Entry 4/30/09

Weight: 235.5 lbs

Breakfast: Two eggs, sausage patty, 2 slices of whole wheat toast and coffee with creamer and sweetener. Omega 3 capsule and Alpha Lipoic acid cap. and vitamin.

Lunch: 4 oz turkey sandwich mayon and mustard on whole wheat. 8 oz. skim milk

Entry 4/28/09

Weight:235 lbs. I've increased my workout resistance by 20 pounds on the small groups and 25-30 on all most leg exercises and back and 40 pounds on squats. I'm also in the last loop on my "Fat Belts" (the belts I wear when I've gained weight). So hopefully this is mostly muscle gain. Remember muscles is heavier than fat by volume. I haven't been eating like I should though and that concerns me. Had a shortened workout with weights yesterday but hit the legs hard so thought I would have at least .5 lb loss today from glycogen loss.

Breakfast: Two eggs, sausage and 2 slices whole wheat toast. Coffee with creamer and sweetenr. Omega 3 and Alpha Lipoic Acid capsule (antioxidant) and vitamin.

Snack: 5 walnuts. I've been eating too many walnuts. While they are excellent source of omega 3 they are still calories.

Lunch: Turkey sandwich 4 oz. on whole wheat, tspn mayo, mustard. Diet Dr. Pepper.

Been trying to catch up on entries but my memory of what I ate is fading so maybe I can work backwards and bring up to date the best I can.

Entry 4/21/09

Weight: 232.5 lbs

Breakfast: Cheese toast...2 slices American cheese and 2 slices of honey wheat. Coffee with creamer and sweetener. American is not the best cheese nutritionally because it has more fat than hard cheeses like cheddar but I like it better for cheese toast and I don't worry that much about fat if I keep carbs low and I'm in Ketosis (body chemically "setup" to use fat as primary energy source). Honey wheat is not the best bread either but it was all that we had.

Snack: 5 grapes 1 strawberry

Lunch: Salmon with steamed brocolli

Entry 4/20/09

Weight: 232.5

Breakfast: 2 eggs fried in canola oil, 2 slices whole wheat toast. Coffee with creamer and sweetner. Omega 3 , Alpha Lipoic Acid, vitamin.

Snack: tspn of crunchy peanut butter.

Lunch: Wendy's classic double with cheese. Diet coke

Snack: 10 walnuts

Dinner: Ham and cheese sandwich on whole wheat. Eight oz. skim milk

Snack: tblsp of cruchy peanut butter.

Not a red letter day for good nutrition

Exercise: Lifted food to my month several times!

Entry 4/19/09

Weight: 232 lbs.

Breakfast: Scrambled eggs with cheese, 2 slices whole wheat toast, two cups of coffee with cocoa, sweetener, creamer.

Snack: Red delicious apple. They have highest Reseveratrol (antioxidant...and responsible for the "French Paradox") of all apple but I like Fuji better as far as taste. I'm not going to buy any more Red Delicious.

Lunch: Salmon fried in Canola oil, and steam brocolli.

Dinner: CiCi pizza. All you can eat buffet. Grandkids like it. I ate 3 slices of thin crust with sausage, pepperoni while waiting on my crustless pizza. Crustless is cooked in a pan with all desired ingredients but no crust. I've ordered it at other pizza places but they sometimes give me static. One owner said he was going to add to menu. I haven't recieved a single royalty check from him. Oh ...also had Italian salad and half of cinnmon roll. They sure are good there...hot buttery, lots of cinnamon glaze.

Exercise: Was going to jog but grandkids wanted to go to CiCis ...too late when we returned. Actually not too late but enough of an excuse.

Entry 4/18/09

Weight: 231 lbs.

Breakfast: Oatmeal and crasins, 2 slices of whole wheat with margarine. Coffee with cocoa, sweetener and creamer. Cocoa contains flavonals and it dilates blood vessels thus improving circulation. That is no excuse to eat a milk chocolate bar which contains little flavonal and of course has refined sweeteners- sorry to be a killjoy.

Lunch: Four wieners with 2 slices of American cheese melted on top with mayonnaise and mustard, glass of skim milk. It was fast and the first thing I came to in fridge. Better bad choice.

Snack: tspn of crunchy peanut butter.

Dinner: Wild Salmon fried in canola oil with steamed broccoli. 8 oz. skim milk. Milk has all eleven essential amino acids. These 11 are needed to metabolize the the remaining 10 amino acids. I worked out earlier with weights so I the milk is insurance toward optimizing recovery and achieving maximum benefit of the workout.

