Day 66: feels good to be back

Status - damage control
Mood - great
Water - 4 liters

Day 66 of 112

This past week I have been totally immersed in school. Read and work, that's what students do. Some of us major in physics or biology or engineering. Some make pieces of art. Some students smoke and drink, but those that do are not very successful, at least I don't think they are.

Talking to my roommate the other night I realized something that I would have probably never considered before. I was editing an old poem of mine, it was easier than reading about long term potentiation and memory formation. The Office was on. Jim almost proposed to Pam. I wasn't really paying attention. I was more interested in the line "little cold eyes/small birds fall to sleep". And when I wrote the last word down I jumped off my bed and started to dance in the middle of the room. When my roommate looked up at me I threw myself against him. He would later claim that this was the defining moment of my life. It's not that I never danced or even wrestled with him, but that he finally saw how I felt the world - in words. Who could be so obsessed with writing poems (he seemed to ask)? I suppose you would need some type of angry hard upbringing, or would have to be out of touch, some how, with common people. But really, I have never tried to understand why I love to write, or more surprisingly, how I have gone from producing poems to majoring in Human Biology. For so long it has been easy to just pull my bio textbooks from my book-bag, having spent countless nights dark eyed and upright, shivering on the 13th floor of the Sci-Li with secret hopes of becoming a doctor. It is well known that I won't let myself fail. I know there are high hopes for me too, and if I somehow fall short my life couldn't get any worst. But lately it has. It's not that my dreams of becoming a physician are gone, but that I have come to a place in my life where I need to accomplish something more. I've turned in on myself, to my own dreams, the nature of which eludes me. I realize that some people will become lawyers and engineers. Some will go on to medical school. And without a doubt, they will have their big houses, their landscaped yards and high city views. As for me, well, these days some of us want nothing more than the opportunity to start over. Maybe even go to graduate school to pursue my dream of becoming a published poet :-)

I need to do what makes me happy. I know my potential, now no more wasting time.

My roommate is looking at me, I can tell. I want to thank him for his insight.

--Jay

Day 65: Very proud

Status - damage control
Mood - wonderful
Water - 3 liters

Day 65 of 112

I am so proud of myself. First, for controlling the amount of alcohol I drank this weekend. My friends were a bit surprised, though, by the fact that I wanted to remember my birthday, as opposed to getting completely drunk and losing my mind. Really, what's the point ? I had a great time just going out and enjoying the company of some of my closest friends. It was very low-key, which is exactly how I would have preferred it.

On an even higher note, I am happy to say that I was able to complete 3 workouts on the weekend of my birthday !! I know, I can see the joy in your eyes as well , haha. But really, come on. That's dedication.

Let's recap the workouts:

Friday - serious back workout + squats
Saturday - great shoulder workout + 20 minutes HIIT
Sunday (B-DAY) - near-midnight steady state cardio, 40 minutes

I feel pretty damn good :-)

And the nutrition:

I'll break this down, first by drinks and then by B-day meals.

Drinks (total)(~2/hr) = 8

Meals = 2 (enchiladas on Saturday and a nice brunch at Louis Diner earlier this afternoon)

Tomorrow: morning HIIT + chest

Catch you later,

--Jay

ps. I can't post pictures today. The camera needs new batteries. Back in action tomorrow though

Day 64: another great day

Status - damage control
Mood - good
Water - 3 liters

Day 64 of 112

A quick post for today because I have to wake up early tomorrow in order to get a good run in.

Weight:

Back = 40 weighted pull-ups (10 lbs) + seated row (180 lbs) (4 x 8-10)

Legs = 5 x 10 full length squats + dumbbell, 1-arm hang clean (10 x each arm)(3 sets total)

Core:

60 incline sit ups
50 knees up crunches
50 medicine ball rolls

Cardio:

Saved for tomorrow since legs were done today. Don't want to over-train and ware myself out.

Nutrition:

I didn't get more than 3 meals in today. I wasn't all that hungry, which is such a surprise for me.

And the goods:

This afternoon my diet collapsed, haha. I made lemon cheesecake and chocolate nut cookies.

I had such a craving !!

BUT, the recipes were very healthy, trust me :-)

The cookies contained a few scoops of protein powder and about 2 cups of unsalted nuts. And instead of using regular sugar I opted for splenda, which is the much better choice in terms of its caloric density. Yea, I knowww, empty calories are empty calories. But hey, this is the weekend of my B-day and I wanted a few cookies ! I don't feel guilty at all, haha. Well, maybe a little.

Whatever ! Both desserts came out great. According to my roommates the cookies were tasty. I haven't tried the cheesecake yet because the ramekins need to set and cool overnight. Sometime tomorrow afternoon I'll throw together some all-natural strawberry topping for them. There was a sale at the store, and so I have plenty to use, haha.

Tomorrow: morning HIIT + shoulders (YESSS)

Catch you later,

--Jay

Day 63: Through the storm

Status - damage control
Mood - good, but could be better
Water - almost 2

Day 63 of 112

Thank heavens I am finally through the middle of the week. I had a Physics exam yesterday that was brutal. I came back afterward and went absolutely nuts. Didn't get to bed until around 5 this morning. Yea ...

