From Scrawny to Powerful (I hope!)

[fitnhealthydad]

Okay, so I decided to utilize this online space to keep a journal like so many others are doing. Thanks to WBB for providing this feature!

I'm brand spanking new to lifting so there's not gonna' be much to report at first. But I'll post my routines, diet and progress pictures as both a record and for any critique anyone may want to give. So here we go....

In January of this year (2009), I finally reached a point where I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. Literally. I was constantly ill, couldn't get out of my own way most days and had no desire to do anything active with my 5-year-old because I was always too blah. I had long, skinny arms, cute little man-boobs (lol) and a respectable paunch around my midsection. I hated myself. So I finally decided it was time to make some changes. I drastically altered my diet by cutting out the sheer volume of junk food I was gorging myself on everyday (Doritos, Double-Stuf Oreos, gallons of Diet Coke, etc).

In February, I enrolled with a personal MMA trainer. Awesome, awesome guy! Kicked my ass with cardio training for weeks. My overall health, stamina and energy level improved by leaps and bounds between February and April. I lost 15 pounds and trimmed my midsection right down to nothing. Finally, as the next leg in this journey, I started lifting in May. Lifting has now become my primary activity as I am hoping to seriously bulk over the next 8-10 months.

Here's me in February at 185 pounds:

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m236/garthfan0523/IMG00018.jpg

Here I am at 180 pounds in March after working with my MMA guy for about three weeks:

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m236/garthfan0523/April182009.jpg

Here I am at a lean 170 pounds in April after things had really kicked into high gear for me (I still can't believe the cut I managed to achieve! ) :

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m236/garthfan0523/May32009.jpg

And here I am back up at 178 pounds at the end of May after lifting for three weeks:

http://i105.photobucket.com/albums/m236/garthfan0523/May282009.jpg

Not bad progress so far and I am super, super excited to see what six months of Starting Strength will do for me. I am going down tomorrow to check out our two local gyms to see which one will be better for me and for my goals. I'm really hoping to meet some serious lifters who would be willing to talk to me without having their noses stuck in the ceiling. I have no problem listening to advice and learning whatever people want to teach. :read:

So that's it for my first entry. Next entry will detail my diet and some miscellanea that I'm working on for overall fitness.

:hello:

[benno]

Looks good mate, will follow your progress. All the best! And welcome to the boards :hello:

[fitnhealthydad]

My work-week consists of three 16-hour days in a row and then four days off. It's a great schedule for the time it gives me off, but it can be very exhausting at the end of those three days. Also, it's nearly impossible to maintain the same diet on the work days as it is on the off days. So here's what I do:

OFF DAYS:

Breakfast: 4 cups Honey Bunches of Oats or Shredded Wheat w/milk
Snack 1: Protein Mix w/milk
Lunch: Egg Sandwiches w/Strawberry Jelly on Wheat Bread
Snack 2: 1 cup of Almonds
(WORKOUT)
Post-Workout: Creatine Mix w/Dasani Strawberry Water
Dinner: Lean Chicken w/Mixed Vegetables and some type of pasta or,
Spaghetti w/Homemade Meat Sauce or,
Grilled Steak w/Potatoes or,
Pizza (on occasion!)
Snack 3: Completely varies. Could be Almonds, Wheat Thins, Peanut Butter on Ritz Crackers or Breyer's All Natural Ice Cream

WORK DAYS:

Breakfast (actually 1st meal of the day at 4pm): Cereal
Snack 1: Almonds
Lunch: Chicken w/Corn or,
Turkey Club Sandwich or,
Sometimes skipped depending on work-load
Snack 2: Full bag of Microwave Popcorn w/VitaminWater
Dinner 3: 2 cups Chicken Ramen Noodles
Snack 4 (usually about 4am by this time): Protein Mix w/Whole Milk
Maybe a cup of Dunkin' Donuts on the drive home

So that's a typical diet for me. Any thoughts?

[fitnhealthydad]

Today was a bad day for me, workout-wise. I did a two-mile run/intervals session (one mile straight run/one mile of intervals) and felt great afterwards. Unfortunately, I am unable to get to the gym today, so I had to make use of what I had at home which is basically a pair of dumbbells and a floor. Fortunately, however, I am still at that stage where bodyweight exercises are still beneficial to me. So here's what I did:

Dumbbell curls: 50lbs 3x5
One-leg kneeling dumbbell rows: 50lbs 3x8
Push-ups: 2x20/1x15
Lots of ab work
Pull-ups: 1x10 (I need a lot of work for overhand pushups. Chin-ups, no problem. Pull-ups...not so much.)

No, that's not a very good routine and I don't claim it is. But it gave me enough for the day since I couldn't get to the gym and I didn't want to just do nothing.

Definitely back to the gym tomorrow! It's time to start posting some numbers for my SS exercises!