Almost there...

So spent last weekend up in CO with my pal and his family. Roadtrips are usually the bane of healthy eating for me, with a little planning ahead (and a trip to Sprouts), I was able to completely avoid cinnamon bears/chips/cheeseburger/soda/etc. And because CS has turned into a complete despot and has banned everyone in the household from ever tasting anything they enjoy ever again, it was a piece of cake to stay clean there, too (though the cupcakes that Gramita made smelled delicious all weekend). I even limited my beer intake to one (1!) on the whole weekend, though I had a total of 3 to give. Didn't even have one at the Rapids game on Sunday. Though we didn't get in anything resembling a workout either day, food-wise everything went pretty damned swimmingly...except. We stopped for eats on the way back from the game. Went for BBQ since good old American meat is totally legit according to the rules. Ordered my beef ribs and iced tea, but forgot to tell them not to put any sauce on them. And while I didn't add any extra sauce, it was there and I ate it, sugar and all. 

We've got about 4 days left of this little journey, and I can only shake my head when I think that my lone stumble on food for the entire freakin' show may turn out to have been a tablespoon or so of barbeque sauce on the last weekend.

FOODS:

All clean, all the time, less a smear of ketchup & molasses

EFFORTS:

Made WODs from M-F (went the extra day because I knew I'd be missing while on the road)

Vegas is in sight!

My poor family

As a result of me eating clean, or at least damn close to clean every day, by consequence my family is also eating clean.  It's not like I prepare a chicken dinner for me and a bowl of pasta for them.  On Taco Tuesdays when I have the taco salad, they of course get the shell and cheese, but for the most part they eat what I eat.  I'm killing them!  The little one is in the 20th percentile on her weight for her age as of her physical about two weeks ago.  The boy, he's getting slower in each of his Landshark running races.  I've got to blame it on the eats...my kids need more carbs, which means I should probably start eating more as well.

I think the biggest component to eating healthy is planning your meals.  When you plan them and prep for them, it's easy to eat healthy.  Not planning leads to "what's for dinner?"  which leads to Wendy's or something quick (which is hardly ever healthy).  Just saying.

As for this weekend?  We'll do fine.  A couple beers watching college games on Saturday and maybe a beer at the game on Sunday should be all we need.  We can also stick to eating lots of meat...always delicious. 

So when do we start our PP training?  Is that going to be our next challenge? A weekly total miles x weekly pounds lost - penalty points for exceeding ? calories - 12 points for every beer over 2 per week divided by number of chicks you dated in HS.

Probably should check myself before I wreck myself

So I've cooled off a bit since Monday's debacle. I remembered that I had my suspicions that the scale that did my baseline weigh-in on was a bit dodgy, even mentioned it once or twice in a couple of early posts. I never went back and entered a different number from another scale, which had suggested that my first number should probably have been about 10 pounds higher. Not asking for a modification this far into the game, just reassuring myself that there probably has been progress, just not as much as I'd hoped.

As for CS, however, you're killing it! Fifteen pounds in 4 weeks is no joke. That's fantastic! You're dropping more than a pound every two days, and you are beating yourself up over not working out enough?! Keep up the awesome work. I've got someone to live up to.

Things here have been steady. One more workout to get my 4th day straight. All clean food, but trying to mix in more veggie carbs. Partly because of some of the things CS was mentioning, partly because I could tell that my protein v carb balance is a bit out of whack. We'll see how I do going forward.

This weekend, however, is going to be a test. Road trip, good pals, and sporting events. CS is right, this is as good as anytime to kill the rest of beer ration (mmmm, chopp....).

Trick will be stopping there. And behaving with everything else, too.

Chopp

I've got ten days and four beers to drink, may I suggest that you and I take care of our remaining allotment this weekend? I see no reason not to...just saying.

So last week the wifey and I bought 5 dozen eggs at Costco.  This weekend her mom comes up to hot the mega store and buys eggs as well.  Only she forgets them here.  I am eating lots of eggs.  Yesterday and today I had a coconut milk, banana and apple smoothie for breakfast and eggs, sausage and peppers or lunch.  Not much changes in my life.  I even had a bunless fast-food burger these two days as well.

No workout however.  Boooooo!

Calma calma...

...with the added hand motions from my father.  I'm sure you're doing better. Part of NM's issue is the same issue I've had in the past with Paleo (and other restrictive eating plans); that I simply plateau at which point nothing else happens.  I'm not sure how much of this is our age, a nutrition factor or simply that we suck and God had commanded us to be the two fat guys in marathons/Pikes Peak?  This is partly while I've gotten a few zeros as of late for clean eating, I've had some (very little and well within moderation) "other" foods but have continued to drop some weight.  Every clean eating diet I have tried has worked out similarly in that I drop a bunch at first and then run smack into the wall. 
I'm curious how you would do if for the next ten days you/we were not as restrictive but tried a calorie counting plan or a one carb a day plan and see if that shakes things up enough in your body to start something.  Additionally a change in plan will allow your body to adapt o that you don't have the shits nonstop in Vegas after that first piece of pizza.

In fairness to your disclosure, let me share my month with you.  While not great, it has been a steady drop:

Sept.	1	310
Sept.	2	307.4
Sept.	3	305.6
Sept.	4	304.8
Sept.	5	302
Sept.	6	300
Sept.	7	300.8
Sept.	8	301.6
Sept.	9	300.6
Sept.	10	299.4
Sept.	11	299
Sept.	12	298.8
Sept.	13
Sept.	14
Sept.	15	301.2
Sept.	16	300.6
Sept.	17	298.8
Sept.	18	298
Sept.	19	296.4
Sept.	20	297.6
Sept.	21	297
Sept.	22	295.6
Sept.	23	295.6
Sept.	24
Sept.	25	298.8
Sept.	26	296.6
Sept.	27	295.8
Sept.	28	296.6
Sept.	29	295.4
Sept.	30	294.8

4 Weeks In: Big FAT Effing Zero

So the rah-rah, happy happy joy joy bullshite. Since my last post, I've worked out everyday but Sunday (did some stretching, but don't really feel like that counts as a workout). I'm trying to keep up a pace of 4 days on/1 day off to give myself just a bit of recovery. After today, I'm at least one day into the the third round of that cycle, so I'm going to try and keep that up until we bolt for LV. Furthermore, I've been religiously clean with the food, and made sure that I'm getting plenty of water, plenty of veggies, etc., etc. I feel like I'm getting stronger with the workouts (think I've done more burpees in the last month than at any time in my life; still hate 'em), at least most of the time. That, I guess, is the good news. Can you tell that this is about to get ugly?

About three years ago when I did a complete paleo/Crossfit crash like this, I dropped 10 pounds in the first week. At the end of the first month, I was down 20. After 6 weeks (the approximate length of this face-off), I'd shed 25. Now, I'll admit that these are fairly extraordinary results (and maybe not incredibly healthy given the speed), and should not be viewed as a normal reaction to such activity. I was eating healthier more consistently than I ever had before, and I was working out harder than I had in many, many years, maybe ever. So I was quite comfortable with the idea that I wouldn't see anything quite that dramatic this time around.

We've kind of hidden from one another where we are weight-wise as thing does on, but today's sort of begged for full disclosure. Got on the scale this morning, and I haven't budged an ounce. Even got on a second scale to confirm this wonderful news. And though I'd like to console myself with thoughts of all the fat I'm replacing with muscle, I know the scales aren't lying because I'm not feeling the difference in my clothes, either.

