Three Months Of Resistance Training Down, A Lifetime To Go!
Lifting weights for the first time in my life has been hard
I've been getting a lot of e-mails lately from so many of you asking about my progress with my resistance training program I started in mid-December 2007, so I will endeavor to update you today after 15 weeks of working with a personal trainer and on my own to build muscle and tone up areas of my body where the remnants of my former 410-pound self still haunt me.
You'll recall from my one-month weight lifting update in January 2008 that I was already seeing some measurable results from the work I have invested. Right now I meet with my own personal trainer at the gym once a week for a 30-minute session and then various other days my weight lifting is self-guided. It's been good for accountability to report to a personal trainer I have to look at week in and week out because it forces me to stay serious about this and resist the temptation to slack off.
I'm gonna be dead honest with you about this experience--I HATE IT! My body has never been this sore in my entire life. I thought it was only gonna be a temporary pain, but I'm experiencing some sort of delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) and other chronic muscle pain after EVERY SINGLE TIME I workout. There are some days following my intense workouts that I absolutely cannot move. Last week was a prime example and you can read about how debilitating my workout was in this post from my menus blog. OUCH is the operative word!
But as the old saying goes, "No pain, no gain." And I'm doing my best to put on a happy face in the midst of the pain. It's not just muscle soreness either. I've been having intense headaches that feel like migraines (and I NEVER got headaches before!) and my weight has increased by about 30 pounds and sustained there for over a month. I can deal with the headaches, but the weight gain is freaking me out a little bit.
This was one of the reasons I was apprehensive about lifting weights during my weight loss in 2004. I had always heard that when you build muscle, you will gain weight and it's a good thing. And I wholeheartedly agree with that notion because you absolutely want to have muscle on your body so you can burn more fat and calories on a regular basis. That's why I took the plunge and decided to embark on this journey a few months ago because I knew it would be worth it to me.
And I can't argue with the results I've seen so far. Check out these comparison pictures from when I started in December 2007 and the ones of myself I took today:
The first thing you'll notice from this front view comparison is my neck, shoulders and arms are noticeably bigger. I've been working those three areas of my upper body very hard for the past three months or so and that investment is paying off. Before I began my resistance training, I was basically bony all across my upper body as you can see in that picture on the left. But there is real definition kicking in now and the "loose skin" in my arms and neck from my weight loss is beginning to stretch out with muscle. WOO HOO!
With the side view comparison, first take a look at my arms. You'll notice my elbow is kinda pointy in the left picture and then is rounded out with muscle in the one in the right. And my bicep and forearm are much larger than before. My wife Christine noted that my chest has grown too and now matches my stomach. Hopefully the chest will continue to puff out as I bench press and my waist will shrink (although the "loose skin" in my belly ain't going anywhere anytime soon).
Finally, looking from the back side, my triceps, neck and shoulders are more muscular than they were before. That was to be expected. But I couldn't help but notice that my hips are getting smaller. This is real progress and I can't wait to see what the difference will be in another three months when I update my 6-month progress.
But the weight gain remains. As of today, my weight is 259 and I'm not happy about that. Sure, you can attribute some of that gain to the new muscle on my body and I LOVE that. But what's up with gaining 30 pounds in three months after lifting weights? Check out my menus and you'll see I've been eating VERY good since beginning this regimen and have even seen my calorie and overall food intake shrink in recent days. I'm not doing anything that different from before except maybe a little bit extra protein to supplement my workouts.
I did take the supplement creatine when I first started my weight lifting to try to give myself a bit of a boost with the workouts since I'd NEVER lifted weights in my life. I stopped taking it after a couple of months of the training since my weight started predictably going up to see if my weight would come down a bit. It hasn't yet, but I'm noticeably larger now in my arms, neck, shoulders, chest and legs from all the resistance training. This is the best thing I've done for my health since I lost my weight in 2004, though. For that, I am extremely happy.
Let me be clear--I'm not worried about this to the point that I feel like there is no way to turn this situation around. I've already mapped out a course of action if my weight does not start coming down soon and that includes going to see a doctor to find out if there is something metabolically going on with me that is totally unrelated to my resistance training. It seems too coincidental for it not to be related in some way, but I'll know with certainty if I can get checked out. That may happen within the next month or so.
