Achievements, without getting math involved.

06/28/2011

Days until Con : 65

There are a number of achieves in weight-loss that pure stats just cannot give you. Okay, math is the one true universal language, sure, but I'm talking about things that have little more meaning than that. Here are a list of non-stat centric achievements I've gained/noticed in the last three weeks.

* Yesterday I threw out all my XXL sized shirts. They look terrible on me now, and there's no sense in having them. I can now successfully fit into XL and Large depending on the shirt maker.

* I can now sit in a waffle house bench sideways AND my belly isn't popping up like a giant pet turtle sitting on my lap. I can maneuver, I can turn, at no point does my belly hang over the table or get caught, or generally make things uncomfortable.

* I've gone from a size 40 to a size 36 pants.

* Getting out of a sitting position isn't a chore.

* When I stand, at no point does my belly hang down below my belt.

* I can climb/walk Stone Mountain with minium rest required.

* I have not eaten at Zaxby's or Boston Market.

* I might have become force sensitive.

* I use to think I had some muscle, like every man on the planet, but now I  actually see tone and definition and stuffs.

* Not once in the last three weeks has someone said to me, "Us big people gotta stick together!" or "They don't make these things for big folks like us."

* I think someone hit on me, she might have just been smiling while she rung up my book purchase, but we all know what smiling really means now don't we? "Do you wan't to join the borders rewards program?" Please, we all know that's just an excuse to get my number...

* More and more people have now stopped asking "have you lost weight?" and instead use the phrase, "Wow...you've lost weight." The difference of questioning makes the world sprout motorcycle riding puppy flowers in gardens full of happiness (zero calorie M&Ms).

The Stiver Warrior Diet

06/26/2011

Days until Con : 67

So for half of this week I've tried out my own version of the Warrior Diet. As today is weigh in day I was shocked to find that I lost 3.6 pounds. For awhile I'd plateaued to losing only 1 or 2 pounds, so it's nice to see a number like 3.6.

What have I been doing?

I start the day off with a banana, and then I almost always wish I had had more food for breakfast, but alas I am one of those people who make a million excuses as to why they cannot have a bigger breakfast. I carry with me three pieces of fruit, or fiber one snack bars. Honestly fruit is the better choice but the fiber one bars I'd purchased in bulk awhile back and wanted to get rid of them. I eat every two hours until lunch. For lunch, I eat whatever I want, which honestly is still fairly healthy stuff. I mostly make my own salads, complete with lean proteins. Then I stop eating for the day.
Around 7 or 8 pm I work out anywhere from 30 minutes of intense resistance training to 1 hour of general aerobic activity. Intense resistance training though is the key, because you burn calories well after the workout. Also, you have to work out somewhere in the middle of the fasting period, which is why I say to work out around 6 or 7 hours after lunch.

This process I started around Wednesday, and I weighed myself on Wednesday and hadn't lost any pounds yet that week.

Anyways, so far I'm not feeling starved or weak, the 12 hour daily fasting cycles feel almost natural and trust me when I say I get plenty of food an in enough intervals as to not send my body into a starvation state. I do have to warn you, and myself, that a daily fasting diet can be dangerous, and if done wrong you will send your body into a constant starvation state which means you'll actually gain weight instead of lose weight and your insulin levels will become somewhat chaotic.

The exact diet I'm on is something more than a few doctors have debate about, but the results are amazing. In most weight loss scenarios you plateau after a month and begin losing very little, but all the research for the diet I'm trying (and modified) shows people losing just as much weight in the beginning as the end. I've decided to give it another week to see if that's true.

The basics of the warrior diet, as modified by Stiver.

* Eat every two to three hours from the time you wake up to lunch.
* Be calorie aware but not calorie counting
* Sometime between lunch and before you go to bed, work out. Preferably resistance training and preferably in the middle of the fasting time, so about 6pm. (it's a scientific thing I don't quite understand)
* No pastas, very little breads and rice. Though I work off the 80 percent rule, which means out of a week you can allow yourself 20 percent failure of your goal foods. So you decide when the 20 percent applies.


That's about it. If you decide to try it, let me know if you have any success. Or if you're a guru who believes what I'm doing is terrible for my body, then also let me know. Questions about the Stiver Warrior Diet? Let me know.

To Fast, or not to Fast.

06/24/2011

Days until Con : 69

It's raining, old men are snoring, and for the most part the dust has settled on my last two weeks of hell at work. From here things should generally be smooth sailing until Con. Sure, there might be some other projects or whatnots that'll cause me stress, but nothing quite like moving an entire corporation to two buildings. It's a lot more work on the IT side of things then you probably know.

I've looked into the pros and cons of fasting, and it's odd how there's a distinction between it and starvation. Starvation, as you may know, is not so hot when you're attempting to lose weight and in short will cause you gain weight easier as your body will hold on to every bit of nutrition you give it. Fasting apparently is healthier, because...it's a different word?

