I am the Egg McMuffin of Drip-Sexy!

Yesterday, I visited with Team-Quilici in Burbank for the first time since September 29.  I weighted in at 195 pounds last time.  This time I weighed in at 183.  My blood pressure was a cool 110 over 62.  My heart rate was clocked at 55 bpm.

I met with Dr. McVay, who took care of me in the hospital after surgery, and she seemed genuinely stunned by my progress.  Of course, I was wearing one of my signature skin-tight Under Armour turtle neck shirts that paints my progress in bold relief.  There was no faking or mistaking that look on her face.  It was an irritated expression that said "Excuse me, where is my patient?  Who the hell are you?"

I am your patient.  

That was when the stunned reaction occurred.  I can't blame her for being stunned.  Just since 5/13/2011, I have lost some 38 liters of body volume.  If I asked you to carry 38 liters of Pepsi to the car, you couldn't carry it all in one haul.  Could you carry 19 x 2 liter bottles in one haul?  That's not the total volume either.  That's only a partial figure.

She loved the Bod Pod progress charts I showed her.  She was amazed that I have been officially classified as a member of the healthy group.  She totally understood what a bastard the Bod Pod test is... probably better than you and I do.

She went through the scripted questions to see if there have been any emerging complications.  A funny moment occurred when she hit this scripted question:  Are you having any problems keeping the weight off? She realized I was 12 pounds down from the last visit and 1.4 pounds down from the Bod Pod test last Friday just as I said "I'm still going down."

I've done so well that Dr. McVay has officially released me from the program for a year.  I am not supposed to go back and see them again until 1/14/2013... if our human civilization should happen to make it that far.

Not only that, but this morning my weight was back down to 181.4.  I don't know what happened to that 1.6 pounds over night, but it vanished.  I didn't do much last night outside of watching a brutal BCS Championship game.   "I'm still going down."

I think it is safe to say that I have exceeded there wildest expectations, but I am not going to stop here.  I'm going on.

Tonight, I entered a new phase of training.  I added the Rack to my workout.  Contrary to the hype, the Rack is not a Panacea, but it is an excellent way to work your core, and add a few body weight exercises to the regime.  I took it with me to the gym tonight, and I integrated the Ab Crawl, Bicycle kick, bar dips, an frog kicks (ne crunches) into the workout.  The Ab Crawl is a bitch.  The Bicycle Kick is worse.

I did a quick circuit routine that included all of the following exercises:

1. Halo
2. Swing
3. Sumo Chin
4. Bar Dips
5. Bicycle Kicks
6. Pull ups
7. Ab Crawl

I repeated that circuit 5 times with each of the following kettlebells:  12kg, 16kg, 20kg, 24kg, 60 pounds.  The whole workout took only about 40 minutes, including setup.  I was so busted after the final circuit with 60 pounds, I could not perform the Turkish Get Up correctly.  I lost control and flopped over as I was getting up.  I took that as a warning that I was courting an injury, so I stopped.

At first, I was displeased with the workout.  As I drove home, I changed my mind.  I realized that this was a very CrossFit workout.  I feel pretty dang worked at this point.  I am going to sleep well tonight.  I think I was very successful.  

Bod Pod XV: I am now officially a member of the healthy class

It's been quite some time since Bod-Pod XIV:  49 days to be precise.  November 18, 2011 was the last time I stepped into the Bod Pod naked.  As a consequence of physical injury, exhaustion, the holiday season, and a need to spend money elsewhere, I decided to shutdown the Bod Pod testing for a little while.

That time is now over.  Back to work.

I am generally pleased with my latest results.  I didn't make massive progress, but I made important progress.  A major milestone has fallen:  The Bod-Pod software now rates me as member of the healthy category, rather than a  member of the moderate risk category.

The facts of the case of are these:

1. My body weight decreased from 186.898 to 184.754, a net reduction of 2.144 pounds
2. My body fat decreased from 40.180 pounds to 35.266 pounds, a net reduction of 4.914 pounds
3. My body lean increased from 146.718 to 149.488, an increase of 2.77 pounds.
4. My Body Fat Percentage (BFP) is now 19.1%
5. My Body Lean Percentage (BLP) is now 80.9%
6. My body volume decreased from 80.731 liters to 79.416 liters, a loss of 1.315 liters.
7. As I mentioned before on this blog, any BFP between 15% and 20% is considered a healthy BFP.  19.1% qualifies me as a member of the healthy class.

Now it is time to mount the assault on the 15% barrier.  This next barrier will put me in the officially athletic category.  It is a mark of excellence for a 45 year old man to be ranked as officially athletic by a 100% pure bastard of a testing tool like the Bod Pod.  I want that distinction.  I want them to pin that medal on my chest.

Just to give you an idea of how difficult it is to move the BFP needle downward, consider the following facts.  When I began testing on 5/13/2011, I had 114.09 pounds of fat hanging from my frame.  Today, I have only 35.266 pounds of fat clinging to my frame.  That is a loss of 78.824 pounds of fat.  I lost 69.01% of my total stock of body fat.  At the same time, I only succeeded in moving my BFP from 44.1% down to 19.1%.  I only reduced my body BFP 25%.

Doesn't seem fair, does it?  That just doesn't seem right.  How can a guy lose 69.01% of his body fat and only move his BFP downward 25%?  This even more problematic when you stop to think that I increased my lean mass 4.928 pounds during that period.

Nevertheless, both of these statements are mathematically true by definition.  I lost 69.01% of my total stock of body fat, and it was only sufficient to move my BFP down 25%.  I think this is the best possible illustration of what a bitch the Bod Pod test really is.  This machine is pretty hard to impress.

I am under no misapprehensions about how easy the next barrier (15%) is going to be to breach.  I know it will be hard.  The further I go towards perfection, the more elusive it gets, the more effort it takes, and the more time it takes.

Once more unto the breach, dear friends, once more!  Cry "Havoc!" and let slip the dogs of war!

In order to breach this next barrier, I am seriously considering taking the CrossFit Paeleo challenge.  You can read about it here and here.  This is all the rage in the CrossFit movement.  I have read pretty outlandish claims for this diet & training regime.  Just this month, the print magazine Fitness-RX pretty much guaranteed a loss of 10 pounds of pure fat and the addition of 10 pounds of lean in just 30 days, if the program is executed correctly.

