Category Archives: Update

Day 99: For whom the kettlebell tolls

Day 99

Weight: 133.2 lbs.
No workout today; next: Workout C, Dec. 10
Total inches: 121.9
Protein: 128 g (2 g over target)
Calories: 2,207

I wanted to change up my workout routine for December. It felt like I hit a plateau with Workouts A and B.

Reading through “The 4-Hour Body” [Amazon | iTunes aff. links] again, I found three options. The first was to focus on kettlebell swings (page 162). This was my original direction, but I saw more choices.

The second was “From Geek to Freak,” a series of 10 exercises, most using gym equipment (page 187). I looked for home options for each one, but decided it was too complicated for me right now.

The third was to split into pushing, pulling and leg exercises (page 221). Again, it was too complicated in tracking the days between workouts.

So I followed through on my original choice: kettlebell swings on Mondays and Fridays (Workout C), with barbell and dumbbell work on Wednesdays (Workout D).

I’m looking for more rapid development throughout the month on my arms, waist and hips. I’m also shooting for a lower body fat percentage by year’s end.

My total workout time (which I’ve forgotten to include in my monthly reports) for December will exceed October and November combined. But it won’t be much, about 4 hours total.

I’ve also done some walking around the neighborhood, which I’m tracking through the Runkeeper app. It’s fun to see the miles traveled and the calories burned.

One hundred days in, and the changes continue.

Day 91: 3 months in

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Day 91

Weight: 132.4 lbs.
No workout today; next: new workout on Dec. 3
Total inches: 121.3
Protein: 126 g (1 g over target)
Calories: 2,103

November has been even steven: My workouts were flat. My calories were flat. Everything was flat.

I can fix this.

weight 11-30-12

Weight through Nov. 30

As you can see, my rapid weight gain leveled off, never straying too far from 132 pounds this past month.

Measurement	Sept. 1	Nov. 30	Change
Weight (pounds)	121.8	132.4	+10.6
Body fat percentage	23.5	26.8*	+3.3 percentage pts.
Fat weight	28.6	35.5	+6.9
Lean weight	93.2	96.9	+3.7
Total inches	113.6**	121.3	+7.7

*Last measured Nov. 1.

**My measurements starting out weren’t terribly consistent.

Some of my gains in September and October were erased in November. I had a really challenging time making progress in the workouts.

Exercise	Sept. 1	Nov. 30	Change
Yates row	7 x 55 lbs.	4.4 x 115 lbs.	+109.1 percent
Barbell overhead press	7 x 30 lbs.	5.3 x 50 lbs.	+66.7 percent
Myotatic crunch	6.5 x 2.5 lbs.*	4.5 x 5 lbs.	+100.0 percent
Slight incline bench press	3.2 x 30 lbs.	0 x 60 lbs.	+100.0 percent
Squat	10 x 45 lbs.	10 x 85 lbs.	+88.9 percent
Kettlebell swing	32 x 20 lbs.	22 x 40 lbs.	+100.0 percent

*I added weight to this exercise on Oct. 4.

The total workout time was almost identical these past 2 months: 84 minutes in October and 90 minutes in November. But I can see where my lifting has stalled out, even with adequate rest and recovery time.

total inches 11-30-12

Total inches through Nov. 30

calories 11-30-12

Calories consumed through Nov. 30

You can see a couple of factors at work. Total inches confirms that I haven’t gained or lost significantly in the last 30 days.

I adjusted calories dramatically, concerned over having gained too many pounds of fat vs. muscle.

In October, the target was 2,500 per day; actual average was 2,582. In November, the target was 2,050 per day (2,000 for the first half, 2,100 for the second half); actual average was 2,101. Protein intake has remained roughly the same all 91 days. Because I have not measured body fat percentage since Nov. 1, I can’t tell if it has changed, but I believe it has not gone up or down significantly.

The project has cost me $283.59 so far. (The cost dropped because my monthly food bill in November was lower than the 24-month average before starting all of this.)