This is easily the closest I've come to just bagging it and grabbing mucho beer and pizza, both of whom I greatly miss. To say I'm angry and a bit demoralized would be accurate. Looks like I'm going to need every bit of that point lead I've built up. And if things continue this way, any 'victory' will be pretty frickin' lousy.

5115

Actually 51.15 =  points converted to pounds that I am behind "The machine from 12th street."  Nice job by the way.  I escaped Homecoming weekend relatively unscathed.  While I earned few points, the damage clearly could have been worse.  Friday was a teacher workday which often lends itself to lots of food being around, lunches out, and snacking.  None of which I crossed (some intentionally, some by luck) paths with.

Saturday was the big day: parade at 9:00, pancake breakfast followed, game at 1:00, kid's soccer game at 3:30, dance at 8-11:30.  Meals were at a premium, as I really only had breakfast (where I lost my point) and a quick dinner before the dance.

Sunday was the Patron Saint Feast day at church (where I lost my point, not even on purpose) and then hours of rebuilding closet shelves. Not counting a HS football game, I saw 0 downs of football this weekend.  I need to start watching so I know what the hell is going on when we get to Vegas.

Workouts:
Friday - speed walking around the neighborhood prior to walking to get the kids from school (carrying their scooters btw).  Then some more speed walking at the boy's soccer practice.  I had planned on walking for an hour at practice, but sitting in the shade watching won out.

Saturday:
Ain't no way it could have happened.  really, just no way.

Sunday:
A little 45 min bike ride followed by some squats, push-ups and jogging to get me to 60 min.

While I may be performing poorly in this little game and will surely be buying NM a $85 steak with a lobster and baby emu on top, I am mindful of what I am eating, I am not "jumping off a cliff" once I lose my point, and I am still dropping weight...slowly, but dropping.  I am 1/6 or 16.6% of the way towards my goal of...

Slipping

Had something great I wanted to post tonight. Didn't write it down. Now I've completely forgotten it.

I'm old.

GRINDING:
W/U: 500m row
Lift: 3x3 tempo dead lift (235#), 2x4 deadlift (245#)
WOD: 18min EMOM - Odds: 4x2ct front squats (115#), Evens: 30sec front leaning rest

GIRDING:
Frittata slice
hand of grapes
bowl of green chile chicken soup
hand of carrots
big salad w/peppers, mushrooms, olives, tomatoes and salmon

Got it

Finally. It took me 24 days but I finally got an AM workout (45 min) and a PM workout (45 min) complete.  Clearly I am brushing sleep aside in order to do this, but at least I lost sleep for a good reason.

Everything else (eats-wise) was pretty normal.

Today I am reffing the annual Homecoming Powder Puff game and then hopefully I can get in at least an hour in the evening.  I wish myself luck.

Pts behind: 43 pounds

Well, OK

It wasn't a particularly busy day, but I somehow never really had the time to sit down and eat much, and when I finally did, just wasn't all that hungry. I can totally live with that. May also have something to do with the workout tonight. Took a friend to the Box for the free intro class they do, and it turned out we were the only two that showed for it. And had to two trainers all to ourselves. They kicked our arses. I apparently can totally live with that, too.

Though I will admit that I wanted to smack one/both of them a couple of times during the ordeal.

COMER:
1 slice red chile jerky
Dijon pork chop
Balsamic broccoli
2 small bags of carrots
2 hands of grapes
3 stalks of celery w/almond butter

TRABAJAR:
600m run
10min Airdyne: 30sec sprint/30sec rest
21-15-9: box jumps, v-ups w/3 burpees on the minute, every minute

Points: 2.5
Total: 48.5

(No) Apologies

I owe my compatriot a word of apology for my last post/rant. Like I said, it just kind of turned into a foul day, but that wasn't a reason to go after anybody, and I don't think that was really my intention, anyway. In any case, did not mean to ruffle any feathers and demean any position. As CS pointed out in a very reasonable/reasoned response, the issues that we face (and should probably take much more seriously than we have up to this point in our lives) are not easy. If they were, maybe we (and 2/3 of our fellow 'muricans) wouldn't be dealing with them? We ain't solving anything in this 4-6 week dash we're doing. Just need to get on the right path, whatever path that is.

Which brings me to the Tuesday report. I did nearly nothing exercise-wise, and that was completely planned and I'm not at all sorry about it. I realized Monday night when I was looking at the calendar ahead that I'd done WODs four days straight and that I was pretty sore all over. While I really wanted to go back and do another one (which is actually a great drive to have/feel), I knew I probably needed to take a break and give my body a quick rest. So that's what I did. I'll get back in there again Wednesday, and hopefully keep it up for another 4-day block before I give myself another breather.

And how do we get some of those physicians/dietitians/trainers/etc. to start paying attention to this thing? Is that covered in Obamacare?

GOBBLED:
slice of frittata
2 hands of grapes
slice of red chile jerky
2 balsamic-dijon chicken thighs
brussel sprouts
2 small bags of carrots
1 1/2 hands of raisins
1/3 lemon herb chicken
can of sardines
broccoli and carrots
2 hands of pistachios actually poured them back in the jar when I saw how much I'd eaten on the rest of the day; don't know my calorie count, but just looked/felt high; don't underestimate the power of the food journal

Points: 1
Total: 46

Segunda e terca-feira

Do I workout and sleep for five hours a night? Not work out and sleep for 6.5? Workout but not work on the house and sleep for 7?  Do none of the above but piss off my wife and kids and go to bed at 9:00?

These are pretty much excuses for my suckiness, but they do come into play on some level throughout most of the days.  Between Sunday night and Tuesday evening, I've gotten about ten hours of sleep total.  I only workout for a little bit on Sunday, didn't workout last night, and unless I plan on keeping the same cycle going, won't workout today.  Damnit!!!!

Maybe each day on Vegas we make a quick dash from the Belagio to Mandalay Bay and back and call that our workout???  Maybe we give a cabbie twenty bucks, tell to get us as far as twenty bucks will get us, and we walk back from there (though I have seen Cops and that may not be our best plan, then again it may cause us to walk faster).

Yesterday I did well.  Today I SUCKED ARSE!

I made about two pounds of jerky yesterday, bought some pistachios to add some protein and calories to my snacks.

Monday:
      breakfast - apple, banana, coconut milk smoothie
       lunch - green beans and steak
       dinner -grilled salmon and cauliflower
       snack -pistachios and carrots

Tuesday:
       breakfast - two eggs and two slices of turkey bacon
       lunch - green beans and chicken
       snack - jerky and 1 cup of pistachios
       the shite - a donut, a brownie, the kid's leftover chicken tenders

Workouts:
     Monday - we spent too f'in long putting together a kitchen island (but it does look nice), took the kids to a Landsharks running club race (the boy beat the girl by 18 seconds in the mile, but she had to stop and tie her shoe, which probably took her a minute to do).

   Tuesday - redoing the closets in two kid rooms and the laundry room.

As it stands now, I won't get to bed before 11:00 and that makes my plan for a 4:45 wakeup and workout standing on shaky ground.  DAMNIT! Again!
   

Well then.

After the online, intraweb, cyberlashing NM just gave me, let me clarify a few things.  I'm fine with the October 10 date for the finish.  My concern is I don't want NM and myself to go into toxic alcohol shock upon arriving in Las Vegas where we will have more drinks in the first six hours than we have had in the past six weeks.  Just wondering if we need to add an additional two beers to the existing eight (like the NFL does for OT).  Since I have an extra beer in reserve, I can surely last on my existing four much better than NM can on his three.