There's actually good reasoning behind it as close as I can tell and a few of the studies I've looked at shows that if controlled in ways as to not send your body in a starvation state can net you some pretty fantastic results. There are a few fasting techniques that have caught my eye, and some that I would be willing to give a try for the next week.

1. Fast for 24 hours every other day. Simply put, you eat very well one day sending all the right signals to your body that food is plentiful, then the next day you eat nothing but drink plenty of water. This only works if your body doesn't feel threatened by starvation, otherwise you'll even yourself up with no real gain other than being stupid hungry.

2. The Warrior Diet. Interesting indeed, and hardcore name (for a hardcore James). At its core you eat a great lunch and then nothing else.

I'm hesitant to try anything like this until I have more information. I've heard nothing but bad things about fasting up until today, when one of the podcasts I listened to mentioned new studies that show it to be an extremely effect weight loss tool. I'm cautious, but willing to try for a week. I'll be doing more research and will put together a fasting plan that suits me and I can realistically follow with low risk.

James Art : Porn as a Gift

Hawt for Chillin

06/23/2011

Days until Con : 70

You may not know this about me, but I'm obsessive. Over just about everything. I believe podcasts were invented for people like me who take a subject and completely devour it. I'm now actively listening to 12 podcasts, 4 of those are SWTOR related, and the others are health related. When I was first dipping my toes in game mastering (it's a d&d thing) on top of reading storytelling articles and youtube videos, I also had about 5 subscriptions active for actual play tabletop podcasts.

I bring this up because focusing on subjects is my thang, it's something that defines me and it's definitely a double edged sword. There's a threshold consuming knowledge using my methods and it causes me physical stress when I'm frustrated at my rate of intellectual growth on the given subject. The past week or two I had to back away from obsessing over heath and it was a much needed reprieve. Due to time and driving limitations I haven't gone to a gym or had adequate intense exercise but it's been something of a blessing as I was probably pushing things too hard.

The lesson to be learned for anyone here is that losing weight is a ridiculous amount of pressure if you concentrate on it too much and stress has a direct effect on metabolism. I'm learning, as I hope you will, to calm down and just have faith in your day to day routines. Losing weight isn't a race, it's not a marathon as I've once stated, instead it's the sum of all the parts that make up of your day to day life. Sleep, food, physical activity, and stress are things we must deal with on a day to day basis in order to survive, and if you make the changes necessary in all those parts then allow yourself to sit on autopilot.

Willpower alone will not help you lose weight, and you wont lose it all today, or tomorrow. You'll lose it steadily over the course of months if you're doing things right. So calm it, as I've had to do lately, and you'll settle into a cozy place where you just know things are going to work out.

I'd like to thank Andrea for starting Hawt for D*Con up. It's like a punk rock tattoed bizarro version of Hot for Con. You should try the challenge she's inflicting on folks, much more hardcore than my puny "just try to lose weight and stuff" demands. I imagine her in full centurion battle regalia, duel wielding whips and shouting furiously at a platoon of dragon con health soldiers.

"For the Glory of Our Empire!" She'd cry over the sweaty and panting candidates.

I love it, and will comply with reckless abandon.

I've Got Ideas.

06/22/2011

Days until Con : 71

Okay I just got the one idea. But it's on the road that will eventually fork, then ..err...double fork, perhaps even a spiraling helix. It involves my creative writing efforts and I'm very excited to be sparked.

This is a short post, as I'm short on time and energy.

Defining Happiness.

06/21/2011

Days until Con : 72

It's very important to have goals when motivation is a factor. Goals may be the most important aspect of our lives, without them it's hard to gauge progress, or success. How do you grade such a thing as success? This may be too deep for a simple health blog, but it's an aspect you should really dig into if you want to achieve any amount of long term happiness brought by a healthy lifestyle.

Happiness is the ultimate motivator. As it's the constant ebb and flow of smaller and greater things whose sum parts equal the quality of your existence  Overcoming challenges, having life long ambitions come to fruition, getting a kick ass parting spot, people complimenting your appearance. All are how we generally judge matters in our relatively small time here. You must ask yourself if being healthier will provide you enough happiness to offset the work you'll be doing to get there. I think the answer for most is, of course, yes...yes it is.

I mention this because sometimes while we're on our weight-loss journey we forget how miserable we feel whenever we were extremely unhealthy. It's easy after some progress to go back to that flamilar late night diner and order the foods that we remember fondly. It's way too easy to just not work out, to take the easy way out of life. This isn't just for health, it applies to education and careers, family, relationships, friendships. Sometimes we don't remember just how much more happy we feel after achieving something wonderful for ourselves, and that goes for me.

