[RealFantasy]

Good Morning Rad!
Nice Workout Rad! :bigthumbu
I wanted to wish you a Wonderful Weekend, and enjoy those walks in that beautiful country this weekend too.
May all your fantasys come true!

Have a Great Day Rad!
Brenda

[A.FreeRadical]

Originally Posted by RealFantasy

Good Morning Rad!
Nice Workout Rad! :bigthumbu
I wanted to wish you a Wonderful Weekend, and enjoy those walks in that beautiful country this weekend too.
May all your fantasys come true!

Have a Great Day Rad!
Brenda

Thanks, Brenda. I don't know if my fantasies will ever come true, but if they do, I will make new ones.

"...May the saddest day of your future be no worse
Than the happiest day of your past." ~ an Irish Wedding Toast


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[A.FreeRadical]

So I hit the trail for 6 miles. That puts me at 19 miles this week and 5 more to go by Sunday. I'll do the 5 miles on Saturday or Sunday whichever day looks like it might not rain.

Saturday is Back Day. I am itching to do some weighted pullups.

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[A.FreeRadical]

Originally Posted by dbflgirl

I eat a lot of fish but I usually saute it. Do you like catfish? I dip the filets in a tiny bit of flour mixed with some thyme, salt and pepper, then saute in a bit of butter. Flip and when it's about 80% done, add the vermouth. Once it burns off, add the juice of 1 lemon. This works with Tilapia, too, which is a white fish with hardly any flavor.

I also pretend blacken fish. I make my own seasoning mix (so I can adjust the heat and salt) and then use just a little butter over high heat. I say 'pretend' because retaurant blackened fish is cooked in a boatload of butter.

I don't do much with parchment but it's pretty simple. Dress the fish with some olive oil, s+p, add whatever veggies you like, wrap in parchment, place in a pan, and bake. The parchment keeps the juices in so the fish stays moist. Since you like drier fish, this will help.

I don't think I have had catfish. I haven't liked much in the way of freshwater fish so far. Tilapia is ok though.

Ok, thanks for the tips. As soon as I get some fresh fish, I will have to try the parchment.

What do you do with the seasoning for blackened fish. (or do I need a Captain Midnight decoder ring for that information. )

Thanks. I'll let you know how it goes when I have fish. Right now I am stocked with chicken and ground beef and those don't keep very long. (Plus I have 5 meals, TRTE (Tuna Ready To Eat) in the fridge.) I am hungry for a crab cake with lumb crab meat. Too bad, according to fitday, I only have one protein drink, one plate of spaghetti with sauce and a spinach salad with tuna salad on top left to eat today. I am really getting used to eating at maintenance. I am going to hate it when I go back to cutting. Maybe crab cake tomorrow. I have a new diet planned starting Monday.

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[dbflgirl]

Originally Posted by A.FreeRadical

I have a new diet planned starting Monday.

Don't be a tease! Tell me about it

[A.FreeRadical]

Originally Posted by dbflgirl

Don't be a tease! Tell me about it

I thought you would never ask. I am baaad, aren't I.

I think I have my metabolism as high as it is going to go right now (without putting on more fat). I hit 2600 calories consumed for a few days and the scales went up. (I have been real steady, fluctuate perhaps a lb.) I don't know if this is fat or muscle though. My maintenance is probably 2500 calories per day.

I like the diet that I am on, let's call it a modified NHE (the exception is 15-25 more grams of carbs and less fat each day.). It is high protein, fairly high fat and low carb, except 2 meals per week. On Monday and Friday I have a carb up meal with at least 100 extra grams of carbs on those day. I feel good, I have energy in the gym and on the trail and my attitude is positive. So, I don't want to change any of that.

I have decided to continue what I have been doing, except on carb up days I am going to eat slightly above maintenance levels, maybe 2700 calories. On the other days, I am going to reduce calories by a certain amount. (This is very much like the ZigZag diet that I used a while back with some success.) The amount will probably start at 200 calorie deficit for 5 days per week. Then move that up to 300 calorie deficit the second week and finally to 500 on the third week. Theoretically, this should yeild a .5 lb loss in fat per week.

I am thinking that the 24 mile walks per week will eventually send a message that I don't need extra fat to carry around while I am walking this much. (I think I am starting to see that now in the midsection.) At the same time, I am gradually reducing my caloric intake which should add more impetuous to drop more fat.

Well, at least that is what I am thinking. It is time to shake things up. I just don't want to upset the apple cart while I am shaking the tree.

Of course 2 weeks from now, I will be on the Pacific beach in Nicaragua and have no idea where I am getting the proper protein to support this diet. Maybe I'll go vegetarian/fruitietarian with fish for a month.

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[dbflgirl]

Sounds like you are getting closer and closer to Venuto's diet. He recommends a form of carb cycling and zig-zagging that is similar to what you are doing. The main difference is that he advocates a carb-up day (versus meal) every 4th day. And that's the say you zig up, too. He keeps fats lower than Faigin, too.

