Real Life Fitness – Getting Fit With Brent

Here I am, a week and a half into my paleo/primal style of eating, and I am considering moving away from it and back to something closer to a more traditional style diet.

Why would I do that?

No real good reason. I think the paleo/primal philosophy is fairly sound. However, I never had the issues with grains and beans that others did. In fact, I lost more over a long period of time on “The Abs Diet” style eating than I did on primal.

There are a lot of things I will carry forward with me, though.

For starters, I will still keep a decent fat intake (30-35% or so). I know a lot more about the types of fats that are good for me. I know the oils to use and the ones to avoid. And I still plan to start making my own condiments and dressings using paleo principles.

The other reason is this: I have already decided when I return to P90X that I will follow its nutrition plan. I had awesome results doing this. Why argue with results?

Finally, honestly, I miss certain grains. Wheat, not as much (although bread does make a great delivery device for meats, but that is about it). But I miss oatmeal and brown rice and the various things I can do with it. Oh yeah, beans. And peanut butter.

Plus, Shakeology is not super primal but I hate going without it.

Those are my reasons. No need to argue, no need to explain. I am simply doing what has worked the best for me in the past.

Brent Nutrition And Diet, P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating, Shoulder Surgery, The Abs Diet abs diet, P90X, paleo, primal

After spending my first week at my club’s gym, I now remember my attraction to P90X and why I miss it so much.  Let me review:

1.  Cardio sucks.  Well, at least typical “gym” cardio.  I’m limited on what I can do because of the shoulder surgery, so running is still out.  Exercise bike and elliptical are truly worse than running.

2.  Focus.  P90X lasers me into what I’m doing.  I’m 100% with my workout.  I”m in the moment, and I’m enjoying it (well, for most of the workouts at least.  Not a big fan of a couple of the routines, but whatever).

3.  Intensity.  No doubt when I’m going P90X I’m getting a heckava workout.  I can feel it same day, next day, day after.  In the gym, with as much cardio as I am doing, I’m simply not feeling it as much.

4.  Results.  Again, I can feel when my body got a good workout.  I felt a bit of soreness from leg curls last week, but that was about it.

Needless to say, I’m ready for rehab to be done, full use of my upper body, and back to some serious X time.

Brent P90X, Shoulder Surgery P90X, shoulder surgery, why i miss p90x

Being one month into P90X and having dealt with shoulder issues this entire time, I feel like I can comment a bit about what causes shoulder issues with the program and modifications that have worked for me during this rehab period.

First, let me stress that you should always listen to your doctor or physical therapist.  They know best.  If you want to continue to train with P90X, ask them about it first, and then follow any modifications they may have.

Here is what I have discovered is best:

Push-ups:  Doing these from plank is okay if you can do them pain free.  But, if you are having shoulder issues, you probably are not pain free doing these.  Here’s my suggestion:  Do them from your knees.  Focus on form.  Bring your shoulder blades together, keep your body tight and straight, and only go through a pain free range of motion.

As you get stronger, incorporate medicine balls and do not go as deep.  Instead, focus on form and keeping stable.

Pull-ups:  If shoulders are bothering you, do the pull-ups to a 90 degree angle with the upper and lower arm, but never go past that until released from your doctor or therapist.  Make sure to use an assist too.  I personally use the pull-up assist Beachbody sells and it works great for this.

Bicep Curls:  You wouldn’t think that bicep work could cause shoulder issues, but if you are dealing with impingement in the front of the shoulder you may notice that bicep work causes inflammation, tenderness in the upper arm and up by the collar bone (just below it, near the shoulder actually).  You can still do curls, but you may want to lighten your load.

Triceps:  Do these through a pain free range of motion, and may want to consider less weight.

Shoulders: Overhead/Military Presses/Deep Swimmers Press – Be careful here!  If you are impinging, these will not feel good.  Talk to your doctor/therapist before attempting these.