In the meantime, I'm closely monitoring my weight on a daily basis as I always do and I'm feeling fabulous (other than the muscle soreness!). My strength has increased dramatically which has made other parts of life (like lifting boxes, carrying groceries, and even my golf game) more pleasurable than they were before. I'm no Heman yet, but with continued effort for the rest of my life I WILL be! :)
THANKS to everyone who has encouraged me as I began this new weight lifting routine and I hope my experience will be just what you need to get started on your own program real soon. I HIGHLY suggest you check out Fred Hahn's Slow Burn plan because it is helping a whole lotta people with busy schedules squeeze in a solid workout that is changing their lives forever. Whatever you do, don't let those demons inside your head tell you this is impossible. It may be hard--VERY HARD!--but it is NOT impossible. YOU CAN DO IT!!!
Labels: exercise, Jimmy Moore, personal trainer, resistance training, sore, weight gain, weight lifting, weights
posted by Jimmy Moore at
4/01/2008 05:07:00 PM
46 Comments:
Great job!
Thanks for updating us!
Sorry you have been so sore.
I've had a similar experience a few times and known others who have too - you are not alone!
Honestly, you shouldn't be that sore - your trainer is probably overdoing it (they often do that).
And muscle weighs TWICE as much as fat, so I bet a lot of the weight is actually muscle.
If you get too sore, that could be a sign that your body is kinda tired (could be mental tiredness, too), and this could very well affect your metabolism.
There's all that endocrinology and stuff in there (the systems that remove the soreness are not able to keep up, and these are some of the same systems that regulate metabolism), but the basic thing is just to take it slower until you only have very mild soreness that doesn't last long.
Also, if your trainer pushes you too hard, you might eventually risk hurting yourself, so maybe try a 1x/week strength training class (like a community thing) instead where they're more sensetive to various peoples' needs, and do on your own 1 other day.
If you are sore most of the time, then that shows that your muscles are being broken down by the workout, but not able to build back up at a fast enough rate before they get broken down by the next activity (could be working out or carrying groceries).
A lot of times, people who have worked out their whole lives or for a long time have trouble understanding this and will try to convince you that pain=gain, but pain actually means your body is telling you to take the intensity down.
I would say try to stay away from stimulants and get as much rest and sleep as possible.
hope this helps!
Don't give up, but try to find a more understanding trainer or group - you will get better results with less pain and won't have to hate it anymore.
Also, I checked out your menus, and I would suggest to try to cut out as many chemically foods as possible.
Anything with caffeine will really make the soreness and metabolism worse.
Sorry to be so long-winded, but you have really inspired me and helped me change my life for the better, and I hate to see you in a buncha pain!
How about carb cycling like bodybuilders do? No you should not have gained 30 LBS in 3 months. Might want to try the carb cycling it really jacks up the metabolism.
1 day a week eat high carbs (Pasta, rice, bread etc...) but very little fat. Bodybuilders swear by it. www.bodybuilding.com has a lot on this issue. Just throwing in my 2 cents good luck!
THANKS Tara and Jeff!
Jimmy,
I'd bet good money that if you eliminate the processed & low-carb products, you'd find your weight drops back to where it was with little effort.
You're consuming, IMO, way too many sugar alcohols, glycerine (insulin AUC remains remains for hours after ingesting glycerine even though blood sugar isn't raised), and other "low-carb" products - your carbohydate total is higher than you think.....way higher when you include the sugar alcohols at true value (total) since you metabolize them fully (I'm assuming you don't get gas or diarhea - otherwise, you wouldn't eat as much of them)....
What I see in your menus is that the products are part of your daily menu and I don't think anyone would consider that a truly good way to do low-carb....now and then, fine - but everyday, multiple times a day? Nah, that's just keeping things "technically" low-carb by deducting dubious ingredients, but not really healthy.
My advice? Get back to doing a clean diet - real foods, adequate protein to cover your AA needs for the repair and building of muscle tissue and enough fat for energy.....a good variety of vegetables for nutrients.....and fish oils for omega-3 fatty acids.
Remember that little experiment we did ages ago? Why not give that a try again - you lost consistently with that and we're eating really well!
