Istrix

Hey everyone!

I'm signing up for this, and there's a groupon discount running.  Anyone else gonna be there, I've got a buddy to run with but I'm fearful he might flake

So I've been horrible about keeping up with updates and this challenge in general. But I've got these now.

I sets some goals for the last challenge:

MAIN QUEST: Reconstruction:

 I have successfully torn down the ragged, bloated body I sported 6 months ago.  I've become a svelter (I love that word!) more streamlined version of myself before, with an ability to run around 4 times further than I've ever done before.  What I have not gained back yet is my former definition and horsepower.  So, now that I've lost the weight and restored the frame, it's time to work on the body, while still keeping my cardio in check to run the Super Spartan in Wintergreen, VA on August 24th.

Three goals:

1. I want my Six Pack back.  While I'm concerned that my second venture in to the big fat giant fat-ass world of 220lbs+ might have left a little skin around my mid section that may never completely flatten out, I'm going to do everything in my power to smite it in a fashion most biblical.  My body fat caliper disappeared in the move and I've got one in the mail so as soon as that arrive I'll update this goal with fat percentage goals
2. I want my Strength back.  In training for Tough Mudder (June 14th) I've been focusing on weight loss and cardio / endurance, and have only trained strength tangentially.  So, I want to be able to move heavy things again and strike fear into the hearts of my enemies (if I ever get any enemies anyway.  Who doesn't like me? I'm friggen charming as hell!).  I can't think of a better test than the wonderfully cliche bench press, so by the end of this six weeks (five technically since I'll be taking a week or so off when I finish my tattoo) I intend to be able to bench 225, not quite 1.5 times my current body weight.
3. I want some size, period.   I've always either been the skinny kid, and more recently the tubby fat kid.  While I've slimmed down, I'd like to have some man-bulk.  To that end, while maintaining the (TBA) body fat percentage I want to get my weight up from my current 178lb to between 185 - 190lbs of raw manliness.  Don't go getting all excited on me.

Life Side Quest: Time to re-learn management of both people and time.  I've learned recently that it's almost 100% certain I'm getting the job I've been begging and screaming to get a foot in the door into.  Why?  Well they pay a butt-ton of money, and I'm a firm believer while money cannot buy happiness the rental program is friggen amazing.  To this end I need to re-read my old management documents and books, as well as work on a personally destructive habit of silently putting off issues and conflicts and dealing with them quickly and openly.

Fitness Side Quest: I'd like to work directly on increasing size in my forearms.  I've always been self conscious about my skinny stick boy arms.  I've been able in the past to bulk up my bicepts and tricepts, but never as much the forearms, no matter how cut I can get them.  I'd like to fix that.

 MOTIVATION:

I actually have this hanging on a post-it note in my current office:

• Never look like / feel about myself the way I did when I was the aforementioned tub of lard.
• Live to my (supposedly) fairly impressive potential
• ^---- Do that through being accountable to myself, no matter how effective my current... outside motivating force is at the moment
• Win back the respect, and maybe one day love, I lost from someone most dear to me.

Guess what I accomplished:  One or maybe two work outs a week.... I didn't finish a book, spent too much money on drinky-treats to sign up for a gym, my weight is about the same (did get my body fat % down to 15 - 16%).  Basically I didn't do enough to really be sure if I accomplished what I was going for.

So I'm calling a mulligan.  Do over. 

In 25 days I'm running spartan in Wintergreen Va.  Four out of six weeks.  I've got a tail to chase, so let's re-post and amend the last challenge. 

 I have successfully torn down the ragged, bloated body I sported 6 months ago.  I've become a svelter (I love that word!) more streamlined version of myself before, with an ability to run around 4 times further than I've ever done before, though I didn't maintain as hard as I could have after tough mudder.  What I have not gained back yet is my former definition and horsepower.  So, now that I've lost the weight and restored the frame, it's time to work on the body, while still keeping my cardio in check to run the Super Spartan in Wintergreen, VA on August 24th.

