Goofy Training Update - A Slow Start

The past couple of weeks have been filled with challenges for me and have effected my plan for training. However, I have not let that stop me from getting some training in.

Last week started out very well. I began with a light, full-body workout on Monday and a 45 minute wog on Tuesday. But with going home to Brookhaven on Wednesday and all that went with that, plus the trip to Dallas, I slipped. But, I still managed to really watch what I ate. I just regret that I didn't fulfill my training goals.

Then, this week I began a new job. So that interfered with training consistency as I readjusted my routine. But I still managed to get some inconsistent workouts and wogs in. Nothing big, but enough to keep myself in the groove of training.

Food intake for this week went fairly well. I'm still having trouble resisting cravings. Granted, I really didn't try to resist them.

This week, it is my intent to begin the Jeff Galloway training plans. Right now, I'm going to focus on the half marathon training schedule, since the Goofy training schedule won't start until mid-June. That way, I'm getting back into running without killing myself... just yet. I'm also going to start some moderate strength training too. Nothing big, just some basic stuff that I can do at home (situps, pushups, dumbells, resistance bands, etc.). I am going to join a gym eventually, but I want to wait just a little bit before committing money that could be spent else where.

I do have to say that I feel much better than I did a few weeks ago. My clothes are starting to fit a little looser, I have more energy, and I feel better about myself over all. I feel that this will be a success. I just need all of your support! Hope you're all doing well. Happy training!

"John Carter"

This past Friday night, I had a few hours to kill, so I decided to go to the theater to catch a movie. There really wasn't much to choose from. I really want to see The Hunger Games, but I'm still reading the book and I didn't want to spoil it, so that one was out. So, the only real choice that I had was John Carter. Besides, I have been wanting to see more Disney movies so I can begin posting movie reviews on this blog.

I had heard that this movie completely sucked. It didn't do too well at the box office and is seen by the critics as a huge flop for Disney. All of my friends that had seen it said that it just wasn't good. But I wanted to see it anyway. I really don't know why. I guess my loyalty to Disney could have played a factor. Maybe I just wanted to see a train wreck. Nonetheless, I went in with very low expectations. Amazing how great a movie can be when you think it's going to suck.

I honestly liked John Carter. I'll admit, it was a little weird and hard to follow at first, but after the story began to tie together, it started to make sense and the film turns out to have a really good story (Granted, I am a Trekkie, so I can handle weird story lines). One of the biggest problems that I found with this film is that there is just so much crammed into it. They flip back and forth between different settings, the dialogue is a little ridiculous, and there is a lot going on on the screen. So, it's very hard to follow. But, that's not necessarily a bad thing, if you can keep up and pay close attention.

Because of that, I would say that is is a "Go See" film, but not a "Must See". It's a good movie, it's fairly family friendly movie, with lots of action, drama, and bits of humor that leave you satisfied when you leave the theater, though you may leave it worn out form information overload. This film certainly won't become one of Disney's classic films, but I could totally see it gaining a cult classic status. So, go see it and judge for yourself!

Goofy Training: Training Update - "Let the Training Begin"

Since April begins the first full month of Spring, Teresa and I have decided to begin our Training today, on April 1st. No, this is not an April Fools joke. I WILL be doing the 2013 Goofy Challenge. It's going to be tough, but with your help and support, I am confident that I'll make it to 39.3.

In all honesty, this year has not been bad. I have been walking, and even running, a couple of days every week and I have been trying to make good food choices. But there has been no consistency. No pushing myself. It's time to kick the training into high gear and follow a true plan. Last year, I had really let myself go. I utterly destroyed all of the progress and results that I had gained the previous year. I have no excuse for what happened. It just happened and all I can do is dust myself off and get back to work.

Today, I did my first weigh in and measurements. I came in at 250 pounds. That means that I am up over 50 pounds from the day I had my surgery back in June. Disappointing, but there is some good news. I am now down 15 pounds from January 1st when I weighed in at 265. So, it's a bitter sweet day.

The plan for this week is to go for a 45 minute wog on Tuesday and Thursday and a long run of 4 miles on Saturday. It's going to be hard to make the long run happen, since I will be traveling to Dallas, but I will find a way to make it work. Also, I'll be doing some form of strength training on Monday and Wednesday and will be going back to the daily 50 pushups and 50 situps plan that Chris had me doing back in the day. I'd also like to try to start swimming again at night, but with the traveling, I may have to wait and start that next week.

I'm pretty excited to get back to training and living healthy. I've got some Weight Watchers recipes and plans already in place. Weight Watchers did wonders for me before, so I am hoping that the principles that I learned from them will help me now.

The "Avengorail"

There have been rumors circulating for the last month or so about Disney bringing an "Avengers" style wrap (similar to what they did with Tron) to one of the monorails of WDW. To my utter dismay, the Disney Parks Blog has confirmed this today. I have so many problems with this...

First off, you all know how I feel about non-Disney franchises being brought into the parks. I have this same problem with Pixar and even Lucasfilm. I know that Marvel is now part of the Disney company, but still... it's NOT Disney. I don't see Mickey and Minnie in any of the Marvel comic books, so why put them here? Hell... They're not even saying that Disney is distributing this film. If you watch the trailer, it says that Paramount is.

