Personal Progress Update: October 2012

With October 2012 in the history books now, I figured it was as good a time as any to get the birds eye view of how my progress went during October.  And I must say that I am rather happy with the success that I was able to achieve. Rewind back to late March of this year, I weighed in at 246 pounds.  This was probably not my all time highest weight.  As I had just recovered from the flu and had lost quite a bit of weight while I was sick.  But packed it back on as soon as I was better.  This left me around the 246 pound mark on the scale.

Also, I was very sedentary; meaning very inactive.  After work, I would essentially plant myself on the couch or in front of my computer and stay there.  My diet was pretty much crap.  Eating fast food pretty much all the time due to convenience while being on the road for work a lot.  As I mentioned in an earlier post, my fitness goals got somewhat side tracked during the summer months.  During which I gained a few pounds back, but nothing major.  I started being more conscious about my health again at the very end of September.  And I used the start of October as a mark of change once again.

On my first weigh in for October (start of the month); I found myself sitting right at 239 pounds.  I started walking a few times a week again.  Just a couple miles at a time, which I didn't really keep track off.  As for the first time, I found myself somewhat lost with which direction I should go concerning my workouts.  Knowing what I have done in the past that didn't work.  I decided to try something different.  I started Active.com's Couch to 5K program (using the Android App).  Which started me on a journey that includes 3 workout sessions a week, that start off fairly easy and build upon intensity over the course of 9 weeks.  And at the end of it, the idea is that you'll be able to participate in a 5K run.

This became my gateway, as I found myself doing the following workout at home using a small dumb bell set we have here at the house:
-Crunches (varied reps/sets depending on day)
-Standing Dumb Bell Shoulder Press (started light and worked heavier, usually 4 sets of 8 to 10 reps).
-Concentration Curls (W1 I used 15 pounds, by end of the month lifting 30 per arm, 4 sets of 8 reps).
-Dumb Bell Floor Press (4 sets of 10 to 12 reps)
-Push Ups (as many as I could knocked out)

I replaced my junk food snacks with things like low fat yogurt, granola, and a protein shake/smoothie each day.  All the time counting my calories using the aforementioned MyFitnessPal.  Counting my calories at first didn't end so well each night.  Then after a few days of adjusting what I ate.  I became able to adjust the bad food out of my diet and gradually work good stuff in, that would help keep me within my calorie plan.

And I'm proud to report that last week, my wife and I joined a great gym local to us.  It is literally a 5 minute drive from our house to our gym now.  Leaving no excuse to not exercise given rain or shine.  For us, that is a big step.  We are using our membership as a motivation to each other to help push each other a little further each day toward our goals.

So, enough chatter.  Let's see how I faired at the end of December!
October 1st Weight: 239 pounds
November 3rd Weight: 231 pounds
Pounds Lost: 8 pounds

Difference in Measurements:
Neck: Lost 0.50 inches lost
Left Bicep: 0.75 inches gained
Right Bicep: 0.25 inches gained
Waist: 1 inch lost
Chest: 0.50 inches lost

My biceps gained size due to the dumb bell work that I have been staying on top of.  For the first 30 days of my journey, I feel like I am off to a great start!

Posted in: active, android, couch to 5k, exercise, fast food, gym, myfitnesspal, progress, weight loss, weightloss, workout