Too Young to be Old page

[Diogenes]

Ugh.

One day you wake up and you are 75 pounds overweight, aka obese. It wasn't always this way. I was the skinny kid who could not gain weight no matter how much I ate. Always active with sports and workouts, and really continued that up until my early 40's. I was down to summer mountain bike riding at that point, and the winter weight gain grew worse every year to the point that I just quit because I couldn't ride the way I liked to ride anymore.

I became a house mouse, specializing in cooking and web-surfing. My wife and I each had a liking for eating out and cooking up feasts at home. As my weight started to balloon, I tried to watch what I ate, getting plenty of "healthy whole grains" and shunning fat, although there was plenty of falling off of that wagon. Typical breakfast--huge bowl of Cheerios with skim milk and banana slices; 2 slices of whole wheat toast with jelly (no butter--have to avoid the fat, you know), tall glass of OJ. Why am I not losing weight?? I dieted a couple of times, losing 30 lbs one time, 25 another, but always gaining the weight back.

One day, I stumbled across Gary Taubes' "Why We Get Fat, And What To Do About It." That made some lights come on, and over the course of this last summer, I read a whole stack of books on food, diet and metabolism. I started on a low carb diet, plenty of meat, fish, eggs and veggies, and lost almost 20 pounds the first month. That really got my attention. I wanted to start getting some kind of exercise, but I was so overweight, riding wasn't very comfortable. I also knew from my last diet a couple of years ago that aerobic exercise doesn't work for me *at all* so far as losing weight is concerned.

I had been a fairly avid weight lifter in my younger days. Unfortunately, all my equipment was stolen out of storage 20 years ago. I went to look at a gym, but they wanted a one-year signup to get a decent price. See ya. So...

One day I stumbled across "Convict Conditioning" by Paul "Coach" Wade. I read the whole book in one night and was fascinated with the approach. Only six basic exercises, with variations to make the intensity progressive. The program as a whole was comprehensive, yet simple. This appealed to my minimalist nature. Actually I should not call that my nature, as my true nature is to make things as complex as possible and get lost in the weeds, lol. Minimalism is my antidote.

When I first became acquainted with Primal Blueprint, I thought "Perfect!"--the diet I want, the fitness program I want, and the lifestyle I want, all rolled into one, plus a forum to help stay motivated. I intend to make the primal diet my permanent eating habit and adopt fitness as a lifestyle choice. The primal diet is the real deal. The fat is coming off effortlessly. My BP is down, my blood glucose is down. Energy is up. Primal Blueprint Fitness is also the real deal. I am sticking more closely to Convict Conditioning, but the core of BPF--pushups, pullups, squats and planks--is a super effective way to attain basic fitness. Expand from there as you see fit. (Sorry, no pun intended)

I'll be 54 next week. Primal diet since mid-July, working out since late August, and I've gone from 256 to 226 lbs so far (6 feet tall), shooting for 185 lbs of sleek, strong, red-blooded American male. So, I'll use this opportunity to say hello, I'll follow up with updates from time to time. For now--GROK ON!

[Diogenes]

Today's workout
Warmup: Vertical Pulls 2x20
Horizontal Pulls 2x15
Jackknife Pulls 2x5

I bought my pullup bar a couple of years ago and was horrified to find that I could not do a single pullup! I got completely demoralized and quit even trying. I wish I had been introduced to the concept of progressive steps in bodyweight exercises back then, maybe I would have stuck with it.

I'm about 6 weeks in to my training, trying to take it easy, but the temptation to push for more gains is strong. I have to watch out for joint and tendon stress at this point, and these early sessions are largely aimed at conditioning these tissues. I notice a little bit of pain in my left elbow, probably because I was tired in the last sets and was jerking at the beginning of the reps to use momentum. That is just what I need to avoid.


Exercise Descriptions:

Vertical Pulls
- With broom handle across doorway, chest high, stand so that your chest is against the broom handle.
- Grasp broom handle near wall on either end and lean back so arms are fully extended.
- Pull so your chest meets the bar then release so your arms are again fully extended. This is one rep. Timing should be 2 seconds pulling, 1 second pause, 2 seconds back.
- Intensity may be increased by moving your feet forward one foot so that your body leans more. Careful, don't let the broom handle slip!

Horizontal Pulls
- Hanging from a chest-high bar, step your feet forward so that your arms are perpindicular to the floor. Your body should be straight from head to feet, at about a 45 degree angle to the floor.
- Pull your chest to the bar, pause, lower yourself to starting position.
- Timing is 2 second pull, 1 second pause, 2 seconds down
- If you have a higher bar, use a support for your feet. It should be tall enough so that if you stood on it, the bar would be chest-high.

Jackknife Pulls
- Similar to horizontal pulls, but hang straight down. Support your feet so that you are bent at the hips with your legs parallel to the floor. Your body should be shaped like an "L".
- Pull up so that your chin clears the bar
- Use 2-1-2 timing.

[Diogenes]

Pineapple upside down cake, dang. Well, at least it was a small piece...

[Jena]

Pineapple upside-down cake is pretty hard to resist! If anyone breaks out a cherry pie I know I am in trouble. Its definitely my biggest weakness as far as the sweets go! I am glad you are making some progress in your workouts! I am sure you will be a regular brut in no time I'll be checking in on your progress, keep up with the amazing work!

[Primal Primate]

I can relate - Flapper Pie is my weakness! I avoid it at all cost now. Glad your workouts are progressing. Thanks for the tip on my journal!
Cheers!

[Hedonist2]

Welcome. I'm glad it is going well for you.

[Diogenes]

Jena: Thanks for the encouragement--and pass that cherry pie over here!

Primal Primate, what is Flapper Pie? Or maybe I don't want to know.

H2, thanks for the welcome!

[Jeffybear]

Diogenes,
Can you possibly provide youtube links to the vertical, horizontal and jacknife pulls that you mentioned?

[Diogenes]

Diogenes,
Can you possibly provide youtube links to the vertical, horizontal and jacknife pulls that you mentioned?

YouTube

This guy seems to have videos of most of the exercises. They are not exactly as I do them, but they are enough to get the general idea. Step 2 in particular, I am on much more of an angle, whereas he is about parallel to the floor in the starting position. Look for Pullup Progression Steps 1, 2, and 3. If you have any questions, ask away.


More videos here

[Diogenes]

Had a good day today. Eggs for breakfast, steak and salad for lunch, chicken, salad and broccoli for dinner. And the Bears won.

Today's workout:

Supported squats 3x20
Calf Raises 2x20

Working out felt great today. Lot's of energy, no nagging aches. I could have easily done a lot more squats, but I held back. I'm still in the beginning stages and I want to advance slowly.

Exercise descriptions:

Supported squats
- Standing in front of kitchen counter, place hands on counter, feet about shoulder width
- Lower into a squat, all the way down, with thighs resting on your calves
- Raise up again to standing position, using counter for stability and assistance rising from bottom position, if necessary
- 2 seconds down, pause for 1 second at bottom, 2 seconds up
- Heels should remain on floor
- Careful how your knees track so you don't strain them

Calf raises
- Stand with balls of feet on a stair or step
- Lower your heels as low as they will go
- Rise up on balls of feet as high as you can go
- 2 seconds down, 1 second pause at bottom, 2 seconds up