After 3 weeks of steadily decreasing bodyfat, mine bounced up yesterday. Problem is, I don't know if this is a defect in the stupid Omron doo-hickey I am using (because the number I get on caliper readings is ridiculously low and I refuse to believe it), water retention, or actual movement. But I took all my fitday data and plunked it into an Excel spreadsheet so that now I can really torment myself by analyzing every gram.

Ok, here's one recipe for blackening seasoning:

3 tablespoons chili powder
2 tablespoons paprika
1 tablespoon cayenne
1 tablespoon ground cumin
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon granulated garlic
1 tablespoon granulated onion
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon cracked black pepper

There's also this one, which is nice:

1 Tablespoon Paprika
2 1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp cayenne
3/4 tsp white pepper
3/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/2 tsp dried oregano

I adjust the ingredients depending on what sort of taste I am in the mood for.

[GameDayDog]

A lotta tymes I don't even post... I just read and nod my head a lot...

But it does sound lyke a good plan... As for the vacation tho... I gotta throw in my $.02 and say... - ENJOY YA DAYUM SELF!!!! ... Nothyng wrong with eating all the exotic foods you're gonna encounter... I mean, mentally, I understand that you'll be thynkin' - Protein, Carb, Fat.. - when you order stuff.. but for the most part... Do it lyke it's gonna be your only tyme to do it... Live a little.. naw, Live a lot!! .. Drink more wine & be merry... Seriously...

I'd rather you travel there and enjoy yaself... then come back feeling guilty and attack your new diet full force.. than to return here and later say - "Ya know, I wysh I'd eaten some of that stuff I saw over there.. It looked delicious." ... Guilt is always better than regrets (in my book) ... Enjoy yaself & take plenty of pics..

BTW - Pack plenty of Immodium & Pepto Bismol...

Peace..~G

[dbflgirl]

Originally Posted by A.FreeRadical

I don't think I have had catfish. I haven't liked much in the way of freshwater fish so far. Tilapia is ok though.

Catfish is pretty "meaty" -- i.e., it's not flaky the way most white fish is. You have to chew it. But it has fairly mild flavor. You can do things with it you can't do with a more delicate fish. It holds up in cooking. So if you have favorite chicken or veal recipes, you can substitute catfish (but of course adjust the cooking time).

Don't know if you like any spicier stuff, but I also make it where it's cut into chunks (don't buy the chunks -- they're gross -- cut your own from filet),and sauteed. Then you take the catfish out of the pan while you make a sauce/stew of tomato, onion, chili powder and cream (and some other things). Then the fish goes back in. You can also do this with canned tuna but it's not the same.

[A.FreeRadical]

Hahahaha, Game. I have a method to my madness. I am probably not going to be using any of dbflgirl's information about cooking fish before I go to Nicaragua, but the town I am staying in, in Nicaragua, is a fishing village. Fish are a source of protein. I know they catch tuna there and I like tuna. I am going to have an apartment with a kitchen and a balcony overlooking the ocean. See where I am going with this?

Hmmm....The last time I was there the damned roosters awakened me every morning. (there is another source of protein, kill two birds and get stoned. Oops, that was in Jamaica. Eire mon!, who wrapped that sucker?). Well there are roosters in Nicaragua too, I do remember hearing them. Where there are cockbirds, there are chicken breasts nearby. (I wrote a poem about that, maybe I will dig that out. It was one of my better ones.)

Trust me, Game. I know how to live a little. In fact, I only know how to live a lot.

Yeah, dbflgirl, I like spicier stuff.

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[A.FreeRadical]

Here is what I did:

Seated Lat Pulldowns, narrow grip, 1 x 140 x 8, 1 x 160 x 8, 3 x 180 x 6
T-bar rows, 3 x 105 x 6
Pullups, hammer grip, 2 x bw+25 x 6, 2 x bw x 6
Seated Lat Rows, narrow grip, 1 x 140 x 8, 3 x 180 x 6
Deadlift, 1 x 135 x 8, 1 x 225 x 8, 2 x 275 x 6
Back extentions, 2 x bw x 20 2 x bw x 10 with a twist.
Cable eZbar curls, 1 x (40,50,60,70,80) x 8
Cable reverse eZbar curls, 2 x 60 x 8

I was in the gym for about 75 minutes.

I am pleased that my deadlift is coming along with no lower back pain. I really missed doing deads. I think my pb is 335 lbs. I will move the weight up a little each week. I don't want to reinjure my back.

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[dbflgirl]

Maybe you want to bring me with you on your trip as your personal chef. Not that you can't cook -- we all know you can --but just so you can have some time off. Honest, my motives are completely altruistic!

[A.FreeRadical]

Originally Posted by dbflgirl

Maybe you want to bring me with you on your trip as your personal chef. Not that you can't cook -- we all know you can --but just so you can have some time off. Honest, my motives are completely altruistic!

Absolutely, silvergirl. I have been cooking for almost two years now and I think I need a month off. I am sure I could learn a thing or two from you.

My motives are questionable.

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[A.FreeRadical]

I walked 5 miles in 1 hour and 30 minutes. That is 24 miles for the week and 74 miles in the last 3 weeks.

Tomorrow is "do whatever I want day". I will do chest, shoulders and weighted abs.

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