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milosz
04-24-10, 01:27
Over the course of my last relationship, I gained 25-30 pounds, started smoking again, partied a little too much (though not really for the last year), and did pretty much no exercise outside of work and, uh, 'couples exercise.'

So 13 days ago I gave up smoking, drinking (completely, for a month - after that I'll give myself a couple of beers a week hanging out with friends), sodas, sugary snacks. I've even stopped eating anything after dinner - much as I love fruit at night, even that was unnecessary.

Down 8-9 pounds, mostly water weight I'm sure. But things are fitting better (or worse, depending on when I bought them - jeans are getting loose). I was at 252 when I started, at 6'1" - my goal is to get down to a lean, muscular 185, or thereabouts.

Started back at the gym on Monday - my first goal is to be there every day for at least 30 minutes for a month to build the habit, even if that's just 30 minutes in the dry sauna on a rest day.
I'm amazed at how quickly cardio endurance comes back - 20-30 minutes of intervals on the elliptical/cross-trainer, it's already taking much longer to get my heart rate into the 165+ area.
For this week it's been the elliptical (I have bad knees, and my running form is embarrassing), assisted dips and pull-ups.

I'm leaning toward another week of cardio focus and then moving on to a deadlift/squat/press routine - Rippetoe, Pavel T's Power to the People, something.

I started a blog to document where (http://arebuildingyear.com) that's fairly inane right now. As I get more free time, I'm hoping to work on it under the concept of a self-improvement guide for cynics, pessimists and people who otherwise hate the garbage being sold as self-help.

021411
04-24-10, 03:56
I'm not a fitness expert but keep up the good work! I just started myself a few days ago after a 2+ year break. Pathetic right? I gained right about what you gained..25-30. My clothes were getting tight, especially my uniform. I had to put a stop to it. I actually just got back from the gym. I was sitting at home on the computer and thought what the heck..:cool:

I bookmarked your link.

8200rpm
04-24-10, 17:45
Good on you for recognizing your shortcomings and wanting to change for the better.

You might find CrossFit very useful. I think it's a terrific method for those of us who don't have a strong fitness or strength & conditioning background... i.e., most normal people.

Reasons being...


The workouts are short (~20 minutes). Approx 45-60 minutes including warm up and cool down.
Group setting w/ trainer. Movements are taught and corrected by a trainer for every workout. You don't wander aimlessly through the gym waiting your turn, then wonder if your even doing shit correctly.
Workouts are prescribed for the day and unknown until you show up (or log on). When was the last time you felt nervous before stepping into your gym? Regardless of whether you had a good day at work or a bad day, you're gonna FINISH the workout of the day. You can't mentally cheat yourself into an easy work out... "my boss was a total bitch today, so I'm only going to do 3 sets instead of 5, or 2 miles instead of 4, or just cardio, etc".


http://www.crossfit.com/cf-affiliates/

Find an affiliate in your area and contact them about getting started. Even if you don't join, the "on-ramp", "on-boarding", "elements", "fundamentals", or "intro" program will teach you the basics so you can do them on your at your home gym. Then, you can do the workouts posted on crossfit.com on your own (scaled or subbed down to your abilities as necessary of course).

Some people complain that the membership fees at CrossFit affiliates are higher than the typical 24-hour gym/spas. IMHO, I spend far less on CrossFit than I would on cigarettes, Starbucks, shit food at Taco Bell, or high volumes of cheap booze. What's your body worth? Plus, I don't have a garage gym to keep Olympic barbell and bumper plates, squat rack, pull up bar, plyo box, medicine ball, and a rower. So I use my gym's, and they replace it if it breaks.

MookNW
04-24-10, 18:11
Awesome man!! Hang in there. I'm coming up on 9wks w/o cigs and dam if I didn't switch seats on the titanic. I've been eating like a hog! It's gonna have to be one thing at a time for me I guess. Keep us filled in. :D