I agree that this is more than just weight loss.  It is our attempt (again) at a healthier life style.  That being said, part of healthy living is a) portion control b) impulse control and c) having things you like but not going overboard and having 20 of those things at one sitting.  Neither one of us have/will eat 2000 calories of cookie dough and Velveeta covered donuts in a day.  What we have/will do is eat a whole pizza, eight pancakes, a box of cereal, and 15 little boxes of Chinese takeout.  We have to ask ourselves what is better for our long-term healthy lifestyle change? Eating meat and vegetables only or learning on occasion eat two slices of pizza, two multi-grain pancakes, one bowl of cereal and two boxes of takeout without the fried rice?  I don't necessarily have the answer for that, but it is a question to consider.  The other question to think about is whether or not you/we are healthier at 280 pounds eating lots of protein, veggies and fruits or healthier at 240 eating few (but some) carbs, a little dairy sprinkled in and sugar in (we have learned to control) moderation?  Again, I don't know. My concern is that our weight and age may prove more of a health risk to us at this point in our lives than bread and cheese.  I of course would love to ask our readers and the nutrition experts who download our podcasts to share with their PhD candidates in open forums to chime in, but.....we have no followers, no podcast and are pretty much left to your brain and my brain (more of yours since your's is smarter) to answer these questions for ourselves.

Maybe we continue this conversation over beer and nachos watching 12 college football games simultaneously in about three weeks.

Dark day

So normally I think that people griping about Monday's is rather trite; the first steps in a grind are going to be just that, a grind. Always. So just suck it up and get through it. Today, however, had a little something extra.

Started first thing. Been religious about eating cleanly and getting to the gym for 3 weeks now, but I've got nothing to show for it on the scale. Given the work I'm doing and the weights I'm throwing around lately, it's plausible that I'm putting on muscle, but still, this was not comforting. It's the kind of hit that in the past would've led me to an "eff it" moment, followed by a cheeseburger/pizza/beer/etc. bender. And the day was just getting started.

Then I had a chance to read CS's Paleo Shmaleo post where he went off about everything in we've been doing. First up was the whole idea of paleo/clean eating. Now this was not a new concept to either of us when we started this show. We'd both tried it before, to varying degrees of success (went spectacularly for me, notsomuch for CS), so we both understood what we were talking about (hence the 8-beer exception). Now I understand (and share) many of CS's cravings, and agree that an ELMM regime would lessen the poundage, but to my mind dropping weight was only part of the issue. Eating better, taking better care of ourselves was the main goal; get that right, and the weight will at least begin to take care of itself. There are plenty of 'skinny-fat' people out there, consuming a much lower number of calories than the two of us normally do, but who get those calories from crap food and aren't any healthier than we. If this is just about weight loss, then why not have a bowl of cabbage soup, a glass of cayenne lemonade, shoot some coffee up our arses, or better yet just go all Bobby Sands?

Then came mention of the duration of this contest. We admittedly never hammered down a solid end date for this. I remember talking about doing it for a month (even mentioned it a couple of times in my first few posts), but we also agreed that the payoff would be the dinner in Vegas, which kind of created a natural deadline. Because I was unsure of what we'd decided, I asked about it. A couple of times:

• "Only another...how many more days are we running this contest, exactly?" - The battle has been joined, 9/4/14
• "Did we ever decide how long we're running this? We going for the end of September? Or when we get to the airport on our way to Vegas?" - Here's your Woop Woo...but, 9/4/14

Hearing nothing from up north, I chose to go with the longer, manlier challenge, and set the counter accordingly. It's been right there, taking up most of the right third of the screen every time anyone hits the blog page, but today was first time anyone made a peep about it. If another two and half weeks is too painful, we can call it off early. I'm sure I won't mock anyone. Much. (And what are you whining about your beer ration for? You've still got half of it left?!)

I will agree, however, that we've been too strict with the 'what qualifies as a workout' rules. Anything that gets the body moving and the heart rate up for more than 30 minutes at a time should probably count, whether it's running, lifting weights, moving boxes, mowing lawns, etc. Makes no difference to the body; work is work, and it's all good.

So by the time I'd seen the scale and then read all this, I was not a happy boy. Thankfully the lunchtime workout happened, and that help immensely. Keep up the good work. Just think how good all that terrible food is going to taste in Vegas!

INGRESS:

slice of frittata

1 1/2 hand of grapes

protein shake w/kale

2 slices jerky

chicken alfredo

brussel sprouts

3 slices bacon

EGRESS:

500m row

5x5 back squat (245#)

Partner WOD - 10min AMRAP: 5 burpees, 7 box jumps, 9 goblet squats (55#) - 10rds

Points: 2.5

Total: 45

Hitting the nail

NM has mentioned this several times and appears to be doing a good job at it as well - planning meals.  Hell I'd be happy if we had healthy food in the house all the time (my wonderful wife has been incredibly supportive in making this happen for the most part).  Between Costco and the grocery store today, we are stocked pretty well and I look forward to an enjoyable week of diverse eating. The thing that I have done well is not dip into the countless number of snacks laying around for the kids: granola bars, cereal (I miss cereal), yogurt, etc.  Additionally, as I type, I have some beef getting ready to jump on the dehydrator for some home made jerky.  Things are looking up, the scale is looking down (though still expected more) and according to Myfitnesspal app, I will hit my goal next October.  I'm shooting for May!

Paleo Shmaleo

In the past month I have met three people that I a) am related to b) work with and c) go to church with who have all lost excessive amounts of weight a) 60 b) 45 c) 75.  How exactly did all three of these guys do it? The world renowned, scientifically proven ELMM diet.  What is that you ask? Eat Less Move More.  And guess what?  They all eat bread, drink milk, enjoy some rice and beans on occasion and even...wait for it...have sugar!!!!!  They all limited their carb intakes, kept their calories under a certain number and tried to move a little bit more.  So what's my point?  Paleo is unsustainable for me for an extended amount of time...and I WANT CHEESE!!!!

On a different note, when this little shin dig was conceived it was originally until the end of the month.  I have noticed in the Countdown timer so prominently displayed by NM that he has us going until the morning of our Vegas trip.  I have some concerns/questions.  Do we get to extend our number of beers?  Much like overtime in the NFL where they get two additional timeouts, even if they have drank used all of their previous allotment.  So do we get a few extras?  Can't go to Vegas completely dry.  Much like a trip to the beach, you need to get a little base tan before then or you'll burn.

Does cutting the grass count as working out?  I think it should, but until I hear something official from the selection committee, I'll hold off an using those points.

Eats:
Friday - other than the world's best tasting breakfast burrito that a coworker brought in and a few fries at dinner, I ate well and clean.  Well except for a few (5-6) nachos at a HS football game...don't judge, the boy was full so I helped him out. 2369 calories.  My first day since I've been counting that I went over my limit of 2170.  Could I have said no to the burrito? Yes.  I could have also said yes to many other things that came along after 8:00 am that I passed on.

Saturday - did a mighty fine job I must say.  I didn't skip a meal, though should have drank more water but we were out of the house for a big chunk of the day at multiple soccer events. 1547 calories.  I did well today.

