almost at 15lbs!

so far so good, I have almost already met my first step of losing 15lbs and I am very happy about that. I have to admit however i think i have been a little soft on my workout routine, and i know i need to stick to it.
I may be repeating myself in these blogs but it's more to reinforce myself than anything and it's always good to keep reading about my guidelines later on.

I have cut out the bad habit of the double/double in my coffee, I now have a cup of black coffee with my morning meal and that's it. (no more 5-8 coffees a day) I am also keeping at the water intake with a lot more ease now actually, before I didn't really like water because not matter what I got there was always this odd taste to it - I think it's just become habit and it's now a matter of mind over matter.

I believe 95% of what I eat is fresh, save for the odd time that I am in a hurry and do not have the time, which I will grab some frozen vegi's or when I have my bran on the occasion. I am still using my Whey Protein powder as a meal replacement, I usually whip up a cup in the morning for something quick while I get my day ready. I plan on changing up the Whey Protein powder to a 100% natural when I am done this batch, I just use a little less than the recommended dose each time to account for the uber sweet taste - my favorite is mixing a cup of protein powder with a frozen banana and 2 tbsp of milled flax seed. i also take 2 multi vitamins a day with 2 CLA capsules one at breakfast and one at lunch.

I have gotten in the habit of eating a handful of something every 1.5 - 2 hours up until about 8-8:30pm. My critical time is from that time to the time that I go to bed, because I get in the habit to want to nibble, I have taught myself to curb that habit by forcing myself to drink 500-750ml of water in one sitting each time. sure I am up a billion times in the night to use the bathroom, but in the long run it will be worth the effort. I have also gotten into the habit of adding to my workout routine at that point in the evening, it's not so much intense rather then a lot of stretching and flexing. (more to make sure i am not that sore the next day)

I read up that people generally like to get a little bit of protein into themselves with each meal they eat, I have left that mostly up to the 3 main meals in the day, when I started to eat protein each time I ate (6-7 times a day) and because my fitness level and activity level wasn't up there yet it ended up adding weight to the scale. I intend to continue with three servings of protein a day and substitute as many as the others with more high fiber content until such a time where my workout regiment gets into a place where I want to switch over to feeding my muscles more.

My sleeping patterns are still a little mess, in that I have a hard time falling asleep at night - I have always had an issue for as long as I can remember, my mind still keeps running and even when it's not I am tossing and turning. I remember waking up at 4am this morning frowning at the fact that I only managed to get sleeping for two hours before I woke up again. What happened to the time when I was a kid and I was out like a light when I hit the pillow?. I don't want to use any chemicals to get me to sleep, music sometimes keeps me up rather than helps me sleep... I am going to try two things next I think, either read for an hour before bed or listen to an audio book, or start taking up a sport that will tire me out but will be fun - If it wasn't for the fact I am in the city and it was winter I would be out there each day hitting the countryside for an intensive 20-50K bike ride like I use to do when I was younger. (yes I could get a stationary which I may still do, but it's not the same)

I purchased a curl bar the other day so that I can do the french press better, I have also started to use the core ball more as well, I did research and I was amazed at the magnitude of different things you could do with it.

I signed up for a 6 month challenge today, I believe I have the knowledge to make good things happen within that time, no matter how I progress - as long as it's my true effort put forth towards my life fitness goal I will be happy.

Everyday has been a day to learn and adjust, I am happy with the progress I have been making and really look forward to getting more into it all with each day. The hardest part has yet to come, that will be when I start going back to work - I have already started to schedule my activities in sync with a typical day at work though, which I think will make it easier to maintain once I start to work again. I am up for the challenge either way!

Off to a good start?

