The Peak Condition Project

April 13, 2012 8:25 PM HKT

Day 90!

Can't believe its done! We made it! Congratulations all!
Very happy with the program and the results, it was exactly what I needed. Learning how to eat properly and how much to eat has been the best thing. The exercises and the community spirit was icing on the cake.

I have to put the numbers down for the record:
Day1 92.6kg 27.7%body fat 13 internal fat
Day90 83.7kg 17.2%body fat 8 internal fat
Results -8.9kg -10.5%body fat -5 internal fat

Definitely owe the wife a few nights out and will start tomorrow, will even have a beer and a red wine, my first drink in 90days! I'm planning to enjoy the 3days rest, then a month of easy workouts (off to Australia for a holiday in GoldenWeek) then back into it mid-May.

Can't thank Patrick, Teo and the PCP team enough, you have a fantastic program that is approachable and gets results.

Here's to a happy, fit & healthy life!

April 12, 2012 5:35 AM HKT

Day 89

Day 89, I can't believe it's almost over. I completed the super sets this morning. A few times I was whimpering like a little girl but I managed to get them done. The last few reps of pushups were done on my knees, forget elevated and my shoulders no longer feel part of my body after the davincis and forward shoulder raises. To take my mind off the rest of my body pain I threw in an 8min abs after the v-sits and planks, definitely going to feel it tomorrow.
Kinda hoping that the Day 90 message will be "sleep in, relax on your last day, eat a donut!" but its more likely the king of all super sets is waiting to be unleashed, if so, three words... bring it on!

April 8, 2012 8:15 AM HKT

Day 85

Day 85 and Super Sets are upon us this week. Looking forward to the burn tomorrow. Got the exercises done this morning without too much trouble and threw in an 8min abs at the end. Feeling great and off to Hanami later today.
Enjoy the last 5days everyone!

April 3, 2012 5:39 AM HKT

Day80

Wow Day 80! Feeling better today, energy levels are back to normal after last weeks drain. Ran a 21:25 5k yesterday, my fastest 5k! My goal of running a 20min 5k is in sight. Dropping the weight and strengthening the legs makes it doable. Have a great week all!

April 1, 2012 7:44 PM HKT

Day 78

What a week. No energy Thr & Fri, stuck to the diet but the exercises was lacking. Had a great indulgence day yesterday, it was my wife's birthday, so started with Jojoen yakiniku for lunch and then onto a spanish place for dinner and carpaccio, ham, vege's (very PCP compliant that one!) and paella. Was a great day. Now to knuckle down and get the most out of the next 12 days!

Photos

March 29, 2012 8:02 PM HKT

Day 75

Energy levels low today as I didn't get to sleep until late last night, it really makes a big difference. My wife's birthday is this weekend so the indulgence has come at a good time.
The last few days I have felt my energy levels dipping, I thought it was just me but after reading through a few blogs it looks like others are feeling the same way. Will get to bed early tonight and hopefully wake up fresh and ready to go tomorrow at 5am. Only 15 more days to go!

March 25, 2012 6:03 PM HKT

Day 71

Less then 20 days to go! Planning to finish strong. I am glad to have some more carbs for lunch, was able to have a couple of sandwiches today after getting really thinly sliced bread :-)
Have a great week all.

March 22, 2012 5:31 AM HKT

Day 68

The longer sets are sure making me feel the burn. The last few sets of pushups after the chest dips are crazy! I managed to get one good form 90sec plank out. The last three sets of plank were broken into smaller chunks. I can see a lot of planks in my future after Day 90. Plank on!

March 18, 2012 8:09 PM HKT

Day 64

Another good weekend with lots of rest. Caught up on some of the zzzz's I missed during the week. After working out this morning we took a day trip up to Ogawa-machi in Saitama to a onsen we like to frequent. It was great to relax in the hot springs after the leg work this morning.
Happy with the new diet this week as I can now have some protein for dinner! Enjoyed some great grilled Hoke (fish) tonight with AMAYW veges, good stuff! My weight keeps dropping and I'm seeing numbers I havent seen for many years. I'm feeling great and dropping notches on my belt. Now thinking about when to get my suits adjusted :-)
Have a great week all!