Times are tough, money isn't exactly flowing and I'm working long hours. I live in the middle of nowhere and my commute to work seriously threatens my sanity. My gaming group hasn't touched dice or geeky storytelling in over a month, maybe two. The single life, while I haven't been here long, has certainly reared its' ugly head, leaving me with more lonesome nights then I care to admit. Of course there are good things in my life, sure, and I know for a fact I have far less drama orbiting my life than your average person. But these are factors that effect me and my emotional drive.

This obviously effects everyone, if you're human, if you're not then I hope you find it in your heart (I'm assuming you have a respiratory system) to not blow this planet up. As I've done tonight after suffering a motivational hit these last couple of weeks, I hope you do the same in thinking of yourself and what makes you happy. For me it's simple...

I feel better, to my core, when I'm pursing a healthy life and I was, on so many levels, miserable when not. I had to catch myself before I fell, and I hope you can do the same if you're falling. Today I smiled, a real one, a first in awhile and it's because I know I'm on track to doing something amazing with my life. These are the moments that make me happy, and I will try not to forget them.

Progress, Fish Almost Died, and Dead Tired

06/19/2011

Days until Con : 74

Progress report. I completely bombed on my Paleo Diet, but even in attempting I still lost 2 pounds this week. Which is great. But to to be 180 is 74 days I'd need to step things up a few notches.

I haven't worked out as much as I'd like, but part of that are my days full of constant activity with a work related move. Once I get back on my routine, I'll be golden and sweating the pounds off like nobodies' business.

I tried cleaning Mr. Burke's fish bowl out (Mr. Burke is my beta fish), and once I put him back in the bowl he proceeded to take the cowards way out and commit suicide. He jumped. I jumped, and realized I'm deathly afraid of fish suicide. I recovered my wits and was able to save him, but for a moment the world was a very cloudy place.

That's all the update you're getting today. I'm tired, and there's much more work to do tomorrow.

Exercising Solo Vs Social

06/18/2011

Days until Con : 75

This week has pretty much been a wash where exercise and general dieting is concerned. I've followed the Paleo path somewhat, though I haven't been as hardcore as I would've liked, but starting an hour ago I'm going to keep trying. Just trying has netted some decent results but usually my results are rockin whenever exercise is in the mix, which just hasn't been in the cards.

My work's building is moving and splitting into two separate buildings, so all week I've been packing and moving around constantly. Which is great for general activity and health, but I'm too tired to go to the gym for an actual high intensity workout. I'd often wondered how people with manual labor jobs ever get overweight, and I totally get it now. It's not enough activity to make a real dent in your metabolism and it tricks you into thinking, "I've already worked out today, like all day, screw that. I'm watching netflix."

And by the way, I highly recommend anyone with netflix watching The Horde. In a nutshell, it's about a group of cops whom, motivated by revenge (not the law!), storm a gang hideout. Then zombies attack. I'm not usually fan of running zombies, and I'm particularly not a fan of zombies who become superhuman due to their undeath, but for some reason it just fit really well here. It's a foreign film, but I'm not afraid of subtitles and besides, I don't watch action/zombie movies for the brilliant dialogue.

It's french. Without trendy scooters or pastries, which may take some adjustment but I'm sure you can deal.

Anyways, back to the title of this post. I've listened to a few podcasts on fitness and a couple of them have brought up social vs solo exercising which I think is a very interesting subject. I've tried them both with varying degrees of success.

With social exercising, which I describe as having one or more exercise buddies, you have someone there to motivate you and possibly compete with. Motivation being the greatest competent with getting in shape, is the biggest plus I see. I've been mostly solo in my fitness thus far, and to be honest I have down moments where I just don't feel like it. It's hard to imagine right? I've completely taken my website and remastered it to be a Health Blogging place and yet I have entire days out of every week where I just don't wanna bother with it all. If I were working out with someone everyday, and they reminded me what I was working for, then I think the motivation factor would be different.

Also if someone is further along athletically than you then it can be somewhat inspiring to compete on a certain level and try your best to get to their level.  Also, working out can be boring as crap and it's to have someone you can talk to help the time pass. Adam Jones and I will occasionally climb up Stone Mountain, and it's a time we spend gossiping about our friends and being nerds, about nerdy stuff. It's refreshing, and without it my weekly workout routine would become miserable.

As a long term solution, social exercising just isn't applicable. You and your friend may very much want to work out together to keep each other motivated, but you both have different lives and sooner or later your schedules will conflict with grim results. Think about it, you should be working out at least 5 days a week, how hard is it to keep your schedule straight for 5 days? You perhaps think you can do it, but if you're above the age of of 21, you got things to do. Even if you're a seasoned recluse, there will be things, and these things will cause you to shuffle your workout routine around just so things can get done. So add to that scheduling with someone else and their things.

Also, you have to take into account fitness levels. When I was 250ish, my girlfriend at the time would sometimes attempt to take me for a jog. I'd say jog, but really I barely walked up a hill before feeling like the 7th layer of hell had taken up residence in my lungs. I watched in disgruntled admiration as she jogged thru time and space fighting zombies and solving multidimensional conundrums... then came back to make sure I was still alive. The point is, sometimes you're just slowing someone else down, or your out of shape friend will slow you down. This may be fine one or two day of your overall workout, but if you're always slowing down to meet your partner's level then you're greatly delaying the return you'll get from the whole thing.

