I'm sorry I haven't been as active on the blog this week, been pretty tired and haven't even turned my computer on to be honest. Tonight seemed like a good time to write though so here I am. I've had a pretty trying month, have thought a lot about things that I don't have and it's consumed me so much that I haven't taken time to stop and look around. I have a great family, my mom has taken me in and given me a place to stay when I haven't deserved it, I have great friends that offer love and support all the time. Thanksgiving is nearing us, a mere 13 days away now. I remember growing up we'd always have a lunch at the house with our family, then head to my grannys for a huge dinner with my whole family. As we all got older, people started working, getting in relationships that deterred them from being there, or just simply lost interest in the time we had. Growing older has certainly made me appreciate those around me and what they do for me so much more.
Patience is something I am not good at. I'm like the brats from willy wonka, I want it and I want it now. Unfortunately that's not how the world works. I sometimes get so caught up in the world that I forget that I'm only 23. I expect myself to have this college degree and be into my career and be making all this money and that's just not the path the Lord has chosen for me. So instead I will work, and wait, and learn to appreciate the things that I earn.
Of course this all translates into lifting, as much as I not so secretly try to slide in little threads of insight. The workouts are going OK. To me, that's a bad word. Equivalent to the words that used to induce child abuse by making me eat irish spring soap as a child -_- I'm not getting to lift as often as I'd like. However, I did have two sessions this week in which I burned over 1000 calories. Add that to my diet, and 2 days took care of a good bit of my 7000 calorie a week deficit I am striving for. I'm down 12 pounds, and gaining strength which is great. Still a long way to go though. My alarm clock is going off at 8 am it seems tomorrow, and I have some 4 mile run planned, so if I don't write again, just assume my death.
Again, thank you all for reading. I appreciate you taking the 5 min out of your busy lives to read about my boring one. Hope I make you all feel better about yourself! haha :)
Holla
Friday, November 11, 2011
Saturday, November 5, 2011
Goal Oriented
People ask me all the time what my goals are, 2 year, 5 year, 10 year. We've all had to write the papers in school, make up some stuff about in 10 years from now I want to be Batman at night and David Beckham during the day. My goal in life is the wake up every single day. I'm on a 23 year completion streak, 100%. That's better than Aaron Rodgers this year. Of course I have things I want to accomplish, degree, career, wife and children. Right now though, my goal is to be happy and to live the life I should be. The others will come. When you start putting time restraints on things, you begin to rush. IT'S NEVER GOOD TO RUSH! Slow down, take a breath, and assess the situation. How many people run through museums? You see a whole lot more walking.
When it comes to lifting, take all that and just throw it as far away as you can. lifting has to be goal oriented. I have daily goals, monthly goals, and yearly goals. I'll post those today along with my work out. Thank you to everyone who read my first post and also commented. It's definitely appreciated. Feel free to comment here as well. I'll read it even if you tell me I'm an idiot and need structure in my life =)
Daily Goals-
Stick to the plan- This includes diet, rest and the lifts. This is especially true in the gym. You don't get magically stronger because the guy next to you is throwing up bigger weight.
Finish- This pertains to the weight room. Some days we get there and have the energy of a 3 year od boy at the park. The other 99% of the time we feel like we need to call a nursing home very soon to check in. No matter how you feel, finish. Unless safety is a concern. Don't get hurt. Which leads to...
Be smart- I've taken a good amount of time off, muscle memory works well but it's not a video game, doesn't just come back immediately. Train hard, but be smart.An extra set isn't worth a month layoff for injury
Short Term-
Lose weight- This is going to be extremely hard because I'm lifting for strength, but I'm not concerned with my overall number as much as how healthy I am. I've lost 15 pounds since Oct 15, so its a good start.
Gain stamina- I recently went hiking and almost died. Multiple times. Having tons of strength isn't good for anything if you can't do simple fun things.
