1000 lb Club!

Not too long ago I put up a post where I talked about my goals.  If you have no idea what I'm talking about, here are the key points again:

1. Bulk up via strength training to about 150 lbs (~10-15% body fat is fine)
2. Join the 1000lb club (Deadlift, bench, and squat must add up to at least 1000lb)
3. Bring my conditioning up (Cut back on strength training and focus on circuit training ~5-8% body fat)

As of today, I have officially accomplished the first two goals.  :)  I've been sitting around 150 lbs for a few weeks now, and just today I hit the 1000 lb mark.  I deadlifted 405# (5x) a few days ago, and I squated 345# (5x) today, and benched 250# (3x) last week.  I'm still working on the bench, but I hurt my shoulder so I need to give it some time to heal.  I finally completed the Madcow program, which was an overwhelming success.  I truly doubted it would work at the beginning, but I'm really happy I stuck with it.  

Bulking up was a success

 Now for my final goal.  I just hope that I don't lose all my weight and strength once start doing cardio.  

But the way things are going, anything's possible.  Life is good :)

... And Again...

Congratulations to me! I managed to make it exactly one month and 2 days before I got sick again! 
No.
This isn't right, what is going on?  I was in Calgary for a conference, I didn't work out, I didn't train, or anything, just took it easy.  But on my flight home, I started to feel it coming.  Uh oh, I thought.  By the time I was home I was already getting feverish. 

Makes me wonder if I should just live in a bubble.

Anyways, I'm better now, and I'm so close to the end I can taste it.  Not having to be forced to go to the gym every second day or else I'll fall behind on my Madcow program, not having to eat 6 meals a day with each one feeling like a losing battle, not having to work so hard lifting weights but have no gas in the ring.  I'm on the last week of Madcow, and I technically should be done by now, but I've had a few hiccups, a couple that I mentioned already and I've also had troubles with a few of the lifts.  I know it's my last week, but I want to finish it strong and earn every bit of it.  So if it takes me another 2 weeks to finish, so be it.  I went to the gym today and I couldn't finish the sets but this happens everytime after I get sick, so I'll just rest up and get back to it in a couple days.  I've been sitting steadily at 150 lbs so no complaints there.  It's not the 155 lbs I had initially wanted but I'm happy with it.

My other goal was to become part of the 1000lb club.  I think I talked about it before, but it's when your combined deadlift, bench press, and squat is over 1000lb.  Right now I've lifted 980lbs.  soooo close!  I can't give up yet, I just got push through a little bit longer....

"I ask not for a lighter load, I ask for broader shoulders"

Sick... Again?!

How has this happened?  I'm not even close to being overtrained! It's a week back into my routine, definitely not working that hard at all, and bam I'm sick again.  That's twice this year, about 4 times last year... whaaaaaat is going on?  This is so frustrating, how often do people usually catch a cold/fever, once a year? It screws up my routine always sets me back.

So what is the key to staying healthy while training?  Especially in a sport where bodily contact and fluid transfer (sweat) is unavoidable like MMA?  I guess I don't know, because I eat healthy and I get 7-8 hours of sleep each night.  If anyone has any tips, leave them in the comments section below! I will try them out because I'm tired of being sidelined all the time.  Certain foods that boost immune system? I'm all ears.

Still here

Ok so I haven't been keeping up with my weekly does of awesomeness, I feel bad.  Between work, training, and eating I barely have any time to relax.  I've also been back and forth to Calgary for work/holidays a lot lately so things have been a bit hectic. 

To be honest, I actually don't have anything to blog about.  Bulking up is really not that interesting; eat, sleep, boring workout.  I'm past halfway done my Madcow program and I can't wait to be done.  I'll talk more on that later, but basically my conditioning is really suffering at the MMA gym.  I can barely make it through a round of sparing without my arms filling up with so much lactic acid I can't hold them up to cover my face.  So I just block with my face :).  I haven't done any cardio, no gymnastics, none of the fun stuff essentially.  So I can't wait until 5 weeks later when I'm done with this. 

But until I start doing interesting things again, here's a clip you may find enjoyable.  Lou's the man. If you don't know who he is, you need to watch pumping iron, with Arnie.  That, or the hulk.