Where do I stand? I vary it up, and yes, my answer has the biggest (most delicious) percentage in the pie chart of No shit. in return, how about some advice for a change? Fine. Here I go...

Plan your entire workout week to be solo, and accept any group invitations as they come up. This adds some chaos, and the change of scenery will be nice, because your typical treadmill and weight bench routine will start feeling like being trapped inside a dead end cubicle job. Which showcases a mystery stain on one side of the cubes' identity devouring dividers. Complete with a boss who claims "It's not me, but them." Oh you know them, the bosses' bosses who apparently hold evil council meetings in Narnia, or wherever imaginary spineless serpents reside. It's them who are stalling that promotion you so rightly deserve, not your direct superior. No no no, not him, but them. Because apparently my superior is the pansy playing the drums on a battlefield while they drive tanks and state of the art flying fortresses, and I'm stuck carrying his drumsticks-

Okay so maybe that metaphor only applies to me...

Anyways, accept all invitations and don't worry about the timing because people are dirty liars. Especially about health and fitness, they tell you all day long how they're going to start exercising with you, especially after they can taste your success. (don't ask me how they taste it, I won't explain, and I have that right since I own the metaphor.)

I, myself, Stiver Prime, have had great success with fitness and weight-loss, and I'm constantly getting calls or having it brought up in casual conversation to have a planned workout with someone. It hardly ever happens. Kind of like when women plan out a mythical girls night out two weeks in advance, it just never happens. Sometimes, every so often, it happens and even then it's like those people get a little angry that their bluff was called.  When your friend ditches the workout, just smile and plan it again next week. Then hop right along to the workout you knew you'd be doing all along. (the one sighted in my Dead End Job reference two paragraphs ago.)

Down With Toast.

06/16/2011

Days until Con : 77

I'm cat sitting this week. I'm not exactly sure what I'm suppose to be doing, because cats are very self sufficient animals. Feed them. I know that one, it was on the instructions my mom left. It should survive so I'm not too worried about it.

Anyways, I've done very well with my Paleo diet thus far but I'm less than optimistic about it becoming a stable thing. Course I should probably give it more time before I leap to such assumptions, but it's just a feeling I have. I'm very proud of my ability to not order breads or highly processed things.

Also I'm surprised, shocked even, at people's reaction when I choose not to have toast.

Waffle house just isn't equipped for this response. It's not part of their training, it's not in any manual or make a customer happy video. I order 4 eggs, and that's it. But every waitresses refuses to believe i don't want their butter drenched toast. They ask me, "white or wheat toast?" I say, "neither" they now attempt bribing me out of my decision with pricing, "it's the same price with toast. Might as well get it." I say no. What happens? They bring it out anyways as though they'd pushed the alien notion out so completely that what she'd written down on the ticket (no toast..) she can no longer see because her mind blocked it out of existence.

Everyone gets the toast. Everyone loves the toast. Eat the toast or we'll call the cops.

I don't want your toast, stop peddling your carbs and scramble me some eggs! They don't bat an eye if you want a sandwich without "garden" but the moment you refuse toast the place gets silent. Like you made a racist comment or pushed around a disabled orphan. I just don't want toast and now I'm fighting for something, I'm making a social statement, I'm standing by my convictions.

Next Week Never Comes.

06/15/2011

Days until Con : 78

It's the sad truth. Next week will never come. That's been my experience anyways with promises and proclamations.

Starting next Monday I'll quit smoking.

Starting next week I'll go on a diet.

Next week, exercise and me, it's a date.

Of course next week never really comes. Either you've put too much pressure on the occasion and bomb after the first few days or you forget about it by the weekend. The problem, from my perspective, is that anything you're putting off until next week isn't important enough in your mind to start immediately. There's a voice or metaphorical post-it note that tells your subconscious "don't worry about it, if it were really important you'd done it by now." (in a New York styled taxi voice). So was my thinking up until April of this year. Every week I'd start off by saying, "I need to lose weight, I'll start next week, on Monday, so that way everything starts nice and even." Because Monday is the start of the week, so it's only logical to also make it the start of whatever new life thing you're attempting to implement.

So the weekend leading into Monday, the start of my glorious weight revolution, I proceed to eat the crappiest foods I possibly can. Why? Because I may never see them again. Because I'm a well dressed soldier waving goodbye to my tubby sweetheart as the Rail to Skinnydale leaves the station. (the scene is, of course, black and white with all the appropriate dramatic trimmings).

And just like all those train station scenes, by Wednesday, I yell "Stop the train!" Because I cannot take it, I need BBQ Nachos, I need her real bad.