Exercise: Weight workout for 1 hour 28 minutes including a 5 minute warm up, 10 minute cool down and 10 minutes of stretching after the workout. Added 5 lbs to small muscle group workout and 10 lbs to leg and back exercises and added more small muscle groups. Did not intend to add as many exercises but felt good so I went for it. Have to be careful about doing that though. Can lead to over training which is counterproductive. But I'm not back to that level yet. It's also easier to over train as you get older because your production of growth hormone decreases. Avg heart rate during workout was 120 bpm and max was 144. Another point abut growth hormone. Its best to wait 30 to 45 minutes after a workout to consume any calories because they reduce the amount of growth hormone that is produced after strenuous exercise.

Entry 4/17/09

Weight: 231.5 lbs

Breakfast: Two fried eggs, sausage patty and 2 slices of whole wheat toast. Coffee with creamer, sweetener and creamer. Omega 3 capsule (1200mg), Alpha Lipoic Acid (antioxidant), and vitamin.

Traditional nutritionist would frown on my breakfast choice but my cholesterol and triglyceride levels are better than they have ever been and are now safely in normal range. In the past,even when I reduced fats and limited eggs and the other high cholesterol foods my levels were slightly over normal. Since I've reduced carbs and continued exercise, although spotty at times, my levels improved. I'm not advising you to do the same without monitoring by your doctor. However, keep in mind that doctors for the most part only fix you after something goes wrong. Many don't have the time to keep up with new studies or are biased by their medical training. More and more are catching on though. Some of the cholesterol drugs have bad side effects so its worthwhile to try a diet adjustment to see if it works for you. The genius of my conversion to the high protein diet occurred after reading "Protein Power" by Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades several years ago. I slowly began to incorporate their advice after reading other studies on the subject. While the Drs. sell them , I have never taken any of their supplements. I do try to limit fats but I don't go way out of my way to do so. Remember weight loss = Calories in - Calories out.

Lunch: Turkey (4 oz.) & cheese sandwich on whole wheat and 8 oz. skim milk.

Snack: 8 walnuts

Dinner: Blackened salmon (6 oz.) on bed of rice, steamed broccoli, and Italian green beans. I ate about 2 teaspoons of rice just because it was there - that's the way weight management gets sabotaged but that was a small violation. I did resist my wife temptation of her apple pie ala mode with butterscotch sauce. I know it was butterscotch because I sampled a little on my finger (redneck).

Snack: Two teaspoons of cookies and cream ice cream. Was having visions of the wife's desert.

Exercise: My plan to have a weight workout was postponed because a dear family friend was now taking visitors at the hospital. Get well Gaye!

Entry 4/16/09

Weight: 231.5 lbs. The muscle growth and recovery of glycogen stores from the weight session two days ago could account for at least .5 lbs. Remember I use a 4 day average to identify a trend in fat loss. Didn't get to exercise yesterday because I went to a Tea Party.

Breakfast: Two eggs fried in canola oil, 2 slices of whole wheat toast cup of coffe with creamer and sweetener. The usual Omega 3 fish oil capsule, Alpha Lipoic Acid capsule and vitamin.

Snack: 8 blueberries. Someone got into my blueberries that is all that was left.

Lunch: Five oz. turkey, creamed spinach, and green beans. Water with lemon to drink.

Snack: About 10 walnuts. I usually don't eat that many but they tasted good. I started buying Diamond brand about 6 months ago. I used to buy the grocery store flat packs that are shrink wrapped but by spring of the year you get a lot of stale ones in them. The Diamond always stay fresh. They may have some preservatives in them. Oh well I'm not going to worry about that.

Dinner: 4 oz Salmon steak, green beans with teaspoon of margarine. The margarine doesn't concern me because my cholesterol is very good. If you have a problem you may want to eliminate it. I attribute my good cholesterol and triglyceride levels to a high protein, low carb diet and including more omega 3 among and some other minor modifications. I was always a little over border line levels before making those changes.

Exercise: Walked/Jogged 2.23 miles in 36:08 minutes,4:30 minutes of that is a cool down section. Max heart rate 156 beats/minute, Avg was 126 bpm. I'm above 90% (144 bpm) of my max heart rate (160bpm) for about 6 min. 15 seconds. I spike up above 150bpm for about 1 minute. If you are older and have not had a recent EKG I recommend you not get over 80% of your max heart rate.

Entry 4/15/09

Weight: 231 lbs. That's 1.5 lbs less than yesterday if you're following. But, that is not all fat. After I work out with weights, I usually lose a pound or two which is mostly glycogen. Some of it could be hydration even though I increase my water consumption beginning early in the day in anticipation of my work out and I drink plenty of water during and after the workout. Glycogen is a readily available source of energy stored in muscles and called upon when the muscle begins to approach an anaerobic (lack of oxygen)condition. This state of "glycolysis" produces lactic acid which causes the burning sensation you feel in the muscles when approaching exhaustion.

