Pursuing My True Self - one step at a time

[Big Adam]

Hello All! I'm a bit late to the party, but they say better late than never.  Guess I'll need to extend my challenge an extra two weeks. My goal is to look good to myself and feel comfortable in my own skin.  I've been working out consistenly for the past year and am satisfied with my athletic ability, but I don't like the way my body looks in the mirror.  I've definitely gained some muscle, but still have quite a bit of visible fat in my torso.  I'm fairly sure that my diet is the main culprit, so that's what I'll be targeting in this challenge.  I'm attempting to conform to the paleo (to be exact: Primal, for those who know/care about the difference) diet.

 

Main Quest: Lose excess body fat.  Specifically, get a Flat Stomach.

Why: 2 reasons.  1) So I can look in the mirror with pride.  2)  It's something I've never been able to do. No matter how athletic I was, my body never looked like a fit person's body.  I feel it's a barrier I need to get over for my own confidence and personal growth.

 

Goal 1) Eat a 100% Primal Diet for the next 6-weeks (Until August 3).  Specifically, don't eat any Ice Cream and Peanut Butter - my last two major holdouts.

Goal 2) Limit Fruits to 4 fruits/day - Speed fat loss by limiting carb intake (even if it's from fruit).

Goal 3) Get to bed by 11:00 PM every night (when it's within my control) - To keep my willpower up and help my body recover from workouts.

 

Side Quest: Begin learning to Swing Dance.  Practice one Youtube step routine/week.

Why: I've never been good at Dancing or had much confidence while doing it, but I'd like to.  In looking at different styles, swing is what appeals to me the most.  I like the way it looks, like the kind of music, like the style of that age.  So I want to give it a try and learn something new!

 

That's it!  I'm looking forward to starting my first Nerdfitness Challenge!

 

Also, anyone get the game reference in the subject line?  Hint: Playstation 2 RPG.

[OneEyedWolfie]

Hi Adam,

I can relate to your challenge. Mine is pretty similar. Except the swing dance. Good for you to improve in that area. What workouts do you do?

I have been paleo for a little while now and it's really helped my stomach. My obliques not so much but I think it will be the last place it comes off. Stick with it dude. You won't regret it. Swap your peanut butter for cashew or almond butter. It's amaze-nuts!

I haven't found an ice cream substitute yet. Let me know if you do. I know a good recipe for pancakes though! One banana to one egg and 1/8 cup of almond butter. Double all quantities if you are really hungry. Roasted cauliflower in olive oil is quite nice and an alternative to popcorn.

All the best Wolfie

[Alanna]

Welcome to the Rebellion! As you said, it's never too late to start a challenge.  There tend to be about two weeks between challenges, too, so even after this challenge officially ends, you can continue working on your goals for a couple more weeks before challenge #2. 

 

I wanted to say hello because learning swing dancing is also my side quest! Do you have a particular style in mind? (If "that era" is 30's/40's, I'm guessing Lindy Hop and/or Charleston).  I'm going to lessons currently, but could use some extra motivation to practice at home--any YouTube videos you'd like to share here would be welcome.

 

I also eat Paleo and will second the suggestion of substituting something like almond butter for the peanut butter (though, sadly, nut butters aren't the most conducive to weight loss).

[Fromaquasar]

Never too late! I started a week late and I'd rather be here than not have started and then who knows when I would have done anything. 

 

Your challenge looks great - I like your motivation a lot, there is a great phrase in french 'bien dans sa peau' which sort of means being comfortable in your own skin, but more than comfortable, being confident in it! Good luck!

 

P.s. Swing dancing sounds awesome - is that the jazzy kind of 1930s style? 

[Big Adam]

Thanks for the welcome and encouragement, friends!

 

Wolfie: I've been doing gym-workouts on Tuesdays/Thursdays and a home-workout on Saturday.  I'm currently taking some community college classes after work, so I've been hitting their gym after work/before class during the week. While I'm there, I do 3 circuits of bench press, lunges, plank, pull-ups and squats.  I don't have a particular plan for adding more weight to these - I usually try to do an extra rep or two each time I work out and then add some weight when I feel confident.  I'm cautious about adding weight to my squat, since I don't really know how good my form is.  I feel like I'm keeping my back straight, but I'm not 100% sure.  One of these days I should do a one-day session with a personal trainer just to make sure my form with everything is safe. At home on Saturdays, I have less equipment, but I've been doing pushups, plank, lunge, deadlift (I'm cautious about adding weight to this one too).  I think I may switch my Saturday workout to the Legend of Zelda workout though.  It looks like fun.

