Well I am finally able and willing to sit down and write all of this stuff down. This will be a pretty short and sweet entry that will have the data from 2 weeks.
2 weeks ago, it was a stressful week that involved me driving over to Green Bay and back in one day, which cant be good for trying to burn calories. I had also cheated and had a dilly bar, this was not in a normal situation, it was a gong away party in my honor at work, and everyone brought sweet treats, I felt that I had to have something.
Numbers for week 9:
Net weight lost: 3
Net inches lost: 1 inch
Total Weight lost: 37.4
Total inches lost: 24.5
This past week had been stressful, but it also contained a lot of physical activity. I had cut my cable and internet off early so I had very little to do in the evenings, other than going for a walk. I also managed to load and unload all of the things that I own into and out of a U-haul within the same day. I have been physically tired since then. I still have some unpacking to do, and I need to find a new outdoor walking route here.
Even though I moved me cheat day up to Saturday from Sunday, I was able to have a pretty good week. Without much ado, here are the results from this past week:
Net weight lost: 2.8 lbs
Net inches lost: 3 inches
Total weight lost: 40.2 lbs
Total inches lost: 27.5 inches
Net Percentages:
Net percentage of my goal weight lost: 23.26%
Net percentage of my total weight lost: 9.5%
I will be over 25% of my goal weight lost, and over 10% of my body weight lost.
Sunday, August 28, 2011
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Diet Log Week #8
It has been a good week. I was already down in weight on Wednesday. I had a good walk/jog on Friday night. I jogged to the gym, lifted weights, and jogged back on Saturday night, which was exhausting but I am very glad I did it. I will do that any day that I have enough time to, it really helps me feel like I have accomplished something, and that was after a long day of delivering groceries at work.
I am definitely a little bit sore today from some intense weight lifting that I did. I plan to at least go for a walk today during my cheat day just to get myself moving some, which is always a good idea. We will see how it goes later on.
Like I said, this was a very good week, and with my work schedule coming up this week, I should be able to exercise more, and potentially walk to the gym an back a few times with my open schedule, which would be awesome. I will report back on how that went next week.
This week's results:
Weight loss this week: 5.4 lbs
Inches lost this week: 2.5
Total Weight lost: 34.4 lbs
Total inches lost: 23.5
After this very successful week, I am up to 19.9% of my goal weight loss number, I was hoping it would be an even 20%, but 19.9% is still a damn good number. I have also lost over 8% of my total bodyweight since I started. This is good, but I still have a long way to go. I need to stay the course, and keep working out hard when I can. Thank you for all of your continued support!
I am definitely a little bit sore today from some intense weight lifting that I did. I plan to at least go for a walk today during my cheat day just to get myself moving some, which is always a good idea. We will see how it goes later on.
Like I said, this was a very good week, and with my work schedule coming up this week, I should be able to exercise more, and potentially walk to the gym an back a few times with my open schedule, which would be awesome. I will report back on how that went next week.
This week's results:
Weight loss this week: 5.4 lbs
Inches lost this week: 2.5
Total Weight lost: 34.4 lbs
Total inches lost: 23.5
After this very successful week, I am up to 19.9% of my goal weight loss number, I was hoping it would be an even 20%, but 19.9% is still a damn good number. I have also lost over 8% of my total bodyweight since I started. This is good, but I still have a long way to go. I need to stay the course, and keep working out hard when I can. Thank you for all of your continued support!
Monday, August 8, 2011
Movie Bracket Play-in Round
The first set of matchups for this tournament are below. Remember that I am using rewatchability, Entertainment, and originality as my qualifiers for deciding who will win.
Dawn of the Dead Vs. Raging Bull
Dawn of the Dead: I should specify this is the newer Dawn of the Dead movie from 2004, not the original. The original is on my list of movies to see, it is quite an extensive list though. I always enjoy finding Dawn of the Dead playing on tv, it is a movie that you can just jump in at any point and enjoy it until the end. The movie does a great job of presenting characters, some of which you will like, some of which you won't like, all united against a zombie outbreak.
Raging bull: Jake Lamotta has his way with women, and that way is to nag them til they can't take it anymore. he takes his anger from the ring and takes them out on his wives, as in he goes through more than one during the course of the movie. I think this is a great film, but would I want to watch it again tomorrow? No, there are some very downer moments in it. I am looking for movies that I could watch again and again. This movie has some action in it, but the verbal and physical abuse of spouses, the fighting outside of the ring, many other things contribute to the downer of a movie. I am glad I watched this movie another time, but I don't need to see this again for another few years. There are also a ton of uses of the word fuck in this movie. Robert Deniro's performance was great, but I just can't have it going on, I am depressed just from watching it.
