The Boards Summer Beach Body Super Challenge: Week 2

g'em

And so another week begins...

One week down and all's good. I was travelling a lot over the weekend which disrupted my routine quite a lot, but for the most part I was able to stay on track - I did succumb to a sausage sandwich on Saturday night after being in a car for 12 hours but in my defence it was made on wholewheat pita and with no-added salt/sugar ketchup

I've lost 1.5kg in the last week and although I haven't had time to do my measurements yet my tummy is flatter and less bloated than usual so happy days.

I'll have a list of the participants ready in a wee while and will put them up in the Rules thread. I'm also re-thinking the FAQ's idea so if there's anything people want to ask then feel free and we can put the Q's and A's up as an ammendment for the Rules thread too.

justsomebloke

sex still male
age 28 -> 28
height 5'10 -> still 5'10 hopefully
weight 217lbs -> 219lbs (+2lbs)
right arm 15.2 -> 15.3 (+.1)
left arm 15.2 -> 15.3 (+.1)
left thigh 25.2 -> 25.8 (+.6)
right thigh 24.8 -> 25.8 (+.8)
waist 40 -> 39.2 (-.8) (measured around belly button)
chest 43.6 -> 43.6 (0)

Ok I never gave my goals last week but I suppose if I am going to geive my thoughts on my progression I should really give my goals or it probably just won't make sense.

So my goals for the period are to basically cut as much fat as possible while gaining some muscle mass back.

As such I had been out of the gym since Christmas eve until good Friday as I had injured myself on christmas eve so was only doing rehab stuff and then I had laser eye surgery which meant I was another 8 weeks off. The result of this time off and the period it was over meant that I had gained soem fat and lost some muscle mass.

So for the 8 week challenge I am going to use a bastardized version of the anacat diet where I will be eating big in the 3 -4 hours after a weights session for the first few weeks in the hope that muscle memory will help me gain back some of the muscle mass I had lost while still being able to cut bodyfat at the same time.

So where does this leave me after week 1, to be truthful I don't know. My first week's weight as it was, were skued due to the fact that I was bloated from water retention so my weight would of been on the slightly high side from that anyway to gain weight this week kind of surprised me. Now I do think some of the weight is water retention again due to being out on friday night and having being eating big on saturday evening but I still wasn't expecting it. However the silver lining to it is that I lost .8 of an inch around my waist and gained in size every where else so it would suggest that far from being a bad thing as it should be a lean body mass increase. I also weighted myself this morning and I down to 215.5 which is roughly where I thought I would be

g'em

By the way, one little trick you might want - if you want to see all your posts within a thread, click on the number of replies to the right hand side of the thread title in the forum; this will give a list of all respondants to the thread and by clicking on the number beside each user's name it will give you a list of all posts that user made.

ali.c

Week 1 Week 2 Changes
Weight (Kg) 73.8 73.8 0
Neck 34 34 0
Chest (1) 95 92 -3
Bicep 30 28.5 -1.5
Wrist 16.5 17 0.5
Waist (2) 93 91 -2
Hips 95 92 -3
Top of legs (3) 102 102 0
Knee (4) 45 45 0
Calf 43.5 43 -0.5

Eh wtf the weight stayed the same?? anyhow cm's are down so all good!! Wrist measurements well there is a difference between arms so i am taking them from the right arm now.

10.5 cm's down all in all not a bad first week!!

Vegeta

Down in weight by just over a kg and definite flatter stomach

Shoulder still minced so no push type exercises but still running, doing back work and squatting. Did 6 nights last week, took friday night off.

My goals were to lose bodyfat and get my cv fitness up. Coming along on both fronts so I'm still pretty motivated. Went for run in the lashing rain last night which was cold but good fun.

as I took measurements last wednesday, I should take them this wednesday to be consistent

Malteaser!

So week one down, I plan to do up my measurements later on, though tbh I'm not expecting a change - I've been eating at a maintenance level for a while now so there's no real reason for them to change from what they've been for the last few months!

