Days 75 & 76

The Workout

Friday was a rest day. Saturday morning I I did 21, 15, 9 reps of:

• Handstand pushups
• 155lb Deadlifts

In 6:04 I almost finished. On the 14th rep of the 15 rep set of deadlifts, I tweaked my lower back – probably due to poor form. I finished out the pushups (still from a platform), but did not do the final set of nine deadlifts.

The Food

Friday morning I had four fried eggs and some bacon. I went out to eat lunch with some people at work and had gluten-free orange chicken. Some almonds helped me along in the afternoon. For dinner we had a salad – baby spinach, sweet peppers, and cucumbers – and bacon-wrapped pork tenderloin.

Saturday morning we had coconut pancakes and bacon for breakfast. I had three hard-boiled eggs a little later in the morning, combined with some banana bread that Michelle baked, was essentially my lunch. For dinner Michelle made a baked mustard-lime chicken with roasted brussel sprouts and sauteed sweet peppers:

Day 74

The Workout

This morning I did a nine minute AMRAP of:

• 2 Handstand pushups
• 2 Pullups
• Increase the reps by 2 each round

I completed six rounds, doing 12 HSPUs and 12 pullups in the final round. I’m still working on these exercises – the pushups were done with my feet on a platform and the pullups were all negatives. Maybe I should focus on pullups in the near future.

The Food

For breakfast I successfully made a omelette for the first time in quite a while. It was filled with the leftover meatballs from last week. Lunch was a salad – mixed greens, mushrooms, bell peppers, cucumber, sunflower seeds, and chicken – from a place called SweetGreen.  I won’t claim the sample size is big, but this was the best salad I’ve ever ordered “to go.”I had some almonds and frozen blackberries as a snack in the afternoon. For dinner we had salmon, chicken and bacon, and asparagus.

Day 73

The Workout

This morning’s workout was four rounds of:

• Row 500m
• 25 lunges

I finished in 19:56. My thighs are killing me!

The Food

Breakfast was four fried eggs and a large grapefruit. Lunch was Chipotle again – it’s the easiest thing near our company offices. I had some almonds and raspberries as snacks. For dinner we had leftovers from the past few nights – spicy chicken, zucchini lasagna, and asparagus. All topped off with some more frozen raspberries for dessert.

Days 71 & 72

<Editor’s note: Sorry for the hiatus, life just got too busy for a week.>

The Workout

Monday was a rest day. On Tuesday I did 21-15-9 reps of:

• Hand release pushups
• 65lb Thrusters

I finished in 10:34. That is some decent improvement from February 4th. I finished about a minute and a half faster with a heavier weight for the thrusters.

The Food

Monday morning I had four fried eggs and some pork sausage that we got from our meat CSA. Lunch was a salad – mixed greens, sweet peppers, broccoli, pine nuts, ham, and chicken. I had some almonds as a snack in the afternoon. For dinner, Michelle made spaghetti squash with tomato sauce and meatballs. A little later I had some raspberries for dessert.

For breakfast on Tuesday I made a three egg omelette with the meatballs last night as the filling. Unfortunately it was a failed attempt at the omelette and just became scrambled eggs with meat! For lunch I ran to Chipotle for one of their salads. The double-chicken made a huge difference compared to last time I had one of their salads. For dinner we had sirloin steak with sauteed mushrooms and zucchini.

Day 66

The Workout

Today I did five rounds of:

• 10, 65lb Thrusters
• 20 Lateral bar jumps

I finished in 11:59.

The Food

For breakfast I had four scrambled eggs, bacon, and a large grapefruit. Lunch was a large bowl of leftover chili from Saturday night. Having that lunch late meant I didn’t need nearly as many almonds as usual. Dinner was a zuchinni “lasagna” with italian sausage.

Days 64 & 65

The Workout

Monday was a rest day. On Tuesday the plan was a twelve minute AMRAP of:

• 5 Wall climbs
• 10 Sumo deadlift high pulls, 65lbs

I ended up stopping and 5:30 which was three full sets. My neck/shoulder that has been hurt in the past did not like the wall climbs at all, so I stopped. This wasn’t soreness or discomfort, it was pain.