  I like your roast califlower idea.  Roasted Vegetables are great.  I'm hoping that my parents will buy a grill sometime soon (I am currently living with them - perhaps that will be part of my next quest) so I can do some grilled veggies too.  So far the best substitute I've found for Ice Cream has been Full-fat plain greek yogurt.  I get the filling, creamy coolness, but no sugar.  I don't like to eat a ton of that though.  And yes, nut butters are great but I've found that if I buy it I go through a jar in about 4 days since "hey, it's paleo right?"

 

Allana and FromAquasar:  I actually have almost no idea what I'm doing with the swing dancing.  I would like to do lessons, but don't have the time during weekdays to do so.  However, I really do want to learn, so I'm just going to see what I can find on the internet and get started on my own.  For style, I'm thinking Lindy Hop.  Mostly because I stumbled across this article that caught my eye on a google search for swing dancing.  Something about calling onesself a nerd inspires my trust.  The site to which that article begins has a youtube account with a bunch of step routines, so that's what I'm going to use as my source for now.  I'll post any videos I use on here as I go along.

[Alanna]

Thanks for the welcome and encouragement, friends!

 

Wolfie: I've been doing gym-workouts on Tuesdays/Thursdays and a home-workout on Saturday.  I'm currently taking some community college classes after work, so I've been hitting their gym after work/before class during the week. While I'm there, I do 3 circuits of bench press, lunges, plank, pull-ups and squats.  I don't have a particular plan for adding more weight to these - I usually try to do an extra rep or two each time I work out and then add some weight when I feel confident.  I'm cautious about adding weight to my squat, since I don't really know how good my form is.  I feel like I'm keeping my back straight, but I'm not 100% sure.  One of these days I should do a one-day session with a personal trainer just to make sure my form with everything is safe. At home on Saturdays, I have less equipment, but I've been doing pushups, plank, lunge, deadlift (I'm cautious about adding weight to this one too).  I think I may switch my Saturday workout to the Legend of Zelda workout though.  It looks like fun.

  I like your roast califlower idea.  Roasted Vegetables are great.  I'm hoping that my parents will buy a grill sometime soon (I am currently living with them - perhaps that will be part of my next quest) so I can do some grilled veggies too.  So far the best substitute I've found for Ice Cream has been Full-fat plain greek yogurt.  I get the filling, creamy coolness, but no sugar.  I don't like to eat a ton of that though.  And yes, nut butters are great but I've found that if I buy it I go through a jar in about 4 days since "hey, it's paleo right?"

 

Allana and FromAquasar:  I actually have almost no idea what I'm doing with the swing dancing.  I would like to do lessons, but don't have the time during weekdays to do so.  However, I really do want to learn, so I'm just going to see what I can find on the internet and get started on my own.  For style, I'm thinking Lindy Hop.  Mostly because I stumbled across this article that caught my eye on a google search for swing dancing.  Something about calling onesself a nerd inspires my trust.  The site to which that article begins has a youtube account with a bunch of step routines, so that's what I'm going to use as my source for now.  I'll post any videos I use on here as I go along.

 

If you'd like feedback on your squat and deadlift, feel free to take some videos of your lifts and stop by the Warrior's guild--there's a form check forum.  There's a crop of new warriors in the guild this challenge (myself included) and pretty much all of us are working on improving our squat form.

 

I love that swing dance article--I stumbled across it myself about a year ago.  Lindy Hop is my favorite and is very fun.  Just a head's up--the basic move of Lindy Hop, the swing out, is one of the most difficult fundamental moves of any dance.  In the process of learning it, though, you pick up a lot of important skills.  If you're practicing by yourself and are interested in learning solo routines, you might want to check out Charleston, too--it's another one of the vintage swing dances and there's a lot of crossover between Lindy and Charleston.

[OneEyedWolfie]

Thanks for the welcome and encouragement, friends!

