And the Wednesday Blog moves to Thursday...

Yep, in keeping with the week's theme of blogging a day late (and being far more than a dollar short), I bring to you the special Thursday edition of my Wednesday blog.

Same story -- busy with work, with writing, with working out, and next thing I know the clock's on the upward swing toward 1 a.m., so I didn't manage to get back online for my blog last night. I do PLAN to blog again tonight, but here's the quick scoop on how Wednesday went.

The workout today was particularly challenging. You know how some days you just have it, and some days you don't? Well, this felt like a "don't" day. I did increase my weight and reps some during the chest workout, but really seemed to run out of gas about the time I hit shoulders, so the rest of the night was a struggle, and I even fell off a bit on the weight or reps.

Workout
Chest, shoulders, triceps

Chest
Flat bench press
135 pounds -- 10 reps
185 pounds -- 8 reps
225 pounds -- 6 reps (yeah! My first time back to 225 pounds in a good, long time!)
210 pounds -- 8 reps
200 pounds -- 8 reps

Incline barbell press
135 pounds -- 8 reps
145 pounds -- 6 reps

Flat bench dumbbell chest flys
40 pounds, 2 sets, 10 reps first, 12 reps second

Shoulders
Seated Barbell Overhead press
95 pounds -- 8 reps
105 pounds -- 8 reps

Seated machine side raises
110 pounds -- 10 reps 1 set, 8 reps second set

Seated Rear Deltoid Flys
125 pounds -- 2 set, 10 reps each

Triceps
Tricep pressdown
160 pounds -- 10 reps
150 pounds -- 10 reps

Seated machine tricep dips
255 pounds -- 15 reps

And that's about it for Wednesday. Thanks for stopping by, and check back in later for the actual Thursday blog on Thursday. I'll get it done...really...I think...most likely...

Eventually, Even Mr. Miyagi Agreed...The Belt DOES Matter

Some of you may remember how I took issue with Mr. Miyagi in an earlier post, explaining that the belt does matter, even though he said it didn't (See Mr. Miyagi was wrong -- it IS all about the belt).

Eventually, though, the wise old Mr. Miyagi even came to understand there are times when it's all about the belt, as illustrated in today's video.

What's that got to do with me, other than demonstrating I may have an unhealthy obsession with 80s movies?

Well, I'm hear to talk again about the belt. In that earlier post, you may recall, I was happy because I was able to squeeze (and I do mean SQUEEZE) into my belt, on the first hole. It had been several weeks since I could even wear a belt, so getting it around me and buckling it -- not matter how hard it was -- was a major achievement.

Today I notched that same belt on the second hole -- and comfortably, too. I'm down to the second hole!

Sometimes, when you're trying to lose weight, a scale can be a poor indicator of your progress. I do my weigh-ins first thing out of bed in the morning, presumably meaning day-to-day comparisons should have some validity. Still, all sorts of factors can throw those day-to-day checks. If I eat too late the night before, if I'm retaining a little more fluid one day -- there are all sorts of factors that can throw the weigh-in off a bit. In my case, even though this is Wednesday, I still have the effects of Sunday's off-day (and the unplanned off-night the evening before).

So yeah, when I stepped on the scales this morning, I wasn't all that happy.

And seeing your weight fluctuate the wrong direction can be a diet-killer. You think, "Heck, all that work, all that dieting, for THIS? Why bother," then you go off and eat a half-dozen tacos.

There's a better way -- while the scale might not always be the best indicator of how you're doing, the measuring tape doesn't lie. If you're losing inches, you're losing fat. And even without an official measuring day, the one quick indicator of how you're doing is the lowly BELT.

So when I slipped into the second hole -- comfortably -- I didn't much care what the scale said, I knew I was still doing right. The Belt always tells the truth!

Now for my workout and food for the day.