Compete- It's been almost 6 years since my last tournament. I want to get in one, with no aspirations of winning, just to get the feel again. There's one in January that I'm looking at, that should be the one.
Long Term-
Happiness- This is going to come in so many different forms. Happiness with myself by getting into shape and improving my health, happiness with others by improving my attitude and outlook.
Success- I want to win a competition in the next 2 years. I'm about 300 total pounds away right now, so it's definitely attainable.
Before I post my workout, I'd just like to ask everyone to keep me in thoughts and prayer. Not many know this, only about 5-10 people outside of my family actually, but I'm trying to get into a recruit program with the Winston Salem Fire Department. I completed the physical abilities test last month and have a written portion a week from Monday. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time and haven't had the means. The Lord has presented an opportunity for me, I want to take advantage of it. I appreciate you all, and thank you.
Workout-
Squats- 325 4 sets * 10 reps
Bench -
180*8 210*4 225*3 255*3 270*2 300
Deadlifts-
200*3 240*3 280*3 320*3 360*3
Follow that up with 3 minutes on stair climber at 60 steps a minute, a mile run and 10 laps at the pool.
I'll post an edit with results later of which lifts I hit, or exceeded.
Thanks for the read!
When it comes to lifting, take all that and just throw it as far away as you can. lifting has to be goal oriented. I have daily goals, monthly goals, and yearly goals. I'll post those today along with my work out. Thank you to everyone who read my first post and also commented. It's definitely appreciated. Feel free to comment here as well. I'll read it even if you tell me I'm an idiot and need structure in my life =)
Daily Goals-
Stick to the plan- This includes diet, rest and the lifts. This is especially true in the gym. You don't get magically stronger because the guy next to you is throwing up bigger weight.
Finish- This pertains to the weight room. Some days we get there and have the energy of a 3 year od boy at the park. The other 99% of the time we feel like we need to call a nursing home very soon to check in. No matter how you feel, finish. Unless safety is a concern. Don't get hurt. Which leads to...
Be smart- I've taken a good amount of time off, muscle memory works well but it's not a video game, doesn't just come back immediately. Train hard, but be smart.An extra set isn't worth a month layoff for injury
Short Term-
Lose weight- This is going to be extremely hard because I'm lifting for strength, but I'm not concerned with my overall number as much as how healthy I am. I've lost 15 pounds since Oct 15, so its a good start.
Gain stamina- I recently went hiking and almost died. Multiple times. Having tons of strength isn't good for anything if you can't do simple fun things.
Compete- It's been almost 6 years since my last tournament. I want to get in one, with no aspirations of winning, just to get the feel again. There's one in January that I'm looking at, that should be the one.
Long Term-
Happiness- This is going to come in so many different forms. Happiness with myself by getting into shape and improving my health, happiness with others by improving my attitude and outlook.
Success- I want to win a competition in the next 2 years. I'm about 300 total pounds away right now, so it's definitely attainable.
Before I post my workout, I'd just like to ask everyone to keep me in thoughts and prayer. Not many know this, only about 5-10 people outside of my family actually, but I'm trying to get into a recruit program with the Winston Salem Fire Department. I completed the physical abilities test last month and have a written portion a week from Monday. It's something I've wanted to do for a long time and haven't had the means. The Lord has presented an opportunity for me, I want to take advantage of it. I appreciate you all, and thank you.
Workout-
Squats- 325 4 sets * 10 reps
Bench -
180*8 210*4 225*3 255*3 270*2 300
Deadlifts-
200*3 240*3 280*3 320*3 360*3
Follow that up with 3 minutes on stair climber at 60 steps a minute, a mile run and 10 laps at the pool.
I'll post an edit with results later of which lifts I hit, or exceeded.
Thanks for the read!
Wednesday, November 2, 2011
The Start
My name is Mark Alford. I'm 23 years old and I'm in terrible shape, in my own regards. I understand that puts me in the same boat with probably 90% of America, but I'd like to be a part of the few that do something about it.
