As I go through my journey to become more physically fit and healthy, I post the workouts and techniques I use so that others may be able to use/critique them as well.
Before and After Pictures are at the bottom.
What's up everybody, I haven't updated this blog in a while but here goes.
This past month, I've been focusing on increasing my strength and bulk and trying creatine because of everything I've been hearing about creatine. In terms of creatine supplement, this is what I did:
Week 1 (loading phase): 20-25g of creatine of per day for 6 days
Week 2-5 (maintenance phase): 5g of creatine per day, taken after workout mixed with protein shake. This is what I'm currently on right now, week 3 specifically.
After this, I will be doing the recovery phase for a month during which I will not take any creatine.
For nutrition, I focused on increasing my protein intake and my calorie intake slightly.
For fitness, this is what my workout schedule looks like:
Monday: High Weight Training- Triceps and Chest + 2 mile run
Tuesday: High Weight Training - Legs
Wednesday: High Weight Training - Biceps and Shoulders
Thursday: Rest + Yoga
Friday: High Weight Training - Core (Abs + Back)
Saturday: 8-10 mile run
Sunday: 1 hour long P90X stretch session
Having been doing this for 3 weeks, I am now about to start the Beachbody Insanity program for the second time. Here is a picture of me right now after 3 weeks of HARD work, creatine and right before the beginning of Insanity. SO PUMPED for Insanity! Will posting updates on a weekly basis, with pictures.
In case you didn't already know, keeping the same fitness regime is not the most productive thing for you. As Tony Horton pointed out very clearly in his P90X workout series, muscle confusion produces results. And if you stick with a routine for too long, you start to plateau, your muscles get used to the exercises and the routine, and you begin wasting your time. Therefore, I have decided to switch things up a bit away from the traditional "K program". Here's my new workout routine I've been doing for the past two weeks:
Note: I always start each workout day with a 5 min. warm-up run and about 30 minutes of stretching and finish it with 5 min of slow jog for warm-down and about 10-15 minutes of stretching.
Monday
Abdominal strengthening workout
40 min on treadmill (finish at least 4.5 miles)
Warm-up for 5 min (gradually increasing speed)
Perform a pyramid (sometimes also called a "ladder") with gradually increasing then gradually decreasing speeds for 10 min (this means starting at for instance 7 mph, then going progressively up to 8 mph then back down to 7 mph all in the span of the 10 min)
Small break - reduce to slower jogging speed for 1 min (just enough to give your heart a small break - if you really need to reduce to walking, go ahead but do your absolute best to not stop)
Perform a pyramid/ladder with increasing incline for 9 min
Small break - slower jog for 1 min
Perform an increasing pyramid (no decrease this time) with larger speed increments for 4 min [You should be going faster than during the first pyramid; and you will be exhausted after these 4 min]
Small break - slow jog for 1 min
Perform an increasing pyramid (no decrease here either) with larger incline increments.
Small break - slow jog for 1 min
Finish the last 4 min at increasing speeds and steady incline, with the last minute ALL OUT!
Tuesday
Weights workout: Biceps, Chest and Triceps
Wednesday
Abdominal strengthening workout
20 min run on treadmill HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training)
Alternate between a jog speed (e.g. 5.5 mph for me) and run speed (e.g. 9 mph for me) for about 5 min, then increase either jogging speed or running speed for the next quarter
Continue to increase either jogging or running speed for the remaining two quarters, then finish off the last minute ALL OUT!!
Thursday
Weights workout: Legs and Shoulders
Friday
Timed long distance run (time = 1 hour, distance = at least 6.5 - 7 miles)
This is a good run to do outside because the change of scenery keeps my mind active and prevents me from getting bored. If I do it indoors, I usually change the speed and intervals at random to continue challenging myself throughout the hour and keep things interesting.
If running outside, you can always use Google Maps to map out the distance and route beforehand if you're unsure of the distance.
Saturday
Weights workout: Core (Abs + Back)
Rest on Sunday
That's my workout for now. I will begin actively training for a mud run in about two weeks and will post my training workout once I have that finalized. That's all for now.
How to stay fit while at home with limited resources
If you're one of those people that have always wondered how to get your body moving when you're at home without needing a gym or expensive equipment, this post is for you. Here are a few methods that I've used to stay fit when I have limited resources, and I've attached a link to a more extensive list for you to read on if you're interested.