I woke up late and made my way to the gym for a chest workout, which went well.

Cardio:

10 minutes HIIT on the tread and 10 on the elliptical.

Weight:

Warm-up + 3 x 8-10 flat + 3 x 8-10 incline + incline flies to burnout

Nutrition:

Low day - but I feel I might have exceeded my carb intake limit ... I did eat most of them following my workout though.

Tomorrow:

I have to wake up early tomorrow morning to run because I am leaving in the afternoon and heading home for a night. My parents want to take me out for my B-day, it should be fun.

It's a little strange when I stop to think I'll be 21 in a few days. To me, it feels like any other B-day, just another year ... I guess I'll be able to "legally" buy alcohol now, yippee ! (not really considering I don't drink much).

Catch you later,

--Jay

Day 62: Under Pressure

Status - damage control
Mood - good but could be better
Water - 2 liters (boo)

Day 62 112

I have an exam on Wednesday and am sorta freaking out. I hate physics with a passion. I accept the fact that it's difficult, I just wish it were more like orgo, which is to say more interesting.

I'll be doing the majority of studying tomorrow. I am supposed to meet a friend of mine at 6:30 am to begin the all-day journey. God, I am not looking forward to this :-(

On the fitness front:

Weight:

I did shoulders today and increased my resistance in seated push press, making my current max (of 10 reps) 70lbs. I feel good about the strength gains I've made so far. It'll definitely help when I begin Jiu-Jitsu training this summer. I want to compete in tournaments so I have to get into much better shape.

Cardio:

10 minutes HIIT on the tread and 10 on the elliptical

Nutrition:

Pretty good. I had two bananas pre-workout O:-)

Salads for the rest of the day.

Tomorrow: squats + core

Catch you later,

--Jay

ps. I'm going to start posting daily pictures again because it is the only way I can most directly judge the progress I am making. In not posting pictures I fear that I might fall out of the habit of even taking them in the first place, and that is the last thing I want to happen.

Day 61: ohh snap son !

(Miami)



(current)

Status - damage control
Mood - wonderful
Water - 2 liters

Day 61 of 112

Wow, I feel great right now. The endorphins are definitely flowing :-)



(me, high on endorphins, haha)

The posted picture of myself today was taken shortly after I returned from Miami, which was a little over a week ago. I want to give you all a baseline so that you will have a better understanding of where I started from just last week. Compared to todays photo, I think I've made some improvements so far. I still have a long way to go though, and honestly, in order to reach my goal I need to be more strict with my diet. The past two days I've been munching on more nuts than I'm supposed to O:-)

Granted, they have been high days. Still, I need to be more disciplined. In order to this I might start a daily accountability chart. I've seen other shredders use them with great success. Personally, I think keeping track of my daily actions with not only help me with my fitness goals but also with my schoolwork.

I just wish I was more proficient at Excel. I might be able to convince my roommate to give me a crash course in using it. Seems easy enough, just learning how to apply functions etc.

Sidenote:

I was up very late last night writing. I didn't get to sleep until about 5 am, so I stayed in later than I usually do on Sundays. This isn't abnormal for me at all, since I do most of my writing after midnight anyway when I can concentrate and be totally alone. But anyway, I remember yesterday I expressed some concern about the possibility that I might be catching another cold, but after todays strong workout I don't believe that is the case. Although I woke up this morning more tired than usual, I was able to finish strong in the gym in all my lifts.

Weight:

60 chin-ups
60 incline sit-ups
Muscle Rounds - 2 seated cable
Muscle Rounds - 2 full-length squat

Cardio:

While running a few days ago on the treadmill my right knee buckled awkwardly, and for the past two days it has felt a little unstable. I don't want to stress it any more than necessary and so have taken today off from HIIT cardio, which places a great deal of pressure on the joints.

Nutrition:

On target. First of 5 low carb/cal days ... I'll throw in a day of fasting as well for fun.

It's going to be tough to stay absolutely committed to my restricted plan considering that my B-day is coming up this weekend. My roommates have some mess planned for me involving God knows what, I'm a little scared, haha. But I am even more excited for my visit home. I haven't seen my family in a while and I miss them.

My train is scheduled to arrive in New Haven on Friday. My parents want to take me out to dinner to celebrate my 21st. I'm sure it'll be nice. I'm in the process of trying to convince my mom to accompany me in Brandford, where I plan to get my new tattoo. She is soo freaked out, haha. Hopefully by the end of the week she'll have already changed her mind. My fingers are crossed ! I think it'll be an "interesting" experience for her, haha

Tomorrow: morning HIIT + shoulders

Catch you later,

--Jay

Day 60: Poor effort

Status - damage control
Mood - disappointed
Water ~ 3 liters

Day 60 of 112

Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to make it to the gym today. I just couldn't muster up the energy to commit myself. I just hope this isn't a symptom of another cold, which wouldn't come as a surprise considering my roommate is sick.

Nutrition:

On target. Second high day

Tomorrow: morning HIIT + Muscle Rounds (back)

Catch you later,

--Jay