Now, I have lost more than 10 pounds of pure fat in a single month.  I have done this many times.  During the high-tides of summer 2011, I lost about 12 pounds of pure fat each month, every month, month after month.  I have the Bod Pod records to prove it.  However, I never succeeded in adding 10 pounds of pure lean in any month during this phase of the game.

Many experts will tell you it is damn near impossible to lose fat and gain lean simultaneously.  Believe me, I know it.  My Bod Pod records will show you that I have lost fat and gained lean simultaneously, once or twice, only to see my lean gains evaporate into thin air under the pressure of further weight loss.

Still, I am going to give this a try.  If I succeed, my body weight will remain 184.754 pounds in 30 days, however, I will have only 25.266 pounds of body fat left, and my lean weight will be 159.488 pounds.  This will move my BFP all the way down to 13.675481992270803338493347911277%.  How about that precision?

The Girevik is getting strong

Happy New Years to y'all out there.  Just a couple of quick notes before I get out there to see what's going on in Woodland Hills tonight.

1. I'm holding pretty steady at 183-184 pounds.  I was one of the few people in America who weighed in 2 pounds lower on December 26.  I was 185.4 on Dec 23 and 183 on Dec 26.  I took no Sauna during that time.  Further, I took my Kettlebells with me to Fresno, and I used them plenty in my Dad's living room.  This all bodes extremely well for the New Year's Bod Pod.
2. There will be a New Year's Bod Pod event on Jan 6th.  It's been quite awhile since the last Bod Pod, and it is time for me to see where I stand.  I think it is going to be quite positive.
3. The Kettlebell training is going extremely well, and I am improving greatly.  I just had to purchase a 60 pound Kettlebell today because the 24 KG (53 pound) bell at my gym (Woodland Hills Athletic Club) is just too easy.  After swinging that bitch 25 time and Sumo-Chinning it another 21, I realized I was going to need a heavier bell.
4. I was able to do the Halo with the 60 pound ball 5 times in one direction and 5 times in the reverse.  That is pretty good for day 1.  Not a lot of Gireviks are willing to Halo a 60 pound kettlebell.  This is hot.  It's manly.
5. I was able to swing that 60 pounder for 3 sets of 15 reps.
6. I also did Sumo Chins with the 60 pounder, nailing sets of 15, 12 and 10 reps.
7. I am sure I can Swing and Sumo Chin a 70 pounder already.  I did it over at Busy Body's home fitness.  Next week, I will buy the 70 pounder.  Not many Gireviks are willing to work with the 70 pound cannon ball.  I'm hot.  I'm manly.
8. I discovered the glories of the Hexagonal Deadlift bar this week.  I read a piece in Fitness-RX [that quoted results from a UCLA Medical research study on the subject of the Hexagonal Deadlift bar] which turned me on to this subject.  The study reported that the Hexagonal Bar immediately improves form, reduces unhealthy stress on the spin, increases lift leverage of the athlete, increases training weights, and generates both more rapid and consistent gains in strength and mass.
9. Using the Hex bar, I deadlifted 270 pounds for 5 reps last Thursday.  I will do more Monday.
10. I now routinely work with 6 x 45 pound plates on the decline press.
11. I am now doing the clean and press exercise with the 40 pound Kettlebell.  I go all the way from the floor to the sky in two steps: Clean then press.  

And now for the dark side of the force.  I don't think my Carpal Tunnel is getting better.  It is getting worse.  Numbness is waking me up early in the morning, but it feels more like pain than numbness.  I wake up with pain in my hands despite the fact that I am wearing the cock-splints.  The inflammation is so bad it is visible.  I am forced to dunk my hands in a mixing bowl full of ice water to bring the inflammation under control.

I'm not to worried about the surgery, because I always believed a surgery was going to be necessary anyhow.  This kind of thing doesn't get better without surgery.  Once the doc fixes me, I'll shut it down for a bit.  Right now, I am concentrating on increasing my raw brute strength just as much as possible.

This is the price we pay.  Being this sexy is hard work.

182.4... Holy crap!

The score a few moments ago was 182.4 on the Tanita bathroom scale.  Of course, this means my actual weight would be lower, according to the Bod Pod.  Probably somewhere in the 181.6 zone...

...and I am not even trying!  Holy crap!

I must have shook something loose.  I was not expecting anymore periods of significant weight loss after a brick solid month of stability.  However, something began to shift a few days ago.  I am not sure how or why.  Here are few ideas:

1. Beans:  I've already explained how I've added beans to my diet, but I sure didn't eat any yesterday.
2. Prolonged cortisol secretion:  There is a stress hormone called cortisol produced by the adrenal glands.  It has many functions related to restoring homeostasis when your body is under high metabolic stress.  High metabolic stress includes surgery, trauma, and nutritional stress.  If this goes on too long, the body can cling tenaciously to it's fat reserves.  You weight loss will stop.  Cortisol levels must be reduced for fat loss to resume.  I may have broken through this barrier.
3. Kettlebells and 5/3/1 barbells:  I've already described how I have modified my workout to focus on strength training over aerobics.  This may be having some interesting and unexpected effects.

In any case, I think it is time to schedule a new appointment for the Bod Pod.  I should have a look at my body composition.

Bod Pod XIV: Dreadful

So the results of Bod Pod XIV are in and they are dreadful.  Why are they dreadful?  Because I lost more lean weight than fat weight over the past three weeks, that's why.  I can't view that as anything other than a terrible results.  Without further ado, here is the summary grid showing my key changes over the past 21 days.

	10/28/2011	11/18/2011	Diff
BFP	22.8	21.5	-1.3
Fat Weight	44.56	40.18	-4.38
Lean Weight	151.14	146.718	-4.422
Total Weight	195.7	186.898	-8.802
Volume	84.781	80.731	-4.05

Just to summarize that in English, here are the bullet points.

1. My body fat percentage decreased 1.3%, which is good, but my BFP remains at 21.5% which is not healthy.  I am still more than 1.5% away from moving the check-box, and I remain 4.5% away from the ultimate goal. 
2. My fat weight reduced 4.38 pounds, which is a paltry average of 0.2 pounds per day.
3. My lean weight diminished 4.422 pounds, which constitutes a larger average of 0.211 pounds per day.
4. My total weight decreased 8.802 pounds, but most of it was bad loss.
5. My body volume decreased 4.05 liters from 84.781 liters to 80.731 liters.