Verdict: Dawn of the Dead. Raging Bull is a great movie, but I don't want to watch it again for quite some time. Once will suffice for a few more years. Raging Bull definitely has lots of entertaining parts in it, but I just don't feel like dealing with the spousal abuse that occurs throughout the movie. The entertainment value and the general enjoyability of Dawn of the Dead wins out.
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Vs. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
This is the only matchup of the round that i am going to actually take a pass on watching either of the movies for. I have to give hands down to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.
The 7th Harry Potter movie is just, in my opinion, superior in just about every way. I think the movie is more grown up which allowed for better performances. The actors were able to really act in this movie. I think I actually liked Part 1 better than Part 2, but I will leave that debate up for a different time, but I am giving Deathly Hallows a walk here, because this way I don't have to watch all 8 movies this week, and I already know my opinion on this matchup.
Little Miss Sunshine Vs. Gladiator
Little Miss Sunshine: I love this movie, I probably didn't need to watch it again, but I really wanted to see it in its non-television version to see how much I would love it another time around. I love the family dynamic in this movie, and every single family member puts in a good performance. Even though the movie is a comedy, this might be my favorite Steve Carell performance, and he is not a comedic character in this movie. Alan Arkin's performance deserved the Oscar that it received. Paul Dano, who is one of my favorite character actors, does a great job without many spoken words. I think this movie proved to me that it belongs in this tournament, and it even made me forget about my laundry.
Gladiator: I was actually disappointed by watching this movie again. It is so hard to mentally transition from epic battle scenes to emotional and dramatic scenes. There is very little humor to be found in this movie. There are many entertaining scenes in this movie, but it stretches on for such a long time. It come in at about 2.5 hours, but it feels like 3.5. Not a great thing to be saying about a movie, but I have been bored for quite a bit of this movie. The creepiness with which Joaquin Phoenix plays his character is definitely a highlight.
The decision goes to Little Miss Sunshine, I still love this movie every time I watch it!
Zombieland Vs. The Incredibles
Zombieland: This movie rates very high on all of the scales. I think the fact that it really does a great job of incorporating humor, with action, with suspense, with a little bit of horror jumpiness. The characters in this movie are all well done, even if there are only 4 of them, 5 including the cameo. The little rules that pop up on the screen still make me laugh. Even though it isn't the only zombedy, it is unique, it really is not at all like Shaun of the Dead. This movie actually seems to just fly by too, it is only 88 minutes long, but it really does not have any dull moments in it. This really helps its entertainment value a lot. This movie has what may be the best surprise cameo I have ever seen as well.
The Incredibles:
The Incredibles is another great movie. It has such heart to it, while also being a superhero movie. For a Pixar movie it really has a dark side to it. It was quite entertaining to watch even though I had seen it many times before. There were some duller moments during this movie though, which takes it down just a little bit in the entertainment category. I also don't think it would be that much fun to watch over and over.
The verdict for this match-up is in favor of Zombieland, but this was close, and actually a hard decision to make. I think if we are talking strictly in terms of a movie critic The Incredibles would win, but I need more than just that for my every day life.
Up next:
I will announce all of the matchups that I won't need to watch the movies in, watching all 100+ movies would be really hard, and i know some of them by heart.
The updated bracket can be found here: http://challonge.com/weckpd
Dawn of the Dead Vs. Raging Bull
Dawn of the Dead: I should specify this is the newer Dawn of the Dead movie from 2004, not the original. The original is on my list of movies to see, it is quite an extensive list though. I always enjoy finding Dawn of the Dead playing on tv, it is a movie that you can just jump in at any point and enjoy it until the end. The movie does a great job of presenting characters, some of which you will like, some of which you won't like, all united against a zombie outbreak.
Raging bull: Jake Lamotta has his way with women, and that way is to nag them til they can't take it anymore. he takes his anger from the ring and takes them out on his wives, as in he goes through more than one during the course of the movie. I think this is a great film, but would I want to watch it again tomorrow? No, there are some very downer moments in it. I am looking for movies that I could watch again and again. This movie has some action in it, but the verbal and physical abuse of spouses, the fighting outside of the ring, many other things contribute to the downer of a movie. I am glad I watched this movie another time, but I don't need to see this again for another few years. There are also a ton of uses of the word fuck in this movie. Robert Deniro's performance was great, but I just can't have it going on, I am depressed just from watching it.
