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I decided to formally go ahead and do a battle thread since it seems like I am actually sticking with this fitness stuff. (Touch wood.) I've never been good at online introductions, but I'll do my best. I'm a nerd, obviously. My hobbies are medieval re-enactment (mainly through the SCA,) archaeological experimentation, woodworking, writing, Scottish country dancing and pipe smoking. I also run a podcast on Viking Age History called Norse by Northwest. I'd always been a fairly outdoorsy person with fair fitness, but I moved from Scotland to the US and gained a ton of weight. (A few images below to show the journey so far.) I struggled with it for a long, long time and just couldn't seem to shed a pound. Eventually I went to my Doctor who went through a lot of options with me and convinced me to try a month of Phentermine. That actually worked really well. I lost weight at a reasonable and healthy pace and was only on it for one month. But it led to a further diagnosis of Chronic depression related fatigue. Basically, I needed a stimulant of some kind added to my antidepressant to really get me feeling human. The antidepressant stopped me from being suicidal, but I was still just trapped in a fog and never able to really engage or get anything done. So I got put on a really low dose of Adderall and it has totally changed my life. I feel like myself again. I have a reasonable amount of energy. I'm actually happy. I get chores done during the day and I'm not completed incapacitated by having to make a decision on a thing. At any rate, I started hitting the gym every weekday on my lunch break. I would do two days of weight training and three days of the C25K. On weekends I'd attended fighter practice for the heavy armoured combat I do. I've now completed the C25K and I am running 35 minutes twice a week and doing weight training three days a week. My 'Big why' is twofold. First, my Daughter, Freya, was born in November of 2017 and is growing like a weed. I want to be fit enough to keep up with her and healthy enough to be around for her for many years to come. I also really want to look better in my medieval garb. I make clothes that I am really proud of and then I put them on and think about how much better they would look if I were a bit more trim. It's vain, but maybe not too bad of a thing. My goals are modest. I don't expect washboard abs or biceps as thick as my neck. I'd like to get rid of most if not all of the beer belly and have better strength and endurance. I'm making good progress so far and trying to just stay patient and continue to make healthy choices. So, on to the pictorial proof. Pictures of me from before I moved to the US where I was in really good shape. Then pictures of me after I moved to the US and was really fat. Finally, a chain of progress pictures showing my weight loss over the last few months.

I've never been good at online introductions, but I'll do my best. I'm a nerd, obviously. My hobbies are medieval re-enactment (mainly through the SCA,) archaeological experimentation, woodworking, writing, Scottish country dancing and pipe smoking. I've always been a fairly outdoorsy person with fair fitness, but since moving to the US from Scotland I have gained a significant prosperity paunch and I'd like to lose that. Going with the spirit of being honest, I've included a comparison image. Me at my fittest ever right after climbing the tallest mountain in Scotland on one of the more difficult routes and me at the beginning of this month. My 'Big why' is kind of a vain one but I'll be honest about it. I really want to look better in my medieval garb. I make clothes that I am really proud of and then I put them on and think about how much better they would look if I were a bit more trim. My goals are modest. I don't expect washboard abs or biceps as thick as my neck. I'd like to get rid of most if not all of the beer belly and have better strength and endurance. As part of the SCA I am just getting into heavy fighting and my arms are jelly three fights in. (Hard to defend yourself with a shield when you can keep the shield lifted up.) So it'd be really nice to be in better fighting shape as well as looking better. I also have my first baby on the and I am really feeling how important it is to be healthier and be able to keep up with the bairn! Here's the picture. Before when I was in really great shape and then the beginning of March 2017. Starting weight is 198.8 with around as much bodyfat as there is muscle.