 

Wolfie: I've been doing gym-workouts on Tuesdays/Thursdays and a home-workout on Saturday.  I'm currently taking some community college classes after work, so I've been hitting their gym after work/before class during the week. While I'm there, I do 3 circuits of bench press, lunges, plank, pull-ups and squats.  I don't have a particular plan for adding more weight to these - I usually try to do an extra rep or two each time I work out and then add some weight when I feel confident.  I'm cautious about adding weight to my squat, since I don't really know how good my form is.  I feel like I'm keeping my back straight, but I'm not 100% sure.  One of these days I should do a one-day session with a personal trainer just to make sure my form with everything is safe. At home on Saturdays, I have less equipment, but I've been doing pushups, plank, lunge, deadlift (I'm cautious about adding weight to this one too).  I think I may switch my Saturday workout to the Legend of Zelda workout though.  It looks like fun.

  I like your roast califlower idea.  Roasted Vegetables are great.  I'm hoping that my parents will buy a grill sometime soon (I am currently living with them - perhaps that will be part of my next quest) so I can do some grilled veggies too.  So far the best substitute I've found for Ice Cream has been Full-fat plain greek yogurt.  I get the filling, creamy coolness, but no sugar.  I don't like to eat a ton of that though.  And yes, nut butters are great but I've found that if I buy it I go through a jar in about 4 days since "hey, it's paleo right?".

Hi Adam,

What you are doing is very similar to what I did starting in January (New Years resolution) after 5 months I changed it up....and I wish I never did! I lost 14lbs of fat. But I think I got excited and wanted to experiment. I have lost another 7 lbs but I am currently resting after an injury. Lesson learned - if it isn't broken, don't fix it! Stick to something for six weeks, track your progress, weigh, take measurements and then adjust accordingly. I might have to rest for a total of six weeks....I wish I had stuck to what my body was used to, just changing the difficulty / reps accordingly. Remember to stretch those tendons dude!

What classes are you taking btw?

You are spot on about checking your form. I think the personal trainer idea is great. Posting a video is a good idea too, but seeing you in 3D will be a big insight.

Even with paleo, you are right it is about portion control. I buy mixed nuts and just have a handful in the morning as a snack. We have a Greek yoghurt over here 0% fat! low carb and high protein called Total 0%. For 5 months I didn't do dairy so I cut that out. I have almond butter on celery and the weights coming off, so I don't know what to say.

My weakness is chocolate. I allow myself 1 square of 81% dark chocolate when I have a craving, which is slowly becoming less often.

I have been steaming vegetables a lot with a gadget for the microwave. It's awesome.

All the best dude! Keep at it !

[Big Adam]

Thanks Wolfie.  At the moment, I'm taking Anatomy and Physiology.  For the second summer session I'll be taking Anatomy and Physiology II.  I intend to go to grad school for physical therapy in another year and a half, but I need to take my undergrad science courses first.  My original college major was IST, which - although a decent major - I realized is not what I want to do and for which I never needed to take any science courses.  So I'm knocking them out now. 

 

Thank you both for the tip about the Warrior's forum.  I think I'll take advantage of that to get some feedback on my form.

[OneEyedWolfie]

Thanks Wolfie.  At the moment, I'm taking Anatomy and Physiology.  For the second summer session I'll be taking Anatomy and Physiology II.  I intend to go to grad school for physical therapy in another year and a half, but I need to take my undergrad science courses first.  My original college major was IST, which - although a decent major - I realized is not what I want to do and for which I never needed to take any science courses.  So I'm knocking them out now. 

 

Thank you both for the tip about the Warrior's forum.  I think I'll take advantage of that to get some feedback on my form.

That's cool dude. My degree is in diagnostic radiography and imaging, so had to study anatomy and physiology. I failed my exams to be a PT but radiography suits me so much better. It was meant to be. IST? What's that?

How are the workouts going?

I tried paleo egg muffins. Link in my status. I did ham, courgette and shallot. I have two ready for breakfast for tomorrow!

I hope it's going good dude! Smash a few reps out for me!

[Big Adam]

IST is "Information Science and Technology".  It's sort of a fancy name for an IT/Project Management degree.

