Hello!

[Vikingo]

Hi, I've been reading the NF blog for the last month or so, and I decided it was time to join and post.

I'm a 30 year old guy from Buenos Aires, Argentina. I'm asthmatic and have relatively poor motor skills, which coupled to my nerdy disposition meant that I always hated sports and exercise. I became a terribly sedentary person. Well, a bit over a year ago I started practicing archery, and loving it. For the first time in my life  I actually enjoyed practicing a sport. I think that changed my perspective quite a bit. I started seeing myself as an athlete, so I'm less resistant to exercising and cleaning up my diet.

A couple months ago I was shooting a tournament and I started getting dizzy just before releasing my arrows, particularly the last arrow in each end. Needless to say, that didn't help my scores. I decided that I needed to improve my aerobic capacity. After weighing several cardio options, I bought a heavy bag and gloves, and I made it a habit to spend a few rounds hitting it, three days a week. I also cleaned up my diet. The first few weeks I concentrated on ditching soda, candy and junk food, then I removed sugar, and now I'm trying to go as Paleo as possible (I'm mostly orthodox paleo/primal til dinner, and then it's up to my GF, although we're both gradually cleaning up gradually).

When I bought the heavy bag (early august) I weighed 126,5 kgs. Last time I weighed myself (last Friday) I was down to 120,8. I'm also improving on other fronts - now I can sprint to catch a bus or a train without triggering a bronchospasm, I've been adding more rounds to my boxing workouts without getting winded. Of course, I no longer get dizzy while shooting. 

 

This week I decided to start adding some bodyweight exercises to my morning routine. I like the idea of strength training, but I HATE gyms with a passion. To me, they're torture chambers - they're full of machines designed to stress your muscles and bring pain. And I don't want to argue with trainers about my ideal routine. So bodyweight it is for now, maybe someday I'll buy dumbbells or kettlebells.

Anyway, that's me. I'm pretty happy with the way things are going, and I hope to keep on the right track. Glad to be a part of the community!

[Nedwin]

I can't wait to try archery! I'm going to take lessons when I get home in a few months. As for gyms, just stick to the free weights. You don't have to talk to anyone or use a machine if you don't want to

[Vikingo]

Thanks for the tip! Still, I think I'll probably wait a bit before trying gyms... If I decide I hate bodyweight, I'll give it a try. For now, I'll keep working out at home as it's more convenient and less socially awkward... plus you can't beat the cost!

I'm sure you'll love those archery lessons. Newbie gains feel awesome and really fun. Not that I don't find training for competition fun, it's just a different kind of more masochistic fun