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tenaciousglee - Superdad IV The Quest For Sleep


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Superdad IV - The Quest for Sleep

 

All summer long, I've been preparing myself to become Superdad before my 3rd kid arrives. We getting very close to the goal line now.  His due date is August 30th, but there's no telling when he'll make his appearance. I'm not even sure if I'll be able to finish out this challenge, but I'm going to give it a go.

 

Goal 1 - A Superdad is well-rested: Consistent bedtime leads to consistent sleep

Yes, I realize consistent sleep is a ridiculous thing to hope for with a newborn, but I'd still like to work on forming the habit of getting to be at a reasonable time and maybe banking a little extra sleep before Superboy arrives.  So, here's my plan for 5 days a week:

  • Head for bed by 10 PM - 2 points
  • Lights off by 10:30 PM - 2 points
  • Lights off by 10:15 - 1 bonus point

Possibility for 5 points a day, 5 days a week, 4 weeks in the challenge equals 100 possible points. Alternatively, if I average 7 hours of sleep a night at the end of 4 weeks, I earn full credit for this goal.

 

Goal 2 - A Superdad looks good in his super-suit

Carry over goal from last challenge and part of a longer term goal. I'd like to lose 3 inches from my midsection by December 25th, my 40th birthday. For this challenge, I'm going to be following the Phase 1 diet plan from Engineering the Alpha, which involves intermittent fasting. I'll be tracking my fasted hours, my calories, and my macros.

  • Hit 16/8 fasting/feeding window - 2 points
  • Hit my calorie goals - 2 points
  • Hit my macro goals - 1 point

Possibility for 5 points a day, 5 days a week, over 4 weeks equals 100 points. I will award bonus points for extra days hitting my goals during the week.  I will also award myself full credit if I lose an inch from my belly by the end of the challenge.

 

Goal 3 - A Superdad breaks through his limitations

This one will be about improving my mobility. Namely, I'd like to improve my ankle flexibility in order to be able to do pistol squats.  I also need to work on my shoulders and my overall posture.  I just got a copy of Becoming a Supple Leopard from the library, so I'm going to read through it and see if I can get some ideas on daily mobility exercises.

 

Scoring forthcoming. Full credit awarded for 1 full unassisted pistol squat on each leg.

 

Goal 4 - A Superdad exercises his brain as well as his muscles

I've got at least 5 books I'd like to read, so I'll award 20 points per book.  This will also hopefully motivate me to get to bed early to read.

 

There you have it.  Up, up, and away!

 

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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Great goals! And here for the breeder fellowship. We're waiting for our second one to come in January. This year I've had an earlier bed time as a goal and it sure helps the sleep averages!! 

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"You can have what you want, or you can have something better"

Character Page                Current Challenge    

Spoiler

 

Previous challenges: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19

PACT challenges: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

 

To set an example for my patients and my family.

To no longer feel inferior or held back because of my weight.

To gain more confidence and be proud of my appearance.

 

Starting Weight: 290 lbs

Main Quest: Reach my Ideal Body Weight of 190 lbs

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Week 1, Monday

Let's see, scoring...

 

Goal 1 - Well-rested - In bed with the lights out by 10:15 - 5 pts

Goal 2 - Looks good - On track so far, fasted from 8:15 Sunday night to 12:15 Monday afternoon.

Goal 3 - Mobility - Nothing to report yet. I started reading Supple Leopard, and then I was headed to mobilityWOD.com when I got distracted by an ad for Deskbound. I haven't bought it (yet), but I bet it might have some good ideas for mobility exercises.

Goal 4 - Reading - Spent some time last night re-reading Engineering the Alpha to prepare for Goal 2, but I'm not counting EtA as one of my 5 books.

