Day 77: My favorite subject

Jumping is so frustrating, great sets one day, sloppy messy sets the next. I'm always whipping myself with the rope (its actually not even a rope, its hard plastic), in the shins, hands and forearms, but the other day it actually left a mark, it looked like I just had a run-in with Jack Bauer, or a Singaporean prison guard (very upset I didn't take a picture, its pretty much faded by now).

Not much else to report on this day of rest, just strategerizing about Indulgence #3....

Day 76: Sorry, got a little ahead of myself, NOW only 2 weeks to go...

-Managed the Pro Tip today (raise legs for sit-ups), didn't reeeeeally feel it in my lower abs but failed out the sit-ups nonetheless, wow burn...

-Mixed it up and did ski jumpers before elevated tricep dips since the bands were already set up, damn I came dangerously close to losing it on the tricep dips, would have been ugly...

-Day 2 of 2-a-day jumping, no sweat (actually a lot of sweat)....

That's the news, and I am outta here...

Day 75: 2 weeks left! Wow how time flies...

-"Day 75 Pro Tip: To add even more challenge to the Plank, bend your knee and raise one foot. Switch legs on the next set." That's hilarious...

-started doing an extra session of jumprope after work (in addition to the usual session before work) to kill that pesky visceral fat.

-it has officially become summer in Tokyo, oppressive heat, stifling humidity...even after taking a COLD shower after jumping, I'm drenched 1 minute after I step foot outside on the way to the subway.

That's all she wrote for today....

Day 73-74: Weekend Stuff

-followed up with the University of Hawaii football player/gym trainer that gained 20 pounds for the NFL combine. His program was over 2 1/2 months long, and when asked he said there was no way he could gain a "healthy" 20 pounds in that amount of time.

-jumprope: played golf early Sat morning so didn't have time to jump in the morning. Jumped after golf, and after eating my 50g pre-workout carbs, it was a mess. So many trips, thinking my legs were exhausted from walking the course in the blazing sun, and had a cramp from eating so soon before. This morning crushed my jumping, 2 out of 3 6 minute sets went over 800 jumps (first time over 800).

-Workout in Yokohama on Sun, planned on teaming up with returning dignitary Todd but schedules did not permit, oh well. Will try to coordinate a rendezvous before he leaves...

-Resistance V-sits: Patrick asked "how hard do you want to work today?", I said "BRING IT", so for the V-sits he kneeled next to me and leaned his forearms on my chest and thighs, each rep applying a little more weight so that each set was to failure, and sets got progressively harder, so 1st set did over 20 reps, 5th set did 8 or 9. BOO YA!!!

-Sneak preview of what's to come: Super Sets. Buckle your seat belts!

-Stats: good week, lost 1/2kg, body fat up 0.4% but transfer from visceral fat, down to 6%, which is goooood, target 5.5%. Muscle mass down slightly, not a huge concern but need to make sure to eat my pre-workout carbs to avoid burning muscle.

Day 72: Cramming for the final exam

It kind of hit me today: holy crapola, we have less than 3 weeks to go and I'm nowhere near the Peak! I know there is no short cut, so really need to kick it into high gear to get rid of those last pesky remnants of visceral...

Standing Ovations to failure: actually felt like my shoulders were failing before my chest, might need to fine tune my form.

Really good bicep workout, but also would like to fine tune my form on the one-armed curl, I feel like I'm leaning and supporting my arm with my body, in part due to the angle of the bands.

Elevated push-ups: after the first set I can't do more than 5 or 6 properly, though still get good burn finishing out the sets on my knees.

Fruit tip: grapefruit is the #1 fat-burning fruit (apples are also way up there).

Day 71: Failure

Our first sets with no reps, just to failure, Da Vincis, BRING IT!

Inspired by Jenny's dirty little secret, dug in for the serious burn today, felt gooooood....

Going to another baseball game tonight, beautiful night for it, unfortunately there will be no chu-hi indulgence...

Day 70: Rest

Need some, its after midnight, but have to keep checking the USA-Algeria score (stoopid Japanese TV only showing the England-Slovenia game)...

Day 69, DUDE!

Been waiting a long time for that one...

Tried jumping rope with my eyes closed this morning (Maren's suggestion), scary, don't think it works for me...

Its official, all of my pants now require belts. Mind you, I was in the anti-Peak condition prior to PCP, so I was busting out of many of my previously perfectly fitting 32 waists...

