Archive for October, 2005
New Workout Regimen
October 3rd, 2005After more than eight years of doing essentially the same weight-lifting routine in the gym, and after seeing minimal (meaning “no”) changes in strength, weight, or muscle size, I’m finally changing my entire workout routine. By doing completely new exercises for every body part, I’m “shocking my system”, as they say. I’m no longer doing any exercise I was doing before, and I’m splitting up the days I work various muscle groups, too.
I also plan to shake up this routine again in about 3 months so that my body is in a constant state of change (that doesn’t make much sense if you really think about it).
One other significant change I’m making is my eating habits. It’s time I cut back a little bit on all the carbs I eat, and push to eat more proteins. Goodbye bread and pasta, hello egg whites and steamed chicken…just kidding, that’s nasty. But I will attempt to get more chicken, nuts, and milk into my system, and less pasta and rice. Damn, I might even try protein shakes.
This post actually shouldn’t be of much interest to anyone reading this, other than myself, which is why I’m writing it — it’s really just an easy way for me to keep track of when and how I make changes to my workout routine.
Peanut Butter and Banana Shake
October 14th, 2005Here’s another one
- 2 scoops protein powder
- 1 tablespoon peanut butter
- 2 cups skim or low-fat milk
- Half a banana
- 1 table spoon honey (optional)
Blend all the ingredients in a blender and drink away. If you like peanut butter and bananas, you’ll find it’s a great-tasting shake. If you don’t, you’ll probably find it gross.
(I personally haven’t tried this yet with the protein powder, but I plan to buy some and start incorporating it into my meals.)
Protein Shake
October 18th, 2005
I’ve finally succumbed. After years and years of refusing to resort to nutritional supplements like weight-gainer drinks, I’ve caved in and decided to try protein shakes. My justification is that this is the mildest sort of nutritional supplement that I can take that will provide a slight boost in strenght and/or size.
After several days of researching protein shakes the web for the best shake, with respect to quality, taste, safety, and price, I finally decided on Pro Rated Whey Protein. Why…because I went to Costco and that’s all they carried. Fine by me, because I got a whopping 6 pound tub for only $20.
So…time to start drinking nothing but whey (the bulk of protein powder) after all my workouts. Let’s see if this actually will make any noticeable difference.
Korean-style Pepper Steak
October 23rd, 2005Courtesy of Men’s Health, this is pretty tasty.
- 1/2 lb sirloin, sliced diagonally into thin strips
- 1 cup bite-size pieces red or green bell pepper (or 1/2 cup of each)
- 2 Tbsp reduced-sodium soy sauce
- Plus: 1 tsp sugar; 1 1/2 tsp olive oil; 1 clove garlic, crushed; 1 tsp red-pepper flakes
- Dump all the ingredients into a large ziplock plastic bag. Go James Bond on it–well shaken, not stirred . No, really throttle it. You want the soy sauce and oil to permeate everything in the bag.
- Pour the meat, sauce, and vegetables into a medium-hot cast-iron skillet, stirring frequently until the meat is seared and the vegetables begin to lose their water (about 2 to 3 minutes).
- For a more authentic Korean-style flavor, use toasted sesame oil instead of olive oil and add 1 Tbsp rice-wine vinegar.
- Eat with whole grain brown (Men’s Health recommends Uncle Ben’s — the kind you can microwave in 90 seconds)
Makes 2 servings.