Hey guys, no explanations this time around, I just wanted to get stuff posted before I head to the beach. Holla!
6/20/2011
Calories: 1,965
Rock Band drumming: 50 minutes
Lifting: 30 minutes
6/21/2011
Calories: 2,427
No activities
6/22/2011
Calories: 2,030
No activities
6/23/2011
Calories: 2,397
Rock Band singing/guitaring: 150 minutes
6/24/2011
Calories: 1,810
Walking: 30 minutes
Saturday, June 25, 2011
Thursday, June 23, 2011
Food Choices Study
I came across this article on the internet, and it was both interesting and frustrating.
Potatoes bad, nuts good for staying slim, Harvard study finds
Some of the analysis is interesting, and probably all of it is worth further study, but I worry about the tangible usefulness of it. I'd like to know what sort of attempts they made to eliminate other variables, though, specifically calorie intake. Like this analysis:
"Potatoes fared particularly poorly, possibly because starch, like refined grains and sugar, is less satisfying, so people eat more."
The "eat more" comment makes me think that they didn't try to isolate food choices from calorie intake when determining the effect of food choices. Like, potatoes leave you hungry, so you eat more calories if you eat potatoes. Well, shit, if you eat 9,000 calories of bananas every day, you're gonna get fat. It's 9,000 goddamn calories.
If they didn't try to account for differences in calorie intake, I'm not surprised that yogurt came out as a good food. Nobody who's not on a diet eats yogurt. Nobody.
Potatoes bad, nuts good for staying slim, Harvard study finds
Some of the analysis is interesting, and probably all of it is worth further study, but I worry about the tangible usefulness of it. I'd like to know what sort of attempts they made to eliminate other variables, though, specifically calorie intake. Like this analysis:
"Potatoes fared particularly poorly, possibly because starch, like refined grains and sugar, is less satisfying, so people eat more."
The "eat more" comment makes me think that they didn't try to isolate food choices from calorie intake when determining the effect of food choices. Like, potatoes leave you hungry, so you eat more calories if you eat potatoes. Well, shit, if you eat 9,000 calories of bananas every day, you're gonna get fat. It's 9,000 goddamn calories.
If they didn't try to account for differences in calorie intake, I'm not surprised that yogurt came out as a good food. Nobody who's not on a diet eats yogurt. Nobody.
Tuesday, June 21, 2011
The Final Push - Gargantuar
OMG! It has been way to long since my last post. I apologize to the many fans that have been left bored at work and without my posts to keep them from doing busy work. A lot has happened since my last post, so I will try to break it down for ya.
Myrtle Beach Trip
Before the last weigh-in, I took a trip to Wilmington, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC. The trip was pretty awesome. Diet-wise, I definiteky could have done better, however, I definitely made some conscience choices about drinking water instead of soda, or not eating quite so much.
Month Five Weigh-In
Soon after my vacation, we had our five month weigh-in. I think both competitors were not as happy as we could have been with our results, though I wasn't too upset because of the aforementioned trip. The party itself was a lot of boozy fun, if I do say so myself. We know how to throw a party in Baltimore.
Warrior Dash, Pennsylvania
The weekend of June 10-11th, I went camping in the Poconos with some friends and my brother's family to compete in Warrior Dash. As I mentioned in a previous post, Warrior Dash is an obstacle course race about 5kilometers long, often reffered to a "muddy buddy" run. And Buddy do you get muddy. The camping trip got a little rained out, so we ended up leaving Saturday after the race, but the race itself was awesome! There were thousands of people, some dressed in hilarious costumes, some already drunk, running in waves of 500 through the woods and taking on obstacles along the way. Worse than any of the obstacles was the actual trail throught the woods. The ground was slippery due to the recent rain and there were rocks and roots wherever you stepped a long a narrow path. Many times the pace halted to a walk just because of the amount of people and the narrow path. I completed the race in about 1 hour and am very happy with that.
