Friday Fitness Recap

Welcome to the 10th installment of my fitness recap.  Thanks for stopping by!

I’m still following the “East Stop Eat” intermittent fasting program, fasting two days/week.  It is going well, and I have found it to not be very difficult, once you get into a routine with it.  The bottom line is, it is an easy way to reduce your weekly caloric intake without significantly modifying your eating habits for the other 5 days.  Coupled with 1/2 hour of core fitness or cycling 5-6 days each week, I have been pretty happy with my results so far.

Rode my longest ride to date last weekend (12.5 miles).  Maintained one of my best paces as well (13.4 mph).  I paid for it though.  I was really hurting afterward. I thought I’d pulled a muscle, but the next day (after some ice and rest), I was fine.

I’ve also been doing pretty well on my 100 Pushups and 200 Situps programs.  I’m into Week 5 of the 100 Pushups program, and maxed out at 35.  I think I could have done more, but I didn’t warm up at all.  On the 200 Situps program, I can’t seem to get through Week 3, Day 3!  Have to do 45 reps on the 5th set, and I can’t get past 30 for some reason.  Hopefully, I’ll pull it off on Monday.

Overall, I am pretty happy with my progression so far.  Having said that, I also realize that in a few months, I’m going to need to “shake things up” a bit so I don’t get bored with my workout routine.  I talked with someone about P90X, but I’m not sure if I can adapt it to a 30 min workout.  Hopefully, by the time I’ve finished the 100/200 program, I’ll have found something else try.

Any way, here are the numbers for the past month:

	Today	07/17/09	Difference	Total
Weight:	212 lbs	211 lbs	+1 lbs	-16 lbs
Body Fat %:	18.3%	19.75%	-1.45%	-2.3%

Well, that is it for me for this week.   How about you?

The “Friday Fitness Recap” is part of the Fitness Friday Blog Carnival going on over at PursuingYahweh.net.  Check out the other posts from this week by clicking here.

Seacoast Worship Recap (08/02/09)

Even though I normally attend church on Saturday night, this worship re-cap is part of the Sunday Setlist Blog Carnival Extravaganza going on over at FredMckinnon.com.  Check out the other worship service re-caps from this week by clicking here.

This week, we are visiting friends in Greenville, NC.  As a result I’m attending Seacoast Online.  I had a bit of problems with my internet connection so I caught the first half of the 9:30 service, and the last half of the 11:15 service.  I think they were having some issues with the live feed because the closing set was the same as last week(?).  Nonetheless, I was blessed!

Call to Worship / Opening Set:

1. Let God Arise – Tomlin

2. You Lifted Me Out – Tomlin (New Song)

Message:

This weekend, was week 5 of the “Road Trip” series.  Today Pastor Greg spoke about “How’s Your Heart”.  Is it hard or soft? It was a great message. (Nice beard by the way Pastor Greg!).  If you’re interested, you can download the message from iTunes here (it may be Monday or Tuesday before it is available).

Closing Set:

1. Take My Life – Tomlin

2. Always – Martin Chalk

3. All Because of Jesus – Fee

Well, that’s how things went at Seacoast this weekend.  How was your worship service?

Friday Fitness Recap

Welcome to the 9th installment of my fitness recap!  Thanks for stopping by!

It’s going to be a quick post today…got too much going on!

The intermittent fasting seams to be going well.  I’m still following the “East Stop Eat” program, fasting two days/week.  It was a little tougher this week for some reason, especially Thursday.  I felt hungry all day.

Had two pretty descent rides so far this week (didn’t get up in time to ride today.)  I made some adjustments to the setup on my mountain bike, and it made a HUGE difference in my ride comfort, and my pace for my daily ride (a little over 6 1/2 miles).  I am looking forward to seeing how the new setup affects the  longer rides that I normally take on the weekends.

I’ve also been doing pretty well on my 100 Pushups and 200 Situps programs.  I had to repeat Week 4, Day 2 of the 100 Pushups program because I could not finish the last set on the first attempt.  They are both pretty tough workouts, especially if you’ve not been in a gym in over a decade!