Day 68: Tremors

As commented on Brett's blog earlier today, by the end of the 3rd and 4th sets of 90 second planks, my entire body was shaking. As Patrick mentioned, need to make sure your body is not sagging, supported by hanging off of your shoulders rather than your abs keeping you straight. At the end of the 4th set, as sort of a sprint to the finish, I tried to round my back. Holy crap, I thought I was going to explode into pieces. And I was sweating like crazy....Another thing Patrick mentioned before, not for plank in particular but in general, with each set I did I kept saying to myself "OK, just get through this one more set", I think it helped not looking ahead...

Really good chest and bicep burn today too....

Day 67: Skewers

Last night went to a BBQ, I brought corn on the cob and some kick-ass veggies skewers (very upset I did not take a picture, they were beautiful): red/yellow/orange peppers, asparagus, eggplant, onions, mushrooms. The host assured me that the chicken, fish and lamb chops (Patrick, where does lamb rank on the lean meat scale?) were all PCP-friendly (no butter, no salt, very natural and healthy sauces/spices), I stuck to perrier instead of wine (which apparently was reeeaallly good) and for dessert cherries instead of chou cream (sort of a Japanese cream puff). Rationed the chicken/fish as best I could to stay close to the protein allocation, and gorged myself w/ veggies, was actually very full and satisfied. (Breakfast this morning was leftover chicken and veggies from the BBQ and a hard boiled egg on a whole wheat bagel.)

So it got me thinking about Patrick's recent blog post about Deflators. I have been lucky enough to not come across any during my PCP (so far). Aside from the occasional "no booze? no way!", the most negative reaction I have had was that people said THEY did not have the discipline or motivation to do it themselves, but wished me luck. At the other end of the spectrum, I have had the good fortune of support from a variety of INflators, people that not only wish me luck, but join me in NOT drinking (for a night, at least), and not putting pressure on me to eat just 1 slice of pizza or have just 1 beer (really, how can that hurt?). My biggest Inflator has been my wife, who, as mentioned before, prepares most of my meals while taking care of our now 5 month old baby. In addition, she has joined me in eating more PCP-friendly meals, which is obviously as good for her as it is for me.

So the moral to my Sunday night reflections: while battling the Deflators, make sure to appreciate the Inflators...

Day 66: Tricked-out pull-ups

Obi-wan dropped the knowledge on this one a few weeks ago, but this was the first time I was able to try it out at home (a bit reluctant to try this one at the gym). Jerry-rig the resistance band to the pull-up bar as pictured to the right. While hanging from the bar, put your knees together at the bottom of the band (as if you are kneeling on the band). Doing your pull-ups as usual, you now have some support from the band, as well as a little bounce action to help on the way back up. According to Obi-wan, this way, which allows a more full pull-up (even if just a little and with some help), is better than a lessor pull-up, or a negative, or an inclined pull-up. But be warned: getting into the position is difficult, especially if you do not have someone helping, and getting out, if not done carefully, might result in the band whipping up in your face (uh, yeah, it happened). Good luck, God speed.

Day 65: Kicking it up a notch

Let me just get this out of the way: 90 SECOND PLANKS, R U FREAKIN' KIDDING ME?!?!?!!?

OK, feel much better now...

Cut straight to the abs, 2 innovations today:

Leg-ups: alternating sets, 1 regular, 1 on an elevated surface (like a bench), waist at the edge so on the way down your legs go below parallel, hold on with your hands above/behind your head for stability. Be the burn...

Planks: alternating sets, 1 regular (did I mention 90 FREAKIN' SECONDS?!), 1 with the stopwatch under your face, watching the seconds tick, tick, tick, tick, tick...brutal. Apparently its some Jedi-voodoo-magic to get you thinking about the exercise in a different way, mind over plank, whatever, I call it torture...

Stats: looking good this week, firing on all cylinders.

-Weight: down 0.7kg (total -5.7kg from Day 1)

-Body fat: down 1.2% (-7.7%)

-Visceral fat: flat (-2%)

-Muscle: up 0.5% (+3.1%)

-Subcutaneous fat: down 0.8% (-4.8%)

Day 64: Disco Inferno

Burn baby burn. Legs, shoulders, abs, great all-around workout today.

