TwinBear's New Year New Challenge

[TwinBear]

Stepping through the Vesve Forest, Twin Bear took a moment to check the terrain around him. Now that he was able to finally climb the hills and tress around him without sounding like the rushing wind, it was time he took his training a bit more seriously so that he could better defend the woods he called home.

 

Fresh out of Rebel training, this particular rookie is stepping up for a second challenge.  Looking at keeping things simple this time around.

 

Overall Quest: Fit into a size 36 jean comfortably.

 

Task1: Eat Well. Follow South Beach (Phase 1 for 10 days with the rest at Phase 2) while tracking my eating habits in MyFitnessPal. I've currently got a 130+ day streak going and would really love to see that number go even higher.

 

Task 2: Work Out. I started off with a body weight workout that I found on the Neila Rey site. I'm going to continue with that, but I'm going to add some bicep curls to the routine because I really want to start building up some muscle so I can eventually do pull-ups once more.

 

Task 3: Be Healthy. I've scheduled a medical check up for the first time in a few years. Since I have to prepare for that, I'm going to make that my task here. I need to put together questions that I should ask the doctor. Then I'll have the appointment. Then I'll have to follow up on that answers I get from that appointment.

 

I'm deliberately not marking tracking my weight on this particular challenge. Don't get me wrong. I know I'll end up standing on the scale. I just want to make sure I'm not making the numbers the focus of my efforts. That didn't work so well for me in the first challenge. I need to make my overall task something I can measure, but I want that measurement to mean something, hence, the better fitting clothing. If I can meet that challenge, I'll even get some new clothes out of the deal.

 

Life Quest (The Not the Fitness Quest): Program something. I want to come up with a task I can research and program in the next six weeks. I have a CS degree that I don't do much with and I'd like to change that. That's the purpose of this quest. I'll have to dig into a topic I want to study and then I'll have to make a program that can accomplish that task.

 

[Erick the Red]

Four great activities to work on for the next few weeks.

 

Do you have dumbbells or something like that?

 

Ask about triglycerides.  I didn't know I had any until he said mine were too high.  

[RES]

Welcome, followed you over from RPG

Personally I prefer Paleo, South Beach was a little unrealistic to me....of course it's been years

[elinox]

Not focusing on the scale is really hard, I have that issue myself. But rewarding your success with new clothes is a great idea!

 

And bicep curls are awesome, you'll love them and how they make you feel!

[artemisia victoria]

I'm sure your doctor will want a full blood panel if you haven't seen them in awhile; that's how I found out about my cholesterol. Best of luck with the bicep curls; they are my worst enemy. 

[Teros]

Task1: Eat Well. Follow South Beach (Phase 1 for 10 days with the rest at Phase 2) while tracking my eating habits in MyFitnessPal. I've currently got a 130+ day streak going and would really love to see that number go even higher.

 

Task 2: Work Out. I started off with a body weight workout that I found on the Neila Rey site. I'm going to continue with that, but I'm going to add some bicep curls to the routine because I really want to start building up some muscle so I can eventually do pull-ups once more.

 

I'm deliberately not marking tracking my weight on this particular challenge. Don't get me wrong. I know I'll end up standing on the scale. I just want to make sure I'm not making the numbers the focus of my efforts.

130 days? That's awesome.  My streak for sticking with a 99% whole 30 was 54 days and it showed wonders.

 

For pull-ups, keep in mind that the back is the workhorse, not the biceps(don't get me wrong it helps, but not as much).  Bent-over rows where you drive your shoulderblades back can help tremendously.

 

Great mentality about tracking weight. The scale is a lying troll.  I didn't weigh myself for a year. Lost 50+ pounds.  Best decision I could have made since I didn't get discouraged.

 

Any questions, feel free to post at the Tavern or send me a private message.  Good luck and have fun this challenge.

[elinox]

The scale is a lying troll.  

 

Yes, yes he is. The bastard. 

 

Anyway, ignore the scale-troll and do what you gotta' do!

[PositiveBlue]

Huzzah for a new challenge.

 

I also really want to thank you for introducing me to the Neila Rey site.  Lot's of useful things there.

[TwinBear]

I really need to start following my own thread. I didn't realize there were so many great words from all of you here.

 

Getting things going (in a social aspect) has been really hard for me this time around. I'm not sure why that is. I kinda figured something was up when one of you (not naming names, yet) pinged me with a private message.

 

But since I'm sitting here with a cat in my lap, I guess I'm not moving away from the keyboard anytime soon and might as well give you all an update. Sound good?

 

Alright... Week 1:

Let's see.... The workouts. I got my three workouts in. I've definitely decided to keep the biceps curls as part of the routine, but I've also decided to up the weights. I started with 15 lbs each side but that seemed... I don't know... almost easy? My wife she said she was surprised I'd gone wth 15, but when I reminded her I needed to start somewhere, she said that was a good point. On Thursday, I even got a 4 set done before we headed out. That was a rather intense day, but Saturday made up for it since I had a real hard time getting even two sets completed. I felt very drained and realized I shouldn't try working out right after having a meal. Next time, I'll let it digest a bit first.