Breakfast: Raisin Bran with 6 oz. of skim milk. Raisin Bran is not the best cereal to eat for weight loss, but, I haven't eaten it in a while and I wanted some. It is a better bad choice for breakfast food. Cup of coffee with creamer and sweetener. Omeaga 3 capsule and Alpha Lipoic Acid (antioxidant) capsule, and vitamin.

Snack: 15 blueberries, a few peanuts

Lunch: Grilled chicken salad with Ranch Dressing. Iced tea to drink Actually with as much ranch I put on I should order it and get a salad to go with it. I probably had about 400 calories in the ranch. However over 90% comes from fat and about 6% from carbs. The concern over fat is overrated. If your body is in a fat burning configuration chemically, the fat is readily converted into energy. I've discussed the chemicals before. Since I've been eating like this my cholesterol is lower than any point in my life. I'm not advocating that everyone eat the same way if they have a cholesterol problem, but if nothing else is working you might try it. Much of it is genetics.

Snack: About 10 walnuts

Dinner: Charro Grilled chicken (about 8-10 oz. dark meat), beans, grilled vegetables. No tortillas Diet coke.

Exercise: Was going to walk/jog but I went to a Tea Party in Plano. It was energizing. There was two different groups along Preston Road, which is one of the main feeds out of North Dallas into Plano and Frisco. One was at the intersection of Park and Preston and the other at Parker and Preston. Park and Parker are main east-west cross-streets. There was 500-600 people at Park I'm told. I was at Parker and there was about 300-400 people total on all four corners of the intersection. It was between 5pm-7pm and probably 5000-6000 cars passed by. Out of all those I only saw 2 give a thumbs down. Everyone else was honking horns, giving thumbs up and shouting out support. Many had signs and flags on their cars. I met and talked with a lawyer, doctor, 2 teachers, an IT manager from Frito Lay, an electrician and some others. It was a spontaneous event. Everyone was just like me, they found out where everyone was meeting through the internet or word of mouth. Everyone just showed up not knowing what to expect, nothing was organized. Most people had signs. I didn't. Next time I will. As people gathered there was a growing esprit de corps. It was the first time most of us had ever "demonstrated". There was several jokes about us being old hippies. One lady with the Conservative Republicans of Plano came around with forms collecting email addresses and information about what people wanted to see happen next and how we wanted to participate. It felt good to get out and do something even if only to encourage each other to do more.

Entry 4/14/09

Weight: 232.5 lbs.

Breakfast: Two fried eggs, sausage patty, 2 slices whole wheat toast. Coffee with creamer and sweetener. Capsule of omega 3 and Alpha Lipoic Acid (antioxidant) and vitamin. Two peanuts ( bag was setting out)surprised I didn't eat more its hard for me to eat just one. That's the way weight management gets sabotaged.

Lunch: Six oz. salmon and steamed vegetables (sugar snap peas, potatoes, and red peppers). One food I try to avoid is white potatoes but there was only a few. Will try to avoid any more carbs for the day. The worst diet is lots of carbs and fats. The 2nd worst is little protein and lots of carbs, 3rd protein and carbs. Better diet consist of protein,fats and little carbs, and best is high protien, low fats and little carbs (less than 50 grams). Carbs should come from low glycemic (index lower than 55)sources.

Snack: 10 walnuts

Dinner: 4 oz. turkey and 8 oz. skim milk. Too many carbs at dinner decrease growth hormones which is important for cell repair and muscle growth that occurs primarily while asleep.

Exercise: Went to the gym and lifted weights. It's been over a month so I dropped weight on each exercise about 10-15 lbs and shortened workout to 33 minutes by cutting out some of the upper body exercises. I always get in a good leg and back workout. That's were the largest muscles are located. Also do some abdomen work to balance the back muscles for proper spine alignment. I could really tell its been awhile. I thought I was going to pass out when I finished the leg presses. I walk after I lift until my heart rate gets back to about 65% then I stretch. Its just as important to bring the heart rate down slowly as it is to increase it slowly. It took about 10 minutes to recover tonight. My avg heart rate during the workout was 117 bpm and max was 142 bpm. I try to move quick enough from exercise to exercise to keep my HR above 112 bpm, 65% of max HR for my age.

Entry 4/13/09

Weight: 233 lb Ho Hum.

