Steve Update for ….wait, what day is this?

Weight Update

Just when you thought that Steve had reached the lowest of lows…he did it again.

PEOPLE!!! If you want to lose weight, feel great and be stronger…more fit.PRIMAL BLUEPRINT is the way to go. If it is NOT your “cup of tea” you definitely need to go LOW CARB!!! Doing P90X from Beachbody hasn’t hurt me any either… :)

Why? My latest weight is 157.5 …from my highest of 235 lbs… I’ve lost 77.5 LBS!!!

Question: It’s only a pound from a couple of weeks ago….what’s the big deal?

Answer: My NEW goal was to not lose additional weight!!! I am eating all I want of good, healthy, tasty and nutritious foods….AND I STILL LOSE WEIGHT!!!
When you “live” a primal life:

· you exercise 30-60 mins, 5-6 days a week.

· Eat meats, veggies, fruits, nuts >>> Limiting processed foods.

Fitness Update

Ok Steve, you’ve lost a lot of weight….good for you…but are you fit? Are you weak from the

weight loss????

I am more fit and I am getting stronger every SINGLE week.

…yesterday I did an ALL TIME HIGH Total Consecutive Push

Ups…44!!!
… every week I see an increase of strength in some area of fitness….

I DO NOT want to lose any more weight… I do NOT…but if I continue to gain in strength every week….I am NOT worried about it.

Someone (Perry) said, “Steve why don’t you have 6-pack abs?” He said this because I completed (and still use) the P90x workouts from Beachbody. Well if you’ve read my Blog ….PERRY…you would know that I’ve stated several times that I could have lost more weight had I wanted to do so. I said that I did not want to be a 150 lb fit guy….I much prefer to be 180 lb muscular “fit guy”. But the 6 pack abs are coming….but at my pace…not Perry’s!! :)

BTW - having "6 pack abs" is a function of body fat...the lower your body fat % the more they will show.

Blood Work Re-visited

Question: Ok, Steve, we get it. You are losing weight, you are getting stonger…but what about your heart and blood, what has been the affect from your diet and exercising?

Did you see my blood work results? Below is the link to the previous post.

http://peak-fitness-now.blogspot.com/2009/09/my-story-ii.html

Results from my doctor visit/blood work.

Weight: 165 lbs (clothed with cell phone, wallet etc) --- LOST 70 lbs!
Blood Pressure: 112 / 67 (lowest ever in the doc’s office!!!!)
EKG: Perfect – yeah! :)
Blood Sugar = 85 ( remember my target!! I am truly normal!!! )
Cholesterol = 182 (below 200 is highest rating of “Desirable”)
Triglycerides = 61 ( below 150 is highest rating of “Normal”!)
HDL = 65 ( above 60 is highest rating of “protective”)
LDL = 105 (100 and below is optimum, I am “near optimum”)

So… 7 months from being an obese, sedentary garbage disposal…. I am rated highest in every category except for LDL where I am “near optimum”.

** From a review of my blood work I was told, “Steve I see no evidence of obesity nor diabetes.”

I loved hearing that….and I really love sharing it. IF YOU SUFFER from being overweight or diabetes…. PLEASE do something about it. It is a journey you WILL want to take….like all journey’s they all have a “first step”. Your “first step” can be contacting me for assistance.

BG (Blood Glucose) Update – This morning…. I read an “89”…so yes…I am sporting a NORMAL Blood Sugar reading….normal for NON-DIABETICS that is.

U-Can-TOO! Decide.Commit.Succeed

See ya!

Steve

My Story II

It has been a month since my last post… this is going to be a long one... much to tell. I've been busy and working on some projects, it was just difficult for me to find the time. I’ve been updating folks in Facebook … it is sooo much easier to post items there…if you want to stay updated in the future it would be best for you to find me at this link http://profile.to/stevecooksey/ on Facebook.

I had a “physical” a couple of weeks ago. It was what my doctor calls my “once a decade whether I need it or not Check Up”. :) Which leads me to my first point….SCHEDULE REGULAR CHECK UPS! Had I done this… I may have avoided all of my troubles…

Last week I received the results of my blood lab work. Before I made the results public, I wanted to obtain the same information from my blood reports while I was in the hospital in Feb. ’09, about 7 months earlier.