Final Month Goals
For the last remaining month I would really like to work hard to get to at least 60lbs total for the competition. That would leave me at 249.8 and well on my way to getting healthy again. Of course I would like to win the competition, and still believe I can with a very solid month, but ultimately it's about getting healthy and I just want to continue that goal going beyond the competition. I promise I will update frequently now, I again am sorry for the long delay between posts. I also promise to be wittier in the final posts as well.
Myrtle Beach Trip
Before the last weigh-in, I took a trip to Wilmington, NC and Myrtle Beach, SC. The trip was pretty awesome. Diet-wise, I definiteky could have done better, however, I definitely made some conscience choices about drinking water instead of soda, or not eating quite so much.
Month Five Weigh-In
Soon after my vacation, we had our five month weigh-in. I think both competitors were not as happy as we could have been with our results, though I wasn't too upset because of the aforementioned trip. The party itself was a lot of boozy fun, if I do say so myself. We know how to throw a party in Baltimore.
Warrior Dash, Pennsylvania
The weekend of June 10-11th, I went camping in the Poconos with some friends and my brother's family to compete in Warrior Dash. As I mentioned in a previous post, Warrior Dash is an obstacle course race about 5kilometers long, often reffered to a "muddy buddy" run. And Buddy do you get muddy. The camping trip got a little rained out, so we ended up leaving Saturday after the race, but the race itself was awesome! There were thousands of people, some dressed in hilarious costumes, some already drunk, running in waves of 500 through the woods and taking on obstacles along the way. Worse than any of the obstacles was the actual trail throught the woods. The ground was slippery due to the recent rain and there were rocks and roots wherever you stepped a long a narrow path. Many times the pace halted to a walk just because of the amount of people and the narrow path. I completed the race in about 1 hour and am very happy with that.
Final Month Goals
For the last remaining month I would really like to work hard to get to at least 60lbs total for the competition. That would leave me at 249.8 and well on my way to getting healthy again. Of course I would like to win the competition, and still believe I can with a very solid month, but ultimately it's about getting healthy and I just want to continue that goal going beyond the competition. I promise I will update frequently now, I again am sorry for the long delay between posts. I also promise to be wittier in the final posts as well.
Monday, June 20, 2011
Psychotron - Daily Diary 39
Still waiting for that first Garg post of the month...
6/15/2011
Calories: 2,005
Walking: 45 minutes
Made myself another pizza. This one was a southwest style dealy, with seasoned chicken, onions, and various Mexican cheeses. The chicken runs a little higher on calories than turkey pepperoni, but it was delicious, and I stayed within my daily target, so I was pleased.
6/16/2011
Calories: 2,467
No activities
I had about 700 calories in high fiber foods, from raisin bran to fiber bars to vegetables, all trying to kick this stomach thing. I also had plenty of non-high fiber foods, though, and that's where the problems came from. Add in a lack of activities, and you've got a bad Thursday.
6/17/2011
Calories: 2,404
Walking: 30 minutes
If it makes anyone feel better, 1,600+ of these calories were from lunch at Hard Times.
It doesn't, though, does it?
6/18/2011
Calories: 2,350
Walking: 25 minutes
Lifting: 20 minutes
Rock Band singing: 20 minutes
While the calories were a bit above my daily target of 2,200, I feel like I came away with a lot of good information. I went up to Jen and Chris's place for a little barbecuing, and I spent a good chunk of time talking calories with Jen and Rachel. Does that make me a little girly? Probably. But if this competition has taught me anything, it's that it helps to have people fighting alongside you when you take on a big project. Talking to other people who count calories helps me find out about all sorts of other food options, and I think it'll prove to be beneficial going forward.
6/19/2011
Calories: 2,655
No activities
Just a crazy, lazy, snack-heavy Sunday. I watched a couple movies, played some video games, and basically had a nice shitty Father's Day. Still, 2,600 calorie "bad days" are better than 2010's 4,100 calorie "bad days," right?
Looking Forward
So I think I'm finally on the other side of whatever stomach bug or condition I was dealing with. I think I have a tendency to try to solve problems with food (all problems, physical, mental, arithmatic...), so I'm expecting to have a much better week this week. Also, I've got to get in some good days while I can. I'm going on vacation with my family (and Gargantuar's) starting on Saturday, so it's fair to expect some straying.
