However, because it’s available, convenient, and free, I have been eating the lunches here for about two years now.  Is this a factor in my fat gain? Most definitely.

For example, lunch today was Costco hot dogs and ... see the full entry]]> As I’ve mentioned previously, my office provides lunch every day.  Unfortunately, it’s usually fast food such as McDonalds, KFC, or pizza.  These are food I normally would not eat because when I do eat out, it’s usually at regular restaurants, not fast food chains.

However, because it’s available, convenient, and free, I have been eating the lunches here for about two years now.  Is this a factor in my fat gain? Most definitely.

For example, lunch today was Costco hot dogs and Polish dogs.  They are, surprisingly, very delicious.  I usually eat two of these, with each hot dog containing 560 calories, 49% of your recommended fat for the day, 60% of your saturated fat, 22% cholesterol, and 75% sodium.   Yikes!  This is not counting the soda and sides we usually have with it.

I brought my own lunch in today; it was Lean Cuisine three-cheese rigatoni with vegetables.  I wasn’t expecting much so I was pleasantly surprised when it turned out to be really tasty.  I ate slowly and drank plenty of water as I ate, and despite the smell of the hot dogs wafting in from the other room, I didn’t give in.  Instead, I left the office and went for a 30-minute walk.  When you’re dealing with food temptations in the office, it’s best to offer yourself alternatives or simply to leave the office for a bit.

Yesterday was a struggle for me.  Lunch was Popeye’s Louisiana fried chicken.  I love Popeye’s crunchy, salty and spicy fried chicken.  I usually end up eating about 4 wings (my favorite part), which in total is about 560 calories and 36 grams of fat, more than 50% of the RDA.  I ate another Lean Cuisine entree, the butternut squash ravioli, but it wasn’t all that good nor filling.  I wanted to chow down on the chicken wings so bad, but intsead, I left the office and went for my walk.  I’m almost certain that I would have given in if I stayed.  Instead, I went for a refereshing 30-minute walk and by the time I came back I wasn’t craving the chicken as much.  There were a few leftovers though, but my officemates quickly took care of that.

Besides the daily lunches, my office does not provide too many other temptations for me.  There’s usually snacks such as donuts and pastries, but I’m lucky to not have a sweet tooth.  I would much rather snack on beef jerky or sunflower seeds.  Our kitchen is also always stocked with soda, but I’m not a big soda drinker unless it’s with a fatty, greasy meal.  Thankfully, I haven’t been having any of those.

My lunch right now is either a Lean Cuisine vegetarian entree or some sort of veggie dish that I made myself paired with a cup of light yogurt.  I tend to get a bit hungry around 3 PM, at which point I do hunt around the office looking for a cereal bar or something.  I really need to start planning and bringing in healthy snacks for myself that are filling, tasty, and for the month of January, vegetarian.  Now what could those be?

I absolutely love her body.  She’s lean and tone, not too skinny and with great muscle definition.  In fact, it kinda reminds me of my own body - 5 years ago!

Jenny’s waist and hips are almost the same width.  She doesn’t have an hourglass figure and she doesn’t need to; she’s definitely rocking what she has.

My arms and legs are almost where I want them to be, ... see the full entry]]> I came across recent photos of Jenny McCarthy strolling along the beach, and wowza!

What a smokin' hot body!

I absolutely love her body.  She’s lean and tone, not too skinny and with great muscle definition.  In fact, it kinda reminds me of my own body - 5 years ago!

Jenny’s waist and hips are almost the same width.  She doesn’t have an hourglass figure and she doesn’t need to; she’s definitely rocking what she has.

My arms and legs are almost where I want them to be, but I gotta do some more work to get that sleek, tone torso.

My weight has stayed the same, hovering between 104 and 106.  I’ve been too lazy to watch what I eat, go to the gym, take my vitamins, or even make sure that I drink a good amount of water each day.

But you know what, as I’m sure milions of other Americans did, once 2009 came around I resolved to ... see the full entry]]> Hi all.  I know it’s been forever and a day since I last posted.  I have no excuses; I simply got lazy.

My weight has stayed the same, hovering between 104 and 106.  I’ve been too lazy to watch what I eat, go to the gym, take my vitamins, or even make sure that I drink a good amount of water each day.

But you know what, as I’m sure milions of other Americans did, once 2009 came around I resolved to change all that.  Actually, I set some pretty big, life-altering goals for myself. Only a couple involve my health and fitness, but all have the same underlying theme: consistency.

I’m not very good about sticking to something I’ve started, whether it’s a new workout routine or putting away money into a savings account.  I’m determined this year to establish good habits.

It’s Thursday now.  Since Monday night, I have been going to the gym right by my office.  I had been going (rather infrequently) to the gym close to my home, but more often than not, I can’t get up early enough to go before work.  After work, by the time I walk to the subway station (10 minutes) and wait for my train (another 10 minutes), my mind and body have switched into “go home and relax” mode.  Now that I’m heading straight to the gym, I have changed into my workout clothes and am already on a machine 15 minutes after I walk out of my office building.  It’s been working great so far because I don’t give myself time to switch out of “work” mode.