Naturally, anytime you are losing lean faster than fat, you are clearly doing something wrong.  Now, I have been dealing with a shoulder injury that has kept me out of the CrossFit gym for the past 7 days.  This does not mean I have ceased my workouts.  I have continued with the ROM and the Kettlebells, and a few aerobic workouts.

I am hard-pressed to explain how my lean weight could have diminished this way at time when Kettlebell & ROM overload should be providing the stimulus necessary to make Trifecta do it's thing.  Understand I am also under the influence of a pro-hormone stack.  I should be building lean right now.

Perhaps, I am just not eating enough.  Perhaps the solution is more food, not less.

The only really positive note in this report is that my total body volume has reduced to 80.731 liters.  When I began testing in May, my body volume was 117.111 liters.  This means my volume has decreased some 36.38 liters.  That is equal to 9.61 gallons of loss.  Think of nine and a half big milk bottles coming out from under my skin and vanishing.  That's pretty impressive.

185.0 exactly, with Bod Pod XIV on the horizon

So the score this morning was 185.0 English pounds on the Tanita bathroom scale.  Tomorrow is the big day of Bod Pod XIV.  I am anticipating a weigh-in of 184.15 on the Bod Pod due to the inaccuracies & short comings of the Tanita.  The Bod Pod is always lighter.

Three weeks ago, the Bod Pod placed me at 195.7.  If everything goes as expected, I will have lost some 11.55 pounds of gross body weight since that time.  That constitutes an astounding 3.85 pounds of loss per week over the course of the past three weeks.  I thought the hay-days of 3.5 pound fat weight losses were gone forever.  This was just a phenomenon of one good summer, never to be replicated again.  

Nope!  Everything old is new again.  I credit CrossFit, and more importantly, the Kettlebells for getting the cannon balls rolling again.  This new training method is truly astounding.  I just wish I wasn't a pile of training injuries because of it.

We have yet to see how all of these facts and figures plays out in the fat/lean ratio, but hopefully, there will be a big improvement.

This could be the week where the check-box moves to the "Healthy" zone.  I just might be under 20% body fat this time.  Frankly, I should be.  Last time around, I tallied over 151 pounds of lean mass.  If I have simply maintained that much muscle, I should have only 33.15 pounds of fat left on my frame.  33.15 / 184.15 = 18.0016%.  18 < 20, and that moves the check-box to the healthy zone.

187.2 and the week without a Bod Pod

The score a few moments ago was 187.2 English pounds on the Tanita scale.  The digital read-out wavered between 187.0 and 187.2 several times before rounding up, as it always does.  Let's presume that I am 187.1, and the 2/10ths digital display simply cannot indicate that fact.

The Bod Pod would place me somewhere 186.2-186.25 this morning.  That is without any special prep.  I did not do an extensive areobic workout last night.  I did not do 30 minutes in the saunas at 24 Hour Fitness.  I did not purge my intestines with Magnesium Citrate.   An official prep for the Bod Pod would put me lower this morning.

I mention all this, because this is the end of another two week Bod Pod cycle, and I have officially missed the test.  It was a tough week of finishing Jury Duty and trying to catch up at work after 8 days out of the office.  I never found a spare moment between 9:00am and 5:00pm to call the California Health and Longevity Institute to make an appointment.

I mention all of this because two weeks ago, my body weight was 195.7 pounds on the Bod Pod scale. The indication is that I have lost some 9.45 pounds in the past two weeks.  This is shocking.  When last I blogged on this subject, we were speaking of the point of inflection.  We were speaking of that moment when my body weight would cease decreasing, and begin increasing... hopefully with lean-mass only.  Low-and-behold:  we have a massive 9.45 pound decrease in gross body weight at the end of this cycle.

God only knows what this did to my Body Fat Percentage (BFP).  I wish I knew.  I bitterly regret not having a test this week.  It might have been a dandy. Presuming that this was all fat weight, my body fat would have dropped from 44.56 pounds to 35.11 pounds.  35.11 / 186.25 = 18.85%.  This is astounding.  I might actually have moved the check-box to Healthy territory, and I might be just 1.85% away from my final and ultimate medical goal.

This is all the more shocking because I have largely abandoned the aerobics machines that have brought be most of the distance.  I only walked on the tread mill once last week.  I only got on the bike twice last week.  I only got on the Elliptical Cross-Trainer once last week.  I only did the Olympic Rowing Machine twice last week.

To make matters more interesting, I did ZERO CrossFit workouts last week.  Now why the limited amount of work?  Because I encountered a substantial training injury to my right shoulder doing head-stand push-ups last Saturday at the CrossFit gym.

I did train last week.  I did a dumbbell workout with Aaron on Thursday, and I did a killer WOD routine here at the apartment with my ROM machine and some Kettlebells that I have recently purchased.  Those were brutal workouts.  My heart rate went over 170 during the Kettlebell swing, I am sure.

I am going to add one more piece of complexity to the picture for you:  I have fallen in love with the Del Taco Macho Bacon and Egg Burrito all over again.  According to one source, this burrito contains approximately 1,030 kcal per shot.  That's a load of kcal energy, buddy.

Yet at the same time all of this has been going on, I know my strength has been increasing.  I am officially swinging, cleaning, and rowing the 20 KG kettlebell, doing orbits with 16 kg, and doing the Turkish Get Up with the 8 KG bell.

The Kettlebell has become my new obsession, and a powerful one at that.  If you were to read Enter the Kettlebell! by Pavel Tsatsouline (an August 23, 1969 Virgo guy from Russia) you will find that a simple regime consisting of 5 minutes of Kettlebell Swings and 5 minutes of Turkish Get Ups done once every other day is all he recommends for a beginner.  Don't count reps, go for 5 solid minutes with good form.  He claims that is enough to get your strength moving northward and your body fat moving southward.

Evidently, the Kettlebell Swing and the TGU are the two master exercises in the Kettlebell regime.  They are just as important in Kettlebell training as the Deadlift and Squat are in the Powerlifter's regime.  These are the two exercises a Kettlebell student must master and perform all the time.

