Happy Anniversary to my AMAZING Wife!

Today is my and Leigh's 8th anniversary. Every year I give Leigh some kind of sweet card and tell her I love her...but this year, after contemplating Proverbs 31, I wanted to do something a little different. Proverbs 31:30-31 says, "...a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised. Honor her for all that her hands have done, and let her works bring her praise at the city gate."

Therefore, it's time to go public and heap some praise upon my amazing wife by letting everyone else know how incredible she is. I hope you'll read this entire post and maybe gain just a little more appreciation for what a wonderful person Leigh Abele is. I've also thrown some of my favorite photos of her into this blog at random...because everyone loves pictures!

There is not a doubt in my mind that God put the right woman into my life. She is every bit the wife of noble character that the Bible describes in Proverbs 31. She is worth far more than rubies (v10), I have full confidence in her and she lacks nothing of value (v11), she has been good to me everyday (v12), she is a hard worker and she helps provide for our family (v13-15), she is prudent with her finances (v16), she is generous and has a giving heart (v20), there are a lot of great women out there...but Leigh is the best...sorry other ladies (v29), she fears the Lord and is a Godly woman (v30).

On our 8th Anniversary, I thought of 8 specific reasons I love my wife. She is:

1. Patient - Leigh may not be patient all of the time. But lets be honest, this woman has to put up with me, so you KNOW she's got some patience. (In fact, as I type this, she keeps asking me to come sit with her while she watches the Voice and I keep on putting her off because I'm working on this blog post.) So I love that my wife doesn't throw things at me when I don't come running the second she calls :) 

   

   Leigh, literally moments after giving birth...wow. October 2010.

2. Supportive - Leigh has been incredibly supportive of just about everything I've done or tried to do. You ladies don't know how important that is to a man...you really don't. There is something incredibly powerful and motivating knowing that there is a woman who loves, believes in and trusts in you. From my career, my side businesses, even going from a 240lb guy who never exercised to the personal trainer I am now...even when I want to head off to the gym with the guys almost every Saturday morning, Leigh has been supportive every step of the way. 

   

   Leigh's 30th Birthday in Antigua. February 2013

3. Selfless - Leigh has the heart of a giver...and her selfless spirit has been a positive influence to me over the years. I admire that she'll go completely out of her way for someone else, and even though at times I feel like I have to reign some of that in, I am incredibly proud that I am married to a woman who truly does put others first.

   

   After our first Tough Mudder in Georgia. March 2011.

4. Submissive - If you are one of those ladies out there who feel like the word "submissive" is a bad word...then you don't understand Biblical submission. God knew what he was doing when He told wives that they should be submissive to their husbands...and He knew what He was doing when He told husbands to love their wives. Leigh willingly follows my lead in our marriage...and I appreciate so much that I've got a wife who isn't keeping score, or is always trying to split every last thing right down the middle. It is so much easier to put your wife up on a pedestal when she isn't demanding to be put up on a pedestal :)

   

   After the RAGNAR Relay in Nashville. November 2012.

5. Hard working - Leigh has the best work ethic of anyone I know...period. This woman cares so much about doing things the right way, and she works her tail off both at work and at home. Even if it means staying up all night and working 75 hours in a week, while at the same time taking care of me and Kelsey...she'll do it. I'm so blessed to have a diligent, hard working spouse who puts so much effort into her work.

   

   DJ Leigh working hard on the turntables! April 2012.

6. Godly woman - My wife loves the Lord, and she is a BIG encouragement to me. I love that she makes her relationship with the Lord a priority, and that Kelsey sees mommy reading her Bible almost every morning. Having a spouse that helps to provide a spiritual and moral compass is a tremendous blessing to me. Simply put, Leigh makes me want to be a better Christian, husband, and father. 

   

   Notice I put this one right behind Godly woman. I hope that means she will have mercy on me for re-posting this photo from 2010 when she was pregnant with Kelsey. Hahaha...I'm going to get in trouble :)

7. Easy to look at - This one is pretty obvious...the woman is hot stuff. Yay for me!

   

   B-E-A-U-T-I-F-U-L. Sometime in 2005.

8. Intelligent - Even though Leigh knows when we disagree I'm usually right (...love you honey), she is a pretty smart cookie! It is nice to have a woman to stimulate the intellectual aspects of the relationship...and not just be a pretty thing to look at. Contrary to popular belief...guys actually do want to have a woman that they can talk to. You ladies just have to know when us guys have used up all of our words for the day :) Leigh is pretty good at figuring that out...just one more reason I love her! 

   

   Destin. October 2009.