 

Workouts are going fairly well.  I went Monday/Wednesday this week since I have something going on tonight.  Yesterday's workout was a little odd. I had been benching 115lbs (plus bar), but yesterday I had trouble putting up 100lbs.  Then on my last rep I tweaked something in my right shoulder.  It doesn't hurt, just feels weird.  I'll take it easy this weekend and probably just stick to leg exercises. It doesn't feel like anything serious so I should be good to go again next week.

 

For an update on my goals:  3 days down and so far so good!  Diet's been clean, fruit has been limited, and I've gotten to bed by 11 each day.  It's usually easy for me to eat well during the week since I'm out of the house for most of the day and can only eat the food I've brought with me.  It's the weekend where the real testing happens - when I have lots of free time and that fridge is just a few steps away.  I don't plan on breaking the streak this weekend though!

[Alanna]

IST is "Information Science and Technology".  It's sort of a fancy name for an IT/Project Management degree.

 

Workouts are going fairly well.  I went Monday/Wednesday this week since I have something going on tonight.  Yesterday's workout was a little odd. I had been benching 115lbs (plus bar), but yesterday I had trouble putting up 100lbs.  Then on my last rep I tweaked something in my right shoulder.  It doesn't hurt, just feels weird.  I'll take it easy this weekend and probably just stick to leg exercises. It doesn't feel like anything serious so I should be good to go again next week.

 

For an update on my goals:  3 days down and so far so good!  Diet's been clean, fruit has been limited, and I've gotten to bed by 11 each day.  It's usually easy for me to eat well during the week since I'm out of the house for most of the day and can only eat the food I've brought with me.  It's the weekend where the real testing happens - when I have lots of free time and that fridge is just a few steps away.  I don't plan on breaking the streak this weekend though!

 

Nice progress on your goals!  Careful with that shoulder, though... I just tweaked mine, thought it was nothing major, lifted anyway... and now I'm working on project yoga recovery instead of lifting.  Taking the rest of the week off sounds like a good plan. 

[Big Adam]

There's still a few hours before my first week is officially over, but I'm assuming I won't mess anything up before I get to bed tonight, sooo....

This is Rebel Big Adam reporting in with The Week 1 Status Report!

 

Goal 1: Paleo/Primal Diet: 

Success!  No Ice Cream or Peanut Butter.  Friday night was a rough night where I was really craving something sweet and creamy, but I went to trader joes to buy some emergency Greek Yogurt and Pink Lady Apples.  Those hit the spot perfectly and got me through the night without breaking my diet goals.  (Full Disclosure: I did eat 5-6 Edamame beans in a salad and there was some brown sugar in the spice rub on the Ribs I ate tonight.  Those technically aren't primal, but to me, those exceptions are within the bounds of my goals)

 

Goal 2: </= 4 fruits per day:

Success!

M: 1,

Tu: 3.5 (the ".5" is a couple of berries or grapes - less than what I'd call a full serving)

W: 3

Th: <1 (2 grapes)

F: 1.5

Sa: 2

Su: 4

 

Goal 3: Lights-Out by 11:

Almost got it.  Friday night I was out with friends and lost track of time.  I got home right around 11 and got to bed around 11:15.  That won't throw off my sleep schedule so I'm not too upset about it, but I figure if I'm going to post a status update I may as well be completely honest!

 

Side Quest: Learning to Dance

I actually had a fair amount of free time this week, so I ended up spending an hour on Wednesday and about half an hour tonight practicing.  I went through the first few videos of

and practiced some walking to one of the free videos at http://swingstep.com/swing-video/.  I think I need to practice walking some more.  I'm at that basic of a level when it comes to any kind of dancing.  I think it's going to take quite a while before I look like I know even a little of what I'm doing, but the first step has been taken!

[OneEyedWolfie]

Great job Adam!

Sounds like a great start!

Keep going!

Wolfie

[Big Adam]

Quick Mid-Week Update:

 

The shoulder issue I mentioned seems to have cleared up.  I haven't done any bench since tweaking the shoulder last week, but I did a little over 90 pushups yesterday as well as a bunch of shoulder stretches and everything felt fine.  I'll go back on the bench press next week.