March 14, 2012 6:57 PM HKT

Day 60

Woohoo! 2/3rds of the way through and feeling great. I am very happy with the results so far. Now it's time to dig deep and tear up the last 30days!

March 11, 2012 6:43 PM HKT

Day 57

Good weekend, lots of rest. Went out of my indulgence on Saturday. Took the wife and the mother in law to our favorite pasta place. I had the medium sized pasta with tomato based sauce, onions, pork and chilies. It tasted very good but was a bit salty and I was quite full afterwards. It got me thinking about how I will be eating after day 90. I will enjoy going out more regularly again but I will be making different choices, smaller sizes, different types of food etc...
Not having a drink for 57 days is pretty amazing to me, I'm Australian after all :-) I'm missing my usual winter whisky but less then I thought I would.
Knocked out today's exercises this afternoon. The last two sets of V-sits felt like hell, I had to split up the reps into smaller chunks but got them done. Ready to go for week 9. Ganbatte all!

Photos

March 7, 2012 7:40 PM HKT

Day 53

Good post today about low energy. Been busy so haven't been able to get my 8hrs a night recently and threw in some 5k's during lunch the last few days and my energy levels are low. I'm still able to get up early to complete my exercise but by the time I get home I'm done. I'm determined to get to bed early tonight.
Diet is fine, I am planning to hit my local Italian again for indulgence on Saturday lunch. The wife wants to go and since she has been a real trooper putting up with my diet needs since the last indulgence its only fair. Stay strong!

March 4, 2012 8:02 AM HKT

Day 50

Day 50! wow, that came fast. Another indulgence is on the books, decisions decisions...
I had a good week on diet. Skipped the leg exercises, as I was still recovering from the marathon and went skiing in Yuzawa yesterday (Sat) so didn't want to tax my legs and have a bad day on the slopes. Turns out my legs were fine and had a great day carving it up!
I did do the upper body and ab exercises from Wednesday, it felt weird to take two full days off, even if I was recovering. I guess my body is getting so used to exercising daily that it missed the exertion.
Its the start of week 8 and I will be back to the full set of exercises from today. Only 40 more days to go! I'm starting to get more comments from friends and co-workers about the weight loss etc... I don't know who's more shocked when I tell them I haven't had a drink for 50days, them or me.
Definitely feeling great and looking forward to burning through this week. Ganbatte all!

February 28, 2012 5:30 AM HKT

Day 45

Wow! Half way through. Awesome! Am enjoying the changes I see in my body so far, my energy levels, strength and general fitness are much better then 45days ago. I am really looking forward to the changes yet to come. Good post today about the belly fat! I cant wait for that to melt away over the remaining 45days.
I'm still resting from the marathon on Sunday. After a couple of nights good sleep my legs feel a lot better and my energy levels are getting back to normal. Will see how I go tomorrow morning for the upper body exercises, I may work through some jump rope in if the legs are willing.
Congrats to all of us for making it this far! Lets keep rolling through the next 45!

February 26, 2012 6:14 PM HKT

Day 43

Awesome day, finished the Tokyo marathon in a PB of 4hrs 35mins 46sec. Very happy with the time. I scrapped my usual pre-race training (lots of long weekend runs & 3 days of carbo loading (glycogen) before the day) and concentrated on the PCP. Right up until todays breakfast I was PCP compliant, so wasn't expecting a PB, was planning to just enjoy the run and the atmosphere.
But it quickly became apparent that even without the usual race build up my legs were a lot stronger then last time I ran a marathon and dropping the kilos I have since I started the PCP helped as well. Really stoked. I am now looking forward to my next marathon after the PCP when I will be even fitter and lighter and will be able to do full pre-race training.Yea!
Went off diet for my dinner tonight, needed a carbo and protein dinner for recovery so went to our local italian place and had bolognese pasta (M size) and a salad. Will be back on diet from tomorrow morning but not too down on myself, I burned 3500-4000 calories on the run today and only had power gels and a couple of bananas during the run so all good.
Will take it easy on the jump rope and leg work for a couple of days to complete recovery and will only do the upper body work. Great day!
Have a great week 7 everyone!

