Showing posts with label alcohol exercise. Show all posts
Showing posts with label alcohol exercise. Show all posts

Monday, February 25, 2013

Exercise & Alcohol -- 189 lbs (-40) [13X]



Ever since I can remember (which is sometimes only up to a few minutes ago) I have disliked exercise-- except when accompanied by alcohol. Not only did alcohol make certain sports bearable, it also made them darn fun. Here are some of my recollections from high school and college:

● Golf
While golf is one of those rare no-pain/some-gain sports, like bowling, it sucks up a lot of time. And nothing is more frustrating than getting on the green with a few elegant drives, only to go way over par with sub-par putting. Liquor has the unusual property of dilating time and making going way over par funny. Plus, it fits nicely in golf bags.

● Tennis
I somewhat enjoyed tennis growing up, but Beer Ball was much more fun. You lob the tennis ball as high as possible and run to the sidelines for a sip of beer while your opponent lobs back to you. Fun fact #1: I played this a lot at the LA college where Van Halen formed. Fun fact #2: I once tried hiding brandy inside a tennis ball for a senior high school trip--the brandy ate through the glue holding the ball together and soaked the other balls.

● Skiing
For someone who hates being cold as much as I do, skiing can be pretty darn miserable--unless you have a goat skin full of wine, that is. Each ski trip I took involved more drinking and less skiing, culminating in a college adventure where I spent one long weekend in a condo drinking beer, smoking hashish, and watching a Dark Shadows marathon after just a single run on the slopes.

● Softball
Few things go better together than softball and a keg of beer. We regularly played softball with beer in my senior year of high school. One or both teams were called "The Nads" just so we could maturely cheer "Go, Nads!". Fun fact: Michael J. Fox once asked me for beer at a softball game (several years after high school), even though it wasn't my beer.

● Football
Tackle football with a keg of beer and without any protective equipment was probably a bad idea, but my off-campus college mates did it anyway. I made things worse by running with the ball directly at the opposing team with a wild look in my eye, to the point where my team would just give me the ball whenever desperate measures were called for. Alcohol certainly took the edge off the pain, though it didn't make us bleed any less.

● Morning routine
I don't have time for any games or sports nowadays, but I can't start the day without my stretching and exercise routine. I start super groggy and stiff, and finish alert and limber an hour later. If I drink 2 oz of whisky when I wake up, however, I start alert and limber, and finish with grand delusions 30-45 minutes later.

[+] What I Consumed Since Last Post ...

Sunday, February 10, 2013

Muscle Repair and Alcohol -- 189 lbs (-40) [11X]


I went into this diet with a left shoulder injury, and as it didn't get better after several months, I suspected 2 issues:

● Not eating protein (or anything else) before or after exercise
● Drinking while metabolizing protein

It is widely known that protein is needed to repair and build muscle mass, and that protein is either used or lost once it is consumed. While the exact timing of the window of opportunity for protein synthesis is still under debate, my initial pattern of not eating ~10 hours before and after exercise was well outside of any plausible anabolic window.



It is less clear if alcohol interferes with protein anabolism, but given its ability to pre-empt and deplete other nutrients, it is reasonable to suspect that heavy drinking during muscle repair is suboptimal.

Given these observations, in December I started taking a combined casein/whey protein supplement after exercising, and avoiding alcohol for at least an hour after taking it. Also, in January started taking drinkwel mulitvitamins, which target nutrients depleted by alcohol. Although I haven't lost any weight over the last few months, I have maintained the weight I lost, repaired my shoulder, and increased my overall strength.



[+] What I Consumed Since Last Post ...

Tuesday, December 18, 2012

Taking It Slow -- 186 lbs (-43) [13X]


For the record, I'm being less aggressive about hitting my original goal of 180 lbs after returning to this diet after a 2 week hiatus. There are a number of reasons for this:

● To try and repair a shoulder area injury I've had since this summer, and rebuild muscle mass I have loss*, I am taking a protein powder supplement at least every other morning and eating a protein lunch, which 1) adds more calories to my diet and 2) subtracts any gains from intermittent fasting
● I am planning to make a new video which I want to shoot part of when I am honestly 181 lbs, and I'm waiting until the holiday vacation to start that project, so I am attempting to time reaching 181 lbs 1-2 weeks from now
● I’m excusing myself from avoiding some temptations during the holiday season, with all of the extra cookies and other treats

Given this, I wouldn't be surprised if I don't hit 180 lbs until next year. Even so, I will still have over 6 months until my 50th birthday, and that is a lot of time left for more drama and other fun, and I don't plan to disappoint. Let's call that my New Year's resolution.

*This appears to be working. Despite hovering at 186 lbs, my Ironman weight scale claims I am at 20% fat (down from 22% at the same weight a month ago). Metabolic age ... 39!

What I consumed Monday -- 186 lbs (-43) [13X]:
● Coffee w/ 1 tsp fiber & 24 g Syntrax Matrix Chocolate protein powder
● Trader Joes No Iron Multivitamin
● 4.5 oz pouch StarKist Tuna Creations (Sweet & Spicy)
● 10 oz Famous Grouse
● 1.5 oz Planters Smoked Almonds
● 3 bowls taco-seasoned ground beef w/ lettuce, grated cheddar, salsa, & cup 'o noodles
● Hot chocolate w/ 2 oz Famous Grouse
● Coffee w/ 1.5 oz Famous Grouse

What I consumed Sunday -- 186 lbs (-43) [12X]:
(pigged out again)
● .5 oz Famous Grouse
● .5 oz White Horse
● .5 oz J & B Scotch
● .5 oz Johnnie Walker Black
● .5 Nissin Cup Noodles w/ 12 cheddar cheese cubes
● 5 oz Liberte blackberry yogurt
● 6 mini pretzels w/ 2 cheddar cheese cubes
● 6 mini pretzels w/ Jif chocolate silk peanut butter
● ~10 Sponge Bob Squarepants Cheese Nips w/ Jif chocolate silk peanut butter
● Half chocolate graham cracker
● 20-30 Sponge Bob Squarepants Cheese Nips
● 8 oz Ballantine's
● .75 large movie theater popcorn
● Bbq chicken breast w/ rice pilaf
● Almond sugar cookie

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Play System -- 218 lbs (-11) [2X]

Exercised moderation yesterday--no whiskey! Bud and I didn't come close to finishing building the play system, but I did get a bit of sun.

playset6

What I consumed yesterday:
2.5 oz Nissin Cup Noodles Spicy Chile Chicken w/o noodles
● 24oz Budweiser & Clamato
● 2 12 oz Budweiser Select
● Small portion of Jade Dragon Mongolian beef
● 1.5 cups of Columbia Crest Amitage red wine