c3_psycho

LONG OVERDUE UPDATE: Okay, when last I posted, I was still preparing for the Warrior Dash and had a knee injury. To make a long story short, I COMPLETED the Warrior Dash a couple of weekends ago and knocked out my life goal successfully! However, my knee has definitely hindered my progress, especially on Goal A, so I've had to modify my strategy a little bit. Main Goal: Weigh 199 pounds. I weighed in today at 226 so I'm very, very close....about a loss of 14 pounds since the challenge started. Reminder: I started at 341. Goal A: The same, without running Some days are better than others, but I've had to drop running altogether for the time being. My knee has not improved, but hasn't gotten any worse. During the Warrior Dash, a friend of mine noticed my knee was definitely wobbly and he let me borrow his knee brace because "you need it more than I do." (His words.) I have been able to continue the elliptical which has been great because it's about the only cardio I can do without putting a lot of pressure on my knee. I'm also looking to borrow a dormant bicycle from a friend but haven't put too much work into this yet....and in the event I do find a bike, I'll replace cycling with running. But as it is today, I'm back down to a two pronged attack. Goal B: Eat more often (Wait, what?!) Truth be told, I think this was a poorly chosen goal. I tried to shake up my dietary habits and while it hasn't been a total failure, it's by no means a success. For better or worse, I'm the type of person who doesn't like to do anything half-assed. I am so, so close to my goal, and I've surmised the best and fastest way for me to get there is by not changing a thing as far as my approach goes. Right now I have two scheduled meals a day, and I allow up to four snacks if I need them. I'm keeping my calories at or around 1200-1400 and have a real shot at hitting my goal before or near Thanksgiving. While Goal B seemed like a great idea at the time, it's not what got me to this point, and it's not going to be what gets me where I need to be. Poor choice, but shit happens. Moving on. Goal C: Avoid all fried food Passing this goal WITH FLYING COLORS! I've had one cheat day after the Warrior Dash (It's hardly a cheat day when you burned 5000 calories same day, right?) and STILL didn't have anything fried. I will definitely be carrying this goal over to what looks to be the final stage of my challenge. Life Goal: Complete Warrior Dash, Louisiana DONE! Finished my first ever 5K w/ obstacles at a time just over an hour and ten minutes. Had a lot of great friends that helped me out and I somehow finished it without killing myself. Hopefully will do it again in May (I think) when it comes to my hometown. I know we still have a few days left in this challenge, but I'm going to go ahead and assume I don't sabotage myself at this point and get to the 27th either at or under my current weight. I'm going to give myself a passing grade even if I didn't strictly adhere to Goals A and B. After all, those goals are supposed to be put in place for the achievement of my overall goal. And while I didn't follow them exactly, I'm still 14 (or more) pounds closer to my goal. Plus, completing my life goal is reason enough for me to give myself a passing grade. I finished something I never honestly believed I could prior to this year. So, that's about all I got. What do you guys think?

Update on the knee: Woke up today and it is much improved. I'm walking up and down stairs with no pain for the first time since before the injury. I'm going to give it until tomorrow and try to resume running. Going to get back on the weights today, too. All of my weight exercises required me to be on my feet, so I looked some up I could do while sitting down. Hopefully I'll be able to resume light running tomorrow, and with any luck I'll be back to full speed in a week..

Thanks everybody! I'm already looking forward to my next goal: To be under 200 pounds!

Well, had to go on my run a little earlier today....and at about the quarter mile mark I definitely felt some pain in my left knee. So I slowed down to a walk for a minute, and everything felt okay, so I went back up to a run but that did not last long at all. I came up limping pretty quickly. It would appear I sprained my left knee, and hopefully that's it. I had to cut my run short at the half mile mark. Now, since I started running 4 days ago, I have felt a little pain in this knee, but chalked it up to the fact that I've never run before. Today it's felt worse than ever. So after I got back to my desk I propped it up and iced it down. Gonna keep ice on it today and tomorrow and hopefully by Sunday I'll be able to get back out there.