Oh yes there are so many more reasons why I love Leigh...she is the mother of my child, and the one on the way. She is funny, caring, gives good back rubs, etc, etc, etc. I could go on and on and go way past 8...but then that would defeat the purpose of having 8 items for our 8th Anniversary now wouldn't it?

Leigh. I love you so much. God has blessed me far beyond what I deserve, and I am so great-full that He saw fit for you to be my wife. Proverbs 18:22 says "He who finds a wife finds what is good and receives favor from the Lord." I don't think the Lord will be upset with me if I say that I have found something GREAT.

Thank you for everything you are to me!
Love, your blessed husband

- Matt

How does my Calorie Cycling Plan Look?

I’ve had a boot camper ask me to post my typical calorie cycling plan, including my workouts and my food. I certainly don’t mind sharing, but there are a few important things to keep in mind when looking at my plan.

1. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK! My plan below is not a formula that fits everyone. Based upon your goals and your schedule, your plan may look completely different. You don't have to do or eat exactly what I do or eat. Additionally, I enjoy food and eat fairly liberally.
2. I am not trying to lose weight, therefore, I don’t have a daily calorie deficit and I can eat a whole lot more than someone who is trying to lose weight. My calories typically end up being neutral for the week. If YOU want to lose weight, you need to build that calorie deficit into your plan.
3. I also do Intermittent Fasting. That means every day from 8pm at night, until 12pm the next day (16 hours) I don’t eat anything. When I workout in the morning, I do consume BCAAs pre and post workout, but they are 0 calorie/carb and don’t break my fast. Therefore, when you don’t see me eating breakfast you’ll know why. If you are interested in Intermittent Fasting, go back through some of the earlier posts on my blog. That is when I was first experimenting with it and wrote more about it. For the record…I LOVE IT and it is one of the most effective body composition strategies I am aware of.
4. My goals are strictly body composition, i.e. reduce body fat and increase muscle. My training and nutrition regiment are not geared towards performance training (i.e. sports conditioning, endurance running, etc). I also don’t mind gaining a little weight, if it is the right kind of weight. So if you have performance training goals, you need a different approach.
5. I don’t do cardiovascular (cardio) exercise except for Boot Camp. That isn’t because cardio is a bad thing…but outside of Boot Camp I just personally don’t like doing it. I am not a runner…but I will run very sparingly from time to time if we have a 5k or a Tough Mudder or something that I need to train for. I’d much rather lift weights for my exercise. Once I figured out that I could get and stay lean without having to spend hours on a treadmill I dropped it from my routine. Do I think you should do that? Not necessarily. It depends upon your goals, and your interests. If you have a performance goal and/or you enjoy running…then keep doing it! There are also numerous health benefits of doing regular cardio exercise.

Hopefully the items above will help put my personal plan into context and won’t add to any confusion. My purpose in sharing this is to give you an example of how the major tenants of a calorie cycling plan might look in real application versus theory. For any nutrition approach to work for you long term, it needs to be sustainable, and you need to understand the "why" behind the strategy. Hopefully, looking at my plan and understanding my goals will be helpful.

Sunday

On Sunday, I do a heavy chest and triceps strength training workout. I typically hit the gym right after church, and then eat immediately after the workout. Here is what a typical Sunday looks like for me:

• 10:30am – Begin workout
• 12:00pm – End workout. Immediately drink a Protein & Oats shake with milk.
• 12:15pm – Eat lunch. I love breakfast foods, so I’ll probably make a stack of pancakes with butter and syrup, a ham egg (4 eggs 2 egg whites) and cheese omelet covered in salsa, and possibly some bacon if we have any. I’ll drink 2 8 oz glasses of orange-pineapple juice, and depending upon whether I’m full or not, I might add a bowl of cereal. I try to eat as much as possible for this meal. If I can fit in more food I will. Calories are my friend in this first meal. I also take my fish oil and multivitamin with this first meal. I do that everyday in my first meal, but I won't retype that for every day listed below.
• 3:00pm – Afternoon snack. I’ll typically drink a Muscle Milk and eat an apple. I become a scavenger for my snack time, so anything else that sounds good I’ll add in here like some trail mix, or some crackers and peanut butter. If we are out and about on a Sunday afternoon, I might swing by Tropical Smoothie to add some more carbs to my snack (smoothies are mostly fast absorbing carbs contained in fruit (sugar - fructose). The best time to eat this kind of carb is immediately after a workout.
• 6:30pm – Dinner. We might have spaghetti made with ground turkey meat, we might do some grilled chicken and vegetables, or some pork tenderloin and veggies...who knows.
• 7:45pm - Dessert/Protein shake. Confession. I have a sweet tooth...especially at night. If we have any tasty treats in the house, I eat them. The best way to keep me from eating something like ice cream, brownies, cookies, etc. is to just not buy them. Sometimes that is easier said than done. However, I just found some DELICIOUS Orange Creamcicle Protein, so I'll be using that to kill my sweet tooth instead of something less productive for my goals.