 

Diet's still been good.  Today's the fourth of July and I'll be spending most of the day at my friend's party.  I'm definitely going to end up eating a lot more than usual since I'll be surrounded by food throughout the day.  I'll stick to the meat,vegetables, and fruit and aviod the desserts and pasta salads that will inevitably be there.  Sticking to Water throughout the day while everyone else is having beer may be a bit tough, but I'll do my best.  If there's some wine available, maybe I'll have a glass of that.  I'm sure that most people run into more temptation on Holidays, so good luck to all of my fellow rebels today and Happy Independence day! (if you live in the USA)

[OneEyedWolfie]

How did your 4th July go?

Stuck to the diet ok?

Good idea listening to your body and backing off from your shoulder!

[Big Adam]

Thanks Man.  4th of July went well.  I stuck to meat, veggies, and fruit.  It was fairly easy since I had decided on my course beforehand.  I made some roasted vegetables of my own and brought them to the party.  A fair number of people actually ate them and I got a few compliments on my cooking!

 

Unfortunately, I messed up in the sleep department yesterday.  I took a nap in the middle of the day (dumb) which ended up throwing off my sleep schedule and I had major trouble falling asleep.  I think it was after 2 when I finally drifted off.  I need to remember that next time I'm feeling drowsy and a short nap seems soooooo enticing.  Still, I didn't sleep late this morning, so I should be able to get back into the normal schedule tonight.  The main purpose of my 11:00PM bedtime goal is to stop me from staying up and sleeping in late on weekends and messing up my sleep schedule for the week.

[Big Adam]

Wow, is week 2 of the challenge over already?  Time for an update!

 

Goal 1: Paleo/Primal Diet: 

Success!  I think I may have found my ice cream substitute with Greek Yogurt.  The cool creaminess seems to scratch the itch that ice cream usually does.  So far this part of the goal hasn't actually been that tough.  I guess I just needed to commit to make it happen!

 

Goal 2: </= 4 fruits per day:

On the higher side this week, but still within the bounds of the challenge. Success!

M: 3.5,

Tu: 3.5

W: 3.5

Th: 3

F: 4

Sa: 3

Su: 4

 

Goal 3: Lights-Out by 11:

Oops.  I dropped the ball on this one this week.  On Monday and Tuesday, life just got in the way.  I had final exams on Tuesday and Wednesday, so I stayed up until 11:45 and 11:40 - respectively - to study for them.  I didn't feel too bad about those, but the weekend was worse.  I took at nap from 5-6PM on Friday and as a result, didn't fall asleep until after 2 that night.  On Saturday night, I got to bed at 11 as usual, but let myself sleep late.  I think that's what threw off my Sunday night sleep.  It gets thrown off really easily for some reason.  I turned out the lights at 11 as usual, but my brain wouldn't shut off.  I think I got 2-3 hours of sleep total last night.  I'm feeling pretty exhausted right now.  I'm hoping that I'll fall asleep early tonight and hopefully reset things.

 

Side Quest: Learning to Dance

Technically, I fulfilled this by going through one very short youtube video and practicing some steps, but it was less than five minutes long so I don't feel too good about it.  I'll need to make some more time for the side quest this week.

[Fromaquasar]

Just stopping in to check how you are getting on? 

 

 

[Big Adam]

Hey Fromaquasar, I've been getting along fairly well.  The diet part of my challenge (goals 1 and 2) has been great so far.  I've been having some trouble on the sleep part of it (See my previous post if you want the story on that), but I got a good night's sleep last night, I'm feeling good today, and I'm planning to get back out there and hit all my goals this week!  I'm looking forward to today's workout.  I realized over the weekend that I was only doing partial pull-ups in my workouts.  I was coming down to 90 degrees after each pullup instead of letting my arms fully extend.  After reading some stuff and thinking about it, it does make more sense to let my arms fully extend so that each pullup works the full arm.  I'm excited to see how many pullups I can do this way.

[Alanna]

Hey Adam--how's the challenge going?  Have you learned any new dance steps or techniques?  How did the full pull-ups go? 

[Big Adam]

Whoops, guess it is about time for an update!  I meant to post something yesterday but never got to it.

 

Goal 1: Success! Bought some greek yogurt over the weekend again - I think that's probably going to be what gives me that "dessert" feeling after meals on the weekends when I want to cut loose a little bit.

Goal 2: I don't have my numbers with me right at the moment, but I hovered right around 3-4 pieces of fruit each day this week.  On Sunday I probably had closer to 5.  I ate an apple and a peach, but there was a bowl of watermelon out on our table and I was picking at it throughout the day.