The day isn't over yet, but Monday looks like a good start.
6/15/2011
Calories: 2,005
Walking: 45 minutes
Made myself another pizza. This one was a southwest style dealy, with seasoned chicken, onions, and various Mexican cheeses. The chicken runs a little higher on calories than turkey pepperoni, but it was delicious, and I stayed within my daily target, so I was pleased.
6/16/2011
Calories: 2,467
No activities
I had about 700 calories in high fiber foods, from raisin bran to fiber bars to vegetables, all trying to kick this stomach thing. I also had plenty of non-high fiber foods, though, and that's where the problems came from. Add in a lack of activities, and you've got a bad Thursday.
6/17/2011
Calories: 2,404
Walking: 30 minutes
If it makes anyone feel better, 1,600+ of these calories were from lunch at Hard Times.
It doesn't, though, does it?
6/18/2011
Calories: 2,350
Walking: 25 minutes
Lifting: 20 minutes
Rock Band singing: 20 minutes
While the calories were a bit above my daily target of 2,200, I feel like I came away with a lot of good information. I went up to Jen and Chris's place for a little barbecuing, and I spent a good chunk of time talking calories with Jen and Rachel. Does that make me a little girly? Probably. But if this competition has taught me anything, it's that it helps to have people fighting alongside you when you take on a big project. Talking to other people who count calories helps me find out about all sorts of other food options, and I think it'll prove to be beneficial going forward.
6/19/2011
Calories: 2,655
No activities
Just a crazy, lazy, snack-heavy Sunday. I watched a couple movies, played some video games, and basically had a nice shitty Father's Day. Still, 2,600 calorie "bad days" are better than 2010's 4,100 calorie "bad days," right?
Looking Forward
So I think I'm finally on the other side of whatever stomach bug or condition I was dealing with. I think I have a tendency to try to solve problems with food (all problems, physical, mental, arithmatic...), so I'm expecting to have a much better week this week. Also, I've got to get in some good days while I can. I'm going on vacation with my family (and Gargantuar's) starting on Saturday, so it's fair to expect some straying.
The day isn't over yet, but Monday looks like a good start.
Thursday, June 16, 2011
JigglyPuff Week 2
I was going to wait for the end of the weekend to do my next post but it looks to be a pretty full weekend. I did not want to take the chance that I forget what I ate and give false information. Could I write it down... sure, But I'm not going to.
Looking Forward
6/13/2011
Calories: 1,200 calories
Walking: None
Calories: 1,200 calories
Walking: None
I was pretty good on Monday. Rachel made some salsa chicken that was real cal and low fat. I also was able to avoid any real snacking over the night. I had a beer with dinner but even with that a real low intake day.
6/14/2011
Calories: 1,600 calories
Walking: 20 min run 45 min Walk
Calories: 1,600 calories
Walking: 20 min run 45 min Walk
I stepped up my calories and eating but I also made the effort to be more active. I went for a pretty quick jog around my neighborhood. It wasn't anything crazy but it was nice to do something a little tougher then walking. I followed up the jog with a nice long walk while talking Gargantuar. I went a little heavy with a double meat extra cheese potbelly sandwich but I skipped any sides and was good every other meal so it worked out.
6/15/2011
Calories: 1,580 calories
Walking: Softball
Calories: 1,580 calories
Walking: Softball
Rachel was sick so I was on my own for meals. I ended up eating chips and salsa for lunch. The salsa was ghost pepper salsa which if you don't know is butt spicy. Pretty tasty though. I also split a CPK freezer pizza with Rachel before softball. It was a pretty long night of softball (2.5 hours) but I really only played catcher and ran bases so I'm not sure how much exercise I got. I did notice a little more spring in my step and speed when running though. I feel like David Ortiz last week where as now I'm a Youkilis so nothing crazy.
6/16/2011
Calories: 650 calories
Walking: None
Calories: 650 calories
Walking: None
This is obviously being written in the middle of the day. So far so good. Was pretty good for first two meals.