Sunday - same thing, ate well and even tried my first coffee of the month.  Make it a black coffee at that.  It sucked, couldn't finish it.  1427 cals and three distinct meals.

Workouts:
Friday - instead of JUST my usual circuit at the boy's practice I did some hill repeats...whew, I was sucking some big time wind.  Only did a half hour total.  It was Friday. I was tired. I still had a long evening ahead.

Saturday - 90 minutes!!!  Now that we have a tv (just for you) set up in the basement, I could do this while watching Nebraska beats so thuggish, cocky Hurricanes

Sunday - one hour cutting the grass (not to be counted though) and a 30 min workout watching Manhattan.

That's me in a nutshell.

Points - who cares, I'm clearly buying NM a big ass steak dinner in LV.

Failures like this I can live with

Alright, so I didn't get in the max points that I'd hoped this weekend, but still came out with the 5 I'd guaranteed coming in (looking forward to hearing CS recapping his last few days; the tote board suggests an interesting story). Got the work done early today, and went out to eat twice (once with family, another with friend) but kept it completely clean on the day. I will admit it's not terribly difficult to keep it clean in most restaurants, but I will also admit that dishes with bread/cheese/sugar still call to me. Mmmm, pizza...

One cautionary note. The free time the last two days has proven one thing I already knew; I'm still not getting enough sleep. Had the opportunity to veg a bit and watch some esportes both days this weekend, and both days I ended up crashing (more than once on Saturday) for decent periods of time. Clearly, I ain't as well rested as I should be. (The friend I had dinner with tonight was originally talking about also trying to catch a movie. I'm kinda glad we didn't, because between the lack of sleep lately, and the massive amounts of water the gym program has me quaffing, a theater trip may have been a complete shite-show.)

OVER THE GUMS:
1 hand of grapes
1/2 hand of baby carrots
chicken fajita salad w/tomatoes, avocado & salsa as dressing
2 hands pistachios
1 apple
1/2# Rudy's brisket
1/2 Rudy's jalapeno sausage

OUT THE PORES:
1200m row
3x15 GHD sit ups
3x5 Press (135#)
4x5 Pendlay Rows (145#)
3x6 weighted pushups (25#)

Points: 2.5
Total: 42.5

Shoot for the stars, land on the moon

Wasn't quite the epic day I'd hoped, but still got most of what I'd hoped done. Hit the gym first thing, and got a lot of cooking done for the week ahead. In the interim, however, a week of less than 8-hours of sleep a night caught up with me, as I took a pretty hardcore nap midday. Actually, it was more like naps. So breathe easier, CS. I didn't quite max out on the day.

EATS:
Bowl of green chile chicken soup
2 slices of bacon
1 hand of pistachios
1 hand of grapes
Big salad with chicken, peppers, tomatoes and olives
1 hand of carrots w/almond butter

SWEATS:
5x5 back squats (255#)
30ea box jumps, front squats (95#), kb swings (75#)=5:33

Points: 2.5
Total: 40

There, that's better

Got back to the gym tonight, and made the day count. Even got a legit atta-boy from the most accomplished guy in the box. At least that's the way I'm going to choose to take it. Brace yourself, CS, I'm coming with at least another 5 points out of this weekend.

TRICK:
W/U - 2x 250m row, 10 burpees
Lift - 3x6 overhead squat (155#)
WOD - 10min AMRAP: 7 knees to elbows, 7 hang power clean (115#), 7 burpees = 4 rds, 20 reps
(And yes, that's 44 burpees on the day)

TREAT:
slice of frittata
2 hands of grapes
big fajita salad
1 hand of almonds
1 hand of raisins
2 tablespoons of cashew butter
chicken alfredo
brussel sprouts
1 hand of pistachios
(this is probably too heavy on nuts) (that's what she said)

Points: 2.5
Total: 37.5

My, how the ground has shifted

So here's what happened. Planned on hitting the gym at lunch, but got hung up in the office and couldn't get out in time to make class. Planned on getting there right after work, but had a friend that had just learned some troubling news (nothing existential, but still), and stayed to talk to her past the class start. Planned on going to the usual 7:00 or 8:15 class, but then remembered that it was Thursday, no such classes. So went home, was hungry, had a giant salad, and watched PBS and the BBC for the rest of the night. I completely behaved myself all day, even going to lunch at one of my favorite restaurants in the state and avoiding everything on their menu that I love, but because I didn't make the gym, I feel like a failure. Look at what's happened to me!

And what's with the veiled I've-got-a-secret-but-I-can't-tell-you shite? Stop being a chick.

DID:
slice of frittata
2 hands of grapes
2 patty burger w/lettuce, tomato, onion, mustard and guacamole, w/o cheese or bun
1 hand of raisins
tin of sardines
giant salad w/tuna, olives, mushrooms, peppers and avocado
1 hand of pistachios

DIDN'T:
Gym, dammit

Points; 1
Total: 35

I follow the Moskva Down to Gorky Park

That's right ladies and gentlemen (like anyone reads this other than NM and myself), the Wind of Change is coming, just like the Scorpions say.  Got you confused?  Good, let's keep it that way.

Eats:
-actually ate my eggs and bacon this morning instead of leaving them in the nuker
-lunch didn't happen due to some beer drinking, almost fighting, and other craziness that makes up a large American high school.  So I ate my lunch on the way to buy our new car.  Green beans and turkey sausage.
-dinner - weeeeellllll........ Damnit. It wasn't my fault.

Exercise:
yes, for 30 min.  Can't tell you what, but it wasn't walking (though tomorrow is a practice day so it will be).

Daily pts: 2
Total: 24 (which means I would have to lose 31 pounds to make up the ten pt deficit...ain't going to happen! or is it????

Well at least it's moving

Well I've recovered the weight gain from the mad dash to ABQ and then some...so that's a good thing.  Thanks to the Myfitnesspal app I have been tracking my calories nicely this week.  This is a strategy that has worked nicely for my cousin who dropped 60 pounds by limiting himself to 2000 cals a day.  On that note, my phone app yelled at me yesterday because I didn't eat enough and only hit about 700 calories.  For the record, it was not on purpose.  My egg and bacon breakfast was left in the microwave as I went to work in the morning.  Additionally, thanks to some (8 to be exact) misplaced (in his mouth) little red pills by a student at school, I missed my lunch and didn't eat until about 2:30.  Hard to eat with EMT's in my office.  This in turn impacted my dinner as I wasn't hungry prior to taking the boy to soccer and then I only had a small snack upon the return home.

Got in a nice little walk at soccer for an hour (see, I'm good on Wed/Frid).

Points: 2 on Tuesday and 2.5 on Wednesday
Total pts: still an ass-kicking by NM

Moving right along

Not much to say today. Clean eats, good sweat. Clearly in the groove, and it feels pretty good. Just over three weeks to go.

BREAD:
1 slice frittata
2 hands of grapes
1 smoked turkey leg
collard greens
1 hand of almonds
big horking salad

CIRCUSES:
W/U: 3min single unders
LIFT: 3x6 Press (125#), 3x6 Front Squat (215#)
WOD: 600m row, 300 single unders, 600m row

Points: 2.5
Total: 34

Two weeks!

Hard to believe, but we're now into week 3 of this little experiment, and it's actually been a bit easier than I'd expected. It's helped immensely that I've been near home and able to get clean food relatively easily when I needed it. As CS demonstrated earlier this week, travel is fraught with landmines. As long as I plan just a little bit ahead, everything has worked out fine. I'm not overly encouraged by the scale, however.

