Sunday, May 17, 2015

Arsenal for Weight Loss

From my 10 years + of working out and trying every supplement under the sun. I have found that at the bare minimum you should taking:

Disclaimer: You should really consult your physician before beginning any new dietary or weight loss programs. I am not a doctor, this is purely from personal experience and information from different sources.

A daily dose of Fish Oil - 2 to 3 grams of Fish oil as shown to assist with lower blood pressure, reduce triglycerides, slow the development of plaque in the arteries, reduce the chance of abnormal heart rhythm, and help reduce the likelihood of heart attack and stroke (Source: WebMD)

I found this great article with source citations that provides reasons how fish oil will help your body lose weight, build muscle and improve overall health.

The overview of the fish oil benefits are: increase insulin sensitivity (low insulin sensitivity makes it difficult for a person to burn fat), increases anabolic effects of the body (NCAA actually banned distribution of fish oil to major colleges because of this), reduces inflammation in the body (means less muscle soreness and overall fat loss, fat actually causes inflammation in the body just on its own).

What benefit does having higher insulin sensitivity do? One of the purpose of insulin is to attach itself to dietary carbs and move glucose to the muscles to be stored for energy. Having higher insulin sensitivity means improvement in the muscle building process and better efficiency at moving nutrients like creatine to the muscles.for fat burning.

A daily Multivitamin

A daily Protein Supplement

Work in process..more to come.

Saturday, May 16, 2015

Review : Creatine ATP SX-7 by MuscleTech

Creatine ATP SX-7 by MuscleTech 30 Day Personal Review

I recently purchased Creatine ATP SX-7 on my recent visit to GNC.

Day 1 Experience: I took the recommended dose of 3 pills a few minutes before going to the gym. I spent the first 30 minutes I was doing 30 minutes of HIT (high interval training) on the treadmill. After I was done I noticed that I was pretty peppy and full of energy. I did notice that I did sweat much more then I do usually do. After an hour long strength session, I did notice that I wasn't quite as tired (muscle fatigue wise). I did not happen to feel any real difference in pump.

More to come...work in progress.

Day 1 Week 1 : The Fitness Journey of David

I decided to start blogging about my fitness journey. I really don't know if anyone will see this but this is more of a personal journal to track and compile knowledge I have/will learn about fitness in my journey from being 300 lbs.

So today I finally took pictures of myself that I will eventually post up once I feel comfortable enough. Considering that I have never had a picture of myself with a shirt in my entire life, being able to selfie myself is a large step in finally coming terms with my physical health.

To be continued

Current Stats:

Body Weight - 300 lbs
Body Fat Percentage - 25.8% (Updated: Boo..I underestimated)
Height -  6'2
Arms - 21 inches
Neck - 18 inches
Chest - Unknown
Upper Legs - Unknown
Calves - 18 inches

Bench Press Max - 415 lbs Raw
Squat - Unknown Max but currently doing 135 - 215 lbs for reps
Dead Lift - Unknown since my gym doesn't allow dead lifting (lol)
Pull-ups - Using the pullup/chinup assist machine at the gym currently at 50lbs assist (which means im actually doing a pull-up as if I was 250 lbs)

I plan on getting certified as a personal trainer, not necessarily so I can be a personal trainer but more so I can get the knowledge they know to benefit myself without having to pay the prices for one. I was referred to https://www.issaonline.edu/ from a personal trainer at the gym I currently go to now.

As of 5/16/15 I officially enrolled and on my way to get certified as a personal trainer.

Side Note: Another credible organization is NASM.org (This is the organization that Biggest Losers certify their contestants through)

Random Knowledge Gained Over the Years:

Everyone has a different body types. I found out that I am between an endomorph and mesomorph (so im a hybrid but not lame like a hybrid car). There is more information on the different body types I found here http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/becker3.htm

  • Sleep is very important
  • Have to be consistent in working out at least doing maintenance especially with muscles since you begin to lose your progress after a week or 2.
  • Fulfilling your dietary requirements for proper body function.
  • Managing stress is very important for your health.
  • Understanding and improving your hearts health (blood pressure and heart rate).
  • Understanding how carbs, fats and protein works in the body. 
  • Everyone has abs, they just wont show until your about an 8 to 12% body fat.
  • Understanding why body fat percentage is a far better metric then going off body weight or bmi to gauge your overall fitness progress. 
  • Everyone, yes everyone has something they are dissatisfied about their body, yes even people who have lots of muscles or super tone or have six packs. It seems its just a part of human nature to always want something improved. So that being said I have come to realize that the best way to handle your fitness level is instead of beating yourself up for where you currently are,  you should instead find what you like about yourself and begin doing small changes to improve yourself. Eventually small changes will compound to a large impact.