Looking Forward
I figure both Friday and Saturday night I will be pretty loose with my calories. I hope to get some running in before each to limit the damage but overall feeling good. Oh and Chip I was at 183 when I weighed in two Sundays ago. It was after a pretty much horrible weekend so I was probably just around 180 but still a lot more then I want.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
Psychotron - Daily Diary 38
My apologies for both the length of time in between posts. Initially I was waiting for Gargantuar to post his monthly kickoff comments (which we're still waiting for, fella). Then I got a little woozy over the weekend, and I've been dealing with stomach discomfort for the past couple days. It's still there, but it's my responsibility to keep you guys in the loop on the happenings, so I'll give you a post.
However, my stomach bug is the reason for the brevity of some of the individual daily discussions. I assure you I'm not leaving out anything interesting. The way you know you can believe that is that it's me; nothing interesting ever happens around me anyways, remember?
6/7/2011
Calories: 1,855
Walking: 45 minutes
Still carrying the kickoff torch on Tuesday, I was able to have another positive day in both calories and activities. Unfortunately, it was the last really good day for a while...
6/8/2011
Calories: 2,515
No activities
I'm not going to say who I blame for my downward spiral over the next few days, but I absolutely blame one specific person. And I know it wasn't their intention, as they've tried to be supportive throughout all of this, but we had an interaction on Tuesday that messed with me psychologically, and I'm only now starting to be able to put it behind me.
Anyways, did a bunch of snacking on Wednesday, no activities, had a bad day.
6/9/2011
Calories: 2,385
Drumming: 30 minutes
Walking: 30 minutes
I was able to get myself back on the activities train on Thursday, though it was short-lived. I couldn't get myself going on the drumming, so I ended up bailing pretty early. The walk helped, probably, but it could've been a much more active day. And I've noticed that the more satisfying my activities are, the less I feel like snacking. So it's a double-whammy when I can't get rolling on some exercise.
6/10/2011
Calories: 2,535
No activities
Fridays are always pretty crummy as far as diet and exercise go. This one was made slightly worse (fitness-wise) by an extended outing that included a happy hour and a trip to the movies. It is not easy to resist buttered popcorn...or at least I assume it's not easy. I've never actually tried.
We saw Super 8, which literally everyone else hated, but I thought was fine. For all of my talk about hating everything, I think I actually like most movies. Not love, though, just like; we save words like "love" for movies like Jurassic Park, Zombieland, Lord of the Rings, Hoosiers, and Apollo 13. But Super 8 would get three stars on my Netflix ratings. Matter of fact, let me go do that right now...
6/11/2011
Calories: 2,985
Rock Band singing: 150 minutes
Lifting: 20 minutes
The calories were atrocious on Saturday, true. But I cite two reasons that it didn't really hurt me from a mental standpoint.
A) I had a really fun time. I went up to Joey's for a barbecue, then headed to a birthday party at another friend's house in Clarksburg. Both events were full of good friends and good times...and good drinks. But the point here is, good times.
B) The lifting I did (push-ups) got me SUPER sore. Only today on Tuesday am I starting to feel the tension wane. And the more muscle I build, the higher my metabolism, and the more effective my dieting and exercise will be.
So while it was obviously a bad day for the diet, I feel okay going forward.
6/12/2011
Calories: 2,170
No activities
Did I mention I got pretty drunk on Saturday night? I spent most of Sunday wandering aimlessly around my house, foraging for food and watching TV and movies, and reading. Finished the first Twilight book, by the way. It had some slow parts, but overall, it was decent. I'm in no rush to read the second book, but I imagine I will soon enough.
6/13/2011
Calories: 1,741
Walking: 45 minutes
I seem to almost always have good Mondays, which might be telling. Start of the work week, I'm coming off of good times over the weekend, feeling positive. Then I go to work, have the life sapped out of me, and by Wednesday I'm munching on everything in sight again. So, maybe it's time for a new job...
6/14/2011
Calories: 1,981
Walking: 35 minutes
Normal, average day. Nothing really noteworthy.
Looking Forward
...to Nick's first post this month.
