A few tricks while on the road.

So I was back on the road last week.  The downside, I was off the grid outside of my handy iPhone. The upside I tried out a few new tricks for managing my project.

Soda.

I admit I haven’t been a fan of sodas for a long time, but even I get a craving every once in a while.  When I get a craving for sugar or snack I had been drinking water to suppress the urge.   So while I was out I had San Pellegrino, every time time I had a crazy craving for a soda.  I picked up a bunch when I landed in California last week and stocked the fridge of the condo I was staying in.   

Place to stay

In picking a place to stay I picked a rental condo that let me have a kitchen.  I made my own food while I was on the road and that is a big help.

Travel Scale

Last time I was on the road had real challenge. If you read my regular blog you probably know that I am a one  bag kinda traveler and traveling with a food scale is very tricky if you don’t like to check a bag.  I have a new find.  This is a salter travel scale and for 25 dollars I was able to keep on track of the diet while I was on the road.  The scale plus a simple bowl makes for easy weighing.  I highly recommend picking up one of these if you travel.

 

Other exercise

I was getting board with jumping rope this week and it was too hot for regular running outside so I found a stairwell.  I did laps running up and down the stairs.  I would run up then down and take a quick break and do it over again.  I timed them and shot to keep low times and did them for 30 mins.  There were 5 floors so it wasn’t too hard, but it was a change of pace for me.   I still did quite a few jumps this week.  

One other note.

Patrick mentioned there weren’t any pictures of me up for a while and I realized I had been loading them to my personal flickr site.  I will move them over to the PCP site later tonight.   Can’t wait to catch up on all your blogs!

Cheers!

Jeremiah

One more thing to avoid…

This popped up in my feed reader today from the Seattlest.com

Artesian gourmet ice cream; I hate being a foodie.

Good little article..

Here is a quick article on diet soda.

http://health.msn.com/nutrition/articlepage.aspx?cp-documentid=100236887

A quick follow-up thought.

Look this has been a multipart journey for me.  I am looking to make health a lifestyle, not an obligation.   If I don’t get all the results over these 90 days, I am ok.   I am training my mind and body and truthfully there are lots of ways to get results “quick”.  I don’t want quick results I want to be better and perform better.  That takes time.   It is a lifetime commitment to my health and physical fitness.  It took me a year to get in shape enough to play hockey again.  I don’t expect to be a ripped Adonis over night.  The damage took years of soda drinking to do why would the fix happen overnight.

Just saying.

J.

Day 35: Results

It seems that results are hard to come by.  I have been sticking close to my diet and only missed one exercise routine, and I have even lost a good bit of weight.  The one thing I really wanted to get out of my project is a reduction in my stomach.  And neither by measurement or visually do I feel like I am achieving much in this area. 

The reality.

I consumed far too much beer on way too regular of a basis over the last couple of years.  I consumed way too much sugar and empty carbohydrates.   I was not skinny when I started this project.  I have hid my weight well and even in my press photos and lots of my pics from at events I look healthy and not overweight.  I am being patient, because we are only on day 36 and every other part of me is reaping the benefit of this project.  My hockey performance is greatly improved and my clothes fit better than ever.  The one thing I want is to take on that belly and get rid of it.  I am pretty sure there is a six pack under there somewhere.

Shopping.

I am looking hard when I go to the grocery these days. It is getting harder to be creative, but it is still good so far.  Given that cooking is one of the ways I relax.  I am not really worried about the food.   I am always open to ideas and trying new things.   If  you have ideas for me let me know.  I have been consuming copious amounts of water and eggs.   I have a new recipe I am going to make this week with Sea Bass and baked sweet potato fries.   I will take pics and share.

Music for the week.

For weight lifting  I decided to mix up my playlist.   I even threw in some Cobra Starship because Jimmy said I should.  (I am still waiting to get recommendations from my other peers.)

Snakes On a Plane (Bring It)	Cobra Starship
The Trapeze Swinger	Iron & Wine
Lovely Day	Donavon Frankenreiter
1998 (Original Mix)	Binary Finary
Ottoman	Vampire Weekend
Shut The Club Down	Girl Talk
El Nino (Matt Darey 12" Mix)	Agnelli & Nelson
Accidentals	Stephen Trask
Silvery Sleds	Army Navy
Above You, Below Me	Badly Drawn Boy
The Chase	Stephen Trask
Good Girls Go Bad (feat. Leighton Meester)	Cobra Starship
Scandalous Scholastics	Gym Class Heroes
What It's All About	Girl Talk
Come Around (feat. Timbaland)	M.I.A.
Our Swords	Band of Horses
Riot Radio	The Dead 60s
Xavia	The Submarines
Loose Ends	Imogen Heap
Cafe Del Mar (Three 'n One Remix)	Energy 52

For jumping of the rope…

Mayday!!!	Flobots
Hostile Gospel, Pt. 1 (Deliver Us)	Talib Kweli
Amazing (feat. Young Jeezy)	Kanye West
Don't Say Nuthin'	The Roots
Come and Get Me	Timbaland
Go!	Common
Gone Going	Black Eyed Peas
Close Edge	Mos Def
Numb / Encore	Linkin Park & Jay-Z
Superstar (feat. Matthew Santos)	Lupe Fiasco
Same Thing	Flobots
Slip Out the Back	Fort Minor
Breathe	Fabolous
In the Mood (feat. Kanye West & Roy Ayers)	Talib Kweli
See You In My Nightmares (feat. Lil Wayne)	Kanye West
Boom!	The Roots
Quiet Dog	Mos Def
One and Only	Timbaland
They Say	Common
Ghetto Rock	Mos Def
Stand Up	Flobots
Cigarettes	Fort Minor

So there you go..

J.

Grape Nuts

Like everyone else I have been trying to be conscious to eat real food.  For me that does me being a little label looker. Not for nutrients but ingredients.  Looking for things where they don’t belong.   I too sense that there is very little in the way of cereal that you can consume that does not contain copious amounts of sugar in them.    So when i was walking down the grocery isle I went back to some old favorites:

Grape Nuts

They aren’t nuts and they aren’t grapes.  But I used to eat them as a part of my routine when I was a kid playing hockey.  It was the kind of meal that stuck with you even with long workouts.  There are sugars in Grape nuts but no sugar.

McCann’s Oatmeal

The stuff is awesome.  It has some much flavor you don’t need to add anything.  I love this 150 year old product.  I first bought the stuff a few years ago when I was going on a camping trip and I was attracted to the metal tin.    Again no sugar added, but lots of flavor.

Missed a workout.

Yesterday was the first day on the PCP I missed a workout.   I overslept and I only had a small window in my schedule because of an event (see pic below). 

The worst part is that I can feel it.  I love routine and the workout routine is a big part of my existence.   Tonight I have my workout scheduled and I looking forward to getting back in the saddle.   I blocked out enough time to spend some extra time on the treadmill as well.

So it is what it is but I thought I would share about falling down. 

J.