Never say 'woo' in a horse race

MP says that my obsession with the gym is plain and simple vanity. But I kind of figure that in my quest to become a really good person that a healthy self image and overall good health are a big part of my goals. Remember a great american named Mohamed Ali once said " it ain't bragging if you can do it". So I started on my high protein diet this week and I'm committed to getting my body fat to that difficult 12% athletic goal. I'm starting at an even 200 pounds and my body fat after a summer sitting in the boat all summer is about 19%. I should weigh in at 185 by Christmas.
This picture of me was taken right when we got to Mexico last December, my body fat was at 13% and I'd been working real hard. Not bad for a 57 year old guy eh? So here's my routine if you're wondering and what I've learned about achieving lean body mass....

1. Cardio. I do 25 to 45 minutes of cardio every day. I judge my routine by how much I sweat and 3 times a week I go hard at it and break one of those high school football practice sweats. The other days I do a lower intensity fat burn for a longer duration.

2. Diet. No junk. 200 to 250 grams of protein a day, this is done with supplements as you just can't eat that much lean meat. I use creatine which helps the recovery process. The diet is basically the 'Body For Life' model. A typical day is like this.....protein shake on the way to the gym @ 7:30. Three or four eggs whites and a glass of skim milk at 9:00. Then a carbmaster (like yogurt) whey protein snack at 10:30. Lunch at 12:30 is a lean piece of meat and an entire can of spinach or green beans. At 3:00 pm a protein shake and a banana. For supper at 6:30 I'll have a chicken breast some veggies and a salad with no dressing just a spray of Salad Spritzers made by WishBone. Every day I take a B Complex, a fish oil pill, a calcium tab and a small dose aspirin. If my joints began to ache I use Glucosamine and Shark cartilage. I drink 3 quarts of water a day.

3. Lifting. I've learned that lifting is important but also is the rest and recovery stage. When I first started in the gym I was over doing it and kind of spinning my wheels. So I lift every other day and exercise 2 body groups at a time. I do chest and back together, then shoulders and arms and then legs and AB's. During each session I lift to failure on every exercise just once. If you you're adding weight then you're adding muscle.

Now that's the blue print....but alot can go wrong. A few years ago I had tendinitis in my elbows so bad it almost stopped me and lately my back pain has grown into a weird psiatic nerve deal and my right knee is so loose it could just stop working...but half the game is working through the injuries and the everyday pain associated with being close to 60. My friend Charlie says that at his age if he's pain free then he's most likely dead. So wish me luck and I wish good health for all of you.