What is Aesthetically Pleasing? “The perfect body shape?” “Achieving your best shape ever through diets, exercise, and other methods to include fashion.”
“Okay-okay!!!” So I didn’t get those six pack yet! I didn’t get in much shape like I had dreamed about either. Maybe that’s all she wrote and its all downhill from here???
But maybe, just maybe, there was a disruption in the space time continuum!? A ripple in space that has stopped me from pursuing my life-long goal of getting in shape!?
“Space time continuum? Ripple in space?” Sounds more like I am still in dream mode to me. “MDRM” Making Dreams into Reality Mode has not taken off yet. I need to wake up and go. So on Monday I am taking off full blast before my candle burns out for sure.
Day 10; May 28 has come and is going faster than I had expected. What has changed? What did I expect to happen as I near the completion of the First Phase of the 24-Day Challenge? Do I feel differently than 10 days ago?
DAY 10
Start of day 10 in the morning I took my last Fiber Drink and the recommended tablets and headed out for work. This evening I intend to workout legs doing the usual squats, leg extensions, and curls. Plus the little “ab” workouts that I do. While I have noticed an improvement in muscle tone, the tone in my stomach eludes me. Perhaps I need to give it more time. Time is something a still have left; at least til a year and a half. I will continue to hold on to my dreams of having a six pack before that time arrives.
Day 9 and I’m off from work so I woke up late; its 1030 am on a Tuesday. I started my day taking my Diabetic medication (I did forget to tell) and my ProBiotic Restore Tablets. I also took my Catalyst to prevent muscle loss while I diet and my Fiber drink. The Catalyst is a three times a day tablet so I will take it again later for a late lunch with the Meal Replacement shake and again for dinner with my Omega Plex tablet.
As for my evening workout; I will workout my back, biceps, and calves. Of course, I will do my usual ab workout plus the pull-ups that I still can not accomplish. Nevertheless, I will continue to build up on those muscles needed for that task and keep you all posted.
All workouts are for 3 sets and 12-15 reps each. For now that’s all she wrote. Til next time; C-Ya later.
Okay Charlie Brown, its Monday and I am off from work for the next two days. I have taken my morning drink and tablets and now I am getting ready for some home projects. Today’s workout will be started with weighted twists, sit ups, and leg raises. Followed by chest, shoulders, and triceps. All will be in the range of 3-4 sets and 12-15 reps.
By far, the hardest part is the actual diet itself. I presume if it wasn’t; America would not be one of the top over weight countries in the world. Oh well, see if I can be one less American in the over weight section. I have not written down what I eat or am keeping track of the calories. I might start doing that in the next phase of the the 24-Day Challenge.
Today is Saturday and I am closing at Lowe’s. This are my two days off from workouts so all I did this morning was to take my usual tablets that are recommended from the 24-Day Challenge program. I might change that next week depending on energy levels and depending on other duties. C-Ya next time!
This morning I took my recommended Catalyst and Probiotic Restore tablets. I also took an energy drink and meal replacement shake. Work was in the afternoon and evening (for the next couple of days), so my workout was in the morning.
THE WORKOUT
Today was leg workout day and consisted of squats, leg extensions, leg curls, and the usual ab workout. I did 3 sets of squats in the 12-15 rep range. I try not to overdue it here because since I am just starting out I do not want to break something. I am glad that the bench I traded has bar holders that reverse and extend a ways out for safety when doing squats. I did 3 sets with 12-15 rep range for leg extensions and curls as well.
For abs, I did the weighted twists for 15 minutes, did 3 sets of sit ups, and 3 sets of leg raises.
That’s all she wrote til next time. Gotta work on my barbecue blog. C-Ya!
The Meal Replacement Shake comes in four different flavors and come in a 14 serving box. Perfect for on the go meal replacement that gives you 24 grams of protein, 5-6 grams of fiber, and 26 vitamins and minerals. Best of all, it has only and 220 calories!