Jimmy, I am just starting this low carb journey. I have decided to go with the "life without bread" plan of keeping my carbs under 72. I found your site by chance, and I have to say your positive attitude is wonderful. I come to your site everyday now. As for the weight gain with lifting weights, I think that is common for some people. I know I gain weight with lifting weights, especially at first and then it evens out, but I also get a bigger appetite with lifting weights. I don't think you should worry about the weight so much, but inches you should keep track of. I was a competitive athlete in university and I know when I lifted weights, I would weigh more, but still be the same size. My daughter is a university athlete and she is very slender and wears a small size, but when people find out how much she weighs they are very shocked, because the number is higher than they thought it would be. She eats like no other too, and is still so slender.
I think you are looking way healthier now than before, so keep up the good work. And thank you for all the wonderful information and the great personality.
Janie
THANKS Janie! Actually, my body fat percentage is falling, so I know the gain is not fat gain. It's still kinda freaky to see happening, but I'm not at all "worried" about it. :) THANK YOU for your encouragement.
THANKS for the advice, Regina. And that's all fine and good, but it's also the way I ate prior to my weight lifting and I wasn't gaining. Sure, I could leave the chocolate out of my diet, but why is including that in my diet such a bad thing? I lost and maintained eating such things, so why should now be different. THANK YOU again for your input. :)
I know carb cycling works for some people, but after all my years of hypoglycemia, I would be too scared to try it.
I do know that after you work out, your body keeps your insulin levels lower than normal, so it's safter to eat slightly more carbs after a workout. Maybe try adding something like extra veggies, low-carb breads or crackers, or fruit to the fats and proteins you eat post-workout.
Also, you mentioned the headaches - they are usually tension headaches and are caused when the muscles (like shoulders and neck) just CAN'T relax. This can happen when the muscle fibers break, & too many of them have broken but not enough have rebuilt so they are trying to prevent themselves from moving around anymore until they can heal. I know these headaches are HORRIBLE, and things that can help (headaches and general soreness) are 1) malic acid 2) magnesium, and 3) homeopathic lactic acid.
I think I remember you were already taking magnesium, so if it's not helping, then definitely take it as easy as you can for a few days - even a week.
Lay around like you had the flu. Try to only read or watch T.V. for 15 min at a time, then relax and close your eyes for a bit.
Even one or two days of real rest will help.
Migraines can also be caused by muscle tension, from constriction of blood vessels and usually include visual disturbances and/or nausea.
Try anything that relaxes you: baths, showers, massage, acupuncture, Feldenkrais roll, relaxing in a dark quiet room, meditation etc...
Putting your feet in warm or cool water while visualizing the tension draining down from your head can help, too.
Good Luck!
Jimmy,
You asked "Sure, I could leave the chocolate out of my diet, but why is including that in my diet such a bad thing?"....
A chocolate bar in a day, the low-carb one you're using is fine...but look at your menu yesterday (3/31) - 2 atkins bars, the fry-it right stuff on the chicken, countdown milk product, satiatrim drink product AND the chocolate bar....plus the SF syrup too.
When you're actively working out, you need not just more calories, but more high-quality protein and the bars and satiatrim is soy protein isolates (not high quality protein IMO) and are crowding out better sources of amino acids you could be eating - namely meats, fish, poultry, fowl or eggs.
Take it for what it's worth - a friend just offering some insight into what she sees!
Regina
Oh yeah - the other thing is that first your body will build the muscle and THEN the new muscle will burn more fat, so the initial weight gain when working out often seems large, but it's normal. :)
Oh, I appreciate your insights, Regina, and you're not just some friend. You really know your stuff and I respect what you have to say. Just trying to soak in everything right now and figure out what to do. THANK YOU for your feedback! I REALLY appreciate it.
And Tara, you make a lot of sense. That's why I'm monitoring my weight. The good news is I've been right at 260 for about a month now. It rose for the first two months and has remained steady for one month. Perhaps that turn downward will begin in short order. :)
Jimmy, you need to multiply your body fat per cent by your total weight to get the weight of fat. If your body weight goes up, you total body fat might be going up even if the per cent is going down.
I'm very concerned about your headaches. I hope you get them checked out.
Somebody else already pointed this out but stress hormones can make you gain weight.
Meanwhile, I just love this blog and your enthusiasm. Thanks for all your work!
