Workout Plan Failure – Week of April 18, 2016
Somehow I knew this was going to happen at some point. I have had complete and utter workout plan failure this week. As you can tell, I am writing this on a FRIDAY and not at the beginning of the week. I worked out on Monday, but essentially punted the rest of the week. I can tell you that I was up late several nights working on the podcasts and other things, but really there isn’t any excuse for it. I just had a complete and absolute workout plan failure.
Summary of the Week of April 11, 2016
What almost seems to be a broken record, I did a decent job during the work week. We are out of town for a basketball tournament over the weekend (Ryan’s team won their bracket Championship in Ames, Iowa), and I just didn’t get any exercise and didn’t track my food in MyFitnessPal. More on that below.
Day | Planned Exercise | Actual Exercise | Time |
Sunday 4/10/16 | None – Basketball | None | |
Monday 4/11/16 |
Lift Weights – Leg Day! Swim 3/4 mile |
Lifted Weights – Legs Swam 1 mile |
40 minutes 55 minutes |
Tuesday 4/12/16 | Bike 45 minutes | Biked 11 miles – Ave 85 RPM | 40 minutes |
Wednesday 4/13/16 | Lift Weights – Upper Body | Elliptical Trainer – 3 miles | 30.5 minutes |
Thursday 4/14/16 | Bike 45 minutes | Biked 11 miles – Ave 85 RPM | 40 minutes |
Friday 4/15/16 | Swim 3/4 mile |
Lifted Weights – Upper Body Biked 7 miles |
40 minutes 25 minutes |
Saturday 4/16/16 | Treadmill/Walk 3 miles | None – Basketball Tournament |
Week of April 17, 2016
So….here we go into this week. Let’s do an autopsy on this bloody and battered carcass, shall we? I have to admit that I didn’t even come up with a plan this week. I hit the gym on Monday and had a good workout, and then….nothing. I didn’t make working out a priority, and that is on me. I need to make my diet and exercise a PRIORITY.
I am planning a workout today, tomorrow and Sunday. That will stop the bleed. I also picked up my attention to tracking my food intake, and the data is interesting when you look at it. I will talk about that below.
Day | Planned Exercise | Actual Exercise | Time |
Sunday 4/17/16 | None – Basketball | None | |
Monday 4/18/16 |
Lift Weights – Upper Body Bike |
Lifted Weights – Upper Body Bike 7 miles – Ave 82 RPM |
40 minutes 27 minutes |
Tuesday 4/19/16 | Umm? | Nada | |
Wednesday 4/20/16 | Come on! | Nothing | |
Thursday 4/21/16 | Uh oh! | Zip | |
Friday 4/22/16 |
Lift Weights – Leg Day Swim 1 mile |
||
Saturday 4/23/16 | Elliptical Trainer |
What’s Next?
I did some data analysis and did some thinking about my progress so far. It just occurs to me that I am working too hard to not have more significant changes. I know I need to keep doing the work and good things will happen, but I need to look under the hood a bit and make more adjustments to my workouts and diet. Here is what MyFitnessPal has collected over the past few weeks.
Some observations about these two charts:
- Slacking on the weekends – The dips on the calories consumed chart are weekends, starting on Fridays and ending on Sundays (half the week, really). That needs to change right now, this weekend.
- High carbohydrate/fat diet isn’t working – Carbohydrates and fats make up 52 percent of my current diet. As I told my friend Jay after our Cows and Kettlebells Podcast, I am eating flour tortillas, chips, crackers and bread. I will also have mayonnaise on sandwiches and drinking alcohol on occasion (wine and beer). Jay recommended substituting veggies for chips and crackers and reducing bread and tortilla consumption. There will be time to drink wine and beer on special occasions.
- Protein is too low – I am not meeting my goal for protein, and this is consistent as I look back over the weeks in MyFitnessPal. I have to kick this up as I reduce carbohydrates and fats. Protein is great for building muscle and breaks down slowly, making you feel more full. WebMD has some good suggestions for adding protein to my diet, so I am going to eat more of these foods.
I am not tracking exercise in MyFitnessPal because it is too easy to slack on my diet (“I worked out; I can eat that”). I am going to continue that practice. Besides, I track my exercise in my handy notebook or as a note on the phone (in a pinch), and summarize that information on this blog.
I am going to up my intensity and the resistance for both weight lifting and cardio. Jay and I discuss some tips for beginners in Part 2 of the Cows and Kettlebells Podcast, so stay tuned for those tips. I can tell you that I am going to get my rear in gear and follow them. One of those tips is “be consistent,” even when your schedule is crowded and you are tired.
Yeah, I had a complete workout plan and execution failure this week, but it is time to remember my meme:
[tweetthis]War isn’t won or lost in a week. You have to pick yourself up, reset and push forward until you achieve your goal[/tweetthis]
Time to get it done. My 100 pound goal isn’t going to be met doing and eating the same old way. Time to start my world and hit it!