That mentality just doesn't work. It sounds right when you tell your friends, and it sounds right when you tell yourself, but it just plain doesn't work. At least not for me, and not for most people.

I wrote a line in an epic song about Dancing, and Butts. A line so condensed with common sense I think I'll make it into my personal slogan. 


Every second not rockin, is not rockin at all.


That's what got me into this whole healthy thing. I stopped waiting until next week, I started the moment the thought flew into my mind and I captured the bastard. With like a net. A really strong net. Triple weaved, or whatever is strong for nets. Maybe even a chain linked net.

With that said, I started smoking again because of every reason in the world smokers start back up. Well that's not rockin, and every second not rockin, is not rockin at all. With my awesome weight-loss success I cannot have this blemish on my rock. So I quit. Not next week, not tomorrow, but now.

I Want to be a Force User.

06/13/2011

Days Until Con : 79

I ate toast. There. I said it. First day of the Paleo thing and I didn't even think about it and ate toast. Didn't ask for toast, didn't even want toast, but it was on the plate and mindlessly I ate it.

Tomorrow, things will be better. I will be better. I will not eat toast.

I am a geek, and realized that I haven't expressed that enough since my site has taken a health blogger approach, but I remember my roots. I have to geek vent here, because I feel like we have something special. You know, like I'm scared of these feels I have for you. I don't want to scare you away, but I want to show you how I really feel. So hop over to SWTOR, and try to understand where I'm coming from. You see I'm a fan of the Star Wars identity, the theme, the mood, and light saber swooshing ignites wonderful tingly sensations that can only be described with grunts and wild arm movements. I'm not the biggest fan of movies. I like bits and pieces, sure, but I like the space they put me in. No puns intended. I find I'm always looking around the main characters and into the universe they live, wishing I was there.

I want to be a Jedi, or more like a Sith (cause they can have girlfriends). I want to force push bitches, I need to force push bitches. (Broad term, not being sexist I swear)

Only problem being I hate Vader. I hate Luke. I don't care much for Wookies and, even though as a child I'd dressed like an Ewoke for several halloweens in a row, I'm grown now and know better. So I hate them too. Or is it to? I'm sure Adam will correct me.

I love blasters, space combat, and dear god I love light sabers. Star Wars : The Old Republic is a MMO that takes place thousands of years before Skywalker ever kissed his sister and this is where I want to spent my early thirties. In a room, hot as crap, with a hot geeky chick playing a Star Wars video game that never ends. I'll never have to suffer through any of the same old movie moments reincarnated via crappy over the shoulder action games, because that severely beaten horse of a plot isn't even a glimmer in this game's eye.

In short, I've waited for this game for 3 years. I've feasted on tiny morsels of information that has been slowly fed to me with every Friday update, and my appetiate has grown to insane amounts. I just cannot wait, and parts of me are starting to die with anticipation. I'll never wait for a game like this ever again, and while it will not be the central focus of my life (well, yes it will, at first) I just wanted you to know how I felt.

How does that relate to health, losing weight and tips to your general well being? It doesn't really, unless you count my need to let it all out.  Tomorrow I'll probably talk about controlling insulin levels or your bodies' natural metabolism cycles.

But in the back of my mind, I'll be thinking about how awesome it'll be to crush Republic scum...

Weigh In, Weight Out.

06/12/2011

Days until Con : 80

I am exhausted. For those that do not know my work is moving buildings so on top of my full time job I'm also helping with the transition. Luckily, it has been decent exercise otherwise I'd me grumpy and bitter.

The results of my restaurant ban week has been astounding. This morning I was 217. So that's a 4 pound loss from last weigh in, and believe me I think those are extremely positive results. Riding high off this success I'll steam roll right into my next self imposed challenge, the The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet , which I'll be giving an honest shot until con. In preparation I said goodbye to my favoriate mexican restaurant by ordering my last chimichanga. It was tasty, but surprisingly I didn't receive the same amount of satisfaction as in the past. This success is bitter sweet, like saying goodbye to a perfectly good lover whose only reason for leaving is distance. Oh, and she's sleeping with one of your friends.

What a bitch. I hate you chimichangas.

In the Belly of the Beast.

Days until Con : 81

06/11/2011

I grabbed the beast by one of its snouts and attached a muzzle, it wailed and whined with inhuman pitch as I lassoed a leach around its' middle head and took it for a walk. Healthy is the three headed cerberus, one I feel today I've gotten tamed and under control. Will it always be this way? That's tough to say, there will be nights, I'm sure, where in a moment of weakness friends or a pretty lady will force me into eating Pig-N-Chik's Redneck Nachos. But for the most part, I got this shit down.

Today I joined a gym, a mainstream one, and I have to say that I'm really happy about it. I took it for a test spin, I wooshed on a elliptical which sat high on the second floor overlooking the muscle arena. I opted for a big well known gym because the customer service was as to be expected, non-existant, which is just the thing I wanted. I'd looked at some smaller gyms and the staff there were awfully touchy and hands on, which unsettles me. Working out is my meditation time, when I least need someone interrupting me, it's when I push myself into the great beyond and return only once I'm covered with a sparkling thin layer of my success.

