Final Day

202.0 lbs. 21.5 lbs (1.5 stone) lost in total.

I worked out like a maniac for the first 4 weeks, and then slowed a little during the last 3 weeks due to injuries (shin splints and now a pulled thigh muscle.) However, I continued to lose weight because I maintained a pretty good diet- no bread, pasta, pizza, burgers, chips, crisps, sweets etc.- and the diet is really the key. I'm confident I can remain around this weight, although as my poker volume continues to increase (I'm planning on getting 1.5MM VPPs and SNE for the 4th year running) it will get a little harder.

As far as poker goes, I played just under 400,000 hands (343 hours) during this 7-week period, and made a little under $50k profit, despite a miserable downswing over the past two days. I also gave out abuse to about 200 players- many deserving, some not. Going forward, I think I'm going to try and curb my competitive nature as far as this side of my game goes. But maybe not.

Peace out, Mother Funksters.

Day 44

205.4 lbs. 18.1 lbs lost. My shin splints have continued to handicap my ability to work-out, so I'm quite pleased that I've managed to remain at 205 lbs. I don't foresee a recovery before I turn 40 next week, so I'll be happy if I can stay around this weight for now. Once I can put in some proper cardio again, I'll probably see if I can get as low as 200 lbs.

On the plus side, I've been putting in close to 10k hands a day at poker at a decent win-rate.

Day 39

Well, it's been a while since an update. In part it's because I've been injured (shin splints) for the last week and so I have been unable to do any cardio. My diet has remained pretty good though, so I've at least managed to maintain my weight-loss, even though I've not been able to lose any additional weight.

On the plus side, I've been focussing the extra time onto my poker and that has been going very well. I've been averaging around 10k hands/day

I plan to restart my cardio sessions today, and so hopefully I'll be able to loss a couple of more pounds before I turn 40 on the 23rd.

Day 25

205.6 lbs. 17.9 lbs lost after 24 days. So I've pretty much reached my goal of getting down to 205 lbs, but I can still lose a little more. New goal: 200 lbs. 4 weeks to go...

Day 22

210.0 lbs. Three weeks gone and 13.5 lbs lost. I'm confident of getting down to 205 lbs now, as I still have several pounds of excess fat that likes to hang out around my stomach. I'm trying to apply a sustainable weekly routine regarding exercising and diet, something that I can maintain- or close to it- after my 50 days is up.

I managed an average of three exercise sessions last week from Monday to Friday, but I decided to do little at the week-end, and instead put more hours into playing poker. I also think it's more optimal to get some rest rather than risk feeling fatigued. That is now my plan going forward, but it will still be at least 15 exercise sessions a week. In addition, I'm also going to try to get in a session of stretching exercises every day.

6 sessions in the gym (5¼ hours)
2 sessions of football (3¾ hours)
7 sessions of boxing (42 rounds)

Poker-wise, I managed 45k hands which is a little short of my 50k goal, however I spent several hours analysing my game away from the tables which has enabled me to make some +EV adjustments. Total profit for the month (including bonuses) is $16,750

 

Before and After Pics for Weeks One, Two & Three

Day 18

209.8 lbs. 13.7 lbs lost in 17 days. I've gone on a hot streak during the past 4 days and dropped 4.5 lbs, so I've now reached my original goal of 210 lbs. The last time I was sub-210 was 2001.

I've increased my exercise since last week a little. I upped my rounds on the bags from 5 to 6, and after I hit them tonight I'll have completed 13 sessions of exercise in the past 4 days.

Day 17

211.3 lbs. 12.2 lbs lost after 16 days.

The lighting is a lot more complementary in the second photo, but even so there's still quite a contrast.

Day 1 vs Day 16