Verdict: Dawn of the Dead. Raging Bull is a great movie, but I don't want to watch it again for quite some time. Once will suffice for a few more years. Raging Bull definitely has lots of entertaining parts in it, but I just don't feel like dealing with the spousal abuse that occurs throughout the movie. The entertainment value and the general enjoyability of Dawn of the Dead wins out.
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince Vs. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
This is the only matchup of the round that i am going to actually take a pass on watching either of the movies for. I have to give hands down to Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1.
The 7th Harry Potter movie is just, in my opinion, superior in just about every way. I think the movie is more grown up which allowed for better performances. The actors were able to really act in this movie. I think I actually liked Part 1 better than Part 2, but I will leave that debate up for a different time, but I am giving Deathly Hallows a walk here, because this way I don't have to watch all 8 movies this week, and I already know my opinion on this matchup.
Little Miss Sunshine Vs. Gladiator
Little Miss Sunshine: I love this movie, I probably didn't need to watch it again, but I really wanted to see it in its non-television version to see how much I would love it another time around. I love the family dynamic in this movie, and every single family member puts in a good performance. Even though the movie is a comedy, this might be my favorite Steve Carell performance, and he is not a comedic character in this movie. Alan Arkin's performance deserved the Oscar that it received. Paul Dano, who is one of my favorite character actors, does a great job without many spoken words. I think this movie proved to me that it belongs in this tournament, and it even made me forget about my laundry.
Gladiator: I was actually disappointed by watching this movie again. It is so hard to mentally transition from epic battle scenes to emotional and dramatic scenes. There is very little humor to be found in this movie. There are many entertaining scenes in this movie, but it stretches on for such a long time. It come in at about 2.5 hours, but it feels like 3.5. Not a great thing to be saying about a movie, but I have been bored for quite a bit of this movie. The creepiness with which Joaquin Phoenix plays his character is definitely a highlight.
The decision goes to Little Miss Sunshine, I still love this movie every time I watch it!
Zombieland Vs. The Incredibles
Zombieland: This movie rates very high on all of the scales. I think the fact that it really does a great job of incorporating humor, with action, with suspense, with a little bit of horror jumpiness. The characters in this movie are all well done, even if there are only 4 of them, 5 including the cameo. The little rules that pop up on the screen still make me laugh. Even though it isn't the only zombedy, it is unique, it really is not at all like Shaun of the Dead. This movie actually seems to just fly by too, it is only 88 minutes long, but it really does not have any dull moments in it. This really helps its entertainment value a lot. This movie has what may be the best surprise cameo I have ever seen as well.
The Incredibles:
The Incredibles is another great movie. It has such heart to it, while also being a superhero movie. For a Pixar movie it really has a dark side to it. It was quite entertaining to watch even though I had seen it many times before. There were some duller moments during this movie though, which takes it down just a little bit in the entertainment category. I also don't think it would be that much fun to watch over and over.
The verdict for this match-up is in favor of Zombieland, but this was close, and actually a hard decision to make. I think if we are talking strictly in terms of a movie critic The Incredibles would win, but I need more than just that for my every day life.
Up next:
I will announce all of the matchups that I won't need to watch the movies in, watching all 100+ movies would be really hard, and i know some of them by heart.
The updated bracket can be found here: http://challonge.com/weckpd
Sunday, August 7, 2011
Diet Log Week #7
Well all week long I had been worried I would have a week where I gained weight. One of the main reasons I think was that I didn't do any sort of exercises on my cheat day. As I am writing this on my next cheat day, I have already been doing a lot of wall presses and air squats. I think another reason that my weight had been up most of the week was because I had not been passing the food through, even though I eat usually around 150% of the daily recommended amount of fiber, toward the end of the week that cleared itself out. I have also been going through some sinus issues lately too, which can complicate things.
Once I have a regular daily work schedule, I will be able to exercise more regularly, which will only be beneficial for losing weight faster. I really look forward to that happening, I would like to be able to live a life of routine for once!
I went to the gym on Wednesday while my car was being worked on, it felt good. I went for a jog on Thursday night. I wish that I could have done something on Friday, but my schedule would not allow it. On Saturday night I walked about 2 miles to the gym, lifted weights for about and hour, and then about 2 miles back. By the end of that I was so worn out.
This was my worst week so far on the diet, but I made some progress, so I am still moving in the right direction. With my rough work schedule this week, I will have to put in extra work to make sure i get to the gym a few times, and walk a few other times this week.