Which sounds dirty, and I'm okay with that.

I've been giving it a lot of thought, and I believe I'll be starting a new diet. A friend of mine, a baddass named Ben,  recommended The Paleo Solution: The Original Human Diet and to be honest it's a diet plan I was already wanting to follow. Just didn't know there was an actual name to it. Starting Monday I'll be doing the Paleo diet, and I figure I'd give it a shot until the end of Hot for Con. This last week I've already been doing most of it and my general health has felt outright awesome. I'll keep you informed, and I'm going to buy the book AND read it. Thanks Ben!

In the Habit of Rockin

06/10/2011

Days until Con : 82

Okay, I failed the self imposed restaurant challenge, but I swear I have good reasons. Habit. You see I was minding my own business, having coffee and conversation at the Awful Waffle with Adam Jones and knowing this was my only chance to get dinner I ordered two grilled chickens and four eggs. Marking the first time all week I ordered anything at a restaurant. I didn't even realize what I'd done until I was well on my way home.

The good news? This was a casual ordering for me and I ordered damn well. Nothing but protein and I denied the hash browns and toast, which is wonderful news. Out of habit I ordered just about the healthiest thing you can get at the WaHo and that created a wonderful moment in my weight-loss journey. I ordered out of instinct, I felt no hesitation or jittery decision making. Usually I'll order casually the worst things on the menu, without even thinking twice until after I'm done eating and feel terrible.

The flip side is when I go into a restaurant and have cravings for something completely unhealthy, then I'll attempt negotiating with myself on food choices. This typically works with success rate of a beat cop with a bullhorn talking down a junkie threatening to jump off top of a building.

Because we do that don't we? When we're not fully motivated or formed that habit we try to bargin with ourselves. That early in the game we deal ourselves into a paradox. Today I'll eat poorly but tomorrow I'll starve myself and workout. The next day you'll give in and promise yourself a new start the next day. After a few days in a row you'll promise yourself that starting Monday you'll change your life. Monday you break, and now you're disheartened and perhaps next week is best...

For months upon months those wheels spin. But the car is stuck in neutral. Your passenger gets angry and turns up the radio leaving only the unsettling melodies of top 100 teen pop. As those uninspired yet catchy beats jab at your cerebrum you'll begin to question the accuracy of time and space, for there's no other explanation as to why you're right here right now. 

Okay I think the analogy broke down. Like a cheap Camero driven through Meridian Mississippi - OKAY I'm done, I promise. No more analogies. Bad Stiver.

Adam and James Climb a Mountain!

A Hot for Con bonus edition, grab some popcorn and watch with unrivaled vigor as Adam and James climb a mountain.

Comfort Visions

06/09/2011

Days until Con : 84

I've always been a bigger person and for the longest time I felt that's just the way it is. In life there's always death, taxes, and me having a few extra pounds. Of course there was a very short amount of time when I'd lost a lot of weight unintentionally and didn't even realize it until ladies actually started talking to me, like directly. (usually I had to engage them in psychological warfare, getting laid was tedious to say the least.)

You see, I worked at McDonalds at the time as a manager and if you've ever worked in fast food you know that it's probably the best exercise you'll get in your life. I'd recently picked up smoking so my appetiate was suppressed, or I think it's better to say that my body was confused. I remember being full from smoking, and wasn't sure if I was hungry or just really wanting to cigarette. But that was one of the first moments where I stood back and realized that a few extra pounds isn't where I have to stay.

As these things happen, I remembered  how to eat and got use to smoking, and steadily I'd gained weight back to what it use to be. Then I switched to an office job and the weight continued to stealthily gain. Sometimes you don't realize how many pounds your putting on even though you look at yourself in the mirror every day. There was a day in particular that I wore a tight sweater to be ironic and had someone take a picture. When I looked at the picture I hardly recognized the person.

How could I not see the weight in the mirror? It's amazing how our mind lulls us into these comfort visions.

Did I do anything about it? Yeah, at first. I worked out, though when I look back at my exercises then I hardly call what I did any form of working out, but I lost a little. Enough for me to pick up a small chunk of confidence, I was still big, but not AS big. It was enough for me to relax, and if you've seen my Dragon Con 2010 pictures, then you know just how relaxed I'd let myself become. I'd even thought being obese suit me at a certain point, thought perhaps I looked like a giant sexy teddy bear.

I believe in some circles they call this denial. As I am not obviously not a teddy bear.

I bring this up because sometimes I'm not sure when I look in the mirror what I actually see. I see progress, but how much of that progress is my subconscious throwing me a bone? My BMI still rates me as clinically obese but I honestly don't see it. Subjectively I've tried, and believe me, I'm a artist and which comes with the prerequisite of being too hard on yourself.

