Day 10 of 25

Today is the last day of the second cycle; only 3 more cycles to go! 

I can definitely say this program is a roller coaster. The Fast Days are the WORST. It's tough only having water and 90 pills of Branched Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) on top of doing an intense workout. The BCAAs work to keep your muscle in tact while you're fasting to create a calorie deficit. It was the first time we had to do a Fast Day on a weekend and that was killer because it's usually the time we spend with family and friends - mainly eating and/or drinking. I'm cranky on those days too, so it wasn't ideal for some quality time with my brother and my mom. But it had been so long since I've hung out with them, I figured I should go (cranky or not) instead of putting it off again. Luckily, I gave my mom the heads up about the program and she took us to the movies. I don't have try that hard to be pleasant when we're sitting in the dark.

The BEST day of the cycle is the Cheat Day. I played hookie to go to Magic Wok and feast on some crispy pata, lumpia, pancit canton, rice, and sago at gulaman (basically a brown sugar drink). That night Albert and I planned to go to Curry House, but we didn't make it in time. Where did we end up? Roscoe's Chicken and Waffles. MMMM. My mouth is watering thinking of all that yummy food! We also had to do a workout on this day, but it isn't as intense as the other days so it wasn't a big deal.

I've learned A LOT of new exercises because of XFLD. I've also learned that my lower body is a bit stronger than my upper body (not that my lower body is super strong or anything). I absolutely LOVE any of the lunge exercises, especially the swing lunge. I'm also diggin' the Bulgarian Split Squat. They hurt, but I love 'em because they keep my ass from being saggy...and we all know, no one loves a saggy ass. The hardest exercises for me to do usually involve any kind of push-up. I just suck at those.

I took my measurements after the first cycle and I've lost half an inch here and there. I've also lost some weight, but I'm thinking some of it is water weight too so my end weight after all the cycles will probably be more accurate. I'm happy with my progress so far and it's keeping me motivated. Albert has been a great motivator too, especially when I get too lazy to do the follow up cardio session (we usually have to do a cardio workout in the afternoons). With the exception of Fast Days, I have tons of energy throughout the day. I think this is freaking out my coworkers because I'm so chatty now - I'm usually really quiet in the office and don't speak unless someone starts the convo. I do ramp down a little bit by early evening, but that's normal for me (unless I'm in Vegas).

Tomorrow is the beginning of the third cycle, which means it's a Cheat Day!! Curry House, here I come...don't be closed, don't be closed....

Day 4 of 25

I joined the Facebook group for Xtreme Fat Loss Diet (XFLD) today. It's nice to see that everyone else on this  program has a love-hate relationship with it too!

Our first day on the program was this past Sunday (not Saturday like I planned because we were too hungover from our drinking binge the night before). The first day was a Cheat Day, where we could eat whatever we wanted, but we had to take initial body measurements, record body fat percentage, and start the workouts.  Albert remeasured my body fat percentage for me and it ranged anywhere from 26% to 32%, so  we went with 29% body fat to calculate how many calories and macronutrients I'd need for the 25 days. The exercises seemed really simple, but they've made me sweat the most so far out of all the workouts - and yes, we work out EVERY DAY.

The Cheat Day is followed by a Fast Day and a Shake day. It's basically 48 hours without solid food. The Fast Day means no food at all - just water and supplements. The Shake Day is a little easier because we get to have shakes instead of pills all day. Either way, my stomach was pretty miserable, especially on the Fast Day. We also have to work out on those days and we've been getting to the gym by 5:00am to do the recommended workouts. Despite how miserable my stomach feels, the rest of my body feels pretty fantastic! I'm completely energized throughout the  work day even though I haven't had any real food. My body is sore, but I like it - no pain, no gain, right? Today, we finally got to eat solid food- I don't think I've ever looked forward to eating a cup of tuna so bad in my life!

It feels different being on this program. I don't feel like I'm dieting because I'm not really denying myself anything. I feel like I'm just pacing myself. I guess that's a good thing because I have no intention of quitting or "slipping up" and eating junk. Trust me, it's tough opening the fridge and seeing the pizzas, the fried chicken, and whatever yummy goodness is in there. But, I just remind myself I can eat it - all of it - in a couple days, then it becomes no biggie!

