Thursday, November 6, 2008

Two Things

First. Today I went to social get-together of sorts with people in my public health genetics inter-departmental concentration (PHGIC). It was just a smallish group of us students and some faculty. The chair of the epidemiology department, one of my professors and director of this PHGIC, was present. So was SB-M, who I've mentioned on here a few times as the hottest (and youngest - I think) administrator at the school of public health. I think he's only about 25-years-old or so.

Anyway, it was nice to sit with the chair of my department (let's call her Dr. K) and talk to her as a person, not as an authority figure to be worshiped like God. Of all the professors I've had the privilege of speaking to personally, she's definitely the most down-to-earth and she has an amazing laugh. She laughs a lot. She's like Santa Claus's wife, no joke. Everyone seems to look up to her, and I mean everyone. Well, except maybe her 14-year-old son, but that's just him being a teen. :P

Somehow (unsurprisingly) the topic of careers popped up. And she was saying how she was building a career when her partner wanted to start a family. Partner? Huh? Actually, I had suspected this before when SBK-F (the person who guest spoke on appealing to theological values to get people to agree - see this post) came in to ask for car keys, and Dr. K said SBK-F was her partner in passing.

So it hit me. Here is a person who is well-respected, is well-liked, with a great reputation, a great personality, an amazing laugh and sense of humor, chair of the department, etc. And she's bi/lesbian. And no one cares. And it doesn't even matter. Now that's pretty cool. It just makes me sad that my state denies her and many others partner benefits because same-sex marriage is illegal in my state. She, and no one else, deserves to be denied rights.
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Second. This is completely unrelated, and might be boring. Anyway, I've tried. I've tried to lose weight, made some great progress in the last 3 years, but now I seem to have plateaued - reached a steady-state. I envy and hate people who have the metabolism of a hummingbird, whereas mine is closer to that of a bear nearing hibernation. I don't eat that much throughout the day except for dinner (generally), and I exercise 3-4 times a week for about an hour at a time.

So I'm going to put myself on a limb and post my workout routine here (please don't laugh at my incompetence). Here's my current 1-hour exercise schedule (note, I don't know the names of most of the machines as I'm not a gym buff, so pardon my use of the motion I'm using for the machines):

- Stretch (3-5 min)
- Run 1 mi on the track (7-9 min)
- Walk 1/4 mi on the track (3-4 min)
- chest/shoulders ("standard" bench press) - 115 lbs, 2 sets of 8 reps
- chest/shoulders/back (pull down machine) - 110 lbs, 2 sets of 10 reps
- Run 2 mi on the Elliptical machine (15 min)
- abs (abs machine) - 80 lbs, 4 sets of 10 reps
- bicep (bicep curl machine) - 90 lbs, 2 sets of 10 reps
- triceps/chest/back(?) (push down machine) - 125 lbs, 2 sets of 10 reps

Tonight I asked my friend what I should do to make my 1-hour exercise schedule more effective at helping me lose weight. I'm not sure I can survive/maintain what he wants me to do. He also wants me to eat more, which is difficult considering I have very little time for breakfast and lunch. So I want additional input. Remember, I only have about 1 hour to exercise between classes (I actually have 1.5 hours break between class every day, but I need to include travel and changing time).

So does anyone have any good suggestions/modifications to my routine (or simple & quick food suggestions), before I attempt my friend's regimen? I'd like to lose about 20-25 lbs by February or so. Though, if it takes me until the end of April, that'll be fine too.

9 comments:

Steevo said...

I'm no expert, but u need to burn more calories and walking/joggng is perfect for that. The muscle building things are brief and do not burn calories as much as make you look hot.

Walk briskly between classes. If u sweat a bit, that's good calorie burning. Use stairs. If u have to walk from pt. A to pt. B, take the long route if u have the time.

Run in place or do step-up for just 10 min in the morning.

Also take in [eat] less calories. What do u eat?

High fiber, low fat. Excess food that u do no burn up [fuel] = fat. You know this, eh? .5 med student?

Hard boiled eggs supposedly burn more calories to digest than they contain.

Eliminate added sugar 5 days a week. Its everywhere. I like Splenda as a substitute. Read labels.

Make sense?

s
.
.

Doug said...

Agreed. More fat burning, high cardio, high heart rate exercises are what you need.

Also, how long have you been using the same weights? Have you steadily been increasing the weight on your machines? or has it been somewhat the same? Cuz your muscles will start getting use to it and you need to continually challenge them.

