Mind Dump: Podcast Edition

So I did a pocket dump the other day and was thinking about lists and whatnot and I though of another thing I could toss out here: Podcasts. I got into podcasts incredibly late in the game, I think I’ve only been listening to a few of them for a little over a year now, but I’ve found a handful of them I really like. While there are a few, like Hardcore History that I would like to listen to, I simply can’t get into a 4 hour+ podcast. I’ve found the 30 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes mark is ideal for me, and of course shorter ones are fine.

I more of less look like this half the time I’m listening to them…

So here are a few of the podcasts that I do enjoy. Please feel free to leave any suggestions in the comments.

Art of Manliness – The Art of Manliness podcast focuses on interviews with interesting people, innovators and experts in their fields on topics that anyone, male or female, can use to enhance or otherwise improve their life. I find it educational and interesting.

The Human Animal – The Human Animal podcast is a fitness podcast run by Matt “freefitguy,” a trainer focused on functional movement and primal fitness. It explores a lot of concepts that will be familiar to people who are into the paleo lifestyle, but holds a lot of value for those who are just interested in being health in mind and body.

The H.P. Lovecraft Literary Podcast – The only subscription podcast on my list, this one focuses on the literature of H.P. Lovecraft (duh). I picked this one up after the Necronomicon-Providence 2013, and while I haven’t listened to a ton of episodes it touches on my favorite genre of fiction and my favorite author. Each episode explores a different Lovecraft story and the media it has influenced since it’s publication.

The Random Show – This is the only video podcast on my list. Run by Tim Ferriss (see below) and Kevin Rose, this one is exactly what it says, a random conversation these two have on no-particular schedule that they video. They cover whatever they are reading at the time, fun new products they’ve been checking out and other things they are interested in at the time. They have also filmed episodes in China and Mexico. You can watch these on YouTube or iTunes.

The Tim Ferriss Show – Probably my favorite podcast is The Tim Ferriss Show. Spawning partially from The Random Show, Tim Ferriss started sitting down to interview people who have influenced him, who he’s friends with, or just who he has really wanted to have a chat with before if they are willing. Guests include Kevin Rose, Joe De Sena, Margaret Cho and, most recently, Arnold Schwarzenegger. My favorite part is when he asks them what their morning routines look like, what books they give most often as gifts, and who they would most like to punch in the face.

Welcome to Night Vale – Last but not least is the only “fiction” podcast I listen to, Welcome to Night Vale. Done in the weird tales style of H.P. Lovecraft, WtNV is just highly entertaining and well worth listening to the first few episodes of. I was hooked after one.

And that’s my list. Again, feel free to leave any suggestions in the comments.

Monday Fitness Update

So once a week, now that I am actively working out and trying to lose weight and get in better shape, I weigh myself and take my general measurements. Neck, chest, bicep (right), forearm (right), waist, hips, thigh (right) and calf (right). This is to track progress and get a better sense of where I am at in general. A combination of weight, neck and waist measurements can give you an approximate body fat percentage, and it helps motivate me to keep going.

Monday morning, after my workout and shower, I take all of these measurements, log them, and then go about my day. I also keep track of how many calories I ate over the previous week (Sunday-Saturday) and how many I burned, to get an idea of if I’m eating enough, eating too much or not working out enough. So, without further ado – here is this mornings’ measurements.

Weight: 185 lbs
BMI: 25.1*
Body Fat %: 23.79

Neck: 16″
Chest: 42″
Bicep: 13.25″
Forearm: 12″
Waist: 39″ 😦
Hips: 38″ 😦
Thigh: 23.5″
Calf: 16.25″

*I’m 6′.

For reference, I ate far too little this week, at only 10,854 calories (I should be hitting at least 12,000), but my burn totals were pretty fantastic at 19,175. Now I just need to boost my intake without letting the burn suffer.

I lost 4 pounds this week, which is kind of insane. This could be due to a variety of factors, but I honestly expect it to go up slightly next week, probably to 186. However, if it drops again to 184 I’ll be happy. My main goal is to drop waist inches though – to at least 36″, preferably 34″. If I can hit this goal in another 4 weeks I will accomplish my first question/mission/challenge for Nerd Fitness and hit level 1!

Today… I still have a good bike ride to do (plus a Call of Cthulhu campaign to run), so I need to head out to eat dinner and get ready for those things. Expect to see a similar post to this every Monday, and some more interesting content coming soon.

Oh hey look at that…

So yeah, it’s been well over a year since last time I posted. Life has been hectic. Work, play, more work, less play, some lifestyle changes, etc. But I’m back! Here’s what has been going on.

I’m in a band now – Origin of Inertia. We do nerd metal, it’s a thing.

I started changing my diet and eating Paleo – which is basically the removal of heavily processed food, most simple carbs and grains and legumes from your diet.  Basically, I don’t eat bread, pasta, sugar, baked goods, potatoes (often), rice (often), cereal or beans (often). It’s interesting, and I definitely feel healthier and like I have more energy.  Plus it’s an awesome excuse to eat steak. Every. Night.

I also started working out – then stopped – then started again more recently with more motivational support. It has been great. I feel stronger and I have more energy (again).

I’m drinking less. What?

I’m running a biweekly Call of Cthulhu game, woo creativity!

So what does that mean for Aberro Specus? Well, with all the “lifestyle” changes I’ve been making the primary goal is, kinda obviously, to be happier. And non-work-related writing makes me happy, so my goal is to start posting here again, and stick with it (the hard part). I’m going to make it easy on myself with some sub-goals.

• Post once a week.
• Post quality content.
• Talk about shit that is actually going on in my life as well as random musings.

That’s it. The Nerd Fitness community takes a gaming approach to fitness and setting goals, so I’m going to incorporate this into mine. So hopefully that will keep my posting. There are several new types of posts that will show up then, in order to keep myself organized and motivated:

• Workout related stuff (sorry if you don’t care)/weekly journal of fitness and nutrition.
• New life goals
• Home improvement projects

That last one might have thrown you – but the idea is that I’m funneling money saved from drinking less and some other things into getting some new furniture, and more importantly, building new furniture – as well as some other things for the house. So stay tuned there.

That’s it for now – Stay tuned for the first weekly fit/nut update on Monday.