Like a said last week, I think it is still too early to say anything definitive about IF.  I know I feel great, and can eat pretty much what I want (with moderation) five days /week.  My weight has remained constant this week, and that’s OK by me.  I know I’m adding at least a little muscle mass, from the strength training and mountain biking I am doing, so I may actually still be losing a little body fat this way.  I know I’m happier, healthier and stronger, and that’s the point.

So here’s the numbers for this week:

	This Week	Last Week	Difference	Total
Weight:	212 lbs	212 lbs	+0 lbs	-16 lbs
Body Fat %:	Not Measured	19.75%	N/A	-0.85%

Well, that is it for me for this week.   How about you?

The “Friday Fitness Recap” is part of the Fitness Friday Blog Carnival going on over at PursuingYahweh.net.  Check out the other posts from this week by clicking here.

Seacoast Worship Recap (07/26/09)

Even though I normally attend church on Saturday night, this worship re-cap is part of the Sunday Setlist Blog Carnival Extravaganza going on over at FredMckinnon.com.  Check out the other worship service re-caps from this week by clicking here.  And by the way, it’s the 1 Year Anniversary of “Sunday Setlist” this week!

This weekend, we actually attended the 11:15 Sunday morning service. It’s the first time we’ve attended a Sunday service in a while, and it was kinda cool, but I think I still prefer the Saturday night service.  Any way, here’s the recap…..

Call to Worship / Opening Set:

1. Awesome is the Lord Most High – Tomlin

2. No Greater God – Martin Chalk

Message:

This weekend, was week 4 of the “Road Trip” series.  This weekend’s message is brought by the Geoff Surratt.  It was a great message about stepping out of your comfort zone, and making “Bold Moves” to be who God has called you to be. If you’re interested, you can download the message from iTunes here (it may be Monday or Tuesday before it is available).

Closing Set:

1. Take My Life – Tomlin

2. Always – Martin Chalk

3. All Because of Jesus – Fee

Well, that’s how things went at Seacoast this weekend.  How was your weekend service?

Friday Fitness Recap

Welcome to the 8th installment of my fitness recap!  Thanks for stopping by!

This week I tried intermittent fasting for the first time.  In case you didn’t catch last week’s post, this is not a spiritual fast.  Intermittent fasting (IF) is intended solely for it’s health benefits, which can be significant.  I am a strong proponent for spiritual fasting as well, but that is a topic for another post

This week, I followed the “East Stop Eat” program, which simply put, is two 24-hour fasts each week.  I did mine on Monday and Thursday.  Now, I know what you are thinking, especially if you’ve never fasted before…”No way I could do that!”  It actually wasn’t so bad.  I finished my normal dinner on Sunday night around 6:30, and then didn’t eat again until Monday night at 6:30.  Obviously, the goal is “0″ caloric intake, so I drank LOTS of water, and a couple of cups of coffee with no calorie sweetener.  I definitely felt the urge to eat, but it wasn’t so bad.  Chewing sugar free gum and drinking flavored water helped.  I did the same routine again starting Wednesday night.  I didn’t change anything else about my diet on the non-fasting days.  So in effect, I cut my caloric intake by 28% for the week, and still ate what I wanted (within reason) 5 days out of the week.  The hardest part was to not binge when breaking the fast Monday and Thursday nights.  Drinking lots of water before eating helped that too.

Surprisingly, my exercise didn’t suffer at all from the fasting.  I expected to feel tired and sluggish during the fasting days, but that was not the case at all.  I did my strength training on Monday, immediately after breaking the fast, and felt pretty good throughout my workout.  On Thursday, while fasting, I achieved the best time to date on my morning bike ride!

On a side note, I changed a small part of my route today (Friday) to meet up with a friend, misjudged a turn, and ate a curb at about 10 mph.  It was glorious!  I am very grateful for the soft grass I landed on!

So, while I think it is too early to say anything definitive about IF after only one week, it certainly shows some potential.  I felt great, had less guilt about eating, and reduced my caloric intake for the week.  In addition, I was more productive at work, and saved a few $$ by not eating.  Although I still track it, I am not putting much emphasis on my actual weight any more.  According to the program I’m following, IF should result in losing a pound or so each week of body fat.  Since I’m doing strength training 3-4 times each week, I know I’m adding muscle mass, which will offset some (if not all) the body fat I lose.  The scale shows I have actually gained a pound since last Friday, but I know I’m healthier and stronger, so I’m not sweating it .

