The Results Are In

        After a month of hard training and healthy eating it was time to jump on the scale. I think this was the first time I have ever stepped on a scale and felt some stress waiting for the results to flash on the screen. What if even after all of the hours I put into this, the results stayed the same or even worse went in the wrong direction?

        After writing down the results I sat down and compared them to the numbers from a month ago. I must say that I am very happy with my progress. One of my goals is to lose 20 pounds. In the past month I've dropped 4.6 pounds. That's a pound a week. I can live with that. I'm in no hurry to shed it. I'd rather do it properly and keep it off. Considering that I didn't heavily restrict my diet in terms of carbs or calories, I'm very pleased with that number. If your goal is weight loss, you should aim to lose between 1-2 pounds per week.

        My body fat percentage also dropped. I lost 2 percent over the last month. That means that I'll hit my goal hopefully within the next four months. Again, I can live with that. Hopefully I can maintain a 2 percent loss each month.

        The next two numbers I wasn't very concerned with because they are usually very consistent. My hydration level is great and so is my bone density. No alarms went off in those departments.

        The next number is what really put a smile on my face. My metabolic age dropped by 5 years! I went from having a metabolic age of 26 down to 21! So in my mind everythng is being done properly. My metabolism is firing on all cylinders and I'm losing weight in a controlled and balanced way, by eating well and training hard.

        Now I have a baseline of what I should expect each month. There is a lot of work ahead but I am thoroughly enjoying it and am being rewarded by feeling great both physically and mentally. My energy levels are great and I have an overall sense of happiness.

        On a side note, I've decided to use this week to give my body an active rest. After doing doubles everyday for two weeks, it started to send me signals to slow it down a bit. I'm going to resume P90X and my kettlebell/battle ropes routine again next week. This week I'm doing between 30-60 minutes of cardio and one body part each day. The streak is still alive :)

        Mike