You can see all the numbers updated in real time on the Measurements page.

I am making one small change and one big change for December.

The small change is moving up to 2,200 calories a day.

The big change is to switch to a new workout. I had been considering doing kettlebell swings and abdominal exercises on Mondays and Fridays, likely doubling my exercise time to about 3 hours total for December.

But in re-reading “The 4-Hour Body” [Amazon |iTunes aff. links] last night, a set of exercises in the chapter “From Geek to Freak” caught my eye. I’ll research them over the weekend and have a workout routine in place for Monday.

I’m looking forward to bulking up for real in December, closing out 2012 bigger than ever.

Day 91 - side

Day 91 – side

Day 1 vs. Day 91 – front
[Click image for a larger version.]

Day 1 vs. Day 91 – side
[Click image for a larger version.]

Day 88: Numbers game

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Day 88

Weight: 132.6 lbs.
Workout B: 16 minutes, 47 seconds; next: new workout plan, Dec. 3
Total inches: 122.0
Protein: 129 g (4 g over target)
Calories: 2,102

Numbers are everything, and yet, don’t always matter.

This dueling set of principles has been the heart of my calorie counting for the past 3 months.

I count the calories every day, weighing every morsel of food. I’m currently shooting for 2,100 calories a day, but will probably go up to 2,200 in December, since my weight has been flat all month.

But I can’t weigh everything. When I dine outside the home, I have to guess. I’m pretty bad at guessing weights and sizes. But I try anyway.

And unless the calories per portion are printed on the packaging, I have to guess there, too. The Internet helps, but any number of sites will give different estimates.

I learned working at Southern Living about how trying to present nutritional information in recipes was a tricky proposition. Readers look for good data, but it’s hard to calculate perfectly. Burning food in a lab isn’t the same as burning calories in cells.

So even that recipe data can be flawed. What’s a numbers guy to do?

Be consistent.

My calorie count for my protein shake won’t be right every day. The size of the banana and the amount of peanut butter varies. But in the long run, it’s mostly right.

My portion sizes of pizza, chicken or taco salad are measured, but again, not perfect. As long as I measure the overall trend (more muscles, more pounds, more total inches), I’m OK.

The fun part about calories is making it a game. I can easily hit 125 or more grams of protein each day. Getting calories to the right number is more complicated.

I have any number of foods I can use at night to zero in on 2,100. And I don’t mind varying portion sizes. I am not cursed with hunger, so eating less on any given day isn’t a problem. I’ve even balanced out high-calorie days with low-calorie days.

It’s mildly annoying to have to weigh food several times a day. It’s mildly rewarding to hit the target number over and over.

I still pretty much eat what I want. Right up until about 10 p.m., when all accounts are settled.

The numbers are my friend, pushing me to keep going and keep tabs on progress.

Day 82: They call me Mr. Bulk

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Weight: 131.6 lbs.
Workout A: 17 minutes, 20 seconds; next: Workout B on Nov. 27
Total inches: 121.1
Protein: 125 g (0 g over target)
Calories: 1,994

I ran into the Piggly Wiggly the other day to replenish my milk. This is one of my many trips to get either more bananas or more milk for protein shakes.

In the checkout line, my pal David saw me and said hello. Or more specifically, “Well, if it isn’t Mr. Bulk.”

Ha! (I’ve been called far worse things in my life.)

I am known for a lot of wildly different reasons: my haiku, my love of Birmingham, my snark, my blogging and social media wizardry and so on. But with minor effort in a short period of time (fewer than 40 posts in about 10 weeks), I changed how some people perceive me.

Surprising, to me at least. But fun and flattering, too.

I really set out to change my perception of me. Build muscle and at the same time build self-confidence.

David probably hasn’t read every single post. But he did see some of my daily updates on Facebook. And took a peek at least a couple of posts or photos. That was enough to “rebrand” my image in his mind.

My results haven’t been dramatic, especially considering the other bloggers I know who have lost significant pounds over the years. But my consistency in posting and promotion gave me an edge.