I have also been trying to eat healthier.  What I’m doing now is eating vegetarian until 6 PM, at which point, I’ll eat whatever I want.  I had read about this technique in Reader’s Digest and it really worked for a “manly man” who loved meat, like I do.  I thought it would be difficult, but so far, I’ve been able to make really tasty stir fry dishes with eggplant, zucchinis, mushrooms, and chilies, among other things (I’m also still eating eggs).  Plus, since I’m usually at work before 6 PM anyway, I don’t have many chances to stray.

I’m making sure that I drink plenty of water through out the day.  It’s a bit annoying having to pee all the time, but it’s worth it.  Additionally, I try to have a glass of red wine every night.

The other things I am doing to improve my health and get my body into shape is that I’m being diligent about taking my vitamins and supplements.  I currently take one daily multivitamin and drink a superfood powder.  I need to start taking again my other supplements but it’s been so long I can’t remember what they are now!  I know one is an amino acid and one is an oil.  I’m also looking into taking another supplement, but I will write more about that in a separate post.

My weight, which for the past 3 years has hovered between 100 and 105, is now stuck at between 106 and 108.  What happened? I’m not sure.

Do I look like I gained weight?  Quite the opposite.

My arms look more tone, and my stomach has more definition.  Do I weigh more because I have more muscle than before? Hmm.

I am back to my normal eating habits, ... see the full entry]]> Sorry, I know I’m not very good about updating this frequently, but here’s a quick one.

My weight, which for the past 3 years has hovered between 100 and 105, is now stuck at between 106 and 108.  What happened? I’m not sure.

Do I look like I gained weight?  Quite the opposite.

My arms look more tone, and my stomach has more definition.  Do I weigh more because I have more muscle than before? Hmm.

I am back to my normal eating habits, which is basically eating whatever I want, and eating often.  I am throwing in more fruits and when I can, choosing things that are just as tasty but maybe a bit healthier.

Every Sunday, I also go on a hike to get some cardio and leg work in.  I don’t do any leg work at the gym, and don’t get enough prolonged cardio during the week.  Yesterday I was hiking for nearly 4 hours and I feel great!

More soon.

I’m not eating enough!

I usually eat a lot, snacking throughout the day, but ever since I started paying attention to my calories, my weight has stubbornly stayed fixed at 5 - 7lbs more than my norm.  What the heck is going on?

Well, for the past two days I said “Screw it!”  It was my time of month and I was craving fatty meats, ... see the full entry]]> So I mysteriously put on 7 lbs 2 weeks ago and I think I finally figured out why:

I’m not eating enough!

I usually eat a lot, snacking throughout the day, but ever since I started paying attention to my calories, my weight has stubbornly stayed fixed at 5 - 7lbs more than my norm.  What the heck is going on?

Well, for the past two days I said “Screw it!”  It was my time of month and I was craving fatty meats, rice, noodles and juice.  I went back to my old eating habits and guess what…

I’ve lost 4 lbs!  Not only that, I feel better (thank god for food!) and my waistline looks trimmer.

I think by cutting down my calories, I was slowing down my metabolism.  Instead of feeding my body regularly and keeping my metabolism going, I slowed it down to a crawl and it held onto every stubborn pound because my body thought it may not get enough food.

Well no more of that! I will make healthier food choices, but I’ll be sure to eat more.

You eat carbs. Your body breaks down the carbs for glucose, a source of energy for your body. The glucose is absorbed into your blood stream. Insulin is secreted by your pancreas to “carry” the glucose into your cells as a source of energy for both cell functions and physical activity.  With muscle cells, some of the glucose is stored as glycogen to power muscle contractions. ... see the full entry]]> I’m know I’m oversimplifying this, but here’s the basic gist of how you get fat:

You eat carbs. Your body breaks down the carbs for glucose, a source of energy for your body. The glucose is absorbed into your blood stream. Insulin is secreted by your pancreas to “carry” the glucose into your cells as a source of energy for both cell functions and physical activity.  With muscle cells, some of the glucose is stored as glycogen to power muscle contractions. After everything has had their “fill”, excess glucose is stored in your liver as glycogen, but your liver has a limited capacity. If there’s still leftover glucose, your liver instead converts it into fat that gets stored in your body.

Here are some questions I can’t find answers to:

1. How long does it take the body to put glucose into your bloodstream after you’ve eaten?  I know that there are high-glycemic and low-glycemic foods, meaning the high ones are easily broken down and converted to glucose, and the low ones take some time, but there’s nothing specific about the times.
2. How long does it take before the glucose in your blood is considered “extra”? Do you have 1 hour to try and use it up? 3 hours? 24?
3. Insulin is necesssary for your cells to take in the glucose.  When insulin is released (because blood glucose level is up), the insulin helps carry the glucose molecules into your cells, including fat cells.  What percentage goes into fat cells as opposed to other cells?  What order? Does the body try to give the glucose to brain, heart, lung, etc. cells first and then go on to fat cells, or what?