Monday

On Monday, I do a back and biceps strength training workout first thing in the morning. Obviously, I can't eat until 12pm so I'll take 10g BCAA's (Branched Chain Amino Acids) after my workout, and every 2 hours until I break my fast.

• 5:00am – Begin workout
• 6:15am – End workout.
• 7:00am - 10g BCAA's
• 9:00am - 10g BCAA's
• 11:00am - 10g BCAA's
• 12:00pm – Eat lunch. I will usually bring a sandwich from home. Here lately I've been doing sliced deli meat turkey with provolone cheese, light olive oil mayo, and spinach/lettuce on sourdough bread. I eat a bag of potato chips, and I'll have a protein & oats shake with milk. I might also have some trail mix to add into the meal.
• 3:30pm – Afternoon snack. I’ll typically drink a Muscle Milk and eat an apple. If I'm particularly hungry that day, I'll also add a bowl or cereal like Honey Nut Cheerios. 
• 6:30pm – Dinner. Same as Sunday.
• 7:45pm - Dessert/Protein shake. Same as Sunday.

Tuesday

Oh the dreaded low calorie, low carbohydrate day! Tuesday is a rest day for me. I do no exercise, and I try to limit my calories to about 1,200, and go as low as I can on carbs. Although I get to sleep in a little longer because I don't have to get up and hit the gym or be at Boot Camp early...I always have less energy on a low carb low calorie day. The trade off of burning lots of fat, and loading up more calories on the other days are worth it though.

• 12:00pm – Eat lunch. I will usually bring a large container of lettuce and spinach, and then pick up about 18 grilled nuggets at Chick-fil-a. I cut up the nuggets and then use a packet of Chick-fil-a sauce as my dressing. The meal fills me up, but is still low calorie, and the only meaningful carbs come from the Chick-fil-a sauce (about 6g carbs).
• 3:30pm – Muscle milk.
• 6:30pm – Dinner. Typically for dinner I'll do either a grilled chicken salad with a little bit of ranch dressing, or I'll have a large ham, egg and cheese omelet with salsa. Sometimes we'll have some other low carb options, but these two meals are my go-to meals for dinner.

Wednesday

Wednesday is very similar to Monday, except I workout with the Gray Camp in the morning from 5:30am to 6:30am. Afterwards, I lift weights from 6:30am until about 7:15am. After that, I pretty much follow the same BCAA protocol and eating regiment as I do on Mondays. I know...sounds boring right?

Thursday

Thursday is basically a carbon copy of Tuesday (low calorie/low carb) except I get up early to run Boot Camp. Thursdays seem to be even more difficult to adhere to the low calorie / low carb setup. Partly because I've been awake for longer, and partly because I'm expending at least some energy demonstrating Boot Camp exercises. Therefore, when it comes to dinner time, I really have to keep my mind right so that I don't totally blow the eating plan for the day...which has happened more than once :)

Friday

Friday is very similar to Wednesday, minus the Boot Camp workout because I'm leading it instead. Also, depending on how good of a workout I got in, I might add on an extra little 30 minute workout at lunchtime (12pm) If that is the case, I typically break my fast at about 12:45pm. Also, Friday night is usually date night for Leigh and I...whether we go out or just rent a movie. So...chances are I'm ordering pizza or something like that :)

Saturday

Saturday is my favorite day of all! I workout HEAVY legs on Saturdays. In the past I always avoided leg workouts, but I've learned to love them! They are the largest muscle group in your body, and therefore you burn the most calories, and have the potential to utilize more calories for positive growth after a leg workout. That is why I also eat more calories on a Saturday than any day of the week. Some people may consider what I do with my food on Saturday a cheat day...and that might be accurate. I eat pretty much whatever I want, and lots of it. My goal is to see if I can get up to 4,000 calories in. That doesn't happen much unless I have some seriously calorie dense foods - primarily only happens if I go out to eat for lunch and dinner.

• 10:00am – Begin workout
• 12:00pm – End workout. Immediately drink a Protein & Oats shake with milk.
• 12:15pm – Eat lunch. Often times me and some workout partners will go to IHop, or Mugshots, or somewhere to get a lot of high calorie food. The goal is to get as much carbs and protein in as possible. It is GLORIOUS!
• 3:00pm – Afternoon snack. As much as I can eat. If what I'm eating doesn't have much protein, I'll add in a muscle milk or protein shake.
• 6:30pm – Dinner. Could be anything from a nice lean piece of grilled chicken with some veggies and brown rice, to a double cheeseburger with bacon and fries.
• 7:45pm - Dessert/Protein shake.

