Stretching Correctly

Current Weight: 217 lbs
Body Fat: 29.2%
Exercise Tip 5: Stretch correctly

Numerous studies have found that stretching does not prevent injuries, and vigorous stretching can actually cause injuries. However, proper stretching does improve flexibility, so when using any type of workout routine to increase muscle mass, especially those like HIIT, be sure to stretch properly before and afterward to maintain flexibility.

Slow, steady extension and retraction of the muscles for counts of 30 is a good way to stretch. Pushing any muscle too fast or too hard can cause injury, even when stretching. Push just to the point of mild discomfort. If you start feeling severe pain, your muscles will tense, preventing any benefit.

Single Leg Press

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.7%
Exercise Tip 4: Single leg press

One of the toughest exercises (without equipment) you will ever perform is the single leg press. Stand on a bench or other stable surface about 2 feet off floor. Then slowly on one leg lower yourself, letting your other leg hang over the edge. As your thigh becomes parallel to the floor, stand up again. Repeat with the other leg.

This is a great resistance workout, and you'll most likely reach muscle fatigue quickly. Do 3 sets of as many repetitions as you can, increasing repetitions as it gets easier.

Weekly Progress

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.4%
No Change Today


Another week, another pound. At this rate I should make my goal by December, but I'd really like to reach it earlier so let's see what we can do to kick-start some more weight loss.

Week 1: 6 lbs
Week 2: 6 lbs
Week 3: 0 lbs
Week 4: 1 lb
Week 5: 1 lb
Week 6: 1 lb
Week 7: 2 lbs
Week 8: 0 lbs
Week 9: 1 lb

Nothing New

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.4%
No Change Today

Nothing new for today, sorry. It's been a hectic week, so I'm trying to avoid stress while still maintaining current changes.

Discouragement

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.5%
No Change Today

It's hard not to get discouraged when everything is going so slow. I have to keep reminding myself: It took me years to gain this weight, 13 to be exact, and it will take a while to lose it. At least it won't take 13 years!

Squats

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.3%
Exercise Tip 3: Squats

Squats work your quadriceps and your gluteus maximus, two of the largest muscle groups in your body. Exercising the larger muscle groups burns more calories, so you get a greater return on your investment. Squats also work your balance, exercising your brain.

Place your feet shoulder width apart and descend slowly, keeping your back upright. If you have problems maintaining an upright posture, start doing squats with your back against a wall. Trust me, it won't make the exercise any easier.

Do 3 sets of 10 or more repetitions, increasing repetitions each day or week as they get easier.

Pushups

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.2%
Exercise Tip 2: Pushups

If you are looking to gain strength, and muscle mass, in your arms and upper body, there is no better exercise than pushups. They work your triceps and pectorals.

You can perform them in a variety of ways to get better workouts for each muscle group, such as placing your arms further apart for more chest, or closer together for more arm exercise.

Perform pushups in sets of 10 or more repetitions at least 3 times. Increase your repetitions as they gets easier.

The Right Balance Of Diet And Exercise

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.5%
Change 23: Eat More Vegetables

Dieting alone can help you lose weight, however, studies have shown that a significantly reduced caloric intake will decrease your Resting Metabolic Rate (RMR). This is a noted cause of the quick regain of weight lost after a diet. Dieting alone will also cause you to lose Lean Body Mass in addition to the Free Fat Mass you are trying to lose. Adding an exercise routine can limit the loss of Lean Body Mass and reduction in RMR, however, it cannot prevent either.

Increasing caloric intake will increase your RMR. However, if your Total Energy Expenditure (TEE) does not burn the increase in calories, they will be stored as fat.

Your RMR accounts for 60-75% of your TEE, but it can be hard to increase it other than through increase in Lean Body Mass. The Thermogenic Effect of Feeding (TEF) is 5-10% of your TEE, and the Thermogenic Effect of Activity (TEA), energy expended through exercise, is 20-30%. You can significantly increase your TEF through an increased consumption of fibrous fruits and vegetables and you can increase your TEA simply by exercising more, but it has been shown that High Intensity exercises have a greater impact.

Instead of focusing on restricting calories, a better diet would simply change the foods you eat to more fruits and vegetables.

For more details on your Total Energy Expenditure and Resting Metabolic Rate, check out Diet & Exercise Can Alter Metabolism at Bodybuilding.com.

Jump Rope

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.5%
Exercise Tip 1: Jump Rope

A simple exercise that requires a jump rope: $1 for a cheap one at the local toy store to $10 for a leather one from a sports store. You can jump rope most anywhere as long as you have high enough clearance.

Start slow, jumping twice per rotation of the rope, until you get the rhythm down. As you are able, speed up to 1 jump per rotation. This aerobic exercise not only burns calories, but also works your calf muscles, your balance, and your rhythm. Working balance has been found to not only work your muscles, but also your brain function.

Weekly Progress

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.9%
No Change Today


Another even week, but at least I lost the mid-week gain.

