A hello from the snow

[AshPhoenix]

My name is Derek. I'm a 31 year old, divorced, single dad, gamer, hacker, general tinkerer and I currently live in North Logan, Utah.

I'm quite the active person by nature and it would seem I went astray 2003 when I got married to a woman who isn't active in the least and views all exercise as a chore. That, however, has changed since she left in February and our divorce was finalized in April. She was around 170 when we were dating and ballooned up to 210 rather quickly after we were married. During pregnancy with our only child, she peaked at 270 and held around 250 for the next four years, dropping weight to about 220 with amphetamine diet pills before she left.

The heaviest I've ever been is 225lbs in January of 2010. My pattern was one of losing weight during the standard New Years Resolution phase and into springtime, hovering at whatever I dropped down to until the weather turned cold again, at which point I’d pack weight on starting around Halloween. I was trying to stave off an early death that claims the men in my family with a heart attack around 55 to 60 when they’re fat (I almost didn’t get to meet my grandpa and he was the one who got me started with Electronics). It didn’t help that I’d get browbeaten by the spouse because my progress made her feel bad about her body, though I’m sure part of it was due to the amount of time it took for my workouts... workouts of the length I needed to burn off the meals I ate (she was a great chef of all the wrong foods).

The most fit I’ve ever been is after a summer just riding my bike when I was 15. This was in 1995. I ended the summer realizing I had a sixpack and massive shoulders (I was accused of wearing shoulder pads) at 115lbs and 5’10†tall, same height I am now. I’ve wanted to get back to that ever since, but with more muscle. I was fast and powerful, but I was wiry.

Well, with my life having completely changed, this year is already different. While I would normally be around 215 this time of year, based on six prior years of data, I'm 197 at the moment and completely disregarding the scale for a while since I started lifting and jumped into the Paleo nutrition approach (flour tortillas (I pack them so full I need a paper towel as structural reinforcement) and freshgrind peanut butter are my only exceptions for now (I’m a big fan of almond butter, but it’s expensive so I don’t buy it as much)). I already no longer snack like I used to.

I have a recumbent exercise bike that I used to put two hour sessions into. I’m considering switching to interval training on that, but lifting is more appealing for now.

For weights, I have a Smith rack with row, butterfly and pulldown cable rig and 250lb of plates. I only use the Smith portion of the machine for benchpress because of the safety spotters. I also have an Olympic bar and dumbbells with 37.5lb worth of plates each.

Right now, I can do:

5 pull-ups or 5 chin-ups a set

100lb benchpress (80lb of plates on the 20lb Smith bar) for 4 sets of ten reps

150lb deadlift (I could do more, but I’m being cautious) for 4 sets of 10 reps

55lb(ttl) Squats (Just starting out with that. Cautious with my knees)

It’s cold here in Utah right now. I’m pretty much stuck indoors for the next few months so I’m making the most of my cocoon phase with bodybuilding and just getting my life in order. I’m sick and tired of being sick and tired, basically. I need to be a role model for my child, not a roll model. And I’d like to find a special someone eventually so I need to make sure it’s me a potential mate sees, not the weakling I turned into.

My goal is to be at least as strong as the girls in Sucker Punch had to be. The idea of Jena Malone (she played Rocket in Sucker Punch), my celeb crush, being able to deadlift 300lbs is just amazing. I _have_ to measure up to that standard. I want that by my daughter’s birthday at the end of June.

By the way, is there a way to have my username changed to RocketPhoenix?

[ETFnerd]

Look fwd to hearing how you'll launch your new life... welcome.

[Blaizen]

Hell of a story, hell of a goal! Welcome aboard, you've found the right place

[chairohkey]

Welcome from a former Utahrd. Good luck.

[AshPhoenix]

Thank you, everyone. I'm sure I'll be sticking around.

After ramping up my deadlift weight to see where I reach a challenge, I found that 180lbs is a true challenge for me. Oddly enough, it's not so much because of the weight, but because of what the bar is doing to my palms. I need calluses.

My bench weight is still 100lbs for now. I didn't have to rest as long between sets versus last time, though.

I haven't done squats again yet. I need to, though. Actually, I think I'll take care of that right after I post this.