However, my stomach bug is the reason for the brevity of some of the individual daily discussions. I assure you I'm not leaving out anything interesting. The way you know you can believe that is that it's me; nothing interesting ever happens around me anyways, remember?
6/7/2011
Calories: 1,855
Walking: 45 minutes
Still carrying the kickoff torch on Tuesday, I was able to have another positive day in both calories and activities. Unfortunately, it was the last really good day for a while...
6/8/2011
Calories: 2,515
No activities
I'm not going to say who I blame for my downward spiral over the next few days, but I absolutely blame one specific person. And I know it wasn't their intention, as they've tried to be supportive throughout all of this, but we had an interaction on Tuesday that messed with me psychologically, and I'm only now starting to be able to put it behind me.
Anyways, did a bunch of snacking on Wednesday, no activities, had a bad day.
6/9/2011
Calories: 2,385
Drumming: 30 minutes
Walking: 30 minutes
I was able to get myself back on the activities train on Thursday, though it was short-lived. I couldn't get myself going on the drumming, so I ended up bailing pretty early. The walk helped, probably, but it could've been a much more active day. And I've noticed that the more satisfying my activities are, the less I feel like snacking. So it's a double-whammy when I can't get rolling on some exercise.
6/10/2011
Calories: 2,535
No activities
Fridays are always pretty crummy as far as diet and exercise go. This one was made slightly worse (fitness-wise) by an extended outing that included a happy hour and a trip to the movies. It is not easy to resist buttered popcorn...or at least I assume it's not easy. I've never actually tried.
We saw Super 8, which literally everyone else hated, but I thought was fine. For all of my talk about hating everything, I think I actually like most movies. Not love, though, just like; we save words like "love" for movies like Jurassic Park, Zombieland, Lord of the Rings, Hoosiers, and Apollo 13. But Super 8 would get three stars on my Netflix ratings. Matter of fact, let me go do that right now...
6/11/2011
Calories: 2,985
Rock Band singing: 150 minutes
Lifting: 20 minutes
The calories were atrocious on Saturday, true. But I cite two reasons that it didn't really hurt me from a mental standpoint.
A) I had a really fun time. I went up to Joey's for a barbecue, then headed to a birthday party at another friend's house in Clarksburg. Both events were full of good friends and good times...and good drinks. But the point here is, good times.
B) The lifting I did (push-ups) got me SUPER sore. Only today on Tuesday am I starting to feel the tension wane. And the more muscle I build, the higher my metabolism, and the more effective my dieting and exercise will be.
So while it was obviously a bad day for the diet, I feel okay going forward.
6/12/2011
Calories: 2,170
No activities
Did I mention I got pretty drunk on Saturday night? I spent most of Sunday wandering aimlessly around my house, foraging for food and watching TV and movies, and reading. Finished the first Twilight book, by the way. It had some slow parts, but overall, it was decent. I'm in no rush to read the second book, but I imagine I will soon enough.
6/13/2011
Calories: 1,741
Walking: 45 minutes
I seem to almost always have good Mondays, which might be telling. Start of the work week, I'm coming off of good times over the weekend, feeling positive. Then I go to work, have the life sapped out of me, and by Wednesday I'm munching on everything in sight again. So, maybe it's time for a new job...
6/14/2011
Calories: 1,981
Walking: 35 minutes
Normal, average day. Nothing really noteworthy.
Looking Forward
...to Nick's first post this month.
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Week 1
I came up with the idea to compete against Psyco and Garg because I was becoming a little more round as of late. I had begun to slip into bad eating and exercise habits and needed to get back on track. After a week I feel like I have changed a lot of things for the better but still left myself room for improvement.
6/6/2011
Calories: 1,700
Walking: 25 min
It was a pretty solid first day. I probably would have done even better if the woman at subway understood a little light mayo meant. Instead I received a crap load of regular mayo.
Calories: 1,700
Walking: 25 min
It was a pretty solid first day. I probably would have done even better if the woman at subway understood a little light mayo meant. Instead I received a crap load of regular mayo.