Week 1: 6 lbs
Week 2: 6 lbs
Week 3: 0 lbs
Week 4: 1 lb
Week 5: 1 lb
Week 6: 1 lb
Week 7: 2 lbs
Week 8: 0 lbs

Eat More Fish

Current Weight: 219 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.1%
Change 24: Eat More Fish

Researchers from the University of Western Ontario report that docosahexaenoic acid and eicosapentaenoic acid (DHA and EPA), the omega-3 fatty acids found in cold water fish, may have the power to dramatically boost your metabolism by about 400 calories per day. Fish oil increases levels of fat-burning enzymes and decreases levels of fat-storage enzymes in your body.

Backsliding

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.1%
No Change Today

I didn't drink any water yesterday and didn't work out. I felt horrible and was walking with a limp due to sparring Wednesday night (Tae Kwon Do). It's still strange to see a gain of 3 pounds after 1 day though.

Don't Build Muscle (unless that's your goal)

Current Weight: 217 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.8%
Change 23: Focus on the fat

While increased muscle mass can help increase your resting metabolic rate allowing you to burn more calories per day, the amount is only 5-10 calories per day per 1 lb of muscle mass. Since it takes over 3500 calories burned to lose 1 pound of fat, it would take over 350 days for you to lose 1 pound of fat due to 1 pound increase in muscle mass, all other things being equal.

So unless your actual goal is to increase muscle mass, focus on burning calories through aerobic training to lose weight, not resistance training.

High Intensity Interval Training

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.7%
Change 22: Implement High Intensity Interval Training

Exercise is the primary method of burning calories. It has been previously believed that a steady, high-volume, low intensity aerobic exercise was the best way to burn a consistent amount of calories. But, studies by Izumi Trabata and others, have found that High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) is more effective at burning fat and maintaining, or building, muscle mass.

Essentially, HIIT is several short maximum-intensity efforts, separated by moderate recovery intervals. More details on HIIT are available at Wikipedia.

Negative Calorie Foods

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.7%
Change 21: Eat your fruits and vegetables.

There are quite a few people who recommend "Negative Calorie Foods," in fact there is a diet based wholly around the idea that there are foods with such a low calorie count that your body spends more calories processing the foods than gets from them.

While the idea that the foods are "negative calorie" is debatable, the health benefits of the foods, fresh fruits and vegetables all, is not. A list of the foods is available online at Wikipedia: Negative calorie diet.

Weekly Progress

Current Weight: 218 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.1%
No Change Today


Then end of another week, and a nice healthy loss of 2 pounds.

Week 1: 6 lbs
Week 2: 6 lbs
Week 3: 0 lbs
Week 4: 1 lb
Week 5: 1 lb
Week 6: 1 lb
Week 7: 2 lbs

Become a Morning Person

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.0 %
Change 20: Become a morning person

A recent study found that people who start their exercise routine in the morning are 90% more likely to keep to it than those who work out in the evening. Personally, I feel if you can manage to create a morning routine, it is easier to stick with it because your day is only beginning, as opposed to being worn out by the day's stresses.

Start each day deliberately, know what your goals are for the day, and work toward them from the moment you wake up. This will affect more than just your weight loss and exercise plans, but your entire life.

For many people, becoming a morning person is not easy, but I don't believe it is impossible either. Here are a few tips to help:

1. Have a Schedule. Set a time to get up, and get up at that time. Have a routine of things to do and start right in on doing them. Go to bed when you are tired to ensure you get a good night's rest.
   
2. Get moving. Working out first thing in the morning gets the blood flowing and oxygen traveling, clearing the cobwebs from your mind.
3. Alternate shower. Shower as hot as you can stand it, then when you finish, go all cold for a minute.
4. Avoid stimulants (e.g. caffeine) Stimulants give you a pick-me-up, but they always have a drop-you-down afterwards. Allow your body to regulate itself.
   
5. Be aware. Observe the benefits of getting up early each morning.
   

Good Night's Sleep

Current Weight: 221 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.5%
No Change Today

I feel so burned out. Its been hard to get a good night's sleep, which affects how I feel when I wake up in the morning. I don't want to get out of bed, and that affects how I start the day. I need to find a better way to start the morning...

Fair Use Day (was yesterday)

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.7%
No Change Today

No new change today, just focusing on the current changes I've already set for myself.

Fair Use Day is about saving one of the few freedoms we have left in this country, the right to use the products we purchase in any appropriate manner we so choose. The recording and movie industries should not be allowed to tell us when, where, and how we can listen and watch the music and movies we buy with our hard earned dollars.

If you don't know who Ron Paul is, you owe it to yourself, and your country, to check him out. I've even provided a handy link on the bottom right.

Shrink Your Serving Size

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.5%
Change 20: Use smaller serving sizes

One of the largest causes of America's overweight epidemic is the super-sizing of our serving sizes. Serving sizes in restaurants have become so large, and we sadly duplicate these large serving sizes in our homes. By having such large serving sizes, we are easily doubling our calorie intake. Portion control should be an important part of regaining control of your calorie intake.

A study showed that by using smaller plates, after eating the average person feels fuller than when eating the same amount of food from a larger plate. Another tip is when you go out to eat, immediately ask for a "doggie bag" and split your meal into two.

