Back In The Saddle Again or "Here Comes The Pain...In Your Quads"

So I swear I haven't stopped blogging on purpose. I haven't abandoned this venture, and I haven't abandoned my lifestyle change. I'm currently in a bit of a tussle with AT&T who insist that I went over my data limit the night that I was in New Roads performing Of Mice and Men. At this point, my internet was only connecting at .03 megabits a second and even if I had TRIED to use five gigs of data, I think that it would have been impossible for me to do so in just a few hours. The long and short of it is, my internet has been suspended until October 4, and I'm currently trying to just get out of my contract and get DSL at my house. Until then, I have to rely on public Wi-Fi for my internet needs, and I have been super busy and haven't been able to get around to posting a blog update.

You may be asking right now, "Well, that's all well and good Casey, but how is your journey going?"

Pretty dang well, if I do say so myself. Rehearsals and performances of various plays have kept me out of the gym more than I wanted, but I have lost a considerable amount of inches and yesterday I wore a shirt that I haven't been able to wear, well, ever. So I've got that going for me, which is nice.

I'm still eating right, still enjoying my slow but steady transformation, and as of today I hit the gym once again for BodyPump (cue ominous music and screams of anguish). Today, I also start working out with my mystery buddy (who will not be named until/unless he/she wants to be). I've secured them a guest pass at the gym and they will be joining me for BodyPump awesomeness.

I also have another driving force behind my journey: NightFears.

NightFears is the play in which I am currently performing, and let me tell you folks, it's a doozy. It is a unique, powerful look at people's fears in the 21st century, and it's been a fantastic stretch for my acting muscles (as well as excellent sweaty work that I've used to diminish my fat cells). The co-writer/director of the play has decided that he is going to try to get the show added to The Fringe Festival next year. The Fringe Festival is a festival geared toward alternative, edgy theatre. I couldn't be more stoked about it. The reason that this is a driving force in my weight loss journey is that the festival will either be in New York or Chicago. This will entail flying. At my current size, there's no way I'd be comfortable flying, and I might have to be one of those guys who has to pay for two seats. That ain't gonna happen, my friends. Plus, if I get all super slim and sexy, some hot New York theatre vixen might sweep me off my feet or vice versa. Chance favors the prepared mind, and, in this case, the prepared body.

So, now to get to it. Back to the sweaty, crampy, awesome world of BodyPump, and onward into the future of a slimmer, healthier me.

Today's moral? If you don't wanna buy two seats on an airplane, you'd better get to sweatin'.

Until next time, Dragon Slayers

Ups And Downs or "Where Ya Been, Stranger?"

Umm, hi.

So yeah, it's been nine days since I last blogged, but it's not my fault, I swear. Stupid internet at my house has been stupid, and I haven't been able to make it to a wifi spot in order to blog until now.

These past nine days have actually gone by fairly fast. I'm nearing the end of rehearsals for both plays now, so soon I will be able to get back to the gym on a regular basis. Of Mice and Men opens on Friday for our one night revival, and NightFears opens on Saturday. Once the shows open, I will go back to my regular schedule of work then gym before I go home. I have been able to squeeze two visits in, which I know isn't great, but what's a guy gonna do? Also, in the past couple of days, my "no fast food" streak was broken. I was coming back from rehearsal in New Roads on Sunday (that's about an hour away for the uninitiated) after eight hours of rehearsal. I didn't eat on our dinner break because I didn't want to have a hamburger and fries and that's what was brought for everyone to eat. I snacked on some pretzels, thinking I'd just grab Subway on the way home, but alas, Subway was closed by the time I got back to town. I ignored my cravings for some Raising Cane's goodness and instead chose a grilled chicken quesadilla and a soft taco from Taco Bell.

I hated every bite. Apparently what everyone is saying is true. The longer you go without fast food, the worse it tastes when you do have to eat it. I also felt bad for breaking one of my Ten Commandments. It had to be done, however, and I won't be doing it again if I can help it.

Another down bit occurred when I tried on my Of Mice and Men costume. It fit comfortably last year, but apparently I have outgrown the overalls. I thought I'd lost enough in inches to fit in them, but not just yet, apparently. I was a little bummed about that, but I'm just wearing jeans now. The rest of the costume fits just fine.

So those are the downs. I do have a couple of ups. Well, one major up anyway.

I will soon have a regular workout buddy. They will remain nameless at this time, until I have the okay to mention them on here, but as soon as my rehearsals are over, we will be venturing to the gym together. They called me out of the blue and asked about my plan to lose weight and they decided they wanted in on it as well. I'm super pumped that I've been able to inspire someone on the same journey as me. I'm looking forward to posting more about our progress as we go on.

Well, that's about all I have for today. So let's see..today's moral? A journey of this magnitude is bound to have peaks and valleys. It's what you do in the valleys that get you back up to the peaks.

I'm looking forward to getting back up to a peak.

Until next time, dragon slayers.