Still going keto

It's been a while and my wife and I are still doing the keto thing. I finally dropped under 216 for a total weight loss of 19 pounds but again with some added muscle and strength. Tomorrow I am getting up and going for a minimum of 6 mile run. Just water, electrolytes and maybe a F-Bomb fat fuel packet.
Tonight I made keto back on garlic chicken that everyone including my picky daughter said tasted like something from a top rate Italian restaurant. Pretty proud of that. So far this chicken and the chorizo cream cheese stuffed peppers have gotten top marks from the family.
Here are some pictures of the chicken.

I also took my drone out for the first time in a few weeks and got some pictures of the storm headed this way.

Keto roller coaster

So over the weekend we went out Friday to celebrate my wife's birthday and I didn't keep it ketogenic. I had a few delicious beers from Motherroad Brewing and had a piece of my sons pizza. Needs less to say when I got up Sunday my weight went up almost 6 pounds-could be the scale too. So yesterday I had a ketone shake, ate well and hit the gym for 90 minutes. This morning I am back down to 218.5. Not where I was but getting there. I also question my scale. It seems to be a little temperamental and when I look at my log I weigh in with a lot of —.8 and some —.5 measurements. The scale likes point 8 and point 5.
My endurance isn't flying back as I see when running but what does make me happy is that I am running faster, sometimes much faster at similar efforts. Running 2.5 (point 5) miles as fast as I did yesterday (not 12:31 a mile that was with warm up, cool down and 10 minutes at 15% incline and 3.5 mph) did not seem possible 6 or 7 weeks ago.
The family is considering running Gaspin in the aspen in late august up in Flagstaff. If we can make it work that would be a nice challenge for each of us and will hopefully be the push I need to get back into 35-45 mile running weeks.

Still doing keto

I haven't had many updated lately regarding my health and diet. I was very slowly losing weight the past few weeks almost to a pounds a week which I know I should be happy with but I wasnt. My strength gains in the gym were there and i kept being told to ignore the scale but being hard headed I didn't. Then in the last few days alone I dropped 3 pounds and got under the 220 pounds mark. 15 pounds lost total and 19 away from my goal then I will start to focus on lean mass building. I am guessing I have put on a few pounds (?) If muscle during this experience as well based on my strength and physique coming together. Love handles are almost gone, I get some veins in my arms and legs when lifting I want the veins to be there when not lifting which requires a very low body fat.
Eating it has been more if a challenge than I anticipated. I have fallen in line with lettuce wrapped bacon double cheeseburger with avocado. After not eating red meat for around 20 years this has been a pleasant surprise. I am even planning to have a steak this weekend.
Nutrition science goes back and forth so much that I may be back on the no red meat wagon again in a few months but I doubt it. I am a firm believer that weight gain and increases in fast are from carbohydrates and sugar has had a grip on my well being and performance forever.
I plan to start ramping up my running mileage in about 3 weeks and carry that into the late fall/winter mArizona racing season.

The wall

Ugh, so I have hit the plateau in my dieting adventures. I was around 11 pounds down, didn’t with myself for a couple of days and then when I did I had gained 4 pounds. I have to met I was a little discouraged by that read online that a lot of people hit a plateau or even gain weight about three weeks into the keto diet. Didn’t weigh myself for about three days with myself this morning and I lost 2 1/2 of the four outside gate. But I still weigh as much as I did about 13 days ago now 3 weeks into it. 

I was and still am A little discouraged but I’m going to attribute the weight gain to all my gains in the gym ha ha. 

I am off to Flagstaff for the 4th so this will be a challenge. But I am up to it. 

10 down

This morning I weighed myself again I hit 10.2 pound down from where I started 11 days ago. I can’t say how blown away I am by this.  I guess the saying of to lose weight you really need to change your diet then maintain not just the exercise. 

I do think about not having a bunch of tasty craft beers when I spend the first week of July in Flagstaff but maybe if I mix in some exogenous keytones I can have some beers and remain in keytosis. It really has been easier sticking to this diet than I initially thought it would be. Menu planning can be time consuming but make more dinner than usual and there is the next days lunch. 