 

I've also made a shift from MWF workouts to TRS instead. This seems to fit my overall schedule better and doesn't make me feel rushed to get things done. I want to make sure I'm using good form, especially with those squats, rather than rush through things.

 

Next up, the eating. I've been following South Beach phase 1 and should wrap that up this week. So far, it's been pretty good. @Redeaglespirit, the big reason that it's worked well for me is that I can still eat decent amounts of meats, but focusing on the cuts of meat has made it more interesting and some of the fattier ones feel real weird as I eat them, as in I can feel them hitting my system. I had picked up some hamburger patties from the store the week before Christmas because I needed some food for lunch and thought I would give them a shot. After the first couple of bites, I knew I should have read that label a little more closely.

 

I haven't looked closely at the Paleo diet simply because I'd heard about some diets that were based on "what our ancestors used to eat" and thought that came off a bit... well, off to me. I guess it's more of a preference thing.

 

Overall, though, since ultimately, I'm eating fewer calories (didn't even really splurge much over the holidays except for some pizza at my buddy's place on NYE) and that's making a difference, too. Oh, and as of today, I've got the streak at 140 days. I really like seeing that number go up.

 

Item the third, preparing for the doctor. I've got that medical coming up and I'm sure they'll want to do blood work, @artemisia victoria. They did when I first moved to the area and became a patient of theirs (for one whole visit!). I also hit 40 at my last birthday so I'm sure there'll be another test or two in my future. I haven't really worked on that list aside from making sure I'm tracking my eating and exercising since I want to make sure she's aware of those changes (not that it might not be obvious based on my other visit to her, but it wouldn't hurt), but I do know I want to ask her about how to make sure I'm getting enough minerals in my diet. I'm generally seeing that I'm really short on potassium most weeks, especially. @ErickTheRed, I'll make sure to ask about the triglycerides as well. I'm not sure what those are, but I'm sure the doc will enlighten me.

 

Hmm... That life quest challenge has proven to be really tough thus far. I didn't realize how out of practice I was when it came to programming. No, that's not quite right. I can dive into most ruby projects, but over the weekend, I was trying to look at some java projects. The main reason for that language is because it's what we use at work and it wouldn't hurt to get better at a language I can get paid to use, right?

 

Oh, there goes the cat...

 

@PositiveBlue My pleasure. I'm glad you're able to find things you find helpful there. I didn't realize they'd also started adding more videos of how to perform the various exercises. That was a nice change.

 

Alright, since the cat has run away, I suppose I should wrap this up and go get some water. I just realized I hadn't had any since getting home a few hours ago... There. I finished one glass and have another waiting for me to hit "post" on this thread. So with that...

 

Have a good one.

[elinox]

Focusing on your form, instead of how much you can lift, is so SO important with weight lifting! It helps ensure that you don't hurt yourself! Good for you for paying attention to the important stuff over showing off for your wife.

[Erick the Red]

Great update for the week.  Glad to hear that things are still going the right direction.

[Erick the Red]

Regarding paleo diet:

Rather than focus on the prehistorical aspect, I try to focus on the "real food, non-processed, no additives" aspect.

 

Non-starchy vegetables, meat (especially organs like kidney and liver), fish, some fruit, some nuts. Volume should be in that order. Focus on foods that have lots of micronutrients (vitamins and minerals) per serving.  Other advantageous things like fiber and omega-3 fatty acids come along for the ride.

 

Avoid added sugar, added fructose, starches like grains (wheat, rice, corn) and potatoes, and snacks.  On a per volume or per weight basis, these foods mostly have less nutrients than the first list, and often have nothing going for them except that they fulfill a particular craving or are "traditional" for a particular event or location.  I eat enough of all of these things to not be able to say they are BAD without being terribly hypocritical, but they are all "a sometime food".

 

[PositiveBlue]

Yay for Cookie Monster!

 

Finding a diet that works can be a process of experimentation.  The big thing is what works for a healthy you.  Let's face it, the donut diet isn't helping anyone. :-P

Good job on the streak - I bet you can hit 200 days.

[elinox]

How'd your week #2 end TwinBear?

[TwinBear]

Thanks for the push, @elinox.

 

Week 2 went pretty well. I got my 3 workouts completed. I've been pretty good about doing the curls as part of each set. I bumped up the weight I'm curling by 5 pounds. I'll keep it there for this week as well, but next week, I'll bump it up by 5 more.

 

I've been doing really well with keeping my eating under control. I've also got my streak doing well. As of today, that streak stands at 148.

 

Today, I headed to the doctor's office for my medical checkup. Turns out I got the days mixed up. It's actually scheduled for tomorrow morning instead of today. I'll post an update when I get the chance to process whatever feedback the doctor gives me.

 

I've not really made much progress with the programming challenge, though. I really need to start putting some effort into that. That's what I get for letting myself get distracted by running two different RPG sessions over the weekend. They were really involved, but they were definitely a lot of fun.