I'm kind of nervous about training this week, if all goes to plan it promises to be a pretty big week though I opened my big mouth and said that yesterday and the session ended up being a disaster!! Here's hoping I'm not jinxing it again!! :rolleyes:

SMK

The first week wasn't great for me. I was away and although I did plenty of walking, my food wasn't really that good. I didn't overeat but could have eaten healthier. I also have a heavy cold/ear/throat infection so not sure if I will get to the gym for a few days but will go for walks. I lost .5kg which surprised me!!

lindak

Week two and feeling good. Week one was good I had a good diet 90 % of the time before this challenge but the last week I really stuck to no sugar or junk whatsoever so we will see what happens I will weigh and measure myself tommorrow as that is when I done it last week. Usually train 5 days per week ( 3 weight , 2 Cardio) and was thinking of taking it up to 6 days as in one more cardio day what do people think ? Or should I have more than one rest day ?

ali.c

lindak wrote: »

Week two and feeling good. Week one was good I had a good diet 90 % of the time before this challenge but the last week I really stuck to no sugar or junk whatsoever so we will see what happens I will weigh and measure myself tommorrow as that is when I done it last week. Usually train 5 days per week ( 3 weight , 2 Cardio) and was thinking of taking it up to 6 days as in one more cardio day what do people think ? Or should I have more than one rest day ?

Depends on how you define cardio, if its high intensity maybe add in a low intensity excercise instead of another high intensity one. Rest days and recovery for me anyhow is not an exact science how are you feeling? Do you feel like you could throw in another session or do you feel like you need the extra day to recover?

lindak

No I feel like I would be able for another session defo. I think best thing would be to try it anyway. Maybe half hour high intensity before work might do the trick ? I never know if i am doing it correct though. Because I literally am running as fast as I can and then slowing down to slow walk . so lets say high - 14/15mph for 45 sec and slow -5.5 - may 60 sec Now I am running as fast as i can without falling off the treadmill/ But I am able to do other cadio after it ! And I know people have described the feeling of wanting to get sick but i never feel that ! So am I doing it correctly ?

Macha

Lost 2 pounds - woohoo! From 170-168lbs.

ali.c

taconnol wrote: »

Lost 2 pounds - woohoo! From 170-168lbs.

Congrats!!

@lindak sounds like you are you i dont like the threadmill for intervals it takes to long to speed up (and slow down again) You could also cut the recovery period too if you want to increase the challenge. If your eating and sleeping well and feeling fine then I'd say you are fine to stick another session in.

Slaanesh

Haven't done any measurements, will do tonight for the first time.

Weight 84kg -> 83kg. Lost a kilo. Was a little disappointed not to see 82.* because I've been at 83kg a few weeks ago. Just gotta persevere!

lindak

@lindak sounds like you are you i dont like the threadmill for intervals it takes to long to speed up (and slow down again) You could also cut the recovery period too if you want to increase the challenge. If your eating and sleeping well and feeling fine then I'd say you are fine to stick another session in.

Yep maybe try and change it around a bit. But I think this week I will try and stick another session in.

Weight 84kg -> 83kg. Lost a kilo. Was a little disappointed not to see 82.* because I've been at 83kg a few weeks ago. Just gotta persevere! Today 11:35

I hate the scales and to be honest really prefer not to use them at all and if I have to I tend to weigh myself once a month. They are never an accurate measurment I dont think especially if you are looking to loose fat and are weight training as muscle weights heavier than fat. Measuring yourself and how you feel and look in your clothes is the best method in my opinion.

Julesie

1 Week Down.... 7 to go!!

Bit of a slow start being ill and not getting to the gym for the first few days but I'm flying now. Also diet has been very good (for me! ) still have a 100%record on the No Junk Food and No Fizzy Drinks bid.

Took another set of measurements this morning which I will post up in my log this evening. The figures seem to be down a little on last week which is good.

My weight is also down slightly from 134lbs to 132.5lbs. So happy days all round!

blah

Here goes: Male, 29, 5'9"

Measurements are in cm:
Beginning:__Week 1________Week 2
Neck________38.5___________38
Chest_________?____________93
Bicep________28____________28.5
Wrist________16.5__________16.5
Waist________90.5 (35.5”)____89 (35”)
Hips_________95____________94
Top of legs____88____________89.5
Knee________37____________37
Calf_________35.5___________35
Body weight__73kg___________72.5kg
Bodyfat______26.10%________26.10%