The first set of V-sits were really smooth (dare I say easy), thinking I must be getting STRONG, then slapped back to reality, sets 3-5 were the usual mess, but a good mess...

Day 63: Rest

Jumped the allotted 5x5 and only did 1 extra set of 4 minutes, really slacking off...

Talking to a trainer at the gym, a large Hawaiian dude that played for the Rainbows in the 2007/08 Sugar Bowl (in which they got thrashed by Georgia), who now plays "professional" football in the Japanese corporate league, daylighting at the gym during the week. Told him about PCP, and he told me about when he was training for the NFL combine, he was on a "similar" program, though much shorter than 90 days, in which he put on 20 pounds of muscle!!!! Wow...in their program they also got an indulgence, which he called a "cheat", basically a monster pizza pigout (sounds like their cheat was not nearly as structured as our indulgence).

Day 62: Proof-reading

Not much to report today. Noticed (as did Mickael) that the picture and label for sit-ups did not match the instructions (which were probably for side sit-ups). Per Patrick's previous instructions, went w/ the picture, regular sit-ups, 4x 28, 10 seconds in between sets...

For lunch and dinner I'm eating AMAYW veggies, and I'm eating a TON. I assume that AMAYW means it can never be too much....?

Day 61: Hair

Not sure if this is a common side effect of the PCP, but my hair seems to be getting thicker. I have always had relatively thick hair, and I am past due for a haircut. I have also stopped using gel after showering at the gym at lunchtime, so I get a bit of Monchichi action going (much to the amusement of my colleagues and chagrin of my wife).

Workout

Chest: mad burn, felt gooood.

Bicycle: my legs are getting tired before my abs so not doing full proper round cycling, more like alternate kicking straight in and out (and not exactly straight out, but angling down toward the floor). still feeling the burn though.

Plank: to quote Jason Fishelberg after reading the Day 61 exercise sheet: "five f*cking sets?!?!?!?!!!?!?!?!" BUT, as per a previous post, I think concentrating on and counting deep breaths during the Plank helps get thru it.

Temptation

Long story short, was at a friend's birthday party Sat night (magic bar, waiters walk around doing magic at the tables, was a blast). I had eaten at home, so should not have been hungry, but there were pizzas and french fries flying all around me. At first it was really really difficult to resist, but ordered veggies sticks instead and suddenly had a moment of enlightenment: most times in a social setting we only eat because its there, not because we are hungry. Felt great with my veggie sticks and Perrier, not just my body but my mind...

Day 60: 2/3!

WOO HOO!

That just about says it all for today...

Day 59: Peaking down into the Valley

No, I'm not in the Valley, but I'm at the edge, sneaking a peak, and you know what I see? THE PLANK, with no stopwatch!!!!!

During the week I actually enjoy the workouts: jumping rope first thing in the morning wakes me up and gives me an energy boost, and the rest of the workout at lunchtime breaks up an otherwise monotonous day working for the man. On the weekends I think I have been getting a sniff of the Valley recently, at times dreading and fretting over when I will have time squeeze in the workout, but I always find time and get thru it and feel great afterward.

Beating the Plank: today I tried a new technique. I concentrated on my breathing, counting (of course) the deep breaths in and out, and I think it actually worked...will see if it is sustainable...

Day 58: Weird Stats

Back to Yokohama after only 5 days since my last visit, and some of the stats turning up a bit weird:

-lost 1kg in 5 days (more on that later).

-body fat and subcutaneous fat UP but visceral DOWN, which is good since visceral is harder to lose.

-muscle mass down but no biggie since weight is down and fat is shifting.

Over all the fat and muscle movements do not add up to 1kg of weight loss, so Patrick asked me if I was thirsty, and since he mentioned it, I was parched, and thus the answer: I was slightly dehydrated, so some of that 1kg was just water weight. No biggie, just need to make sure to drink when I'm thirsty.

Workout: no real revelations, just remember if the exercises are too easy and you're not feeling it, then you're not doing them properly.

Day 57: Skeletor

Just another day on the PCP, nothing monumental to report. Except that people are starting to comment that my face is looking skinny. I knew it was only a matter of time. Background: I did a shock-and-awe colonic cleansing in Thailand, in 1 week I lost 6-7kg, most of which I didn't really need to lose in the first place. Came back feeling great but looking like either a cancer patient or a concentration camp survivor (depending on who you ask). Mentioned this to Patrick in the beginning, don't think there is any way around it, that's just the way my body is built...

