Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Calories: 1700, ~170g protein
Workout: Bench Press (8 x 210, 8 x 190); Inclined Press (10 x 155, 8 x 135)

I'm adjusting to breakfast and lunch better than I thought I would. I'm keeping them high protein and bland (i.e. low sugar, nothing that will make me want a piece of cake): scrambled eggs (from Eggbeaters) and skim milk, sometimes with turkey bacon, sometimes with pre-grilled chicken mixed into the eggs. Lunch was going to be my favorite meal (chicken enchiladas that Keli makes (about 400 calories for 1/8 of a pan) but I forgot them at home, so I had a grilled chicken salad. The main lesson is that being careful about your food is more than just the calories- it is also about the nutrients (high protein is more filling than high carb, for instance) and about knowing how food affects you (flavorful food, even low calorie, makes me want MORE MORE MORE).

Things to Ponder.

Quick Workout, Bro? This is a trick I learned from (you guessed it) Brad Pilon. He was blogging about taking some time off from certain exercises while he focused on others because he liked where he was at with certain parts of his physique. I don't that anyone would necessarily want any part of my physique, but (for my size) I have broad shoulders and a broad chest. It's difficult to find shirts (especially the button-ups) that fit me well. So, following Brad's example, I have cut down on the volume of chest and shoulders. This is also practical because I have some old injuries (right wrist and elbow) that could use the lessened volume.

Brotein. I already mentioned the protein issue, but since I'm almost hitting 1 gram per pound of bodyweight, I thought I'd point out that the main function of the protein is to keep me filled up, not to magically make my muscles larger.

Why Do You Eat? A lot of people would say they eat because they're hungry. Sometimes, that's true. One way to test whether you're truly hungry is to think about a very bland food- e.g. broccoli, celery, tuna (although I like tuna), etc.- and decide if you'd be willing to eat that. If you would, you're probably actually hungry. This isn't to say that you sometimes just want that steak, or that hamburger, or whatever else is available, and you're also hungry. But if you ate something tasty in the last couple days, ate at all within the last six hours, and you've been drinking water, you're probably not hungry so much as wanting food. Don't take this to mean that you shouldn't eat. It's just a way of thinking about what you're eating. Go back to my breakfast and lunch choices... I chose to keep the meal high in protein and blandness because I was actually hungry (I had last eaten 32 hours earlier), so that satisfied me.

Alcohol and Food. I mentioned this, but it bears repeating, and repeating with an additional thought: if you're going to drink alcohol, why not place it an hour or so after your meal? This allows your body to digest some of the meal, get the nutrients shuttled off, and lessens the overall volume of alcohol. That simple step can shave off enough calories (depending on how often you drink and how much you drink once you get started) to cut some more pounds (or speed up the process).

Those Following. I have heard from some people that they're dipping their toe into the fasting pool. Just a reminder: you can't fast for ____ hours and then gorge yourself. All you've done is shifted when you overeat!