Project X 2012 – Ryland Greenhouse

It was about a month ago when a friend of mine, Ryland, says to me “Jamel I am ready to start training.  I want to do a 15K obstacle course like the Spartan race you just did.  I want to lose about 10-20 pounds in the process.  I want to be fitter, faster, and overall healthier!  What do you recommend and when can we get started?”  Naturally, when presented with this level of enthusiasm from a friend my first question is “Are you sure you want to do this to yourself, I already know most of your bad habits? HA!"  We both laughed, he kind of whimpered a little bit, I wonder why.  After a lengthy conversation about goals, wants and expectations we agreed on a goal of 3 months committing to some strict nutritional changes for him, some routine self training, as well as fitness conditioning sessions during the week with yours truly!

After 5 weeks of training, Ryland's test is on the horizon.  The Rebel Race is on Saturday, October 20th and we thought that this was a good time to share some of his thoughts and experiences with you all given all the hard work he has put in thus far.  I hope you get as much of a kick out of it as I did, enjoy!

~RYLAND~

 Week 1 – September 22, 2012:

OOOWWWWW!  Yeah this week hurt, but it was a good hurt.  Made me realize exactly how out of shape my body actually was, and realize how mentally determined I was to make this change.  Between the 1st work out (which was Jamel testing me to see what level of fitness I was at so he could design my program) and the 3rd workout, my body felt like it was going to fall apart.  The cleanse period was a bit tough to commit to at first, but after day 2 I was already feeling the positive effects of it. I definitely like eating 5 times a day and my energy level has picked up a bit.  It took 4 days to heal up completely, but I was fresh to start week 2.  Did I mention how much I like eating 5 times a day though!

Week 2 – September 29, 2012:

I am already noticing a difference in my endurance level as the workouts are getting increasingly more difficult, but not as tiring.  Although I am still incredibly sore after each workout I'm beginning to notice muscles that I didn't even know about.  I can already feel my body taking positively to the training.  I kept strong with the nutrition plan and I’m starting to get used to eating 5 meals a day no sweat.  We did a 2.5 mile run with the sledgehammer, got pulled over by a cop, and I couldn't have been happier.

I’m already starting to see some of the mushy stuff in the gut tighten up, legs are feeling stronger and I'm not sucking as much wind during the workouts.  We're also starting to target specific areas of my body so it's been really nice to see the different types of exercises I can do to strengthen both my core and specific muscle groups at the same time. #crabkickers.  I healed up fully in 3 days instead of 4 this time.

Check back for his progress on weeks 3 and 4 as well as the race day summary!

Intensify Your Athleticism, Everywhere But The Gym!