Return of the cn3wton

[cn3wton]

Yes I did just do a cheesy lord of the rings reference.

 

I doubt anyone remembers me here, but a year or so ago I was fairly active. I had just lost a significant amount of weight, and thought that this site could help motivate me to keep me going with my fitness goals.

 

I was wrong. 

 

It wasn't nerd fitness's fault. It was my own. I got shackled to the idea of constantly checking my posts. Eventually putting more time into checking the site than I did working out.  I had grand plans that came crashing down.

 

I didn't stop working out until awhile after I stopped frequenting the site. That happened when a lot of personal issues came up in my life. Family members passing away, getting sick, etc. But for the past 2 months or so I have worked my way back into a more healthy lifestyle. But 6 months of idleness has not done me good. I was able to maintain weight. But this was definitely due to muscle loss and increase in weight. I hovered anywhere between 190-200 pounds.

 

But I'm back. I thought that perhaps maybe I could just jump back into the forums and start where I left off. But that didn't go so well these past few weeks. So I decided to start fresh. Removing my old character stats and starting over.

 

So here's what I have been up to.

 

I have been eating fairly healthy. In fact I decided to give myself a cheat day every 2-3 weeks. Well mine was yesterday and I literally couldn't eat all of the cheat food at lunch. (Especially the cheese fries, had like 2-3 and was done with those) And my dinner was good, but afterwards my only thought wasn't "Oh my god I can't wait to have this again" but instead "Ok I don't need to have that again for awhile."

 

So what have I been doing? I try not to have bread. I don't avoid carbs just the bread kind. Garlic bread especially as I work at an Italian restaurant. It has been surprisingly easy actually.

 

What do I eat? After my workout I have a protein drink. Then on my way home I stop at a local barbecue stand and get me some chicken and ribs. No sauce on them of course (I have my own stuff that has no sugars and stuff in it). Or I get a steak from the local butcher and throw that on the grill and microwave some veggies. I also have plans to start getting chicken from the butcher fresh on Thursdays and cooking that up.

 

I drink so much water. Seriously. I don't wanna get into details but lets just say its a lot.

 

But what about the fitness?

 

See the 6 months of idleness was actually a lie. I tried getting back into heavy lifting (which is what I had been doing with a friend). But I just kept going to heavy to fast. Hurting myself almost every week. This was a vicious cycle.

 

So my approach two months ago was a little different. I decided to research and find something that I really enjoy. Lifting heavy isn't really my thing. I prefer interval training. So I starting going to the gym and just throwing some stuff together 2-3 times a week with low weight high reps. Forcing myself to take it slow. After discussing things with a friend (and some tweaking for my ability and available equipment) I found a plan that I enjoy. Its Monday through Friday HIIT.

 

I love it. I may not be doing as much weight as I possibly could. But I sweat and push myself to the limit every day in the gym.

 

And that's not all! On one of my off days I have started a Cave Man style circuit with my friends. Today included but was not limited to; Tire flips, Sledgehammer swings, and sprints! I have created a post about it already in programming I believe. I will provide a link at some point.

 

The best part? On my one day off I find myself wanting to exercise. So I usually practice with my jump rope, walk, bike, swim, just something to keep me active. I have always enjoyed pushing myself when exercising. But I always felt I could only do one thing and not everything. Now if I want to do something, I just do it. So I find myself exercising every day (5 in the gym, 1 caveman, 1 whatever).

 

As far as nerdy stuff goes, well I game, and the lord of the rings is my favorite trilogy. My profile picture (for now) is the one ring because it symbolizes my... That's total BS. I just don't have a good picture of me right now. But I will say that medieval fantasy like LOTR and others really inspires me. I enjoy natural exercise (hence the caveman training).

 

---Oh and I almost forgot. I've been doing a lot of yoga too. Solely because of the physical benefits of course. Though the breathing exercises have helped me control my "exercise induced asthma" (in truth we still have no idea what it is). And the flexibility has really upped my golf game.

[unapologetic]

woo Lord of the Rings! And welcome back!

 

I totally get what you said about life stuff coming up and derailing progress. A year ago I lost 60 pounds, then things got busy and I gained it all back and then some. I'm hoping that doesn't happen this time. I've eliminated a lot of the distractions I've had in the past so fingers crossed.

 

Good luck!

[cn3wton]

Thank you and I appreciate it.

 

The progress I had made weight wise was done over a long period of time. So I knew that my eating habits would never be as bad as they once were. But they did slip.

 

The fitness thing was the easiest to "forget" as it requires a time commitment that I convinced myself would not work for me. But that was just an excuse.

 

I've found being honest with myself is much more important than anything. My favorite thing to say to myself now is "Come on get up, if you don't do this now you know you never will." Oddly it keeps me going.