Fitness Metrics as of April 1, 2012

Diet: Paleo Plus Dairy

Seven months of Paleo eating are done.  At this point, it’s become easier to maintain the current path than to switch back to a Standard American Diet.

One of my best finds during the month was taking advantage of a American Express Sync With Twitter deal to help stock up on Grass-fed meats at Whole Foods.

Weight Lifting

I lifted weights 11 days during March, down from 13 in February.  I had several days of travel during the month, but the bigger factor was taking the last week of the month off from weightlifting and attempting to get some additional rest.

My maximum squat has increased ten pounds to 260 pounds (a little better than 1.8 times body weight).  My maximum deadlift has increased by twenty-five pounds to 250 pounds.  .

No change on bench press – still holding at 160 pounds (1.1 times body weight).

Running

One run, totaling about 3 miles in February.  I tried to run while in Asheville on business but between the time change and the area around the hotel I couldn’t find a safe route.  I’m in the Pacific Northwest this month and plan to run while there – adding to my “States I’ve run in” total.

I did register for the Peachtree Road Race on July 4th in Atlanta – so I’ll be building some mileage as well as speed workouts leading up to then.

Soccer

League start is just around the corner.  I’ve had a couple of kick-arounds with my new team, but also spent a lot of time in the yard with my sons working on all of our skills.  Evan has shown a lot of determination on his juggling (Keepy ups) so we’ve both been working on those.  I can hit 10 or more consecutively consistently.

Sleep

On weightlifting days, I’m still up at 4:40 AM.  But when traveling or on weekends I’m trying to sleep later.

Weight: 144 Pounds

I’m up two pounds from my weight in March.

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Fitness Metrics as of March 1, 2012

Diet: Paleo Plus Dairy

Six months of Paleo done!  I keep trying to expand my palette of food I eat.  This month’s new foods included reintroducing Beef (grass fed from a local farm) and trying Goat’s Milk as an alternative to cow’s milk.

The advertised image of the brand of goat’s milk I selected includes a claim of grass-fed animals – and a higher price tag as well.  I’m hoping that grass-fed in this case also means lower-confinement than the typical conventional dairy operation.  I didn’t notice a lot of difference from cow’s milk dairy – just a slightly sweeter, more milk-like flavor to it.  It is ultra-pasteurized however – so there’s a tradeoff in terms of processing.

I planted a few more varieties for spring vegetables – more Arugula, Spinach and Kale along with a new addition: Brussels Sprouts.  The peach trees started blooming the last week of February so we should see the fruit ready in June.

Weight Lifting

I lifted weights 13 days during February, up from 9 in January.  My travel and meeting schedule has been relaxed versus last month and December.

My program changed from my own design to doing Crossfit Football.  Some of the workouts I’ve modified to my own strength limits, and I don’t always do the workout from the specified day.

My maximum squat has increased five pounds to 250 pounds (a little better than 1.7 times body weight).  My maximum deadlift has increased by twenty pounds to 225 pounds.  I attribute a lot of my increase on deadlift to increasing the limits of my grip strength through Farmer’s Carries.

Maximum bench press increased by five pounds to 160 pounds (1.1 times body weight).

I’m enjoying the Crossfit Football program – it’s a new challenge each day in the gym.  What’s interesting is that I’m doing less each day in the gym than I did before – fewer sets and fewer exercises but seeing better results.

Running

One run, totaling about 3 miles in February.  It was a sprint workout at that.

Soccer

I played two Sundays this month – out of four in the month.  I think my league season will start some time in March.

Sleep

I’ve continued to burn the early hours – rising at about 4:40 each day to lift weights before work.

Weight: 142 Pounds

Consistent with February’s beginning weight.

An Unforced Rest Day

Last night I sat down and put together a sprint workout.

3×800 at a target time of 3:10 per interval

2×400 at a target time of 1:25 per interval

1×200 at a target time of 40 seconds per interval

But today it just didn’t feel like the right thing to do.  I had run sprints Sunday, and then lifted Monday and Tuesday.  Today was my rare unforced rest day as a result.

In the last two months, my rest days have come more as a result of the needs I have away from training.  It’s a result of my work calendar and my family’s needs.  Today was a result of feeling tired and putting rest above the compulsion that I have sometimes to get out and exercise.

Tomorrow is another day, and I’ll be back to lifting.  But not before another night of good rest.