Being off work the next 2 weeks I look to put the diet to the test of working out. I hope to do a good amount of HIIT style weights and crank up the running mileage. I can say that when working out the last week I didn’t ever feel like I was going to fuel bonk, my cardio and brain want to slow me down first. Now the longest I went was 50 minutes so let’s see how a 2 hour run goes. I am intrigued by the F-Bomb fuel packets made right in good old Flagstaff. Pure fat fuel. I wondered how people run 50, 100 or more miles with no carbs but it works. 

Do I have any more pictures???

Changes

Been a while since I posted anything here, especially anything if value. 

I started using a Ketogenic diet mixed in to my workout regimens to see if I can get over this hump and finally lose the 25 or so pounds I need to in order to get my running weight back to where it was when I was able to “race” 3 marathons and multiple other events a year. I feel as if I have been in a rut the last few years with running and hopefully this will be the catalyst to get me back to more time training than on the couch. Being fat adapted sounds like a great way to train and compete if done right and I will attempt to capture and chronicle my path on here. 

I started on June 12th after returning from a racing weekend in Flagstaff where I actually felt great racing until the last mile of the 8.5 mile course. I haven’t weighed myself in 2 days but at my last weigh in I had dropped almost 7 pounds in just over a week. I feel much better, more alert and clear headed than I have in a long time. I think I might be on to something here. 

Eating this way can be a challenge but I think as it goes on my wife and I (she is doing it too) will be able to adapt well. Who knew using grilled zucchini as a pizza crust would taste good? 

So that is where I am at. Hitting the gym for weights and cranking on the stair climber, dieting and *gasp* thinking of trying out the crossfit gym my daughter has been going to. I have to say this facility (refuse to call it a box) breaks most crossfit stereotypes. Friendly, beginners welcome, and no cult like feel that I have seen at other gyms. Proud of what they accomplish and who they are, yes. Making that the center of their universe I haven’t seen yet. We will see, 1st week free! 

What’s a post without pictures? 

Bolder Boulder and more

I finally ran the BB10K, went to the Broncos stadium for a behind the scenes tour and got in 3 hours early for a Rockies game. The Rooftop is really a great place to hang out before the game for $3 coors light or $6 craft beers until the first pitch. Get your drink on. We also visited the national wildlife preserve. A week long vacation gone by way to fast. We will be back for either training camp or a regular season game. 

I am getting the pictures uploaded and whatnot and will add more details later. The race was quite and experience and something I hope to make a tradition running again with my daughter and hopefully wife and son. 

Colorado Native is a good “craft beer” from a major brewery. 

​​
​

​

Track pictures

A few pictures from my kids recent track meets and some of my runs.  

    
    
    
  

this guy would not put his umbrella down even after meet officials asked him to. eventually his friends convinced him.

  
   

Super Bowl champions

Wow, I didn’t think this was the Denver Broncos year this season. It has been a crazy one for sure. I guess what this team showed was that you can reach the top in unconventional and in nontraditional ways. They didn’t need a high powered offense, just double digit scoring and set the defense free. I am really happy for my kids as my son cried after the Broncos lost to the Seahawks 2 years ago. This was great for Broncos fans everywhere.  Puppymonkeybaby 

    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
   

      
   

National championship

I took a little trip due. To West Glendale last night, I was given (bought) 2 tickets to the national championship college football game from my mother in law.  Went down with my son and I do t know what it was but this was the most well organized and run event j have ever been to there. 

The big takeaway I had was the atmosphere. Yes it was the national championship and Alabama and Clemson were playing for all the marbles but for my first SEC or ACC game I felt like I was transported into years of CBS Saturday college football. Very surreal. The fans were so passionate on both sides but not in a brash or attitudy way like I have seen at so many other sporting events. I give big props to the fans of both teams (West Virginia fans too for that matter at the Cactus Bowl). 

In short it was an amazing experience that I will have with my son forever. And too the Clemsin girls who were sitting next to me I am sorry your team lost. There is always next year. Thanks section 435 row 11 people!