Day 56: "Rest"

"Rest" Day, as usual did my jumprope at the gym instead of at home in the elevator hall. Once again to prove my floor vs. compact carpet theory, I did a warm-up 3 minute set and banged out over 450, when all week I was stuck in the 300-350 range at home (except when I maxed out at 462 in Yokohama). Then did my 4x 4 minute sets, maxed out at 590. Just for kicks I finished with an extra/casual 4 minute set, to see how many I could do in a row without tripping, blew thru 4 minutes (count at 550), ended up beating my previous personal best 1492 and stopped of my own free will at 1501, symbolic since that was the max we did when counting (I know, I'm still counting, I'm obsessed). My feet were almost numb but otherwise felt really good after...

Yes, raisin wheat bread is AWESOME, but note the disclaimer: ALL dried fruits are chock full o sugar, thus not recommended. But a few raisins scattered throughout a few slices of wheat bread is not going to kill me, especially if its for breakfast (vs. having a bowl of raisins for the evening fruit snack, that would be bad, mmmmkay?).

Day 55: Smell the glove

-Need to get workout gloves, getting some wicked calluses (does that spelling look weird to you? does to me, but its right) as a result of the pullups and kung-fu situps.

-I'm sure this is a good thing, every morning I wake up very hungry, and thoroughly enjoy breakfast (most days it is the chicken or shrimp, hard boiled egg, assorted steamed veggies and either tomato or avocado triple decker on raisin wheat bread). Pre-PCP I was only eating an apple or a banana for breakfast, and sometimes I would just skip it altogether...

-Aside from frustration jumping rope on the compact carpet in the elevator hall in my apartment building (can't wait to jump at the gym tomorrow, then again on Fri in Yokohama), I'm feeling really good....waiting to slip into the valley. Obi-wan says Days 50-65 are critical, so almost 1/2-way thru!

Royce: could not copy the pic on your blog post, so here it is, the Mr. Clean Inclined Pullup:

Day 54: Miscellaneous

Jumprope: after breaking my 3 minute set record in Yokohama yesterday (462), back to reality today, 300-350 each, very sloppy.

Creep: almost puked and collapsed, so that was good.

Shoulders: really good burn.

V-sit: when these are the first ab exercise, the first 1-2 sets pretty clean, then the wheels come off. When they are 2nd, they are a mess straight out of the gate.

Kung-fu sit-ups: did a few at home just for kicks, getting more comfortable.

Homework: submitted.

Hard boiled eggs: new technique working well: soak eggs so they are the same temp as the cold water, then brink water to a boil, once boiling remove from heat and cover for 15 minutes, then run under cold water until not hot anymore. A few days old is better...

Day 53: Learned a lot of things

Back to the Mother Ship after a week hiatus. Gained 0.4kg over the past 2 weeks, but body fat down 2.5% and muscle mass up 1.2%. In total I have lost 4kg but have lost 6kg of fat and gained around 1kg of muscle (not sure where the other 1kg went, will find it eventually). Good stuff.

Stuff to learn:

-Following up on the Chu-Hi, for those that did not see Todd's comment (thanks Todd). Shochu is distilled barley, potatoes or rice, not to be confused with Sake, which is rice wine. Shochu is most commonly drunk neat, on the rocks, diluted with water, fruit juice or

oolong tea, OR as a Chu Hi (from shoCHU HIghball), which is shochu mixed with fresh fruit juice and soda. In a bar or restaurant you might call it a Lemon or Grapefruit (or whatever flavor fruit juice) Sour, but it also comes in cans. Very refreshing on a hot summer day, especially at a baseball game, which brings us back to Indulgence II. If you see the picture, it is a purple color, because they were serving Lemon Chu Hi, poured out of the can into a cup, and added either grape (pictured) or apple flavored ice cubes. Wow it was good....

-milk/yogurt in the diet is to make sure we have enough fat (even "fat-free" milk has plenty of fat in it). without any fat, some stuff in the brain doesn't work and we get stoopid...

(did Day 54 workout w/ Obi-wan, will go back to Day 53 tomorrow)

-Doing the exercises with the bands uses a lot of other support muscles for balance at the same time, whereas if you do the same exercise on a machine it solely focuses on that individual muscle, which is not ideal (for example I have been doing butterflies at the gym instead of Standing Ovations w/ the bands, no more). Also the focus of the max exertion changes, on the machine there is more focus on the beginning of the movement, better for it to be at the end.