Conclusion

So that is it...my workout and eating plan. I have to say that I have found a place of freedom in my diet where I can maintain the look that I want without obsessing over food. I used to do that...and it's not fun. Now, I get to eat basically what I want. That isn't to say I can get away with eating pizza and brownies 7 days a week...but if I want pizza and brownies on a Friday night...I do it, and I don't worry about getting fat. I still have to make good choices and I still have to trade off some uncomfortable low carb/calorie days. However, I am really enjoying where I'm at with my nutritional plan and I feel good about maintaining this strategy for quite a while.

Scripture for the day

I Corinthians 10:23 (NIV) “I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but not everything is constructive."

I was thinking about this verse in the context of our behavior as believers. Yes, there are certain things that that Bible does not directly specify as sin. In areas such as those, believers should use their conscience before God as led by the Holy Spirit within them. This may result in one believer being convicted about a behavior or action that another believer might not be convicted about. This is an area that we have freedom in Christ...in other words, not all believers will be in agreement and we can choose before God how we should behave. However, the verse above should cause us to carefully examine such a circumstance. While we have freedom in Christ...is our action/behavior beneficial or constructive? Do our actions point others to Christ? Enhance our testimony as an obedient believer? Or give God glory? Or do our actions damage our testimony? Result in hypocrisy? Or cause other believers to stumble?

Calorie Cycling for Boot Campers: How to Lose Weight and Get Cut!

I've talked to a number of boot campers lately who want to lose weight, and tone up. If that is you, then you definitely want to pay attention to this blog post…it truly is a game changer! I've posted about calorie cycling before HERE, but I’m going to gear this post more towards our boot camp group and how you can effectively implement calorie cycling to hit your goals.  Let’s first of all recap a few things:

What is calorie cycling?

Calorie cycling is a method of partitioning your calories so that on the days you do strength training (i.e. Boot Camp) you have the necessary calories and nutrients to build muscle. Essentially, you use the calories that you are eating more efficiently if you eat them in your post workout window because more of them are used for muscle repair/growth. On your rest days (days you don’t do strength training), you reduce your calories, and preferably go low carb, to burn more fat for energy. These are the days you really focus on burning fat. You heard me right…you’re going to burn fat on your rest days! Here are a few benefits to calorie cycling:

• It allows you to more comfortably create a calorie deficit for the week.
• It provides a larger fat burning window than otherwise.
• It allows you to eat more liberally on your workout days.
• It provides a change of pace from one day to the next.
• It helps you more efficiently recover from a strenuous workout.

How does it work?

Calories, and primarily carbohydrates, are the energy source for your body. When you have an excess of energy (calories) your body stores energy…primarily as adipose tissue (body fat). When you have a shortage of energy (calories), your body digs into storage (body fat) to convert it into fuel. Therefore, the rules for weight loss/gain never change. Expend more calories than you consume and you’ll lose weight. Consume more calories than you expend and you’ll gain weight. Therefore, your total caloric intake for the week should be consistent with your weight loss or weight gain goals. If you don’t know that 3,500 calories = 1lb of body weight, then you need to read my previous post on weight loss HERE.

Here are a few important rules you’ll want to follow:

• On workout days, you want to consume the majority of your calories POST workout. Ideally, immediately after your workout, but if you workout early in the morning you can consider breakfast and lunch part of your post-workout window. Your post workout meal(s) should be high in carbohydrates and protein. If possible, you want the majority of your carbs to come from starchy sources: breads, rice, potatoes, etc.
• On workout days you want to shoot for .7g to .8g of protein per pound of body weight. Therefore, if you weigh 150lbs, try to consume 100g to 120g protein. Ideally, the majority in your post-workout window.
• On rest days (non-strength training days) you want to significantly reduce your calories. You should only eat about 1/2 of your daily allowance of calories on a low calorie/carb day. Therefore, if your daily allowance is normally 2,000, then you will only eat 1,000. You should be very purposeful about the types of foods you eat and avoid any little “snacks” you don’t need. I would also suggest skipping breakfast (GASP!) and eating your first meal at lunchtime. This will help you stay low on your calories and carbs.
• On rest days you want to go LOW carb. This takes planning and even more discipline. Low carb days are miserable (for me at least…I’m hungry and tired)…and by dinner time you are craving carbs like nobody’s business…but don’t give in! A goal should be to try to keep total carb intake for the day below 40g. If you can do less than that…awesome! 
• On rest days you still want to get good sources of protein when you eat, so a grilled chicken salad, an egg omelet, or something like that is an excellent choice. Don't be concerned about how much fat is in what you are eating. Fat is ok, just avoid the carbs and stay low calorie.