Three goals:

1. I want my Six Pack back.  While I'm concerned that my second venture in to the big fat giant fat-ass world of 220lbs+ might have left a little skin around my mid section that may never completely flatten out, I'm going to do everything in my power to smite it in a fashion most biblical.  My body fat caliper disappeared in the move and I've got one in the mail so as soon as that arrive I'll update this goal with fat percentage goals.  Was 17-18% at the start of the last challenge, aproximately 15-16% now.  Would like to hit 14% by the end of this challenge.
2. I want my Strength back.  In training for Tough Mudder (June 14th) I've been focusing on weight loss and cardio / endurance, and have only trained strength tangentially.  So, I want to be able to move heavy things again and strike fear into the hearts of my enemies (if I ever get any enemies anyway.  Who doesn't like me? I'm friggen charming as hell!).  I can't think of a better test than the wonderfully cliche bench press, so by the end of this six weeks (five technically since I'll be taking a week or so off when I finish my tattoo) I intend to be able to bench 225, not quite 1.5 times my current body weight.
3. I want some size, period.   I've always either been the skinny kid, and more recently the tubby fat kid.  While I've slimmed down, I'd like to have some man-bulk.  To that end, while maintaining the (16%) body fat percentage I want to get my weight up from my current 178lb to between 185 - 190lbs of raw manliness.  Don't go getting all excited on me.

Life Side Quest: Time to re-learn management of both people and time.  I've learned recently that it's almost 100% certain I'm getting the job I've been begging and screaming to get a foot in the door into.  Why?  Well they pay a butt-ton of money, and I'm a firm believer while money cannot buy happiness the rental program is friggen amazing.  To this end I need to finish re-reading my old management documents and books, as well as work on a personally destructive habit of silently putting off issues and conflicts and dealing with them quickly and openly.

Fitness Side Quest: I'd like to work directly on increasing size in my forearms.  I've always been self conscious about my skinny stick boy arms.  I've been able in the past to bulk up my bicepts and tricepts, but never as much the forearms, no matter how cut I can get them.  I'd like to fix that.

 MOTIVATION:

I actually have this hanging on a post-it note in my current office:

• Never look like / feel about myself the way I did when I was the aforementioned tub of lard.
• Live to my (supposedly) fairly impressive potential
• ^---- Do that through being accountable to myself, no matter how effective my current... outside motivating force is at the moment and maintain this accountability into habit, not spurts of motivation.
• Win back the respect, and maybe one day love, I lost from someone most dear to me.
• Crush the Super Spartan on August 23rd.

I pretty much dropped the ball on the last challenge.  I came out swinging, and fizzled out.  I'm coming out swinging again on this one. 

Game on.

So I'm still here.. failurific as always

I was a giant loser the last 3 weeks. I'll get some stats, but it's not worth discussing.

39 days to Spartan....

I'm back Bitches.

55lbs floor press 12,12,12

45lbs row 12,12,10

20lbs hammer curl 10,6,6

55lbs shrug 12,12,12

50lbs seated extension 12,7,9

30lbs Dumb bell lying pronation 12,12,12

time to get a couple more 10lbs plates, and maybe a couple 25lbs.  

also ran 1.02 miles, 9:40 doing sprint intervals

and chompy treats!

Roasted Pork Loin on a bed of black kale and shredded carrots.  Simple. Tasty.

yep

Technically, schmetically!  Who runs home barefoot from a wedding, bar night out?  Someone committed to the "cause", that's who!  Like you said, you made good choices while purchasing food at work, you killed that run, and you realized that you are still learning about yourself...those are all WINS to me!  Keep up the good work!

I did that once, but it wasn't dedication, it was tequila.  Damn you Tequila.

training has been going good. did some hard sparring thursday.

 

i felt kind of off all last week, and over the weekend started to feel worse. i feel like absolute damn it today

Yay!  It's not just me!

Well some pros and cons.  On the upside, I ran monday, and for once actually managed to drag my fat, lazy can out of bed at 6:20 to lift before work.  I'll post stats later since I'm at work.  On the downside, I realized it's been 10 days since the last time I picked up dumbbells.  What a joke!

Anyway, self abuse aside, barring more torrential downpours tonight I'm going to try to get out and run this afternoon after work.  Then maybe start doing the core routine that I talked about, researched, and wrote down tomorrow.  Anyone got a cattle prod?

Well, at least I ate well yesterday:  The food store had a big discount on T-Bones, so I skillet seared then broiled the little bastard rubbed down with goat cheese, reserved the drippings and mixed in some red wine and Worcestershire to broil out my shrooms and onions, and discovered the joy of Black Kale lightly sauteed with a little olive oil.

Wednesday is for suspicious or evil creatures.  Apparently I'm just here to define random day's themes.

Ok, well ran yesterday, around 2 miles of actual running with Pathfinder.   Now there's two of us in hampton roads, witness the start of my empire.

