4XLT

Today’s Weigh-In: 314.6 pounds
Yesterday’s Weigh-In: 316.8 pounds
Next Goal: 300 pounds
Pounds to Go: 14.6 pounds
Days to Go: 25 (end of January)

As you can see, there’s not much change in my weight from a few weeks ago. In fact, the whole month of December was a roller coaster ride between the precipice of 320 and back to a pound or two below 310. I was back in Oklahoma for a week, and then my parents were here in Oregon for Christmas another week. I failed to keep my guard up and packed on nearly ten pounds both times. I dropped the extra weight pretty quickly the first time, but my rampant laziness the past week and a half have me still working the weight off from the Christmas visit.

Cardio

Despite the lackluster New Year’s Eve I recently mentioned, I was happy to start off 2009 on the right foot. My friend Jesse and I headed out, in the rain, to a school’s covered basketball playground to kill ourselves with some Crossfit-light (bodyweight squats and burpees) and HIIT cardio work. I managed to maintain around the 318 range throughout the weekend (the playoffs almost did me in).

I’m happy to say that for the first time in several weeks, I’ve been to the gym two days in a row. Sunday night was okay – not bad, but certainly not with the intensity I need to blast through the next 75 pounds. However, yesterday I got amped up and headed to the gym and knocked out some killer HIIT work on the eliptical – complete with red head, sweat, and sharp pains in the side. I gotta admit that it felt good. Real good.

So, my cardio work has been up to snuff so far this year, but there’s also my nutrition and weight training to consider.

Weight Training

In truth, my weight training has been nonexistent since I got back to Oregon from my sister’s wedding several weeks ago. That one donned on me last night when I realized I hadn’t pounded the iron since I started wearing contacts. That’s literally a month, which sucks. I am going to the gym tonight to restart my weightlifting routine. I am going to continue with a total body routine using complex lifts. Instead of aiming for bulk and strength, my primary goal for the foreseeable future (until I hit 240) is to train for fat loss.

To that end, my weight training for fat loss program will involve circuit training through several multi-joint lifts. The foundation will be overhead squats and power cleans, as they work the whole body, get the heart beating, and fire up the metabolism.

I’m still in Chad Waterbury’s school of total body training, as compared to isolation training (different muscle groups on different days) as I think it gives me the best bang for your buck in regards to strength training and weight loss. After all, I am still over 300 pounds. Once I hit my target range, I may change over into isolation training, but that’s several months away.

Grub

Past that, my nutrition has been okay. I’ve had a couple of minor indiscretions, but have been able to adjust accordingly (with cardio and altering my food plan throughout the day afterwards) to keep the pounds going down. It’s just a matter of sticking to the plan, keeping track of calories, and laying off the carbs in the evening. Later in the month when I’ve got a bit more discretionary spending money, I’ll stock up on a ton of protein and go through my strict food plan again.

I’ll report on my new weight routine tomorrow, provided I don’t die. I’m a bit daunted by the overhead squats, but I’m going to keep my weights low to begin with and learn the proper form first. I’ve got a bit of a party plan in store for Valentine’s Day and want to be unquestionably below the 299 mark by then. Got to stick to the plan to do that.

What about you? How are your health and weight loss plans going now that we are almost a week into the new year?