Bod Pod: Seeing Inside

A few weeks ago we had a guest speaker visit our Denver EMBA class that specializes  in valuations of mid sized businesses. He had great perspective due to being involved in hundreds of business sales. After class we went out to have a beer and a few of us picked his brain. One of his pieces of key advice for those that want to embark on an entrepreneurial journey was to fully absorb the free around you. In that context, it was more about seeking mentors that can help you navigate the early stages at no cost. 

It did make me think about applying that principle to my other goals and what I found is that the Army has done a complete overhaul on their Army Wellness Centers. Now each post has a fully staffed and outfitted Army Wellness Center focused on preventative health. They offer bod pod , metabolic, and fitness testing for free to Soldiers and dependents. They also have highly educated staff to help you reach your goals. 

Taking David's advice I decided to absorb the free around me and get a Bod Pod test to see where I really am.

A bit about the Bod Pod. 

What are the benefits of BOD POD Body Composition Measurement?
Because the BOD POD is highly accurate, it can detect even small changes in body fat and lean body mass (i.e., muscle, bones and organs). Body composition is one of the best indicators of overall health. The feedback you receive from your BOD POD test can be used to measure the success of your nutrition and/or exercise program, monitor for obesity, a risk factor for major diseases, like stroke and diabetes, help you lose or gain body fat safely, fine tune your athletic performance and more. Click here for a sample printout (under software tab).

How long does an assessment take?
You will be sitting inside the BOD POD cabin for about 3 minutes. However, during that time, the door will be opened and closed between two 50-second trials. Total time including goal setting and reviewing the results is approximately 10 to 15 minutes.

What should I expect?
Simply sit comfortably and quietly (no laughing or talking), relax and breathe normally and the BOD POD does the rest. Sounds relating to the valves opening and closing may be heard, but most people are unaware of the slight pressure changes that take place. You may notice a feeling similar to being in an elevator or the initial take-off in an airplane. Click here to watch a video.

How accurate is it?
The BOD POD which uses air displacement technology is considered to be the gold standard of body composition measurement. It is as accurate as hydrostatic (underwater) weighing, but quicker and easier to perform. The range of error for this test is ± 1 to 2.7%. 

In order to have the best possible results, follow these simple instructions:

• No food, drink or exercise at least 3 hours prior to testing.
• Use the restroom before testing, if necessary.
• Don’t apply any lotions or skin creams prior to your test.
• Remove glasses and jewelry (if possible).
• Wear minimal, form-fitting clothing.
  • Men: Thin fabric shorts, lycra/spandex-type swimsuit or single-layer compression bike-style shorts (no padding
  • Women: Lycra/spandex-type swimsuit or bike-style shorts and sports bra (no wire or padding)
• Because of the sensitivity of the equipment, schedule subsequent visits under the same conditions (time of day, hydration levels, amount of facial and body hair, same day of cycle (women), etc.).
• A swim cap will be provided to compress any air pockets within the hair.

At the end you get results like these:

The bad news: I am about 2% fatter than the scale at Lifetime.

The good news, I have more fat to lose for the 90 day challenge which will make it more meaningful and give me a better chance to compete at the club or national level.

I also now have a way to check every 30 days to make sure I am eating enough and that I am not losing lean mass.

Day 4: Small Victories and the First Weigh In

So my expectations were not very high for the first Tuesday weigh in, but I was pleasantly surprised. My wife and I both dropped a percent of body fat in three days based on the diet and workout plan discussed on day 1.

Awesome! But as I was inputting that into my spreadsheet, it made me recall a lesson I learned in the last challenge. 

It is difficult to stay motivated throughout the entire 90 days. When I did Ironman Arizona in 2012 the coaches talked about athletes hitting very dark places during the long event. One of the techniques to battle that was to establish mini goals for the duration of the event.

I think the same thing applies here so here is an example of my weekly goals for the #90daychallenge.

Workout Summary for Yesterday:

2/9 Legs and Tris start 1241 end 1312
Goals: Crank Up Metabolism / Gain Strength / Get Done in 45 Minutes
Dynamic Warmup
Abs: 3 x (Hanging Leg Raises x 15, Hip Ups x 20, Bicycles x 25, Crunches x 30) RI 1:00
Circuit 1: 4 x (Barbell Back Squat @135x 15, EZ Bar Nosebuster x 12,@ 65 EZ Bar Triceps Press with Narrow Grip x 12) RI 1:00Circuit 2: 4 x (Bulgarian Split Squat 12-15@30s, Rope OH Triceps Extension x 12, @75 Rope Triceps Extension In Front x 12) RI 1:00Circuit 3: 4 x (Dumbbell Bench Step Up x 10 each leg, Bench Dip x 20) RI 1:00

Choosing Supplements for the 90 Day Transformation: #1 Protein

So as most of you know from my other blogs, I try to be frugal and not spend a lot of money. Looking at supplements makes my wallet hurt. But last challenge I learned that some things are convenient enough to pay for.

Do you need a protein supplement? No.

However, protein in real food is expensive and hard to get enough of if you need 175 grams per day (1 gram per pound of my target body weight.) If your schedule is hectic, eating real food protein 4-6 times a day is not realistic. As such, this is my number one go to supplement for fat loss. I say again, fat loss, not weight loss. I am trying to keep or slightly increase lean mass and burn body fat.

Whey protein is the most popular protein supplement because of its ease of digestion, effectiveness, and mild taste. But prices vary by a huge amount and higher price is not always better. Like everything else there is a law of diminishing returns. If you can get 80% of the benefit for half the price and it is sustainable for you, that may be the way to go.