Second, they are putting this monorail on the Magic Kingdom monorail loop. Really??? Nothing says "The Magic Kingdom" like the Avengers. I could possibly forgive this if it was on the Epcot loop. That's what they did with the Tron monorail and it worked. I don't know why, but I just have a problem with this monorail making the loop around the deluxe resorts of the Magic Kingdom. What's next? The Hulk throwing around cars on Main Street? Spiderman wrapping Cinderella Castle in a web? It's bad enough that they have Marvel merchandise in the Pirates of the Caribbean gift shop, but now this? Enough is enough!

I understand what Disney is trying to do. They have a new franchise and they are trying to exploit it as much as possible. Putting this monorail on the Magic Kingdom loop may actually encourage boys to actually want to go there, which is a problem that Disney has faced forever. But, as a purist, I hate to see things change and take away from the original experience. I don't have a problem with things that add to it, but I feel that this takes away from it.

Even though Disney is notorious for keeping "temporary" things around for decades, we know that this will not last for very long. It'll last through the summer or possibly through the end of the year. Then it can go the way of the "Cake Castle", the "Wand", and other past hideousness of Imagineering flops. If only we could get rid of that damn Hat. Oh.. and stop "Dances with Smurfs Land".

That is all.

Congrats Princesses!

Just wanted to congratulate all of my family and friends who completed this morning's Princess Half Marathon. This is one of De'Dee's favorite races and she is trying to get Teresa and I to do it next year. So, maybe I'll see you there in 2013!

Marathon Weekend 2012 - Day 5: Disneyland Rio de Janeiro

Today was our last day in the World, so we spent it at the Magic Kingdom, since I like to end every trip there. We get to the bus stop at the Resort and there is a line that was at least five buses deep. It was so long that we contemplated just going back to Epcot and skipping the Magic Kingdom all together. We got at the bus stop around 8:00 and didn't make it through the gates until 9:15. When we did, we figured out that the entire nation of Brazil was in the Magic Kingdom. I don't know what the deal was, but the Touring Plan's Crowd Calendar lied big time.But we pressed on and saw much of the park. Not all the little things like we wanted, but we still enjoyed ourselves.

Around 4:00 or so, De'Dee joined us for a Dole Whip (I only had one this trip... what???), then we wondered around the park, seeing what De'Dee wanted to see. Then around 6:30 or so, we made our way over to the hub and staked out our spot for that night's parade, shows, and fireworks. We really enjoyed it all and De'Dee and Teresa were in awe over "The Magic, The Memories, and You" show.

After the fireworks, Teresa and De'Dee went on back to the resort and I walked around solo for my "Goodbye" walk around the park. I had 15 minutes and was able to squeeze in a ride on The Haunted Mansion and it's a small world (which pissed Teresa off something awful). After 9:00 hit, the park was closed, but I was still able to walk around the park and do some shopping and stretch my time out to 10:00. That's really a fun way to end a trip.

Marathon Weekend 2012 - Day 4: Goofy Day

Today was a lot of fun for Teresa and I. We began our day at Epcot all the while getting race updates from De'Dee. We got into the park and rode Soarin' a few times. The we wandered around the park until De'Dee's ETA at Epcot and we got to watch the race from MouseGear. That was a lot of fun for me. It let me have a little bit of the race experience even though I didn't participate. It also gave me some inspiration for next year. If some of those people can finish a full marathon, well then by God, I sure the hell can!

After De'Dee passed us, I ran over to the Family Reunion area and met up with my grandparents and De'Dee so I could congratulate her. She was dead tired, but she looked good. I'm so very proud of her and Justin, Amanda, and Chris for all finishing the Goofy! You're all an inspiration to me.

After all of the race stuff was finished, Teresa and I finished up Future World, then walked around World Showcase. After that we hopped on the monorail and headed to the Polynesian.

There we met up with Jeff, Trace, Amanda, and Justin and his crew and ate at 'Ohana for dinner. It was a wonderful time and we all had a blast. I'll be posting a restaurant review on 'Ohana soon.

After dinner we all headed over to the Magic Kingdom and enjoyed a few hours of "Extra Magic Hours" time.

First we rode The Jungle Cruise and had one of the best Skippers I have ever had on the attraction. She was very into the part, very funny and just had fun. When a Cast Member is enjoying themselves along with the guests, it makes for a much more magical experience. Sadly I don't remember the Skipper's name so if any of you guys can remember, please let me know. I'd like to email Disney and compliment her.

After Jungle Cruise, we all headed over to The Pirates of the Caribbean. This is not normally a scary ride, but I have to say that I was pretty freaked out by this particular trip aboard the attraction. The bottom of the boat kept dragging across the bottom of the track, the boats behind us kept crashing into us, and water was less than an inch from the top of the boat. I did get a little panicky on board, but it did soon correct itself. But I was very freaked out by it.

Afterward, everyone slowly began drifting away from the group and by the time the park was closed, it was just Justin and Amanda with us. We all throughput enjoyed each other's company. Teresa loves you all and can't wait to become more involved with Team Voice. And of course, I love you all too!