Further, this two exercise regime will trigger plenty of fat loss without "the dishonor" of aerobic exercise.  Pavel is very derisive of those metro-sexual machines.  Men should be playing with cannonballs, not girly bikes and treadmills.  The comrade-ladies should also be using Kettlebells to meet their fitness needs.

It sounds preposterous, I know.  That just can't be enough work to get the job done.  However, in this week of recovery from injury, I seem to have inadvertently proven his point.  Now, I did more than that.  There were other Kettlebell exercises.  Further, there was the good 'ole ROM machine.  However, the Kettlebells in my living room were the big, big, big change item.
I am in love with Kettlebells!

189.4 and I feel cold

So it's a bit late for this sort of entry, but the score this morning was 189.4.  It would seem that I am now officially below the 190 point, and it looks like this is gonna stick.  If it does, this will constitute the lowest fixed weight of my adult life.

CrossFit is having an impact.  I nailed a CrossFit workout on 6 of the 7 days of this past week.  I kicked it off with the Dark Horse CrossFit group on Sunday hit four in a row on Wednesday.

On Thursday, recovery from Diarrhea and my evening attempt to get out of jury duty caused me to miss both the 4:30pm and 5:30pm classes.  I did an old-fashioned bike/elliptical workout for 45 minutes, netting 617 kcal, so Thursday was not a day of rest.

I went straight back to work on Friday 5:30pm, nailing my best workout of the week.  I was back in the gym 14 hours later for the 9:30am class this morning.  Unfortunately, today's workout was the worst of the week.  My own personal jump rope snapped on the first exercise of the "Buy-In" phase.  This was an ill-omen.  In the workout phase, we attempted to perform hand-stand push-ups.  This advanced calisthenic was categorically out of the question.  It killed my right shoulder.  I might need Dr. Bachner to O-Scope my shoulder before I can do a workout like that.

Easy come, easy go.  You win some and you lose some.  This morning's travesty was one bad workout among many good ones.

The upshot is complicated:

1. I am working out a lot less than in past months.  The clock-time of the WOD seldom exceeds 20 minutes, and is often less.
2. The intensity of that workout is vastly higher than in past months.  A typical WOD is more intense than even a full-cycle ROM workout.  If you work hard at it, you will be out of gas by the end of those 20 minutes.
3. I spend a lot more time in recovery than working out.  I need to spend time cooling off, stretching, warming up, on the roller, in a hot shower, in the sauna, getting a foot massage, etc.
4. I was forced to begin a second cycle of LG Sciences Trifecta stack.  This is a prohormone stack that is the next best thing to illegal steroids.  It should be noted that Trifecta is totally legal and over-the-counter at your local Vitamin Shoppe.  It works almost as well as Dianabol, according to some experts I know.  Pink Magic wasn't cutting the mustard.  It just wasn't possible to recover between workouts, and sustain the intensity of CrossFit without Trifecta.  I really appreciate what Trifecta did for me last summer now.
5. Even with Trifecta, the aches and pains are rife.  No pain no gain.  Usually, where there is pain, there is gain.  I must be doing something right.  I am absolutely improving in all of the different exercises, especially the 200 meter and 400 meter sprints.
6. The girlies are checking me out in the CrossFit gym.  I caught two of them examining me as I was doing pull-ups the other day.  Pull-ups really show my wing-span.  Both of these girls looked away with a degree of embarrassing when I caught them. There were big glowing smiles on their faces prior to that moment.
7. This morning, the ambient air temperature here in Woodland Hills/Canoga Park was around 50 degrees.  I felt the cold very sharply.  In fact, I felt it all night long.  I now lack the insulating fat layer that used to protect me from such mild cold weather.  This reminds me of my time in Europe, immediately after Army Basic and AIT.  After dropping to 192 pounds, I found myself in Mannheim West Germany (when there was a West Germany) right around the time when the weather began turning cold.  That first winter in Germany almost killed me.  You take a California kid, strip him of his protective fat layer, station him in the snow, and I guarantee you he will freeze.  

I hesitate to even mention this, but the guys at work decided to roll out the Halloween video from 2010, and they were showing it yesterday.  The court room was dark this Friday, so I was back at work for a single day.  This video captured me in all my glory at 330 pounds.  That was more than 140 pounds ago.

A certain Pisces dude named Eric (3/12/1981) decided to show me the video on his iPhone.  Just as many have commented, he said I am now unrecognizable.  Although I have known Eric for some four years now, he mentioned that it is hard to believe I was ever that large.

Looking at the video sent cold chills down my spine, and made my hair stand on end.  How did I ever live and survive at that weight?  I don't know how I was able to move around at all and carry that weight on my bad knee.  No wonder I can run now.

Someday, after taking some high def video of me performing a CrossFit WOD, I may put that Halloween video up for display here.  I'll put it side-by-side with the CrossFit video so you can get a before and after look.  You will find it shocking, I am sure.

189.8 Revisited

For the record, my weight this morning was 189.8 pounds on the Tanita scale.  Naturally, it would be lower on the Bod Pod.  May hap even 188.9.  I am not particularly concerned about this for... errr... embarrassing reasons.

Sometimes I forget I am a gastric bypass patient and I mistake myself for Superman.  Such was the case last night.  I had some movie popcorn and some Crunchabunchas together.  This was a bad mistake.  It resulted in a horrendous case of diarrhea.  This forced me out of bed in the middle of the night twice.  Fortunately, it was over and done by the time court resumed this morning.  I am stuck on jury duty, incidentally.

The moral of the story is that I still have relatively sensitive digestion, and I need to be very careful when combining junk foods in odd ways.  The sharp reduction under 190, is probably a temporary phenomenon due to the fact that I was fairly dehydrated this morning.  People dehydrate sharply due to diarrhea.  In some parts of the world, they even die due to dehydration and electrolyte imbalances.  It happens.

I won't speculate about Bod Pod XIV based on these temporary findings.

Bod Pod XIII: The point of inflection

So, Bod Pod XIII went down yesterday morning around 9:00am.  I had no Jury duty due to the super-confab of Superior Court Judges that happened down town yesterday.  The Court schedule was dark. What were the results of the test?

