Childhood Abuse

I had this idea last night and threw this together on my lunch break... enjoy. My entry in the Micheal Bay/Ninja Turtle/He is a nut bag war going on right now.

\m IS NOT TRY \m/

I am Rushfit(ish)...

So I "finished" the beginner program of Rushfit. I use quotes because I actually did not complete all of weeks 7 and 8. Life got in the way. I decided that in lieu of spinning my wheels to do every single workout and continually having to adjust my schedule I decided to cut my losses and call the Beginner program done. Plus, I am really anxious to get in to the Intermediate program. It's the same exercises, just a slightly more intense schedule.

I am taking this week off, as recommended, to prepare for the next step. I am doing some light cardio work and finishing my Fortress of Solitude*. When I start the next program I am going to follow it much more closely and really step up my cardio. I am going to do the Couch to 5K program along with Rushfit. I figure I am on the treadmill anyway, why not? Below you will find before and after pics and stats. I am using the same after pics and stats for the before of the Intermediate program. Later this week I will have a video post with my review of the whole program and the tools I am using to assist me in my mission.

Stats

At the beginning of the program, you are asked to do a fitness assessment and measurements. Below are my results.

FITNESS ASSESSMENT

Each exercise for 60 secs, 20 sec rest in between

Air Squats: Before = 15 After = 51

Push Ups: Before = 15 After = 26

Sit Ups: Before = 10 After = 23

Burpees: Before = 7 After = 12

MEASUREMENTS

Weight: Before = 295 After = 275

Chest: Before = 52" After = 50.5"

Waist: Before = 52.25" After = 48.5"

Hips: Before = 52.5" After = 51"

Thigh (R): Before = 29.5" After = 28.25"

Thigh (L): Before = 29" After = 28.5"

Bicep (R): Before = 15" After = 16"

Bicep (L): Before = 14.75" After = 16"

PICTURES

Here are the before and after pics

 

 \m/ IS NO TRY \m/

I need a laugh track...

I can't seem to win. I was all pumped to hit week 8 of Rushfit with a vengeance and finish strong. Then, because my life is a poorly-written sitcom, I got a cold/sinus infection thing that has had me down since Saturday. I am well enough to work out, that is not the problem. The issue is I am so congested I can't breathe, which is very counter productive. I am going to give it a shot tonight and see if I can't get through at least a few rounds so I can go ahead a finish. I am talking next week off anyway to prepare for the Intermediate program to start up on the 19th so if I can try to get through this week I can take it easy next week and not feel guilty. I am not giving up, just having trouble picking myself up right now. I will post my video review of the program along with all my stats from the last 8 (actually 9) weeks early next week.

\m/ IS NOT TRY \m/

Press play to resume...

So... I SHOULD be on week 8 of Rushfit and finishing up the Beginner program on Saturday. I'm actually on week 7 still. Last we insane and decided to take a little break. First off, I was CRAZY sore. This crazy Texas weather has been killing my joints and alergies and my abs were just not playing nice anymore (which I guess is a good thing). I decided to err on the side of caution last week and take things easy. Then my lovely wife fell during her ballet class and fractured her arm. That made the rest of the week pretty crazy. By Friday afternoon I realized that I had not done much working out at all so instead of trying to push myself and cram all the workouts I'd missed in I just chalked it up to life getting in the way and I would pick myself back up and move forward this week.

I am back on track will be completing the program on Sunday the 11th. Technically my last workout is Saturday but I am doing the post-program assessment and measurements on Sunday. I will have a lengthy post, most likely in video form, to give my full recap of the program. I am still having some motivational issues, but I am pushing through. I am hoping the break between the Beginner and Intermediate programs will give me the boost I am looking for.

In that down time I will be starting the Couch to 5k program to work on my cardio. My podcast buddies and I are running a zombie 5k in December so I want to be in shape for that. More details on that will come much later. Also coming soon will be my review of the various internet tools I am using to stay on track. Until then I am going to just keep plugging away hoping for the best.

\m/ IS NO TRY \m/

At Long Last (Shameless Self Promotion)...