Does anyone else see comfort visons? Or am I just insanely paranoid and have deep rooted trust issues with reflective objects?

Dr Rob and the Restaurant Ban Update

06/08/2011

Days until Con : 83

I've been listening to a metric ton of health and weight-loss podcasts, and I highly recommend The Dr. Rob Show

I get frustrated with the bulk of weight-loss/health podcasts out there that basically shovels generic advice for about 10 minutes then spends 30 or 45 minutes giving shout outs to follow health gurus. The Dr. Rob Show has on average about 30 minutes of pure awesome advice. They have statistics (I'd marry statistics if I could) and real world advice coupled with lessons on the biological aspects of health. Dr. Rob is a professional in the field of weight-loss and talks about his first hand experience with his clients, so it's essentially getting professional nutritional advice for free.

Your welcome.

As for my ban on restaurant foods for a week, so far I'm doing damn well. I've been tempted a couple of times at Waffle House, but I held strong and only had coffee and the results have been totally midgets (slang for "crazy" Beau and I created while at said Waffle House). I'm sure my body is responding extremely well because it's confused and wondering where the hell the nachos are at. I'll keep it confused and in the dark, must like half my ex girlfriends.

Is this something I'll be doing long term? No, you have to create a lifestyle that's realistic and the lifestyle I have to create for myself involves eating out much less. Dr. Rob has a saying that I like, and it gave me a great reference for what kinds of foods I should get use to eating.

"You should eat what you can directly pull from the ground, pull off a tree, or shoot." Of course you could make an argument that just about every food fits into this category, but your aim is for the least amount of processed foods as possible.

Do you have any podcast or educational blogs you recommend? I'm hungry for knowledge and would appreciate any advice given.

Hot for Con Episode 4 : Goodbye Old Gym

New episode of Hot for Con, this is a tribute to my old gym as I gather the strength to find a new one...

Enjoy, spread the word, make me famous and I'll pay you back. With love. I promise...

Read it up.

Days until Con : 86

06/07/2011

I have purchased two books today, one on nutrition and one on the science of weight loss. I'm venturing now through the lands of guru and perhaps given enough time, podcasts, and literature I'll become something of an expert on the subject.

I'm taking this whole thing very serious, though you'd probably think I'm mocking the process if you've watched any of my Hot for Con youtube episodes. If you haven't seen them, then you're really missing a key ingredient to the entire Hot for Con dish I'm cooking up.

Cause today's dish is rockin with a side of whose your daddy. On second though don't tell me who your daddy is, that'd be awkward. Awkward for me anyways and if it's not awkward for you then I have a sneaking suspicion you swing around poles for a living.

My not eating out plan is working to perfection by the way and the results will be staggering to say the least. I cannot wait till Sunday's weigh in

Short post today since I have a new Hot for Con episode to release and these things take time.

Any Weigh You Look at it.

Days until Con : 88

06/05/2011

Today I'm filming a Vlog episode and it'll feel good to be back in that aspect of media. It's been a blast filming the other three, and I have plans for the next few. They may not be as extravagant as Episodes 2 & 3 but the point is getting them out there and sharing in my weight-loss journey.

Today is weigh in day, and I made somewhat of a comeback after some weird weight gains throughout the week. So while I gained pounds from last week, I'm definitely not losing heart because I kicked major ass the last half of this week. Riding that momentum I'm looking to do some amazing things for the rest of my challenge.

Last sunday : 219
Three days later : 226 (I blame lack of sleep, but I'm not sure if that accounts for 7 pounds gained?)
Today : 221

I eat out way too much, and while I've done an awesome job so far in my quest, I cannot help but wonder how I'd do if I stopped eating out for dinner. I fall into the classic trappings, I work late and have an hour drive home, I'm starving and just want to stop somewhere and get something to eat. I refuse to eat fast foods so that leaves sit down restaurants. Now that I'm single I bring a book and read chapters at a time during my dining experience and that piece I'm addicted to.  I love reading, so very much.

But this week I'm challenging myself to not eating out, anywhere. I bought enough food to last 7 days, and soon realized if I pull this off I'll end up saving a ton of money. I have to break myself of my eating out habit, it's not healthy and I have a Con to be hot for.

I'll still be able to read though, I'm cursed with friends who are constantly late to anything planned with me. I once had a book I read only when I was waiting for my friends to show up and was not surprised when that book was read in a relatively short amount of time.

So I'll let this be my reading time, turn my friends' tardiness into personal enlightenment. Assholes. Though admittedly I'll likely get there an hour early so I can squeeze some quality reading time in.

James Art : Igniting Zelda's Torch

I stumbled across some of my old art. I'll start posting them every so often.

The Storm, it Cometh.

