Posts

Its been a While.

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      Its been a while.     Sorry I haven't taken the time to fill you guys in on what has happened in my life as a Gym Rat. I originally started this blog with the intent to KEEP myself in the gym. I wanted a group of people to see my blog posts, become invested, and give me another reason to push myself to continue showing up in the gym and doing the things that are uncomfortable. I wanted to motivate myself, and through my motivation I wanted to use this platform to motivate and inspire others... Unfortunately, I found myself completely motivated and strayed away from the idea of motivating and inspiring others and I am sorry for this. UPDATE    I COMPETED IN A POWER-LIFTING MEET! I took the past month off from losing weight because I was training to lift heavy weights. Its been a very fulfilling last couple of months! I spent countless hours watching videos and studying workout programs to understand what it took to compete in this field. I have progressed at such a rapid pace,

Health and Fitness... A Family Affair

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 Good Morning, Good Afternoon, Good Evening wherever you may be I hope this Update finds you well. Since my last update, Hurricane Ian, though it passed, is still reeking havoc in my community. I wasn't affected personally with my family nor my property... My children have been out of school for the entire month of October. My Gym was closed but decided this week to reopen with a limited schedule. With the gym closed and the schools being out, my restless children decided they wanted to workout with dad.      My Gym partner invested in a set of dumbbells about a year ago so we were still able to get some work done to these hungry muscles. This allowed for a perfect opportunity to involve the kiddos in our workouts. (For the sake of privacy they will be referred to from Oldest to Youngest as 1,2,3,4,5) at first #3 was the only one actively interested in weight training. She came with me the first night and paid close attention to how we did our workouts. She listened with full atten

A "Hurricane" Of emotions. ---*!* Progress Update*!*--- Pictures and Measurements.

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    Sorry it's been so long since my last post. I was intending on making a post a week ago, but due to recent circumstances i was unable to do this. Lets rewind to unpack the last couple weeks.     Shortly after posting my last update, I was left with a very unhappy wife. She was upset I was taking every evening after work to go to the gym and getting home at 8:30pm every night. The kids were going to bed at 8pm,  so I was missing crucial time spent with them, and she was ready for bed the minute I walked in. My schedule was really taxing my at home relationships... I had to change something but I wasn't sure what to do. My only other option to make sure I could get some quality time at the gym was to wake up at 5am, get a workout in, then return home to help with kid drop off. I then started thinking about how hard it would be to wake up at 5am, after streaming until midnight the night before. Furthermore, With the accident I had earlier in the month I was left without a seco

When Live Gives You Lemons. Go to the Gym.

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            This week has been a roller coaster. Monday was Legs day as normal. I was forced to get a compression support brace for my knee due to an accident i had back in April. Even with the brace my right leg still has a minor tweak that makes it hard to lift weights with proper form. I don't know what I'm gonna do. Tuesday was shoulders. The workout was super fulfilling and my chest was jacked... I had intended on going to the gym Wednesday morning with my wife to do a little cardio and maybe a light chest workout... But fate would have other plans     My day starts every morning at around 5:45am getting up to make sure my kids are getting dressed and ready for the day. At around 6am my wife asked if I would take my 3 youngest to their school, (which is across town.) Around 6:30am, I left the house with my kids and that was when my day began to crumble. Having my three small children in the back seat, I was involved in a fender bender. To spare the details EVERYONE was saf

Two a Days. What a fun Idea...NOT

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 Pain is Progress.     No Pain No Gain they say in the gym. It's crazy that over the past 11 days my body has been making insane changes and my mindset has changed from "I don't want to do that," to "I want to challenge myself more this time."     I have been told the first 30 days in the gym are erratic and spontaneous for your body. In the same conversation I was told to not look at the scale; to not look at my body for progress... To just keep pushing and doing what I'm doing. I have removed Sodas from my died COMPLETELY and i have reduced sugar probably 80-90%. I removed Fast Food from the menu, (Even when my wife tempted me with McDonalds Breakfast.) Now the goal is the keep on keeping on.         So Yesterday...oh yesterday....My Gym Partner and I decided we would double up, due to a missed day earlier in the week. We went to the gym at 8am and worked out Chest. We then met back up at the gym at 6pm and worked Bicep and Triceps, (yes both muscles i

When you feel like quiting, Do another Rep.

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 ITS NOT EASY!     I have to repeat these words in my head every day. Losing Weight, Building Muscle, and Becoming Healthy are not easy... If it were, obesity wouldn't exist.     On a completely different stroke of my life. Time has become somewhat of a rare commodity. I start my day at 5:30~ in the morning to get the kids awake and ready for school. I leave at 7:00am to get them to their school, then I get ready for work. Work is 10-6 most days. After work is honestly the best time to hit the gym... The Gym takes no less than an hour to get in get pumped and get out. All things combined I don't get home until nearly 8pm... When my children are supposed to be in bed. My wife gets it and understands what I am doing but she still has a hard time wrapping her head around the idea of me being gone for so long in the day. I have to try to find a happy medium or a compromise that works for the both of us.    S o that being said, I'm officially one week into my journey, and I want

D.O.M.S

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 D.O.M.S Delayed...Onset...Muscle...Soreness.       So, as I started venturing into the world of weight training. I decided to "work" my muscles to their ends. Every workout attempted; I drove myself to muscle failure. This is the normal if you're a seasoned weightlifter... I started this week.       Day 1, we started with Legs. Because I suffered a knee injury earlier this year, I took it easy on my right knee joint. the workout was fulfilling, and I felt as if I had finished a hard workout.      Day 2, we worked on Chest. This is my bread and butter. I LOVE CHEST. Bench Press, Incline...Decline... The whole works. I LOVE CHEST. I pushed myself to 155lb on Bench Press and pushed to muscle failure.      Day 3, Shoulders. I struggle to even know what muscles are in this group sometimes. But with the help of good ole Earle, we had a solid workout and I felt great. My muscles are burning and I'm back in the groove.... Or So I Thought.       Day 4, I woke up...and I was