Thursday, August 1, 2013

Daddy Got Back... Chuck the Chunk: On The Road to Dad 2.0 Summit 2014


I think you have to put on a sad face for
 the "before" photo right?
As many of you know, I won a trip to a Dad Blogging conference in New Orleans which will go down in early January of next year. A friend of the blog, Brent from Designer Daddy, reached out to a group of Dad Bloggers and asked for some help in getting motivated and asking how many of us could afford to get in better shape and were willing to do so. This was a good thing as I am not a self-starter. I procrastinate, I hem and I haw, I cheat on diets if I even start them and I haven't been able to get in a workout routine at all since becoming a stay home father. It is time for a change.

Anyway, this is my shame post. My admission of where I am fitness-wise and what I look like without a flattering camera angle, sucked in gut, good lighting or an Iron Man mask. I have to admit, it is good to start at the bottom (Good grief, I hope this is my bottom, no pun intended) and after a trip to south Georgia. I have plenty of room for improvement and have been eating even worse than usual for the past week so I'm ready to see some weight loss right away just by not eating a butter based diet. I guess I'll have to cut down on beer as well (I'm assuming straight grain alcohol will still be fine).

That's J Bean holding my belly. 
I've been using some velcro gardening tape I had at home to measure parts of my body (no not that part) this morning. I am discovering some very disturbing things. I'm over 4 feet around... holy crap! Despite wearing size 38 pants, my waist measures 46 (WTF?!). If Sir-Mix-A-Lot wrote a song about me it would say: 49, 46, 49... only if he's 7' 8" Also, I ain't got no motor in the back of my Honda, though I do seem to have a sidecar for a belly which is weird.

From left to right: my bicep, my waist,
my belly, my butt, my chest. All but my
bicep are longer than my daughter is tall. 
The tapes will provide a nice visual for staying motivated as I will hang them on the wall in the kitchen. It will also be interesting to be able to take them down and check progress (or lack thereof) along the way and an easy way to see how small I'll be when I reach my goals.

First things first. Diet change. I haven't decided exactly what I'm doing yet so I'll cut back on carbs and processed foods hardcore and cut out most beverages outside of water. I also will begin making small changes in how I get around and try to do some extra walking/jogging until I can get something I can use at the house. I already have a membership at the local Y, but I have to admit it has been very difficult for me to find the time to get up there without cutting into the small amount of time I get to see VV in the evenings which is not really the way I want to go. I think if I can get a routine going at home, especially one that allows me to interact online, listen to music and/or watch TV is what will be effective to me. It's boredom more than exhaustion that gets to me during cardio.

Any tips and suggestions are appreciated and encouragement is needed. If you would like to join in the fun and make a change in your life then please feel free to update here or on my FB wall. I'm leaning toward Mark Bittman's VB6 plan (vegetarian before 6pm) anyone tried it or know anything about it? What have you had success with? Thanks for reading and your continued support! I will update regularly, but not too often as no one wants to be spammed with pictures of my big belly. I do feel, however, that this remains with the theme of DOTR as being healthy, presenting a good example for your children and taking steps to ensure we'll be around for them for a long time are all parts of being a great parent. Have a great day, Parenting Partners!





Update 9/28: I haven't given a Chuck the Chunk update in a while. I haven't been doing a whole lot other than eating better and snacking less especially. I'm down 12lbs since I started (woohoo!). I'm about to step it up though, I've got an elliptical machine to put together today. It says, "some assembly required" which is like putting a tag on a live chicken that says, "may require some preparation before eating." Mmmm chicken... Stay strong, Dad.

2 comments:

  1. Bicycles absolutely *melt* fat, when combined with diet, and are excellent transportation. That's my only tip, and I'm sticking to it.

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  2. A friend is hoping I'll join him in some riding. I probably will. I've been bikeless for simple logistical reasons and it's silly really. I need to bite the bullet and buy one for Chicago. I have two I left in Georgia when we moved up here 4 years ago and I have had no opportunity to bring them up. It's silly really, they were cheap bikes and hardly worth what I paid now that they've been sitting unused for years.

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