1. There were only 13 days in this cycle.
2. We did reach the point of inflection
3. My total body weight increased from 190.664 to 195.7 pounds.  This is an increase of 5.036 pounds.
4. My lean mass increased from 146.95 to 151.14 pounds.    This is an increase of 4.19 pounds.
5. Shockingly enough, my fat weight also increased from 43.714 to 44.56 pounds.  This is an increase of 0.846 pounds,
6. Interestingly enough, my body fat percentage decreased from 22.9 to 22.8.  This is a reduction of 0.1% percent.  Yes, it's paltry, I know.
7. My body volume increased from 82.627 liters to 84.78 liters.  This is an increase of 2.153 liters

	Fate %	Fat Weight	Lean Weight	Body Weight	Volume
10/15/2011	22.9	43.714	146.95	190.664	82.627
10/18/2011	22.8	44.56	151.14	195.7	84.78
	-0.1	0.846	4.19	5.036	2.153

Of course, I am not happy about picking up 0.846 pounds of fat, but the 4.19 pound gain of lean was downright thrilling.  I have finally exceeded 150 pounds of lean mass.  Not only this, I have finally exceeded the 151 I was hoping for weeks ago.

This is an excellent sign.  It indicates several things.  First and foremost, it indicates that the CrossFit training is working extremely well.  It also means that the weight lifting sessions with Aaron are also working.  This sets me up for much better and more rapid weight loss in the weeks to come.  The more lean mass you have, the higher your BMR/RMR.

Now for some reality noise:

1. This morning, my weight dropped to 192.6 pounds on the Tanita scale.  As you know, it would be lower on the Bod Pod.  
2. Yesterday the Tanita vs. Bod Pod variance was very high, the highest figure seen yet.  The Tanita said 196.6.  The Bod Pod indicated 195.7.  This is a variance of 0.9 of a pound.
3. This means I lost 4 pounds over night.
4. This is enough to annihilate nearly all of my lean gain.
5. This was the first Bod Pod test that I did not prep for.  
6. In each of the 12 Bod Pod tests prior to this one, I would do extensive preparation the night before the test.  I would do my longest and best workout of the cycle.  I would do 30 minutes in the dry and steam saunas to shed excess water weight. I would get a massage and pop two Tylenol tabs to bring down inflammation further.  I would purge my intestines with Magnesium Citrate.
7. My brother's band played at The Mint in West Los Angeles Thursday night.  Rather than prep for the test on Thursday night, I went to see him play.  This little adventure is a story I will tell you about some other time.

All of this casts doubt upon the results of Bod Pod XIII.  Without the normal prep before the test, there is no telling how much of this weight increase is just water retention and fecal matter.  On other hand, you could argue that these test results are more reflective of David on a normal day, not less.  Ergo, they are more valid and not less valid.  Still, the rapid drop this morning casts doubt on the entire weight figure.

In short, if we were in a court of law, we would have more than a reasonable doubt about these results.  I may have simply tested on an exceptionally heavy day. Further, I think this is clearly the case.  194.4 seems to have been my most common weight over the last several weeks.  196.6 and 195.7 are clearly exceptionally heavy weights for me these days.

Nevertheless, one thing is exceptionally clear:  We have reached the point of inflection.  The sign of the trajectory on this curve has flipped.  It has been negative, trending down.  It is now positive and trending upward.  Regardless of whether my weight is 194.4 or 192.6, my weight is now higher than it was 13-14 days ago.

I am not worried about this, as the indicator points towards a big increase in lean weight.  This is good and wonderful, and precisely what I have been looking for.

Bod Pod X: Moderate Risk

So I had my 10th Bod Pod test this morning. It was pretty good. As per usual, it was not everything I had hoped, but (all things considered) it was a pretty damn good milestone. Just like Super Bowl X once was once regarded, this was the best one ever (thus far).

I apologize for the wet-spots on the paperwork, but I spilled some water on the documents.

In summary, the facts of the case are these:

1. My total weight was 196.731, a little higher than expected, but a reduction of 7.003 pounds
2. My fat-mass went down from 55.912 pounds to 48.964 pounds; a reduction of 6.948 pounds
3. My lean weight decreased from 147.821 to 147.767 pounds. This is scarcely 0.05299 of a pound, or 0.86 of one ounce of loss. This is within the margin of error.
4. My Body Fat Percentage decreased from 27.4% to 24.9%. This is a reduction of 2.5%, and just barely enough to move me into the Moderate Risk Category.
5. Conversely, my lean percentage increased from 72.6% to 75.1%.
6. My body volume decreased from 89.135 to 85.61 liters; a reduction of 3.525 liters.

Since I began testing with the Bod Pod on May 13th, 2011 I have done all the following:

1. I have reduced my body fat percentage 19.2% from 44.1 to 24.9.
2. I have lost 65.126 pounds of pure fat, down from 114.09 to 48.964 pounds.
3. I have increased my lean weight 3.027 pounds. I am still net-positive on the lean weight front.
4. I have decreased my total weight 61.92 pounds, down from 258.651 to 196.731 pounds.
5. I have decreased my body volume 31.5 liters, from 117.111 to 85.61 liters.

As we were finishing the test, the fellow conducting my test related a horror story to me. He said he had just performed a test for a woman who showed virtually no change in a month of work. She burst out in tears and challenged the whole Bod Pod methodology. He then asked if he could introduce me to some people and show them my chart. I said "sure!" After all, what would I want to hide?

We walked over to where a television production crew was setting up cameras. Evidently, this was the crew of Extreme Makeover: Weight Loss Edition. The CHLI rep introduces me to a pack of three beautiful blonds. I was a bit shy. They were just two pretty. He shows them my chart and explains the situation. They congratulate me profusely. I took a bow. I was a little overwhelmed.

Of course, there was a connection point unstated there. I am sure the woman who cried was (is) one of the subjects of the show. I am sure she was pissed at her lack of progress and public embarrassing. I am sure he was bolstering the credibility of the method by showing me off. Still, it was fun. I got another ego stroke out of that.

I just need to stop being shy around the beautiful blonds. I am not the same old fat guy I used to be. People I know don't recognize me anymore.

One other factor: The Bod Pod was undergoing routine maintenance and certification yesterday. The crew was not undergoing training. Maintenance was the reason the Bod Pod was unavailable to me yesterday. Interestingly enough, I weighed in at 197.2 pounds on the Tanita this morning and 196.731 on the Bod Pod. The gap of 0.85 pounds has now closed to just 0.469 pounds.