Why? You know…so I would have something to compare it to. Despite the fact that for 3 days I was a human pin cushion AND despite the high priced cost of the 3 day hospital stay….apparently the information was not recorded. The only note that was made on the reports was “cholesterol high”.

Let’s see….hmmm….I was obese, just diagnosed diabetic with high blood pressure… to me, writing “cholesterol high” really didn’t add any new information to the equation… I think “cholesterol high” given the circumstances…was a given.

The historical information was important to me on several fronts but most important to me, I wanted to be able to say definitively, “I was here, I did XYZ and now I am here… TADA!”

Unfortunately…all I can say is… “I am here….TADA!” :)

Doctor Visit / Lab Work

I was nervous and anxious heading into the visit... I had been off all meds and insulin for about 6 months...and I have drastically changed my LIFESTYLE. I had changed from a slothful, sedentary garbage disposal to an exercising, nutritious eating…person.

IMPORTANT – PLEASE read and pass this info on to known diabetics…please!

When I discharged from the hospital I stumbled about for a couple of weeks on the ADA/FDA Food Pyramid ( giving this to diabetics should be criminal, it is immoral and unethical ). My doctor referred me to the Low Glycemic Diet, in a nutshell, the diet suggests swapping higher carb foods for lower carb foods. I adhered to this diet for several weeks and saw good results as my blood sugars came down. BUT I thought…if swapping for lower was “good” …wouldn’t swapping for even lower carbs be better? …. The answer was…YES!!!

After about a month I was completely weaned off of insulin and all medications. So I thought…I was doing AWESOME!!!! WHY did I think I was doing awesome?….because everything given to me by the “medical community” said that normal fasting overnight blood sugar range is 70 – 120 and I was consistently in the 100-115 range… so I was “NORMAL” ….right?

Short answer…wrong…I’ll explain.

For months I was doing “my thing”, I was eating lean meats, veggies, nuts, beans, whole grain cereal, occasional whole grain pasta and occasional rice etc etc. Life was good. I check my blood sugar every couple of weeks, I was always in the 100-115 range.

Then in my ever continuing quest to find more and more information….I find a webpage that says this:

Normal Fasting Blood Sugar range is 70-100, a leading doctor specializing in diabetes treatment suggests a targeting blood sugar of 85, which is the average fasting blood sugar level for non-diabetics.

To make a long story short…. I confirmed this information. Oh no…it wasn’t easy…

The American Diabetes Assoc. …to put it bluntly, they really tick me off for many reasons. For one, I’ve already mentioned their food pyramid. It lists grains, breads, rice, cereal, pasta ….as the BASE!!!!...recommending 6-11 servings…TRUST ME…other than sugar…these are the LAST THINGS YOU SHOULD EAT!!!

Secondly, I had to dig and dig to find what they say the normal range is….further more… I could not find an average fasting blood sugar level for non-diabetics… DON”T YOU THINK THAT WOULD BE A NICE GOAL!!!! DON”T YOU THINK THAT IS PERTINENT INFORMATION AND SHOULD BE READILY AVAILABLE!!!

Click here to find their priorities…it’s healthcare reform petitions and donations oh...and the recipe of the day....it's sandwich.... http://www.diabetes.org

Back to the story, so now I find that I need to lower my target. The only way to do that is to lower carbs… I searched and researched looking for the perfect diet for me… I kept coming back to the Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson. He’s the owner of the website where I found “Tabata Sprints” information originally and much much more. Going "Primal" is sooo much more than a diet, it truly is a lifestyle change in every sense of the word.

To be honest, I had been transitioning and dabbling in going “primal” since sometime in June/July but I did not commit fully to it until Aug 1^st. Why? Because...much of the Primal Blueprint makes sense to everyone, things like "eat more veggies" and "avoid processed foods" etc. However, not all of the tenets of Primal living are as obvious or mainstream....but when I learned what my blood sugar level should be....I felt like I had to give Primal living a shot.

