Plodding on slowly but surely!

Sorry for posting in a while but it's been quite hectic. In terms of training it's seems to be going ok although very slowly. It's hard to gauge too much improvement in the sessions just yet as the sets, reps and rest periods are all changing each time but I get the impression that I'm doing ok. I've completed my two sessions this week and although I had spoke about moving to three sessions a week the external changes at work and other stuff have made that difficult to implement. In fact I have been having to go in the evening to do my workouts rather than my usual first thing in the morning. I am trying to find time periods at the gym when it is relatively quiet and that in itself has caused some problems. Also I'm still not a 100% with my right knee and so don't want to push the training too much. Although with that said it hasn't caused me much of a problem in training at the gym it just seems to be with the cycling. There is some improvement due to spinning in a much lower gear than I use to and that has taken the strain off the knee a little but it's still not right and as I cycle all of the working week it doesn't really get that much of a chance of a complete break from it all. It's also something that I enjoy doing so wouldn't really want to have too much time away from it. I think I need to just keep nursing it it some degree like I'm doing and hopefully it will sort itself out over time. If not then I'll obviously have to get it looked at by a medical professional but that's some way off as yet.

In terms of eating I've been trying hard to stick to TNT principles but I have been taking in a little more carbs than usual. Ever since starting the Hypertrophy sessions I've been taking in a few carbs before and after each workout with my protein shake. I take this in the form of dried dates, around 6 to 7 (which might be a little too much but not by a lot). I have in the past added a further supplement to my protein powder but enjoy actually eating something instead especially as I like them so much it's like eating a soft toffee or sweet and that's much nicer in my opinion. The only problem is that I do occasionally steal a couple from the fridge every now and again but see this as a treat especially as the dates are extremely low in fat. Now I know on TNT high fat is good but mixing fat with carbs is a no no simply because the fat will be stored, hence the low carb element of the diet. So whilst I'm doing this type of training and I've moved to primarily diet plan B I think it should be ok so long as I don't eat loads and loads of them (which can be easily done). On another eating related aspect I'm also trying to stick with taking a little extra lunch with me to work and then eating twice, splitting it into two meals. These are not generally equal meals or even spaced out with two hours separation but having them provides a more steady stream of food and nutrients to my body throughout the day and this is obviously better than the extended periods I have fallen back into between meals. This is something that I need to improve on further because I do believe that this will and does have a positive impact. You just have to be aware that the portion size is adjusted if you are eating more meals. What you don't want is to be eating 6 large meals instead of 3 that would just equate to an increase in weight. The same amount of food should be split across more frequent smaller meals and this provides a steady stream of nutrients and the body is more able to absorb what it needs from these smaller meals since there is a limit to how much it can take from your food in one sitting.

So have I noticed any difference? Well, in short yes. It's still early days but it is definitely something I want to stick with due to the things I've outlined above. In terms of any figures to support this I can only offer a weight measurement as it's the only one I've kept a rough eye on. Yesterday I weighed 14st 1.5lbs and so the weight that was lost initially to what I thought was illness has stayed off (with work of course) and I went training at the gym yesterday so there has been a small decrease in weight this morning to 14st 0.75lbs. Now I do expect there to be a slight rise to yesterdays levels but it shows there is movement. Also I have noticed a slight visual improvement which I hope will be reflected in the pictures I post eventually (as I'm having upload problems at the moment). Anyhow I'll try to get some photos up during these hypertrophy sessions to see if any of you notice any differences. I think the space between them should act as a good comparison but please be aware of the different purposes of the sessions being compared. The previous pictures were at the end of a Fat Loss period and this current one is supposed to be a muscle building one. Well I think I've brought you all up to date for now.

Cheers, BustaGut!

Testing The Waters - slowly back to training!

I thought that I'd let everyone know that I went training to the gym on Friday. It was a very tough session but all in all the knee and back held up. The legs were very sore for the next couple of days but it was proper soreness from training rather than any problems. Don't get me wrong the knee is definitely not great and has a tendency to hurt a little when I cycle especially up the steepest part of the hill on the way home. To combat this to some degree I've gone on my other bike that is slower but has a triple chain set and I can knock it down into a much lower gear to go up the hill. It's much slower, still not easy and the knee does still get twinges but it's much better than over exerting it even more so with the other faster bike.

I've been out a little on the bike today which in hindsight I perhaps shouldn't have done as I could have given my knee a longer rest before the cycling working week begins tomorrow. It is swollen slightly and feels a little funny but should be OK (I hope). I've taken some anti-inflammatory to try and restrict any further swelling. The cycling is the only aspect that now seems to be causing me problems as I intend to do two gym sessions this coming week as I think the last one went as good as can be expected. In terms of any progress I may or may not have made it is difficult to gauge since the illness interrupted training and eating, although I've tried to be better since starting back. I've split my lunch into two servings spaced two hours apart at work and believe that this is the way to go. I did it a couple of times last week but meetings and work schedule permitting I'll aim to do this for the full week. That said, when I got weighed on Saturday morning the scales said 14st 1.75lbs. I'm not paying too much attention to that at the moment because the reduction may simply be due to the illness that I had and may well rise back up. I'll keep an eye on it and let you know.

Cheers, BustaGut!