That sounds great! I've started eating veggies with every meal for one reason--I like to eat, and I like to feel full (Okay, two reasons). The great thing about veggies is you can eat a ridiculous amount of them and still stay under 200 calories. For example, for lunch I'll probably have a skinless, boneless chicken breast, a can of french style green beans, and a can of sliced carrots. That is a LOT of food. Depending on the size of the chicken breast, I'm looking at a 300 calorie lunch, probably less. It's all about getting the most out of what you eat!

Haha, no, there will be plenty of mud. From what I understand it's a lot shorter than Tough Mudder, and a good thing too; I don't want to kill myself first time out. I'm 4 days in on lifting; I'm primarily doing arm and upper body exercises to get my upper body strength up for the obstacles. I could really feel my arms this morning, and I know I must be doing something right if it takes me 15 minutes just to lift a cup of coffee!

Thank you! A lot of my friends use MyFitnessPal, too. From what I've seen the two apps are really, really similar. I also got Nike's Running app to track my running time; I like it because it keeps track with your fastest mile, kilo, 2 miles, 5Ks, etc.

Getting started is the hardest part. I'd say the 2nd hardest part is changing when you get used to a routine...that's what I'm going through now. If you can keep it up for a couple of weeks, you'll stop worrying about it as much and it just kinda becomes a good habit. I was told that for years but didn't actually believe it 'til I did it myself.

I use MyNetDiary on my iPhone and you can also check it at mynetdiary.com I believe. It's a really good tool for people who are pretty OCD like me about what I'm eating. I literally want to count every calorie of food I eat to make sure I am for sure eating right, and not just thinking that I am. I've ran(well, mostly walked) a mile for 2 days straight now, and I'm going to have to make myself do it every day if I don't want to hold the group of people I'm going with behind. I'm going to go an extra quarter of a mile today!

Okay, i'm a day late this time, not a few weeks, so I look forward to getting credit for this challenge! I've altered it from my previous challenge a little bit. I've had the weekend to really think about it. I'm aiming to make my individual goals more challenging but I'll be keeping my main goal from last time. Main Goal: Weigh 199 pounds. In between challenges I put on a few pounds celebrating hitting 100+ pounds down this weekend. Not many (I'm still under 100), but I had a great time at a party this weekend and I'm ready to hit the ground running on this one all over again. I started my incomplete challenge at 265, and today I weigh 240. While dropping 41 pounds in six weeks for me is feasible, I'm not going to put pressure on myself to accomplish this goal in only six weeks. I anticipated it taking 2 and a half challenges to reach this goal, and I still think that will be the case. Goal A: Three pronged work-out, at least six days a week: Weight lifting, running outside, elliptical. For those who paid attention last challenge, you'd know that I stuck to an elliptical four to five days a week(at least an hour a day), and for the most part shattered that daily goal. Well, I have an event coming up about three and a half weeks away (which will be my life goal) which is going to require me to be in shape, period. While using an elliptical only is a great way to lose weight, you're really not getting into shape by doing it. I know that doesn't make any sense, so let me simplify it. I can jump on an elliptical and go for an hour, burning 900 calories or more, no problem. I can only (at the moment) run an eighth of a mile without having to slow down. So my current plan is to work out a couple of muscle groups by lifting free weights, followed by a run (at least a mile, but having to go a little further each day), followed by a cooldown on the elliptical. Goal B: Eat more often! (Wait, what?!) Alrighty, I know this is confusing. Here's where this goal came about. In my quest to lose 100 pounds (towards the end of last challenge) I became a little desperate to reach my goal, so I started to cut out all snacks (even healthy ones) and breakfast entirely. I only actually ate lunch and dinner for about two weeks, and most of the time I stayed well under 1200 calories, and while it proved effective, that's not exactly the most healthy thing to be doing. Problem is, I let that become a habit. It's a personality flaw of mine, and I'm working on it. So, I'm going to make myself eat breakfast, lunch, after workout snack, dinner, and another snack. I want my metabolism to be working faster and hopefully this will be the way to do it. If anyone has any helpful tips on how you might have successfully sped up your own metabolism I'd love to hear them!! Goal C: Avoid all fried food. Since February 1st - September 14, I'd say I've eaten less fried food this year than any other year. As a matter of fact, in that period of time, I can not remember eating anything fried at all. Not to say it didn't happen, I'm sure I picked up a french fry here or there, but I can't really remember it. That's almost mind-blowing to me. BUT (you knew a 'but' was coming), with Sunday being the last day before the new challenge I went to a fried chicken joint and got some fried tenders, fries, and a biscuit. And my God, was it good. I mean, it was fan-freaking-tastic. I can't wait to have some more, but guess what? I got six weeks to wait. If you haven't noticed my signature before (a quote from the 1st Matrix), I have it written on my bedroom door, too. So I see it every day when I wake up and read it. 99.9% of the time it's enough for me to read that, think about it for a second, and stop myself from making self-destructive decisions. So fried food, as good as you were, there's no room for you in my life at this period in time. Life Goal: Complete Warrior Dash: Louisiana. I know you're not really supposed to tie in your fitness goals with your life goal, but I have a good reason. For those of you unfamiliar with the Warrior Dash, it's about a 3.3 mile run with 12-15 obstacles to be completed along the way. My friends did the one in Jackson, MS (where I live) in March when I had just started to scratch the surface of my weight loss journey. Here we are about 7 months later and I'm in a position where I really think I can finish the thing. Why I decided to make this my life goal is because that's exactly what it is--something I've never done before in my life. I'm 25 days away from the race, which is really what motivated me to up my exercise goals. That pretty much sums it up! If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask!

