So Challenge #2 is over and I am little disappointed (from a BFL standpoint). The last 4 weeks of this challenge were a complete bust as far as BFL goes. I just got too busy. I was taking a review course in Dallas for 4 consecutive weekends for my upcoming professional engineer exam. The review course was on Friday, Saturday & Sunday for those 4 weekends so I was driving to Dallas on Thursday evening and returning Sunday night. To add insult to injury, not only was I paying for this course out of my own pocket but having to use my vacation time for class on Friday. From what I could tell there were only maybe 2 out of 35 people in the class who were paying for the course out of their own pocket. Everybody else was either having the tuition paid for by their employer or was going to be reimbursed after they passed the exam.
Anyway, being home for 3 ½ a days just didn’t leave enough time for me to get all of the stuff done around the house that I would normally handle on the weekends so my workout suffered greatly. I tried for the first week to get them done but I had to run errands during lunch most weekdays plus I was really exhausted as well. I guess I’m a wuss since I was so tired because I went for almost 20 days without a day off from either work, class or driving 5 hours. Oh well. On a good side, I think will finally pass the professional engineer exam this time and it looks like I have some good job prospects on the horizon as well…
Review of goals from Challenge #2Ok, this is probably a bust since the last 4 weeks did not go as planned….
- Lose more than 5% body fat (currently around 22% based on the calipers at the gym and 28% using the BF% formula the military uses) which should equate to a goal of less than 17% or 22% body fat depending on measurement method (I didn’t make the 22% body fat but I got close, probably around 26%, still need to do my measurements)
- Be able to fit comfortably into size 36 jeans/kahkis (Still fitting into the Size 38’s comfortably)
- Be able to run 5 miles in one session and starting running that distance at least once a week (Didn’t run as much this challenge, got back into cycling with a longest ride of 23 miles)
- Lose body fat at a faster pace than I am gaining muscle so my overall weight drops, not just my body fat % (Not done, still need to add more cardio to get this done)
- Continue to improve in other areas of my life such as dealing with my depression, finding some better career prospects, and passing the Professional Engineer exam in October (finally!) (DONE! I am feeling better about most aspects of my life, I am certain I will pass the PE this time, I have some good job prospects on the horizon and I’m dealing with the day to day problems that seemed to drag me down pretty easily in the past)
I think for Challenge #3, first off I am going to wait until the beginning of November to start since my PE exam in on Friday the 29th and I need to focus on that right now. This will give me 2 weeks off BFL. This doesn’t mean I’m not going to head to the gym or let my nutrition go out the window, it just means I won’t be as fanatical about it.
For Challenge #3
(Tentative start date: Monday, October 31, 2005), I need to get serious about the cardio sessions because I think that is the key to me losing body fat and more weight. I really need to follow through on doing more cardio in the mornings before work. I am still thinking about sessions on my Nordic Track on the M, W & F weight days and doing my weight workouts during lunch like as always. This may change if I get one of the new jobs that I am looking at because I probably won’t be able to get to the gym during lunch. If that happens, then I will just try to both the cardio and weights done in the morning before work…
I am going to try to step back a little bit and try to set some more realistic goals for Challenge #3. I think my tentative goals will be something along the lines of:
- Plan my workouts and meals the day before
- Write in my success journal on a daily basis to emphasize my progress
- Do a better job following the nutrition plan and limit my snacking after work while I am cooking dinner.
- Try to keep my portion control in check (this is a big problem for me).
- Finally break the 25% body fat and 240 lb barriers
- Make at least 4 of the 6 workouts each week while adding 3 sessions 30 to 45 minutes in length on the Nordic Track for additional cardio work on my weight days.
- Mix up my cardio sessions between HIIT on a treadmill, running outside and riding my bike.
- Pass the PE exam & hopefully have a new job that is much better than my current
- If I do get a new job, start doing my weights in the morning before work.
I will mull over these goals and decide which ones will make the cut for when the Challenge starts….