Anodyne: Physio

Yesterday was my appointment at Anodyne Chiropractic and Sports Therapy.  I had a one hour session with a Chiropractor and a one hour deep tissue massage after.  This is the first time I've ever been to either chiro or massage, and I gotta say, it was a pretty good experience.  When I had first called I was looking for physiotherapy but I was surprised when they said they don't have actual physio therapists.  I thought Chiropractors only worked on things regarding the spine, but I guess I was wrong.  He worked in my foot, trying to mobilize the soft tissue.  It was apparently called the ART soft tissue treatment.  After that, he used the Graston technique, where he rubs a butter knife like tool over the injury, trying to break down the scar tissue.  I was a little worried at first because my doctor had told me we wanted everything to get real stiff to stabilize my foot, but I guess after a year, it's time to bring back some mobility to my joints.  My foots a little sore today but that's expected.  He also cracked my back, aligning my spine.  Apparently I'm really stiff and he had a hard time cracking my upper back haha.  The massage was pretty painful at times but I felt pretty good afterwards... I guess.  Pain is good right?
Later that afternoon I went to the gym, and when I was doing squats, I noticed an improvement in the strain on my lower back.  There seemed like no strain on my lower back at all and everything was stretched out, so I guess something was outta line before.

I've heard good things about Anodyne from quite a few people so I'm optimistic they'll get my foot stronger!  And if you've never had a deep tissue massage... get one, it's definitely worth it!

Getting in the groove of things

Ever since I moved it's been hard to find the time to blog.  Nonetheless, I've been keeping up with my goals I mentioned earlier.  Weight wise I stepped on the scale at 145 lbs today!  An all new record.  When I was living at home, my weight would fluctuate but never really go up, but with my new diet and training regime it's well on it's way.  I haven't gotten around to count my calories or any of that stuff, but I structure my meals around a few basic rules:

1. Use the food pyramid.  When buying groceries I make sure there are proportionate amounts of each food group.
2. Eat healthy.  I want to gain lean mass, not get fat!
3. Eat LOTS.  I try to get in 6 meals a day, with each meal not being extremely large.

Here's typically what I eat in a day:
6:15 AM  - Omelette with 2 eggs and red pepper, green onion, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, ham and cheese. 
                 - Bowl of oatmeal
10:00 AM - Ham, lettuce, and cheese sandwich
                 - Bowl of yogurt with berries
                 - An orange, or apple
                 - Handful of almonds
12:00 PM - Either pasta, or rice with chicken and brocolli
                 - Another fruit
3:00 PM   - Tuna Sandwich
                 - Another fruit
6:30 PM   - Rice, with chicken breast and vegetables on side
9:30 PM   - Fruit Smoothie

And here's the graph of my weight progress

 

Lastly, I just finished week 6 of the MadCow lifting program.  I'm seeing gains already, so I can't wait until week 12!  Since things are starting to get heavy though, I started taking creatine again.  Today was my first day so I will be on a 5 day loading phase this week!  

Baked Lemon Herb Chicken Breasts

Chicken breasts offer a great source of protein, and they can be cooked so many different ways and compliment a variety of dishes.  For example, for dinner I would have a chicken breast with sides of rice, potatoes and asparagus/broccoli.  A chicken breast contains approximately the same amount of protein as a scoop of protein powder, so next time you get out of the gym try this recipe instead of guzzling down that sandy mixture. 

Protein: 30-40 grams
Servings: 4 breasts
Prep time: 15 minutes
Inactive prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 35 minutes

Ingredients:
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons minced garlic (9 cloves)
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 tablespoon lemon zest (2 lemons)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 whole lemon (3 lemons in total should do the trick)
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
salt and black pepper
4 boneless chicken breasts

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Warm olive oil over medium-low heat, add garlic, and cook just for a minute, not letting the garlic brown.  Remove from heat, and add the white wine, lemon zest, lemon juice, oregano, thyme, and 1 teaspoon of salt.  Pour mixture into a baking dish.

 3. Pat chicken breasts dry and place them in the sauce.  Brush the chicken breasts with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.  Cut the lemon in 8 wedges and stick them in between the chicken breasts.

4. Bake for about 30-40 minutes. 

Enjoy! (sides: tomato salad and soy sauce eggplant w/ rice)

Recipe Source: Television Food Network