My fitness journey

I have been a consistent gym rat most of my life. I’ve always maintained an average frame for my size and build, but as I’ve gotten older, I’ve noticed the extra work I need to put in to keep and hit new goals. No longer am I able to just use cardio to melt away the fat and have a trim core I’ve found myself having to do more core exercises and switching from just calorie counting to eating healthy. I want to share some of the process and my journey here.

The diet. So this was honestly the trickiest part of my journey since I had traditionally kept a low-calorie diet often below the recommended 1500 for a man. The trainers told me, below 1500 calories the body may eat muscle and struggle to grow. I also had a low protein diet, mostly because I got a lot of my calories from fruits and vegetables. Daily apples, bananas, cucumbers mixed with 4–8oz of meat was a low-calorie diet that kept me feeling full and away from sweet calorie-dense foods. To change this I added a few things to my diet a protein bar and yogurt added as a snack to my daily intake (290 calories, 30 grams of protein). This got me near the new floor suggested but I still needed more. I had to add something and opted for Protien20 (protein water and exercise drink). It also kept me away from pop or other sugary drinks. The extra 70 calories keep me above the floor of 1500 but under the deficit I set. I usually settle around 1600 calories daily.

The exercise. I’m a former runner who has taken some EHS classes and spent a lot of time in the gym. This was my bread and butter. I do cardio 5–7days a week. I rotate between four different exercises spinning 30–60 mins (exercise bike), running 2–3 miles (outdoor or treadmill), and 30–45 mins air jumping rope. I try to alternate to keep my body guessing and keep myself from getting bored. This is followed sometimes by either calisthenics or weight training. My weight training days are 8 exercises meant to keep me trim. The workout goes in sets.

1. three sets of eight upright rows, bent-over rows, curls, 40lbs
2. three sets of eight squats, deadlifts, 135lbs
3. four sets of fifteen jackknife, four sets of eight situps pushups.

On none lifting days the calisthenics is simple

1. four sets of fifteen squats
2. four sets of fifteen jackknifes
3. three sets of ten pushups

I’ve found these help keep me looking trim and I hope this inspires you to up your workout or to join and follow me on my fitness journey. We are all trying our best and keeping in shape is hard work but if you want advice or inspiration follow me on here or my Instagram at @zeta_ironman. Good luck and peace.