On January 1st, two “Rock Fathers” began a challenge that will take them through 2014, and if all goes as planned, well beyond. This is a challenge based around not just “weight loss,” but fitness… a path to overdue personal transformation and lifestyle change not just for themselves, but for their wives and daughters. Without professional trainers or guidance, this will be a year-long blog series that captures the journey of James Zahn (The Rock Father) and Tom George (FiXT Publicity) with weekly updates about their quest to get fit. There will be experimentation with trial-and-error as each man settles into the plan that works for them. With their journey now just four days-in, let’s look at the starting stats…
James Zahn
Quick Bio: The Rock Father. The guy who runs this site, James is a Work-at-Home Dad that spends his days having adventures with his daughters, while continuing to build upon his personal brand and creative endeavors.
Children: Adalyn and Finley, aka “The Rock Daughters”
Goal: Lose roughly 130 pounds, or reach a target weight of 200 pounds… that’s less than I weighed when I graduated High School in 1994.
Reason for Doing This: “It’s time. After defeating my first major challenge by quitting smoking nearly three years ago, my weight – something I’ve struggled with for nearly my entire life – has gotten out of control. I want to slim down, build my muscle back up, and regain my energy so that I can have adventures with my daughters for many years to come (and look great while doing it). I once applied for NBC’s THE BIGGEST LOSER, and now it’s time to do this myself.”
Starting Weight: 328.4
Methods of Madness:
- Tracking Using the MyFitnessPal App for Windows Phone
- Maintain Daily Caloric Intake of 2080
- Healthy Eating with focus on fruits and veggies
- At-Home Workout (routine being finalized)
- Possible Juice Fast [Note: I sorta had a plan, but catching Joe Cross’ FAT, SICK AND NEARLY DEAD on Amazon, I’m considering a “reboot” by juicing]
Tom George
Quick Bio: The Public Relations Manager at FiXT Publicity, Tom spends his days as a Work-at-Home Dad, working with emerging and national touring artists. In his free time, he is a self-proclaimed “pop culture nerd” that has a love for music, horror movies, pro wrestling, fantasy football, and pretty much anything 80s. He graduated from Music Tech in Minneapolis for guitar performance, and has played in various rock and metal bands through the years.
Children: Colette aka “Midgie Fu”
Goal: To lose a minimum of 100 pounds this year. Hopefully much more.
Reason for Doing This:“I let the office job get the best of me over the past few years. I put on a huge amount of weight, and it is starting to effect my health. I want to feel better, live longer, and especially be more mobile so I’m able to spend more time with Colette doing things she enjoys (and keep up with her)!”
Starting Weight: 396.4
Methods of Madness:
- Tracking Using SparkPeople.
- Cardio Workout 4-5 Days a Week at Home (starting mainly with stairs)
- Maintaining Daily Caloric Intake of 2600
- Trial and Error with a goal of losing 4 pounds per week.
While this challenge is presented as a “vs.,” the purpose is so that both James and Tom will not be going it alone, but using each other for support – and all of you to observe or play along at home!
To be continued…