So why did I not share that information with everyone? Honestly, until I received my lab work reports back...I did not feel comfortable sharing the information fully.

I’ve been told that there is NO Evidence of Obesity nor Diabetes in my Lab Work!
(I’m still diabetic… you just can’t tell that from my labs)

Results from my visit/blood work.

Weight: 165 lbs (clothed with cell phone, wallet etc) --- LOST 70 lbs!

Blood Pressure: 112 / 67 (lowest ever in the doc’s office!!!!)

EKG: Perfect – yeah! :)

Blood Sugar = 85 ( remember my target!! I am truly normal!!! )

Cholesterol = 182 (below 200 is highest rating of “Desirable”)

Triglycerides = 61 ( below 150 is highest rating of “Normal”!)

HDL = 65 ( above 60 is highest rating of “protective”)

LDL = 105 (100 and below is optimum, I am “near optimum”)

*** Summary: I attribute my “good report” just 7 months from being an obese, sedentary garbage disposal .....to the pillars of fitness.

1) Exercise: I perform what I consider a rigorous daily exercise 45-60 minutes a day, six days a week.

2) Meal Plan: Primal Blueprint – which is essentially a low carb/low processed food diet, eating meats, fish, nuts and vegetables.

** If you want additional information...just let me know. :)

TTFN…do you speak Pooh?

Steve

Tabata Pool Party - Come on In Boys the Water is Fine

Tabata Protocol - Sprints

Why am I spending so much “ink” on this??? Because I know for many of you...

...finding time to exercise is a problem.

To remove this excuse/reason…YOU CAN UTILIZE THE TABATA PROTOCOL! And to make it even less of a strain, you can use practically any exercise to get started. Burpees and sprints are tough but you could start out with Jumping Jacks, Push Ups, Crunches, Sit Ups, Squats or Lunges….literally any exercise. Heck, if you were like me, sedentary you could start out walking briskly for 20 seconds, rest 10 secs etc. (the more muscles used the better)

We are only talking about 15-20 mins MAX per day. Only 4 mins of actual exercising per set!! Once you build up your endurance you can do 2 then 3 different exercises.

Question: Why would I perform Sprints with the Tabata Protocol?

Answer: To obtain a cardio workout, that studies show is superior to hours of jogging, in a fraction of the time. Tabata sprints improve aerobic and anaerobic fitness levels.

** You need to consult your physician before performing this workout. **

Ok, I have been “itching” to try the Tabata Protocol, last night I dipped my toe into the “Tabata Pool” and to quote, “O Brother Where Art Thou”…

“Come on in boys, the water is fine”

Maybe it’s because I am becoming a “fitness addict” ….I don’t know, but I do know I loved the workout and heck…it only lasted 15-20 minutes total, including warm up and cool down.

I have been doing some pretty intense cardio with P90X; still, I started out slow.

The Tabata Protocol –
1) 5 minutes warm up
2) 20 seconds of exercise at 100%, 10 second rest = 1 set
3) Repeat 7 more times for a total of eight sets.
4) 5 minutes of cool down

I have not run “ALL OUT”...100% in YEARS, maybe even decades. I didn’t want to start out running 100% so here’s…

Steve’s First Day Protocol -
1) 10 minute warm up – I stretched, walked and jogged.
(I made extra sure I was warmed up)

2) I started out running at an estimated 80%, doing 40 secs of running and 20 secs of rest.

The main reason I started at 80%...I wanted to make sure my legs wouldn’t fall off! LOL!

By the 4th set, I was running 100% for 20 secs and 10 secs rest. From now on, I plan on running 100% and using the stop watch on my cell phone for timing.

3) I did my 8 sets…and was “whipped” when I was done. Just an FYI….for me...by the 8th set, running at 100% isn’t very fast…LOL!

4) 5 minutes of cool down – I took Max for our usual night time walk so I cooled down for longer than 5 mins.