The flavors that are available are Chocolate Mocha, Chocolate, Vanilla and Berry. My choice of flavor was the Chocolate Mocha and I have to say, it tastes great!
DAY 4 MORNING.
I started my morning with my Advocare Spark and Probiotic Restore supplements which are part of the First Phase of the 24-Day Challenge.
The Probiotic Restore supplement is the one on the bottom left and come inside the Herbal Cleanse box. I ate two boiled eggs and a slice of toast. for breakfast.
My workout to started at 8 pm sharp and lasted for exactly 1 hour. As stated before, I started with the ab workout after 10 minutes of warm up exercises. My muscle workout areas included back, biceps, and calves.
For the back muscle group I did bent over pull-ups and cable pull-downs. 4 sets each at 8-10 reps. Plus I hanged around the pull-up bar for 10 seconds x 4 (I still can not do a pull-up) YET! I did 4 sets each in the range of 8-10 reps of dumb bell curls and barbell curls. I ended my workout with standing calve raises; also 4 sets at 8-10 reps. Was a good workout overall.
P.S. I had dinner around 5 pm which consisted of grilled chicken thighs and vegetables. Til next time; see you later and may you all have a pleasant evening.
Today is Day 3 of the 24-Day Challenge and I went ahead and posted the link to the 24-Day Challenge Guide , which can be downloaded as a pdf. and should answer any questions you might have about the program. The guide gives examples of what is recommended you eat and a schedule to fellow for best results. Should you want to challenge yourself or a special someone, you can order the 24-Day Challenge Bundle (my website and affiliate link) and join to better yourself or friend. I look forward to hearing your results first hand.
THE THIRD DAY.
Day three started the same as in the past two days. I took the recommended products, but what I am doing different today is that I am starting my working out program since I am off from work for the next two days. During the days that I work I will have to improvise; for example, working out before work or after wards. My workouts will start at 8-8:30 pm on the days I don’t work; it is the optimal biological time for someone at my age. The workout today will consist of weighted twists (10 minutes), 3 sets of sit-ups and 3 sets of leg raises with reps in the 15-20 range for now until I get better at it.
In one of my previous posts I mentioned the term “Aesthetically Pleasing”, which I described is a form that our Female counterparts enjoy seeing the most in the Males. That form involves having a V-SHAPE form, which can be accomplished by widening the shoulders and back. The best home exercises for that (I have read) are pull-ups (Unfortunately I can only do two), exercises involving the shoulders and back. There are many to choose from and I will over time do most of them as I pursue my dreams of having a body that pleases female eyes.
Needless to say, I have both a cable weight machine and free weights plus a bench, which I bartered for my MiG Welder. Here are some photos of my set up to give you ideas should you wish to workout from home instead of the gym.
I just finished my hour long workout. Here are the photos I mentioned earlier (I just took them).
Pull-up-bar
My homemade pull-up bar made from 1 1/4 black metal pipe which I had Lowe’s Home Improvement Center cut and retread. Works great, but I could only do half a pull-up today. Chucks! So much for doing two. I already had the 4 x 6 and 4 x 4 posts, which I had set up many years ago for my “then” little girl’s swing which she out grew.
Free-weightsHome-workout-space
So, I have the tools to succeed to my quest to become a better shapely man. We will see how that rolls out as the days and weeks go by.
I will continue to do my two pull-ups (zero, I was only able to pull my big butt half way up) and will toughen up doing cable pull-downs, which are recommended to strengthen the muscles necessary for pull-ups. This week I’m concentrating on cable workouts and next week I’l add free weights to those exercises I am already doing. So today’s workout will be for the chest, shoulders, triceps, and abs, which are for everyday.
I did 4 sets of bench presses on the cable machine in the 8-14 range (for reps), dumbbell shoulder shrugs and inverted flies (4 sets apiece 8-14 reps), triceps pull-downs in the same ranges. I feel pretty good and the muscles tight. My resting periods were as much time needed to change the weights to a lower one to keep the reps the same (30-40 seconds).
