> TEOTWAWKI Blog: PT, Part 2

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4/24/15

PT, Part 2

"Strong people are harder to kill than weak people, and more useful in general." - Mark Rippetoe

Lots of suggestions for a various other workouts and exercises, which wasn't surprising. Everyone has their own preferences and different things that work for them - from walking to playing tennis to kung fu or whatever. I almost put a disclaimer that I realized there are a huge variety of ways to be active and wasn't surveying the tribe for ideas.

Cardio is of course hugely important...gotta have gas in the tank. I walk 4-5 miles in an average day, but don't really consider that 'real' cardio. Quality time with weights and bodyweight exercises gets the blood pumping. 3-4 hours of yard work a week, too.

...but I need to add in some more focused/high intensity cardio. Have had knee problems in the past which make me apprehensive about distance running at this point. Had a punching bag back in the day that I really enjoyed wailing on...need to set up another one.

Diet. Obviously going to be hard to lose weight if you're eating thousands of calories more than you're burning.

I actually eat pretty well - cleaner than more people that I know. Minimal junk food, avoid mass amounts of carbs, lots of good salads, lots of protein...do drink zero cal energy drinks for daily caffeine fix, which I need to cut. Weight has been stable for years; not decreasing, though.

Have been tracking calories / food using an app called MyFitnessPal for the past several months. It's kind of clunky and mildly annoying, but it helps, especially tracking macro nutrients. I am pretty good of keeping mental track of my calories, but macros (carb/protein/fats) are harder. Recommend the app approach...it's helpful for understanding what you're taking in, and makes you really take notice when you eat crap.

I have been hitting 1700-2000 calories a day, which is a pretty significant deficit over what my "maintenance" intake should be, especially when you factor in exercise. Low carbs (about 15% of my daily intake). Lots of protein. Good stuff. The apps will help you figure out what your calorie intake should be, or there's some simple math (13-18 calories per pound) that you can track down with a Google search.

Another book to check out is Pat McNamara's Sentinel. Pat Mac is an ex-SFO-D (Delta) guy, epic beard owner and in hella good shape. Though it's not the primary focus of Sentinel, he talks a bit about his Combat Strength Training program, which is completely in line with the brand of fitness we want. Mix of strength,  Pat's also written a series of articles in Recoil magazine on the topic that I need to go hunt down.

Had some bills come up this past week that look like they may delay the garage gym I want to set up, but that's life. Lots of stuff that can be done with minimal equipment.

Had a crap day yesterday (see above around bills), got home late and could have easily come up with some kind of excuse to just crash on the couch. But I naa, I'm committed. Can't stop me that easily.

Tomorrow is my big PT day of the week, and I'm looking forward to it. Excited to get in there and crush it. Destroy that sucker.