So Very True

You can't fix ugly.

Irony

Today I decided to have my tea iced.  That's no big deal usually, but the tea I used was this:

The 300 Workout and A Quest Completed

I had Thursday and Friday off this past week, and due to having plans in the evening, I rescheduled my Thursday night session with Trainer to Friday afternoon.  I guess the change bug bit him too, because we tried out a new workout, which he likes to do from time to time, to keep things interesting.  Only I sort of had some previous idea about how tough the workout would be because he casually told me about it before.

It's called the "300 Workout", and it was the workout used by the cast of the film "300" to get into shape.

I've seen some variations to the workout while looking it up, but I believe that the standard goes something like this:

25 pull-ups
50 standard deadlifts at 135 lbs
50 floor-wipers
50 pushups
50 clean and press at 36 lbs
50 box jumps with a 24-inch box
25 pull-ups

It's also a timed workout, so obviously the faster you go, the better it is, and you mark your progress with how much time you can shave off from your last go at it.

Of course, the standard workout probably would have been a little too much for my first time, so Trainer made it a little easier for me.  I did negative pull-ups for the first set, and used something called a "gravitron" for the last set.  I know what you're thinking; I don't mean this:

but this:



 I did the deadlifts at 70 lbs, the clean and press at 20 lbs, and the box jumps on one of those aerobic steppers with 5 steps.  I also failed at doing proper push-ups about 15 reps in, and had to do the rest on my knees instead.  All in all it was not as bad as I thought; what gave me the most trouble was clearly the push-ups, followed by the deadlifts.  I made it through in 32 minutes, give or take, which is a great time.  Trainer thought I'd get through in 45 minutes, so I sure showed him! 

It's not a workout you do all the time, so we'll probably repeat it in a month or so and see how it improves.  I don't anticipate him going as easy on me next time though, so I should keep that in mind!



On to another victory of sorts.  There is a little health-food store in the town where I live, and I hadn't gone in there yet, but after the "300" session I was out doing some errands anyway, so I thought I'd finally stop in.  Lo and behold, sitting on a shelf near the back, were a couple of bags of this:

I have been looking for them for some time to no avail, so imagine my joy!  I had some this morning with almond milk, flax seed, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, and an egg for protein.  They're a little bland, but they do have a nice flavour too them, and the sweetness of the berries was sweetness enough so I don't have to add stevia.

Success! Well, it is, sort of.

Last night Trainer weighed me in, and for the very first time, my body fat percentage was under 20%!!!  This is a big milestone for me, because I've been working so hard for so long to see this!

Okay, it is technically just a psychological victory, because it was 19.9%, but still. 

Getting Noticed

When I go to the gym, I make minimal eye-contact with anyone, and unless someone strikes up a brief conversation, the only talking I really do is to Trainer or to ask someone if they're done with something.  I usually don't really watch anyone else work out either, unless I see them doing something really outstanding (some of the things I've seen some guys do on the pull-up bars is pretty cool) or annoying.  I like to focus on my own work-out to get through it as quickly as possible without injuring myself or losing my breath completely. 

I suppose, though, that it would be naive of me to assume that other people operate the same way.  I would never think that they'd be looking at me of all people there, but I was pleasantly corrected the other night.

I was in the middle of a circuit of Bosu-Ball burpees and step-jumps (11 risers!) and catching my breath when a girl who had come to the nearby water fountain for a drink asked me, "So, how much weight have you lost?" in a way like she knew me or we had already been talking for a while.  I answered her, still wondering to myself where she came from, and she proceeds to tell me that she's seen me around for the last couple of months, that I've leaned out even in that short time, and that I work pretty hard.  We had a little chat about why we started our regimes (she's getting married soon...isn't that a big motivator!) and she went on her way, but I thought it was nice that someone had noticed.

A little later on in the evening I was waiting to get on the leg extension machine, and the guy that was going to use it saw that I was waiting for it allowed me to get on instead.  He said that he'd let me use it because "you work hard, and you're busy".  That was really nice of him, and another example of someone noticing what I'm doing.

I have had other people tell me that I was dedicated before too, so I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised, but this all comes from people who, I am sorry to say, I didn't recognize or haven't noticed before.  I guess I should notice other people more!

Raisins. Oh Rly? Ya, Rly.

As a kid I was never a huge fan of raisins.  Still, my mom would throw those little red Sun Maid boxes into my lunch once in a while, and I would begrudgingly eat them.

Gladly, they're one of the foods that I've grown to love over time.  I think my immature tastebuds just didn't like the certain sweetness that only a dried fruit has, but really, raisins can almost be tastier than some candies, and they're much better for you too!  Being fruit, they do have to be eaten in moderation, and probably not alone, but the nutritionist I saw at the gym told me I could use them instead of glucose tabs (the horror!) to raise my blood sugar level if it drops too low.  They'll keep it more stable whereas the tabs' effect may wear off and I'll get a sugar crash again. 

Part of the problem I had with raisins could have been the fact that they were too dried-out, if that's possible for a raisin.  When you buy those little snack-sized boxes, the raisins inside are exposed to the air, and that just dries out whatever moisture is left.  What I've taken to doing now is going to Costco, where they sell a big Sun Maid box with two resealable bags inside, and the raisins inside are so much softer and tastier.

The seed mix that I add to my salad at lunch has a few raisins included, but I've bought a similar mix that doesn't have the dried fruit added, so I may use the Costco ones for the extra kick once I start using that.

Update

Well, there isn't much to update you on, really.  I'm still plugging away, doing my thing.  The last couple of times I had a weigh-in, however, my body fat went up a few percent, and I'm not really sure why.  I didn't do anything differently.  Trainer says he's going to bring in his caliper set, and that's a more accurate way to check body fat percentage rather than a scale.

They have a few new toys at the gym, like a giant truck tire that Trainer already had me playing with.  I had to flip it over up and down the studio, and let me tell you, it's really good for the legs.  It's pretty similar to a squat, actually, but you're also using biceps and triceps to haul the thing off the floor.  Trainer also gave me a metal bar and I had to whack the tire with it repeatedly.  I thought I'd get more satisfaction out of that exercise after seeing other people doing it, but the bar was pretty heavy and I was concentrating more on not dropping it rather than getting my frustrations out!  There were also a few new kettle balls around, but I haven't used them yet.

A little (kinda) sad news to pass along: the cute trainer I like to keep my eye on when I see him around has quit the gym.  Oh well, everyone has to move on sometime, right?  But it's always the cute ones.

Still haven't heard back about that contest.  I asked Trainer a couple of weeks ago like I said I would and he said he hadn't heard back yet.  I'm sure by now they've picked a winner, but Trainer hasn't mentioned anything, and I feel bad to ask again.  Still, I think he would say something either way.  I'll ask again.

I went to the optometrist last Tuesday to get my eyes checked again, and finally picked up a new pair of glasses this time.  I also got the lenses in my sunglasses changed, since that prescription was even older than the glasses.  I got the sunglasses back, but the glasses still aren't ready.  Some places can make them in an hour; mine can't even do it in a week! 

I ALSO picked up a nice little cold from someone that night, and up to now I still can't shake it completely, even though I've been loading up on Vitamin C and have made a pleasant discovery in Echinacea tea.  My problem is I didn't rest enough to give myself strength to fight it off.  I never take sick days, and being a Tuesday night when I got it, I had 3 more days of getting up early for work before I could really sleep it off.  I threw in a few workouts in there too, and that probably didn't help, even if I didn't feel guilty later.

So that's it for now.  I guess I had more to say than I thought, but I didn't feel like anything has stood out the past little while.  I'll be back in a while.