February 23, 2012 7:40 PM HKT

Day 40

Bit tired today, glad we have only one more day to the "easy" jump rope only day. Ran out of the big steam veges tonight, I will make something fresh for dinner tomorrow. Went out for lunch today for the first time in a while. Had steak with veges, salad and bread on the side. It was as a good meal that stayed close to a PCP lunch and was great to get away from the desk lunch for a day. Planks and V-sits are getting a little better. I think my core is getting stronger which helps a lot. Pull-ups are still a way off, will stick to the inclines until my back gets stronger.

February 20, 2012 6:45 PM HKT

Day 37

Good weekend, lots of rest. Had my yearly health check on Saturday, looking forward to the results. Just knuckling down and doing the exercises, following the diet. Enjoy the week all.

February 18, 2012 6:48 AM HKT

Day 35

Skipping done and looking forward to relaxing the rest of the day. Have had a great week on the diet and exercise. Energy levels good and looking forward to week 6!

February 16, 2012 5:35 AM HKT

Day 33

Kicking along at a nice pace. Got my routine down. Diet is going well, starting to feel a bit hungrier when I get home at night but sticking to the egg white/fruit dinner. I never new I would looked forward to a vege snack after dinner so much! It used to be chocolate or ice cream, now it's veges lol.
Planks, V-sits & Pull-ups... they are the ones that I struggle with but am determined to get right. It's going to take a while. My energy levels have been pretty good, making sure I get enough sleep is killing my social life but it's only for another 57 days. I have the Tokyo marathon coming up on the 26th Feb. Going to take it easy this year and enjoy the run. Doing both the PCP and marathon training was too much for this body to handle, so will concentrate on the PCP and treat the marathon as my cardio for that day :-p

February 14, 2012 5:37 AM HKT

Day 31

I can really feel the burn doubling up on the leg and abs exercises. 100 leg lifts then 3 x 30sec planks! Ouch! Got through it though and glad to sit down and enjoy breakfast. Having Apples and Egg whites for dinner wtih Veges as an after dinner snack feels a bit weird but I am determined to stick to the diet this week and look forward to the results.

February 12, 2012 8:35 AM HKT

Day 29

Indulged on Friday night. Went to our favorite local pasta joint. Had a salad and small arabiata pasta > tomato, pork sausage, spinach, chillies, cheese etc.. it was great but I really tasted the salt. Looking at the photo now it seems so cheesy! I'm sure that's just the parmesan on top... After no carbs at dinner for a week it was hard to get my mind around eating a bowl of pasta, even small size. The look of shock/confusion on the waiters face, when I ordered a small pasta was great. After years of ordering large I think it took him a while to process that I said small...
The next morning I felt heavy in the stomach, I guess all the carbs and salt decided they were going to sit in my stomach for a while longer then the usual protein & vege dinner. Definitely making me think about my choices of food, I feel a lot healthier sticking to the PCP diet. I crashed on Friday night and slept for 10hrs then had a grandpa nap Saturday afternoon, felt better after it.

Almost a third of the way through. I'm feeling good about how far I've come so far and am dropping a little under 1kg a week in weight. Overall I feel healthier. Have to watch my sleep though, I can feel my energy levels dropping if I don't get the 8hrs. Trying to get out of bed at 5.20am on <6hrs sleep isn't as easy as it used to be. Looking forward to the next 60days!

