Posts Tagged ‘fitness’

Not much to report on today, except that starting my workout was definitely much easier than it was yesterday. I was actually looking forward to it. I went for a 10 minute jog, stretched, and then did some sit-ups, pull-ups, etc. One thing I did want to talk about (that I forgot to mention in earlier posts) is weight.

Since a lot people judge the progress and effectiveness by how much weight they lose, it may seem weird that I didn’t weigh myself. I actually did (or didn’t do) this on purpose. The problem is that your weight fluctuates. In the beginning it may go down as you lose fat weight, but then will usually go up as you start building muscle which is heavier than fat. After a while it will eventually level out as your body fat gets down to a lower lever and you aren’t putting on as much muscle weight.

If you judge your progress using weight, you are setting yourself up for an emotional roller coaster. You will be excited to see your weight drop. Then be even more disappointed to see it go back up. It also doesn’t take into consideration how you actually feel. The fact you have more energy, feel stronger and actually enjoy working out. If you focus on these things, I think you are a lot more likely to stay with your program.

We have all seen the ads. Lose 10 pounds in 5 days, lose fat without changing your diet, get ripped in 15 minutes a day, get the body you have always been dreaming of with our new magic pill. The ads always tell us it can be so easy and  usually display a picture similar to the one at the top of this post. Let’s face it. We all want to be in good shape. People sped huge amounts of money each year on make up, clothes, food, tans, and exercise programs to make themselves look and feel better. The advantage of getting in shape over the other things, is that you not only look better, but you feel better. You have more energy, motivation, and confidence. So can the results that everyone talks about really be achieved? This is what I plan to find out.

The problem with most weight loss or body shaping programs is that most people stop doing them after only a few days or maybe a few weeks. The beginning is always the most difficult because you body is revolting against the changes. I plan to compete an entire 30 days of training and see if I can get the body they always show in the pictures. I am not trying to go for a body builder body, but I will try to gain definition and increase muscle size though out my body and try to gain the famous “6-pack” everyone always seems to be trying for.

Now the point of my test is two fold. One is to try and get in great shape. The other is to see if it is possible to get in shape within 30 days living within reasonable means. For instance, anyone can probably get in good shape in a month if they are training 4 hours a day 6 days a week. For obvious reasons, this isn’t possible for the majority of people and therefore realistic. It is also doubtful that anyone would stick with that plan for a very long time. To keep this program possible for anyone, I have come up with a list of requirements.

Requirements

1. Must not train more than 5 hours per week. This seems like reasonable amount for someone with a job.
2. Will not use any expensive machines. Any equipment used must be easily attainable and cheap.
3. Can not join a gym or receive any personal training
4. No significant changes to my diet. To be fair, I eat relatively balanced meals. However, I am not going to drastically change my diet for this workout.
5. No pills or supplements

The Plan

Lose fat weight and create a toned body in 30 days by using methods that require either no equipment at all (push-ups, pull-ups, sit-ups, etc) or cheap equipment that can be purchased at just about any store (exercise ball, pull up bar, dumb bell weights, etc).

The Program

I will be using “The Truth About Abs” program in conjunction with some of my favorite exercise routines to try and achieve my results.  I will start the program on February 1 and stop on March 2 exercising no more than 1 hour per day 5 days a week. (I’ve never actually tried this abs program, but it is actually very well written and comes with a number of bonus books. I will do a full evaluation of the program in 30 days, but if you would like to check it out now, you can find it here.)

Documentation

I will be taking pictures of myself through out the process and may even do a few videos a long the way. I will also try and keep track of my basic diet. I will also keep track of the types of exercises and how my body is adapting to them. If you would like to get all the updates, and not just the ones I make post on the blog, please follow me on Twitter.

Final Notes

As I mentioned, the point of this challenge is to see if I can get a toned/muscular body in 30 days on a a schedule that anyone could accomplish. I would like to mention that I am someone who eats relatively well and am in decent shape. By no means could I run a marathon, but I could run a mile. During this challenge I will try to lose some of by body fat and put on enough muscle to have a six pack and a toned body.

Wish me good luck and please feel free to leave any comments you may have.