THANKS for your advice, Tara! I've implemented many of those strategies already, so I appreciate your input.
THANKS so much, Susan! I'm monitoring everything right now and will be seeing a doctor soon if things don't improve. THANK YOU for your support! :)
Jimmy,
I second (or third or fourth?) the idea of seeing someone about the headaches.
Do you regularly monitor your blood pressure?
Has anything else changed, perhaps in your diet or supplement-program, that may have coincided with these headaches?
I hope you feel better soon.
Harry
Hi Jimmy,
I would cut out the processed foods, chocolate, and especially the protein shakes. It's not so much the net/total carbs that concern me as the fact that these foods contain other chemicals that increase insulin output. Carbohydrate is only one nutrient that increases insulin! You say you haven't changed your diet much except a bit of extra protein. Well protein shakes usually contain free glutamate (MSG) - and glutamate causes insulin output. Chocolate contains different chemicals - called amines - that also increase insulin output. I experience rapid weight gain when I eat glutamates or amines, regardless of how carefully I control carbohydrates.
Jimmy!
get a new trainer, asap!! this guy is really doing you no good.
eat less. and like Regina says, cut out the frankenfoods. I haven't looked at your menus, but if you put on 30 pounds, it dues to excess calories, assuming carbs are kept sufficiently low.
also, no way your 30 pounds is all muscle. it would be very hard to add 30 pounds of muscle, and if you had, you would look more like the Governor of California used to look. 30 pounds is a LOT of muscle. You probably don't have the genetics to get that kind of muscle.
and seriously, dump that trainer, right away, and find someone who understands and supports slow burn style training, or at least is willing to read Fred's book and learn. You really don't need to be killing yourself this way.
Hi Jimmy
Stick to the training - I have been weight training for 25 years and still get sore! Not a disabling soreness though, but enough to remind me that I have been working.
Sorry but I have to agree with Regina that it woudl be a good idea to dump the low carb products.
Barry Groves has a good article on such "foods"
http://www.second-opinions.co.uk/low-carb-ripoffs.html
I quote:
These are just a few examples of the ripoffs out there. Of course, other manufacturers are also climbing onto the bandwagon as fast as they can to rip off the overweight while the trend lasts.
"The only way to combat this exploitation is not to succumb to it. EAT REAL FOOD! Real food might take a little longer to prepare but, in health terms and in money terms, it really is worth the little bit of effort. For example, to scramble four eggs for breakfast takes about 5 minutes – and compared to the Atkins breakfast bars, saves you over £4.00. That's an hourly rate of more than £50.00. Can you really afford not to do the little work needed to scramble eggs, if that is the pay rate?"
THANKS Harry! The headaches aren't all the time, but seem to happen when I'm working out. Then on Sunday I had one ALL DAY LONG. Just really weird. I'll keep an eye on the blood pressure closer than I have just to see.
Are there no benefits to protein shakes, the witch? I added these in to help with the muscle-building, but maybe you're right that the other ingredients could be having an impact. Interesting stuff. Again, I'll keep a closer look at this.
Mr. Fritz, I wish I could get out of this trainer contract and go to one that does "slow burn." Unfortunately I'm stuck through November with this guy or someone like him. Nobody at my gym does the "slow burn" style, although I'm doing it on my self-guided days.
As for "eating less," that's already happening naturally if you'll look at my menus. I totally agree my 30-pound gain since beginning the training is not all muscle, but I'm not eating too many carbs or calories...no more than I did prior to my training. It's just an anomaly.
THANKS for your experience, Chris! I do have lots of eggs for breakfast and enjoy it. Some days time gets tight and I'll grab something else, but eggs are a regular part of my diet as Dr. Groves noted. :)
THANK YOU EVERYONE for your feedback! Again, I'm not concerned or worried about this. Just sharing it with you so you can know what's going on with me during my training. :D
Jimmy,
As I did when you had your pizza-fest a couple of years ago, I ran your menu for 3/31 just to see what is what with your nutrient intakes. I'm doing this again, not to embarass you, but to give you good data so you can make your decisions based on facts, not just opinions (like mine!) I think you're going to be a bit shocked by some of the numbers...especially your sodium intake!