Interesting... one day after routine maintenance the gap has closed from 0.85 to 0.469. My Tanita is closer to accurate than I originally suspected. The Bod Pod is a little less accurate than I suspected. In any case, the gap is there, but smaller than suspected.

196.6

So the score this morning was 196.6 on the Tanita scale. The Bod Pod would place me at 195.75. This constitutes a loss of 7.99 pounds thus far in this cycle. This is shaping up to be a very, very good Bod Pod test indeed.

Not much time to gab about it. I have a very full night of training ahead of me. I need to belt out 60 full minutes and then do my hydro therapy. I am also going to break tradition and hit a second full-cycle ROM workout in just one day. That will begin in just a few moments. This will get my blood pumping.

Just one quick story to relay. I went to Fry's Electronics today after work for the first time in a couple of months. I haven't been visiting there very often lately. I have had a lot on my plate, and very little time for recreational electronics browsing.

I purchased just one item, a copy of Code Magazine, and headed for the door. The guy working the security angle at the door is a dude I've talked football with a hundred times (both college and pro). I haven't seen this guy in quite some time. I think the last time I saw him, we were talking about the demolition job the Ravens did on the Chiefs in the playoffs. This was immediately after the game. That was before the surgery. It's been more than 7 months.

As I approached, I expected him to be shocked by my weight loss and make some comments. Nope, no reaction at all. He didn't recognize me. I wasn't wearing one of my trademark football jerseys to help him out either. I had an Under Armor shirt on. As I handed him my receipt for examination, I expected him to tweak at any moment. I thought he would figure it out.

Nope, there was nothing there but a completely blank, vacuous stare. He wasn't giving me the shine or anything like that. He just didn't recognize me. I was just one of a thousand nameless and faceless customers who go out the door with an item.

I decided it would be awkward to tip him off, so I just walked out the door. As I walked to the car, I was flipping out. I've had a hundred conversations with that dude, and he flat-cold didn't recognize me. There was no trace of recognition in his face at all. That was a completely natural miss. It wasn't forced at all.

I can't say I blame him. You don't ever expect to see a 330+ pound dude drop to 195 in just 7 months. I have changed dramatically in a relatively short people of time, and that just doesn't fit the cognitive model we humans have. We don't ever expect to see that.

Well, my own cousin Justin told me the following "If I didn't know it was you, I would never know it was you."

197.6

This morning the core was 197.6 pounds on the Tanita scale. The Bod Pod would have me at 196.75. This means I have lost some 6.99 pounds this cycle with an evening of workouts and a full day ahead of me. The battle goes well.

If all of that was fat loss, I should currently have 48.93 pounds of fat on my frame. 48.93 / 196.75 = 24.869%. Of course, the implication is that I have already gone inside the 25% BFP marker. Accordingly, this would mean that I have already (unofficially) moved into the moderate risk category.

Let's hope I have put on some lean to re-enforce these numbers.

Is there any perceptible change in the way my body feels as I make this transition in medical categories, or is this just an arbitrary boundary marker the doctors have invented? I must say that I am starting to feel awfully different that I have through most of my life. As I mentioned in a previous blog-post, I feel like I am transforming into Superman. No amount of exercise seems to be too much. No exercise challenge seems to be too great. The only thing that kills me is missing workouts.

There is this amazing and boundless energy that seems to be welling up in me. I get these surges during the workout where I feel I can intensify and go forever. I'm even beginning to experience greater energy first thing in the morning, something I have never had at any point in my entire life. I move rapidly everywhere. I walk fast without intending too. I jog down the stairs with ease. I feel far more agile than I have since I was in my early 20s.

There are other factors. My entire back, arms, neck and calf muscles have become ripped and cut, with muscularity, vascularity and tendons beginning to show. This is not typical of my entire body, as I still have plenty of flab around the middle and on my butt. Still, several regions of my body have reached near-depletion of their local fat supplies. As I reach lower and lower levels of body fat, but abdomen and butt will empty their fat cells also.

There is another point of interest: I am learning that most of our SoCal population is carrying more than 25% body fat. I am shocked that I am now much leaner, smaller, and harder than many men my size at the gym. Remember, I am still around 25% BFP, yet I am beating these guys across the board in a clean sweep. They are chubbier and softer and less able to do exercise than I am.

There are two kinds of guys at the gym: Those who really need to be there, and those who are just showing off. The show-offs are around 10-15% BFP. Those are the muscular and ripped dudes who where the spandex costumes. They are the minority. Most of these dudes show up to maintain their fitness levels, and allow the ladies to hit on them.

Hit on them they do. I have been impressed by how many ladies I have seen approaching these guys lately. They are much more forward than in my day. I am not a member of this club yet, but it won't be long...

The remainder, and by far the larger population, are the guys struggling to improve their fitness levels and get healthy. These dudes constitute about 70-75% of the inhabitants of any given gym. Regardless of age, I am beating most of those guys.

Perhaps there is some empirical fact and logic behind these medical categories after all?

199.2 and so close

Today the score was 199.2 pounds on the Tanita scale. This means the Bod Pod would have me at 198.35. I am so close to the 40% mass reduction point it's not even funny. I am also very close to the 25% body fat percentage I have been seeking in this two-week cycle.

For the record, I weighed in around 330 pounds on January 15th, 2011. My orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Evan Bachner, had ordered me to lose 30% of my gross body mass (permanently) or face the wheel chair. 30% of 330 is approximately 99 pounds. I passed his directive when I crossed under 231 pound mark.

Since then, I have been pursuing the goals my general practitioner and my gastric bypass surgeon set for me. It's one thing to avoid crippling arthritis pain by loosing weight. It's quite another to reach a healthy body fat percentage.

40% of 330 pounds is 132 pounds. 330 -132 = 198. As you can see, when I hit 198 pounds, I will have reduced my gross body mass by 40%. I am so damn close it ain't even funny. I am just 0.35 of pound away from that target. That's just 5.6 ounces folks.

There is a double bonus. I have reason to believe my lean mass has been increasing. Why? I can see my muscles growing. Furthermore, it ain't just me. Others are noticing too. I just had the car battery replace in my Sonata, and the mechanic asked me the following question:

"Have you been doing some body building lately?"