Right now, I’m thinking that in order for your body rid itself of existing fat you must force the body to use the fat for energy, and this will only happen if there’s no glucose for it to use.  What leads to no glucose?

• Not having it in your system in the first place by not eating carbs.
• Burning through it by doing intense exercise.
• Increasing your insulin level to get the glucose

Ugh, I’m so confused. The more I read, the more contradictory things there are out there. I just read an article that unless you’re doing intense exercise, the body’s primary source of fuel is FAT, not glucose. What?

I need a break.

First, I wanted to understand exactly how and when the body breaks down fat.  I’ve came across a few articles, which I was hoping to link to from the end of this entry, but I accidentally X-ed out of my Firefox window while I was trying to move ... see the full entry]]> So my primary goal right now is to reduce body fat. I’ve been doing a lot of research on the best way to do this. Cardio? If so, what kind? Weights? Diet? Everything?!

First, I wanted to understand exactly how and when the body breaks down fat.  I’ve came across a few articles, which I was hoping to link to from the end of this entry, but I accidentally X-ed out of my Firefox window while I was trying to move another window…. >_< Anger!

But, if I understand correctly, and I’m not sure I do:

1. The body uses glucose as its primary source of energy, both for cell functions and physical activities.
2. Glucose is derived from the foods you eat, mainly carbs.
3. If the glucose doesn’t get used up soon after your body gets it, it is converted to glycogen which is stored in your liver and muscles.  The liver and muscles can only store a set amount of glycogen, so any leftover glucose that doesn’t get used up for energy (through physical activity), is converted and stored as body fat.
4. During exercise, your body first goes to use any available glucose in your bloodstream.  However, weight lifting, which involves muscle contractions, uses instead the glycogen stored in the muscle.
5. If your body doesn’t have enough glucose in your blood, your liver will start releasing the store glycogen back into your blood as glucose to be used.
6. Since the liver can only store a certain amount of glycogen, at some point (unless you replenish your supplies by eating) your body will no longer have glucose to use as energy.  Unlike the glycogen in your liver, the glycogen stored in your muscles can only be used for muscles and is not “tapped” when the body needs glucose.  Instead, if you use up the glycogen in your muscle, that muscle will feel weak and tired (think of when you struggle to do the last rep on a set), creatine will get involved to try and help (but creatine is for another day, another post).
7. At this point, with no more glucose in your blood, and no glycogen in your liver to depend on, your body starts to use fat stored in your body for energy, and this is when fat loss begins.

So what does this mean?  If I go into the gym and start doing cardio, my body will first use up the glucose in my bloodstream, and if I deplete that, it will use up my glycogen stores, and then it will start burning fat.  Considering it make take some time to deplete those first 2 energy sources, I could be running for a while before I start buring fat!

If I start weight lifting, my body is using both glucose and glycogen.  I will end up depleting my glycogen level in my muscles, so the glucose in my blood will have to go and replenish my muscles, and that means my blood glucose will get low, meaning my liver glycogen will be released to compensate.  It seems that I would be going through my blood glucose and liver glycogen faster by doing weights, and then once I hit the treadmill, my entire cardio session would just be fat burning since there’s nothing else left for my body to use for energy.

Well, that’s my understanding at least.  I need to find all those articles I read again.

Update: Here’s one:

Glycogen - Its Role in BodyBuilding

And another one that seems to explain it clearly:

Weights Before Cardio

This morning, I weigh 108.5… WHAT?!  How did I gain 4 lbs overnight?  What has happened to my metabolism in the past week? Gah, is this the beginning of the end?

• A can (2 servings) of Progresso Light soup, Beef Pot Roast flavor [160 calories]
• Two slices of lightly toasted wheat bread [110 calories] with a serving of black forest smoked deli ham [45 calories] and two leaves of lettuce [5 calories]

It was filling and tasty, plus it was cheap!

Loaf of Bread: 99 cents for 11 servings so 9 cents a serving (99% of the breads listed a serving as 1 slice, but this brand actually acknowledged the fact ... see the full entry]]> My dinner tonight was:

• A can (2 servings) of Progresso Light soup, Beef Pot Roast flavor [160 calories]
• Two slices of lightly toasted wheat bread [110 calories] with a serving of black forest smoked deli ham [45 calories] and two leaves of lettuce [5 calories]

It was filling and tasty, plus it was cheap!

Loaf of Bread: 99 cents for 11 servings so 9 cents a serving (99% of the breads listed a serving as 1 slice, but this brand actually acknowledged the fact that a serving for most people is 2 slices)
Progresso Light soup: on sale for $1.25, normally $3.19, and though one can is supposed to be 2 servings, c’mon, who only eats half a can of soup?
Black Forest Ham: on sale for $3, normally $4.19, 4 servings so 75 cents a serving

Final cost for a satisfying 320 calorie dinner: $2.09

Not bad at all!  In fact, I better get more of that soup while it’s still 61% off!