6/7/2011
Calories: 1420
Walking: 50 min
Calories: 1420
Walking: 50 min
Again another good day. Rachel made some frittata that was really good and low cal. I went on a decent size walk with Psychotron in the evening.
6/8/2011
Calories: 1500
Walking: Softball 90 min
Calories: 1500
Walking: Softball 90 min
I was able to avoid eating too many calories again. It was around 95 degrees when playing softball. I didn't get much action in the field and didn't manage to hit all that well so the actual running was limited.
6/9/2011
Calories: 1400
Walking: None
Calories: 1400
Walking: None
I'm a little unsure where my calories really ended up. I had about 450-500 between breakfast and lunch. For dinner I went out to Uncle Julio's with Rach, Joey, and Julie. I had two light beers and a grilled salmon fillet with veggies. I'm not sure how much that really ends up being but 900 seems high if anything.
6/10/2011
Calories: 2500+
Walking: 20 min
Calories: 2500+
Walking: 20 min
This is where the wheels came off a little bit. Dan and Kristie came down to the house after work. I skipped breakfast knowing that it was not going to be a good night. I was pretty hammered by the end of the night so the actual calories are anyone's guess. I did manage to go for a walk at about 1 am with Dan. Weird.
6/11/2011
Calories: 2500+
Walking: None
Calories: 2500+
Walking: None
This again was a pretty terrible night. I went up to hang out with Eddie in Westminster. I was able to limit my calories before going up which probably helped my overall numbers. However eating pizza, beers, and Crown XR lead to a lot of calories.
6/12/2011
Calories: 1050
Walking: Basketball
Calories: 1050
Walking: Basketball
After the train wreck of Friday and Saturday it makes sense I wasn't very hungry. I had a bowl of chili, some pretzels and a Gatorade after basketball. I was actually pretty active during the game. After the team was down 20-25 pts I started to take any open shot I was given. Not the best option for the success of the team but I figured I had been pretty passive all game. How did it turn out.... not great but I was able to bank a three. (I didn't call it)
Overall thoughts
I'm pretty happy overall. Two bad days over the weekend was not great but I was really good the other five. With the temperature dropping to a tolerable level I plan to be a little more active. We'll see how it goes.
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Psychotron - Daily Diary 37
Is it early? Yes. Is it too early to make judgments on how this month is going to go? Yes. Is it too early to feel good about my direction?
No sir.
6/5/2011
Calories: 1,665
Walking: 50 minutes
A Sunday under 1,700 calories is a good sign. Normally I have a lot of trouble keeping the calories under control on weekends, Sundays especially, so I'm pretty excited. My whole mindset feels good, though. I feel like I'm just back, plain and simple.
6/6/2011
Calories: 1,613
Tennis: 45 minutes
What's interesting and encouraging here is that the tennis, on top of being a very good workout, helped me avoid snacking. I knew I didn't want to be weighed down going into the tennis, so I didn't eat anything when I got home from work. But my tennis game wasn't until 7:15 (actually 7:30 due to some miscommunication). So there was a nice two-hour period which historically has been an issue for me in which I had the extra motivation to not eat. And it worked, and it was great.
Also, after playing tennis, I definitely affirmed that, while it's good to walk and play drums and everything, there's a whole other level of exercise out there.
Looking Forward
Sure, it was only two days, but they were two good days. More than that, though, I feel a whole different mentality coming into the competition's final month. I'm not sure if it was the letdown from last month, or the fact that we're in the stretch run, or the natural high that comes from a good party. But whatever the reason, I want to harness it, capture it, and employ it going forward this month.
Bee tee dubs, anybody want to play some basketball?
No sir.
6/5/2011
Calories: 1,665
Walking: 50 minutes
A Sunday under 1,700 calories is a good sign. Normally I have a lot of trouble keeping the calories under control on weekends, Sundays especially, so I'm pretty excited. My whole mindset feels good, though. I feel like I'm just back, plain and simple.
