I apologize for my absence in posting these but life as it is has been dominating my every waking moment. And when it’s not I rejuvenate at the gym so that I refrain from committing a felony (I kid) … (sorta) … (no, seriously just kidding) … (kinda).

Anywho I thought I’d take this opportunity to share my top NSVs 1120 days in:

NSV #1 – After 3 plus years of reducing my sugar intake I can proudly & finally say that I 100% free from drinking added sugar regularly.

Remember this? 

Over the weekend I was finally able to bid farewell my psychological spoonful of sugar in my tea (the smallest one “DASH”) . I now drink tea with just a dash of organic skim milk and am proud to say that I do not drink any additional sugar. YAY!

NSV #2 – Remember this? Hanging leg raises – hardcore abs burner. 

What I managed …   

The first time I tried a hanging leg raise I just hung there … like grandma underwear on the clothes line.  Not only did I not have the physical strength to do anything without risking falling but I was also too afraid to move for fear of failling. SO I literally started the hanging leg lifts by hanging there … like an idiot. I was SO embarrassed that I actually took it out of my routine until I felt stronger. A few months later when I tried it again I was pleasantly surprised with my watered down version: It’s a far cry from the full version but it is a mark improvement from just imitating laundry, no? 

NSV #3 – I am finally loosening my death grip on that little number on the scale because my focus has changed. I will still weigh in every 4-6 weeks but my focus now is more on increase muscle. Parting ways emotionally with the scale has been & remains one of my biggest hurdles in maintenance because for over 3 years now weight has been my one & only marker for progress / continued success. And although it has served me well, in maintenance I have found it to be more of a nuisance and not all that helpful in some cases.

SO for now I will be focusing more on the tape measure and this little guy   (body fat pincher). I am chosing to focus on building muscles (not bulking) because unfortunately muscle deterioration is a part of aging. However it is not an inevitable phenomena which cannot be undone. On the contrary science has shown that at the very minimum the erosion can be halted if not somewhat reversed. As I have mentioned many times before, I think many are still stuck on the thought that “strength training” = “weight lifting / bodybuilding” and it does not. There are a multitude of ways to strength train, from isometric holds, to body weight (resistance), to yes, outright weight lifting. The choice is largely dependent on the individual goals, time, and lifestyle. So I think of my choices as this: I can either continue to decrease my caloric intake to compensate for less muscles to burn calories with OR I can maintain or increase the muscles I have in order to maximize the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. I choose the ladder.  I will still do my BBWOB resistance cardio but I will continue incorporate additional body weight strength training in order to continue to transition away from ‘weight’ as holy grail of continued success.

 

Some articles on the benefits / importance of strength training: HERE , HERE , or HERE

 

Some sample strength training routines to get you started:

Isometric Holds

http://greatist.com/move/isometric-exercises

http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=972&page=3

Body Weight

http://www.menshealth.com/fitness/bodyweight-circuit-workout

http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/becker20.htm

 

Weight Lifting

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/fitness/expert-answers/weight-training/faq-20058479