Workout
Weight training, chest, shoulders and triceps

Chest
Dumbbell Bench Press
55-pound dumbbells, 1 set, 10 reps
85-pound dumbbells, 3 sets, 8 reps each
85-pound dumbbells, 1 sex 6 reps

Incline Barbell Press
115 pounds, 2 sets, 8 reps each

Flat-bench Dumbbell Flyes
40-pounds, 2 sets, 8 reps each

Shoulders
Seated Barbell Press
95 pounds, 1 set, 8 reps
115 pounds, 1 set, 8 reps

Machine Lateral Raises
105 pounds, 2 sets, 10 reps

Rear Deltoid Machine Flyes
125 pounds, 2 sets, 10 reps each

Triceps
Lying Curl Bar Extensions (also known as nose breaks if you don't do them correctly)
50 pounds, 1 set, 10 reps
60 pounds, 1 set, 8 reps

Cable press down
150 pounds, 2 sets, 10 reps

Abs
Seated Machine Crunch
110 pounds, 1 set, 15 reps
110 pounds, 1 set, 10 reps

Now, for the food component of my new healthy plan.

Breakfast
Eggs (1 whole, 2 whites)
Mushrooms

Lunch
Denver steak -- 5 ounces
Mixed veggies -- 2/3 cup

Snack
Salad (lettuce, boiled egg, tomatoes/carrots/mushroom)
Dressing

First Dinner
Boiled chicken breast -- 4 ounces
Mozzarella cheese -- 1/4 cup

Second Dinner
Chicken Fajitas (No, NOT the fajita mixture I mentioned last week, the really BAD-for me stuff) These consisted of a total of four ounces of chicken breast, onions, peppers and salsa, along with a little bit of mozzarella cheese on two whole-wheat tortillas.

Snack
More fajitas mixture (2.5 ounces chicken, onions, peppers, salsa, mozzarella), but NO tortilla.

Total for the day

1,415 calories
57 grams of fat (a little high)
155 grams protein

Water -- 75 ounces
diet soda -- 24 ounces

Well, folks, that's it for the day. Later this week I'll do an official weigh-in/measurement, and maybe talk a little about some of the changes I'm seeing and feeling as I move toward the fourth full week of this!

Thanks for stopping by.

Ack! The LATE Day 10 Report (Okay, This Is Day 11, But I Won't Tell If You Don't)

Well, I missed getting my daily report out yesterday -- though it was NOT because I had a bad day. Just really, really long. Watching basketball really takes it out of you!

Seriously, I just didn't get the blog done until really late, and I figured all of my fans would be long-gone to bed, so I thought maybe I should wait until today to post Friday's news.

Anyway, Friday was a good day -- at home on a basketball-watching vacation day again, so the routine was a little off, but all was good. Since I'm posting a day late, I'll just give you a quick rundown,

Workout -- weight training
Chest, shoulders and triceps

Chest
Barbell bench press
135 pounds, 1 set of 10 reps
185 pounds, 4 sets of 8 reps each

Incline barbell bench press
115 pounds, 1 set of 10 reps

Machine seated chest flyes
115 pounds, 2 sets 12 reps each

Shoulders
Seats Barbell Press
65 pounds, 1 set 10 reps
105 pounds, 1 set 8 reps

Seated Side Raise (machine)
95 pounds
2 sets, 10 reps each

Triceps
Tricep pressodwn
150 pounds, 2 sets 12 reps each
150 pounds, 1 set 10 reps

Abs
Seated Crunches in the ab machine
95 pounds, 2 sets, 15 reps each

Now, for my food

Breakfast
Greek Yogurt

Lunch
Lean Pork Chop -- 6.25 ounces
Bake potato -- 7 ounces
Diet Butter

Snack
Boiled chicken breast -- 4 ounces
Mozz cheese -- 1/4 cup

Dinner
Chili Verde (I told you there was a lot left over!)
Mozz Cheese -- 1/3 cup
Corn torilla wraps --2 of them

Snack
Granola Cereal - 3/4 cup
Almond Milk -- 1 cup

Total for the Day
1,445 calories
48 grams fat
139 grams protein