I make better food choices the rest of the time so I can relax them a little at times like these. I’ve been pretty honest here. I am just trying to find that middle ground between the Standard American Diet (SAD) and an overly-strict dietary regimen.
I did have diet soda today, which I have given up at home and at work, but the caffeine level was lower than the coffee I do drink at work. Oh, I should mention that “Bring It!” has a section with reference tables for caffeine, sugar, and other substances. Here’s another handy reference from the Mayo Clinic.
Health and well-being
My head cold isn’t getting any worse yet. My throat is still a little sore. Hopefully a good night’s sleep will do the trick.
Workout
Today was a resistance workout day. I started out a little tired. I got through circuit 1, did the repeat of that circuit, then did circuit 2. I skipped the repeat set on circuit 2, which shaved about 10 minutes off my time. Because of the shortened workout, it took about 45 minutes.
Nutrition
I ate healthy meals, but I also had some chocolate a couple of times today. My calorie count was high (120 over budget) because I had yogurt, protein powder and a banana for dessert before I entered my food into Calorie Count for the day. I guess I wasn’t that far off, right?
Health and well-being
My throat feels a little sore. This time of year, I am surrounded by people who are coughing and sneezing. I am doing my best to prevent it from getting worse by taking some vitamin C, zinc gluconate, and using my neti pot. I know this has nothing to do with my workouts, unless of course I need to take a sick day.
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