OK...with the products, it's taking your sodium intake through the roof (if I remember correctly, you're sodium sensitive for blood pressure, right?) -- your 3/31 menu contained a minimum of 3615mg of sodium. Worse though was it was deficient for potassium to counter the sodium, with just 2555mg of potassium (you need like 4700mg a day of potassium by RDA standards)....so the sodium is off the charts! You also missed consuming enough magnesium - but I'll get to that in a minute.
Based on how I know you eat meats, butter, dressing, etc. - I was very liberal with the quantities for those items, but still your calories only came to 2440 for the day....that's a bit low for doing the work-out schedule you are and your current weight....but it's not really so low it would have a counter effect on your weight....it should be fine....but if you had a bit more calories, it shouldn't make you gain or stop losing. That you're gaining is somewhere in how you're eating....we'll find it if we can!
Your protein looks to be about 110g - too little for your weight and your work-out schedule, and too much from soy protein, which IMO isn't quality protein you want & need to be consuming.
Your carbs came in at....are you ready? 106g total for the day (48g fiber, most from added fibers in products and not the vegetables).....but even with very liberal amounts of the vegetables listed in your menu (I input a combination of the veggies listed, totaling 4.5-cups of vegetables - 3/4-cup broccoli, 3/4 cup green beans, 1/2 cup each red peppers and squash, 2-cups mixed salad), the vegetables only provided 19g of the total 106g carbs....and about 1/4 of the fiber....the rest of your carbs & fiber was in the products (and some from the cheese, dressings and eggs).....some, like the glycerine, you're deducting even though they impact your insulin levels (not blood sugars)....and some of the added fibers are also metabolized and shouldn't be deducted as suggested. Another topic - but these things are masking your true carbohydrate intake because the products do not cause you digestive problems - you're fully metabolizing them!
You missed meeting nutrient requirements for vitamin D, niacin, B-6, magnesium, zinc and copper....despite using a lot of fortified products! Now I know you take supplements, but from food you should be doing better with nutrients than you are....and I think the sodium level speaks volumes of why products can unwittingly undo a lot of hard work because while one may seem low, over the day with many, it doesn't just add up, it goes way higher than you're thinking! The nutrients you are missing meeting requirements for all play into your endocrine (hormone) function at the end of the day.....so you want to try to pay a bit more attention to quality and choose real foods over products, since what you're eating isn't providing for your nutrient needs.
But then two things concerned me for high intake - iron (double what is recommended for a man) and calcium (your intake was more than twice what is recommended for a man)....a symptom of potential iron overload in men is....headaches (also nausea, fatigue, achiness and shortness of breath). Your iron intake IMO is really too high and much of it is coming from the products.
At 259-pounds, without much activity, you need a minimum of 105g of high quality protein.....working out as you are, you need to consider at least 150-175g a day to cover amino acid requirements for gluconeogenesis, muscle tissue repair, muscle tissue building and basic basal requirements for amino acids. Based on the menu you posted on 3/31 - about 20-25% of your protein that day was from soy in products as soy protein isolates....not IMO your best option for your goals.
Quality protein = complete protein = animal protein.....eggs, meats, whey or egg protein (if you need to include shakes or protein powders), fish, fowl, game, dairy....and you need more than you're eating now with your workouts.....and you need to take care that it's spread out throughout the day so the amino acids are available as needed.
Ya know I do this because I care about you and want the best for you....now you have some data to look at and investigate, OK?
Jimmy,
As one who has worked with a lot of athletes at both beginning and elite (Olympic/Professional) levels over a few decades, I gotta tell you that the soreness you describe is neither normal nor good.
"No pain, no gain" is b.s. It's not that there shouldn't be any soreness after a workout, but the kind of soreness you describe indicates your trainer really has no idea what's going on, and has no real understanding of exercise physiology. Whatever he has you doing is dangerous, and is only helping you build muscle as a side effect.
Really, what you are describing is NOT a good thing, and no way to go about getting strong and fit.
A good, knowledgeable trainer will take you as and where you are, and lead you at a pace that your body can assimilate and adapt to. Workouts should feel good, not tortuous. There is no virtue, little benefit, and significant potential harm in continuing the way you are going.
Jimmy, could you post your workout routines and schedule? could be that you are simply over-training. Kinda sounds like it.