Benefits:
- High in Leucine, an amino acid that promotes muscle growth.
- Stabilizes blood glucose levels, which will determine your bodies energy mix: are you burning more fat or carbs.

What to Buy:

There are three types of whey protein: whey concentrate, isolate, and hydrolysate. The cost increases in that relative order. The latter two are sold as superior, but lets face it, I am no Mr. Olympia and I need something that works but I can afford.

But there is a difference between effective and ineffective whey products. It is the protein by weight ratio. A quality whey concentrate will have somewhere between 75% - 80% protein to weight ratio. You figure this out by dividing the protein grams by the serving size grams. The result x 100 is your protein to weight ratio.

I buy my protein at Costco. I like the Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey Protein. It has 24g protein for each 32g scoop. A protein to weight ratio of 75%. And it only costs me $0.66 per serving. Affordable and quality. Be careful, some proteins have as little as 30%. It also is not loaded with sugar at only 2g per serving.

You can also look at the ingredient list. The first ingredients listed should be protein, not some other weird filler you have never heard about.

What do you like to use and why?

How to Use It:

In Thinner, Leaner, Stronger, Michael Matthews recommends ensuring the supplementation of protein does not exceed 50% of your requirement. For me this means no more than three scoops in a day.

Before Workouts: Take 30 minutes prior on a relatively empty stomach.

After Workouts: This is my most common use. TLS, says that research says 20 grams in a post workout meal is enough to stimulate muscle growth. This requirement goes up as you age. I am going to start with one scoop after workouts and log my progress.

In Between Major Meals: Also convenient if you aren't getting enough protein to have as part of your snack. It is super quick and keeps you fuller with a steady blood glucose level.

Day 1 Daily Wrap Up: The Horrible BEFORE Photos

What did I learn today:

If I am going to get the Evolution Weight workouts done in 45 minutes I really have to be prepared and move.

I will have to load the workouts into my Evernote so they are already on my phone. Then I can just add weights during the 1 to 2 minute recoveries.

I also will have to build my meal plan and pack the night before so I can move throughout the day and stay on track.

The Routine: 

2/8 week 3 chest back

Goals: Boost metabolism and keep muscle

Dynamic Warmup

Circuit 1 4x with 1-2 minute rest
Barbell incline press 12 135 too heavy had to break last set

Pull up wide pronated grip 4-10 4
Lat pulldown with wide pronated grip 12-15
100

Circuit 2 4x with 1-2 minute rest
Cable chest flyer 12-15 12 23 ea arm set at 6 6
Push up 15
Low row with narrow neutral grip 12-15 12 100

Circuit 3 4 x with 1-2 mine rest
Dumbbell bench press 12
Bent over barbell row with wide pronated grip 10

20 minutes of super low intensity cardio sipping ucan

Start 1133 must stop at 1218 finished at 1215

I also did 12 sets of 20 ab exercises while putting the kids to bed.

I did crack and eat popcorn with the girls at the movies, but I did log it.

Day Minus 2, The Food Plan

Continuing with learning from last time, I will start with what worked. My food rules came from too many sources to list and were collected over the entire 90 Day Challenge last year. The only change I plan to make initially is to eat 50% of my daily carb goal in my post workout meal. And eat the other 50% before Dinner time.

I will also continue to use my trusty MyFitnessPal App to keep me honest. If you want to see what I actually am eating you can see it here. Besides accountability, this also will help me if I plateau out and need to work with a dietician or nutritionist part way thru. Lifetime Fitness is awesome at being able to supply all the education I need. And it is also well worth the money because it offers 2.5 hours of childcare per day.

Day Minus 3 - Weigh In Day/Goal Setting

Okay, I am ready to try this again. I lost quite a bit of body fat during the last 90 Day Challenge, but I imploded 5 weeks out from the end with School two nights a week and work craziness. I then allowed myself to erase most of my gains because I had not changed my lifestyle.

Weigh In Stats:

Weight: 194.4 lbs
BF %: 18.7%
Fat Pounds: 36.35 lbs

So this time, it is all about learning from the last time.

Goal: Last time, I learned that I really thrive on competition, which helps me overcome my lack of self discipline at times. So the first step this go around was to look at the male transformation winners from the last four challenges. I found that the average male transformation winner dropped their body fat percentage by 76%. That means that if I hope to match their efforts I will need to drop by BF% by 14.23% or 1.2% per week. This is in the healthy weight loss range of 1-2 pounds per week, so I should be able to do it if I can burn fat and not lose muscle. I also want to learn something new every day and implement one lifestyle change per week.

Workout: I used the 6 week workout outlined in Evolution by Joe Manganiello from True Blood last challenge and it worked in an amazing fashion so I will do it again. The only difference is that I will limit all weight lifting workouts to 45 minutes or less based on recommendations made in the book Bigger, Leaner, Stronger by Michael Matthews. I will also take a day off after every 3 day rotation.

Cardio: I was in pretty poor shape when I started the last one, so I did not do much cardio last time. This time I plan to crank it up. Michael Matthews recommends that you separate cardio and weights by at least 3 hours, so I will try to do that. I am using the cardio plan prescribed by fitnessdietcenter.com to help people build from scratch and prepare themselves for SEAL training. I was already at the end of week 2 before weigh in so i will continue from there and substitute some of the shorter runs with the HIIT model outlined in BFS. Hey, I am shameless, I am in the Army, but the SEALs I saw in my career were ripped, so they are doing something right.

I will cover my food plan tomorrow.

Today's Workout: 1 Hour Slow Run at 12 min/mile pace. Keeping HR below 135 bpm.