Scenario #1: Boot Camper with a weight Loss Goal

Let’s say Boot Camper #1 is a female, who weighs 180lbs, works out in the Black Camp (T/Th morning) and wants to lose weight. Outside of Boot Camp she likes to run/jog 2 days a week (one more intense running day, and one light jogging day) and does the weekend challenges, mostly on Saturdays. After calculating her BMR with activity level, it is determined that if she wants to lose 1lb per week she’ll need to average eating 1,800 calories per day. With her strategy of calorie cycling, she has 3 strength training days per week (2 days Boot Camp + the challenge day), 2 cardio days per week, and 2 days with no exercise.

1. We want to start off with calculating her total caloric intake for the week: 1,800 calories x 7 days = 12,600 calories for the week.
2. Next, we’ll determine the amount of calories partitioned for low calorie days. We’ll allow only ½ of the daily allowance for low calorie days. Therefore only 900 calories per day. We’ll consider the 2 rest days (no exercise) low calorie days, and the light jogging day a low calorie day as well. Therefore 3 days x 900 calories = 2,700 calories.
3. Finally, we’ll find out how many calories we have left over to use on our workout days by subtracting the rest day calories from the weekly allowance: 12,700 – 2,700 = 9,900 calories. Then divide the remaining calories by the 4 workout days: 9,900 calories / 4 days = 2,475 calories per workout day.

So here is how this camper’s week will look:

Sunday – Intense Run Day – 2,475 calories

Monday - Rest day - 900 calories

Tuesday – Boot Camp workout day - 2,475 calories

Wednesday – Rest day - 900 calories

Thursday – Boot Camp workout day - 2,475 calories

Friday – Light Run Day - 900 calories

Saturday – weekend challenge workout day - 2,475 calories

This strategy will allow for more effective fat burning and muscle repair, while at the same time allowing for a 1lb drop in weight each week. The workout days also allow this camper to eat more calories; a comfortable 2,475 calories, versus just 1,800. The trade-off is enduring the 3 low calorie/carb days. If you ask me, the benefits definitely outweigh the uncomfortable low calorie/carb days.

Scenario #2: Boot Camper who doesn't do anything outside of Boot Camp

First of all…shame on you for not doing anything outside of Boot Camp! If you have a weight loss goal, and you are only exercising 2 days a week, then you are selling yourself short. However, you can still lose weight, you’ll just have to be really diligent with your calories. Let’s use the same camper BMR above, but due to this campers reduced activity level, they would only be able to consume 1,650 calories per day if they want to lose 1lb per week. Assuming this person also wants to eat more liberally Friday and Saturday, we’re going to give them more calories then. So here is the breakdown following the same formulas above to reach daily calorie goals:

Here is how this camper’s week will look:

Sunday – Rest day – 850 calories

Monday - Rest day - 850 calories

Tuesday – Boot Camp workout day - 2,500 calories

Wednesday – Rest day - 850 calories

Thursday – Boot Camp workout day - 2,500 calories

Friday – Rest day – 2,000 calories

Saturday – Rest day - 2,000 calories

This person will still be able to lose 1lb per week, and should still see progress on their body composition goals. However, they are unlikely to see as much fitness improvements as someone who is exercising more regularly. They also have 2 low calorie/carb days back to back...that is really hard to do. I can do one day as long as it is preceded by and followed by a high calorie day. I don't believe that I could adhere to 2 days in a row of low calories/carbs.

Questions?

I hope this short blog post makes sense and explains why calorie cycling can be so effective. I am convinced that my body composition wouldn't be where it is today without calorie cycling. If you have any questions I’d be happy to answer them. E-mail me directly or post a question in the comment box below.

Happy Cycling!

Scripture for the Day:

In a Bible study with a friend today, we had a good discussion about John 11:47-52: ⁴⁷ Therefore the chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many signs. ⁴⁸ If we let Him go on like this, all men will believe in Him, and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.” ⁴⁹ But one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said to them, “You know nothing at all, ⁵⁰ nor do you take into account that it is expedient for you that one man die for the people, and that the whole nation not perish.” ⁵¹ Now he did not say this on his own initiative, but being high priest that year, he prophesied that Jesus was going to die for the nation, ⁵² and not for the nation only, but in order that He might also gather together into one the children of God who are scattered abroad.