Walking/Running outdoors: I love going outside and exploring various neighborhoods of the city, taking new paths and seeing what I discover. I personally love jogging/running and taking new trails. But remember, proper running form is VERY important! (See my post about running form below if interested more)
Jump rope: I have bad coordination, so jump roping is a very good exercise for me to get my cardio in, work out A LOT of muscle groups and work on my coordination.
Walking/Running in place indoors: If you don't feel comfortable going outside and exploring, that's fine, you can do it by walking and/or running in place. Do it to music or while watching your favorite TV show to make it even more interesting.
Strength exercises:
Push-ups
Squats
Lunges
Calf-raises
Biceps and back exercises with resistance bands (you can get a really affordable pair of good quality on ebay for $10-$15)
The list goes on and on, and if you'd like to check out more, go to: http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=629
Fitness Journey Update
I was in training for my job for 4 weeks during which, I worked out through Boot Camp and Yoga sessions, but recently, since I've been back on a standard summer schedule, I've been spending time working out 3-5 times a week. I have been working on increasing my endurance through the following workout:
Day 1: Run 6 miles, long stretch session
Day 2: Chest + Biceps strength workout, short stretch
Day 3: Run 7 miles, long stretch session
Day 4: Abs + Back workout, short stretch
Day 5: Run 3 miles, short stretch
Day 6: Legs workout, short stretch
Day 7: Rest + long stretch session
I am now at 177 lbs, I've lost more fat weight and gained muscle. I'm working on increasing my endurance to hopefully run a half-marathon or a full marathon in the spring. Here are recent pictures:
That's all for this post. Will be posting my new workout by the end of this month once I've designed it.
I apologize for the delay in posting anything in so long, but I promise this long and extensive post will make up for it. I have been following what I have called the “K program” to help me lose more fat weight, become stronger (gain muscle mass) and become faster. Weighing now 175 lbs, here are recent pictures:
Before I explain what the K program has entailed, I will explain a little something about body types. Using comic book characters, I’m going to illustrate the 3 types of body types out there:
-The Flash: Very lean and fast body type, not a great deal of strength but great speed and endurance. Nutrition usually involves less protein than the other types and workouts involve high repetition low weight sets.
-The Juggernaut: Larger-body type, the strongest of the three types, but with not as much endurance. Nutrition involves the most protein and workouts involve more high weight and low repetition sets.
-The Batman: (that’s what I’m going for) It’s in between the two; it is significantly stronger than the flash and with greater speed and agility than the Juggernaut. Nutrition involves a “moderate” amount of protein and either a combination of high rep and high weight sets, or “medium” sets.
The key points to making progress are adjusting nutrition, working all muscle groups but varying the focus group day to day. I do a 6-day workout week and my daily routine consists of breakfast (high in protein - scrambled egg whites, bowl of oatmeal, glass of skim milk), followed by my cardio workout, then a more balanced lunch with still higher protein, but some carbs too, and ideally reduced fat foods. 30 minutes after lunch (enough time for food to process, but early enough to supply energy for the workout), I do my weights workout. At the end of my weights workout, I drink a whey protein shake. To finish off the day, I eat a vegetable-heavy dinner, and if I have a late-night craving, I try to stick to low-calorie, low fat foods. Vegetables and some low-sugar fruits are a great late snack (i.e. I love celery for this!). A very important fact to remember is to drink A LOT of water throughout the day, especially during cardio and the weights workout.
Here is a detailed day-to-day account of what my workouts entail:
1.Monday
a.Cardio = 40 min elliptical, constant high heart rate (goal = at least 155)
b.Weights = Arms + Chest (High Reps) + Ab Ripper X (from P90X)
2.Tuesday
a.Cardio = 20 min HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workout on treadmill or elliptical
b.Weights = Back + Shoulders – High Weight
3.Wednesday
a.Cardio = 40 min elliptical, constant high heart rate (goal = at least 155)
b.Weights = Legs (High Rep) + Lower Back (High Rep) + Abs (High Weight)
4.Thursday
a.Cardio = 20 min HIIT (High Intensity Interval Training) workout on treadmill or elliptical
b.Weights = Arms + Chest (High Weight)
5.Friday
a.Cardio = 45 min elliptical, constant high heart rate (goal = at least 155)
b.Weights = Back + Shoulders (High Reps)
6.Saturday
a.Cardio = 60 min intense elliptical/treadmill/outdoor run
b.Weights = Legs (High Weight) + Ab Ripper X (from P90X)
That’s all for this post. Feel free to ask questions or make comments if you’d like.