The Food

On Monday I had four fried eggs and a large grapefruit for breakfast. Lunch was a salad – mixed greens, sweet peppers, red onions, and chicken. For dinner Michelle made some spicy pulled chicken, to go with sauteed onions and mushrooms, avocado, and some almond bread.

Tuesday started off with four fried eggs, bacon, and a banana. Lunch was a salad – baby spinach, red onions, sweet peppers, hard-boiled egg, crushed walnuts, and chicken. Again there were some almonds as a snack during the day. For dinner we had broiled cod, asparagus, and a side salad.

The Weigh-In

Monday morning I weighed in at 229 pounds, which is six pounds fewer than the last weigh-in and twenty-seven pounds lost overall! After than initial (and massive) weight loss, I’ve set into a steady two pounds lost per week, which is very healthy from all accounts and would put me at my goal right around the 4th of July. I’ve been in one belt notch for some time now, so overall I’m feeling good about how things are going.

Day 63

The Workout

Today I did 21-15-9 reps of:

• 65lb Push press
• Rear dips
• Lunges

I finished in 9:42. Combining the push press and dips may have been a mistake, as my arms are aching along their entire length right now!

The Food

Breakfast was scrambled eggs and chopped bacon. For lunch, I had some leftover chili from last night along with half an avocado. I snacked on some of the almond bread from last night as well. For dinner, we had baked, crab-stuffed sole, with cauliflower latkes and a side salad.

Tomorrow is my next weigh-in day, but it is also a rest day for exercise, so tune in Tuesday night to find out how much more I’ve lost!

Day 62

The Workout

Today I did a five minute row, followed by a two minute rest, followed by a five minute AMRAP of:

• 4 handstand pushups
• 155lb deadlift, 8 reps

I rowed 1244m, completed four rounds with four handstand pushups and six reps of the deadlift inthe fifth round. You know it’s a good workout (or you’re completely out of shape) when you are exhausted after a twelve minute stint that has a two minute break in the middle!

The Food

For breakfast we had almond pancakes and pork sausage patties. Lunch was a mixture of chicken, chopped bacon, and hard-boiled eggs that turned out quite nice. For dinner we had salad, chili, and some almond flour bread.

Day 61

The Workout

Today I did seven rounds of:

• 25lb overhead squats, 4 reps
• 25lb four-count overhead lunges. 2 reps
• 21 situps

I finished in 7:19. It was a good workout to jump into after not working out for a few days. I felt a lot better with these overhead squats than I did last time I tried them, probably due to both a slightly lower weight and to some actually physical improvement.

The Food

For breakfast I had four fried eggs, (a lot of) bacon, and a banana. For lunch I met my family at SaladWorks. I really wasn’t impressed, probably because they used iceberg lettuce, which I detest. There were carrots, apple chips, craisins, and chicken in the salad also. The unsatisfying lunch had me eating some almonds during the afternoon. We had a happy hour with a bunch of coworkers, where I had some chicken wings and some bourbon. For a much later dinner, Michelle and I split some sushi and sashimi.

Days 58, 59, & 60

The Workout

Tuesday was a planned rest day. Wednesday I woke up with that same crick in my neck. I also took Thursday off because of it. My neck feels good right now, so I do plan on working out again Friday morning.

The Food

Tuesday morning I had three fried eggs, bacon, and half an avocado. Some almonds filled in as the morning snack. For lunch I had another salad – baby spinach, pea sprouts, sweet peppers, broccoli, and tuna. Dinner was some shrimp and stir fry:

Wednesday I had four scrambled eggs and bacon.  For lunch we went to Chipotle and I had a salad (shock) – lettuce, peppers and onions, chicken, and medium green salsa. That salad was a little small (compared to the salads I bring from home) so I had a few more almonds than usual in the afternoon. For dinner Michelle make some great salmon steak, with asparagus and poached eggs.

Thursday morning I had  four fried eggs, bacon, and a banana. Lunch was a salad – mixed greens, pea sprouts, sweet peppers, broccoli, and a little chicken. I had planned to also bring some tuna for the salad, but completely forgot about it. Believe it or not, I managed to not need any almonds to tide me over at any point today! Dinner was bacon-crusted chicken breasts with a salad of cucumbers, sweet peppers, and onions.