Caiaphas, the high priest, prophesied one of the greatest truths in all scripture, the essence of the Gospel itself, that one man (Jesus Christ) would die so that the people (all those who accept Christ as Savior) would not perish. Unfortunately for Caiaphas, he didn't believe that Jesus was who He said he was. Caiaphas was plotting with the other Pharisees to kill Jesus because He was a threat to their way of life...a threat to their power over the people. The Pharisees were a mix between a political government and a religious government. They were the leaders of the people, and if all of the Jewish people believed in Jesus and began to follow Him, the Pharisees would be obsolete, and they feared that the Romans would take over...destroying the nation of Israel. That is what Caiaphas meant when he said in verse 50 that it is expedient for one man to die for the people that the whole nation not perish...they wanted to kill Jesus so that they could keep their power. Isn't it incredible how God can use even the blindness and malicious intent of the Pharisees to reveal the truth...the perfect will of God? Wow!

Why do you have Bible verses at the end of all of your posts?

If you have read any of my blog posts since April 20^th of last year, you may have noticed that there is a Bible verse and often times a few comments about spiritual matters with each one of my blog updates. I want to re-post why and maybe elaborate on that some. This excerpt is from my post on April 20, 2012:

“My New Commitment:

While preparing for the gym this morning, I checked my Facebook feed and saw a post from my brother Steve that really hit me. It encouraged me, challenged me, and convicted me all at the same time...and it made me think about a way to focus on those things that are of most importance. I definitely believe in the importance of exercise, nutrition, and health...and I think that people who downplay the importance of these things are making excuses. However, serving my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ is of much greater importance...after all, the scripture in I Timothy 4:8 says: "for bodily discipline is only of little profit, but godliness is profitable for all things, since it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." Does that mean I should quit exercising, and eat whatever I want as long as I'm passing out tracks and doing devotionals...absolutely not! The scripture says bodily discipline is profitable in this life...but obviously not in the life to come. I firmly believe that as Christians, we should serve Christ at ALL times and in everything we do...not just when we are doing "things" that we rank higher on a spiritual chart. Godliness should be obvious in all areas of my life, and it shouldn't be something I "put on" on Sundays. I should be able to serve Christ in all areas of my life, including bodily discipline. Our bodies are a testimony to the Lord, therefore we should take care of them...but there is a line that should be drawn. If obsession with exercise or any other area of my life hinders my relationship with Christ, or damages my testimony, I need to fix that.

Ok...so I'm being a little wordy here, so it's time to get to the point. My new commitment going forward is this: every day that I update the blog, I'm also going to post a passage of scripture as well. I have no plan for which passage I'll post each day, other than not posting the "daily verse" that I get each morning on my Daily Bible App (unless it really speaks to me)...that would be lazy. I have no idea how many people are actually reading my blog, but I truly hope that this will encourage, challenge, and convict you like my brother Steve's post this morning did for me. Thanks Steve...I'm very proud of you!”

Revisiting this commitment renews the challenge of trying to keep my focus and priorities in check. It is obvious that I value health and fitness, and most people who know me can see that. But a far more important question…is it obvious to others that I am a follower of Christ? Are my actions a positive testimony that brings glory to God? Or do people look at me and see nothing different from someone who doesn't know Christ? I enjoy exercising. It has become my hobby, my stress relief, and my social time when working out with friends. I spend a lot of time doing it, and I love it. However, I am ashamed to say I don’t spend as much time as I should in prayer, reading scripture, and being singularly focused on worshiping my God and my Savior. If I’m honest with myself, can I really say that my priorities are in the right order? That is a tough question for me to consider. There is no doubt in my mind that I have not arrived, and I need to daily refocus my priorities on what matters most. Him!

One thing I believe strongly is that God uses those who want to be used for His glory…and He uses people where they are – within their circle of influence, and with the knowledge and faith that they have. If He only intended preachers and missionaries to evangelize and influence those around them, the good news wouldn't go out very far at all. If He only intended believers who have a seminary level scriptural education to disciple others...the good news wouldn't go out very far. I've been given a great opportunity through my interest in health and fitness to form relationships and impact those around me. Am I a useful tool in that regard? Do I draw others closer to Christ, or push them further away? How about you? With your co-workers, friends, workout partners, etc?

Anyway, these things have been on my mind recently, and I hope that they will challenge you as they have challenged me. I’ll sum up this post with a verse that I've posted before, but I feel like I need to be reminded of daily:

Galatians 6:14 “but may it never be that I would boast, except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” How often do I seek glory for myself and boast in my accomplishments versus giving the Glory to God? Any value in me has been given to me by God, and apart from Christ’s blood…I am worthless.