So here’s the numbers for this week:

	This Week	Last Week	Difference	Total
Weight:	212 lbs	211 lbs	+1 lbs	-16 lbs
Body Fat %:	Not Measured	19.75%	N/A	-0.85%

Well, that is it for me for this week.   How about you?

The “Friday Fitness Recap” is part of the Fitness Friday Blog Carnival going on over at PursuingYahweh.net.  Check out the other posts from this week by clicking here.

Seacoast Worship Recap (07/19/09)

Even though I normally attend church on Saturday night, this worship re-cap is part of the Sunday Setlist Blog Carnival Extravaganza going on over at FredMckinnon.com.  Check out the other worship service re-caps from this week by clicking here.

This weekend, we had some friends from NJ visit on their way down to Disney, so we missed the Saturday night service.  So today, we are attending the “virtual campus”, Seacoast Online.  Here’s the recap…..

Call to Worship / Opening Set:

1. Everything – Tomlin / Reeves

2. Power of the Cross – Martin Chalk

Message:

This weekend, was week 3 of the “Road Trip” series.  This weekend’s message is brought by the Longpoint campus pastor Josh Surratt, and the topic was “Prayer and Persistence”.  My favorite quote from the message is a motto I have had for several years now:  P.U.S.H. (Pray Until Something Happens). If you’re interested, you can download the message from iTunes here (it may be Monday or Tuesday before it is available).

Closing Set:

1. Hand of Mercy – Martin Chalk (love, love, love this worship song!)

2. Lead Me to the Cross - Fraser (Hillsong United)

3. Happy Day – Tim Hughes

Well, that’s how things went at Seacoast this weekend.  How was your weekend service?

Friday Fitness Recap

Welcome to the 7th installment of my fitness recap!  Thanks for stopping by!

This week was kinda hectic at work, plus Wednesday was my 14 year wedding anniversary, so my eating routine has been a little off.  The good news is that in spite of that, I still did not gain any weight.  In fact, I lost a pound!  That leads me to believe this lifestyle change may be working after all!

I have also been reading up on “intermittent fasting” or IF.  This is a pretty interesting concept, but I am still not sure about it.  The basic idea is diametrically opposed to traditional dieting “rules”, especially the “starvation mode” premise that many diets are based on.  It also appears to have a lot of medical research to back up it’s assertions.  In a nut-shell, starvation mode doesn’t kick in until around 72 hours of fasting, and short-term fasting (24-48 hours) can actually cause your body to increase the production of the hormones that increase the fat burning process.  As for me, I am actually more interested in the studies that show medical benefits from IF aside from weight loss.  Some studies suggest that IF can improve blood sugar and cholesterol levels, as well as reduce risk factors for heart disease and some types of cancer.  There are several different variations IF, so I’m doing a little more research before I consider giving one of them a try, but the two most likely candidates are “East Stop Eat” and “Fast-5“.  I would be interested to know if anyone has tried IF, and what (if any) benefits did you see?

My exercise regimen has been going great.  As I said last week, I have started logging my bike riding using dailymile.com, and that has turned out to be a great motivator for me.  This week, I have also started the “100 Pushups” and “200 Situps” programs, to give myself a little motivation in the strength training department.  It’s going to be tough, but it doesn’t take much time, and I am excited about the potential end results.

So here’s the numbers for this week:

	This Week	Last Week	Difference	Total
Weight:	211 lbs	212 lbs	-1 lbs	-17 lbs
Body Fat %:	19.75%	19.75%	0 %	-0.85%

Well, that is it for me for this week.   How about you?

The “Friday Fitness Recap” is part of the Fitness Friday Blog Carnival going on over at PursuingYahweh.net.  Check out the other posts from this week by clicking here.

Seacoast Worship Recap (07/11/09)

Even though I normally attend church on Saturday night, this worship re-cap is part of the Sunday Setlist Blog Carnival Extravaganza going on over at FredMckinnon.com.  Check out the other worship service re-caps from this week by clicking here.