I only train one or two times a week. It hurts like hell while I am moving the weights, really hurts, deep penetrating searing kinda hurt... but that only lasts 60 seconds per exercise, give or take, and I only do 8 or so exercises per session. After that, I feel it for a day or so, sometimes more for certain muscles, but never ever the sort of de-mobilizing stiffness and soreness you're describing. That simply isn't necessary.
Maybe you should consider eating the cost of your contract commitment, and chalk it up to lessons learned?
Or, perhaps, you could inform the trainers at your gym that you intend to work slow burn style, and they are invited to make sure you do the exercises in good form-that's the main thing you need a trainer for anyway, that, plus encouragement to push yourself further than you would on your own.
THANKS for running the numbers, Regina. Perhaps I've allowed more SODIUM into my diet and that could indeed be the culprit. That day's protein was SHOCKINGLY low, but I consciously eat more protein now than before. Getting right around 50g net carbs is part and parcel for what I normally eat. Perhaps getting that lower is in order and I hear you about the glycerin. I do take a TON of supplements as you know, but it does look like my diet is deficient in those foods that have the best nutritional profile. Iron is something I try to avoid and had no idea it was in the products I was eating. It's not listed, so how would I know? You also know I eat throughout the day, so that's not an issue either. But the quality of my protein intake could be an issue and I'll look closer at that, too. THANK YOU for your thorough analysis. :)
Charles, I fully agree with you which is why I blogged about this. I'm hurting after my workouts and it's a love/hate relationship. I love the changes happening to my strength and how I look but I hate how I feel in the days after a workout. What should I say to my personal trainer so he's not killing me?
Mr. Fritz, actually you can see my workouts at my menus blog and you'll notice I am NOT over-training at all. In fact, when I mentioned my weight gain to my personal trainer, he told me to do more cardio (which I have NOT done). I've considered "eating" the contract, too, but that's a big hit to my budget right now that I cannot afford to do. It would devastate us financially. But giving a "slow burn or nothing" ultimatum is not out of the question.
Jimmy,
Regarding your personal trainer...remember, you are the one in charge.
You have taken control of your health up to this point, and you need to continue to do so. Otherwise you are treating your trainer like we all used to treat our doctors, like Gods, who always knew more than us, and who could not be questioned.
That worked out well :)
Because this is an area you are not all that experienced in, it's probably easy to get cowed by the fact that he has more knowledge than you, and you want to at least try his program, rather than just go off on your own.
What I just want to tell you is that what you are describing is definitely not normal, and not good exercise physiology or what should be expected as the result of intelligent training. Armed with that, you can maybe start a dialog, and with luck, this guy won't be as arrogant as say, Ornish!
No, he's definitely not Ornish, but it'll be interesting to hear how he will change. His excuse has been, "Well, I'm not using heavy weights at all, so you shouldn't be hurting as much as you say you are." Uh, I am though and something's gotta give. You're right, I've been leaning on him because I'm not as adept at this aspect of my health
Iron is something I try to avoid and had no idea it was in the products I was eating. It's not listed, so how would I know?
It's on the labels, not as a mg level, but DV%....based on the femal requirement each day for 18mg....so when a label says 10% of DV for iron, it's 1.8mg of iron.
You're getting enough iron from meats and other animal foods, along with what is in plant-foods....the iron in products is taking your intake too high because they're fortified with small amounts that are adding up through the day.
For example, each Atkins' bar has 10%....so two have 20% of the DV for iron (set as 18mg) for a woman, so 3.6mg...which is almost half of what a man needs....8mg a day.
Then the candy bar has another 10%...1.8mg; the calorie countdown milk another 4%...0.72mg; the Xocai another 4% per serving...0.72mg; one serving of satistrim another 8%....1.44mg ----- 8.28mg of iron - right about what you need in an entire day - and before you've even considered what you're getting from your meats, eggs, cheese, salads and vegetables....and not counting any which may be in some of the supplements too!
Just some food for thought!
I once again go back to carb cycling. Jimmy, remember when you did your "planned Splurge" the year you lost all your weight? What that splurge did was super charge your metabolism, got your body temp back to normal and also got your leptin levels back to normal. I have to do a 12 hour refeed (high carbs, pasta, bread,low fat ice cream,) every 3 weeks or my body temp drops to 97.2 (98.6 is normal for me) and i feel horrible. After my refeed i go hard back into induction level carbs and the weight pours off. Think back to after your splurges....lost weight fast after that didnt you? It works. Good luck!