Running behind on my post. Not gonna try to go back and recap since I've not got back with the program and no change in the weight. Just haven't been motivated lately. Plan on hitting the weights tomorrow. Will see how that goes. I really intend to do that. Maybe that will get me fired up. Walked around the park yesterday, about 1 mile, with my Granddaughter. She has gone with me before when I jogged and she keeps up with me but I have to stop and walk fast for awhile to let her rest. But yesterday was just a stroll.... she wanted to pick a wildflower bouquet for her mommy.

Breakfast: Two eggs fried in canola oil, 2 slices whole wheat toast with teaspoon of jam and margarine, coffee with cream and sweetener. The usual omega 3 capsule, Alpha Lipoic Acid capsule, vitamin.

Snack: 2 squares of Lindt 85% Cocoa chocolate (chocolate contains flavonols and has other benefits) Milk chocolate does not have the same benefits.... sad to say.

Lunch: Five oz. turkey, creamed spinach, green beans and water with lemon.

Dinner: 8 oz. chicken, carrot and celery sticks. Diet coke.

Snack: 12 blue berries about 10 peanuts. Peanuts are high in trytophan

Exercise: Nothing today. Gonna get with the program tomorrow.

Entry 4/11/09

Weight: 233 lbs

Breakfast: Cinnamon Roll with coffee, sweetener, creamer. One omeag3 and one lipoic acid capsule and vitamin.

Lunch: Ham and cheese sandwich, tbsp of Miracle whip and mustard. Eight ounces of skim milk

Dinner: Cheese nachos and peanut and strawberry jam sandwich on whole wheat. (Not together!...about 20 minutes apart) Eight ounces of skim milk. Not a banner day on the nutrition front.

Exercise: Walked/jogged 2.22 miles in 35.25 minutes. Max Heart Rate 151 bpm, Avg HR 119 minutes. Finally got some exercise. That should burn off half that cinnamon roll.

Entry 4/10/09

Weight: 233 lbs.

Breakfast: All Bran, blueberries, skim milk. Capsule of omega 3, capsule of lipoic acid(antioxidant) and vitamin.

Entry 4/9/09

Weight: 233 lbs. The binge from last night may not show up until tommorrow. Maybe I can get some exercise in today.

Breakfast: Two fried eggs in canola oil, 2 slices whole wheat toast with a tsp of margarine and strawberry preserves. Coffee with sweetener, and creamer. One omega 3 and lipoic acid (antioxidant)capsule, vitamin.

Lunch: Eight oz. Fajita, lots of pico de gallo, sour cream and cheese. My son grilled those fajita. They sure were good. The meat came from a Snuffy's restaurant and it was as tender as any I've ever had. The restaurants get the good stuff-the rest goes to the public.

Snack: 10 walnuts...probably too many

Dinner: Shlotzsky's original small with mayonnaise. Have to have a Shlotzsky's ever so often. Diet coke.



no exercise...Texas is on fire and the smoke is heavy in DFW area. Good excuse as any.

Entry 4/8/09

Weight: 233 lbs.

Breakfast: 2 fried eggs and 2 slices of whole wheat toast. One cup of coffee with creamer and sweetener. One omega 3 capsule, vitamin and 1 Lipoic acid capsule(antixodinat) 1 oz of Resvinatrol(antioxidant)

Saw another article on Resveratrol today:

This is an article from Newsmax Health:

Red Wine Helps You Think


Resveratrol, the chemical in red wine that has been shown to
have numerous health benefits, is giving you another reason to kick
back and have a glass of red wine. It increases blood flow to the brain
and helps you think.

Researchers at Northumbria University in Newcastle, UK, gave
24 people a series of arithmetic tests while blood flow to their brains
was monitored. Before testing, they were given 500 mg or 1,000 mg of
resveratrol or a placebo. Those who had been given resveratrol showed
significant changes in brain flow and improved performance on the
tests. Additional tests will seek to discover the optimal dose needed
for reveratrol’s brain-boosting effects.


An earlier study at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine found
that moderate amounts of wine — 5 to 10 ounces daily — might slow the
accumulation of amyloid plaques that are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s
disease. Other tests have shown that resveratrol lowers the risk of
cardiovascular disease by increasing the levels of “good” cholesterol,
and also fights cancer, obesity, and diabetes.


Resveratrol is found not only in red grape skins but also in
cranberries, blueberries, raspberries, and peanuts. “It is interesting
to see that a component you come across in many everyday foods can have
a positive effect on brain function,” said researcher Emma Wightman.

Newsmax.


I try to drink a little red wine often. Some other
literature I've read suggest you would have to drink many bottles of wine per day
to derive some of the benefits of Resveratrol. That's why I have been
taking Resvinatrol. It is made from muscadine grape skins and seeds, pomegranate and other concentrated sources of Resveratrol.
 