 

Workout:

Sandbag Floor Press - 

8x80#

8x120#

3x153#

7x135#

20x75#

Band Lateral Raise - 2x10x30#

Grip Curls - 6x50#

Dips - 1,2,3,4,5,4,3,2,1

 

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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Week 1 Monday recap

Well-rested - 5 pts

Looks Good - 5 pts

Mobility - no exercises yet, but still reading through Supple Leopard and reserved a copy of Deskbound

Reading - read more of Supple Leopard

 

Week 1 Tuesday update

Well-rested - in bed with the lights out by 10:15 - 5 pts

Looks Good - 16 hour fast complete, supposed to be doing zero carbs today...

Mobility - nothing yet

Reading - packed my Kindle so I could read at lunch, but that hasn't happened yet

 

 

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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Week 1 Tuesday recap

Well-rested - 5 pts

Looks Good - 2 pts for hitting my 16/8 window, but I was high on my calories and thus my macros

Mobility - nothing

Reading - Read until 10:15 or so and then lights out!

 

Week 1 Wednesday update

Well-rested - in bed with the lights out by 10:15 last night - 5 pts

Looks Good - only got 15 hours on my fast because I didn't stop eating at 8 PM last night (shame, shame)

Mobility - did some ankle dorsiflexion testing and stretching this morning

Reading - just finished chapter 1 of Supple Leopard

 

Week 1 Wednesday workout - I think I found a new favorite workout!

Chin-ups - 5,5

Weighted Pull-ups - 3x50#, 4x40#, 5x30#

Pistol Squat practice - 2 sets each leg using a resistance band for balance, then 1 set of 3 each leg standing on a bench and letting my non-working leg drop

Headstand Push-up practice - These were partial ROM. I used a stack of paperback Jason Bourne books as my bench mark.  I got:

-5 reps with my head touching 4 books (arms almost to 90 degrees)

-3 reps with my head touching 3 books (arms just past 90 degrees)

-1 rep with my head touching 2 books (arms well past 90 degrees)

Planche position push-ups - 5,5 - these were standard on-the-floor push-ups, but I moved my hands down to about the bottom of my rib cage.  It really seemed to hit my chest more.  I just tried these on a whim, then I googled Planche Push-ups and found some cool stuff.

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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Week 1 Friday update

Well-rested - doing good! 5 day streak of being in bed with the lights out by 10:15 = 25 points

Looks Good - stumbled a bit here. Didn't get a full 16 hour fast from Tues-Wed, Wed-Thur, or Thur-Fri.  I also went over my calories on Wednesday and Thursday.

Mobility - nothing much to report here, but I did get my copy of Deskbound and it's got several mobility exercise ideas in it

Reading - Switched from Supple Leopard to Deskbound, but only got about 5-10 minutes of reading done last night.

 

Week 1 Friday workout

Sandstorm Day 2 from Push, Pull, Swing - this one killed me!

Did 3 circuits of AMRAP for 30 seconds for each exercise:

Front Loaded Sandbag Good Morning - 10x30#, 11x30#, 9x30#

Kneeling Shoulder to Shoulder Press - 16x30#, 18x30#, 16x30#

Bear Hug Squats - 11x50#, 10x50#, 9x50#

Staggered Stance Bent Over Row - 12x50#, 8x50#, 10x50#, 10x50#, 9x50#, 9x50# (one set for each foot position)

Rotating High Pull - 10x50#, 10x50#, 10x50#

 

I was sucking wind by the end of this! I got 30 seconds of rest between each exercise and 30 seconds between each circuit.  The total time was only about 18 or 20 minutes, but I was beat.  Probably a sign that I should do circuit work more often...

 

Week 1 Life Update

This baby is coming soon! My wife had her 39-week check-up on Tuesday and was already progressing through early labor, so her doc scheduled induction for Monday morning.  So, if he doesn't come on his own before then, he's getting evicted on Monday!!

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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I think I've figured out what my Mobility goal is going to be: finish reading Deskbound and take their 14-day mobility challenge.  I may also have to revise my Reading goal.  5 books might be a bit ambitious, especially with the new baby coming.

