It began with three casting calls and wrapped up with one hell of a good time this past Saturday as we crowned our new $40,000 Rock Girl MEREDITH!
Around 2,000 crazy hellraisers packed the Val-Air for the pageant, which also featured 80s tribute act Hairball, who kicked some serious ass!
Big congratulations to Meredith, whom I look forward to co-hosting with on Friday afternoons at 5pm starting THIS Friday…Meredith will be in-studio to help me kick off our Motley Crue Weekend!
As we welcome Meredith to the Lazer family, we say goodbye to Ashley, who has become a really good friend of mine this past year, not to mention one hell of a fun co-host. Ashley and I did some really great radio together, and I’m going to miss her. She did a magnificient job representing our radio station since last November, and we all wish her nothing but the best from here on out.
I’d also like to thank our other 9 finalists for doing a wonderful job at the campaign stops. It was great getting to know each of them and in the end, it was an extremely difficult decision to pick just one to be the next Rock Girl…but obviously we all feel as though we hit another home run with Meredith and can’t wait to get her started!
So now that my 10 weeks with Farrell’s is over, I plan on getting back to my semi-regular musings on what’s going on in my world and the world around me. I’ve really missed that cathartic therapy that goes along with these blogs, and you no doubt have noticed that, during my FXB experience, I sometimes would veer off course and discuss some topics that might’ve been considered by some as a little off the beaten path.
Well, it’s time to find that no man’s land again, I reckon.
First of all, thank GOD it’s nearly Thanksgiving. If you know anything about me, you know that Thanksgiving is my absolute favorite holiday on the calendar. I look forward to that one day in November more than any other day in the year…for many reasons. The first, and most obvious, is the FOOD! Next is an opportunity to take some time off of work and travel to the Twin Cities to spend time with my family. I haven’t had a real break since early July, after Lazerfest version 2.0, believe it or not. And to some of you, that might not seem all that out of the ordinary to work continuously for 4-5 months without any time off. But for us radio types, that’s a long freakin’ time. We have batteries like you do…and those batteries need re-charging every once in awhile. I’ve been running on fumes, so to speak, for the past few weeks. Definitely a time to get out of town for a few days and re-charge.
This coming weekend, I’m working on Saturday, but then heading up to St. Paul to see AC/DC on Sunday with my brother, whom I bought an extra ticket for in honor of his birthday back in September. I’m STOKED. I haven’t seen AC/DC in a very long time. It’s great to have them back on the road again, and I’m blessed to have the chance to do some pre-Thanksgiving traveling.
I took next Monday off so I didn’t have to rush back here after what I’m sure will be a late night rockin’ with Angus and the boys, but will return on Tuesday to work. Then I’m leaving you again for a few days this time for the actual holiday, and won’t return until the following Monday.
Then, it’ll be December…and Christmas…and New Year’s…wow…where did 2008 go exactly?
Blink of an eye, and it’s almost gone for good. Sadly, the old adage is true, that the older we get, the faster it all goes by. Any opportunity I have to take time off is more opportunity to stop and smell the roses, so to speak. And I can’t wait for the weekend.
Tomorrow, I’ll give you a recap of our Rock Girl contest and pageant, which happened this last Saturday. And I’ll also share what I understand will be the very first in-studio appearance I’ll have with our new Rock Girl, Meredith. Check back and thanks for reading.
YAY ME! I graduated from Farrell’s Extreme Body Shaping’s 10 week program!
I am now officially one of literally thousands of people whose life has been changed…not only physically, but mentally, psychologically and spiritually as well.
My body has changed dramatically since I first set foot in Farrells’ Urbandale location in early September. My mind believes in the challenges I put my body through. My posture has improved. My mood is exponentially improved day-to-day. My muscles are noticeably larger and more toned. And I’m absolutely certain, without any doubt, that the good habits I’ve learned these past 10 weeks will carry over into the future and beyond.
Before I share my final results from testing with you, there are some people I wish to thank. If it wasn’t for the following people, I never would’ve believed in myself enough to go through with FXB.
First and foremost, my instructors and coaches…Nicki, Jenn, Gina, Cassie, Rich, Lynette, Alex and Deb. Your willingness to help motivate me to always push myself harder was a key ingredient in the success I achieved these past 10 weeks. Thank you for always being there…and for laughing at my stupid attempts at humor!