"Yes I have."

"I can tell! You're getting more muscular. You were a little chubby a few months ago. You're getting knobby now."

Incidentally, for those British members of the audience, knobby doesn't mean sharp elbowed bastard who makes stupid comments. It's a local euphemism for a dude whose muscle definition is showing. Of course, I am very flattered by this comment.

But I digress.

If my lean weight should finally reach 150 pounds, and if my total weight should be 198 or less on Bod Pod day, I will have officially made it under the 25% BFP mark. That's easy math folks.

Bod Pod X is promising to be a significant landmark and milestone in this process. The landmark is the 40% mass reduction, and officially crossing under the 200 pound mark. The milestone is the fact that I will officially cross over from the High Risk health category to the Moderate Risk category. That's big news folks. Team Quilici just might declare victory at this point, although I doubt it. They still want me to hit 17-18% BFP.

One thing is for sure, when I walk through the door at Dr. Quilici's office, I'm not going to look like one of his typical patients. They will notice that fact, I assure you.

Speaking of Bod Pod X, I just called a little while ago to make my appointment for this Friday. I was greatly dismayed by what I heard. The Life Measurement trainers will be visiting the California Health and Longevity Institute on Friday, to conduct certification training for the Bod Pod. The Bod Pod will not be available at all on Friday.

The alternative to was to move it to 10:00am on Saturday. I was not pleased with this move because it breaks the perfect rythm I have established. Still, we have to recognize that life happens, and this not my fault. I would have done it on schedule if I could.

Recognize what this means: I get 15 days in this cycle instead of 14. This is an opportunity to lose an extra half-pound of fat if I play my cards right. An extra half pound of fat should just about do it this time. If I don't go under 198 with 48 pounds of fat, I have no one to blame but myself.

I'm going on the record and predicting all of the following for Saturday Sept 17th, 2011:

1. The Tanita will weigh me at 197.7 pounds
2. The Bod Pod will have me at 196.85
3. I will have 48 pounds of fat on my frame
4. I will have 148.85 pounds of lean on my frame
5. My body fat percentage will be 24.384%

I am being a bit pessimistic and conservative on the lean weight. I would greatly prefer a 150/46.85 ratio, but let's be cautious.

199.6

The advent of a major historical moment for me. I just went inside the 200 pound mark for the first time since summer of 1989. This was a more than a year before my dear little Leo girl was born, and she is now a junior at USC. [She likes to boast that she had classes with Clay Matthews III in her freshman year, incidentally.]

The score this morning 199.6 on the Tanita scale. The Bod Pod would have me at 198.75. Wow, man... That is already 4.99 pounds in just one week. I am absolutely surging again. The sweat lodge was something else, but I don't think I scrapped off a pound.

What is even more interesting is that I am scheduled to take a walk in Burbank today with a Pisces woman I met online at Zoosk. Allegedly, she was born 2/23/1972, but she seemed to know her planet lineup and she disagreed with the one I presented to her. She shouldn't have done that. This tipped me off that the year was wrong. I suspect she's fudging about her age.

I understand that women never lie. They don't lie about their weight. They don't reduce the number of relationships they have had, and they never, ever, ever lie about their age.

Anyway, I am looking forward to it anyhow. What a surprise that the first girl I meet online just happens to be a Pisces. Who would have thunk that? A Pisces and Virgo together? Nah! Can't be.

The trouble is that we have some remarkable thunder pealing out across the sky right now. Storm clouds seem to be moving in on the San Fernando valley. This is a most unusual atmospheric event during Septembers here in SoCal. Have you ever seen one of those bad romance movies [like the Notebook] where the boy and the girl meet in the pouring rain?

203.2... and 12.21 miles before breakfast

The Tanita score this morning was 203.2, meaning the Bod Pod would have me at 202.35. This is a new low.

That was the score before 30 minutes, 374 kcal, and 10.1 miles on the bike. It was also before the 22 minutes, 2.21 miles, and 366 kcal on the elliptical motion machine. I did all that before breakfast. I bet you can't tally 12.21 kcal before breakfast. And I am on a heavy-duty calorie restriction diet also.

Something strange seems to be happening to me. I seem to be transforming into Superman and nothing can stop the process.

I hammered a ROM full cycle in less than 20 minutes yesterday morning. I worked far too long on my 2011 NFL predictions, and was way too sedentary during that time. After finishing that piece, I was full of the lethargy and fatigue that comes with inactivity. If you are on a calorie restricted diet, your body will take any opportunity afforded to shut down the any unnecessary expenditure and conserve energy. This is why you have to constantly ratchet your metabolism up through exercise.

I felt a little too weak to do both weights training and aerobic training, so decided to lift. I have prioritized lean muscle over fat loss in these past cycles. The workout at my local 24 Hour fitness was very successful. I increased my weight and my reps on nearly everything.

Afterward, I downed my second Pure Pro 50 of the day. By that point, I had consumed 180 grams of protein for the day. I had 30 grams in a Big 100 bar as well. This is (by far) the largest protein total I have consumed since having roux en Y gastric bypass. I felt this was too much protein, but you just can't skip the protein after weight training. You waste your workout that way.

The funny thing was this: Less than 30 minutes later, I was at loose ends, burning up with energy. I knew I wasn't finished for the night. I decided I would at least do a Sauna at 24 Hour Fitness in Thousand Oaks.

I did a hell of a lot more than that. I did 12 minutes of initial warm up on the tread mill, because a lame dude was wasting time on my Olympic rower. I did 12 minutes on the Olympic rower, and I went hard. This was after a full weight lifting regime that included rows and pull downs. I went back to the tread mill and did 10 minutes at higher speed, finishing at 4.1 miles per hour and a level 8 incline. I jumped on the bike and did 15 minutes, burning 220 kcal. I jumped back on the Olympic rower and did 5 more minutes.

It was around that time I noticed a very young, blond, Pisces-looking girl shadowing me around the gym. She positioned herself on the Elliptical machine just in front and too the left of my rower. Of course, this gave me an excellent rear view. This was her third move to position herself near-by me. Co-inky-dink? I think not.

I wouldn't put her a day over 21. She was allowing her custom-cut-up sweat top to droop over her shoulder, exposing her sports bra suggestively. That was no happen-chance accident. That was orchestrated.