Sadly, I went home and passed out before lifting, it turns out that humans need sleep now and then, what a pain.   Sooooo mile sprint if it doesn't rain and I've got a date with some iron.

Sooooo... I was more or less worthless last week..  I did manage to eat and drink heavily, and celebrate the 4th for pretty much the entire week.

Guess I'll have to start doing some stuff today again.  Run scheduled for this afternoon.  Lets see if I can start lifting in the mornings finally.

I'm basically a big fail, someone should beat me.  Do it! I needed it.

Week 4 workouts are kicking my @$$!

 

I keep this update brief.  Basically my workouts for yesterday and this morning were rough.  Decreases almost across the board.  Yesterday I only got in 4 sets instead of my normal 5 so that didn't help.  This morning I only saw minor increases on my barbell curls and tricep extensions.  I thought maybe I didn't eat enough calories yesterday to refuel so I planned on having a little more throughout the day today.

 

HAHA the best laid plans.  I forgot my lunch at home LOL guess I'll be experimenting with some IF today instead (12-13 hours between breakfast and dinner).  Oh well.

Maybe a rest day?  I noticed I lost a rep or two if I didn't... you know.. sleep and stuff.

Since it is tuesday...

This is the part we dance!

Update time!

6/28:

50lb floor press: 12,12,12 Done!

40lb row: 12,12,10

20lb curl: 10,6,4

55lb shrug: 12,12,12 

45lb seated extension: 12,12,9

20lb Dumb bell lying pronation: 12, 12, 12

plus the mile sprints mentioned last post

6/30

55lb floor press: 12,12,10

40lb row: 12,12,12 DONE!

20lb curl: 12,6,5

55lb shrug: 12,12,12 (going to have to buy two new 10lb plates)

45lb seated extension: 12,12,10

25lb Dumb bell lying pronation: 12, 12, 12 (this is starting to get difficult, 30 is going to suuuuuck)

So, I've determined that I'm at 17.5% body fat, as mentioned I intend to get that down to 16% by the end of the challenge. Last week I was laaaazy, and ate like poo.  So this shall be the rebound week.

So I've been slack this week, slacker about posting, will update completely later tonight but I had to throw this out, because holy fuck.

I finally got my hands on a body fat caliper.  Last time I measured was february 4th, I was at 27%.  Today's measurement:  17. 5.

So lets see if I can do 16% by the end of this challenge

You know you are kind of evil flaunting your amazing food in our faces

Your point being? 

just because:

Mind that knee buddy they can take you out of the game for a long time if you don't listen to them

Sent from my nokia 3210

Thanks, I've jacked up my knees, ankles, shoulders, wrists etc over the years in various acts of self-abuse.  At this point I'm pretty much banking on stem cell and 3d printing breakthroughs in hopes of spare part vending machines by the time I get old.   If not I'm screwed.

Tonight:

Hard running intervals: 1.01 miles.  Towards the end my knee started KKKKKilling me, it had started to ache at the end of mudder.  Might go back to wearing a brace when I run, anyway, cleared the mile in a little over 9 minutes.

50lbs floor press: 12,12 10  - one rep less than last time

40lbs row: 12,11,9 - several reps up

20lbs hammer curl - 9, 5, 5 - up a couple on the last set, I'll take it

55lbs shrug 12,12,12 - so.. this is all the weight I have per hand, so going to be working on holding the weight up longer until I buy some heavier plates

45lbs seated extension: 12, 10, 6 - one rep up, again, better than nothing

15lbs Dumb bell lying pronation: 12, 12, 12 - still working out the form on this one.

A picture of tonight's meal: Blue cheese, bacon, and napa cabbage stuffed split chicken breast with garlic satueed kale, finished with a basil peppercorn beurre blanc might follow..

Ok, slacker week has concluded.  We return to our regularly scheduled challenge already in progress.

Since I didn't spend the night at home, and had a million things to run around and do, I'll be getting back to running and weights today after work, and if I'm lucky and a check I've been waiting for comes in the mail I'll be signing myself and a partner in crime up for spartan, if not probably tomorrow.

Today will be a short run, since I've taken a week off.  Just a mile of sprint intervals I think, and my usual weight routine.  Tomorrow I'm going to go for another distance run, and a core routine.  Right not I'm doing just a couple plank variations and some flutter kicks.  If anyone has suggestions on some effective body weight based core exorcizes I'd love to hear about them, I'd like to have maybe five things I can do three sets of and work on progressing.

61 days to Spartan.