Photos

February 9, 2012 9:35 PM HKT

Day 26

Good day. Got the exercises done early. Was hungrier then usual today and had lunch a bit earlier then normal. Rode out the afternoon with my fruit snack then onto bouldering tonight (rock climbing). Was the first time I have tried it and it was a lot of fun. After one hour though my forearms were burning up a storm. Will see how they feel tomorrow, god help me with tomorrows push ups!

February 8, 2012 8:04 PM HKT

Day 25

Yay for the indulgence. Looking forward to a meal at our favorite pasta place, small size of course! Today's exercise went well. The leap frogs really burned my legs. Not sure what the downstairs neighbors thought as I was jumping around my balcony at 5:30am. The V-sits are something it may take a while for me to get used to. I don't think I was lifting my shoulders off the ground far enough. Oh well, still have plenty of time to practice them. Feeling good!

February 7, 2012 7:40 PM HKT

Day 24

Good day today. Got the exercises out in the morning. 1100 jump ropes! wow, a few weeks ago I though 300 was a lot... and those planks... wow, they are NOT my friend. Did a 5K run at lunch to make up for last weeks down time due to a cold, feeling better then I have in days. I'm enjoying the after dinner snack of yogurt and fruit. Mixing the yogurt with some bananas, blueberries & strawberries for a great snack thats within the PCP guidelines.

February 5, 2012 5:37 PM HKT

Day 22

Finally feeling better. Was able to knock out a 18km LSD run this morning. I counted that as my cardio "jump rope" session then did the rest of the exercises this afternoon. Felt great to move after having the last 3 days of to kill a cold. Pull-ups are killing me, this is going to be one of those exercises I have to overcome slowly with hard work and persistence.
Small weight loss this week, 800g down from last Sunday, but my body fat dropped more. Looking forward to good results next week as my evening carbs have now been removed! That should prove interesting... I am about to sit down to some nice grilled salmon and veges. Have a great week 4 everyone!

February 4, 2012 9:29 AM HKT

Day 21

Last few days the diet has been fine. As others have said, its the prep time that wears me down a bit. Lots of chopping, sorting, packing. I'm getting used to it but I feel far busier in the evening then I used to be, trying to get to bed earlier enough to get 8hrs is difficult.
Day 19 & 20 exercise were skipped as I needed to rest to try and kill off the last bit of my cold. I will see how I go for the skipping today and get back into it tomorrow. Some of those new exercises look great!

February 2, 2012 8:02 PM HKT

Day 19

Just when I thought my cold was over it came back with a vengence last night. Had a rough day, stuck to the diet but skipped the exercise, I just don't have the energy. I will aim for a good nights sleep tonight and see how I feel tomorrow. I liked today's post about body changes, some of them I've seen and others I'm looking forward to seeing!

January 31, 2012 7:42 PM HKT

Day 17

Feeling good today. Went through the exercises at a good pace this morning and was ok to complete a 5k run during lunch. The big steam has helped with getting dinner and lunch on a plate ready to eat a lot quicker. I think I will have enough veges to last until Wed evening possibly Thr lunch. Not bad for a couple hours on Sunday night.
Overall my body is starting to feel good. I am noticing in my 5k's I can run faster easier then before and my core feels tighter through the run. It must be this daily exercise ;-)

January 30, 2012 5:38 AM HKT

Day 16

Feeling better today. Was able to complete the exercises this morning. Had yesterday off due to a cold, and spent most of the day asleep. Was happy to jump on the scales and see some positive results. I got the big steam done and will be right for veges for the next few days. Hopefully I can get a seat on the train and catch a few more zzzz's before starting work.

January 28, 2012 9:38 AM HKT

Day 14

Glad today is only jump ropes. Fighting off a cold that knocked my wife out for three days. It was good to sleep in and have an easy morning. Starting to plan the "big steam" tomorrow so I won't have to do daily prep work during the week. Slowly starting to feel a difference, ie. my pants are looser. Was planning a long run tomorrow as the Tokyo marathon is less then a month away. Will have to see if I can keep this cold at bay otherwise it's rest time. Off to write the shopping list, so many veges!