This week's results:
Weight Loss this week: 2 Lbs
Total weight lost: 29 Lbs
Inches lost this week: 2.5 inches
Total inches lost: 21 inches
Like I said, I would have liked to have lost more than this, but at least it is positive progress.
Once I have a regular daily work schedule, I will be able to exercise more regularly, which will only be beneficial for losing weight faster. I really look forward to that happening, I would like to be able to live a life of routine for once!
I went to the gym on Wednesday while my car was being worked on, it felt good. I went for a jog on Thursday night. I wish that I could have done something on Friday, but my schedule would not allow it. On Saturday night I walked about 2 miles to the gym, lifted weights for about and hour, and then about 2 miles back. By the end of that I was so worn out.
This was my worst week so far on the diet, but I made some progress, so I am still moving in the right direction. With my rough work schedule this week, I will have to put in extra work to make sure i get to the gym a few times, and walk a few other times this week.
This week's results:
Weight Loss this week: 2 Lbs
Total weight lost: 29 Lbs
Inches lost this week: 2.5 inches
Total inches lost: 21 inches
Like I said, I would have liked to have lost more than this, but at least it is positive progress.
Wednesday, August 3, 2011
Little League World Series
The Little League World Series is one of my favorite annual sporting events. There is just something about it, it truly is a team sport. These kids come from all over the United States, and from all over the world in the other bracket. Kids get to play baseball on ESPN and ESPN 2, that is just a dream thing for so many people. There is such a contrast in the size of some of these players, as well as a contrast in the personalities. There are some kids who are over 6 feet tall and built, and others that are just over 4'6". Some kids love talking to the camera, and others are more shy.
Every team has at least one star pitcher, but the problem is that there is a limit on the number of pitches each pitcher can throw, and then there is a mandatory number of days rest for the kids so protect their arms. The game they play is not perfect, there are always going to be errors, and there are some kids who crack under the spotlight. It just seems like it is a more pure form of the game, before greed comes into it. Every kid on each team has to come into the game on defense and for an at bat. There are no pitchers that come into the game to face one batter, the managers tend to stay out of the game and let the kids play, it is a kids' game after all. Being at the LLWS is an honor for the umpires too. They are all volunteers, and pay their way to get to Williamsport, PA every year.
I think watching this was something that I used to watch with my family, and I enjoy discussing it with my little brother at the very least. It is a great thing to have on television, if you have nothing going on that day or in that evening. I tend to cheer for teams from either the Midwest or the Great Lakes region. Hopefully Minnesota or Wisconsin will be represented at the LLWS this year.
The regional championship games will probably be airing on ESPN and ESPN2 this weekend, and the LLWS starts the weekend after that. I am sure I will spend way too much time watching it, and discussing it on Twitter. It really is a fascinating event, and I urge everyone to check it out.
Every team has at least one star pitcher, but the problem is that there is a limit on the number of pitches each pitcher can throw, and then there is a mandatory number of days rest for the kids so protect their arms. The game they play is not perfect, there are always going to be errors, and there are some kids who crack under the spotlight. It just seems like it is a more pure form of the game, before greed comes into it. Every kid on each team has to come into the game on defense and for an at bat. There are no pitchers that come into the game to face one batter, the managers tend to stay out of the game and let the kids play, it is a kids' game after all. Being at the LLWS is an honor for the umpires too. They are all volunteers, and pay their way to get to Williamsport, PA every year.
I think watching this was something that I used to watch with my family, and I enjoy discussing it with my little brother at the very least. It is a great thing to have on television, if you have nothing going on that day or in that evening. I tend to cheer for teams from either the Midwest or the Great Lakes region. Hopefully Minnesota or Wisconsin will be represented at the LLWS this year.
The regional championship games will probably be airing on ESPN and ESPN2 this weekend, and the LLWS starts the weekend after that. I am sure I will spend way too much time watching it, and discussing it on Twitter. It really is a fascinating event, and I urge everyone to check it out.
Tuesday, August 2, 2011
Dating Update
I am not sure how much I have shared about this, but I am currently on a dating hiatus. This doesn't mean that I haven't had the urge to ask someone out lately, but just that I have not done so. I have really been doing this for a few different reasons.
1. I have been working on losing weight, and I have been successful in doing so.
2. I needed to recover from the damage I received last time I really let someone in.
3. I am planning on moving soon, so dating someone here would not work too well.
4. On top of just recovering from the last girl, I want to work on myself even more beyond that. My psychological issues have been well documented on my blog(s) in the past, and I really just want some time to be me, and enjoy life without any added worries. I think this was long overdue for me.
