Importance of Omega 3 Video

I received a comment from a reader yesterday about the Omega 6: Omega 3 ratio post stating how she thought I would be interested in this video...I was and it was very cool to show an Omega 3 nourished rat over an Omega 3 malnourished rat. Comes to show how eating your greens and the proper meats really will go a long way with human development and maintenance. I have recently started adding crushed flax seed to my eggs after I cook them in the morning to make sure that I get a good dose of some Omega 3 right away in the morning. I also eat tuna and salmon regularly because it is such an important fatty acid that most Americans lack.

With our kids, we have always been concerned with their diet especially with getting the right amounts of Omega 3 and that is why we nursed them both till they were two years old. World average for nursing is in the area of 4 years and national standard for US has now been bumped up to 2 years...it is about time.

I hope you enjoy the video as much as I did...short and to the point.

Thank you very much Susan Allport for the video and good luck with the book. Susan Allport is the author of "The Queen of Fats" and if you wish to learn more, please go to her website www.susanallport.com to read more about Omega 3.

What is the proper dose of Omega 6 : Omega 3

Studies have shown us that taking the proper dose of omega 6 and omega 3 is beneficial for our health. In many cases, it has been shown that these two fatty acids can help in the fight against obesity.

Sounds great right, wrong. Omega 6 and Omega 3 are very good fatty acids but with the improper ratio of the two, can actually cause obesity and cancer. The magical ratio to try to maintain for weight lose and general health is 3-4:1 Omega 6:Omega 3.

Today Americans are taking in about 15-20:1 due to the oil used in our fried foods and other cheap oils. People are eating to much which is the cause of our on growing obesity and cancers. Studies have shown that the balance of these two fatty acids are very important and to those who wish to live a healthy good life need to keep this ratio in mind.

Here is an article which helps explain this a little further.

Update on The Hip

I have been doing the stretches almost everyday and whenever I have some down time at work. I have also incorporated a new stretch that I felt it working last night. What you do is stand at attention and then take your right leg and cross it over your left leg. While holding onto something lean to the the left until you feel tension and hold it for about 30 seconds. Now reverse that and lean to the right with your left leg over your right leg. There is a muscle on your side of the leg that seems to benefit from this and so I have been getting it into my stretching routine at night and in the morning. It seems to be helping and that is all that matters.

Switch It Up

I was lifting last week and I just could not get over that fact that my arms were not increasing in strength. I have been increasing in everything else but not that. So this week I switched the order in which I did my lifts and saw a huge improvement right away. For my arms, I was able to lift past 95 pounds for EZ curls and when I did my flat bench dumbells, I did an easy set of 90s. I am starting to feel sore today and that is only one day after the lifts, I am happy about that.

This just goes to show you that you have to switch things up and shock your system. Your body is the most adaptive machine on the planet so you have to treat as such and shock the shit out of it. I know I have preached this before but I sometimes lose focus on this and need to get slapped from time and time again so I can pay attention to it.

Data Data Data...Sometimes to much is to much.

I have been maintaining a couple of journals to keep track of my progress. I have now come down to using a little journal book that I keep in my back pocket. It is about a 3" X 5" book that has many lines on it which allows me to keep track of each day with the food that I eat and the weight that I weigh. I have evolved from that and am liking it.

I use to weigh myself every day and now I am waiting for every Friday to see my progress. With jogging in the morning everyday, I hope I see more results. I have also been watching my caloric intake to also help with that.

One place where I will not skimp out on tracking data and that is my weight lifting. I need to track the weight and intensity of all of my exercises so I don't forget and where I can see myself push myself to get past the plateaus.

Stretching in the Morning

For the last few weeks I have been stretching my hip flexors and also the rest of me for walking and jogging. I have been working more on my hip flexors because I have been having some pain when I turn to go to the left. The discomfort is primarily in my left hip and it is a sudden pain and then goes away. I was suggested to keep stretching my hip flexors and to also strengthen my glutes since I sit all day in an office.

Here is a good link to show how to properly perform the hip flexor stretch. I also use the method that allows you to use a couch or a bed which really puts pressure on your hip to stretch them out.

Jogging...that's what I said

So there I was, slightly jogging with my two dogs and then finding myself jogging farther and farther and then I was almost done with my route so I decided to keep going. The next day I did it again and I was almost enjoying it.....me enjoying jogging....never, but in this case I think it because of the weight that I have lost and stretching that I have been doing to my feet and legs. I stretch every morning now for about 30minutes before I go out with the beasts.

New Blog

I am going to be starting a new blog called Optimum Knowledge. I have started it as a on going journal of all of my thoughts and ideas. I wanted something to capture all of my interests and research. I have done a lot of research on energy savings, perpetual motion, aquaponics and of course weight lifting. I did have a thought in bringing this site over into it but I have not yet gone that far.

Does anyone have any ideas if I should bring this blog into that one?

High Weight Low Reps

This year I am doing something that I haven't done in a long time. Heavy weights. I typically do moderate to high reps with lower weight.