Part of the problem stems from the bad machine I was using at the beginning of this little show. I'm quite sure that it was 5-10# off from the start, as my trip up on the better scale earlier this week showed that I'd actually gained weight over the first 10-12 days. This can't be the case, but I don't know how to adjust or account for it. So, all I can do is keep plugging away and doing what I know will work. It's done it before. I just don't know if it will be enough to keep me ahead of CS for the overall title. I'm going to need every workout/clean eating day point I can get between now and the end.

Which means CS still has a very legit shot at free steak.

THE WORK:
W/U - 500m row
Lift - 5x clean, clean & jerk (125#)
WOD - 12min EMOM (Odds: 6 hang power clean (115#); Evens: 30 airdyne sprint)

THE PLAY:
1 slice of frittata
1 hand of grapes
kale smoothie
1 hand of almonds
1 hand of pistachios
2 dijon-balsamic chicken thighs
1 1/2 hand brussel sprouts
1 hand of plum tomatoes

Points: 2.5
Total: 31.5

Knock knock, is anyone home?

I'm here, have no worries.  Sorry about the disappearance, but with a flash trip to ABQ and back coupled with a few cross-country meets, coupled with who knows what other excuses, the updates took a back seat.

So while my point totals clearly suck, I have done better.  I gave in Friday night driving to ABQ.  I did fine going up to Denver for the XC meet and back, did fine at home, but the family dinner stop at Freddy's kind of did me in.  It was either eat there, or not eat.  Since we didn't get on the road until 8:30pm with an ETA of 2:00am, I figured I needed to eat.  The good thing is that my one burger and some fries and a diet soda was the only bad thing I ate on the way down.

Saturday at the wedding I did well.  I expected there to be a salad and some kind of meat that I could eat.  When this became clear that it would not be the case and after I picked all the almonds and cashews out of the little dishes on every table, including the wedding party table, I gave in at hit the buffet line.  In my credit I only had one serving of enchiladas and a spoonful of beans.  No soda, no tortilla, no corn, mashed potatoes or seconds.  I also did well at breakfast in the morning and passed on the cereal.  I did not however pass on the Cinnamon Toast Crunch at 11:00pm when we got back home (I had already lost the point and I only had one bowl. It was goood).

Sunday I did fine for breakfast, passed on the banana bread (with chocolate chips), only had the burger and lettuce with my Sonic lunch on the way out of town (no fries, tots, etc).  Iced tea and I even threw out the buns.  Had lots of jerky and almonds on the trip back.  The trip that took for freaking ever.  Leaving during the day when everyone is awake leads to people having to pee in explainable amounts of times.

Yesterday I did fine.  Yesterday I had a beer.  I save up seven for the wedding but....... no booze at the wedding. I must now find other places and times to drink them. 

Still need to figure out when and how to workout, that's what's killing me.

Came back from the weekend up two pounds, probably from sitting on my arse so much.

Losing by: 10 points
Beers I still get: 6
Bears NM still gets: 3 (So who is really winning this thing?)

Yep, definitely old

Back was still tweakish today, so decided to give it a day's rest. Cookies and brownies everywhere in the office, but avoided it all without too much difficulty. Back in the gym tomorrow, still got a steak to win.

COMIDAS:
Slice of frittata
1 1/2 hands of grapes
Bowl of lamb stew
1 hand of raisins
10 almonds
3 celery sticks w/cashew butter
1/2 hand of baby carrots
chicken alfredo
artichoke and peppers mix
grazing on brussel sprouts and bacon bits while cooking

Points: 1
Total: 29

Maybe I'm old?

Woke up this morning and felt great. Until I tried to get out of bed. Apparently I really worked (tweaked?) my back during yesterday's extended stay in the box. After some stretching I was able to move a bit better, so I figured I'd just go back to the box. Either it'd stretch me out and loosen things up, or it would completely break me, leaving me a writhing pile of goo. Thankfully, it was mostly the former, but the back never completely loosened up, and sitting through a 4 hour nutrition seminar on crap chairs didn't help things. But I got the work done, got the knowledge dropped on me, and got some prep cooking done for the upcoming week. 

Still a pile of goo, however.

CS, the weekend in ABQ treat you alright?

EATS:

Protein smoothie w/banana, almond milk & kale

spaghetti squash w/red sauce

small salmon fillet

kale salad

mixed fruit

hand of grapes

3 celery stalks w/cashew butter

grazed on chicken, sausage, olives, artichoke heart & mushrooms while making frittata and chicken alfredo (all paleo)

SWEATS:

W/U: 750m row

Lift: 4x3 press (125#)

WOD (Partner): 14min AMRAP - 8 ring dips, 16 kettlebell cleans, 16 kb weighted box steps = 3rds

Points: 2.5

Total: 28

The Perfect Day*

So it took me a couple of weeks, but I finally posted the (nearly) perfect day. Got up early went to the 9am WOD at the box. Because I signed up for a new member challenge at the box, and our benchmark workout was happening at 10:30, our coach suggested we go a little easy so we had something in the tank for those moves. Didn't really listen to him and went as heavy/hard as anyone else in the class. My back is barking a bit tonight after the sled-pushing, but felt good to get it done. Felt better to know that whatever happened the rest of the day, I'd just maxed out on points for working out.

Among the only blemishes are the two beers at tossed down at a good friend's 40th birthday party. Avoided the cake, all the other booze and other snacks, but did partake of the Rudy's (no sauce) and two delicious cervejas, if for other reason than just because I needed to fit in and use them as camouflage to avoid more and far worse beverages. (Also dodged all the goodies laid out by the hostess at a neighborhood association board meeting.) The bigger black mark is that fact that I had zero veggies on the day. THAT definitely has to change.

EATING IN:

2 hands of grapes

2 small plums

ribs

brisket

sausage

pulled pork

WORKING OUT:

W/U: 500m row
Strength: 5x5 back squat @60-70% 1rm (225#)
WOD: 8x sled push (6 w/90# plates, 2 w/115#)

Challenge Benchmark WOD: 1 min AMRAP - Burpees (19), Sit ups (35), Medicine Ball Squats (46)

Points: 3

Total: 25.5

Cruising

I was hoping for better on the day. Got up too late for a real breakfast, but did make a good smoothie before heading out the door. Had a good ol' smoked turkey leg for lunch, but passed on the sides. Got a decent dinner, but probably not enough veggies on the day, and the pistachio bomb while watching a movie isn't all that great. You'll notice there no trip to the gym. I was just too tired at the end of the day and called it. Big plans for Saturday morning, however, should help make up for it. The best laid plans...

EATS:
Protein smoothie w/tiny bananas, and kale
1/2 hand of almonds
Turkey leg
Small bag of carrots
3 sticks of celery with cashew butter
One-half handful of grapes
2 egg scramble, with mushrooms, peppers, olives, avocado and salsa
3 slices of bacon
2 hands of pistachios

Points: 1
Total: 22.5

Just in Response

While I have no new info to share I would like to congratulate NM on the minefield avoidance.  Don't feel bad about the beers, we allowed ourselves 8, you're not even half way through your allotment approaching midmonth.  I on the other hand have only had one, but only because I am saving the other 7 for a wedding this coming weekend at Casa de Gordochico.