The recommended dosage by the makers is 2 ounces which
supplies 200mg of Reseveratrol. The  studies I've read
conclude that 400mg per day is needed to achieve the beneficial results
discovered in the test. This means one would need to take 4 ounces of
Resvinatrol to achieve that amount. I'm looking for a more concentrated
source but this is as close as i've come. If you find a more
concentrated product please let me know. 


BTW: I don't believe drinking alcohol is a sin. Drunkeness is the sin. Drink with control.

Lunch: 8-10 oz of fajita meat, lots of pico de gallo, jalapeno and salsa. Diet Dr. Pepper to drink.

Snack: 10 walnuts. Too many

Dinner: Taco salad and a taco. Diet coke.

Snack: Went on a binge! 3 Brownies, 4 lemon cup cakes glass of skim milk,to cancel out the calories. You can fool your mind but not your body.

Entry 4/5/09

Weight: 233 lbs. Lost a lb from 2 days ago. That's mostly due to other factors than fat loss. There is a lot of stuff in our bodies other than fat. Since we are mostly water, hydration levels contribute a lot to weight variations. For any new readers- I use a four day period to determine a trend in fat loss along with other factors.

Entry 4/4/09

Weight: Forgot to weigh before eating today so I didn't weigh.

Breakfast: Two fried eggs in canola oil, 2 slices of whole wheat toast, cup of coffee with creamer and sweetener. Omega 3 and Lipoic acid (antioxidant)capsule, vitamin.

Lunch: Turkey 3 oz. on whole wheat, miracle whip, mustard and Dr. Pepper to drink. Miracle whip has more bad calories than mayonnaise but we were out of mayonnaise.

Dinner: Beef fajitas (3 oz.) in tortilla, tbsp of sour cream and guacamole, 1-2 oz. cheddar cheese and salsa (it was hot but not too hot-just right). Diet coke.

No exercise today. Went to a memorial service for my step father-n-law, Perry Adams. Perry was a Tank Commander in WWII. He landed on the beaches of France on D-day. He received the Silver Cross for Gallantry. We lost another member of the "Greatest Generation". God bless you Perry. Thank you for your help in making the World a safer place.

Entry 4/3/09

Weight: 234 lbs. My weight loss efforts are not a high priority for me at this time. That does not mean that I throw what I know is good nutrition completely out the window. That is why I'm not gaining. But I need to get more motivated if I want to lose. No "diet" will change that.

A word about "Spot Reducing"-trying to lose fat in a specific area of the body. You can't do it. People carry fat in different areas of their body based on their genetic make-up. Some are fortunate to have weight distributed evenly throughout their body. But most of us will have a predominate area where most of our fat is distributed. Some may have as much as 90-95% deposited in a single ares, usually in their abdomen for men, buttocks for women. As you can see all around you there are many variations in how people "carry" their fat. If you lose fat, you will lose it proportionately all over your body. Even if you become comparatively lean, the last place you will lose the excess fat is in from the area where most of your fat is stored. Exercising the muscles in that area is only going to increase the size of the muscles in that area. Your body will process fat from ALL areas of your body based on your genetic make-up.

From time to time I provide "Answers" in Yahoo's Answers. I'm amused by the number of people, mostly young men, who want a "six-pack"-rippled muscles in their abdomen. It has become the "In" muscle group these days. Some will state they have been doing a 1000 crunches a day for 3 months but they still don't have a "six-pack". The first thing I tell them is that they probably already have a great looking "six-pack". However it is covered up by a layer of fat. And unless they achieve a very low Body Mass Index(look at the chart in the sidebar) they will never see that six-pack. Some of them were paying no attention to their diet or overall weight loss. Many thought because they were concentrating their exercise on their abdomen, the fat there would melt away and their muscles would build up. Only the latter is the case. Unfortunately, unless you achieve a very low BMI you will still have some excess fat in those areas where you carry the most fat.

Breakfast: Bowl of Whole Grain Cheerios with cup of whole milk. Cheerios are not a good choice for cereal because they have a high glycemic index (how fast carbs are converted to sugar and thus more likely to be stored as fat)but I was out of All Bran. Cup of coffee with creamer and sweetener. Omega-3 (1200mg), vitamin, 1 capsule Lipoic Acid (antioxidant).

Entry 4/1/09

Weight: 234 lbs Lost a pound of fat overnight?...no...just weight...I've discussed this in earlier post. Several factors affect weight besides fat. Muscle, hydration level, density of food ingested, etc. Unless you are using balance scales, there will be a little variation in their accuracy on occasion.