It’s not important that others know exactly where I am in my project, but I’m pleased to know they’re aware of it. The foot in the door is getting harder to place with so many distractions for people.

My perception of me is evolving. And apparently, people are paying attention.

Day 76: Steady on

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Day 76

Weight: 132.0 lbs.
Workout B: 18 minutes, 29 seconds; next: Workout A on Nov. 21
Total inches: 122.0
Protein: 132 g (7 g over target)
Calories: 2,026

The first half of November has been very steady. Too steady.

calories 11-15

Calories through Nov. 15

Maintaining 2,000 calories a day (down from 2,500) has kept me at between 132 and 134 pounds. No significant gain, similar to the first 2 weeks when I didn’t track calories. (Protein intake has remained the same throughout all of Project Bulk.)

weight 11-15

Weight through Nov. 15

Naturally, my growth in total inches (arms, legs, waist, hips) has also flattened.

total inches 11-15

Total inches through Nov. 15

Starting tomorrow through the end of November, I am bumping slightly to 2,100 calories a day. I’d rather have slow gain with more muscles than fast gain with excess fat.

The workouts have been fairly static, with no dramatic improvements. I seem to be stuck on a couple of the lifts. One way I’ve beaten the lack of progress is switching the order of the exercises, so I can at least try every other attempt.

I’m probably going to switch to kettlebell swings twice a week in December, just to see if it’ll bulk up my arms faster, which have grown about 0.6 inches each since Day 1.

Even after two-and-a-half months, I own the routine. The routine doesn’t own me.

Day 70: Good posture is hot

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Day 70 - front

Weight: 132.4 lbs.
Workout A: 17 minutes, 7 seconds; next: Workout B on Nov. 15
Total inches: 121.8
Protein: 128 g (2 g over target)
Calories: 2,034

The 75 minutes of exercise had a number of important effects on Fleur’s physique that went beyond fat loss and ass building.

Most important, it fixed her kyphosis (from the Greek kyphos, meaning “hump”), a postural problem common to millions of computer users. From desk work and muscular imbalance, she had a shoulders-forward, concave-chest slouch before beginning the program. Five weeks later, she stood and walked with shoulders back, which created the perception of both a smaller rib cage and larger breasts.

Good posture is hot.

— page 167, “The 4-Hour Body” [Amazon |iTunes aff. links]

Those last four words have somehow stuck in my brain during the past 2-plus months.

So much of my time is spent in front of my laptop and at desk jobs over the years that slouching is part of my natural state. Once I realized that my posture was terrible, I kept sitting up straight.

I catch myself often in slouch position when working, and I immediately correct it, almost subconsciously.

My friend Biff, who hadn’t seen me in months, noticed it Saturday. I stand taller. Certainly, I hadn’t practiced on my feet, but I think it’s my small way of pushing myself to be a little better.

This harmonizes well with my overall determination to be more “in the moment,” to be aware of my environment, my breathing and my body. I have always been easily lost in my work or with distractions, but to live purposefully means to practice focus on the now.

No point in building up my upper body if no one can see it when I’m scrunched up. Chest out, head up.

Day 70 - side

Day 64: When numbers mean more than your (expanding) gut

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Day 64

Weight: 134.0 lbs.
Workout B: 20 minutes, 28 seconds; next: Workout A on Nov. 9
Total inches: 122.1
Protein: 125 g (1 g over target)
Calories: 2,104

We live in a world of predictive models.

Smart statisticians can program computers to guess your spending habits, your traffic-avoidance patterns and your browsing preferences. Numbers are at the heart of sabermetrics, the method of putting together winning baseball teams with the most effective players at the lowest cost.

(No, I haven’t read or seen “Moneyball” [aff. link], but it’s on my list.)

Using statistics to measure the value of each player flies in the face of “gut,” used by club owners and managers for decades. But it works, and every team uses it in some part of its decision making.