Weight and Bodyfat probably aren't all that accurate, but I've noticed a bit more room on my waistband so I'm happy. Stuck strictly to the diet, except for an ice cream cone on Thursday, but I did have 18 units of alcohol, all beer, I might have to try some spirits instead to cut down on the carbs. I went to the gym once, twice ran 5km and played football for 90 mins but I did miss one gym session (on Saturday, showed up too late, realised it was closed )

One thing I've noticed, I'm using fitday, and it tells me that I'm only eating around 1600 calories a day when I suppose I should be getting 2100. My usual diet would be:

Breakfast: 80g porridge made with water, 100g berries, 100ml low fat milk.
Lunch1: salad, red onion, 1 tomato, lettuce, cucumber, 100g chicken, 60g hummus
Lunch2: same as lunch 1
Brown Roll with butter before gym/football
Dinner: 200g Chicken/125g Lean beef(G'em's burger recipe) with 200g frozen vegetables
Snack: 45g raw cashews
Daily: 3/4 cups of black tea

I feel full, but fitday doesn't agree

Tiriel

Pretty happy so far - the weekend wasn't too bad! Did have my 10 units of alcohol, which I didn't mean to have.. but that's typical since I went back to Cork! Didn't have my usual pints of Guinness.. had coors light instead And went to the gym yesterday to sweat it all out

So after week 1, I feel pretty good. This week will be a struggle as I have to go to a conference for 3 days at the end of the week, meaning it'll be hard to watch my food intake and my exercise. But there is a gym/pool so I hope to be able to use those, time and work permitting.

Measurements and weight etc. will be done tonight as they were done on Monday night last week I think it'll be ok though, fingers crossed!!

Any tips on breakfasts?! Don't have a microwave and know I definitely won't be up early enough even with this new kick start to the day, to make it on the hob.. I know it only takes minutes but it just isn't realistic. Have been eating Muesli and I just don't like it!! Banana and corn cakes this morning. Advice welcome!!

lindak

Dinner: 200g Chicken/125g Lean beef(G'em's burger recipe) with 200g frozen vegetables

Hey does anyone have G'em burger recipe ??

celestial

g'em wrote: »

And so another week begins...

One week down and all's good. I was travelling a lot over the weekend which disrupted my routine quite a lot, but for the most part I was able to stay on track - I did succumb to a sausage sandwich on Saturday night after being in a car for 12 hours but in my defence it was made on wholewheat pita and with no-added salt/sugar ketchup

I've lost 1.5kg in the last week and although I haven't had time to do my measurements yet my tummy is flatter and less bloated than usual so happy days.

I'll have a list of the participants ready in a wee while and will put them up in the Rules thread. I'm also re-thinking the FAQ's idea so if there's anything people want to ask then feel free and we can put the Q's and A's up as an ammendment for the Rules thread too.

How did you measure the 1.5kg g'em? Obv you've got a nice bit of muscle so you won't be relying on scales. I ask cos I've actually no idea how many pounds of fat I've lost over the past 9 months or so - I know I've lost at least 2-3 inches from my belly but I haven't budged from 13 stone in years.

justsomebloke

celestial wrote: »

How did you measure the 1.5kg g'em? Obv you've got a nice bit of muscle so you won't be relying on scales.

I don't think she distinguished if it was strictly fat over plain body mass, so I would say that it was just a step on the scales measure. To calculate BF reduction you would have to use a reliable calipers that way you can measure you BF% by your bodyweight to find out if it is reducing*


*even at this there is a good bit of guess work as calipers measurements mightn't be wholly accurate so are better scales to monitor BF change as oppose to actual BF

blah

lindak wrote: »

Hey does anyone have G'em burger recipe ??

G'em's burgers:
500g lean mince
4 spring onions
half a carrot, grated
tbsp milled flax
tsp Worcestershire sauce
2 cloves crushed garlic
salt & pepper to taste

Mix it all in a bowl, divide into four patties, grill/ fry for 10-15 minutes until well browned on both sides.

so good...*drool*

I do mine on the George Foreman, don't have any flax though, can't find it.

Edit: I bought 500g of mince, and divided it up into 4 and froze it. So now I can defrost one during the day, takes 5 mins to prepare, 5 mins to cook, and then I'm eating.

lindak

Mmm sounds lovely think il give it a try !

blah

Oh yes, and my goals are, to be able to run 10k at the end of the challenge and to reduce my waist size to 32" and gain some upper body muscle.

g'em

Cork_girl wrote: »

Any tips on breakfasts?! Don't have a microwave and know I definitely won't be up early enough even with this new kick start to the day, to make it on the hob.. I know it only takes minutes but it just isn't realistic. Have been eating Muesli and I just don't like it!! Banana and corn cakes this morning. Advice welcome!!