In high school I stayed very active. I played baseball, football, basketball. I worked out twice a day and had a job that kept me running around. I was in fantastic shape and thought nothing about it. As time went by, I graduated and different things started taking precedent in my life. No longer was sports, working out, staying in shape at the top of my list. I wasn't even on the top of my own list. Time went by and my weight went up. 5 years later, I'm the heaviest I've ever been and feel terrible physically. I've tried to get back in the gym, but there always seemed to be something better to do. When I did get to the gym, I had no motivation. I lifted with the same couple guys all through high school and loved it. We drove each other and pushed each other to be better. My current gym has an 87 year old man on a treadmill that waves to me. I don't know how I feel about it, but the only motivation it gives me is to get the heck out of there.
While sitting at work today, instead of staring at a screen like I normally do, I was talking with my friend about competition lifting. I began thinking about how happy I was when I did it, how I always had goals that I worked towards. My life is busier than ever right now, even with some voids, but I decided to start taking back up something I had a strong passion for. I decided to blog about it for several reasons. A major one being accountability for me. If I'm not lifting, then what will I have to write about? I haven't decided whether I will post weekly or nightly, but I will definitely keep everyone reading updated of progress.I'll post weekly workouts, weekly updates on my gains and weight, and depending how things go maybe some pictures, but I doubt it.
I'm hoping someone reads this and gets something out of it, whether its health related or not. I've been absent of goals the last couple years and its led me down a path I don't particularly enjoy. There's still time though. Time for me and time for everyone. You have to find what you want in life and go after it. It's never too late. Ever.
That'll wrap things up for tonight. A bit long winded. I'm sure no other night will be like. Any comments will be appreciated as I'm sure I'll need the motivation. Any questions will also be answered.
Thanks guys
Mark Aford
Side note: My starting maxes right now are Bench-315 Squat-500 Deadlift-400
I'm concentrating mainly on those because those are the competition lifts. I'm giving myself until Christmas to increase each lift by 10%
In high school I stayed very active. I played baseball, football, basketball. I worked out twice a day and had a job that kept me running around. I was in fantastic shape and thought nothing about it. As time went by, I graduated and different things started taking precedent in my life. No longer was sports, working out, staying in shape at the top of my list. I wasn't even on the top of my own list. Time went by and my weight went up. 5 years later, I'm the heaviest I've ever been and feel terrible physically. I've tried to get back in the gym, but there always seemed to be something better to do. When I did get to the gym, I had no motivation. I lifted with the same couple guys all through high school and loved it. We drove each other and pushed each other to be better. My current gym has an 87 year old man on a treadmill that waves to me. I don't know how I feel about it, but the only motivation it gives me is to get the heck out of there.
While sitting at work today, instead of staring at a screen like I normally do, I was talking with my friend about competition lifting. I began thinking about how happy I was when I did it, how I always had goals that I worked towards. My life is busier than ever right now, even with some voids, but I decided to start taking back up something I had a strong passion for. I decided to blog about it for several reasons. A major one being accountability for me. If I'm not lifting, then what will I have to write about? I haven't decided whether I will post weekly or nightly, but I will definitely keep everyone reading updated of progress.I'll post weekly workouts, weekly updates on my gains and weight, and depending how things go maybe some pictures, but I doubt it.
I'm hoping someone reads this and gets something out of it, whether its health related or not. I've been absent of goals the last couple years and its led me down a path I don't particularly enjoy. There's still time though. Time for me and time for everyone. You have to find what you want in life and go after it. It's never too late. Ever.
That'll wrap things up for tonight. A bit long winded. I'm sure no other night will be like. Any comments will be appreciated as I'm sure I'll need the motivation. Any questions will also be answered.
Thanks guys
Mark Aford
Side note: My starting maxes right now are Bench-315 Squat-500 Deadlift-400
I'm concentrating mainly on those because those are the competition lifts. I'm giving myself until Christmas to increase each lift by 10%
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