Numbers are at the heart over the recent kerfuffle about FiveThirtyEight, Nate Silver’s high-profile blog tracking election forecasts for the presidential and other races. His track record has been solid in 2008 and 2010, but recently, pundits have questioned his model for the Obama-Romney outcome. We’ll know the answer in 4 days.

Most of Project Bulk is pure numbers. I use a slew of measurements, but I have a limited data set: 64 days and growing.

Sometimes, the numbers tell me I’m doing fine. Sometimes, my belly distracts me from the numbers. Sometimes, the numbers frustrate me.

In several cases, I have used charts and graphs to understand the patterns. This has helped me more than any other tool in this experiment.

(Surprisingly, the daily photos have not helped me much. Call it inhabitant bias: I see myself every day directly and in the mirror. While others can see the external changes, I am not as keen an observer, a type of blind spot.)

My guide, “The 4-Hour Body” [Amazon | iTunes aff. links], has helped with a few formulas, but a lot has been simple trial and error. For example, I started with no calorie measurement. I then measured starting Sept. 15, and soon after, set a daily goal of 2,500 calories minimum.

After more pounds of fat added in October than September, I decided to tweak the formula. My best guess is to try a 2,000-calorie minimum. I’ll need to see how this affects my weight through Nov. 15 and readjust if needed.

The challenge is not predicting the outcome. The challenge is building the predictive model so that I can understand if and when I’ll reach my goals: toned upper body, 13.6 percent to 16.3 percent body fat. (At my current weight, I would have to convert 14 pounds of fat to muscle.)

I enjoy the number crunching. Each day brings me new figures to create my ultimate figure.

Day 62: The 2-month mark

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Day 62

Weight: 135.6 lbs.
No workout today; next: Workout B on Nov. 3
Total inches: 123.4
Protein: 125 g (0 g over target)
Calories: 2,126

October helped answer some nagging questions.

It’s all in the new numbers. I had another BodPod test this morning at the Lakeshore Foundation, so the body fat percentage is up to date.

weight 11-1-12

Weight through Nov. 1

Measurement	Sept. 1	Nov. 1	Change
Weight (pounds)	121.8	135.6*	+13.8
Body fat percentage	23.5	26.8**	+3.3 percentage pts.
Fat weight	28.6	36.3	+7.7
Lean weight	93.2	99.3	+6.1
Total inches	113.6***	123.4	+9.8

I gained 3.0 pounds of muscle in October, the same as in September. But it came at a higher cost: 5 pounds of fat in October, compared to 2.7 pounds of fat in September.

*The Lakeshore scale said 135.1 pounds, but I’m using my own scale for consistency.

**In the Poor range for my age group/gender.

***My measurements starting out weren’t terribly consistent.

Exercise	Sept. 1	Nov. 1	Change
Yates row	7 x 55 lbs.	4.4 x 115 lbs.	+109.1 percent
Barbell overhead press	7 x 30 lbs.	5.3 x 50 lbs.	+66.7 percent
Myotatic crunch	6.5 x 2.5 lbs.*	3.5 x 5 lbs.	+100.0 percent
Slight incline bench press	3.2 x 30 lbs.	6.2 x 50 lbs.	+66.7 percent
Squat	10 x 45 lbs.	3 x 75 lbs.	+66.7 percent
Kettlebell swing	32 x 20 lbs.	6 x 40 lbs.	+100.0 percent

That’s an overall increase of 83.6 percent in pounds lifted. I had a total workout time of 1 hour, 24 minutes in October, or 5 hours, 7 minutes total for 62 days.

I gained just as much muscle in October as I did in September, but in about one-third of the workout time.

*I added weight to this exercise on Oct. 4.

The project has cost me $321.74 so far.

You can see all the numbers updated in real time on the Measurements page.

If I continue to work out for 20 minutes every 6 days and consume 2,500-plus calories daily (with at least 125 g protein) as I did in October, I can expect to add another 8 pounds in November, 3 pounds muscle and 5 pounds fat.