6/6/2011
Calories: 1,613
Tennis: 45 minutes
What's interesting and encouraging here is that the tennis, on top of being a very good workout, helped me avoid snacking. I knew I didn't want to be weighed down going into the tennis, so I didn't eat anything when I got home from work. But my tennis game wasn't until 7:15 (actually 7:30 due to some miscommunication). So there was a nice two-hour period which historically has been an issue for me in which I had the extra motivation to not eat. And it worked, and it was great.
Also, after playing tennis, I definitely affirmed that, while it's good to walk and play drums and everything, there's a whole other level of exercise out there.
Looking Forward
Sure, it was only two days, but they were two good days. More than that, though, I feel a whole different mentality coming into the competition's final month. I'm not sure if it was the letdown from last month, or the fact that we're in the stretch run, or the natural high that comes from a good party. But whatever the reason, I want to harness it, capture it, and employ it going forward this month.
Bee tee dubs, anybody want to play some basketball?
Monday, June 6, 2011
Psychotron - The Reinvention
So you've all seen how last month panned out, or didn't, as it were. There were a variety of reasons why things went poorly, mostly related to a lack of willpower. So now, I'm focused on how to get back on track.
First things first, the whole "going dark" experiment was informative. I do believe I need the public accountability to force myself to stay true, less so for exercise, but definitely for the diet. My activities were fine during the dark week, but I did a lot of unnecessary snacking, and I'm sure that at least part of it was because I didn't have to worry about sharing that information with others. BUT, it was nice to find out that I was still motivated enough to be active, regardless of the accountability.
The party was awesome; kudos to Nick on putting together a nice event. And while everything after about 11:00 is a haze for me, the pictures look like I had a good time. And I woke up in my own bed, so that was a success. I think I'm going to try to start drinking more beer; it should help me regulate my pace a little bit better, plus maybe I can do a better job of keeping track of calories if they're neatly packaged in an aluminum can.
I'm re-establishing the calorie goal of 2,200.
And I've got a new tack for weekends. Historically, I had a little more trouble being active on weekends, because I felt like I should be taking advantage of every moment of my downtime from work doing fun things, like playing video games, watching movies, visiting people, etc. The better way to think about it, though, is that I've got way more free time on weekends. Plenty of time for both recreation and exercising, as well as the opportunity to combine the two with basketball, tennis, Rock Band, or other activities.
Let the final face-off begin. Good luck, Gargantuar.
You're gonna need it.
First things first, the whole "going dark" experiment was informative. I do believe I need the public accountability to force myself to stay true, less so for exercise, but definitely for the diet. My activities were fine during the dark week, but I did a lot of unnecessary snacking, and I'm sure that at least part of it was because I didn't have to worry about sharing that information with others. BUT, it was nice to find out that I was still motivated enough to be active, regardless of the accountability.
The party was awesome; kudos to Nick on putting together a nice event. And while everything after about 11:00 is a haze for me, the pictures look like I had a good time. And I woke up in my own bed, so that was a success. I think I'm going to try to start drinking more beer; it should help me regulate my pace a little bit better, plus maybe I can do a better job of keeping track of calories if they're neatly packaged in an aluminum can.
I'm re-establishing the calorie goal of 2,200.
And I've got a new tack for weekends. Historically, I had a little more trouble being active on weekends, because I felt like I should be taking advantage of every moment of my downtime from work doing fun things, like playing video games, watching movies, visiting people, etc. The better way to think about it, though, is that I've got way more free time on weekends. Plenty of time for both recreation and exercising, as well as the opportunity to combine the two with basketball, tennis, Rock Band, or other activities.
Let the final face-off begin. Good luck, Gargantuar.
You're gonna need it.
Month 6
For month 6 we are pulling out all the stops to try to have the biggest weight loss of the competition. To do this I'm implementing several new wrinkles to the competition.
The first of these wrinkles is that all competitors will post at least once a week. I think last month both Gargantuar and Psychotron were a little loose with their responsibility to post their experiences, trials, and triumphs. The reasoning behind this change is two fold. The first reason being that many people have donated money, time, and support to motivate Joe and Nick and make this weight loss competition a success. I think its important to show these people the experience and that you are working to make their donations worth it. The second reason is that with transparency it is harder to hide lapses in exercise or good meal choices. If growing up in a catholic family taught me anything it was the power of guilt.