So it's been a while since I've posted anything on this blog, but I've officially accomplished my first 5K! I came in 2nd place (out of 6) in gender and age group (Male 21-24) and 42nd place overall (out of 300) with a time of 23:01. Now my next goal is to be #1 within my age/gender group on my next 5K.
For now, I'm giving running a bit of a break and going back to my "standard" workout schedule with 3 days High Repetition, 3 days High Weight and cardio all 6 days. This time however, I am going to be doing Cardio in the morning and weights in the afternoon. I will post my workout at the end of the week, but for now, Peace!
Followed the same schedule as week 1, but with higher intensity, mileage and faster times. After week 2 though, I did not take the Sunday rest because I felt really good; instead I did 40 min of HIIT on the elliptical (to at least give my knees a rest). And, since I was celebrating my 21st birthday this past weekend, I did not do the long run on Saturday. Instead I will be doing the long run today (Sunday).
Also, I got a new PR by running my 5K outside on Friday of week 3, even though it was 47 degrees outside (that is really cold for Southern California in April). We're about to begin the hardest training week (Week 4) because the last week of training (the week I run the event) should be more of an easy-maintenance week. This week (week 4) is the week where we make the most progress and maintain that next week while preparing for the event. This is the Hardcore Week schedule:
Today (Sunday)
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline
1 hour run, start at 6 mph, incline 1.0, and increase both incline and speed throughout time.
Mileage goal = 7.0 miles
5 min warm-down then stretch
Monday
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.6mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
40 min run, start at 6.5 mph, incline 1.5, and increase throughout time
5 min warm-down then stretch
Tuesday
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.5mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
20 min HIIT; Jog speed 5.5mph, Run speed 9.8-10.5mph; incline 1.0
5 min warm-down, stretch
Ab Ripper X program, from P90X
Wednesday
Part A - in the morning
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.5mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
High Rep (3 x 15-20 reps) weightlifting workout - Target muscles: Arms, Chest, Shoulders
3 warm-down then stretch
Part B - in the afternoon
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.5mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
High Rep (3 x 15-20 reps) weightlifting workout - Target muscles: Legs, Abs, Back
Thursday
Rest/Stretch Day - P90X stretch program
Friday
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.5mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
Run 5K auto training program on treadmill, starting speed 6.0mph (or run 5K outdoors)
5 min warm-down, stretch
Ab ripper X program from P90X
Saturday
5 min jog warm-up on 1.0 incline, starting at 5.5mph and go up by 0.1mph each minute
Stretch
Run for an hour non-stop, start at 6.0 mph, 1.0 incline and increase throughout
We finished the first of 5 weeks of training for the 5K we have coming up on April 23rd.
First week felt amazing and really sore! I have to say the mid-week stretch/rest was definitely necessary and very helpful. On Saturday, we also got the opportunity to actually go outside and run a 5K; the only challenging part was a small problem with our route: we had to make two stops at traffic lights, hence slowing down our rhythm. So here's a few pieces of advice that I want to give you all regarding running in general and also apply to running outdoors too:
Guidelines for Running
Always run with good form and proper shoes! Running with a bad form or improper shoes can injure you either immediately or in the long run, or just put unnecessary strain on some of your joins (i.e. knees, ankles). Keep in mind that in order for you to run with good form, you may not be able to run a full mile non-stop (I couldn't 2 years ago!) so you may have to start building the muscles and endurance for it by using a bike, elliptical or weight training before you attempt to run across the world. Here's three good videos to checkout about running form:
Running with someone can not only help you push each other, but is strongly recommended if running outside at late hours. Having a running partner can motivate both of you and help you encourage each other when you really need to push yourselves. Also, your partner can help you adjust your form (and you can do the same for them) by seeing things from a third-person perspective.
Music can help motivate you. Listening to music helps me to stay focused on pushing myself while at the same time kind of distracting myself from the oncoming exhaustion. So if you really want to be able to push yourself, get the right playlist that just gets you pumped and rock on while you get your run on. Granted some people don't like the music idea, I'm just telling you all what works for me and what may work for you.
Choose your outdoor route wisely. Try and avoid busy intersections that stop your rhythm and of course, always stay safe. You can even set up your route using Google Maps, like I did.
So that's about it for this post. Week 2 starts tomorrow with the same schedule as last week. At the end of this week, I will post some numbers so you can see the progress that we will hopefully make.
