Updated Diet and Training Plan (11/1/12)

Diet Changes:
          After some careful examination, I found that I needed to once again re-adjust my diet.  For the past week or two, I have tried implementing the bodybuilder practice of consuming fewer calories on non-training days than on training days.  However, this did not work so well for me because I am doing something active, other than daily activity like walking and a cycling commute, essentially every day of the week.  I think it is better for me, for the time being, to revert to my previously drawn up diet plan of consuming a consistent caloric intake every day of the week.  Consistency is simplicity, and simplicity leads to longevity.

          I have also talked in the past about different views on "cheating" on your diet.  These can range from strictly not allowing it, to a full on binge day, to one meal per week, to an occasional snack so long as you're eating "good" on "most" days of the week.  The problem with the "no cheating" method is that you need and deserve a break, not just physically, but psychologically as well.  The problem with an all day eat-a-thon is that a buffet of 6,000 calories is pretty hard to make up for.  One meal per week is a good option, one that I prefer for training camps.  However, for longer term plans, you do not want to find yourself craving and romanticizing about that glorious cheat meal mid week.  Lastly, the problem with semi-frequent but small cheats is that your body becomes conditioned to what you're feeding it and thus on "clean" days you're still craving the junk foods.

          For the purpose of this diet, I am going to re-establish the idea of simply "sticky-ing" a list of foods to consume each day as well as cheat day guidelines.  By "sticky-ing" I'm referring to the "sticky diets" I've mentioned before which are "stuck" to your fridge or microwave, or some place that you'll see it every day.  The simple list allows you to meet your daily nutritional needs without the constarint of having to eat a certain thing at a certain time and getting bored or burned out on the meal plan (the pre / during / post workout feeding is an exception).  This is a slight problem that I had in that I was eating so many meals per day (7) that I never felt really satiated by any of them.  This was sort of the antithesis of avoiding eating infrequent large meals because it slows your metabolism.  I'll also be implementing some tactics that I've found useful in Tim Ferriss's book "The Four Hour Body."  I have published posts in my old blog about trying the book's dieting procedure in full.  Those posts will soon be converted to this blog in the future.


Training Changes:
          I have recently been lead certified at my local climbing wall.  What this means is that I can lead climb routes rather than always having to toprope them.  Lead climbing is much harder than toproping. I wanted to have this option available as a form of insurance against plateaus.  What I mean is that if I've hit a plateau toproping (which I have) then I can switch over to lead climbing to crispen my technique and build my grip and climbing endurance.  The opposite is also true.  If I am stuck on a project that I can not lead, it would (I suspect) be beneficial to toprope the route with a spare piece of rope for you to "mock lead."  This lets you have the ease of toproping but allows you to go through the motions of lead climbing as well as become more familiar with the route.  Below you will find the updates to both my current Training and Diet practices.


Current Sticky Diet:
*This will make more sense when taken in the context of the below "Current Training"
** g/c = grams of carbohydrates, g/p = grams of protein, g/f = grams of fat

Updated 11/1/12

Fruit = 2 x 20g/c
Veggies = 4 x 4 - 6 g/c
Protein = 2 x 20g/p
Whey = 1 x 1 scoop*
Starch = 4 x 40g/c
Sugar = Granola Bar < 300 cal
8oz Fruit Juice+Green Tea+1TB Honey*
Nuts = 1 x 16g/f
* = Pre / During Workout
** Post Workout = Starch and Protein


Cheat Day (Tuesday)
-Unlimited for 4 - 6 hours
- 90sec exercise before and after each meal
- 16oz Fruit Juice instead of 8oz
- Eat spicy food before cheat period
Cold Showers:  Tues / Thurs / Fri
15min A.M. Yoga:  Mon / Wed / Fri / Sun
Supplements:
MetRX Nat. Whey - 1 scoop / day
Universal Animal Flex - 1 pack Thurs & Sun

Current Training Microcycle:

11/2 - 11/17/2012
Monday (AM):
15 min Yoga before breakfast

Monday (PM):
Warm Up - Moderate Toprope Route
Workout - 1 x Lead Clean; Practice Lead Limit
Cool Down - Stretch

Tuesday:  Rest / Cheat Day
*Cold Shower

Wednesday (AM):
15 min Yoga before breakfast

Wednesday (PM):
Warm Up - Traverse
Workout - 2 x Mock Lead Routes, 2 x Mod/Hard Toprope Routes
Cool Down - Stretch

Thursday:
Warm Up - Traverse
Workout - 2 x Mock Lead Routes, 2 x Toprope Downclimb Routes, 1 x Toprope Lead Project
Warm Down - Quick Yoga
*Cold Shower

Friday (AM):
15 min Yoga before breakfast

Friday (PM):
Warm Up - Traverse
Workout - Practice Lead Projects
Warm Down - Quick Yoga
*Cold Shower

Saturday:
30 - 60 min Vinyasa Yoga

Sunday:
Warm Up - Very Light Calisthenics
Workout - Work Lead Limit, 2 x Lead Clean Climbs
Cool Down - Stretch
*Cold Shower





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