Legionary

I actually got a rite in the rain pen for that

So I usually do my first drafts on paper and I haven't even sat down for an hour before I managed to spill coffee on my notebook anyone else run into these problems? (Yes my penmanship is trash but that's half the fun) Alright time to stop procrastinating now.

Another update. Food:some photos still living on my camera but I've got one today. My cooking and diet got a little of track because an issue with my apartment where I had to move out for a week so the whole move out, live elsewhere and move back in process skrewed everything up, but I've dealt with worse. Training: weightlifting is kinda off but I started running in the absence of a gym and I'm still doing my swordfighting and my work is pretty physical. so hopefully they'll be enough to keep fit for now. Tonight's meal: Italian food with a wee dram of irish whiskey, it's like my ancestors are arguing for my attention

More pics living on my camera. Coming soon I hope. For today here's a nice treat. My wife and I had some slices from pizza ponte in Disney

Feel like this one turned out ok.

Mostly British infantry saber/smallsword, from the late 1700s, the school also does some Italian styles (sword and shield, and rapier).

List of meals that turned out good but not pretty enough to photograph. - avocado toast on sourdough with an egg - meatloaf -tofu and vegtables soup Trainings been good but some days I end up taking a more lax approach and prioritizing sleep. I got a lot of good coaching from a swordfighting instructor that's visiting from California so at least that's going well. On the knife debate. My main kitchen knife is straight bladed and actually quite short at only about 5 in (12.7 cm) blade. I like the control a short knife gives me over most cutting and if I need to carve a chicken or something than I'll use a carving knife. Most of my knives come from IKEA and they work well for being pretty cheap, but need consistent sharpening because the steel dosnt like to hold an edge.

Here's another photo, Meat and cheese plate with sourdough toast.

Started cooking professionally at 14 as a kitchen boy, I learned a lot over the years but I still feel like theres more to know lol. I'm comfortable at my weight so if I stay at 170 great but if I put on a few more pounds of hopefully lean mass than great too. I'm big into variety within my training and I've been doing a good bit of strongman/ bronze age strength training (think Eugene Sandow) along with my swordfighting training.

Here you go. Croque madame with mushrooms in red wine sauce. My lighting's off on the photo but I'm still learning.

I decided to stick with the warriors still. The community is nice and most of my training is still weightlifting so it makes sense. The last few challenges have been helpful. To recap I went from an average of 155-157 lbs to 167-170 in about 15 weeks, whilt my bodyfat estimates (via taping) have remained about the same. In that time I've dealt with depression, learned to prep cook (kinda), picked up swordfighting (love it) and rehabbed a knee injury to a point that I didn't think I could get back to. It feels like gaining this weight has gotten me to a much better state BUT, in getting there my diet has become trashed compared to before, so along with some small housekeeping things. My goal for the next few challenges is to relearn my love for cooking ( I was a chef for 9 years until I just couldn't deal with it professionally anymore.) I will start cooking MEALS again instead of lost of snacking just to reach my macros. I will change my shopping habits so that I'm using more whole foods instead of processed foods. And I will revive my now dead hobby of food photography. That's all for tonight.

Final check in for this one. Weight: 170 finally reached what feels like a more sustainable weight because I don't get the wild changes anymore. Training: was rough for a little while during this challenge but I got my good habits back and now I'm progressing again. Swordfighting has been a good motivator. If we were using actual sabers I would have died at least 20 times in the last few weeks but being bad at something can really bring about change. Diet/nutrition: this has taken a turn for the worse and likely what I'm going to focus on next, I have trouble finding the right balance of eating enough calories eating food that dosnt make me feel like trash (pizza, beer, sugar, etc) I'm really not sure where I want to go from here with my fitness journey and I may take a challenge off to assess/maintain I'm not too sure yet

Update: it's been a busy week and I've fell off the wagon for a few days. Not going to let it bother me because I needed the rest. Weight: 163. Pretty normal Food: I really need to get groceries but I've been trying to eat up all the random foods I have around the kitchen. Had a lot of stir fry and the like but I think I'm officially out of proteins. Training: I haven't made it to the gym in like 4 days which is abnormal. I needed the rest and I'm hoping I can get back into my habits soon. A problem is my lifting routine got really repetitive. I'm starting swordfighting classes on Wednesday so hopefully that gets me inspired.

She's a boxer, hound mix so the vet thinks maybe 60-80 pounds depending. She's grown a lot since we got her in june.