A little update

My full time job is working as a Human Resources Manager for a construction company, and we have a double-wide trailer on the property that we converted into a gym. We don't have a ton of equipment, but we've got enough weight to make for a decent workout. I decided to head down to the gym for a lunchtime workout, and had the gym to myself. You ladies may not know this...but anytime a man finds himself in a gym by himself in front of a mirror, the shirt is coming off. This is a scientific fact that is constant at all times. Contrary to popular belief, said man has no decision in the matter. If he does not remove his shirt, the shirt will literally remove itself. This phenomenon is expressed by the following mathematical equation. M x (G + Ref) - oP = M-S. Where M = man, G = gym, Ref = reflection, oP = other people, and S = shirt.

I  haven't taken any updated photos since I "hit the reset button" as described in my last post, so I decided 3 weeks is long enough to see if I've made any progress. I believe that I have, and while I haven't done an updated body composition evaluation, I'd guess I'm back down under 10% again, likely in the 9.5 to 9.75% range. I'm getting back on track to reach my goal of 8% body fat, but I need to be more consistent with my food choices. I've done relatively well, but I've still had a few unnecessary indulgences, mostly in the evenings. My pregnant wife who is wanting to eat bad food all of the time isn't helping me :)

You may ask why are all of these photos in black and white? Well...mostly because I haven't been out in the sun at all yet this year and I am extremely pale. Ah who am I kidding...I stay extremely pale all year round. Black and white photos help hide the ridiculous lack of tan that I have. Yay for genetics!

I'll probably get updated measurements in about 2 weeks. That will give me just over a month between evaluations, and I hope to see some significant body fat % reductions, and a decrease in my waist measurement.

Scripture for the Day:

^{John 10:7-10 7} So Jesus said to them again, “Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep. ⁸ All who came before Me are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not hear them. ⁹ I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he will be saved, and will go in and out and find pasture. ¹⁰ The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.

A number of years ago a preacher who came to our church was preaching in John 10, and verse 10. One of the most striking things he said, and I still have this note in my Bible today, was to "live beyond the comma" in verse 10. Jesus came that we might have life, and have it abundantly. Sometimes I get the impression that people think being a Christian is boring, or that once you become a Christian you can't have fun, have to be somber, and have to be poor. This couldn't be further from the truth. God has certainly blessed me and my family, and I have a lot of joy. That isn't to say that Christians will never face trouble, heartache, and pain. I pray that I don't have to experience those things often, but I must say that God has blessed me and many other believers I know with an "abundant" life. Ultimately, the only real joy and lasting satisfaction comes through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Temporary pleasures will fail...but peace and joy that comes with having a relationship with the God of the universe will endure in this life, and the life to come!

Time to Hit the Reset Button!

Some of you may have been aware of my little experiment where I was basically eating whatever I wanted. If you weren’t…just go read the previous post and you’ll get caught up. Anyway…the experiment is officially over with predictable results. I GOT FATTER!!!

I mean…seriously…what did I expect was going to happen? I’ve been preaching forever that you can’t out-exercise a bad diet…and I think I’ve proven that pretty clearly. So here are some additional details as well as some observations and results:

DETAILS

•  The “Experiment” was a little over 5 weeks in the making. Basically it started Feb 20^th when we left for Antigua, and my last hurrah was yesterday.
• I stayed within my eating window (12pm to 8pm), and did have 2 low carb/low calorie days a week…so basically it was just 5 days a week I ate like junk.
• Typical meals were pizza hut, wings and fries, burgers, etc. Don’t get me wrong, there were some healthy meals in there for sure, but a whole lot of junk too. I drank a lot of sodas, probably had a root beer float 10x over the last few weeks, and ate brownies and cookies quite a bit.
• I continued to work out 5 days a week.

RESULTS

• I gained a little over 1% body fat. Meaning I’m into the double digits…sitting right at about 10.7%. BOOOOOOO!!!!!
• I gained a ½ inch in my waist…and I can visibly notice that my love handles have grown. Some of the cut lines around my lower abs and oblique’s have disappeared. Overall, I’ve got a much softer and fluffier look J
• I did however get stronger! I am now squatting more and bench/dumbbell pressing more than I ever have…so that is encouraging. My arm and chest each grew ¼ inch. I was a little surprised my legs didn’t get any bigger, but at least I’m definitely getting stronger.

OBSERVATIONS

• For the IIFYM plan (see previous post) to work, you actually have to really track your macros. I didn’t do that…I just ate what I wanted. I also have a hard time believing that IIFYM is an incredibly effective way to maintain body composition if you are really taking it to the extreme.
• Energy level suffered on some workouts due to the lack of “clean fuel” I was burning. Pizza the night before didn’t really make for a strong feeling the next day…although, again, I did get stronger overall.
• Results are predictable. Eat crap, get fat.

Method to the Madness?