That’s it for today! Maybe next time I will add more photos of the actual workouts, but how knows…there are plenty of them on-line already. See next time…in “One Man’s Lifelong Quest to pursue that eluding perfect form!” Or something like that! “OKAY-okay!!!” I had to come back and add something else because the total word count fell unto 666…YIKES!
Started this am by taking Spark’s Energy Drink Mix (affiliate link)in Mango/Strawberry flavor. Available in Watermelon, Cherry, Mango Strawberry, Pink Lemonade, Mandarin Orange, Grape, Citrus and Fruit Punch. Can be ordered in pouches (14 serving) or canisters. According to Advocare, “this drink sharpens mental focus, is a fast acting and long-lasting energy drink, which contains 21 vitamins, minerals and nutrients designed to synergistically provide a healthy, balanced source of energy with only 45 calories per serving.”
THE VERDICT
When I first became a distributor for Advocare, my goals were to just get the products I would be using a lot cheaper and not to sell anything. As a Distributor I get 20% off and 20% from commissions, but Advisors get 40% off their purchases plus can get up to 40% commissions from other persons purchases. Regardless, when I joined I received a sample kit for my own personal use or as maybe to pass them out to get people interested. One of the items was Sparks Energy Drink mix, which I have been taking for over a week now. “This stuff WORKS!” I have had no side effects like jitterness or a fast heartbeat. You can mix this with water or your favorite drink. I started mixing mine with the Fiber Drink in the morning to start my day. Remember there are eight different flavor to choose from. “Give them a try!”
Available in Citrus and Peaches & Cream, Advocare states “Herbal Cleanse supports improved digestion thorough internal cleansing. Helps rid the body of toxins and waste
providing 10 grams of fiber per day. Helps remove impurities from the body and supports healthy weight loss.” On my second day using the Fiber Drink (for days 1,2,3,8,9,&10)I have to say that it does work. With that many fiber going into you…you know what that means. To the Gentleman’s Room I go! I did feel lighter but not empty; kinda of a wellness type of empty if you know what I mean.
I have taken 1 dosage of Advocare’s Herbal Cleanse Tablets. Advocare states “the Herbal Cleanse tablet provides herbal extracts that help rid your body of the impurities that may be obstacles to achieving better health. One ingredient, senna leaf extract, is known for its use to relieve occasional constipation, as well as to encourage the movement of waste through the intestinal tract. Beet root powder and wheat grass juice are included to aid in the reduction of metabolic by-products in the blood and liver. Cranberry juice powder helps cleanse impurities from the kidneys and aid in excretion through the bladder. The Herbal Cleanse tablet also contains milk thistle extract, which has the active component silymarin. Silymarin has been traditionally used to aid in eliminating toxins from the liver and is also an excellent hepaprotectant and antioxidant. Echinacea, astragalus, garlic, zinc and vitamin C help support the immune system. Herbal Cleanse tablets also contain a wide range of B-vitamins to help maintain energy levels during the detoxification period. Take on days one through seven. This statement has not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.” The Herbal Cleanse tablets are for days 1-7 of the program.
CATALYST
ADVOCARE-CATALYST
One of the products not included in the 24-Day Challenge was the Catalyst, which “helps maintain muscle mass during exercise & weight management, aids in preserving muscle and energy levels during times of calorie restriction, plus helps repair & protect muscle tissue.” Since I am trying to grow some MUSCLE I felt this product would be a great addition to my program, especially since I am also trying to get fit enough to get a SIX-PACK. The Catalyst will help prevent muscle loss while I am losing body fat from dieting.
BYE-BYE
Gotta go now to work. See you next time where I will include some workouts that I am going to try and some more feedback on the products I have chosen to use to help me get AESTHETICALLY PLEASING.