Another update: Weight: still 165, I think that this is my baseline healthy adult weight. So if I continue as I probably wont gain or lose any until my metabolism changes. I'm going to try to up my calories daily and see if I notice any changes. Food update: getting much better with time. Even when I get into that mood where I "can't cook or eat or move" I can usually convince myself to make some microwave rice, Eggs and mushrooms so that I have a simple meal to hit my macros, it works. Puppy update. She's getting bigger but she's mad at me for getting her spaid. That's life though.

Checking in, Weight 165. Food update: the corned beef was great I stewed it in the crockpot until it basically melted. 2 pounds of beef lasted us about 1 week but we didnt eat it every day. Im also working on a breaded fish recipe which had good flavor but tilapia (what I had) is not a great fish for breading. Maybe catfish next time. Training update: they fixed the boxing bag in my apartment gym which is good. Hitting that gives me good core training, and overall conditioning. My deadlifts are coming back, I'm about 75-85% back to pre injury levels but I'm still taking it slow. Karate was too expensive but I found a fencing school (something I've always wanted to try) that might be a good fit. I'm going to try it out starting in October.

@scalyfreak Crockpot work coming this week. There was brisket on sale so I'm gonna make a pot of corned beef and think up some ways to use it. Straight up, hash, sandwiches, etc.

It's mostly the changes I made in hydration from last challenge (I think) as well as eating a whole extra meal per day (3 instead of 2) so my calories went up by almost 700. I gained a conservative estimate of 7-8 lbs over the last 7 weeks or so.

Check in/baseline Weight:163-165 depending on hydration. Bodyfat from taping: ~11% Average daily calories: 2500- 2700 as long as I get enough protein this range has worked for me so far. My lifts are pretty average so far and I haven't noticed too much difference at my higher weight, but I dont get as many headaches and my stamina is much better than my 155-158 starting weight.

my first batch cooking adventure. 3 different types of pierogies. Meat, potatoes and cheese And mushroom/kale/bacon. One batch made 16 (I ate 3) and I had lots of leftover fillings (see below). Next time I'll probably double the dough recipe and have even more to freeze. I mixed the leftover fillings together (potatoes on bottom) as a post workout meal and it was great, although I dont really have a pallet for fine dining so... On the training front. I have been working on regaining leg strength after injuring my knee months ago. It's coming along but I've noticed a consistent weakness in my hamstrings and my lower back takes some of the work that it shouldn't. I've been working postural exercises, hamstring, and lower leg exercises more to try to balance these issues out. Well see how those go. Until next time keep working hard everyone.

Thanks for the and suggestions everyone. I'm open to any recipes people will give me. This challenge is going to be more experimental that I first expected because I need to dial in how much food to make each week for the wife and I. Step one is try making something large and see how long it can last. Maybe a casserole. Maybe a pot of barbacoa. Not sure yet. On the fitness front. I am trialing karate dojos looking for one that works. I know it's not the best exercise for mass gain but it's my passion so deal with it. I'm also still lifting and doing sprints with the dog.

I used to work at an Italian Italian restaurant that would make their lasagna the day before than reheat it because it stayed together better. Fresh lasagna is too soupy. Personally I'm a big baked ziti fan,basically a lazier version

I'm painfully aware of why. It's a combination of laziness, fatigue and poor mental states that makes the act of cooking a major chore (normally I really enjoy it, but...) I can see these factors easily but making lasting changes takes time. That's part of why going to work on prep/batch cooking this challenge. Can't be too lazy/tired/down to microwave something (I hope)

Gonna spend another month with y'all building on the foundations of last month. My work hours have stabilized for the most part so itll be a little easier (I hope). Good things I need to continue: drinking water isn't as much a problem so keeping that up will help. I workout fewer days a week now but they feel more productive (I lift noticeably higher volumes) so I'm going to try to keep that system up until I plateau again. Things that need work: I still eat small meals and sometimes skip meals altogether. I need to work up to higher calorie goals and hitting my macros. I'm going to keep tracking macros but overall calories I'll estimate for now (tracking every single thing got too much). I'll be back with more specific goals soon.

Final check for the month: Weight: 163 Bodyfat: 11% Daily calories: still variable going to work on consistently and prep cooking next challenge. Hopefully going to be able to get back to a dojo as well (I can finally schedule for/afford it) Workouts: more of the same but I upped my weightlifting and strongman training and run a lot less for now. Average 3 hard and heavy workouts a week with 1 or 2 lighter days mixed in. See everyone next challenge. Now I gotta think up another snappy title.