As for my weight.  I expected the weight to fly off for most of week one.  It flew off of four days. My weight loss in days 1-4 equals my weight lose for days 5-12.  I am not happy about this.  As for my eating, I thought I would try something different this go around since it has worked wonderfully for a co-worker.  I have purposely eaten only during the hours of 11:00 am - 7:00 pm.  Since I have hit a virtual wall this week, I think I will go back to eating a little more often and putting a few more calories into my system.  I started that this morning with a banana, apple and coconut milk smoothie.  That's the scoop.  We'll see how a 6+ hour drive goes for eating healthy tonight.

Two-a-days

Don't confuse the title with the possibility that I worked out twice in one day.  On the contrary, I'm condensing two posts into one.

Wednesday I ate as normal but got in a good hour (even made the boy wait after his practice was over for a few minutes until I got in my full hour).  Aside from the power hike, I even threw in a little jogging to make an effort to speed up my PP training.

Thursday consisted of two instances that in full disclosure I will share, though the commish may choose to pretend like I didn't share these with him, only to have them leaked at the end of the month by a secret video.

The insurance guy was in the building yesterday and with him came two 6' sub sandwiches.  Did I have any? Yup.  Did I eat the bread or cheese? Nope.  I'm that guy with the gross looking plate with bread and cheese peeled off of a sub and only eating the meat, lettuce and tomato.  Now the disclosure part: did some of the soggy bread stick to the meat? Yes.  If the commish holds this against me I will appeal to the player's association and fight back.  I will not let The Man try to make an example of me. Especially since I am brown! Peace!

Dinner was much the same.  We prepared/served dinner to some homeless families at church and the other host brought in some chili.  Aside from the beans, it was clean.  I did my best to remove all the beans but, again with full disclosure, some mushed up beans may have been consumed.  I didn't hide the fact that I dragged the beans out of the bowl.  I even have video evidence of this as I took a picture of my chili and the beans laying there deadlike next to the bowl. Beans were knocked out!

Don't come back to me in five months and say you didn't know about the soggy sticky bread or the mushed up beans.  I am telling you everything! I hide nothing! I speak the truth. The whole truth. And nothing but the truth. So help me god. Amen!

5.5 pts in the hole

Zzzz

Look at these!
If I was going to include a first picture, it had to be of bananas Brasileiras. Oh, how I miss the tiny bananas and everything that went along with them. Oh, how I miss being able to sleep in like I did/could down there.

Got up early this morning to go to the gym. I'd skipped yesterday and already knew that I probably wouldn't have a chance to get it done at my usual times today. So there I was dragging in at 5:45. You know what? I'm 40+ now. If I was ever going to become a morning person, I think it probably would've happened by now. Well it hasn't. And it ended up with me taking a 20ish minute nap during my lunch hour.

I have a friend that's leaving my office this week, so I took her out for a farewell cerveza after work. This was, I think, my first foray into a pub since we started this, and it wasn't easy to stop with just one (had to have one to be social) and to avoid the delicious sounding bar food altogether, but this tubby guy managed it! Went from there to hangout with a reunion of folks from my prior gig and had one more beer with them, but was able to dodge the pizza and pastries they had there. Two beers is nothing to be proud of, but negotiating not one but two minefields relatively successfully is probably OK on the day; if anything, I may not have eaten enough.

DOWNLOAD
protein smoothie w/tiny bananas and almond milk
bowl of lamb stew
2 hands of raisins
2 hot links
1 hand of pistachios
2 (dearly missed) beers

UPLOAD
W/U: 300M row
Lift: 4x3 Dead lifts (3sec count up/3 sec count down) @50-60% 1RM (185#)
WOD: 2rds - 20 pullups, 20 hand-release pushups, 40 single unders, 20 thrusters (95#) = 14min

Points: 2.5
Total: 21.5

Ouch

The day started spectacularly. Got up early and had a proper breakfast, which actually tided me over until lunch time...at which point I had to graze on the stores in my office, since I was too busy to get out. So busy, in fact, that I ended up staying there until just before 9pm. Which means I completely missed the gym for the day. Wasn't too upset, because I'm still limping from the front rack lunges from Tuesday. But can't make this a habit.

And goat-tee boy?!? Fully bearded since 2012. More or less.

2 egg scramble w/mushrooms, peppers & olives
2 slices bacon
1/2 hand of grapes

4 slices red chile jerky

2 small cucumbers

3/4 hand of baby carrots w/guacamole

2 hands of raisins

Big ol' salad w/tuna, olives, peppers, celery &; mushrooms

One man's opinion

So I had a chance to read my pal's catch-up posts and had mixed feelings. I'm glad to see that I'm maintaining some lead on him because of the WOD's that have been kicking my arse over the last week plus. It's still way too early for me to get complacent and start thinking about that free ribeye awaiting the winner of this thing. A bad day or two and CS will be all over me. Like him, I didn't get good news from the scale this week, but we've been here before. It may take a week or two for everything to kick in and start moving the direction we want. Until then, it's important that we keep eating smart and breaking a sweat when possible. Which brings me to the things concerning me about both of our efforts.

I'm still not having a real breakfast each morning. I might grab a piece of fruit or two on my way out the door, but that means after going 8+ hours with no eats, I'm hitting my gut with a sugar bomb and little else. No protein, no good carbs, no fats, no good. It's been pretty well established that putting the body through a feast/famine cycle causes it to clamp down and hold as many calories as possible because it doesn't know when/if it'll be fed again, making weight loss even more difficult. Going forward, I need to get steadier, good calories in me throughout the day, starting first thing in the morning.

CS looks like he may be doing something similar. Can't tell when he's eating, but it actually doesn't look like he's eating enough. The three days of postings that CS just got caught up with all include good foods (aside from brownies; I miss brownies...), but not nearly enough of them to do this the right (and more importantly, sustainable) way.

We've shown that we can avoid the bad stuff for a week plus now. The trick now is to not throw the baby out with the bath water and get the good stuff back in there, and at the right times. The rest will take care of itself at that point.

LOAD
2 slices red chile jerky
1 apple
1 1/2 hands of grapes
3 baby cucumbers
1 bowl of lamb stew
1/2 hand raisins
2 hot link sausages
2 celery stalks w/almond butter
1 hand pistachios
1 nectarine

UNLOAD
W/U: 250m row, 7 TGU's w/25# kettlebell
Lift: 5x2 hang power clean + 1 jerk at 60-70% 1RM (115#)
WOD: 3rds: 250m row, 12 (6/leg) front rack lunges (95#)

Back on the upswing

Weight went down again today.  At this point this is my only real hope to beat NM, so I need the weight to go down...a lot.

Eats:
ground turkey
zucchini
almonds
apple
2 hard boiled eggs

Workout:
moved a sheet ton of boxes tonight does that count?

I'm in a bad mood and getting my arse kicked by goat-tee boy.  I've got nothing more to say.

Daily pt. 1
total: 12.5
deficit: 5.5

It's just another manic...

...day that I again gained weight.  Grrrrrrrr!  Crap like this is what saps the motivation out of a man.  If I'm going to eat this well and do yard work (cut the grass today) and gain weight, then I might as well eat what I want (which I didn't...sort of).

The bad news.  I earned zero points today.
The good news. I only earned zero and didn't go deep into the hole with a "f--- it" attitude once I lost the point.