-Kung-fu sit-ups: the goal is not to bring your legs perpendicular to your torso, but to swing them all the way up so your feet touch the bar (or as close as possible).

-Standing Ovation: start high and bring your hands together low.

-Planks: you love them.

No, I did not eat this, but for a mere $10 bucks you can!

Day 52: Indulgence II

So after surviving 2 temptations (my mother's world famous banana bread, and yaki tori at my favorite micro brewery, I drank perrier and had a lot of veggies + a couple of assorted chicken selections with minimal sauce/salt), I hit Indulgence II with authority, but not before having a carb-free, super colorful lunch (shrimp, broccoli, asparagus, red and yellow peppers, mushrooms, eggplant, stir fried with garlic, ginger and a little olive oil).

Went to the Swallows/Lions game at Jingu, was planning

on having yaki soba as my indulgence but started in on the

Chu Hi's and kept going, 4 Chu Hi's and 3 hours in the sun later

and I was feeling no pain! Lets see what kind of shape I am in

tomorrow for my Day 53 workout in Yokohama...

Day 51: Temptation

So my parents are visiting (not really us, but their first grandchild), and my mother, fulfilling her lifelong obligation of baking her world famous banana bread anytime she sees me, anywhere on God's green earth, managed to get thru customs packing double barreled Hawaiian Blends (my old favorite was with chocolate chips, and she has also dabbled with craisins, but ever since our wedding in Hawaii she has been making it with pineapple, very good). The timing could not have been better for Indulgence II, BUT I had already set my sights on tomorrow's Yakult Swallows/Seibu Lions game outside at Jingu, kicking back with a couple of Chu Hi's, yaki tori and yaki soba. So alas, will have to hold out until Thanksgiving for the next Banana Bread Bonanza...

Workout

Jumprope: very sloppy session this morning, lots of tripping, maxed out at 383 (3 minute set).

Pushups: continue to struggle with pushups after chest dips, but real good burn on all 3 chest exercises today.

One-arm curl: should our forearm be parallel to our body/legs or at a slight outward angle? also its a bit difficult getting full closed flex holding 2 ends of the bands in 1 hand.

Plank: good Lord, my shoulders were quivering on the first set, and had to work to keep my waist/groin from dipping to the floor.

Biceps: when working out, my right bicep is noticeably bigger than my left, though both are definitely bigger now, and the difference is probably not noticeable to the passerby, so just keep on keeping on as usual?

Day 50: Good luck Newbies!

Look at all the cute little newbies, w/ their 1/2 diets and sore muscles and 250 jumps. How adorable!

Workout: we seem to be shifting gears and doing more individual muscle focus workouts now. Serious shoulder burn today...Have modified the abs exercises and they seem to be more effective: v-sits tried keeping my legs as straight as possible, side crunches brought my up elbow a little more up and a little less over, while lifting my down shoulder a little, much more burn.

Day 49: Incidental Indulgence II

Yeah, yeah, I know, I know, indulgence has to be on our own terms. And to be honest I would have been a lot more creative than perrier, bagna cauda, grilled fish, grilled veggies and sorbet (although all were delicious and satisfying).

While I'm on the subject of cheating, although I have had a few lapses, I have generally kept it real and never gone overboard, but even still, the next day after those instances I almost felt hungover (without even drinking anything), stomach a bit off and just a bit out of sorts....though nothing serious like Ren...

Jumprope: did the 5x 3 minutes (421 max), then did a few sets of 2 minutes just for fun, personal best 303, I think that might be my ceiling...

Day 48: Dining out not so tough

Wife's birthday dinner, went to our favorite restaurant, where we had our Tokyo wedding party (Casita, in Aoyama), managed to stay pretty true to PCP: bagna cauda appeteaser, grilled snapper main (nixed the BUTTER and had them grill it au naturale), grilled veggies, tri-color sorbet for dessert (pink grapefruit, framboise, mandarin, mmmmmm....).

Jumprope: 3 of the 8 2 minute sets broke personal bests, 271, 278, 283, but still think 300 is a pipe dream.

Planks: 4x 60 seconds? Good Lord...

Bi and triceps: felt some really good burn today.