Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Entry 2/25/09

Weight: 234 lbs. My absolute weight loss since 2/18/09 is 2 lbs. I'm sure that is not all fat loss. For instance I lost 1/2 pound from yesterday. For sure that was not all fat loss. It was mostly glycogen and water loss since I walked/jogged for over 30 minutes last night. But I have 2 good workouts with weights in this period therefore I have added some muscle gain which weighs more than fat per volume. Regrettably I didn't take my measurement around my waist, buttocks, thighs, and neck at the beginning of this period. However I have a scootch more room in my clothes. Taking a stab at my fat loss I would guess 1 pound.

Breakfast: Sausage patty, 2 fried eggs, 2 slices of sugar-free whole wheat toast and cup of coffee with cocoa, creamer, and sweetener. Two fish oil capsules, vitamin, 1 DHEA tablet.

Snack: 18 Blueberries (blueberries are high in antioxidants)

Lunch: Blackeyed peas, fresh collard greens, broccoli and a salad with Ranch dressing. What no meat? I need to eat more vegetables.

I ate at Luby's a cafeteria. The collard greens were not as good as my mom's but they were good.

Blackeyed peas are a southern food. I add mayonaise to them ....that's a family thing. During the depression my mom found a case of mayonaise that had fallen off a truck. She was the oldest of 7 brothers and sisters. There was little to eat. They put mayonaise on everything. The blackeyed peas taste good with mayonaise on them ....it stuck. I wouldn't think of eating blackeyes without it.

Snack: Apple

Dinner: Six ounces of something like meatloaf that my wife made last night, collard greens left over from last night and 8 oz. of Soy milk.


Exercise: Lifted weights for 48 mins. Avg. heart rate 108 bpm. Max. HR 138 bpm. Did a cool down walk for 5 min. and stretch for 10 min. Stretching after a weight workout is good for the joints and reduce soreness that sometimes follows the day or two afterwards.

I have reduced the time of my weight workouts from 1hr. to 45-50 mins. That means cutting out a few muscle groups. These are always the small groups. I make sure that I work all the large muscles - thighs, glutes(butt), back, and lats. I alternate the small groups I miss every other workout.

The reason I've reduced the time is because at my age longer workouts may be over training. When you work with weights properly you are creating micro tears in the muscle fibers. As part of the body's adaptation process the muscle creates more fibers and repairs the torn ones making them larger. This requires a rest of 1-2 days between workouts. It also requires the correct nutrition and the presence of growth harmones. As we age those growth harmones are not as plentiful as they were when younger. If you over train there is not enough "stuff" to properly repair the muscle and carry on the normal body functions. This can lead to less than optimum muscle growth and fatigue.

No comments:

google-site-verification: google6c814d78054d23fc.html