So there have been four tubs of little Costco brownies in the freezer at work for about two weeks now (left over from Back to School Night).  I open that freezer a couple of times a day to get some ice for my unsweet iced tea.  I move the brownies out of the way, take them out, put them back...never a problem.  I thought I was immune to these brownies.  They could NOT hurt me.  They did not appeal to me.  They were dead to me!  Note on the word "were."  I went to the staff meeting after work and on a little table with the water were two pretty plates with the brownies sitting ever so nicely upon them.  My automatic pilot flew buy, scooped up two, and at some point ate said two brownies.  Not sure when it happened, but it did.  About halfway through the meeting it clicked what I had done.  I might have yelled, might have cursed, might have grumbled; I don't know.  I might have done one or all three of those things as the principal was announcing the staff member of the month...I don't know.  I was having a pissed off out of body experience.

IT RUINED MY F'IN DAY!

Eats:
2 hard boiled eggs
2 turkey jerkey sticks
1 apple
some almonds
2 sent by the devil brownies.

Daily pts: 0
Total pts: same as the f'in day before

WTF!

(Sunday's delayed entry)
How. The. Hell. Did. I. Gain. Weight. Today?  Pissed a brotha off is what it did.  So what was my first Sunday of the NFL season like and how did I do at it?  Did fine thank you very much.  The day consisted of church (avoided the coffee and cookies table afterwards), a nap at home during the morning games, some yard and house work during the pm games and no-idea-what-I-did-during-the-Broncos-game.  But I didn't eat or drink any football food!

Still waiting on a little gadget I have coming next week.  I'm so excited for it I almost drove to Denver to get it myself... it will be a game changer.

So my biggest problem so far is working out. Didn't get one in today. If I don't do it immediately in the morning or as soon as I get home, it just doesn't get done.  Ah the life of a busy man.

Eats:
3 hands of almonds (oh yeh we went to Costco...zero samples thank you)
1 hand of cashew (more like two fingers than a hand)
5 brats (they were small, don't worry)
onions (with the brats)
peppers (with the onions)
tea
and one communion waffer in a pear tree

Daily pt total: 1
Total pts: 11.5

The Dawn of Week 2

So this is the rough part. Got on the scale Monday morning and it wasn't good news. It was so confusing/disheartening, in fact, that I ended up bringing another scale home from the office. I have more confidence in this new.

The good part is that I think I can feel some difference in minhas calças. Have to keep plugging on to see something real, but I'm already hitting that point where I don't feel right if I haven't done something exercise-wise on the day. And if nothing else, that's a very good thing.

DOWN:
4 grapes
4 almonds
1 apple
1/2lb pork ribs
1/2 jalapeno sausage link
1/2 hands of raisins
1 handful of carrots, half w/cashew butter
1 bowl of lamb stew
1 nectarine

OUT:
Warmup: 1K row, 5x hip complex, 1x hamstring complex, 5x push up combo

Lift: 5x5 back squat @60-70% 1RM (245#)

WOD: 9min AMRAP - 3x power clean (115#), 3x push press (115#), 10 air squats = 8rds

Points: 2 1/2

Total: 15.5

First real test, Part II

So Sunday was the second day of laying about that I was rather afeared about, and I'm kind of ambivalent about how it worked out. Started well, with a small, arguably healthy breakfast, followed by a trip to the office with nary but a bucket of unsweetened iced tea. Had a few grapes while I worked until a meeting at 1pm, at which I got drafted into service with my local neighborhood association. (Yep, I'm now officially that old; a dues paying member - and officer - of my neighborhood association. Next up, AARP.) Even there, I dodged all the cookies, crackers, cheese, etc. that were laid out, and grabbed a handful of grapes and strawberries to go with my water. Took care of more work that afternoon and grabbed some Rudy's on the way home. Where things broke down (aside from not getting in a workout) was eating the whole bit that I bought from Rudy's. It was so very delicious. And I felt so very gross the rest of the day. I did manage to avoid vegging in front of the TV watching football all day (actually, didn't watch a minute of it all weekend), but also proved that binge eating is still only one meal away at any given time. I kinda suck.

DOWN: 
2 eggs
2 slices bacon
1 clememtine
2 handsful of grapes
4 strawberries
1 celery stalk w/cashew butter
1 hand of baby carrots w/cashew butter
1 lb of brisket

OUT:
Nada

Points: 1
Total: 13

The squeeze is on

NM is getting nervous, I can feel it!  Got my first max point day of the month.  Started the morning off with a 1.5 hour walk (and have the chaffing burn to prove it) exploring the new 'hood.  Nothing too exciting out there so at some point I'm going to have to venture into the unknown.

What I ate? Not much.
Banana, apple, and coconut milk smoothie
Big ol' steak, zucchini, tomato mix up
Hand full of baby carrots
A little tuna patty that was left over from the kids (just tuna and egg)
I know.  I need to eat to lose, but between waking late, going for the walk, some house work, a soccer game and some college foootball, it just didn't happen.  I'll do better on Sunday.

Daily pts: 3
Total: 10.5

First real test

So, as CS mentioned yesterday, today was probably the first full test of our resolve. A whole day at home with plenty of food in the house, free time if so chosen and plenty of mindless distractions that normally lend themselves to equally mindless eating. Usually, the weekend is a nutritional minefield.

Spent the day the right way, however. Gym first thing in the morning, ran a few errands, and, most importantly spent some time planning and preparing meals for the rest of the week. I don't think I've been this disciplined and organized in about 3 years. CS should be very afraid.

THE INTAKE:

Protein smoothie w/banana, unsweetened cocoa & kale
2 peaches
1 clementine

3/4 handful of baby carrots

Small piece of red chile jerky

1 celery stalk w/cashew butter

bowl of chicarrones w/salsa

THE OUTAKE:

W/U: 600m row, 5 burpees, whirlybirds, etc.
Lift: 3x4 dead lift @60% 1RM (235#)
WOD: 6rds - 5 burpees, sled push w/100#, 1:30 rest

Points: 2.5

Total: 12

Funday Friday

Finally.  I finally got in everything I wanted to get in.  Ate well (though some might argue not enough) and got in a nice workout earning myself my first bonus .5 of the month.  Additionally, and this is where NM should be SCARED, I am 1/9 of the way to my goal.

Eats:
snack - quite a few grapes throughout the day
lunch - steak bits, 1/2 a zucchini, 1 tomato, 4 small peppers

That's it.  I meant to eat more but got home and had to run the boy to soccer, did a killer (at least for my current condition) power walk/hike through Fox Run Park, found my new Pikes Peak training grounds, got home from practice and took off to catch a HS football game.  Along the way I avoided the pizza sitting in the press box (not looking for accolades Mr. Rock) and somehow dinner.  Didn't really feel hungry until about 11:00pm so at that point I just went to bed.

The big test is today and tomorrow when I'm home all day....

Daily total: 2.5
Total: 7.5 (happy now)

Strange days

So today was kind of...off. Been dragging all day, even grabbed a 15 minute nap during the lunch hour. Cut out of work a little early and headed to the track with the boys. Hadn't been to see the ponies since a fraternity semi-formal at Laurel, MD, some 20ish years ago. Lost a few bucks, but more importantly for our purposes here, avoided the plentiful opportunities to grab large, cold and delicious looking beers. Caught about 5 races before heading home, and was just too beat to get to the box tonight, so took a pass for today (of course, here I am at 11-something at night, typing and not sleeping). So here's your opening, CS. Did you manage to pick up a point or so on me? You won't have the same chance on Saturday.

