July 15th - Weekly Weigh-In
"
It never gets easier; YOU only get better!
"
- Anonymous
Last Saturday,
I weighed myself as part of my weekly check-in activity to determine my weight-loss progress.
This occurred after I had already completed
- a half-mile bike ride to my favorite walking trail, a beautiful lake close to our house.
- a 4-mile power walk around the lake (more on this below)
- a 5-mile bike ride back home following another path that led me through another beautiful park & serene trail.
- a light stretching & handstand session at home
- a beautiful 3-hr time at the beach
All without eating anything until after the weigh-in.
This Week's Weight Goal
My weight goal for this week is 217.62 lbs, based on my weight-loss plan
Last Week's Weight Loss
From last week's weigh-in post, you can see that my current official weight is 217.40 lbs.
Official Weight? WTF?!
I have an official weight & an unofficial weight. My official weight is my lowest weight measured (naked in the bathroom) after
- Emptying my bowel
- Not consuming any calorie-dense item (food, snacks, coffee, etc.)
My unofficial weight typically fluctuates throughout the week about 1 - 3 lbs higher than the official weight due to food/water consumption, muscle increase after specific exercises, etc.
Athletes & sport entertainers (boxers, MMAs, etc.) all use official weight. Those who need to display a higher weight will be weighed after they've consumed calories or engaged in activities causing increase in weight; those who need to display a lower weight (probably to fall into a lower weight class) may starve themselves & be weighed in the skimpiest of clothing to have a lower weight.
Anyways,without taking more of your time, my weight this week is......
211.60 lbs!
I officially lost about 6 lbs; however, I actually lost about 8 lbs due to post-weigh-in weight increase.
My measurements were
- Body weight: 211.60 lbs
- Waist size: 39.25 inches
- Body fat percentage: 26.4%
- Body Mass Index (BMI): 29.6%
- Muscle mass: 35.7%
- Bone density: 7.7%
- Caloric maintenance: 3,112 kcal
Meaning...
Again, based on the above measurements, I'm still considered overweight since the BMI, body fat percentage, and waist size are still relatively high.
That being said, it's good progress as the numbers are reducing and I'm certainly on track to meet my weight goal by the project's deadline.
My Activities This Week
Were a lot better than last week's.
Monday
I went to the gym as expected; my exercises comprised
- Using the helix machine for 15 mins
- Stationary biking for 10 mins
- Running & walking on treadmill for 15 mins
- Three sets of pull-ups (4 - 5 pull-ups per set)
- Three sets on the rings
- Three sets of bodyweight squat (15 reps per set)
- Handstand practice
- 5 mins on the kickboxing punching bag
- 15 mins stretching and core exercises
No swimming this week as the swimming pool was unavailable.
Throughout the day, I worked on my handstand, legs stretching and bodyweight squats.
Exceeded my daily 10k-steps goal; had a little over 19k steps.
Tuesday
I woke up early
- Stretched and went for a neighborhood walk/run in the morning
- Completed 5-reps of pull-ups
- Completed some leg raise exercises
- Stretched throughout the day
- Went for a 3 - 4 mile walk with a rucksack in the evening
Exceeded my daily 10k-steps goal; had over 25k steps.
I decided to raise my daily steps goal to 15k (a stretch goal).
Wednesday
I went to the gym as expected; my exercises were similar to Monday's.
Exceeded my daily 15k-steps goal; had a little over 22k steps.
Thursday
On Thursday, I began to feel the soreness of the activities completed over the last few days. So, I mainly did a lot of stretching.
I did not meet my daily 15k-steps goal; had a little over 12k steps.
I felt a little bummed about it.
Friday
I went to the gym.
Although I repeated the exercises as on Monday, my intensity was much lower due to the soreness of my body.
My main goal was just to ensure I didn't skip the gym; mission accomplished!
Exceeded my daily 15k-steps goal; had 20k steps.
Saturday
As previously mentioned above, Saturday was quite packed.
I woke up early and biked to my favorite nearby lake (with a great view) to walk.
The Race(s)!
The plan was simple:
- Walk around the lake (a 2-mile perimeter)
- Bike through a 5-mile path/trail back home
While lacing my shoes to started my walk around the lake, an older lady passed me; I had already met her a few days earlier while I was walking slow around the lake and noticed she was power-walking.
By the time I finished lacing my shoes, she was already in the horizon, about 0.23-mile ahead of me. For some reason, I just became competitive and decided to race her.
So, I started power-walking too.
This woman was probably in her late 50s to early 60s, but I must confess, she must have been doing this for a long time.
I started chasing her down around 0.5-mile point while she maintained her own pace, oblivious to the fact that a younger man was racing her.
It took everything I got, but I didn't catch up to this lady until around 1.6-mile point of the lake; she led the race for 1+ mile.
She definitely would have won if she knew she was in a race.
After I passed her around the 1.6-mile point, I slowed down a little to catch my breath and rest; from the corner of my eye, I could see and hear the feet catching up.
So, I increased my intensity and won by a convincing lead.
Race over? Yeah right!
At the 2-mile point, I stopped to rest and drink some water. A few mins later, this lady passed me again and kept walking.
I realized that she was going for another round of power-walking; that's another 2-mile walk.
This woman's pace didn't increase or decrease; she just maintained the same speed. She must have been doing it for a long time!
By the time I finished my task, she was already at the 0.2-mile point again; I decided to go for another race!
This time, I realize that I didn't have enough stamina to win this race via a power-walk alone.
So, I decided to combine power-walking with running.
And so, it began!
I power-walked and jogged and this time, I caught her before she arrived at the 1-mile point.
I continued power-walking and jogging and of course, it was no longer a contest as the result was obvious.
Race Conclusion
I inadventently completed a 4-mile walk because I decided to compete with someone.
I won the races, but my energy level was drained and my body felt it over the subsequent hours after the races.
Conclusion
Weight-loss wise, this week was very productive for me;
- I bought a weight scale for better accurate measurement
- I increased my daily steps goal
- I increased my activity level
And as you'll read later, I
- attended a gymnastics session on the same Saturday
- completed a 6-mile walk in another race the very next day.