Upright Rows – Usually pretty safe if you are in a strengthening phase of rehab.  Again, focus on pain free range of motion.

Shoulder Flys – Pain free range of motion only.  When doing straight arm shoulder flys do not go directly out to your side.  Instead bring the weights in a bit.  It puts less stress on the shoulder, will cause less injury, but still works the same muscle groups.

Back work (Lawnmowers, back flys, etc):  I have not had too much discomfort with these.  My therapist did like the idea of me working these muscle groups.  If you can do these without pain, do it.

More than anything (and read this in your best Tony Horton-esque voice):  Modify, modify, modify if you need to!  Listen to your body and do the right thing.

Brent Fitness Tips, P90X P90X, p90x impingement, p90x physical therapy, shoulder pain

I’m in my 3rd real full week of P90X (excluding the first two weeks of the year, where I just did cardio and abs) and I’m already seeing things I need to adjust, both in my diet and in my exercise.

For starters, I’m taking 2 recovery weeks.  Yes, that’s right….two.  I think it is best for my shoulders that I take a bit longer to rehab them in recovery.  Phase 2 can be brutal.  The shoulders are feeling okay minus the left bicep tendon (deep discomfort here).  I think two weeks of just doing PT and swapping in P90X2′s Recovery and Mobility will do me a lot of good.

Then I’ll hit phase 2, recovered, and hopefully stronger.

For my diet, I ran across an article from Mark’s Daily Apple forums about the effect of low/no carb breakfast with heavier carb suppers.  The results were greater weight loss, better leptin levels, better sleep, etc.  So I have started making that shift for the next 2 weeks and see how it goes.

That’s all for today.  Plyo rocked…my world again.  This routine never gets easier!

Brent P90X P90X, primal blueprint

If you follow P90X’s plan, you know you’ll eat 20% of your calories in fat (either 360, 480, or 600 calories a day).  Of course, you’ll eat the rest in lean proteins (i.e. low fat meats) or carbs/grains.

Which is counter-productive to the Primal Blueprint diet.

Instead of a 50/30/20 protein/carb/fat ration, I’m aiming for something that looks like 50/35/15 fat/protein/carb ratio.

And ideally, I’d rather be 55/30/15.

So in calculating what I’ve been doing while doing P90X, I’ve learned that I’m a bit low on carbs (need to be around 70-80g more often), okay on protein, and okay on fat.

Except there is one problem:  I’m not eating enough!  When I add things up, if I get to 1800 calories a day, I’m having a good day.  Now, I”m only eating 3 times a day.  I eat when I’m hungry, and eat until I’m full.  But now I’m wondering if I need to eat more often, maybe a nighttime snack (I get full at supper, but feel a bit hungry before bed sometimes).

For instance, tonight I had a pork chop, good amount of veggies, and some sweet potato/bacon hash (yes, the potato was cooked in bacon grease).  I was full after I ate.  Nearly 2 hours later, I’m almost feeling hungry.  I’m drinking water to see if it just thirst.

Right now I feel great with my exercise and my energy during the day.  I’m rarely tired after I wake up.  I only get tired around bedtime.  So energy isn’t the issue.

I measure on Saturday.  Depending on what I measure, I will probably increase my eating (i.e. my fat and protein) for the next 2 weeks.  And see what happens.  I’m going to gun for carbs in then 70-80g range (I see lots of tubers in my future).

And lets see what happens.

Brent P90X P90X, paleo, primal eating

P90X Chest and Back today, along with Ab Ripper X.  My bicep tendon was a bit of an issue at time today.  I’ve actually learned that part of the problem is that my arm is internally rotated (when your arms are relaxed to your side, your hands should face each other…my left arm faces straight back).  So working on that through stretching and strengthening in place.

To help towards the end, I pulled out my medicine balls to work stability and gave myself a bit more of an incline from my knees.  This actually helped relieve the pressure on my shoulders.

I did take Beachbody’s Energy and Endurance pre-workout drink this morning.  I’ll be writing a full review of it later this week.

