From the category archives:

Photos

I blog as bad as I diet (pics)

by Mike Vifquain on June 9, 2010

Yep, I admit it. I’m a bad blogger.

Life has gotten in the way of my blog posts, once again. Here I am almost 90 days later, a few lbs heavier and finally posting about it.

First – The Good news:

I have still been working out. (Weight training 3-5 days a week)
I have increased my strength, BIG TIME!
I have added 8-10lbs muscle mass
I haven’t been traveling.

Now – The Bad News:

My diet sucks. I’m not eating often enough or well enough.
I am not doing enough cardio, in addition to my weight training.
I have gained a few lbs. (287lbs as of this morning)

One could argue that the bad really isn’t that bad; I’ve added muscle and maintained fat %, while really not pushing cardio and a proper diet. I don’t see it that way. My initial goal was to lose 100lbs by today. I have lost only 20.

Lets cut to the chase here and let you be the judge.

Now, if we compare to the pics in my last post you will see a few things:

I am MUCH more tan. Its summer and I am out on the boat a lot!
I am definitely “larger”. But is this muscle growth or fat?
I clearly have no fear of posting embarrassing “fat” pics of me online.

I know what I need to do. I know I need to get more serious, but didn’t I say this before?

I’m searching for some encouragement by way of true criticism with this post.

What do you think of my status here? What is your take on my status pic? Better/worse?

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Weight-loss & photo update, intense workout and protein farts

by Mike Vifquain on January 6, 2010

This weeks weight: 291lbs (-3lbs)

I know, not what I was expecting. I thought I had another pound or two than that, but a loss is a loss. It puts me at 15lbs lost and only 5lbs away from my first goal of 286lbs. Will I lose 5lbs in time for my competition weigh-in Sunday in Vegas?

January 6, 2010 - 15lbs Lost

Yes, I still have my Christmas tree up! Don’t judge, I’ve been busy losing weight! It will be down by the weekend.

Today I hit the gym twice. 45 minutes of amped up cardio on the elliptical in the morning. By “amped-up” I mean I dialed the intensity up quite a bit. I did HIIT (Interval training) and rotated 75rpm for 5 minutes then down to 50rpm for 3 minutes to recover. I really felt it, and I know my body reacted well to the switch.

After lunch I hit a different gym with my buddy, the trainer. We worked biceps, triceps and then abs and core. I didn’t write things down, but here is my best recollection:

4 x 12 dumbbell curls
3 x 12 overhead cable/rope extension for triceps (not sure the proper name. )

superset:
3 x 12 seated preacher curl machine
3 x 12 seated hammer push machine

superset:
3 x 12 close grip bench press
3 x 12 dumbbell hammer curls

superset:
3 x 12 cable bar curls
3 x 12 cable rope pull extension

3 x 12 crunches

superset:
3 x 12 bicycle crunches
3 x 12 core twists (seated like a sit-up, recline back and twist core left to right and back)

3 x 12 hanging leg lifts

Let me tell you, this was one hell of a workout in only an hour!

Question for you all:

I’m finding that the more protein I consume, the more I am letting off a few butt-burps. They don’t smell too good either! I know I don’t do well with too much beef, so I limit myself to turkey, chicken, tuna, etc.

How do I prevent myself from ripping ass 20 times a day from all this protein consumption?

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Truth or Dare?

by Mike Vifquain on January 2, 2010

Would you strip down to your undies in front of strangers?

After my workout today I was getting ready to shower at the gym and noticed I’m one of the few “Big Guys” who uses the shower at the gym. I’m wondering if it’s because others are ashamed of their size? I don’t get bothered in that situation, but do wear a shirt at the beach. Pretty odd, right?

So I’m setting myself a new goal. Truth or dare. I choose dare. I dare myself to go shirtless in front of my peers for a convention I have to attend in Las Vegas, in June. I have 5 months to build my confidence up enough to do this. June also happens to be my goal month to lose 100lbs. What a way to show the “new me” eh? I will be in plenty of industry photos. Only this time I won’t be the “Bellyflop champion” I have been in the past (see photo below), I will be a 200lb stud!