Despite strong distractions, when all was said and done, I hammered 54 minutes of constant aerobic activity burning 688.5 kcal. I didn't take time to rest between these exercises. I went straight from one station to the next.

I wasn't precisely exhausted either. I felt I could do more. That was when I started to realize that I was transforming into Superman. Such a workout would put most 45 year old guys under ground. I wasn't really tired.

I hit 11 minutes in the steam sauna, and realized I still had some nervous energy left. I decided 20 minutes of laps in the pool would be the best thing. I proceeded to practice my backstroke.

Somewhere around minute 12 or 13, I noticed that the 21 year old blond Pisces had returned. She was at poolside. She was sitting on a stool, to the right of me, text-messaging. This was night-time folks. It was around 10:00pm. There was nobody there but us chickens. I felt this was unusual behavior on the part of young lady... unless she's interested.

I decided it wouldn't be wise to break the workout to talk to her. Too forward. Finish the workout, then see if you can have a word. I kept swimming. She got tired of waiting after about 5 or six minutes, and started walking around the pool a bit. That was when I knew she was trying to get me to notice her.

I kept going. I was going to finish. She got tired of waiting and went into the hot sauna. Perfect, I thought. That's where I am headed next. We spent about 11 minutes in the sauna together. she was listening to Pandora music on her smart phone. He had about 6 minute conversation about Pandora. She was pretty shy in conversation. She took off after that. I finished my sauna.

Piscean women are usually shy and retreating, and fearful of rejection. There are exceptionally aggressive and assertive specimens, but they are few and far between. Most Pisces girls are not like Rihanna. That was a first brush. It will be interesting to see what happens the next time we bump into each other at the gym.

She'll be surprised when she finds out how old I am.

However, this is another indication that I seem to be transforming into Superman. I'm still around 27% body fat. I am going to be absolutely fucking deadly when I reach 10-12% body fat. I'm not joking either. I'm a little scared of the prospects.

I am going to keep my protein consumption level at around a 150 grams per day from here on out to the finish line. I think this doing me a world of good.

Bod Pod IX... Meh!

The results of the Birthday Bod Pod are in, and in the famous words of Tedy Bruschi, that ain't what were looking for. That is probably a Bellichick saying.

The findings of the study are these:

• My scale weight was 203.734, down from 209.340,
• This is a loss of 5.606 gross pounds
• I now have 55.912 pounds of body fat, down from 62.414
• This is a loss of 6.502 pounds of fat.
• I know have 147.821 pounds of lean weight, up from 146.926 last time
• This is scarcely 0.895 of one pound increase of lean. I guess that beats a poke in the eye.
• My body fat percentage is now 27.4%, down from 29.8% last time.
• This is a 2.4% reduction in Body Fat Percentage, matching my BFP drop last time
• My body volume is now 89.135 liters, down from 92.042 liters last time.
• This is a decrease of 2.907 liters of body volume.

I guess anytime you increase you lean and decrease your fat, it's a pretty good week. The BFP reduction is equal to the one during the previous cycle. Still, I can't help but think it is a mediocre, mediocre, mediocre showing. I have done better before. I was hoping for my best cycle ever. This did not happen.

I should balance that sentiment out by meditating on the look of awe displayed on the Bod Pod operators' faces when they see my progress charts. I must admit that the purple trend line on the BFP chart is as constant as the Northern Star. It just keeps going down and down and down and down on a straight trajectory.

They openly say they wish they owned a trend line that looks like mine.

Still the pronounced saw-tooth pattern on my lean-weight is a spoiler and a bitch. I need to get my lean up to 160, post-haste. I am announcing a new plan to start training with my linebacker buddy as soon as possible. The lean has got to increase.

The cumulative totals the Bod Pod history show are impressive. In just 16 weeks:

• I have Reduced my BFP from 44.1 % to 27.4%
• My lean percentage has gone from 55.9% to 72.6%
• I have altered my body composition 16.7%.
• Cut my body fat weight from 114.090 down to 55.912 pounds
• That is a loss of 58.178 pounds of fat.
• I have cut 51% of my fat weight in 16 weeks.
• I still maintain a net positive 3.261 pounds of lean weight.
• My body volume has diminished from 117.111 liters to 89.135 liters.
• My body volume has dropped 27.976 liters. Think of 28 x 1 liter bottles of Pepsi vanishing from under my skin.

At the same time, we have the sobering fact that I remain in the high risk category. Anyone carrying more than 25% body fat is considered to be at high risk for obesity related health problems. As far as I've come in all this time, I'm still not out of the woods just yet.

Just how far do I have to go get out of the woods? The Bod Pod will change my check mark for the first time when I go under 25%. Unless I do better on this next cycle, it won't happen on September 16th. If I nail the same 2.4%, I will be sitting right on the 25% mark. They will still check the high risk box in that case. Even if I should score a -2.5% BFP reduction, the check box will only indicate moderate risk.

I won't get into the healthy category until I reach 19.99%. How far away is that? At present speed, it will happen in 6 weeks. This is presuming 6.5 pounds of loss each cycle, and no change in lean. In other words, a sub-average performance. This means it should show up on the October 14th Bod Pod. At that time, my body weight should be 184.233 pounds. I should have no more than 36.412 pounds of fat on my frame. Presuming a constant lean, I would have 147.821 pounds of lean mass.

There are better and happier scenarios, but let's not bank on it.

The fact is that my GP and Dr. Quilici have settled on the figure of 17-18% BFP as their ultimate target for my good health. When will that happen? 8 weeks from today is the earliest we should expect to see such a figure. It should show up on the October 28 Bod Pod.

204.8

I'm trying to make my first ever blog entry from my Verizon Android Thunderbolt. It ain't easy. It is a good time killer, as I am a prisoner at the DMV, waiting for my butcher's number to come up.

204.8 was the score this morning. This means I would be 203.95 on the Bod Pod. Less than 24 hours to go and I turn 45, and it will be time for the very important Bod Pod VIII. Let's hope it's great. At the moment, I have lost only 4.54 pounds of scale weight in this 2 week cycle. We also know that the name of the game is lean weight and Body Fat Percentage.

I am hoping for a 3% reduction in Body Fat Percentage this time.