Days until Con : 89

06/24/2011

The Hot for Con Challenge has been issued, officially now with a badge, and I believe we're about to get support from a few folks that would increase the visibility of this ridiculous adventure. As the ring leader I have to set an example and tighten up my routines. After a few hardcore workouts, my lower back and right leg seem to be playing nice enough that I can start this doing something active every day now. That covers fitness, but as for food I look back at my sparkpeople.com entries and to be honest I'm not making the entries nearly as often as I should. My diet has sliped due to the lack of visibility, and that will have to change. 

Make no mistake about it, the number 1 way to lose weight is to account for the foods you take in daily. Studies have proven that just the act of knowing what you're putting in your body will shed pounds. It's the same principle as owning a bank account, and at the beginning of the day you get 10 times your weight in calories to spend before you're down to zero. So save your money, and you'll be able to afford one of these.  (I will own one soon enough, and I shall call it son.)

Hot for Con Challenge, earn your badge!

So the time has come to get serious about your (my) health. People seem to respond well to flashy things, so if you decide to join in on the Hot for Con fun, you get a flashy cool badge (see picture of robot).

What can you do in 90 days? Plenty, just look around on youtube, it's littered with before and after photos and journeys. 90 days seems to be the magic where people can safely lose weight or tone their bodies in a very dramatic way, and the results are not only visible, but it's enough to time to get yourself into the habit of being healthy.

So get your badge, start sweating and avoid the buffet line.






Here's the HTML for your badge, wear it proudly.
<a href="[IMG]http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b120/opiecore/hotforconseal.png[/IMG]" target="_blank"><img alt="Offical Hot for Con Challenger" border="0" height="261" src="http://i18.photobucket.com/albums/b120/opiecore/hotforconseal.png" width="200" />
</a>

So what is Hot for Con exactly? I'm so glad you asked. Because you did ask right? I'm pretty sure you did. Dragon Con 2011 is in 90 days, and in that time period you must, if you're brave enough to accept, become the hottest you've ever been. Goals are important, you'll need something to gauge your triumph against. I have a weight goal, but others have what to get toned or built. These are hardier things to judge except maybe for arm or waist measurements, and pictures. The point is to get yourself in the best shape of your life, and all in the name of the geek community.

Set phasers to hot. (that was terrible but I stand by it anyways, like some of my past relationships)

How do I join? Leave a comment or send an email, link me to your blog or at the very least give me your name so I can put in the Hot for Con registry here.

What can you do to participate? Submit a before picture and if pure weight loss is your thing then I suggest you pick a day out of the week that you weigh in. I weigh in on Sundays, but maybe you'd prefer another day. You just looking to get tone?  Post your before picture.

At 60 days left, I'll have a call to arms with posting your progress photo, and then again at 30 days, and finally your official Hot for Con photo at day zero :)

Declare your goal, then kick ass by Con. You have until Sept 2nd.

No Sleep Will Devour your Weight-Loss

06/02/2011

Days until Con : 91

Check it. This weeks' weigh in will not be so awesome, unless I can make a last minute come back, or pay a surgeon to jiggy with a laser. I was finally feeling healthy enough to work out, been eating very decent, yet I've gained back into the 220s. The reason? Lack of consistent 7.5 sleep.

I'm pretty sure anyways.

I want to blame my friends, I really do, but ultimately it was my decision to stay out and have late night coffee conversations with them all week long. Maybe they slipped some fat pills into in with my creamer, or disguised a bbq pork plate to look like a rice N chicken lean cuisine meal. (I've been suspicious of the oriental selections regardless)

It doesn't help that I have to wake up at 6am, make an hour and half long journey to work, work until 5, workout until 6 or 6:30. Then an hour and half long trek back home. If I don't see anyone and just drive straight home after my exercising I'll be lucky to write one of these articles just in time to lay in bed.

At this point in my life I need human interaction, I need to know there's a world outside of my basement, my laptop, and a corporate office. But that's getting a little off topic...

On the Corner of Kick-Ass and Awesome

06/01/2011

Days until Con : 92

It feels good to be working out again, and I mean actually working out. The good stuff, like when you sweat and feel nauseous, when joints burn and tendons rip.  You know, I'm not sure how much of that is suppose to happen, but it's good to be back in the thick of it regardless. My leg and lower back have healed up nicely and today's hardcore workout didn't cause aftershocks of hellish pain to rush up my right thigh, so that's a plus. I took it as a sign that I'll be good for another hardcore workout tomorrow, and if the same results persist, the next day,

Because I'm a fan of pushing my luck.

It's weird to think that a few months ago working out seemed like something those people did. Oh you know those people, the ones who wear windbreakers and neon shoes. The ones who equip strange health gadgetry to their wrists, waists, or elbows and check them with an almost religious conviction while jogging in place at a red light. Their fanny packs are armed with pepper spray and ritual components. Because they're a cult right? Right. (actually I still believe this is true, just check youtube)

These people bear a striking resemblance to wrestlers and I think it's because of the stretchy clothing and bright colors.