Todays workout was great! 60 minutes on the elliptical for a total of 992 calories burned! In addition I did another 30 minutes on the treadmill of a 3.5mph walk. I set it to Random and it adjusted the incline quite frequently.

My shins were killing me! I imagine this is because of the incline, but shows I still have a very long way to go.

While there, a friend of mine mentioned she was going to be running a 15k at the end of February. I need to check my travel schedule, but I’m thinking about giving it a shot. 15k is 9 or so miles. I imagine this is a 2-2.5 hour race for me at this point. I wonder if I could complete it? I absolutely hate running, but setting a lofty goal like this would be good for me.

What are your thoughts? Have any of you tried a run like this after a period of little activity? I know some of you guys are a little further in your journey than I, what do you suggest?

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Workout Update #15 | Pic update!

by Mike Vifquain on December 29, 2009

1000 Calories burned

That’s right, 60 minutes and exactly 1000 calories on the elliptical. I couldn’t ask for a better cardio session. I kind of like this middle of the day workout. I had a lot of energy and even thought about pushing it longer. I didn’t go to weights, I’m not sure why. I need to get on a structured lifting schedule as well. Anyone have suggestions on setting and sticking to a weight-training program?

Now onto the photo update I have been promising.

December 29, 2009

As you can tell, there isn’t much change at this point. I’ve tried nit-picking and comparing, but there really isn’t a change after only 11lbs. I hope to see more noticeable change in January once I reach my first goal of 20lbs lost.

On a side note: I did the initial testing on the “LifeCenter” system that my gym is offering. Everything was good, except for the weight. It had me at 299lbs on it’s built in scale, but the scale I have used at the gym since the beginning still had me pegged right under 295 (after eating 2 meals;-) ).

Body Fat %: 30.8%

It’s a start. lol. I will test again tomorrow morning when I head in on an empty stomach to see how it reads.

Oh, I have noticed I’m getting a good amount of referrals from other weight-loss blogs. If you run a blog and want to trade links, please let me know. My goal is to share my story with as many people as possible!

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Weight-loss & Workout Days #8 & 9 | Hotel workouts

by Mike Vifquain on December 19, 2009

Where have my updates gone? Did you think I disappeared?

NO, I did not call it quits already! I was in St Augustine, FL exploring the oldest city in America! I know, I promised updates — I’m sorry. While there, I learned I do have will-power and it is possible to have fun without binge eating and drinking! I also learned that the Internet connection in the oldest city in America is still rather crappy!

Crappy Hotel Gym in St Augustine, FL

See, I still managed to grab my workout while on the road. Good on me! I know I can do it now. The gym was pretty lacking. It had 2 sub-par treadmills and a nice bike — if the bike worked. The “start” button was broke, so I couldn’t add any tension to the pedals. I warmed up with 15 minutes on the treadmill and another 5 on the bike (with no tension!). Then I decided to use what the good lord gave me and hit the push-ups and crunches. Yes, I still did sissy push-ups by dropping my knees to the ground. I’m ashamed to say it, but they are sissy push-ups! I will soon move on to the big-boy ones.

My workout in total was about an hour and 15 minutes. I did a pyramid circuit of the two that my High School Football Coach Olsen in Crestview, FL used to call the “Big 21.” You start with 21 push-ups, then 21 sit-ups/crunches. Next, 19, 17, 15…and so on. I started with 10, 9, 8, 7, etc. If you’ve never done something like that, I encourage you to try. No matter how good of shape you are in, you will realize that you can be in better shape!

Now, how did I eat?

I ate pretty well. For breakfast I stuck with egg-white omelet filled with feta and spinach and 1-slice of whole wheat toast. Lunch varied, but always had grilled chicken. Dinner was salad, chicken and veggies. In-between I had the Blue Diamond almonds I brought with me. No beer, but I did drink wine and a glass of Sangria one night. I didn’t feel bad and think overall my trip went well.

Will I gain weight? I can’t be certain, but I assume I will probably have a pound or two gain. Why? Well one can’t enjoy themselves and not suffer, right? I will find out this morning after I weigh-in at the gym. My plan is to kill it with cardio. No weights today. I may do some walking lunges though.

How did your week finish? Did you get the most out of your workouts?

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