Jimmy
my point was not that you need to eat eggs or whatever. It was that all these products are neither healthy nor necessary. As Regina says you are technically low carb, but not in a healthy way.
Don't want to be cycnical, but I see you promote a lot of these products on your blog, but they are not necessary or - I think - helpful to a low carb diet.
Meat, eggs, fish, cheese, veggies, some fruit etc. It is all you need.
Chris
I appreciate your opinions Chris!
Nice analysis from Reg :)
I would never have even thought of iron in low carb products, how silly. You would think Atkins would know better *shrug*
I wonder if part of the reason your muscle soreness and recovery is so bad is because of your diet?
I would definitely clean it up, when you first start resistance training it is the best time, as it is almost the only time you can lose fat and gain muscle simultaneously!
THANKS for your comments, Sherrie! It's nice to see you commenting here again. Been a while. :) I'll figure this thing out yet with friends like Regina and others.
Thanks Regina - I never knew that about the DV%.
Are there no benefits to protein shakes, the witch? I added these in to help with the muscle-building, but maybe you're right that the other ingredients could be having an impact.
Hi Jimmy
Just google glutamate + insulin and a bunch of medical papers will come up showing the connection. I've no problem with protein per se - just the unpleasant ingredients in those protein shakes - I'd stick to meat and eggs.
I think that in order to become this lean, mean, masculine, fighting machine, your going to have to start eating and drinking a traditional diet and do exercise like rowing a boat and running and walking outdoors. You need a lot more sunshine than your getting to make this transformation. A lot more! -- If you do this, I believe then you will lose the additional sixty or seventy pounds your carrying and I believe your gut will be far less and that you will become masculine and powerful and handsome. That's a lot to ask of food and water and sunshine and appropriate exercise but I believe that this transformation would be nothing short of a miracle for you if you were to do this. -- That's a big leap from what your doing now but all it really is is eating lots of healthy fat and meat and eggs and drinking lots of fresh clean water and nothing else and with zero vitamines and zero supplements or anything else. -- Then the great outdoors in the sunshine and the night air and the wind and the elements and 'running' and 'walking' and the 'rowing an actual boat' several miles a day and presto, two years later your getting very noticeably healthier and strong and vibrant and handsome and your color is back. Your probably not going to do any of this but I would bet a million dollars on you if you did. -- All it is is a totally natural, traditional, existence like we have lived for millions of years. You need to add a dog to this. Were talking four to six hours out there every single day for the rest of your life and feeling like a million bucks. You'll have so much sperm you can make a hundred babies. -- I wish you prosperity and health. Tom
Hi Jimmy,
Have you ever considered whether you could be hypothyroid? Soy has a reputation for being bad for the thyroid. I have a son who developed low thyroid after months of eating as a vegetarian, which included lots of soy "fake meat" products and soy shakes for extra protein. Weight gain can be an indicator of low thyroid, as can muscle aches and headaches.
Carol
THANKS for sharing about the thyroid issue, Carol. I don't know if I have an issue with that, but I do try to avoid soy as much as possible. THANK YOU again!
I don't care if I gain 30 pounds if I stay a size 6...know what I mean, Jimmy? I don't think you're getting too big for your britches!
Also, may I suggest the following for your DOMS:
BEVERLY INTERNATIONAL
Glutamine Select - Plus BCAAs.
Doesn't taste wonderful, but tolerable--it is a glutamine-based recovery drink that doesn't pack on the water weight like creatine does. GREAT product.
Your buddy, TheSpikyHairedGirl
THANKS Cameo! :)
I completely agree with Regina on this Jimmy. I haven't been low carb for long but I noticed a huge correlation between my weight and processed foods. I chart my weight using moving averages and when I compared my losses with my fitday it was pretty dramatic. The weeks with the highest losses are also the weeks with the least amounts of processed foods. I try to limit my processed foods to 1 a day.