That would bring me to 143.6 pounds, with 9.1 pounds gained in muscle and 12.7 pounds gained in fat overall. I’ll be a lot rounder in the middle: My waist has gone from 31.4 inches to 36 inches in 62 days, meaning it could go to 38 inches easily by Nov. 30.

I will have some serious reshaping to do at the midsection. To temper this, I will change to 2,000 calories a day in November starting today, but still maintain 125 g protein.

And I plan to change my workouts on Dec. 1, to continue toning and shaping my upper body.

The numbers are guiding me, but ultimately, I have to pick the direction and continue the journey.

Day 1 vs. Day 62 – front
[Click image for a larger version.]

Day 1 vs. Day 56 – side
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Day 58: Get on board

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Day 58

Day 58
(See the gallery for more photos.)

Weight: 133.8 lbs.
Workout A: 16 minutes, 50 seconds. Next: Workout B on Sept. 3.
Total inches: 121.8
Protein: 131 g (6 g over target)
Calories: 2,516
See more measurements.

I’m excited, and not just for me.

Since starting Project Bulk some 2 months ago, I’ve received some kinds words of encouragement. What’s also interesting are the onlookers, the ones who want to see results first. Try before they buy.

One friend emailed …

“First of all, congrats on a very entertaining and enlightening subject. I am a little like you in that it is hard for me to put on bulk, and no one ever seems to understand that concept since everyone else is constantly trying to lose weight. It’s almost like my challenge is not as significant as theirs because most people don’t struggle to put on weight.

“Anyway, its been an entertaining process to watch the blog over the last 8 days. Keep it up.”

Another emailed …

“I’ve been reading your various blogs and other social networks for a while now and have really enjoyed them.

“I did want to give you some feedback on Project Bulk. Like yourself, I’m a skinny dude approaching middle age wanting to bulk up a bit as well as develop muscle and flexibility for better overall health for the coming years.

“Honestly, I haven’t had great success actually putting weight on, mostly due to real-life issues intruding, but I have developed more musculature and flexibility as a result of P90. I think it also provides a much better basis for actually joining a gym or moving a more advanced work out in the future.

“Anyway, good luck with Project Bulk. I am rooting for you!”

I even had an offer to train at a local gym for free! Very cool.

Two friends have bought used copies of “The 4-Hour Body” [Amazon | iTunes aff. links] to launch their own fitness projects. Rather than bulk up, I believe they are going to slim down and tone their bodies.

As much as I love getting encouraging comments and site traffic, I really love when people jump in to try it out for themselves. I hope they find great success through minimal sustained effort.

Day 52: Yogi barely

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Day 52

Day 52
(See the gallery for more photos.)

Weight: 133.6 lbs.
Workout B: 17 minutes, 15 seconds. Next: Workout A on Oct. 28.
Total inches: 122.0
Protein: 133 g (8 g over target)
Calories: 2,514
See more measurements.

I have focused on my new workouts for the last 2 months, but I’ve been itching to walk or to practice yoga.

I have held back because I didn’t want to cloud the results with other exercise. I took up yoga earlier this year, and walking/running on a treadmill was my primary form of exercise for many years.

Plus, I wanted to be lazy.

Still, the temptation of yoga was too much. I have a couple of instructional DVDs I’ve never played, and I have episodes of “Wai Lana Yoga” [Amazon | iTunes aff. links] stacked up in my TiVo. Options coming out of my satsang.

A few minutes on the mat made me realize how out of shape I really am.

No matter how much I improve in lifting in free weights, yoga can humble me in one pose. I am reminded of how little range of motion my legs have, or how far I have to go in bending and stretching and balancing.

But yoga isn’t simply an exercise in humility for me. It gives me peace on a noisy day. It helps me to focus and work on being in the moment. It centers me.

Pumping iron does, too. Yoga lets me tune in to my body in a different way. And, I don’t think it will cloud the results when it comes to burning calories or developing and toning muscles.

Especially when I end up nearly heaving on my mat.