Zack's quest to vanquish 10lb and get back his momentum

[Pronoia1988]

Greetings and salutations, 

 

My name is Zack, 27yo of Albion (the UK)...

 

Since 2013 I have been on an epic quest to get healthy, motivated and become the best version of myself. The road has been long and there have been many setbacks... at first the motivation was there and I was unstoppable, I lost 3st of my 4st weight loss goal and went from being a sedentary beer monster with a dodgy ticker to an active guy, taking part in military boot camps, tabata and crossfit. 

 

I quit smoking and completely overhauled my eating habits, becoming a vegetarian, which was challenging, but extremely rewarding. 

 

This is me, before (complete with heart monitor) and after (complete with mohawk) the initial de-fattening took place:

 

http://i58.tinypic.com/9fzk48.png

 

I hit a bump in the road last winter and suffered very badly with SAD and anxiety, had to take medication which caused weight gain and my motivation took a beating. It has taken me until very recently to get properly back on the horse, and despite continuing head issues, I have rejoined my boot camp, dusted off the weights and am beginning to slay some adipose tissue. 

 

After all, "a good mood is only one workout away" - some guy on the internet. Mmm Endorphins...

 

I have gained 13lb since last November and I want to get back to my lowest weight of 13st 9lb by this November. So my main quest is this:

 

Lose 9lb by September the 7th! 

 

The sub-quests that I have chosen to take on in order to achieve the main quest are as follows: 

 

1. Never go two days without a serious workout. 

2. Use my fitbit fitness tracker to gamify my calorie counting. Update this daily. 

3. Only drink beer twice a week (with the one exception below)

 

EXCEPT...The tricky part will be that on the 12th of August I will be at a 4 day music festival, luckily the food there is good quality, lots of veggie noms... but there will be beer... a lot of beer. It's my biggest weakness i'm afraid. 

 

The plan is to dance my ass off so that I can mitigate all the delicious amber calories, however I imagine a small weight gain will be inevitable. As soon as I am home I will chuck myself back into fitness and healthy eating. 

 

So, to my fellow nerds who are undertaking their own quests for the next three fortnights, good luck and godspeed. Any kind words of support sent my way would be greatly appreciated. Also, to anyone starting out on the path to awesomeness, I will be happy to discuss what has worked for me so far and provide any support if you would like some. 

 

TTFN 

 

Z. 

 

 

 

[Mr_Willes]

We've got some in common, i'm also on a "beer 2 times a week" quest. Just wanted to quickly step in here and give you my tip. If you know you are going to drink that day, Try to delay the first beer as long as possible. I found that most of the time it's the best way to drink less. Even if you delay it by one other drink you already made progress. Even if you use my tip only once it would be a win. Cause i saved one beer. Some evenings i just say screw it, and start drinkking as usual. But some nights i feel strong and delay for half the night, that's a few beers saved.

Hope it's of any help to you, and make sure you enjoy the festival (which?).

If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask!

[shutsumon]

Greetings fellow child of Albion!

 

Congrats on your initial weightloss. And I'm with you on SAD - it sucks and it's so easy to lose focus when the winter dark is crushing your spirit..

 

I have a similar weightloss target for this challenge (8lbs) though I'm right at the start of my weightloss journey (I weigh 17 stone 3lbs currently).

 

Good luck with your quest and I hope you enjoy the festiival.

 

Becka

[Pronoia1988]

We've got some in common, i'm also on a "beer 2 times a week" quest. Just wanted to quickly step in here and give you my tip. If you know you are going to drink that day, Try to delay the first beer as long as possible. I found that most of the time it's the best way to drink less. Even if you delay it by one other drink you already made progress. Even if you use my tip only once it would be a win. Cause i saved one beer. Some evenings i just say screw it, and start drinkking as usual. But some nights i feel strong and delay for half the night, that's a few beers saved.

Hope it's of any help to you, and make sure you enjoy the festival (which?).

If you have any questions don't hesitate to ask!

Good day to you, 

 

You know, that is a very good idea, thanks for the tip. I'm thinking it will be much easier to miss out the first couple of pints than the last couple, that's for sure. Recently, I've been having the odd night drinking soda water but it's not much fun. 