Primal Living

When I first heard the name Primal Living and read some of it’s ideas…I thought, this sounds really cool. At the time, I did not think I’d heard it before yet it somehow sounded familiar. I watch History and NatGeo channel so it’s possible I saw a show concerning Paleo Man that had similar topics for discussion.

But last night I was walking Max and it hit me…I had heard of the theory before. I remember watching a show discussing canine aerobic capacity …dog fitness to the layperson. :) Anyway, the expert was saying that dogs were not “wired” to run with their owners for long distances and they definitely should not be “run” while their owner rides a bike for long distances. The expert was saying that dogs were “wired” to run short distances and then rest. In other words, due to their canine evolution their bodies were designed for short runs.

In a nutshell, that is what Primal Living’s principles are all about, imitating our “wiring” when it comes to nutrition and exercise.

Note to Dog Owners: Why don’t you add a brief sprint while you walk your dog(s), tomorrow you could add two brief sprints, etc etc. It will be better for you and your dog.

** Normal Disclaimer: Please consult your doctor and your veterinarian before attempting this exercise…. I don’t want to be responsible for any dogs expiring prematurely....:)

Breakfast Idea….Chili and Eggs….yum-yum! I saw this once in a Mexican Food Restaurant…it looked good so I decided to try it….I LIKED IT! I’ve actually been eating these for awhile but forgot the mention it. I typically will fry my egg and while the egg is cooking, I warm up my “Steve’s World Greatest Quickie Chili”. Once the egg is done I lay the egg on a plate and pour the hot chili on top of the egg. Add a sprinkle of cheese…and you have a low carb, high Protein nutrient dense meal.

Note: This morning, I also added some Collard Greens, not much, but it was Xcellent!

TTFN!


Steve

You want me to live ...by a Primal Blueprint?

First a Weed Salad – Follow Up

I was out picking my greens for my weed salad….no I’m not.

Honestly, my yard is starting to look like a dessert. I don’t think it’s rained here more than once since I made the claim that I was going to eat a weed salad soon. Point being, not even the weeds are growing in my yard so I can’t comment on a weed salad because I haven’t eaten one yet.

Do you think my yard looks dry? Here’s a picture of my backyard, I was thinking of adding a sprinkler system…..

You will have to admit that eating weeds while it may not sound appetizing for cultural reasons, it does make sense. Why should we spend time, money and carbon creating poisons to kill nutritious plants. …if nothing else, you will have to admit the idea is …dare I say, “thought provoking”?

If you enjoy thought provoking websites (like mine LOL) …then you need to check out this one.

Primal Blueprint

http://www.marksdailyapple.com

It is the blog of Mark Sisson, called Mark’s Daily Apple (MDA).….TRUST ME ON THIS…if you have ANY interest in nutrition or fitness YOU MUST VIEW his blog. Everyday I read something that interests or intrigues me…you know, provokes more thoughts.

I will not attempt to explain what MDA is all about, I’d just mess it up anyway. The clips below are from MDA’s website.

What is your health philosophy?

Really, my health philosophy is surprisingly simple. I generally follow a diet based on an understanding of evolutionary science. I think it’s more important to eat, move, and live according to how humans are designed and not according to society’s artificial developments of the last 100 years. Fortunately, this regimen is not only incredibly healthy, it’s quite simple.

In a nutshell:
- fresh, organic, unprocessed food – no junk!
- daily activity – whether it’s the gym or a walk along the beach, it all counts
- plenty of quality sleep
- plenty of water, no soda or sweetened drinks
- antioxidants galore – the key to limiting stress
- a good fish-oil supplement
- essential fats, reckless amounts of vegetables, and lean, clean protein
- time for fun – don’t take anything too seriously – ethical behavior – because what goes around comes around
- taking responsibility for yourself and your life – openness to new things and ideas

** Full disclosure – Mark owns a nutritional company and he has written a book on Primal living called “The Primal Blueprint”. IF YOU BUY THEM…I don’t make a cent.

I have no business relationship with Mark…I just enjoy his site and the thoughts he provokes. I hope you will take a moment to check out his site, I think you’ll enjoy it.

http://www.marksdailyapple.com

Steve