I’m tracking what all I eat on my diet for the next few days.  My main concern is getting enough calorie and carbs.  Not that I’m eating a lot of carbs, but I want to keep in that 50-100 range the best I can.  Today, I just barely squeaked in.

My macros for today look like this:

Calories:  1608 (-392 from my goal)
Carbs:  53g (within range)
Fat:  100g
Protein:  145g (within range, possibly a tad high)

So I need to get calories up around 400 without increasing carbs.  Carbs were okay (would be a bit higher and be okay) and fat can go higher, protein was near where it needed to be.

Brent P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating P90X, p90x chest and back, p90x primal eating, primal blueprint

I’m three weeks into my transformation into eating via The Primal Blueprint and using P90X (modified) for my workouts.  It’s been a great three weeks and the transition has been easier than what I anticipated.  Although I’m not able to “bring it” like I want with P90X due to the shoulders, I still feel like I’m getting a lot out of going through the routine of daily exercise.

As far as Primal eating, here are my thoughts on the first three weeks:

1.  I should have detoxed some before I started.  I spent part of November and most of December eating tons of sweets.  Yummy, tasty sweets yes, but when you make a change to a low carb lifestyle (i.e. Primal), the first few days can be/will be pretty rough.

2.  This is by far the best tasting diet I’ve been on.  Let’s face it:  Grains are not really all that tasty.  In order for them to have real flavor you add fat or you add carbs.  So why not just cut out the grains and add more fats?  That’s the mental approach I’ve taken with this.  Now…there are some things I miss:  Garlic bread, for instance (tonight we had Italian, I had spaghetti squash noodles instead of pasta).  But, the things I miss about the bread are the butter, the garlic, and the cheese.  Pizza too.  I have not had a hamburger either, although I think I’d do fine without the bun there.  Just being real here…

3.  I still notice myself short and grumpy, even 3 weeks in.  It’s not nearly as bad as I expected, but I still notice it.

4.  I don’t think I take in enough carbs, even trying to hang in the 50-100g range for fat loss.  So I’m going to start tracking everything I eat, including measuring it out.  It’s going to suck doing it, but at least I’ll know where I am.

5.  I weigh myself more often than what I ever suggest others to do.  I usually tell people to throw away the scale initially and focus on inches.  I weigh myself daily.  I don’t really care a lot about the number, but I do use it to help me track salt as well as a guide on whether to review what I am doing or not.  With that said, I’ve only lost a little over 11 pounds, but I can notice a big difference in my clothes already.

6.  I’ve learned a lot about nutrition.  Not just “eat this, not that” type nutrition, but really the nuts and bolts of micro-nutrients as well as the real purpose behind the macros.  I knew a lot already, and now I just know more.

7.  This is a long haul diet.  I could see this being something where for some people, possibly myself included, it could take 2-3 months to really see the effects physically, even if I am feeling great.

So what is the plan for the next 3 weeks?

For starters, keep my dairy intake low.  I’m limiting myself for the next little bit to butter only.  After 3 more weeks, I’m going to add dairy back in just to see if I notice a difference or not.  And by dairy, I mean just a bit of cheese, maybe some sour cream here and there.

Also, the Super Bowl is coming up.  So my goal is to plan Primal friendly foods for the big game (I’m thinking buffalo wings, maybe some cream cheese and sausage dip with sweet potato chips, and meatballs with a better primal bbq sauce.

Since I’m back into a full P90X routine, the goal is to focus on form, and rehab weights instead of all out muscle blast (although I know part of why I am having some of my problems, which I’ll be focusing on in therapy).

I’ll take another set of partial measurements next week and then a full set after the official phase 1 4 weeks of P90X.  I was already down over an inch in waistline in the first 2 weeks, and my goal is to drop another inch or so by the end of this phase.