Natural peanut butter on toasted rye bread? Natural yoghurt with a sprinkling of crushed nuts and some fresh fruit?

celestial wrote: »

How did you measure the 1.5kg g'em? Obv you've got a nice bit of muscle so you won't be relying on scales.

jsb wrote: »

I don't think she distinguished if it was strictly fat over plain body mass, so I would say that it was just a step on the scales measure. To calculate BF reduction you would have to use a reliable calipers that way you can measure you BF% by your bodyweight to find out if it is reducing*

Yup, just loss on the scales. The bodyfat measurements will be done tomorrow. I won't pay a huge amount of heed to weekly readings as 7 days simply isn't enough time to alter your body composition by any massively quantifiable amount. Still, it's nice to see the numebrs go in the right direction

A huge congrats to everyone who's seen results this week too - there's some phenomenal group efforts going on!!

blah wrote: »

so good...*drool*

I do mine on the George Foreman, don't have any flax though, can't find it.

Merci buckets, I'm eating one as I type! I get Linwoods milled flax from my local Centra, most big supermarkets and a half-decent health food shop should have it.

r3nu4l

Will take measurements later.

I had a great week until Saturday when I had a wedding in Ireland.

The Bad
The combination of airport/flight/car travel/ etc undid some of the work I put in, in terms of eating properly. Also, not having a choice of what I ate for the wedding dinner and at my friends house (I stayed at her parents place for the wedding) meant that diet suffered. I couldn't exactly ask her mother for a salad when she was preparing a fry for everyone:( Won't happen again!

The Good
From Monday to Friday I did well on the diet, and exercised three times (3 aerobics workouts). So now that my body is used to the idea of exercise once again, I can slowly increase the number of sessions. This week I'll be re-introducing myself to my leather skipping rope and if I manage 4 workout sessions before Saturday I can reward myself by buying some weights and incorporating a weights workout into my routine. That should stop me getting bored. Finally, I did drink less than 10 units of alcohol all week, including the wedding. That should be celebrated

As I say, I'll post measurements later. Before Friday, I was down 3 lb...I'll be lucky to break even now

Huggles

Yay I lost 3.1kgs last week (mostly water though!)

Did my measurements last Tuesday so waiting till tomorrow.

Ginny

So far
right, this week went sorta ok, I had one weak moment and had a mini Aero..:o, but otherwise diet was fine, majorly upped the fruit and veg and cut out anything bad.
I can already feel a difference in my trousers, had to grab a belt on the way out this morning.
I was walking as my exercise last week, and I'm adding the aerobics this week and possibly spinning next.

Goals
Overall my goal is to shed the remaining 2 stone I put on while sick, I've lost a stone since Oct and I'm aiming to have it lost by Sept. All in all this 8 week program will (fingers crossed) get the big campaign kicked off.

Tiriel

g'em wrote: »

Natural peanut butter on toasted rye bread? Natural yoghurt with a sprinkling of crushed nuts and some fresh fruit?

oooh thanks!! Love the peanut butter idea Will have to drop into a health shop asap!!

lindak

I am afraid of peanut butter . I love it so much I dont think I could stop myself its the same with nuts for me. Although I have been quitw good with 2 small handfuls of cashews a day for the last week. So how much peanut butter are we taking per serving and any perticluar brand someone would recommend that isnt as bad as others ?

fatal

Week two-Somehow I have survived an entire week without any chocolate or junk food.......and i'm feeling fabulous!!!!
I havent taken any measurements yet but my stomach looks slighty flatter compared to this time last week.Well done to everyone who has survived week 1 and keep up the good work folks!!!!

g'em

lindak wrote: »

I am afraid of peanut butter . I love it so much I dont think I could stop myself its the same with nuts for me.

Never, ever try cashew butter then. It's just too tasty for words.

A decent sized teaspoonful is generally what I'd consider a portion.

lindak

Never, ever try cashew butter then. It's just too tasty for words

Oh I can only imagine. I love crunchy peanut butter. I think Il put some in the shopping trolley and try and limit myself How many calories would there be in one teaspoon of peanut butter then ?

legron

Female 47
Weight 80/78 ish - needs to come down
Will measure bits tonight.