Next, I’d like to thank Ryan and Todd from Farrell’s. Ryan, for helping to get me involved initially in FXB…and Todd, for challenging me from Day One. I took your words and not only ran with ‘em…I also punched with ‘em, kicked with ‘em, and “planked” with ‘em every single day.
Also, a very special thanks to Mr. Lance Farrell, not only for taking some time to stop by the station to chat with me before the course began, but also for your continued support and most importantly, for coming up with this program! I truly believe it has changed my life, and taught me some very important lessons I intend to continue to follow throughout life.
No way I’ll forget my classmates. The “Tenacious 3″ will always be THE #1 reason I showed up to class every day. Dustin and Janell…you are both incredible human beings and I’m so glad our paths crossed. Keep fighting!
Last but definitely not least, I’d like to thank YOU…yes, YOU. I mean, you ARE reading this, afterall…who else would I be talking to here? I appreciate you stopping by to check up on me throughout the past 10 weeks. Whether you know it or not, the fact that you cared enough to swing by even just once in a while gave me a HUGE boost in terms of motivation. I knew that if I slacked off, or didn’t follow the course properly, I wouldn’t just be letting myself down, I’d also be letting you down as well. Thank you for caring!
There are countless others that deserve thanks that I haven’t mentioned by name. Maybe I should. OK, here goes…thank you Mellissa, Ruby, Marianne, Colleen, Ryan, Ginny and Pam. Without your love and/or support, this wouldn’t have been possible. I owe the world to you all.
OK…the results…I’ll give you my numbers from orientation in early September, followed by my final numbers to show the stark contrast between the beginning and the finish line…
Ready?
Let’s begin with weight.
My start weight on September 6th was 233 pounds. My finish weight on November 15th was 224. A difference of 9 lbs!
Measurements:
Arm: 12 inches at orientation…14 inches now.
Thigh: 26 inches at orientation…24 inches now.
Waist: 41 inches at orientation…39 inches now.
Hips: 44.5 inches at orientation…43 inches now.
Chest: 42 inches at orientation…44 inches now.
OK, let’s take a look at physical endurance:
Push-ups in one minute…I did 19 at orientation…and I did 50 at my test.
Sit-ups in one minute…I did 28 at orientation…and was able to muster 50 at testing.
Mile run…started with 8 minutes and 54 seconds. Improved to 7:29 at the 5-week mark, and finished at 8:06. Why did I lose time? I won’t offer an excuse, but will say that running outside in early September is much easier than in mid-November. That might explain it. Either way, what I’m most proud of is the fact that I never ONCE stopped running at my final test. In previous mile runs, I had to stop once or twice or three times to walk for a bit before resuming a running pace. Not this time. And I’m extremely proud of that fact.
Again to remind you, classes fill up FAST at Farrell’s. If you have any desire to improve yourself, please look into FXB. Extremebodyshaping.com for more info.
My last actual “class” was last night…lower body resistance and I am feeling it today!
Taking our ‘After’ pictures tonight after I get off work. Admitting this is tough, but I’ve actually been practicing my pose, and my smile. Figure it’ll be worth the humiliation to see a GREAT ‘after’ photo, after these past 10 weeks. I’ve worked extremely hard, and figure I deserve at least that.
Tomorrow morning…6am…final testing. That means measurements of my chest, my arms, my legs, my hips and my waist. That also means stepping on a scale, which I haven’t done since the mid-way Week 5 testing, where I had lost 8 pounds.
Also involved in testing tomorrow morning are a sit-and-reach test, a minute of push-ups and a minute of sit-ups…and then, to finish it off, I’m running the mile again.
I promise I’ll report back to you on Monday to let you know how Farrell’s Extreme Body Shaping changed the way I look, the way I feel, and my life in general for the better. Wish me luck!
Big thanks to anyone that either wrote me or called yesterday while I was on-air with advice regarding my “dilemma.” I think I’ve come to a rational compromise that A) I’m comfortable with, B) won’t make me regret it, and C) won’t disqualify me from keeping my ‘mancard.’
Kickboxing was intense last night. My instructor was Jenn…she’s awesome. Always know what I’m in for depending on who’s instructing any particular night. They all sufficiently kick my ass, but in very different and unique ways, which is one of the things I appreciate the most about FXB. Keeps the experience exciting and unpredictable. That’s FUN!
My very last resistance class is tonight…lower body workout with the bands. As of now, many of my lower body exercises are in ‘level red.’ Some are actually ‘level blue,’ which is one step up from red. There’s no question I’ve gotten much stronger these past 9 1/2 weeks.