The second wrinkle will be the final grand prize. This will be the largest of the entire competition. The winner of the Psychotron vs Gargantuar challenge will win 100$ and a gift card to Dick's sporting goods. As always we are open to any additional contributions. Both Psychotron and Gargantuar are greedy SOB's so the more we put up the more motivated they will be to skip that snack or go for that extra walk. Nothing is too little.
The final wrinkle is...
I will be joining the final month of the competition.
Rules: I will be going head to head with each competitor for the final month. This will be based only on total weight loss. There will be no percentage of total weight. For the prize I will be putting up 50$ of my money. If either Psychotron or Gargantuar beat me they will receive 25$.
Why am I doing this? To hopefully motivate both these guys to lose as much as possible. So bring on your healthy pizzas, and spin classes you little sissy girls.
Good Luck in Month 6.
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Month Five Weigh-In Results
Well, you know what they say: month five is the bane of all competition. Come on, who watches baseball in August? Nobody. Literally nobody.
This competition was no different. Nick and I both had pretty rough month fives. There are plenty of explanations/excuses, including trips, events, willpower issues, and the fact that doing anything for five months is a challenge, especially when it's a set of life-changing decisions like we've undertaken. But in the end, we were both pretty disappointed with our performances, and neither of us would fault any of you for feeling the same way.
The numbers...
Psychotron
May 7th: 288.2 lbs.
June 4th: 283.6 lbs.
Difference: -4.6 lbs.
Percent Difference: 1.6%
Total Weight Lost: 63.0 lbs.
Total Percent Weight Lost: 18.2%
Gargantuar
May 7th: 265.2 lbs.
June 4th: 263.8 lbs.
Difference: -1.4 lbs.
Percent Difference: 0.5%
Total Weight Lost: 46.0 lbs.
Total Percent Weight Lost: 14.8%
With a score of 1.6% weight lost from last month, Psychotron wins again, his fourth straight victory! A little quick math indicates that he'll receive a prize of a Best Buy gift card in the amount of $40.
Post-Game Analysis
Well, you can see from the numbers, but it was obviously a tough month for both competitors. Honestly, Gargantuar at least has the excuse of having gone to Myrtle Beach for a raucous time just a week before the weigh-in. Psychotron simply didn't bring his A game this month, and just barely managed to eke out a hollow victory.
Look forward to posts by both of our competitors talking about how they plan to use month five as a learning experience, and how they plan to bounce back from an unexceptional performance.
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Tropic Thunder
So our fifth weigh-in is this Saturday, up in Baltimore at Nick and Colin's place. Which, of course, means another party. I'm sure most of you have already gotten the invite over on the Facebook, but in case you didn't, you're getting this invite right here.It's going to be a tropical themed party. Ladies, you should use this picture as recommended attire. And remember, less is more.
I actually didn't own any kind of beachwear, so I hit the old Target and picked up a couple shirts and some flip-flops. Normally, you might not think this is noteworthy, but I used to not be able to buy clothes at Target because they were all too small. Granted, I haven't actually tried on the clothes I purchased, but they should fit. Hopefully. God, now you've got me worried. Thanks a lot, you twit.
Anyways, should be a fun party. Bring some beer/margaritas/daiquiris/pina coladas.
Month 5 Prize Announced
I have somewhat ignored my tremendous responsibility as Battle Marshal in recent weeks. I will strive to be more involved and visible as this competition comes to a close. The first portion of this will be to announce the Month 4 prize.
For Month 4 we have a best buy gift card. The gift card's value will be dependent on the competitor's weight loss up to the end of June. The gift card will start at a value of 10$. This value will increase 5$ for every 10lbs lost from the start of the competition.
Example If prize was last month:
Psychotron: 58lbs lost = 40$
Gargantuar: 44.6 lbs lost = 30$
I'm not going to be able to make it out to Nick's this weekend but I'm sure it will be a good time. I would advise against the micro machines but what do I know. Good luck over the last week.
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