Need the "name and shame" to motivate me.
Go to gym 3 times weekly and walk most days but need to change/smarten up my routine.
Also, cut down my carbs and eat more veggies/fruit.
Know what I have to do but just not doing it!!!
Have read the rules (!!!) but will abide.

Will return with more info, etc.
Excellent thread and thanks for all the hard work done to date by G'em.

navigatoroneill

only .3 of a kg but I was sick. even still i spent hte weekend camping, cycled to work (15mile) round trip and went training twice. I think I burst my eardrum holding in a sneeze though! Seriously my hearing is definitely worse and maybe balance too. I did it two years ago with a kick to the head in training.

blah

legron wrote: »

Need the "name and shame" to motivate me.
Go to gym 3 times weekly and walk most days but need to change/smarten up my routine.
Also, cut down my carbs and eat more veggies/fruit.
Know what I have to do but just not doing it!!!
Have read the rules (!!!) but will abide.

As G'em said, diet is more than half the battle. I'm used to eating fairly healthily, but I used to always tack on a packet of doritos and big cookie/choc bar in the afternoon and late at night some roasted, salted pistachios and a few beers. That would be an extra 1000 calories. Now that I'm keeping track of my diet carefully, I'm noticing immediate improvement. Plus I've reached the point where I crave healthy food, because I need it for exercise. Weird as it sounds, I'm into carrot sticks and hummus, or a healthy smoothie. I'm like some kind of fitness nerd :eek:

justsomebloke

blah wrote: »

I'm like some kind of fitness nerd :eek:

there are no fitness nerds only fitness nazis

Micamaca

Hi folks,

will be joining you all on your quest for healthy living this week. I was explaining to G'em that I didn't see the thread in time to start with you all but better late than never.

I'm living in Germany at the moment, I'm a mature student on erasmus year in college. The problem with Germany is the lovely lovely lovely beer and actually the wine is great here too...we moved to the Wine region of Germany (didn't even know Germany had a wine region :eek:). The breads and cakes here are too good with the result that my weight hasn't gone up much but my body fat has - by a lot!!!!

I used to watch my diet a lot more carefully a few years ago. I also used to really work out 3 or 4 times a week, mainly Tae Bo with Billy Blanks and some toning exercises at home with small weights. Now I do very little so I need some motivation to get back to watching the diet (healthy eating diet) and doing some regular exercise. So here I am

So this is day one for me, I've taken measurements and well will join you in cheering each other on. It's not easy but then anything worth doing is rarely easy. This is definitely worth doing!

I think it's a great idea someone had to post up little recipes for snacks or food that help people. I'm going to try the yogurt and nuts/fruit thing for breakfast some mornings as I usually eat bread which immediately puts down roots on the hips So less bread and more fruit and veg for me too!

Keep up the excellent work and thanks to G'em for all the hard work putting this together.

ali.c

Cork_girl wrote: »

Any tips on breakfasts?! Don't have a microwave and know I definitely won't be up early enough even with this new kick start to the day, to make it on the hob.. I know it only takes minutes but it just isn't realistic. Have been eating Muesli and I just don't like it!! Banana and corn cakes this morning. Advice welcome!!

If its porridge you are refering too? if you soak it overnight it cooks alot quicker like in half the time, also you can put on at a low heat and leave while you are in the shower and then its done for when you are out of the shower, mind you dont cover the pot. The only downside is that you need to work out the timing a bit so you dont burn the pot.

You could also cook it the night before but that would be a pain in the ass cause you'd have to heat it in the pot!

Messy

Last week I did well on the food front but could have pushed myself more in the gym but I didn't want to kill myself in the first week.

Weight dropped from 82.3 kg to 82kg all othe details remained the same as last week

Measurements below

neck 16
belly button 37
bicep 13
wrist 6.5
chest 37
hips 36
top of leg 24
knee 15.5
calf 14

fatal

ali.c wrote: »

If its porridge you are refering too? if you soak it overnight it cooks alot quicker like in half the time, also you can put on at a low heat and leave while you are in the shower and then its done for when you are out of the shower, mind you dont cover the pot. The only downside is that you need to work out the timing a bit so you dont burn the pot.