I weighed in at 236 today, and started at 341.....105 pounds down overall, and 8 inches off my waist(started at 49, currently 41). My next goal is to be under 200 pounds, which I haven't been since a teenager. Planning on relaxing this weekend and hitting the ground running when the new challenge starts next week, can't wait!

Well, this isn't really the end of my challenge, but since a new six week period is coming up, I'll post my results so far. (EDIT: Derp. Forgot to include my main goal ) Main Goal: Weigh in at 199 pounds. Grade: Incomplete. There was no way I was hitting that goal in half a challenge. I doubt I'll even be there after this next challenge, but hopefully sometime before Christmas I'll get there. I started out at 265 and weighed in today at 244. Progress ftw! Goal A: One hour of elliptical 4-5 days a week. Grade: A. I set the bar way too low here. I was closer to 2 hours most days, and I was on the elliptical 5-6 days a week for the first two weeks. I'll be making this more difficult for the next phase of my challenge. Goal B: Keep snacking impulses down to once a day. Grade: A-. For the most part, I eliminated the impulses entirely thanks to snack scheduling. My problem here is "cheat days." I record everything I eat and drink...it's the only way I can hold myself accountable is if I have a record and number looking me in the face. I normally would give myself a day off one every couple of weeks where I would not record anything. I wouldn't fall off the wagon per se, but I just wouldn't write anything down which meant I normally would eat more than I normally would. That, in itself, wasn't the problem. The problem was the next day, getting back into routine. Those were the hardest days to keep the impulses down. Still, for a dude who impulsively snacked every day, I can honestly say I only succumbed to impulses twice in three weeks. I'll be keeping this goal because I know I can do better. Goal C: No more than 9 hours of sleep. Grade: B. In retrospect, not the best goal. What I failed to realize pre-challenge is that as I lose weight and workout, I'm going to have more energy and want to sleep less anyway. My problem was I wasn't adjusting my mind to what my body was accomplishing. So I still would go to bed very early and get up at the same time, most days. The last week of my challenge is when everything started hitting me, and I made adjustments. I don't think this is going to be an issue going forward so I'll be replacing this goal. Overall: B+. I was most proud that I stuck with it for three weeks. However, what I've learned about myself (especially this year) is that I really don't like to do anything half assed. I know I can do better. It was actually a blessing that I came in late because now I have sort of a dry run for the real thing starting next week. I'll be updating my goals and I look forward to the challenge starting next Monday. January 2013 Weight: 340 pounds Waist: 50 inches August 13th, 2013 (start of the challenge) Weight: 265 pounds Waist: 44 inches September 9th, 2013 Weight: 244 pounds Waist: 41 inches The attached pic is me at the preceding three weights going from left to right.