Kick In The Butt

Current Weight: 222 lbs.
Body Fat: 33.3%
Change 19: Get Motivated

Another road block to reaching our long term goals can be disinterest. We can easily become distracted from our goals by focusing too much on other desires. Motivation is different for every person. Reading about the definition of motivation can itself be motivation enough for some. Others may need a good step-by-step motivation program to get motivated.

Give yourself a good kick in the butt, visualize how things will be when you reach your goal, and motivate yourself to keep at it. If you really want to reach that goal, a visualization of the results will help you focus on your desire, but do whatever else you need to do to help keep your direction.

Focus On The End Results

Current Weight: 220 lbs
Body Fat: 29.7%
Change 18: Focus on the End Results

Sometimes things fall by the wayside. There are many possible reasons or excuses, but the only real reason is priorities. We set and follow our priorities, which can change from minute to minute. "Is it more important to sleep in this morning, or get out of bed and exercise?" This is typically thought to one level, and not deeper, making it easier to change priorities in the moment.

What we need to do is focus on the end results, not our current desires. Yes, that brownie or piece of cake sure would taste good, but it would interfere with our end goal of losing weight. While our current priority might be the feeling of pleasure the dessert would give us, our long term priority of losing the weight needs to take precedence.

Weekly Progress

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.1%
No Change Today


Another week and another pound. Slow, consistent, and maintained. I've been slacking on exercising so that will be my focus for this week.

Week 1: 6 lbs
Week 2: 6 lbs
Week 3: 0 lbs
Week 4: 1 lb
Week 5: 1 lb
Week 6: 1 lb

Drop Bad Habits

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.2%
No Change Today

A lot of weight-loss issues are about dropping bad habits and replacing them with good ones. Scott Young has posted a great article here about dropping bad habits: 20 Tricks to Nuke a Bad Habit and another article here on starting good habits: 10 Tips To Start A New Habit.

New Blog Template

In order to stand out a little from the thousands of blogs, and being sick of the generic template, I reworked one that was available for the old-style blogger and made it work for the new blogger setup.

Lower Your Expectations

Current Weight: 220 lbs.
Body Fat: 30.2%
Change 17: Reduce Stress Pt. 3

A leading cause of frustration with other people, causing anger and undue stress, is having unrealistic expectations of them. As much as many of us would like to, we cannot control the actions of other people. We do, however, create unrealistic expectations of them, especially when we ask them for something.

Whether they mean to or not, people will let you down. No one can possible know exactly what you are thinking or expecting, and even if you tell them explicitly they still may not get it, or want to get it. Other people will be late, they won't do what you ask, they won't say what you want them to say. Expecting otherwise will lead you to become upset, when you should have known that at sometime everyone is going to fall short of your expectations.

Knowing and accepting that no one is infallible will help you adjust to when you are let down, and not allow it to affect you more than it should. Don't stop asking of others, but expect them to fail and when they do you won't be angered, and when they don't, you can be pleasantly surprised.

Happy Independence Day

Current Weight: 219 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.9%
No Change Today

Enjoy your vacation days by not stressing on your diet or the rest of your life. It will all be there waiting for you when the holiday is over.

Reduce Driving Stress (And Save Gas!)

Current Weight: 221 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.9%
Change 17: Reduce Stress Pt. 2

Driving, especially to work each morning, causes a lot of stress to many people. There are many causes, such as construction, harried due to time, and even other drivers. To reduce stress on the road, and save fuel, follow a few simple rules.

1. Don't race. Accelerating quickly from a stop-light is a fast way to burn a lot of fuel, and when you are trying to accelerate faster than the driver next to you, you push them to accelerate faster. Competition causes stress, especially when you lose, even if the competition is insignificant.

2. Drive the speed limit. Not 10 over, not 5 over, just the limit. Cruise along at the speed limit, let other drivers pass you or change lanes in front of you. It isn't a race to get where you are going, just take a leisurely drive. Being courteous to others can be a relaxing and peaceful experience.

3. Give yourself time. Don't be harried and rushing to get where you are going. Leave with enough time to ensure you get there on time, or a few minutes early. If you are late, this can cause work-related stress, and trying to fight other drivers to get in front of them or change lanes at the last minute can cause trouble too.

While the drive to work this last week has been more relaxing this past week, making these small changes has also increased my fuel efficiency by 10%.

De-stress

Current Weight: 221 lbs.
Body Fat: 29.9%
Change 16: Reduce Stress Pt. 1

Heightened stress in your life increases the hormone Cortisol in your body. Cortisol plays an important role in regulating blood sugar, energy production, inflammation, the immune system and healing. Cortisol has been linked to many health problems, including weight gain.

While I don't condone surgical procedures to fix lifestyle choices, a recent study has shown that an injection that blocks a stress produced chemical, neuropeptide Y2 receptor (Y2R), reduced the unhealthy belly fat of mice by 40%.

So now that we know how negative stress can be, what do we do to reduce it? A first step to reducing stress is to get a good night's rest, which I've mentioned before. You can think clearer, and react to situations better when well rested.