THE INPUT:
Banana
2 handsful of grapes
rotisserie chicken (leg/thigh/wing)
small bag of baby carrots
guacamole cup
2 small cucumbers
2 handsful pistachios
1 handful of baby carrots w/almond butter
2 hot link sausages

THE OUTPUT:
Bupkus

Points: 1
Total: 9.5

...and then the skies opened and the rain began to fall

One word. Damnit!  Shoes on, music finally loaded to my phone, headphones finally found and I was out the door for a full 1.5 point workout when the skies decided to open up. Damnit.  I came back in pissed off and decided the best move I had at that point was simply to go to bed.  So I did.  At 9:00. Damnit.

Ate fine, green beans and steak bits for lunch and a slab of meat for dinner as I ran out the door for Back to School night where I avoided the brownies, the cookies and even the punch.

My biggest concern, NM is pulling away by earning 2.5 points a day, though I believe I am seeing cracks in his armour as he broke down and had a beer last night (I assume last night, but those DA types who really knows, he may be drinking in Court for all I know). Can you believe he had a beer? On a Thursday? Damnit!

Points for the day: 1
Total Points: 5

Here's your Woo Woop...but

Mucho props to you my friend for resisting the temptation of all that uneaten food laid out before you last night. That's the kind of self-discipline that we're both going to need to achieve the goals we have for ourselves. HOWEVER...

That's the kind of self-discipline that we're both going to need to achieve the goals we have for ourselves. Which I thought was precisely the point of this little endeavor to begin with. For too long, we've both been weak when presented with opportunities for comidas, which is what got us in this mess. You had your family meal last night, I had the open hors d'oeuvres table at the campaign fundraiser I went to tonight (BTW, probably good that we have the beer ration; hard to turn down a free one from a smart and pretty lass). We both behaved ourselves and did exactly what we were supposed to do. As great as that is, I feel like the correct answer is a paraphrase of Chis Rock (link NSFW): we don't get congratulated (or rewarded) for doing what we were supposed to do in the first place.

Did we ever decide how long we're running this? We going for the end of September? Or when we get to the airport on our way to Vegas?

THE IN:
1 banana
2 hands of grapes
1/2 handful of almonds
1 chicken breast
1/2 hand of baby carrots
1 pickle-sized cucumber
1 100cal serving of guacamole (little cup sized at Costco; totally clean and delicious)
1 1/2 handsful of pistachios
2 hot link sausages

THE OUT:
Warm-up: 500M row, 2x (15 single under jump rope, 10 push-ups, 5 kettlebell swings (35#))
Lift: 4x3 reps of Strict Press at 70% of 1RM (145#)
Metcon: 12min AMRAP - 50 single unders, 10 kettlebell swings (70#), 10 hand release pushups = 6rds, 40 singles

Points: 2.5
Total: 8.5

Can I get a Woo Woop?

So the fam asked the obvious question that I am now deferring to the selection committee: Do you get extra points for going out to dinner and NOT falling off the wagon?  I don't just mean and quick little stop to Panera or Applebees, I'm talking Texas Roadhouse; complete with all you can eat buckets of peanuts on the table, all you can eat sweet rolls on the table, left over potato skins from the lil' girl, left over fries from the big girl, a whole left over cheeseburger from the boy, and a remaining cup of chili from the wifey.  Didn't default at all.  At my salmon, my veggies and drank my unsweet iced tea. 

So do I get an extra 1/2 point?

Ate well the remainder of the day by only having a handful of almonds, some turkey sausage and green beans.  And yes NM...I bought the unsweetened, fat free, light, organic, made-by-an-angel coconut milk.  I also got in a 30 minute brisk walk.  Either I walked quicker or I was wearing more clothes because I was a sweaty betty when I got home.

NM.  Satisfied?

Points: 2
Total: 4

The battle has been joined

THE DAY: 9/3/14

THE WORKOUT: 600M run, Tabata burpees 8min AMRAP (Partner WOD): 5 medicine ball dead lift, 6 box jumps (7 1/2 rds)

THE EATS: 1 banana 3 hands of grapes 2 pieces of red chile jerky 1/2lb brisket (no sauce/no bread) leg/thigh rotisserie chicken guacamole baby carrots cucumber So I still haven't gotten on top of the food thing, at least for beginning of the day. I'm grabbing some quick fruit on the way out of the house and then supplementing with jerky from the office stash. This ain't a real breakfast. Thankfully, lunch and dinner have been better managed thus far. And at least everything has been clean thus far. Only another...how many more days are we running this contest, exactly? Points: 2 1/2 day; 6 total

A segunda, e meu amigo esta aqui

THE DAY: 9/2/2014
THE WORKOUT: 2x: 250m row, 5 burpees, 10 sit-ups 10min AMRAP: 5 hang clean (115#), 5 pull ups (green), 10 burpees - 4rds
THE EATS:
4 slices red chile beef jerky handful of almonds protein shake w/banana and almond milk handful of baby carrots rotisserie chicken 1 1/2 hands of grapes So Day 2 was more like it; kept the food clean and got in a good workout at lunch. Not sleeping well enough (started fading at my desk while screening a relatively boring case), but one or two things at a time here.  Also glad to see that CS decided join the game and that he put in some real effort today. Gives me a little concern that he might give me a game. Until I see the 200+ cookies he ate the night before. Ain't no quota for those.

And look who is on the board

Day #2 went much better...for the entire day.  I drank a toooon of iced/luke warm tea, ate well (perhaps too little and even got in a workout.  Here's the breakdown:

turkey sausage, green beans, tomatoes for lunch
3 slices of turkey for a snack
2 servings of a taco salad (ground beef, lettuce, tomatoes, peppers and salsa

The rest of the family added one or all of the following to their "salad:"  ranch dressing, cheese, taco shell, chocolate brazilian fudge balls.

I finished cutting the grass, went for a 30 minute brisk (and a slight sweat) walk plus a 3 minute WOD (5 flights of stairs, 5 pushups, 5 squats, and 5 terrible burpees.

On this note I am going to bed before I do something stupid.  Bom sorte NM

Smores, those damn smores

Day one went great...until the cute little neighbor girl came by to tell us her parents were inviting us over for smores and cookies to welcome us to the 'hood.

2 tomoatoes
2 turkey brats
1/2 cup of yogurt...totally my wife's fault.  It didn't click until I was about halfway done that yes, even Greek yogurt, has dairy.
2oz of steak on my way out the door to the smorefest
0 smores
1 beer (only seven left)
286 caramel chocolate chip cookies

I moved boxes, unpacked a bunch, cut the grass, but officially did not "workout."

Points earned: 0
Grand total: 0

Day Uno

THE DAY: 9/1/14

THE WORKOUT:
Nada, because I don't want to leave CS to far behind right out of the gate. Plus, I'm lazy. I did spend a good chunk of the afternoon cleaning out the garage at least.

THE EATS:
2 eggs
2 slices of bacon
1 avocado
1 hand of plum tomatoes
2 hands of pistachios
2 hot link sausages

So day one came in with kind of a whimper. Considering it was a day off, I should have been able to get out and work out. At least I got some work done around the house. And, I kept it clean. Now I just need to do it for the next 30 days.
 

Enough of this

So we're doing a month long dash. Food/Workout recap to be posted daily. Points awarded for % of body weight lost + points for clean eating and solid working out (see rules in right column). Loser pays for steak dinner in Vegas. Don't forget to do your weigh-in on Monday, 9/1.

And then prepare to be beaten.