Gaining muscle takes a lot of extra nutrients and often people will gain water weight when they first start working out. That gets amplified if you are also eating high sodium and less whole foods. I think this is one reason Atkins had a three sweetener a day rule in DANR 2002. Eating a lot of processed foods is crowding out foods that your muscles need. For me, I had my highest losses on days I ate meat, fat, veggies and water. The weeks I had the least losses where days I had a lot of processed flavored nuts, chocolates etc. I would venture to guess 15 pounds of your gain is water, 10 is fat and 5 is muscle. The 5 pounds of muscle may look like more since the muscle will also hold some of that water gain.
I would stick with the workout cause well... look at those shoulders!!!!!! But try to get back to WYAA (what your ancestors ate). Instead of "low carb spices" use the actually spices since I am assuming that is a spice mix and they often have stuff added to them. I would get really strict about the sweetener rule counting every shake and bar and really get back to whole veggies, meat, fat and fruits. If my ancestors couldn't pick it, hunt it, pronounce it or create it in under 3 steps it should be an occasional item.
Good luck on the muscle soreness!
One thing I wanted to mention and forgot. If you are not over training and your pain could be because you aren't taking in the nutrients you need for you muscles to recover post work out. Have you tried MSM after working out?
Jimmy my friend. First, drop the trainer or you are going to injure yourself by overtraining, if you haven't done so already. You are not supposed to feel wiped out after a workout; on the contrary, you are suppose to feel a pump. If you don't feel a little pump after you workout, you're doing something incredibly wrong. Gaining strength is a skill bro, and you must first start with perfecting your form before even worrying about lifting heavy weights. Also, get your "free" testosterone levels checked. Finally, count your calories Jimmy. I know that you've never counted them before, but just try it for a couple of months to see what happens. I can guarantee you that you'll lose a lot of the 30 lbs. you've gained.
THANKS Muata! I'm working on getting out of the contract with my trainer. And my routine is also being looked at including my diet. Not making changes yet, but will be soon.
Jimmy,
Sorry I’m a couple of days late on this, but I wanted to add a couple of things that I didn’t see mentioned.
First of all, congratulations on the progress you’ve made with your weight training program.
Regarding the headaches, they are a symptom of ketosis. While you’re carb intake is relatively high – as compared to ketosis – two things may be in play here. First, the quality of carbs may be an issue. I haven’t looked at your diet, just the summary by Regina. Second, you’re body is consuming additional carbs to recover from your workouts. The fact that you are experiencing significant soreness for an extended period of time indicates that glycogen in the muscle tissue is low.
This combination may be causing an effective-hypoglycemic state – meaning you’re consuming enough carbs to stay out of ketosis, but your physical activity level drops you into it – causing the headaches and extended muscle soreness. When I see this in my clients, I encourage them to eat more fruit on the days they workout, specifically weight training. I also encourage them to consume the fruit as close to completion of the workout as possible.
This seems to help them tremendously as the delibilitating muscle soreness disappears almost overnight.
Just my 2 cents but you might want to give it a try. And if you do, please let me know how it goes.
Brian
Hi Jimmy,
Well done buddy, the picture differences are amazing. I wouldn't advice weight training when your wanting to lose fat. Weight training tones and gains muscles, but its far better doing cardiovascular exercises. Cardio work will burn away far more fat. But still any exercise is better than no exercise. Keep going buddy and take care :oD
THANKS Jonny! I feel stronger than I ever have, but I have gained weight, too. Finding the proper balance between lifting and cardio is tricky, but we'll get there. THANK YOU for your encouragement.
Hey Jimmy thanks for letting us know how things are going. I just started the Slow Burn workout a week and a half ago. First two workouts where OK, getting my weights and timing down. Just finished my 3rd workout yesterday. I have had a little soreness, nothing like I usually have doing a power lifting routine. I was a little worried, first week had a gain of 8 pounds. I follow Atkins very strict. I did have that happen once before when I was doing Atkins and started weight lifting (Body for Life workout). I am really starting to enjoy Slow Burn, I have decided to try Slow burn for 8 weeks, then 5X5 power lifting workout for 8 weeks, then Body for Life workout for 8 weeks. I've taken measurements, I use an electronic fat % calc., and I'm weighing and figuring out my lean body mass. Can't wait to see which program works best for me. I also try to get 3 miles a day on my off lifting days on my elliptical, some days I try to double up. Just wanted to drop you a note and say thanks so much for sharing..Bru
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