I want to bulk up and in doing so, becoming the threatening figure to any guy who is interested in my daughters.

Update:
After four weeks of following this routine, I have been seeing a lot of results like strength and definition. I need to take an update picture just so I can compare to my other pictures.

Starting it Up again. Goal is 200lbs.

I have started to watch my calories again and my new goal is to reach 200lbs by this years end. I am currently at 237 so I am down a total of 3lbs since I started on January 2nd. I have to make sure I get my cardio in somehow which I think will have to be every night for about 30-60min walk with the dogs. I want to upgrade that to a 30min jog but we will see.

My other goal is to also bulk up in muscle, for which I plan to do more low reps and high weight. My first goal is to find out my one rep max and then I can figure everything else out.

I also have to make sure I get my body fat percentage figured out before I get to deep into this. Because once I start bulking up, I want to see how much of muscle will be put on once my weight slowly goes up.

The Offspring - You're Gonna Go Far Kid

Katy Perry - I Kissed a Girl

The PussyCat Dolls- When I Grow Up

Lifting once again.

Last week Tuesday (September 2nd, 2008) I started lifting for the first in three plus months. It was great to get back into the gym and hit the weights. I was feeling not strong enough and adiquet to what I was use to. I want to hit the weights harder than ever so I can get big and strong and use that as a deteriant towards any boys that want to date my girls. I want to be known for being scary to all of the boys in the schools.

I guess I am just afraid that my girls will be hurt by the boys in any school and I want to be there to protect them.

I can talk myself into eating and doing anything.

I just wish I could talk myself into doing the right thing and keep to it. This last weekend, I talked myself into eating alot of fried chicken, ice cream and cake, and even more ice cream during the week, which really pissed me off because I was working on not eating anything like that but I felt I should because I was hungry for sweats. I have been really good for the last couple of days and I hope I can keep this up for the next 30 pounds. I really need to just keep my head down and get the job done because I know I will keep the weight off once I have hit my goal.

Been good all this week, 237!!!!

I have dropped down to 237 which makes me feel like I am back in control of my weight loss. I have been determined on my diet and am trying to keep my portion size down as much as possible.

Though I have not been weight lifting I feel like I still have some of the muscle still, but I can't wait for the winter hours to come back so I can lift all over again. I am feeling a little stiff which I am trying to stretch every morning and night. I think I will also try to get a stretch session in during lunch.

I have to schedule a physical appointment and see what they recommend for my hip and as a stretching regiment.

My Wife and I are doing it again, and I don't mean sex.

My wife has been saying how she is not happy with her tummy. I m also unhappy with my weight loss progress. So starting tomorrow. Her and I are watching what we eat again down to a caloric intake. I have also be taking out coffee from my diet for a whole month and also sweets like ice cream and candy. I am just going to take it out all together so I don't have any temptations. Wish us luck and I will keep you all posted.

Back Down To 239 Baby!!!

For the last 4-5 weeks I have been off the wagon and was at a constant 242 pounds. This week I have tried to stay on track better and now I am back down to 239. I was so happy this morning. I have been doing cardio during lunch and also back on track for counting my calories. I also have been biking into work add my endurance and stamina have gone up a bit. I have also noticed that my cool down is much quicker and my heart rate comes down a lot faster. I like the feeling of that.

First Day back on the Wagon...I suck!

I am currently on my first day back on the wagon. I have so far failed, miserably. After going through the whole day, I finally had two burgers and later on at 10:00pm I had some Eggo waffles, but the good thing is I am not gaining anymore weight. I have kept off what I have lost thus far. I will do better tomorrow. I am thinking about not having coffee in the morning but having it at night so then I can take in more water throughout the day instead of lacking on water like I did today.

I will try to do better tomorrow.

What do you do when you fall off the wagon?

I have fallen off the wagon but have not gained any weight. I have been finding myself justifying eating out and eating ice cream and everything. I have been also over eating and eating at night for the last month or so. I have been doing home improvements and "haven't had the time" to watch what I am eating or working out. My workout is really my home improvements but i have not been eating very healthy. The nice thing is that I am still eating in the same manner that I have been using to lose the weight, I am just eating more crap than I am use to. I chew my food completely before I swallow. I have also been drinking a lot of water which helps keep everything nicely lubricated.



This is how I plan on getting back on the wagon.



First, I have been reviewing why I went off the wagon and what was the main driver. Then I looked at how to stop those actions and get back on track. So I identified that I was eating junk food, eating at night, and also eating a lot of food in one sitting. Sometimes I would eat fast enough that I would get full...to full. My wife and I have also been eating a lot of beef for supper, mostly steaks. I have also been eating more than I need of that steak. So what am I doing to make sure that this does not happen again? I am posting my results from my FMEA on the refrigerator so my wife and my family can see my progress. It is harder to cheat when you have many people looking over your shoulder. So I am creating my FMEA sheet for everyone to see.