I figure you guys have had enough time off from me babbling on about Paleo this and Paleo that…. So I don’t feel bad telling you that I’m doing another Whole 30. Yes, the super strict Paleo eating guidelines that I did back in April/May of this year, and I plan on telling you all about it…. again.

However, there are a few things this time around that will be a little different:

1. Technically, it’s going to be a Whole 4-2+25

I feel like I’ve got to be honest here. It’s not a hard and fast “Whole 30”…. Halloween is one weekend on which I will not concede the alcohol. I’m sorry, but if I’m going to dress up like a jackass (and I will, and like it), I will be drinking accordingly.

Other than the alcohol this Halloween weekend, I will be eating (and not drinking) exactly as dictated by the Whole 30 guidelines.

2. More carbs

Last time around most days I consumed very low amounts of carbs, and while it worked well for me the first time, I’m trying to take a different approach to this whole “strict” Paleo thing. I’ve been reading a really interesting book called The Perfect Health Diet that promotes the average person eating roughly 150g (600 calories) to maintain the necessary glucose levels in your body. While I’m not done with the book yet, it’s been an awesome read, and I’m thinking come spring I may try to do a month of the Perfect Health Diet (basically Paleo with some modifications) with all the blood work like I’ve done for Paleo and GOMAD before.

As far as quick and dirty book review/recommendations go, I’d still recommend The Paleo Solution
if you’re trying to get the basics of Paleo down (and why it’s good for your body). But if you really like to dig down and know about how the things that you eat affect your body, and why you should/shouldn’t eat certain things, ratios of macronutrients, etc… I’d definitely recommend Perfect Health Diet

Anyway, I digress… More carbs = more sweet potatoes. Done.

3. More cardio

On my previous Whole 30, my basic routine was 3 days a week of lifting for strength; and that’s it… Nothing else.

This time my routine is much, much more cardio intensive (which isn’t hard since I wasnt doing any), plus I’m still lifting 2-3 days a week on top. So we’re talking 5-6 days of working out compared to 3, and many more calories being burned.

4. Less weight available for the losing

You know how I do. I like to weigh in and get some hard numbers before doing anything like this, and while I may not be going balls to the wall and getting blood work this time, I made sure to weigh myself and take body fat measurements with the fatinator-5000 so I can see some numbers to prove the results.

Weighed in at 180.2lbs, which wasn’t really a surprise: my body loves to sit at that weight like a fat kid at Cici’s. However my loosely Paleo eating habits seem to have been paying off, keeping my body fat at a very good 7.6%.

What I’m interested in seeing, is where my body fat goes this time around. Last time I started just a little below 10% and dropped down almost 2% to settle a little under 8. So if I’m starting at 8, and with the cardio, will I end up… dead? That’s not the level of cut I was envisioning.

Anyway, it will be interesting to see how my body responds this time.

5. Partner in crime

I’ve suckered somebody into doing this thing with me. Now I can share cooking duties, shopping, expand my recipe base, and just have more fun and support. She’s someone who’s just as determined as I am, and one of those “if I say I’m going to do it, then I’ll do it” people, so I’m happy to have someone with the same mindset along for the journey this time around.

So let’s do this thing!…. Again… ish.

Monday’s have unofficially been dubbed a “running day”, and after taking both Saturday and Sunday off to heal up after a pretty wicked leg day on Friday, I was ready to get after it.

The plan that was bouncing around in my brain was to do 3-4 miles of steady state running at a decent pace (for me), but my so called friend wanted to join in on the fun and add a little bit of excitement to it: stair runs.

So we settled on a compromise, and after doing a couple miles on the treadmill, we headed over to the beautifully ghetto/majestic (depends on what block you’re on) Church Hill. There, I was greeted by a great view of the city….

Which was quickly followed by a terrible view:

We did a couple rounds up the stairs, which sufficiently winded me, after which I told my buddy I’d see his stair runs and raise him an 80lb sandbag carry…. He was not happy. I’m pleased to report, we both manned up, and made the trek up the stairs with the sandbag across the shoulders. There was absolutely zero running involved. I’m fairly certain if I tried to run up stairs with a sandbag on my back I’d end up with a fraction of the teeth that I currently possess.

Anyway, great workout, and one that I think I’ll bring out of the arsenal more often. On top of the cycling and normal lower body lifting days that I’m now working with, adding this in should kick my quad strength up a few notches… At least that’s the idea.

I feel like anybody who works out legit becomes a legal drug addict. An addict to the greatest drug on earth: endorphins.

Last week I really kicked it in, and I notice the energy, motivation, and mood all improve the more cardio and lifting that I do. The biggest thing I like about endorphins is that unlike other drugs (which i wouldn’t know anything about) it’s on the layaway system… you know, like at K-mart back in the day: You pay for it up front, and only after you’ve paid dearly, do you get your prize.

Other drugs are like credit cards… It’s all, “Yeeeaa, party now!!” and then next thing you know they’re repo’ing all your magic the gathering cards and adopted children that were cool back when you did it because Madonna and Brangie did.

But seriously, think about a night of drinking. You drink, feel great, lose your debit card, vomit, pass out on somebody’s couch, and then all the next day you’re completely worthless and swear you’ll never do that again (at least that’s been my experience… back in college. Not now).

Not so with endorphins. You put in the pain, suffering, and discomfort before you get the pay out… Plus, the best part of it is, it’s actually good for you. Unlike the alcohol that you pour down your gullet, which has no real value… other than it enables you to numb your insecurities/shame/logical thinking abilities if the situation calls for it.

My only complaint with all this is… It’s taking a lot of time. For months I was on a 3-4 days a week workout schedule. Now we’re looking at 5-6, and while it certainly feels good and I’m sure will pay off long term, it’s not giving me a whole lot of time for blogging or working on other things. I’ve also been doing a good job of cooking Paleo food, so as anybody who puts in the effort to eat Paleo knows, all that shopping and time in the kitchen eats up on your precious “after work” time. So now that the workout schedule is starting to solidify, I need to figure out how to lock in the rest of my life.

….If you’ve got any pointers on that, please feel free to lay them on me.

Good news Team! I think I can officially say that the saddle has been remounted. Last week I lamented a bit about my fitnesshood being all out of whack due to change in workout routine, venue, scheduling, etc. But I think that’s all behind me now as I joined my alma mater’s gym and gave it a shot at my normal time of 5:30ish after work. It was a tad crowded, and I’m not going to say I’ll “never” have to wait for anything, but it was certainly manageable and they have much, much more equipment than my local Golds Gym.

Oh hey... There you are. Let's do this thing.

Which, by the way, is starting to suck pretty hard. I’ve actually been a big fan of Gold’s Gym over the past 4 years or so, but in the past several months I feel like our local franchise isn’t taking care of business like they used to: case in point, it took me 3 tries to finally find a decent treadmill to use the other night. First one had some weird timing issue with the belt; the second one rocked back and forth viciously when I actually tried to run; and the third one was just right… I’m just trying to workout here, not botch a bastardized version of Goldilocks and the 3 bears, so I was less than excited by it.

Anyway, the workouts have been going off without a hitch, I’m making progress with my running, and feeling good about my lifting. And when things are going well in the gym, that means things go well on the blog. So expect some content to start flowing, because endorphins make me want to do awesome things.