See, part of the Farrell’s Extreme Body Shaping program is taking a ‘before’ and an ‘after’ picture to chart the progress of the transformation my body has undergone these past 10 weeks.
If you check out extremebodyshaping.com, you can see for yourself the remarkable shape-shifting that goes on because of the cardio, the strength training, and the nutrition. There are countless folks that have seen incredible results…and I am one of them.
I’m scheduled to take my ‘after’ picture on Friday evening, before the final testing at 6am on Saturday. Several of my instructors have suggested that I shave off my body hair, and tan my skin.
Now, here’s the dilemma. I’m a DUDE. And what I mean by that is I’m one of those guys that have never considered shaving my body hair. I’m one of those guys that have never considered tanning my skin artificially. You know…a DUDE. A manly kind of man that thinks there’s something incredibly wrong in taking part in such things.
The question is…should I just ‘get over it’ and take the advice of my instructors, who obviously know some things I don’t regarding how these pictures will turn out? Or do I stick to my gut that tells me that I’d be NUTS to shave and tan?
To be honest with you, I’m leaning towards trusting the words and advice of my instructors, whom I have entrusted for these 10 weeks. But I haven’t yet stepped off the curb to see where my feet land.
They say shiny, tanned fat looks a hell of a lot better than hairy, pasty fat. They may have a point there.
Help a brother out, if you could. Should I man up and do the shave/tan thing? My ‘after’ shots might benefit…
On the other hand, shaving body hair that I’m not used to shaving could result in some gnarly itching for several weeks, which would really, really suck.
Guess it’s not a very manly-man thing to be so indecisive. But I do wonder what you think…feedback is greatly appreciated. And thanks for reading.
Today is Veterans Day. And today, we honor those that have served our country proudly and fought for the freedoms afforded to the citizens of our great country.
The people I admire the most in this world are those that selflessly offered themselves in the name of freedom and prosperity. Those that made the ultimate sacrifice shall never be forgotten as long as good, patriotic Americans continue to observe and celebrate not only the glory of victory, but also the agony of defeat in the face of evil and wrongdoing.
Our country’s great veterans have earned your respect…thank a veteran today.
Interesting start to Week 10 of FXB yesterday! My instructor, Cassie, set up three stations that we rotated through during our 45 minute workout. Got a good 20 minutes of cardio in before putting on the gloves and hitting the bags, and even went through a trial run of a couple of the tests we’ll be taking on Saturday’s final class. That means a full minute of push-ups and a full minute of sit-ups.
And I got a pretty good idea, 55 days into the 60 day regimen, of just how much stronger I really have become, even since our mid-way testing in Week 5!
At orientation back in early September, I was barely able to do any push-ups, for example. I’m almost ashamed to admit it, but I couldn’t even muster 20 of them in a minute back then. I then improved to about 40 of them in a minute by Week 5. And last night, I knocked out 60 push-ups! Unbelievable!!!
And as far as sit-ups are concerned, I did only 28 of them in a minute back at orientation. Improved to 43 by Week 5…and last night? I did 61 sit-ups.
The numbers don’t lie. The proof is there! And now I’m really excited for final testing on Saturday, knowing that I’m capable of such an improvement!
Upper body resistance tonight. And only 4 days remaining in my journey!
I’m in disbelief that I’m entering my final week of FXB. It’s been an incredible journey, as I thought it would have been, but never in my wildest dreams could I have imagined with any real accuracy just how much stronger I could become in 60 days.
I’m really looking forward to final testing on Saturday morning. I can’t wait to once again see results in black and white, as I did at the halfway point. Speaking of halfway, what’s most amazing to me is just how quickly the last 4 weeks have flown by! I guess once I got into a good rhythm, the process itself became like second nature and made the FXB experience not only faster, but also a whole lot of fun!
The next session is starting soon. I’m tellin’ ya…if you have ANY desire to look and feel better, and learn what it truly takes to live healthier as you get yourself into good eating and exercise habits, TRY FXB!!! There are 13 locations across Iowa and Nebraska…check ‘em out online at extremebodyshaping.com or stop by any location if you have any questions. If there’s one thing I’m really thankful for, it’s the staff at Farrell’s. They’ve been an incredible help along the way, and if I ever had any questions about anything, they were reliable and more than happy to help me achieve my goals.
Keep checking back this week…I can’t wait to share my final results with you. I’m a believer in FXB!