Goal 3: Success! Got to bed right around 11 each night this week - including the weekend.

Side Quest: Spent some time on Friday night and a little bit on Sunday practicing a "rock step". I should probably do some research at some point to figure out which style of swing is which, but right now I'm just trying whatever simple stuff youtube throws at me.  Even if it doesn't fit in a particular style, I'm sure it'll be of some use down the road.

 

As for workouts - turns out that full pullups are harder than the partial ones I'd been doing.  Surprise surprise.  I can still do 7-8 on the first set, but after that it's tough to do more than 4.  I'll stick with them though.  It feels like my shoulders are getting stronger since they're more engaged in the full pullups.

 

The next two weekends I'm planning to make some exceptions to Goal number 3.  I'm heading to the beach with some friends this weekend and I have a good friend's weeding next weekend.  I'm gonna stick to the primal eating strategy and limit fruits, but I don't want to go to bed early while there are still fun things going on.  I'll pick it back up as best I can after the weekend is over.

 

I may post some pictures tonight.  I haven't noticed my stomach shrinking at all, but I do notice a bit more muscle in my torso area so I think some progress is being made.

[Alanna]

Thanks for the update--looks like your challenge is going great!

 

I'm jealous of those pull-ups.  I've heard of people adding weight to them, too, once they can do a body weight one for reps--it might be something to consider for getting stronger and making the body weight ones easier.  I'm not quite sure of the logistics of carrying weight during a pull-up, though--that's a ways down the road for me XD. 

 

You need to know how to do a rock step for (at the very least) East Coast swing, Lindy Hop, and 30's/40's Charleston, so it is a great step to practice .  The time spent learning the foundational moves will definitely pay off down the road. 

 

Hope you have a great time at the beach this weekend!

[Big Adam]

Man these weeks are going by quickly!  Time for another update!
 

Goal 1: Success!  Managed to eat pretty well at the beach this weekend.  We actually ended up cooking most of our meals at the beach house.  The only time we ate out was at an all you can eat buffet on Saturday night.  I stuck to the meat and vegetables.  I'm pretty sure that some of the sauces that the meats were in weren't paleo, but I'm not going to sweat that.  I think I did the best I could under the circumstances.

 

Goal 2: Success, but man I really eat a lot of fruit.  I was at 3 or 4 every day this week.  I always crave that sweetness after I finish a meal.  I think I may need to cut down on the fruit further to see more results on the fat loss.

 

Goal 3: As planned, I stayed up late over the weekend. I didn't sleep too late on any given day though, so I was able to go to bed at the normal time last night and resume my usual sleep schedule.  So no lying in bed staring at the ceiling for hours. Hooray!

 

Side-Quest: Spent about 20 minutes practicing Rock-Step on Friday before leaving to go to the beach.  I'll try to get some more time in this week.

[Alanna]

Yes, the weeks have gone by quickly--you've made it to the end of this challenge!  How do you think it went overall?  Any ideas for your next challenge?  By the way, I also had a "reduce fruit-intake" for my first challenge because I was also automatically reaching for fruit after every meal.  I found that cutting out the fruit slowly over the course of the challenge (first limiting to 3/day, then 2/day, then 1.5/day, then 1/day) helped a lot, and the cravings do go away. 

[Big Adam]

Whoa! I didn't even realize I was at the end of the normal challenge! In all the busy-ness of summer I forgot that I had started my challenge 2 weeks later than everyone else.  Well, I'm going to keep running with this challenge for the next two weeks before I count it completed.  I'll give myself an overall grade once I'm done, but so far I think I'm at an A-.  I've been spot on with my most important goal (Eating Primal) and have only had a few stumbles with my other goals.  Thanks for the tip about the fruit.  That looks like a sound strategy to me.  I may try that for a future challenge.  As for other ideas about future challenges, I'm not sure.  Right now my fitness goals are to get stronger and leaner, so I think my goals will still be mostly centered around nailing down certain parts of my diet.  Also, I got in touch with a friend of mine who is a personal trainer, so once I meet up with him for a form check, I may change up my workout routine and start doing some heavier barbell stuff.

 

How did your challenge go?