I know I say this every week, but it was another great weekend at Seacoast!  I really enjoyed last month’s One Prayer series, but it was great to have Paster Greg back in the pulpit tonight.  Here’s the recap…..

Call to Worship / Opening Set:

1. Everything – Tomlin / Reeves

2. Power of the Cross – Martin Chalk

Message:

This weekend, was week 2 of the “Road Trip” series.  Tonight Pastor Greg spoke about leadership and sin.  It was a great message that actually applies to everyone, not just pastors.  If you’re interested, you can download the message from iTunes here (it may be Monday or Tuesday before it is available).

Closing Set:

1. Hand of Mercy – Martin Chalk (love, love, love this worship song!)

2. Lead Me to the Cross - Fraser (Hillsong United)

3. Happy Day – Tim Hughes

Well, that’s how things went at Seacoast this weekend.  How was your weekend service?

Friday Fitness Recap

Welcome to the 6th installment of my fitness recap!  Thanks for stopping by!

As part of my effort to create margin in my life, I’ve taken a bit of a hiatus from blogging over the past month, but it’s good to be back.

Over the course of the last few months, I have proved to myself that classical dieting doesn’t work, at least not as a way to maintain a healthy weight.  I am beginning to see (for me at least) that what does work, and is sustainable is living a lifestyle of eating healthy/moderately and exercising regularly.  It’s not glamorous, but it works!

When I initially went “off” my diet, I re-gained about 5-6 lbs .  However, I stuck to my plan, and continued to simply eat healthy, smaller portions, and avoiding late night snacking.

Of course eating habits are only part of the picture.  The other key is regular exercise.  I have revised my fitness regimen as well to make it a little more balanced.  I bike about 5-6 miles two to three times during the week, and at least one 10+ mile ride on the weekend.  On the off days, I have been doing light strength training (sit-ups, push-ups, curls, etc…).  I have also started logging my riding using dailymile.com.  This has turned out to be a great motivator for me.  If you run, bike or swim, it is a great training tool (and it’s free!).  I am also looking for some ways to vary my exercises to avoid plateaus and boredom. (any ideas?).

So how’s it all working out?  Overall, I am pretty happy with my progress.  As of today, I am back to the weight I was at when I quit my diet, and I have dropped my body fat percentage to under 20%.  All that with some “splurging” during the July 4th weekend thrown in tells me that it’s working.  It has been pretty nice that friends and co-workers have noticed as well.

So here’s the numbers for this week:

	This Week	Last Week	Difference	Total
Weight:	212 lbs	215 lbs	-3 lbs	-16 lbs
Body Fat %:	19.75%	20.1%	0.35 %	-0.85%

Well, that is it for me for this week.   How about you?

The “Friday Fitness Recap” is normally part of the Fitness Friday Blog Carnival going on over at PursuingYahweh.net, but Patrick is taking a break this week, so this is it!

Seacoast Worship Recap (06/06/09)

Even though I normally attend church on Saturday night, this worship re-cap is part of the Sunday Setlist Blog Carnival Extravaganza going on over at FredMckinnon.com.  Check out the other worship service re-caps from this week by clicking here.

I know I say this every week, but it was another great weekend at Seacoast!  Here’s how things went…..

Call to Worship / Opening Set:

1. Majestic – Lincoln Brewster

2. All Because of Jesus – Fee

Message:

This weekend, we continued the One Prayer series and it was a real treat.  Today the guest speaker was Francis Chan.  I have heard a lot of great things about him, but this was the first time I ever heard him teach.  It was a great message: “God is … Strength”.  God is all powerful, and that fact should be demonstrated in how we live our lives.  Sadly, “strong” is not an adjective that is typically attributed to most Christians.   If you’re interested, you can download the message from iTunes here (it may be Monday or Tuesday before it is available).

Closing Set:

1. To Your Majesty – Sue Rinaldi/Steve Bassett
   

2. Stronger – Morgan/Fielding (Hillsong)

3. Let God Arise – Chris Tomlin

Well, that’s how things went at Seacoast this weekend.  How was your weekend service?