Low Carb Confidential

Exercise…Me?

As part of my Irvingia research, I’ve been frequenting a board at Mindandmuscle.net. I liked the tone – they are serious, no nonsense, with a scientific bent – but they also seemed supportive – not in a ‘there, there, you poor dear” way, but in a ‘here’s what you should try – let us know how it works’ sort of way.

I also thought since I lifted a thread from their site, I should post back that we’ve got a lot of people here posting their experience with Irvingia. 

I wrote:

Hey folks -

I’m like on day 8 taking Irvingia and I’ve noticed some interesting stuff – OK, maybe interesting. Check out my post if you’re interested:

http://lowcarbconfidential.com/2008/12/13/…ate-with-chart/

Here’s the setup so you won’t waste your time if you’re not interested: I’ve got muscles – somewhere, but I haven’t seen them in years. I was like 265 lbs @ 5’11″ and went on Atkins 5 years ago (it wasn’t a pretty sight) and I lost almost 90 lbs at one point.

I didn’t exercise once – and still lost the weight. I know, I know – I have a mental block about exercise that I had better get over quick, because I’m 45 and I can feel my body is getting ready for a descent into decrepitude.

But anyway, 5 years on, the weight is starting to creep back.

I read about the Irvingia, did google searches and came across this thread. I’ve been watching and reading – and trying to understand as much as I can – which ain’t much, to be honest.

I *am* kinda put off by studies, so I decided to keep a detailed log on myself, which is the above post.

Also – if any of you are taking the stuff, I put up a page where a bunch of people are posting their experiences.

http://lowcarbconfidential.com/irvingia-field-reports/

Most people are reporting no weight loss so far, but I think this stuff takes a little time to kick in.

I also went off-topic and asked the following:

You seem like a smart and supportive group of folks – hey, this is off-topic, but if you have any ideas how a 45-year-old desk-bound low-carbing-time-starved endomorph can get to exercise regularly for general health, let me know.

I got back a link to Comeback Training: How to Get Your Lazy Butt Back in the Gym which was a good article, but doesn’t work for me. I can’t make a comeback as I’ve never been there in the first place.

I also got this as a response (he’s referring here to the Comeback Training link):

I gave the same routine to a buddy’s fiancee,who is looking to drop some 40 pounds before the wedding.This friend of mine is also in very bad shape,he is an ex-Marine who was jacked at 175 5’10 a few years ago and is now around 25-275,fat and lazy as fuck all.I told her I’d help her out with diet and training and declined her offer of cash payment.It’s a shame as she has a daughter (8) who also is a fatty and her mother admitted that she’s going to have self esteem issues from taking abuse when she goes to high school and probably already gets made fun of by other kids in grade school as it is.Make no mistake,I emphasize with the kid and have compassion for her mother as well but their comes a point when personal accountability is the issue at hand and not one’s subpar nutrient partitioning.

My buddy’s fiancee seemed earnest when i spoke to her in person and has said she has started to eat less and has her daughter on a similiar diet.However,I sent her an email a week ago and haven’t heard back from her,which is ridiculously lame and not merely from the perspective that I spent a good half hour on the email. 

The point of this rant is simple,don’t be a lazy fuck,life is too short for complacency.

The work ethic of the average American disgusts me.Self sacrifice is truly is an alien concept for the masses.

Hey – I asked for it. I went to a bodybuilder’s board and asked. It’s a fair answer from this person’s perspective. 

And he’s got a point.

I responded back:

It is hard to abandon the thought of being a lazy fuck – a natural talent for it, combined with relentless daily training for decades, has nearly made me the *perfect* lazy fuck.

However, as I said, I would like to make the change, and I came here to your board and asked about it, and I appreciate your response.

I also got back this:

We know that we value something when we put money, time or energy into it. Right now it seems you don’t value exercise. We can’t really help you with that part but when you do decide that NOW is the time to get that part of your life handled we’ll be glad to share some routines that are very useful. 

Colin already did that it seems and I’d like to add this one note. The best kind of routine for you right now is just one that gets you moving. Big mistake people make is they go from being completely inactive to trying to get into full body olympic lifting or some craziness. That’s asking for burnout, injuries and just plain self-defeat. I’d honestly start with something like the very basics. Make pushups and situps and walking a mile an every day ritual. Seriously, walking a mile takes 20 minutes at the most and it will be one of the best ways to help nutrient partitioning your body has seen since you started the lowcarb revolution…

So yeah, something exquisitely simple until you start seeing the kinds of results that move you to take on more and more. 

Especially if you’re sitting a lot at a desk —- You are going to have some really really tight muscles in places that will lead to some serious injury if you don’t first start stretching.

So yeah 

1) Stretch. Stretch. Read books and watch videos about stretching. Stretch every day. Especially the hips. 

2) Push ups and sit ups.

3) Walk a mile every day.

Read it again: I think that’s great advice. Honest, direct, and actionable. 

So yesterday morning, I went to the workout room that I have access to and did 1 mile on the treadmill at 3 mph – total time with travel and cool down totals 1/2 hour.

I’ll try to do this every day – it’s not much, but what I’m doing is almost less relevant than the fact that I am doing it. 

I have not exercised regularly since the late 80s.

If I can habituate myself again, I know this would contribute to my overall health.

All this low carb stuff just ain’t about looking good in Speedos – it’s about being healthy.

I am also going to start researching stretching. It’s something I know I need. I can feel every muscle in my body tightening up.

I’ll also try to find a way to get the push-ups and sit-ups in there, but for this week, if I can keep a commitment to just one half-hour a day on the treadmill, I’ll have done something I haven’t done in 20 years.

Eats

Obligatory coffee with cream at 5am.

1 piece Swiss cheese and 2 slices ham at 11pm

Some baked ricotta – a small slice at about 12:30.

More hungry last night and today than the latter part of the work week. I also have someone who is quite the cook staying with us, and He made me this wonderful Chinese dish of stir-fried celery,eggs, garlic, and wood ear fungus – a far east foodstuff that is much better than it sounds.

I have to learn how to make this stuff as it’s not only a great meal, but a great low carb meal.

I had 2 bowls.

I am in ketosis, by the way – which, for the uninitiated, means that my body is no longer running on glucose, but ketones instead.

This might explain some tiredness the other night – the cut-over can be a little rough on the system, but once you’re in, the water’s fine, so to speak. Long-term ketosis can actually feel pretty good – head clears, you get bursts of energy.

I was really in the mood for hamburgers, so I made 6 relatively small patties, broiled them, and ate all 6 with low carb ketchup and sliced onion – wrapped in a lettuce leaf. This was around 6pm. Around 7, I thought I’ try this recipe I found for Jalapeno Poppers and this turned out great.

I made them as a dish that everyone could pick on while we put up the Christmas tree, but only my older daughter had some. She likes spicy.

Everybody else stayed away, so I ate way too many of these.

I also had some wine and a lot of mineral water with lemon juice. For sweets today, I had a total of 2 packets of Splenda. While I was hungry, by craving for sweets has seemed to go through the floor.

The morning scale showed what I predicted, not what I wanted: 207.4 – I jumped another pound – exactly what my analysis of the chart from the other day predicted.

It also is telling me that, if Irvingia is effective, it isn’t yet.

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