Tomorrow is a protein only day. Chicken and Broccoli - ALL DAY. That was my usual lunch when I was on the other fitness program and I was sick of it toward the end, but it sounds SO good right now...especially when it's been heavily powdered with cayenne pepper - YUM! The next Cheat Day is Friday...what to eat, what to eat? Any suggestions???

...And We're Back

Wow...a whole month and a half has passed since my last post. So much for my resolution of writing in here at least once a week. Maybe I'll just calculate it by an average, especially with the new endeavor I'm planning to take on.

Albert found this new workout program: Xtreme Fat Loss Diet. It claims that you will lose 25lbs in 25 days, none of which will result in muscle loss. I don't consider it a "fad" diet because the program requires you to work out every day (sometimes 3 times a day) to build muscle, pig out during each cycle and fast only once during each cycle. Needless to say, I'm going to do the program...Day 1 is tomorrow. Albert will be doing the program also, so we're in it together - it's easier that way and we can keep each other honest.

The Motivation: My dear friend, April, is getting married in July and asked me to be one of her bridesmaids. Of course, I accepted in a heart beat! The bridesmaids dress has been chosen and, unfortunately, I can only zip it halfway up my back. April assures me it's fine and that it'll probably zip up all the way if I had someone help me. She's probably right, but I decided to make it a personal goal to be able to zip it up myself. Secondly, since Albert and I decided not to go to Thailand this year (mainly my fault for not having enough vacation days), we're joining our friends for a weekend cruise to Baja a couple days after April's wedding. Essentially, this means 3 days of walking around in a bikini to fit in with everyone the boat. So, I have a dress and a swimsuit to fit into in essentially 7 weeks. 

The Preparation: The beautiful thing about this new fitness program is that it actually STARTS with a cheat day and you get a cheat day every 5 days after that. The not-so-beautiful thing about it is it says the alcohol is counterproductive to what we're trying to do: lose fat. Also, I will have to be in the gym EVERY day. That's neither a good thing or a bad thing, really. It's more of a challenge. I am okay with going to gym...it's not my favorite thing to do, but it's necessary since I enjoy food and drink...A LOT. What I hate about the gym is when it's busy and the equipment or weights aren't readily available. But, I've come up with a schedule for the program where I can go during non-peak times, so I'm looking forward to completing 100% of the required work out time...or at least, giving it my best shot.

Surprisingly, I'm really excited about the new program. I think I may have plateaued on the old program, so this may be just the surge my body needs.

The Goal: Albert and I have been preparing for the program all week. We've figured out our calories and macronutrients, printed out workout logs, calendared our first cycle of the program (there are 5 cycles total and we adjust accordingly). He ordered all the supplements (Thanks Beb!) and they're coming in this weekend. I do have to figure out my menu for the first cycle, which I'll probably take care of at work today (haha...gotta love corporate time robbing...but c'mon, it's Friday, what do they expect?!) . We're taking our starting body measurements tomorrow morning. I took my body fat percentage this morning...it's a dismal 32%. Sadly, I think that's right, but I'm going to have Albert remeasure it tomorrow morning just to be sure. I'd list my weight here too, but I'm too embarrassed :\ I weighed 117lbs as a freshman in college...WTF happened?!?! Hahah!  If anything, if this program works, then I'll list my before and after weight at the end. Deal? Deal. 

A lot of self-help books say it's a good idea to have a visual goal, so for good measure...here are my visual goals:

...although, I doubt April will let me wear something that short during her wedding (hehehe).

If you can't already tell, Penelope Cruz is one of my body icons. She's not a waif and she's curvy - so I think she's a reasonable goal for me to try for. Now, if i can get her boobies and a sexy Spaniard accent, I'd be set!

I'll be logging my progress on the blog...hopefully, on a daily basis until it's over, but at least at the end of each cycle.

In TOTALLY UNRELATED news: NBC says they will be canceling Law & Order (one of my favorite shows). First Conan, now this?! This network totally blows.