Well, this isn't really the end of my challenge, but since a new six week period is coming up, I'll post my results so far. Goal A: One hour of elliptical 4-5 days a week. Grade: A. I set the bar way too low here. I was closer to 2 hours most days, and I was on the elliptical 5-6 days a week for the first two weeks. I'll be making this more difficult for the next phase of my challenge. Goal B: Keep snacking impulses down to once a day. Grade: A-. For the most part, I eliminated the impulses entirely thanks to snack scheduling. My problem here is "cheat days." I record everything I eat and drink...it's the only way I can hold myself accountable is if I have a record and number looking me in the face. I normally would give myself a day off one every couple of weeks where I would not record anything. I wouldn't fall off the wagon per se, but I just wouldn't write anything down which meant I normally would eat more than I normally would. That, in itself, wasn't the problem. The problem was the next day, getting back into routine. Those were the hardest days to keep the impulses down. Still, for a dude who impulsively snacked every day, I can honestly say I only succumbed to impulses twice in three weeks. I'll be keeping this goal because I know I can do better. Goal C: No more than 9 hours of sleep. Grade: B. In retrospect, not the best goal. What I failed to realize pre-challenge is that as I lose weight and workout, I'm going to have more energy and want to sleep less anyway. My problem was I wasn't adjusting my mind to what my body was accomplishing. So I still would go to bed very early and get up at the same time, most days. The last week of my challenge is when everything started hitting me, and I made adjustments. I don't think this is going to be an issue going forward so I'll be replacing this goal. Overall: B+. I was most proud that I stuck with it for three weeks. However, what I've learned about myself (especially this year) is that I really don't like to do anything half assed. I know I can do better. It was actually a blessing that I came in late because now I have sort of a dry run for the real thing starting next week. I'll be updating my goals and I look forward to the challenge starting next Monday. January 2013 Weight: 340 pounds Waist: 50 inches August 13th, 2013 (start of the challenge) Weight: 265 pounds Waist: 44 inches September 9th, 2013 Weight: 244 pounds Waist: 41 inches

Goal A: One hour of elliptical 4-5 days a week. Last week was the first week I barely hit that goal. I had a rough weekend, but I managed to snap out of it and reach it on Friday. Goal B: Keep snacking impulses down to once a day. Still pretty good here, yesterday was actually my hardest day to date in this department. Visited my parents and they had two buckets filled with muscadine grapes, not exactly the most unhealthy thing in the world, but there is the whole principle of the matter. Goal C: No more than 9 hours of sleep. This is still my hardest goal to accomplish. In a perfect world when I would go to bed, I'd hit the pillow, fall asleep a minute later, and wake up totally ready to go eight or nine hours later. My problem is hitting the pillow, waiting an hour or two because my mind is racing, then oversleeping and feeling bad because I spent way too long in bed, and I wasn't even asleep the whole time. I'd love to be able to get to sleep quicker without medicine. Does anyone have any ideas?

Midweek Update: Weight loss slowing down. Goal A: One hour of elliptical 4-5 days a week. Still no problems here. Every day since Sunday I've had 3 40 minute workouts each day. For the first time in a long time, I'm feeling muscles in places that I didn't even know I had places. Goal B: Keep snacking impulses down to once a day. This still hasn't been much of a problem due to just a little bit of planning. Planned snacks between workouts have been a lifesaver. Goal C: No more than 9 hours of sleep. This has been the hardest of the three goals so far (I know, right?!). I have slept more than 9 hours twice since the challenge, and today I slept right at 9 hours...but it took an hour for me just to get out of bed. I finally started to level off on the weight loss. When I weighed on Monday I was at 255, and today I'm still hovering around 255. I guess this is when the real work starts. Also, I finally remembered where my language software is...I loaned it to a friend years ago but unfortunately he lives about 2 hours away AND I was just forced to sell my truck (bad motor, wasn't worth repairing)...so I'll have to delay the life goal for about 3 weeks. Luckily, that should be in time for my first full challenge and I can really get the ball rolling then.