 

I tend to frequent the pub at least a few nights a week to catch up with friends or to draw with some other local artists. If i'm not there i'm running around a field with my fitness group, it's one or the other. 

 

The festival in question is Boomtown in Winchester, it's like roleplay meets raving. They build a crazy town in some woods and fill it with the weirdest, most eclectic bunch of music. I highly recommend it!  

 

Thanks again for the advice and encouragement.

[Pronoia1988]

Greetings fellow child of Albion!

 

Congrats on your initial weightloss. And I'm with you on SAD - it sucks and it's so easy to lose focus when the winter dark is crushing your spirit..

 

I have a similar weightloss target for this challenge (8lbs) though I'm right at the start of my weightloss journey (I weigh 17 stone 3lbs currently).

 

Good luck with your quest and I hope you enjoy the festiival.

 

Becka

 

Hello Becka! 

 

Thanks so much for your encouragement. Yes, SAD is just shocking, it's gotten worse for me since I hit my mid-twenties. I find that as long as I hit the winter with some momentum I can ride it through without dropping. But if I stop, even for a few days then getting started again is almost impossible. I just haven't got the willpower to get out of the house and move around. And the carbs... I just want to eat ALL of the carbs, so if i'm not exercising it's a bad mix. 

 

Well done on getting started, might sound a bit cliched but that really is the hardest part. Once you have made the firm decision to turn things around, built up a bit of flow, before you know it the scales are your best friend. So, tell me about the battle plan... how's it going so far? If you have any questions, or would like any advice as to where to start, gimme a holler  

 

There are talks of a UK NF meetup, I hope this does go ahead as there are a fair few British Rebels out there. 

 

Best of luck to you. 

 

Z, 

[cepopaladin]

I quit smoking and completely overhauled my eating habits, becoming a vegetarian, which was challenging, but extremely rewarding. 

Nice job quitting smokeing and yay for veggies! Make sure you get enough protein though. I was a carb-veggiesaur for many years and felt really tired the whole time, especially after working out- it was like my body was never really healing. Once I added enough protein back into my diet I started feeling much better and now have much more energy.

 

Have fun getting back in shape!

[Pronoia1988]

Nice job quitting smokeing and yay for veggies! Make sure you get enough protein though. I was a carb-veggiesaur for many years and felt really tired the whole time, especially after working out- it was like my body was never really healing. Once I added enough protein back into my diet I started feeling much better and now have much more energy.

 

Have fun getting back in shape!

Thanks Man, 

 

I switched onto the e-cigarette and am now trying to give this the boot. Not had a 'proper' cigarette since 2013. 

 

I live on eggs, eggs and beans and eggs. I avoid 'white' High GI food; so brown rice & pasta for carbs, eat lots of veggies, nuts and seeds of course, I do notice if my protein intake drops and I am working out frequently, then my energy drops with it, so I need to keep an eye on this, as you say.  

 

My Achilles heel is portion control. I eat the right foods, just in high quantities. Also, drinking craft ales just doesn't help at all. I gain both fat and muscle easily so have to be pretty diligent with my fitness routine.  

 

I will most definitely have fun, I'm off to military fitness this evening. *80's training montage music*

 

TTFN 

 

Z. 

[Blaidd]

you've managed to work your festival into your challenge, so it's all good there

 

You might notice that someone has added a tag to your post.  This is not to box you into a corner but rather because your goals or lifestyle have links to the guild you've been tagged and we'd like to bring you to the attention of one of their guild ambassadors. These ambassadors will be able to offer you advice, encouragement and support on your goals.  You don't even have to wait around for them to come introduce themselves to you, you are more than welcome to pop into the Rangers' board and introduce yourself to the guildies there. I am also around to answer any questions that you might have so do not hesitate to PM me.

 

Good Luck with your challenge

AB xx

[Luciana Valerosa Culming]

The plan is to dance my ass off so that I can mitigate all the delicious amber calories, however I imagine a small weight gain will be inevitable. As soon as I am home I will chuck myself back into fitness and healthy eating.

That's a plan! I'll be at a festival this weekend and plan to dance a lot, too. ^__^ I hope you are doing well.