missionlindahamilton

By the time I’m ready to hit Phase III, I’ll have been getting eight hours of
sleep every night and following the low-carb diet for at least two weeks.
(Ideally, I could get to Phase III in three weeks but I’m not going to put that
kind of pressure on myself. Added pressure doesn’t help one sleep at night!)

Phase III is when I’ll begin my weight training and aerobic workouts.
I’ll exercise six days a week. I’ll lift weights three days a week and do 20
minutes of high intensity aerobic work for three days every week. These
workouts, combined with proper sleep and a low-carb diet should really make some
exciting changes happen.

Once I get a handle on Phase I of my new plan, I’ll move on to Phase II. (Once
I can go a whole week getting eight hours of sleep every day.)

Phase II will involve the diet.
If I can get eight hours of sleep every night, I won’t crave the starch so
viciously and I won’t have the violent mood swings. That will allow me to
follow the low-carb diet and should kick off some very healthy weight loss even
without exercise. I’ll follow the diet as I laid it out but with one tweak.
I’ll allow myself a cheat time every week. It may not be a whole chat day but
more likely a cheat afternoon.

Until I start getting eight hours of sleep every night, I will continue to crave
starchy carbohydrates and have mood swings that create a very hostile home
environment. Expecting my body to recover from strenuous exercise with
inadequate sleep is totally unrealistic as well.

The fact of the matter is, nothing will work without sleep.
No matter how well I stick to the diet, I won’t lose weight without sleep.
No matter how well I stick to my workouts, my body will never recover properly
without sleep.

Phase I of my new plan is to start getting eight hours of sleep every day. If I
can’t do it at night then I’ll try to make up the difference with naps.
This should be interesting.

My favorite motivational author, Napoleon Hill, suggests that if your plan isn’t
working, try another. There really is no sense in wasting time and energy on a
plan that won’t work, or worse yet, a plan that will keep you spinning your
wheels and wasting your energy.

So I’m reworking the plan.
The new plan will have three phases.

I’m also letting myself off the hook with that February pre-deadline deadline.
The first plan didn’t work so expecting myself to accomplish anything
significant in the first eight weeks is only setting myself up for failure.

So here we go again!

I’m not so keen on doing the stretching but I know it will help with muscle recovery as well as give me an opportunity for active relaxation.

(I know, I know.  Active relaxation sounds like a crazy term, doesn’t it?  They say it can be done though so who am I not to give it a try?)

For this part of my training, I’ll look to FitTV for a yoga or tai chi sort of program that I can enjoy doing.  I’ve never done yoga or tai chi so it should prove challenging for me as well as entertaining for you!

I plan to mix up my aerobic training but shoot for a cumulative total of two hours every day.  Between the recumbent bike, walking my stairs, playing Dance Dance Revolution with the Xbox and boxing or boxing training with Wii Sports, I should be able to mix things up enough to keep it fresh.

Ideally, I would do one hour of aerobic training first thing in the morning and one hour as the last thing at night but this sort of schedule simply won’t work for my family.  I think that giving myself a total aerobic exercise time for the day and exercising as time allows, even for 10-15 minute spurts will still be effective.

Chest:

Bench Press (with baby)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Dumbbell Flyes

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Shoulders:

Seated Dumbbell Press

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Side Raises

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Back:

Bent Over Rows (with baby)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Dumbbell Pullovers

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Triceps:

Dumbbell Extensions

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Bench Dips

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Biceps:

Standing Dumbbell Curls

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Hammer Curls

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Quadriceps:

Leg Press (with preschooler)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Squats (with baby)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Hamstrings:

Straight Legged Deadlifts

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Dumbbell Lunges

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Calves:

Seated calf Raises (with baby)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Angled Calf Raises (with baby)

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

Abdominals:

Bent Knee Leg Raises

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 10 Reps, Set 3: 8 Reps, Set 4: 6 Reps

Floor Crunches

Set 1: 12 Reps, Set 2: 12 Reps

My plan is to train like Linda did, six days a week.

I’ll weight train for my lower body every Monday, Wednesday and Friday for 45 minutes to one hour.

I’ll weight train for my upper body every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday for 45 minutes to one hour.

I’ll do two hours of aerobic work every Monday through Saturday.  In order to mix things up, I’ll make this a cumulative daily amount rather than try to hold myself to two one-hour sessions each day.  Trying to fit in such long sessions with my other commitments throughout the day would be an unrealistic expectation.

The more you drink the less you retain.

This philosophy has worked very well for me in the past so I plan to make use of it again.  I’ll fill a gallon jug with water every morning and do my best to drink all of it before I go to bed every night.  If I can drink more than a gallon, I will, but a gallon will be my minimum every day.

Another water issue to consider is soft drinks.  I don’t drink carbonated beverages but I do enjoy some Crystal Light on occasion.  The only problem with most Crystal Light powders is that they use aspartame as a sweetener.  Aspartame has caused many a weight loss stall for me in the past so I’ll be sticking to straight water or herbal teas.

I will allow myself coffee.  To restrict my coffee intake would make life very unpleasant for my family.