After both P90 and Piyo were utter failures for me, I decided to go back to doing things my way. Weight management is more complex than it seems on the surface. Sure, you can explain it as simply as, "If your energy output exceeds your energy input, you will lose weight." The problem with that explanation is that our bodies are extremely adaptable. If your energy output exceeds your energy input for extended time periods, your body will lower your metabolism to account for that variance. In other words, your own body will sabotage your weight loss efforts as a survival mechanism.
How can you combat this? In short, the best way is to not go on a diet for long periods of time. Unfortunately, some of us have already done that. Now what? The only solution at this point is to build muscle, which takes a lot of time and hard work. Keep in mind, muscle is 20% heavier than fat, so as you build muscle, you may gain "weight" but lose inches and fat. The important reason for building muscle is that it increases your basal metabolism rate. The more muscle you have, the more fat you burn.
To build muscle, there are some basic things to understand. Muscles are built through working them to the point of breaking, then giving those muscles time to heal. That is why I designed my workout routine to work specific muscle groups once every week. There are several apps available to record workouts. I use Workout because it has a simple, easy to use interface, and has a library of exercises that covers nearly everything I need. If the exact exercise I want to do is not on their list, they have something that is close enough that I can use it as a substitute.
Currently I have two days of exercises recorded on this app. Monday:
E1 Seated Dumbbell Reverse Fly, 5lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
*E2 Good Morning 5lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
Bumbell Bench Press 25lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
Dumbbell Biceps Curl 12lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
*I use dumbbells, not cables.
Friday:
*E1 Kettleball 2 handed Swing 10lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
**E2 Bodyweight Flutter Kicks 10 reps, 4 sets
***Cable Calf Raise, Single Leg 10lbs., 10 reps, 4 sets
E3 Glute Kick Back 10 reps, 4 sets
* I don't have a kettleball, so I do a modified version with a dumbbell.
** I will probably start adding ankle weights eventually. This is true for the Glute Kick Backs as well.
*** I don't use cables. Period. This exercise is done with dumbbells while balancing on a small step. I stay close to the wall to ensure that I can safely catch myself if necessary.
There is 60 seconds between each set and 90 seconds between each exercise. The total workout time for each day is approximately 30 minutes.
My Wednesday workout is for my core. I have decided that I will do PiYo's Hardcore on the Floor this week, then P90X's ABRipperX next week. Then I will decide if I will continue using one of them or make my own core routine.
On Tuesday and Thursday I will be using the fitness section of my Dance Central game on the XBox 360 Kinect, which is a cardio workout. On Saturday I will probably do a shorter cardio workout until the weather breaks and I can start taking walks outside.
Today I did pretty well, especially since this is my first workout of this kind in quite a while. This first time was more of a "feeling things out" session to ensure that I have the weights and reps right. I did have to drop the weight on the Reverse Fly (I was a little too enthusiastic, believing that I could fly 8 lbs. My back just isn't that strong yet.) I popped the reps on my bench and curls from 6 up to 10. I did fail the bench on the last set, but I think that will be an easy obstacle to overcome. Once I master the weight on those two, I think the next step will be to go up in weight, lower the reps to 5, and add another set.
I keep track of my progress in a pretty old school way; I have a little whiteboard.
I am really happy with the direction I am going. By trying to let someone else control my fitness journey, I was doing myself a disservice. I think that I will have a lot better success with me in the driver's seat.
If anyone wants to follow my progress, here are my starting photos and measurements:
Waist = 34" : 86cm
Hips = 45 1/2" : 115 1/2cm
Bust = 42" : 107cm
Under Bust = 35" : 89cm
Right + Left Thigh = 26 : 66cm
Left + Right Bicep = 13 1/2" : 34 1/2cm
Comentários