March Madness: Part 3 (Last One)

This is a day late, since it's already April. I had this long post about Las Vegas and the difference between going with a bunch of girls and going with a bunch of guys. I looked at it and thought, it's freakin Vegas, no matter how many times you go and who you're with, you're gonna have a good time. 

I will say that I went to Vegas on back-to-back weekends. One weekend was with my cousin and her girlfriends and the following weekend was with Albert, Jello, and Phil. I had an INSANE time during both weekends and was quite happy that I didn't break the bank on either weekend (these people are pretty thrifty when they want to be). I'm lucky to have adventurous friends and family. It's also nice that the above mentioned friends and family know how to work it to get it HOOKED UP (e.g. getting into night/strip clubs gratis, packing enough yummy food and alcohol to last all weekend, getting the nicest rooms, etc.).

You would think that back-to-back weekends in Vegas would result in me being sick of the place, but I'm not. I actually love it even more and can't wait until the next time I'm over there. I love that city so much, I've been semi-seriously looking for jobs out there (NOT an April Fool's Joke). It's hard to picture myself anywhere else other than SoCal, but Las Vegas is SO tempting...and much more affordable. 

Anyways, I LOVE VEGAS...one of the best cities in the world (mainly because you're encouraged to walk around drunk and look like a hooker....hahah)

By the way, it was our 3-year anniversary this past St. Patrick's Day. Our first date was in Las Vegas. It was a wild and fun weekend then and has only gotten better since ;) He rocks my world.

March Madness: Part 2

I live in a condo and toward the beginning of this month I was doing little home improvement projects. These were things I had been putting off for a while and finally got my ass in gear to complete: 

Moved into the bigger room: I was supposed to do this when my mom moved out, but got lazy. I finally made the move and like having the extra space. However, more space does not necessarily mean more storage. Half my closet is taken up by the stairway underneath it so I lost a bit of storage space there. I still have a bunch of crap laying around. I should give it away to the Salvation Army, but you know what's going to happen??? I'm going to need it 2 weeks later. I think I may be a bit of a Hoarder, but it's not terrible. I can still see the floor of my room. I just need to get some plastic bins and organize the chaos. 

Installed a lock on my old room: These are the parts that come with a door knob and lock:

Since the installation instructions were really more of a step-by-step picture guide, I got the gist of it and proceeded to install the lock. After screwing in the strike plate quite easily, I moved on to installing the deadlatch. It was a little tougher than the strike plate (I installed it the wrong way on the first try), but I still managed to get that done. I was so excited, that I wanted to test the latch out. Well, it worked perfectly...then I realized there were no knobs to pull back the latch and open the door. 

Naturally, I freaked out because I had locked myself in a room with a door that doesn't have knobs and without a cell phone. I started pulling hard at the door in hopes of breaking the latch or the door. That didn't work. I looked out the window and considered climbing out of the 2nd story window on top of the patio shade and jumping down to the back yard, but I would still have no phone or keys to get in, not to mention I was in my pajamas. I went back to trying to break the door and the latch and could feel the tears forming (I have bad memories of being locked in rooms thanks to being a mischievous little kid). Finally a took a deep breath and started looking at the latch. There was a release for the latch and the door opened up. I felt like a dumbass and supreme being at the same time. 

Installed wifi: Unfortunately, I don't have a personal laptop or computer. I have a laptop provided by my work, but I don't like using it too much because it reminds me of work. BUT, I can use my iTouch. I think I might have been a cavewoman in a past life because I'd be totally fine without a computer/laptop/gadgets that use wifi. I didn't say life would be as convenient or fun, but I would survive just the same. 

Added another lamp in the living room: I had my Christmas tree up until February. Christmas is one of my favorite times of the year, the tree looked decent (even though it was plastic) and it provided a lot of light in the living room. Then my mom said that I looked like a crazy woman with a Christmas tree still up in February so she made me take it down. It was pretty dark in the living room after that, especially since part of the living room is painted a dark plum color and Ikea lamps don't really cut it after a while. I finally found a lamp with enough light as the Christmas tree. The tree was funner to look at, but this lamp will do...until December.

I've done a little more stuff to the place, but there's still lots to be done - it's a work in progress. Home improvement/home decor is endless, that's fer sure. Anyways, doing all that stuff was part of the madness know as March 2010.