Now it’s time to come clean on some of my motivations for doing this experiment. I started Intermittent Fasting about a year ago. I had incredible results, moving from 11.25% body fat all the way down to 9.25% within just a few months. After seeing such great progress I started eating liberally more often…although I was still eating pretty clean the majority of the time. I ended up maintaining body fat around 9.5% for most of the year comfortably. Over the last several months, I’ve maintained the 9.5% to 9.7%, but haven’t really been able to make any progress because I kept on cheating…eating stuff I know will prevent me from getting down under 9%. However, even when I had a trip to Antigua planned, I wasn’t able to discipline myself to eating clean the few weeks leading up to the trip. I had something I call “Diet Creep.” That is when you cheat with food regularly, and all kinds of bad foods creep into your routine. I couldn’t seem to kick it…so I figured it was time to flip the switch and try something new. One of my ideas was to do this whole eat whatever I want thing and make myself sick of eating junk. Well…as I sit here today I think it worked. I am SICK AND TIRED of eating the junk…and today is the start of my attempt  to eat clean and finally hit my goal of getting down into the 8% range.

I believe that if I can maintain clean eating for the next 2 months, I’ll be able to reach my goal. I’m going to continue the Intermittent Fasting and Calorie Cycling, but I’m going to make better food choices. I will continue to keep a huge high calorie meal right after my Saturday leg workouts, but that needs to be the only time I get crazy with food. Other than that…I’m going to attempt to pass on the sweets, the sodas, etc, etc. Hopefully I’ll be able to report some good results in a few weeks! Time to hit the reset button and get to work!

Scripture for the Day:

Proverbs 31:10-12  "An excellent wife, who can find? For her worth is far above jewels. The heart of her husband trusts in her, And he will have no lack of gain. She does him good and not evil All the days of her life."

I've got an excellent wife! If you have one, praise the Lord for her! It also might not hurt to tell her that she is a Proverbs 31 wife and you appreciate and love her...just a thought :)

Experiment Time!

Ok...I'm excited about my new nutrition plan experiment...but before I go into details, I know that this is not the most efficient way to reach my goals of maintaining or decreasing my body fat %, and maintaining or increasing muscle mass...I understand that completely. However, it is going to be extremely fun and tasty! So what is this new plan???

It's called...EAT WHATEVER THE HECK I WANT!!!

Allow me to explain...it's not quite that simple.

Obviously, Intermittent Fasting, and specifically Martin Berkhan's LeanGains method of IF, is a cornerstone of the plan. That means everyday my feeding window is from 12pm to 8pm (8 hours), and my fasting window is from 8pm to 12pm the next day (16 hours). I'll be working out 5 days a week and resting 2 days. During the week, I'll workout early in the morning, and on the weekends I'll workout immediately before lunch (if possible). All workouts will be in the fasted state. Finally, I'll be calorie cycling, so I'll be eating above maintenance calories on workout days, and far below maintenance calories on resting days along with minimal carbs. For greater explanation of the calorie cycling, see my previous post about that here.

What do I hope to accomplish with this plan? First of all...I hope to have a lot of fun and freedom to eat anything that I want 5 days of the week without any guilt and without worrying if I'm going to ruin the physique that I've worked hard at building. I do hope to at least maintain my current 9.7% body fat percentage...and would be beyond thrilled if I am able to actually reduce body fat and increase muscle while eating burgers, pizza, brownies, cookies, root beer floats, sodas, etc, etc, etc. Sound far fetched? We'll certainly find out.

There is a certain thought process out there about nutrition for body composition called IIFYM. That stands for "If It Fits Your Macros." In other words, don't worry about whether carbs are fast or slow, or whether what you are about to eat is considered healthy or unhealthy. It if fits into the amount of calories, carbohydrates, protein, and fats that you are looking to intake...then go for it! Therefore, it doesn't matter if my carbs come from french fries, or brown rice...if I want carbs, I can get them in with whatever food I want. The trade off is of course those french fries are loaded with sodium, and have a whole lot more fat. It isn't really the same, but if my goal is to ingest a ton of calories and carbs to promote an anabolic (growth) state to build muscle during a post-workout feeding window...then it doesn't hurt me.

The real name of this plan ought to be...WHAT CAN I REALLY GET AWAY WITH?

So, at my last measurement, these were my numbers.

Body Composition Measurements

Weight: 189

Body Fat%: 9.72%

Abdominal Pinch: 15mm

Suprailliac Pinch: 7mm

Circumference Measurements (Inches)

Bicep: 14.5

Flexed Bicep: 16

Chest: 41.25

Waist: 35.5

Thigh: 23.5

Calf: 15.25

Most recent pic, taken after a leg workout - March 2013

Scripture for the day:

Proverbs 19:14 "House and wealth are an inheritance from fathers,
But a prudent wife is from the Lord."