Workout Plan – Week of 6/6/16

I know I haven’t posted a recent Weight Loss Journey article in a couple weeks.  Why?  I have been a bit down about the whole weight loss journey process.  I started at the end of October 2015, and after some initial gains during the Fitness Challenge, I have been on a long drawn-out plateau.  I really wasn’t losing weight, even though I was getting stronger.  It was really frustrating!  How long can a person continue endlessly without seeing changes or progress towards your goal?  Last week I finally lost 2.5 pounds by really watching/tracking my diet, even though I did not exercising a ton.  Fueled by those results, I am buckling down and rolling out my workout plan for this week.

Diet Plan

As I outlined in the Workout and Diet Plan for 5/15/16, I was going to adjust my diet by focusing on the following key points:

• Carbohydrates – Chips, breads, potatoes, dairy (milk and yogurt), beans and sweets fit into this category.  My usual culprits are chips, breads and dairy. I am really clamping down on these and essentially starting a carbohydrate management diet from the American Diabetes Association.
• Alcohol – Yes, I have been known to have a cocktail or two on the weekend, and I am taking steps to reduce the amount of alcohol I consume.  I have found that my alcohol consumption leads to poor eating choices, especially late at night.
• Diet Soda – This is an area that I haven’t talked about before, but I have been drinking a lot of Diet Dew during a given day (i.e., a minimum of 44 ounces a day).  The research is showing that you not onlygain weight drinking diet soda, but it can also shorten your life.  This could be holding me back, so I am adjusting and making healthier substitutions.

That’s all fine in theory.  Here is what I have actually been doing:

• Carbohydrates – I have significantly reduced the amount of chips, bread and dairy I have been consuming, and as you can see on the Myfitnesspal app report, I have done a good job staying under the daily targets.
• Alcohol – I continue to reduce my alcohol consumption, although there are times when I have some drinks. Probably my worst diet-busting day occurred on 5/26/16, and since then, I have really been trying to limit alcohol consumption.
• Diet Soda – On May 13, 2016, I stopped drinking my daily Diet Dew and other sodas.  I have been drinking more water and sparkling water.  I really haven’t missed it, so I will continue moving forward without Diet Dew and sodas.

Last week I had been pretty busy and dialed back working out, but it is time to crank it up and see some more gains!

Workout Plan

During the week leading up to Memorial Day and over the  holiday weekend, I took our small kayak out on Lake Calhoun in Minneapolis and Long Lake in Northwestern Wisconsin.  It was great to get it out there and hit the water.  I typically warm up by paddling a longer distance along the shore at a moderate pace, and then I complete several sprint intervals.

When I kayaked on Lake Calhoun, I was on the water for a little under an hour.  I did not track how long I was on the water in Wisconsin.  I found that paddling in the kayak worked my upper body and core (balance).  It was a good cardio workout as well.  I really enjoyed it, and I will be kayaking more this summer.

As Scott Hebert said on his interview for the Small Scale Life Podcast, you need to find something that you love and do that every day.  It won’t be a chore, and over time, you will see gains.  I like that concept, and I will be doing more kayaking in the future (including this week).  For the rest of my workout plan, see the table below.  Note that I completed a cycling class tonight.  It was a pretty good one, and I will be attending future classes!

Day	Planned Exercise	Actual Exercise	Time
Sunday 6/5/16	None – Basketball Tournament	None	None
Monday 6/6/16	Cycling Class	Cycling Class	45 minutes
Tuesday 6/7/16	Field Work Lift Weights – Upper Body	Field Work	8 hours
Wednesday 6/8/16	Lift Weights – Leg Day KAYAK!!!	Lift Weights – Leg Day Swim	45 minutes 30 minutes
Thursday 6/9/16	Swim 1 mile	Field Work	8 hours
Friday 6/10/16	Lift Weights – Upper Body KAYAK or Cycling Class	None	None
Saturday 6/11/16	KAYAK!!!	Lift Weights – Upper Body Lift Weights – Lower Body	1.5 hours

Next Steps

I was feeling pretty low for a couple weeks, and you probably noticed that my blog posts and podcasts tailed off.  I have worked through those issues, closed some efforts down, and am moving forward.  It really helps to see some progress towards your goals.

I know I have a long road ahead.  It is going to take more hard work and lifestyle changes to achieve my 100-pound weight loss goal.  It is going to take some time to get rid of this weight; it certainly did not go on my frame overnight. One of the keys, however, is staying motivated.  Motivational sayings like the one above will be helpful, but the ultimate motivation is seeing progress towards my ultimate goal.

Efforts are in the works to help with motivation, however.  Red Beard (my brother-in-law) will be running in Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, Minnesota, and when he is finished, we will be most likely launching a new fitness challenge.  In fact, Julie asked me tonight if Red Beard and she could be on the Small Scale Life Podcast to talk about the previous challenge and launching a new fitness challenge.  Since I am always looking for content, I readily agreed.  Be looking for that podcast in July!

As I wrap up this post and look to the upcoming week, my message to all of you following this journey is the following:

[tweetthis]I am still working. I am still fighting. I am more motivated now. I can do this. I will win. #weightlossjourney[/tweetthis]