You could also cook it the night before but that would be a pain in the ass cause you'd have to heat it in the pot!

I leave the porridge on the stove while im in the shower but I find that it takes forever to cool down.So,what I do is cook the porridge the night before and when it cools,put it in the fridge.The following morning add some milk and heat it on the stove or microwave until its warm.No more waiting around for it to cool:)

ponygirl

From 131 to 128 pounds, yippee. I was away all last week so I'm pretty pleased as the exercise was mainly walking and dancing and diet a bit holiyda-hit-and-miss. Week 2 time to step it up.

This thread is fab for motivation, thanks all

peterk19

ive had a chest infection all weekend so havent been doing much exercise altho i just done about 40km on the bike and coughed for about 10 minutes once i stopped, my diet has been alright all weekend was clean except for some pizza on saturday

Orlee

Right - only down a kilo this week

Really thought it would be more but i didn't have the best weekend if Im honest

Getting into the whole gym thing and trying to push myself that little bit harder each day and I think it's working. It's not as much as a chore as I had anticipated (I was a complete couch potato with absolutely no drive motivation and exercise was zip so I'm on the up and up!!!)

My goals this week are to loose at least another kilo and to plan my meals a little better - going to Tesco no for some shopping (I've had my dinner and I'm not hungry so hopefully that'll kerb the impulsive buying!)

Macha

A kilo is great Orlee! Really, losing a lot more than that is unsustainable or it's a sign that water is being lost, not body fat. Slow and steady is the key to long term healthy changes.

FunkZ

No measurments, I'll take em tomorrow ya'll!

But I've gone from 87.8kg to 86.2kg!
That's 89kg to 86.2kg in 4 weeks exactly! Fairly happy!

Vegeta

Furious with myself today :mad:

I hurt my shoulder benching last week, like 8 days ago. Didn't feel it at the time I was doing the benching but the next day it was fairly sore. A 6 out of 10 on the pain scale, too sore to bench or press anything anyway

It was improving all week and yesterday it was feeling fairly good, dumbell pressing a few kg with my arm to check for any pain and it was fine.

So last night I said I would ease it back into it with a few press ups, nothing mental

result, about an 8 out of 10 on the pain scale. Cant even lift my arm above my head now or put my jacket on without a lot of discomfort.

got me feeling fairly low and pissed off.

g'em

Veg I think it might be time to go see someone about that shoulder, it sounds like it needs some rehab work. Off with ye and don't let it mess with your head too much. Injuries suck arsicles at the best of times, but it will get better.

@ Orlee, a kilo lost is fantastic. In the first week rapid weight loss indicates nothing more than water loss - as soon as you increase your volume of food intake it would go straight back on again. Slow, sustainable weight loss is totally the way to go!

c - 13

Tonight I will be mostly doing -

Db Bench Press 1*6
Db Flies 1*6
Rest 2 Minutes
Pull-Ups 1*6
One Arm Dumbell Row 1*6
Rest 2 Minutes

Repeat all times 6

Feeling wrecked today due to lack of sleep and have DIY tonight too so the lifting may suffer as a result but i'm hoping to up the weight used by a samll amount this time around.

Tiriel

Well, after week 1 I managed to lose 1.8lbs.. which is kind of crap but I suppose small steps! I did lose 1.125" from my waist, 0.875"from my hips and 0.875" from my upper legs - so I'm happy with that! So glad I did measurements!!!

lindak

Well week two and done my measurement last night. lost 1 inch from my waist, and 0.5 from top of my legs ( I know not worth mentioning but its a loss :rolleyes:) Bit disappointed scales didnt move. But I hate the scales anyway. Just have to hold onto that I did lose inches and that the main thing ! Hit the gym this morning and done some cardio maybe get a walk in today aswell. Still have had no choc, crisps, sugary drinks actually any processed at all !

Energizer-Bunny

Week2: Just back from a 3mile powerwalk there. Did it aswell last night.
Diet has been great..no processed food, no takeways etc, no junk what so ever, and I don't miss it which is great.
Weighed myself Sunday morning as I don't have a weighing scales back in my college apartment. Was down 3/4 of a lb only. Will take measurments now. Won't be able to weigh myself next week as im not coming home at the weekend, so the weigh in at the end of wk3/start of week4 should be interesting!