January 26, 2012 7:50 PM HKT

Day 12

Bid harder to get out of bed this morning. Feeling the very beginnings of a cold. Managed to get my exercises done without to much trouble. Looking forward to sleeping in on the weekend. Food is ok. I will do a large prep session on the weekend for next week. Off to bed to get ready for day 13!

January 24, 2012 8:34 PM HKT

Day10

Tired today. Was planning a 5k run at lunchtime but decided to rest instead. Got my exercise out in the morning without any issue. I think I might have cracked the jump rope, will have to check again tomorrow. Lots more food prep tonight, I think I should be ok for a couple of days. Adding a lot of spices to the veges to mix it up.

January 23, 2012 8:42 PM HKT

Day 9

Exercised ok this morning. Had to get a bit creative around the apartment to get the band exercises done. Tonight I spent most of the evening preparing tomorrows meals, lots of cutting and cooking. I think stir frys are going to be a main stay over the next few months.

January 22, 2012 8:56 PM HKT

Day 8 - away we go!

Back on track and enjoying the new diet. Missed the jump rope for Day7, I went skiing all day and didn't get home until late, but from the tightness in my calves I think it was a good enough workout, almost equal to 500skips :-)
Enjoyed the new workouts today with the bands, overall feeling good. Got my scales working overtime preparing the meals for the next few days. A bit sad about the beans, I love my chickpeas!, but will substitute with rice/pasta.
I think the best thing for me is the measured amount of food. I would always have the large bowl of rice or just finish off the last bit of salad... now I know exactly how much to eat and when to stop. Looking forward to using the scales next week!

January 19, 2012 7:26 PM HKT

Day 5

Feeling good. Went out to shinenkai (new year party, think drinking session...) last night. Sat on iced tea all night, was easier then expected but did get some ribbing from my friends. Food wasn't an issue, just ate a lot less then I normally would have.
Skipping is touch and go, sometimes I can knock out 40 in a row, other times I'm tripping every jump. Looking forward to banging out my first 100 jumps in a row soon!

January 18, 2012 1:42 PM HKT

Day 4

The half food challenge has been good, I'm starting to think more about the way I usually eat. I think I would call it mindless eating. Any type of food, any portion size at any time of day, not really thinking about the overall daily calories and believing that a run every now and then would help control my weight. Obviously it wasn't working. Glad to have the new focus on what I eat.
The exercises this morning were good, I'm even starting to enjoy the skipping. I threw a 5k run in at lunch just for good measure. On to Day 5.

January 17, 2012 7:31 PM HKT

Day 3

Exercise went ok this morning. Skipping is improving a little bit, able to string together 20-25 jumps before I trip. Maybe tomorrow will be 30! Abs are a bit sore from the situps/leglifts.
The half food wasn't so bad today, drank a lot more water, particular when my stomach was grumbling, it seemed to help. Looking forward to Day 4!

January 16, 2012 7:05 PM HKT

Day 2

Got the exercises done early. Eating half the amount is not too hard, except for the occasional growl from my stomach! I hope after a few more days that my skipping improves, been a long time since I have used a skipping rope and I didn't realize I was so uncoordinated :-)

January 15, 2012 4:22 PM HKT

Day 1

After a busy Xmas/New Year I am glad Day 1 is here. Several workmates have had great results following the program and I hope to be able to follow suit. Looking forward to the pain and the gain!

January 5, 2012 9:43 PM HKT

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Final

What is the Peak Condition Project?

This is a 90 day program challenging trainees to get in the best shape of their lives. Using the simplest of materials, adherence to diet, intelligent exercise and the power of social networks, PCPers safely and sustainably make it to the highest levels of fitness.