About eating more.. I believe you should eat MORE OFTEN. Not necessarily more. So spread your meals out into smaller portions.

Hope that all works!

Aek said...

Steevo: I'm a pretty fast walker, and I walk pretty much anywhere that's not too far that I have to take a bus (as I don't have a bike or car on campus). I would sweat, if it were summer. But as it's cold now, I don't heat up enough to really sweat, haha.

I don't eat very much generally. For breakfast I eat some toast or a bagel, then I drink either juice or tea with milk. For lunch I usually just have a yogurt cup and drink water. For dinner I usually cook something Asian (rice + veggies + chicken usually), and then I have some more juice. Sometimes I'll have desert and eat some fruits. About once (no more than twice) a week I'll eat out and maybe also get some coffee.

For the most part, other than juice, I don't drink/eat anything with a lot of sweets. I can't stand Splenda though.

Doug: I increase the weights about once every 1.5 months. So I'm actually about to increase the weights by 10 lbs or so on every machine in about a week or two. I will up the weight when it feels too easy for me, and it's getting there.

I don't have time to eat more or more portions. I have a tiny portioned breakfast and a tiny portioned lunch. My dinner might be slightly over-portioned, but it's not massive by any means.

Steevo said...

White rice is empty calories, but I love it too. Goes directly to th love handles! XD... Are the toast and bagels multi-grain? When it gets cold I cook up a big batch of hearty multi-grain hot cereal and refrigerate it. Add some milk and it heats up real fast. My fav is flakes: oats, barley, whole wheat, titrical ?sp. Very dense, chewy, filling. A tablespoon of raisins is nice and some cinnamon for cariety. I also make it fresh daily. Measure and set up the ingredients the nite b4. In the morning all you do is add the water into the bowl w/ the cereal, cover, microwave for X# minutes. Then shower, whatever. It sits for 5 minutes or so and is very good. Can you stand brown rice? I use brown jasmine ice. Whole Foods will have it in bulk. I recently saw and tried black rice. Whole grain... great flavor.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_rice

Mike said...

Wish I had some advice for you, but I really don't know what to recommend. I want to say that I salute you though for doing all of that running and cardio, which I skip out on.

Aek said...

Steevo: I can't not have my white rice! I actually eat a lot less white rice now than I used to. My bread is multi-grain or whole grain or whatever it is (aka, not white bread). My bagels, I only have 1 pack of bagels as I don't eat it very often.

I have cereal but I hate eating cereal for whatever reason, even with milk. I might try your suggestion with the hot cereal thing, hmm.

Anonymous said...

Two things:
1) you need to change your workout every 6 weeks. Your body gets used to what you are doing and becomes very efficient at it. That's the main reason you are plateauing.

There's nothing wrong with your set, but every 6 weeks, where you have a chest exercise, use a different machine (incline, fly, etc.) Wherever you have a bicep exercise, use a different exercise (standard, preacher, concentration, etc.).

2) go visit a trainer at a local gym and ask him/her to help you create a rotating schedule.

3) if you can't stand to visit a trainer, get a book at the library (Weightlifting for Dummies is actually a pretty good book).

Ignore any advice to eat more. You're trying to get in shape, not be a weightlifter. If you have an awful diet (i.e., all fast food), then clean it up. Otherwise I'd focus more on the exercise than on the diet.

E said...

I'm slightly upset causeI typed this long-ass explanation and it got erased...so I'll give u disgustingly succinct version

Ok. Running is the key to melt fat and toning. I'm an ex-athlete, and I say ex because I am, in comparison, grossly out of shape. Run, swim, fuck, whatever it is that you do well or a lot of, do that +1 hour. You'll start to see muscles in places that you didn't know existed.

You must alternate work outs: one day do low rep [5-8]/high intensity [heavier weights], next day regular work out, next day low intensity[ lighter weights]/high rep[14-19]. That simple adjustment will give you an even muscle building workout that with will also tone it all up.

Now all this talk of exercise has made me feel guilty, so I gotta go run...damn!

P.S. Askmen.com and menshealth.com are very helpful sites. Poke around and you might find some stuff that can help you out.

Anonymous said...

Hey, you're the med expert. Only thing I can help you with is how to correct your grammar and how to make voiceless implosive bilabial approximants. :P

Eeeeh....now you're putting pressure on ME to do something... -.-