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

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On 8/28/2016 at 2:35 PM, tenaciousglee said:

I think I've figured out what my Mobility goal is going to be: finish reading Deskbound and take their 14-day mobility challenge.  I may also have to revise my Reading goal.  5 books might be a bit ambitious, especially with the new baby coming.

I've been working through it.It is real cool.Going through the 14 day will help me be familiar with them all so I can use whichever one I need for that day. They only take about 10 minutes.

 

I see from your above post that you are not working on that today, but are working on welcoming your new little one. Congratulations!

Wisdom 22.5   Dexterity 13   Charisma 15   Strength 21  Constitution-13

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind' Luke 10; 27

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I'm still here! Now that my two older kids are back in school, I may have a free moment to update this thread.

 

#3 arrived last Tuesday, and as someone on the NFA mens' facebook page noted, it does look like he's holding up 3 fingers:

29bbbea5a4845dc0bd8e5e3d503222a9.jpg

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

Link to comment

Congratulations!! 

"You can have what you want, or you can have something better"

Character Page                Current Challenge    

Spoiler

 

Previous challenges: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19

PACT challenges: 1 | 2 | 3 | 4

 

To set an example for my patients and my family.

To no longer feel inferior or held back because of my weight.

To gain more confidence and be proud of my appearance.

 

Starting Weight: 290 lbs

Main Quest: Reach my Ideal Body Weight of 190 lbs

Link to comment

Back to work after 2 weeks off, which means a lunch break where I can check NF! Trying to remember the last 2 weeks to see if I can do some kind of recap:

 

Week 2 recap

Well-rested - averaged 7 hours, 51 minutes, which is kind of amazing considering the newborn, but we also had my mother-in-law to help take care of the older kids, so I could sleep in a bit after being up 2-3 times a night with the baby

Looks Good - IF tracking was completely out the window, but belly was down 1/4" on Monday

Mobility - started reading Deskbound

Reading - started reading Deskbound, stopped reading Supple Leopard, finished 1 book (Gary Johnson's Seven Principles of Good Government)

 

Week 3 recap

Well-rested - averaged 6 hours, 48 minutes - not too bad!  The kids started back to school, which meant no more sleeping in.

Looks Good - still no IF tracking, and belly measurement was back up a smidge

Mobility - Read about half of Deskbound and started doing the 14-day mobility challenge, but fell off the wagon after 2 days.

Reading - kind of stalled here.  Trying to finish Deskbound

 

Week 4, Monday workout

Sandbag Floor Press - 

8x85#

8x125#

1x160# (1.03 x BW!!! It wasn't pretty, but I did it!)

3x150#

10x120#

15x90#

Band Lateral Raise - 2x6x40#

Grip Curls - 4x55#, 5x55#

Dips - 1,2,3,4,5,6,5,3,3,2,1 with 2.5# plate hanging off my waist

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Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

Link to comment

Congrats on the new little one! I love Deskbound. One of my challenge goals this time was to complete the 14 day mobility challenge. I'm on day 11 so far, and really like it. I gave myself a whole month to do the 14 day challenge:)

Wisdom 22.5   Dexterity 13   Charisma 15   Strength 21  Constitution-13

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind' Luke 10; 27

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I gave myself a whole month to do the 14 day challenge[emoji4]

You are smarter than me. I fell off the wagon after 2 days, but I'm thinking I'll attack it once more in my next challenge.

Level 32 Minifig Jedi Assassin

Current Challenge  | Battle Log | "Epic" Quest

Previous Challenges: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6789101111.51213141516171819, 2021222324, 25, 262728293031323334

"A man who wants to do something will find a way; a man who doesn't will find an excuse." -Stephan Dolley, Jr.

"You don't get stronger by skipping workouts." - me, to myself, about 3 times a week

Link to comment
6 hours ago, tenaciousglee said:

You are smarter than me. I fell off the wagon after 2 days, but I'm thinking I'll attack it once more in my next challenge.

I don't think I'm smarter, just not as busy;)

Wisdom 22.5   Dexterity 13   Charisma 15   Strength 21  Constitution-13

"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind' Luke 10; 27

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