I guess that last item could have been discussed in a bit longer form. It has been quite a while since the last time that I had a real crush, it might be a record, well since I was first interested in girls at least.
I had a good discussion on twitter with someone who was going through some issues with unrequited feelings, and maybe not dealing with them in the most subtle way either. I have all to much experience dealing with that, but it has been nearly 6 months, which is once again probably a record for me.
My biggest issue right now is in regard to dating. If I move to a new area, I might want to give dating a try over there, as a way of making new friends and as a way to potentially meet someone. I think that this is just me trying to convince myself that I should see what is out there right now, but maybe I am just bored. It is really something for me to ponder, I still have a lot of weight to lose, and I don't want to get sidetracked on that. Of course it is possible that I could meet someone who would only help encourage me down the right path too. The short answer right now is that I don't know what I am going to do, only time will tell. This is just something that has been going through my head a lot lately, I might just test the water, if it doesn't go well I will take a step back from it. As usual I just find it helpful to put my thoughts down on the page. I am always open to advice or just thoughts that people have one the subject.
1. I have been working on losing weight, and I have been successful in doing so.
2. I needed to recover from the damage I received last time I really let someone in.
3. I am planning on moving soon, so dating someone here would not work too well.
4. On top of just recovering from the last girl, I want to work on myself even more beyond that. My psychological issues have been well documented on my blog(s) in the past, and I really just want some time to be me, and enjoy life without any added worries. I think this was long overdue for me.
I guess that last item could have been discussed in a bit longer form. It has been quite a while since the last time that I had a real crush, it might be a record, well since I was first interested in girls at least.
I had a good discussion on twitter with someone who was going through some issues with unrequited feelings, and maybe not dealing with them in the most subtle way either. I have all to much experience dealing with that, but it has been nearly 6 months, which is once again probably a record for me.
My biggest issue right now is in regard to dating. If I move to a new area, I might want to give dating a try over there, as a way of making new friends and as a way to potentially meet someone. I think that this is just me trying to convince myself that I should see what is out there right now, but maybe I am just bored. It is really something for me to ponder, I still have a lot of weight to lose, and I don't want to get sidetracked on that. Of course it is possible that I could meet someone who would only help encourage me down the right path too. The short answer right now is that I don't know what I am going to do, only time will tell. This is just something that has been going through my head a lot lately, I might just test the water, if it doesn't go well I will take a step back from it. As usual I just find it helpful to put my thoughts down on the page. I am always open to advice or just thoughts that people have one the subject.
Monday, August 1, 2011
Cowboys and Aliens
I really enjoyed this movie, I was unsure if I would or not because of the very mixed reviews it has gotten, but I will say that I was not disappointed at all. It is really a mashup of genres, but it is much more than just Westerns and Scifi, there are also elements of monster movies, which is kind of a given, and also a few very jumpy scenes, that even though you know are coming will make you jump.
This movie really has a lot of people that I like including Harrison Ford, Daniel Craig, Sam Rockwell, and Paul Dano. Olivia Wilde was not too hard on the eyes either, I have just not really seen that many things that she has been in, she sure has pretty eyes though doesn't she? I also really liked the job that Adam Beach did, I remember him from the movie Smoke Signals that I watched back in high school.
Some people have told me that they can't get into the premise of this movie, but how is it any more ridiculous than another modern times of future alien movie? I think you have to go into seeing this movie with an open mind, sure it is contrived, but most movies are. That is what separates most movies from documentaries. With aliens attacking do you expect something to be 1005 realistic? I didn't think so.
This movies has some good action, some jumps, some humor, and some emotion. I can't say that it had the best directing, or the best writing, but it was still very entertaining. I don't think the characters are that well developed, but for a few of the characters mystery is actually part of their character. Even though it had all of these shortcomings, I still enjoyed the movie. I think the novelty of the idea made me enjoy it, it really was a very creative idea.
I think its a good popcorn movie, and the type of movie that I would watch every time that I came across it on television. Some people care what critics think, and some people don't. If you can get past some mediocre reviews, I think it is worth seeing, even if you wait til it is out on dvd.
I have said enough negatives about it, how about some positives? There are 4 or 5 big laugh lines in the movies, and a few smaller laughs too, of course I tend to laugh more than most. Paul Dano plays the perfect spoilage douchey son. Daniel Craig is a complete badass. When he can hold his accent together, he actually sounds just like Harrison Ford when he was younger. There are some real emotional moments, and even the assholes have hearts.
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