Well I went to bed about 1am (still not the best time, but hey I was still planning till late) and for some odd reason I slept until 2pm.. that was so not planned, but I am just going to go with my body needed it and move on from the fact that I killed over half of my day.. lol oops.
I am watching what I eat and even though I fell short of my daily intake overall, I still managed to get in 4 small meals and 10 8oz. glasses of water (just water....yeah that's right, I said it.. that liquid I hate?... I sucked it up) Above all, I ate clean today - which really really felt good. I even accounted for the coffee I have yet to drop out of my meal plans, but even with the sugar and cream I accounted for it - even though I only had 1/4 of the cup, I actually grabbed my water instead at that point. (wonder how long that will last?)
I didn't get much cardio in today - I have to come up with something better at the moment just to get my heart rate up there, so I am thinking of doing some sort of HIT program as much as possible.
I have the hydraulic gym here at the house, I did use it but don't like the fact that I cannot gage the resistance in pounds.. I may have to mix it up between the gym and my free weights because somehow I want a number behind things lol. I can't wait to get my arse to the gym.
conversions.. what a hell of a topic, I so didn't like figuring out oz. vs. g. vs. ml that's going to keep being a pain in the butt to me, but the book that I am reading actually shows the breakdown of how things are calculated for protein and fats and so on so I will look into understanding that a little more tomorrow.
For the last 4-5 days I have been experiencing pain on my lower right side of my back, I am not too keen on it, not sure what I did to it but I know it wasn't fitness related as I am always wary of my back since I pulled it last year doing a dead lift (omg.. I will think twice about not paying attention and while yacking shifting my body weight a little..WRONG IDEA!... ah well you live and learn) not fun to say the least. I will be cautious about any strain I may cause it while I get into the swing of things, I will also make sure to do my stretches and watch my posture while I walk, sit and sleep. (I tend to slouch... perhaps I should wear a corset during my workouts?..lol.... )
Tomorrow is another day, and since I didn't get to having my measurements taken, I will make sure to do them for sure. I have yet to arrange having my "Before" photo taken, will look into that too. (but do I have to post it?.. can't I wait 20lbs?..lol)
2 hours until bed time, I plan on getting everything in tomorrow - including the two interviews I have (*wooot* - companies will think twice about laying me off and thinking I will sit on my butt until they call me back... you snooze you lose!)

tomorrow's going to rock, I just know it!.

Collecting Information

So I have actually been reading up the last few days on strength training, got myself a couple of books to follow to get a good idea on the mechanics and sciences behind strength training and bodybuilding. I haven't been following anything strictly yet - though I have been keeping down my fats and bad eating habits.
I read that 3500 calories equate to one pound of fat, so I have started to record my food intake and make sure that I take in at least 500 calories less a day so that I can aim for a 2 pound weight deficit weekly, is it possible to lose more weekly and still be safe?.
I know I have to get my water intake up, it's tough for me because I don't really care for water, I always get a hint of metal or bitterness in my water, filtered or not and it turns me off. I think I may best to get some lemon and lime again and start adding that to my water, I want to drink at least 2Litres of water a day to start.
I have taken my actual bedroom and moved it into the smaller room in the house, i don't mind the smaller space - the big room has ceiling to wall mirrors all across the far wall 12 feet high, I figure it would be a good trigger to be able to watch myself and check for form and keep motivated. I will turn the big room into my workout room, too bad I cannot lift my hydraulic gym from the living room otherwise i would put it in there as well, not sure if it will do the trick in helping me work out or not, it's a pretty old piece of equipment but i think it may help a little (www.healthfxamerica.com)
I also have various free weights, core ball, bands and a collection of dvds and a bunch of youtube recommendations. I still want to get a stability bike, cross bar and a few other items but i may just end up at the gym before long anyways.
I've stocked my fridge full of healthy foods, nothing out of a box or can - I have my multi vitmaines and minerals, i need to read up on some omegas but i hear omega's are good to add - I do add flax seed to a lot of what i eat but we will see.
now its really just down to getting a photo taken, planning out a meal plan, a flexing workout regimen for the week and setting goals that I can obtain in increments. I want to finish reading this book as well though, its been very informative - Lori Incledon's Strength Training for Women I will also have a look at the other book i have yet to go through and that is Myatt Murphy's - Ultimate Dumbbell Guide because i want to make the most out of my dumbells.

still a lot left in the day so I want to get a move on insted of writing too much - I am still excited as ever to get the new lifestyle in full swing ... I want to bust this 55lbs off of me!

Day one - Everyone has to start somewhere

Well this is it, I have finally decided to stick to my guns and get a move on with my fitness goals. I have really no knowledge of where to start, but I believe having joined bodybuilding.com was a good first step - it's packed full of information and will certainly play a good solid role in my journey to where I want to be.

I would ideally like to lose at least 55lbs of body fat and add some lean muscle mass as well, though I fancy the thought of getting into body building I think I will only take it to the level of getting lean muscle mass to a medium degree. (however I can measure that at the moment.. no clue!..lol ) I am not worried about bulking up or anything, but I don't think I would like to go to the extreme - who knows, let's just get started with day one shall we?, will write again tonight once I have a some ideas to jot down. All I know is I will be dirt honest in my tracking down of all I do towards my goal.

Legend of the Koi and Dragon

"Japanese legend has it that every year thousands of Koi, a courageous, strong, and dedicated fish, make a perilous and difficult journey up the Rainbow (or Dragon) river. Out of perhaps a million Koi, only once in many years, one Koi is dedicated and strong enough to swim all the way to the head of the river, known as "The Dragon Gate" (or "The Rainbow Gate") and leap from the water. She is transformed into a dragon...."