Brent P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating P90X, primal blueprint

Today was just P90X day 3, Shoulders and Arms.  This was heavily modified to not do anything against the therapist’s orders.  So, no overhead work (i.e. no shoulder presses of any time) and made sure to take lighter weights.

Unfortunately, most of it was a bit too light.  It did not feel like much of a workout.

I did notice some unusual feelings in my right shoulder that I’m going to have to be mindful of (and see if I can tell what is going on).

As far as diet goes, a pretty good Primal eating day.

Breakfast – Shakeology and 4 slices of bacon

Lunch – Salad with leftover pork roast

Supper – Country style ribs grilled on the Foreman with some veggies

I’m really needing more red meat in my diet…in particular, I need grass fed red meat.  Once a week we are doing steaks.  Those are my most favorite nights!

Brent P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating P90X, primal blueprint diet

P90X Plyo was a challenge today.

Yesterday was a two workout day (Chest and Back in the morning, and the PT in the afternoon).  To compound things, I got to bed late last night.  I had a cramp in my leg overnight which woke me up.  And then, I woke up ahead of my alarm clock.

Yeah, I know….woe is me.  It was just a rough night after a fairly tough day exercise wise.

So when I got into P90X Plyo X today, I was a bit (understatement) tired.  A lo w carb diet, not great sleep, etc, just makes it a bit harder.  It was a challenge from the start.  But I completed the main workout (skipped the bonus workout due to running behind), and felt exhausted by the time all was said and done.

Based on the cramp in the leg, I’m drinking more water tonight and, if I have more, will take in part of a banana tomorrow just to get the extra potassium in me to help with them.  I’ve had them fairly regularly over the last few weeks.

Today’s meals:

Breakfast – Shakeology + 2 eggs scrambled

Lunch – Chili and veggies

Supper – Fajitas on lettuce

My goal for the rest of the month is to cut down on dairy.  I’ll leave butter in as a cooking fat (and maybe some in a sweet potato), but going to cut out most of the cheese and use heavy cream as a occasional indulgence with my food.

P90X Shoulders and Arms tomorrow.  Hopefully this left bicep tendon doesn’t act up!

Brent P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating P90X, p90x plyo, paleo, paleo diet, primal diet

This week I’ve restarted P90X to incorporate the upper body workouts.  I still have a slightly modified schedule (doing Kenpo at the beginning of the week instead of the end, to keep my PT days lined up with my resistance days), but today brought Chest and Back back into my world.

A couple of rules I had to implement:

1.  No pull-ups going beyond 90 degrees.  Doing that fine with Legs and Back, so easy to do that here.

2.  Lighter weights on all row exercises.   May increase soon, but want to start light weight and focus on form.

3.  All push-ups from the knees.

4.  If I feel pain, back off.  Keep in pain free range of motion.

So a lot of it was an experiment at first.  I did notice my right shoulder bothering me some, so I had to cut the range of motion down quite a bit.  I had no problem doing that as the point of doing this is to keep strengthening and get some exercise outside of PT on MWF’s.

Overall though I’d rate today a success.  I completed the workout.  No, not nearly as hardcore as I used to be, but complete nonetheless.

And did so without aggrevating things, which is good.

Primal food today was good:

Breakfast:  Shakeology, 1 egg, 2 slices of bacon.

Lunch:  Lots of Romaine lettuce, some shredded carrots, some bell peppers, half a on the vine tomato, some green pepper, and left over pork roast.

Snack:  1oz macadamia nuts

Supper:  6oz filet mignon, 1 cup mixed veggies sauted in butter, and a sweet potato with some butter, small dollop of sour cream, and just a small amount of cheese (had to get the fat content of this meal up!)

This was probably one of the most satisfying meals I’ve had.  I’m not a big fan of taking that much carb at night, but based on how much training I did today I felt the extra little bit was warranted.

Brent P90X, Primal/Paleo Eating P90X, p90x chest and back, p90x paleo diet, p90x primal diet, paleo diet, primal diet