[TwinBear]

Oh yeah, and because I haven't really put any numbers on here, here's some numbers for you since we're started on Week 3 already:

 

Old Scale: 208.0

New Scale: 209.0

% BF: 30.1

% WW: 51.1

% MM: 36.3

 

Comparing that to where I started this challenge at:

Old Scale: 212.4

New Scale: 213.0

% BF: 31.8

% WW: 49.9

% MM: 35.4

 

And finally, looking back to the beginning of the first challenge (EDIT: Used the wrong starting weights. Used the ones from the second week of my first challenge):

Old Scale: 216.6

New Scale: 217.4

% BF: 33.4

% WW: 48.4

% MM: 34.4

 

I think there's a difference in the making there.

[Erick the Red]

That's what I get for letting myself get distracted by running two different RPG sessions over the weekend.

 

Which games do you run?

 

I think there's a difference in the making there.

 

Great progress.

[PositiveBlue]

TwinBear - Good job on the progress.

How did the Doctor's visit go?  Was it a success for you?

[TwinBear]

Which games do you run?

The main game I have running is a D&D 5e game but I'm using the AD&D2e box set The Night Below. So far, it's been a lot of fun and since I've marked sessions on a calendar, it makes planning for the game a lot easier than trying to get all the cats herded-- err, I mean getting everyone to sign up for the same day and time.

 

EDIT: Oh yeah, totally forgot to include details about the second game. That one happens a bit more sporadically (about once a month, really). I'm running a Dungeon World game for them. We just wrapped up a small story arc and they asked that I continue running this one for them. Initially we had planned to do a small 3-sesssion game due to their schedules, but they liked it enough that they want to continue.

 

Great progress.

Thanks!

[TwinBear]

TwinBear - Good job on the progress.

How did the Doctor's visit go?  Was it a success for you?

I would call the doctor's visit a success. My weight with clothes on was at 210 which is significantly lower than the last time I was in for a check-up. My blood pressure was 10-something (108, I think) over 6-something. I've not really had issues with high blood pressure in the past, but that was still a nice side effect of these changes.

 

The doctor was really surprised to see those numbers as well. I think she was pleasantly surprised. She said that she wants me to keep up the efforts and that I've got a good support system in place.

 

I had some blood drawn so that she could look into other things (I asked about potassium so she was going to check that out along with magnesium) and I'll find out about those later (oh, and triglycerides should be checked from that same draw as well).

 

She did pointedly ask if I would be back in a year to have my next appointment so I should do something about getting into the habit of preventative medicine.

 

All in all, though, yeah, I think it went well.

[Erick the Red]

 

The main game I have running is a D&D 5e game but I'm using the AD&D2e box set The Night Below.

 

One of the guys I DM for in a Pathfinde game is running a 5th Ed game via Skype for his brothers and their spouses.  Way cool.  I need to get the books, but finances say not yet.

 

I would call the doctor's visit a success.

 

Great!!  The fact that your weight is coming down and that the blood pressure is good is a testament to your efforts.

[TwinBear]

One of the guys I DM for in a Pathfinde game is running a 5th Ed game via Skype for his brothers and their spouses.  Way cool.  I need to get the books, but finances say not yet.

Don't forget that you can check out the basic rules for free from the WotC website. They've got PDF downloads and a wiki set up there. Makes it easier to "Try before you buy" as it were.  A couple of my players rely on that exclusively thus far (mind you, we're only at level 2).

[Erick the Red]

Don't forget that you can check out the basic rules for free from the WotC website.

 

Thanks.  I did not know that.

[TwinBear]

Ack! It's Tuesday already. I meant to get this posted yesterday, but snow prep and all that....

 

Anyway, I've been keeping up with my workouts. For a while there, I was seriously considering adding another set to the routine, but as I paid attention to how my body is reacting to the introduction of curls to the mix, I realized that might not be the best idea considering how wiped I'm still feeling when I get done with 3 sets. So in the meantime, I'm going to keep the curls at 20 lbs each for this week and look at bumping up to 25 lbs next week.

 

Food habits seem to be pretty decent. I'm getting more comfortable with having a splurge day now and then which helps me feel more comfortable about enjoying meals with my wife. I'm still a bit apprehensive about trying to eat too many carbs even though I know there's a difference between complex carbs and simple sugars and the sugars have been relatively minimal in my eating. There have been a few times when I've wondered if I'm not eating enough, actually. I track my eating in myfitnesspal and they have a weekly view available to show caloric intake and there's been more than a few times when the bar of calories for the day doesn't come close to the line of recommended calories. I need to think on this one some more.

 

The doctor's visit went well, which I've posted about already. I'm still waiting to hear back the results of the blood tests. Those should give me an idea how my cholesterol, blood sugars, potassium, and magnesium are doing. My blood pressure was doing pretty well. I do want to keep up with the exercise to help bring down my resting pulse. Hmm... I should check to see if there's a way to get all those results reported to me once more. It's great that the doctor has those records, but it doesn't really help me if I don't have them and I forgot to write them while I was there.  I'm working from home today due to the blizzard going through the area, but maybe I'll try reaching out to the office ... oh... travel ban... they may not be in the office, either. I'll think on that one.

 

In the meantime, bring on Week 4. I'm ready for this.

[elinox]

How's your final week going TwinBear?