Pills, Doctors and Positive Results

Well it’s certainly been a while since I last posted anything, especially on the subject of loosing that Last 10 Pounds. So let’s see if I can pick up where we last left off.

I finally made all of my 1 year or short term goals; benching 205 X 8, Squatting 305 X 8 and Dead Lifting 300 X 8. Actually, I have exceeded my bench and squat goals and am still pressing toward a 210 X 8 and 315 X 8. As we talked about before, this puts my calculated 1RM at 255 for a Bench Press and 379 for Squats. At 190 pounds, this gives me a 1RM to body weight ratio 1.34 for Benches and 1.99 for Squats. Still, not bad for a 5’9” 56 year old guy.

Oh my, the secret is out, I have posted a net weight gain, could it be? Yes, in the period from my last posting, before the holidays, I was at 187 and now I’m at 190. However, based on an increased 1RM and adding another 5 or 6% to total weight moved, that 3 pounds of gain certainly isn’t fat since my waist size hasn’t changed.

Keep in mind the Key Performance Indicators (KPI’s) I have set for myself to meet my ‘Fat Loss’ goals;

· Weight
· Waist size at the navel
· Core lift ‘calculated’ 1RM to bodyweight ratio, and
· Core lift Total Weight Moved

So if I’m gaining strength and maintaining waist size, I must be gaining lean mass.

Also later this month, I will be seeing my ‘Pill Pushin’ doctor for another check up. Prior to the appointment, since they generally call out a blood test, I called in a requested that besides the standard cholesterol, blood sugar (Ha1c), triglycerides, etc…., that they include Vitamin D, Testosterone and B12.

O.K. another little secret here; I have been skimping on my Lipitor, ½ the prescribed dose, just like I said I would. Yes folks, after my last go-around with my doctor on my serum Creatinine, I’ve decided to do a little experiment on myself. So after the double check up last fall and doing a bit of internet and library research on what causes high serum Creatinine, I decided to look at statins (Lipitor) first and see if that’s the culprit. I also ran across documentation that shows statins may also lower testosterone; and mine has been on the lower end of the scale for several years now. So just to make sure the Lipitor I’m taking isn’t doing more harm than good, a 6 month reduction in my recommended dosage isn’t going to hurt in the overall scheme of things.

I can tell you this, since I have been taking the ½ dose of Lipitor, post workout muscle soreness and a general fatigue has virtually disappeared. Even with my general workouts 6 days a week and full days of skiing on the 7th day, I have not had the ache’s and pains, albeit a minor nuisance previously, since dropping the dosage. The most that happens now is a bit of drowsiness that a quick 20 minute nap takes care of.

So the question is; are the strength gains and 3 pound mass gain, while still maintaining waist size from the minor changes in med’s, or just from working hard. Or, can I work harder because I’m not continually fighting muscle breakdown and fatigue caused by both the Lipitor and heavy lifting? We’ll see, and if my cholesterol is reasonable, and my testosterone is up a bit, I just might stay at the ½ dose level.

I’ll let you all know how that rolls out later this month.

Work hard, eat clean and you can Look Good.

MMJennings