Fitness Metrics as of February 1, 2012

Diet: Paleo Plus Dairy

Five months of Paleo done!  It gets easier each month to continue than to return to the standard American diet.

I had several trips during the month, and with a couple of exceptions managed to stay clean.  I commented on Twitter this morning I’m looking forward to the days when it will be easier to find vegetables as part of breakfast in restaurants and hotels, but I’m not expecting it anytime soon.

Sometimes it takes a little creativity to stay with the program on travel – which lead me to Whole Foods last night to build a salad from their salad bar and combine it with some smoked salmon and avocado from the rest of the store.

Weight Lifting

I lifted weights 9 days during January, steady with December.  A busy work schedule and travel schedule precluded more days in the gym.

My maximum squat increased 202 pounds to 245 pounds (1.7 times body weight).  Deadlift increased 10 pounds to 205 pounds (1.4 times body weight).  Bench press was steady at 155 pounds (1.08 times body weight).

I’m switching formats for workouts this month – and adopting a program closer to a Crossfit Football.  Looking at the results this month, it’s as much out of wanting some variety as meeting results.

I ran one session of sprints this month.  Eventually that will happen as part of my training for the Georgia Games.

Running

I ran 6.3 miles during January – down from 16 in December.

Honestly, with short days and less favorable weather – I lose a lot of interest in running.  That’s reality of the season for me.

Soccer

I hit three days of pick up soccer during January.  Considering there were five Sundays in the month, that’s a fair record.

I’m not sure when my next season will start, so I’m planning to continue as is until then.

Sleep

Sleep was mixed this month.  Some nights were better than others, but work and the desire to get workouts in has lead to getting up between 4:30 and 4:45 on some weekdays.

Weight: 142 Pounds

I lost two pounds in January against my January 1 beginning weight of 144 pounds.

Everything Else

February will prove to be busy – youth Soccer season opens matches on March 4, so our first practice will be on February 24th.

The blog also had its best (most-read) month by almost 25% over the previous best – no doubt a function of actually writing posts regularly.

Back at It

After the last few weeks – the last four days have been a welcome return to my previous life.

Friday morning was a decent weight lifting session.  I had mentioned on Twitter Friday I was contemplating a programming change in terms of how I lift weights.  In a lot of ways, I feel like I plateaued with the manner in which I’m lifting.   I am getting a little bit stronger each month, but not really seeing any visual changes.

I was plenty sore enough when I woke Saturday morning and Sunday morning though.

A Week Defined By What I Haven’t Done

In a lot of ways, this has been a week defined by what hasn’t been done.

It’s been very busy at work.  I attended a trade show in Orlando Sunday through Tuesday and failed to get out to run while I was there.  It was about eighty degrees and sunny, but the schedule was tight and I had other work demands to try to satisfy.

Fitness Metrics as of January 1, 2012

Diet: Paleo Plus Dairy

I’ve been Paleo for four months now, and not really showing any signs of going back!  It weas fairly easy to maintain Paleo through December, although I had a week of meetings and the holidays.  I’ve been able to find ways to eat well despite both.

I’ve been finding new vegetables this month as well – eating more greens (Collard Greens were on sale at Publix last week and thus were my breakfast green for several days.)

Weight Lifting

I lifted weights 9 days during December, steady with November.  Being on vacation the last eight days of the month meant I didn’t get near the gym for this part of the month.

My maximum squat increased 10 pounds to 225 pounds (1.6 times body weight).  Deadlift was steady at 195 pounds (1.35 times body weight).  Bench press increased 5 pounds to 155 pounds (1.08 times body weight).

I didn’t follow through with my plans from early December to begin adding sprint sessions.

Running

I ran 16 miles during December – down from 42 in November.  Again, with being on vacation and meeting bound for part of the month, my available training time was cut.

I did start doing interval training as part of my running training – completing two sessions of interval training (once at 1/4 mile and once at 1/2 mile).

Soccer

Our league play ended the first weekend of December and our team was League Champions for the first time.

Following the end of the League play, I was able to find one day of pickup the weekend before Christmas.

Sleep

Sleep was excellent this month, especially at the end of the month on vacation.  I really felt like on vacation sleep was a great antidote to appetite – and I stretched fasting over 12 hours several times during the latter half of the month.

Weight: 144 Pounds

I maintained weight at 144 pounds, steady with December.