After many years of spinning my wheels, I am proud to say... I am a podcaster! This is something I have wanted to for a very long time. I have bought equipment and made plans and gone nowhere. I tried to get something going at work and that has never really taken off. About a year a half to two years ago one of my best friends suggested we do a podcast. He and I have wanted to collaborate on something for years but he lived up north and I lived here. We planned it all out. We had a name, a logo, a format (kind of) and we were ready to go. Then we didn't. About a year ago another of my best friends off-handly mentioned his desire to do a podcast and would that be something that interested me. He and I got a bit further with ours, but still nothing. Finally, after growing tired of waiting, I decided to combine efforts and see if the three of us could pull this off. Erik had recently moved back to Texas so we had no more excuses. I gathered all my equipment, opened up a website and gmail account got the ball rolling. Soon we had a Twitter account and Facebook page and were scheduled to record the first episode. Before the first episode Erik suggested the addition of a fourth host. With the team in place it was time to record.

On February 4th we gathered around my kitchen table and recorded the first episode of Too Nerdy For TV. It was a blast. We all had a great time. There were some technical issues and it was wired so crazy with the equipment we had I'm shocked it sounded as good as it did. February 8th, despite some MAJOR problems from our web host, we were live with "The Saga Begins", the premiere episode of our show. We had planned to meet up again to record the second episode but life got in the way and we were still having some major problems with the site. We worked all the bugs out, found a new web host, got a proper domain, and finally got this beast some life.

We recorded two more episodes over the weekend and we are now live in iTunes. We are working really hard on this show and I am so excited to be in iTunes. We release new episodes on Wednesdays. We are a work in progress and we appreciate any feedback you can give us. Head on over to www.toonerdyfortv.com and check us out. Follow us on Twitter, Like us on Facebook, and subscribe to the show. I cannot say enough how proud I am of this show and how cool it is to have my name on iTunes. #humblebrag

\m/ IS NOT TRY \m/

Don't call it a comeback...

So last week I hit a wall with my workout. For some reason my motivation was GONE. I have been going hard core for 5 weeks and once I hit week 6 i just hit a wall. I talked to come friends and did some internal searching and I think I figured out what the problem was: I could not get out of my own head.

I did an update for 4 weeks which was half way through my program. I was not seeing the numbers I thought I should have and I was suddenly feeling like it was no longer worth it. I got up inside my dead and was psyching myself out. I have since realized that I was being stupid and it did not matter. I also Tweeted/Facebooked my plight to @GSPRushfit and for about an hour or so I became a Twitter celebrity. There was such an influx of support from random people on Twitter. It was humbling. No one said anything overly profound or motivational, it was just having the support from total strangers that kicked me back in to high gear.

I think part of my problem is that I weigh in every day. I have a 1/10 pound scale so I can see every change. That is good and bad. I know some people do not even weigh in or they only do out of curiosity. I am sure there is a split on each side of the fence for that. For me, it helps. It does motivate me and it helps me know what causes me to gain and lose. At the same time I was hoping for more dramatic losses by the numbers than I have seen. I understand the biology behind it and know that muscle weighs more than fat and this program is definitely building muscle. That does not always help. I am focusing on the inches and physical results over the actual weight numbers and I am doing great. I have two weeks left on this run. I am taking a couple of weeks off Rushfit after I finish to focus on my cardio. I have just about finished my homemade equipment and will have pictures posted soon. For now I am still pushing through and having fun. Can't wait for the end of week 8 to see where I am on my measurements and such.

\m/ IS NOT TRY \m/

Call me cheap if you want...

Short update today. Working on a few projects at home. I have a 4-day weekend coming up so I have some time to play around with some stuff. I am closing in on the end of Level I of Rushfit. I have three weeks left. Between now and the beginning of Level II I am trying to get some more equipment. I am looking to add the following items:

TITLE MMA Training and Fitness Dummy - $100 + $22 shipping = $122

TITLE Uppercut Bag - $90 + $25 shipping = $115

TITLE Double End Bag - $40 + free shipping = $40

Total for these items is $277. I am not spending $277. My using items around the house and some pseudo dumpster-diving I am going to be able to make all the items listed above for less than $50 (I think maybe even less than $30). I will post updates as I finish things. Short version:

Dummy = old carpet (wrapped in duck tape)

Uppercut bag = 50 lbs of play sand and old clothes in an old duffle bag. (possibly wrapped in duck tape)

Double End Bag = kids bounce ball (wrapped in duck tape)

I am really excited to get my "gym" finished. I have considered an actual MMA gym, but since I have no plans to actually fight anyone and I am just doing this for fun I see no need to pay expensive gym fees and the gas to get there (closest gym is 30 miles away). I will post pictures when everything is done.

I have about half of THIS built, but I can't seem to figure out exactly how to finish it. With everything else I am making, it is not that big a deal.

\m/ IS NO TRY \m/