FW Presents: Geek Fitness

FW PRESENTS: GEEK FITNESS

Rob welcomes Friend of the Network and fellow podcaster Gene Hendricks to talk about getting fit, eating right, and staying in shape! You can do all this AND READ COMICS TOO!

Check out images from the MARVEL STRENGTH AND FITNESS BOOK by clicking here!

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Thanks for listening! Now get out there!

31 responses to “FW Presents: Geek Fitness

  1. ^^^^What Gene said.

    I don’t think I hit on this enough during the record, but the point of this talk was to 1)compare notes, and 2)offer encouragement to anyone looking for it.

    Also, I wish I had talked more about the history of fitness when it comes to comics. Everyone has seen those Charles Atlas ads in a comic; they ran for decades so there’s obviously some market there for geeks who also want to stay active and/or get fit.

  2. It’s not because you’re not overweight that you don’t have health issues. I’ve always been a beanpole, and even today, as I get flabby and my t-shirts tighter, I still have to punch a few extra notches in my belts.

    Thanks for sharing, guys.

    I don’t have any personal story about fitness – my experience is very much Rob’s without the weight gain, up to and including finding gyms entirely boring, which is why I started reading while I walk, which I do every day regardless of whether I need to get somewhere – but my dad had one. Like me he was a skinny comic book reader and he actually sent out for that Charles Atlas “Hero of the Beach” manual and through the eating and exercising techniques found within, he did bulk up and get himself to what I would call a “normal” (or average) body shape. He did not, so far as I know, get Flex Mentallo powers.

    1. That’s a great point, Siskoid. It is possible to be too skinny and need to bulk to to a “normal” weight, or to be a healthy weight but still need exercise. Thanks for sharing!

  3. My background is more like Siskoid’s and what Gene replied to him. I have been thin and very little muscle the majority of my life up until the last few years (may be older age finally catching up to me). Since then I have been gaining weight. I am final at a normal weight range for my body type. So now I want to maintain my weight and gain muscle.
    Rob(by posting his daily run updates on Facebook) has been an inspiration to me to get going on a daily workout and walk and run routine. Even my wife joins me. We have been doing this for just about two weeks.

    Thank you both for sharing, this was a great idea and was at the right time for me. Any encouragement from you guys is great and I think will help other podcasters and listeners to be motivated to also stay healthy. There are a lot of comics I still need and want to read so if I can do anything to help me live to do that goal count me in.

  4. Thank you for the inspirational episode. My dad and two younger brothers are all beanpoles. I, on the other hand, inherited my mom’s metabolism and body type, which means I am more pear than bean shaped. Fortunately, I was forced by necessity to exercise. At the time when I started my first job, my wife and I only had one car. So, we deliberately found an apartment within cycling distance of my work, and I started riding a bike again for the first time since middle school. I still commute by bicycle most days, even though we finally broke down and bought a second car back in December, because it’s become a habit. Hopefully, one I’ll keep for as long as I’m safely able.

    Where I struggle is with the diet side of the equation. My kryptonite is cold cereal. I can easily eat half a dozen bowls with milk over the course of a day, between meals and before bedtime. It’s not the real sugary cereal, but those extra calories definitely add up. So, I wouldn’t be opposed to a geek fitness club. A little accountability can go a long way.

  5. Something that I forgot to mention on the episode was that I do have a diet cheat day, which is Sunday. I still track my food, but I don’t worry about going over a bit. That way I can still have the traditional family “big Sunday meal” and not worry about it. That will shift days depending on special circumstances, like the family cookout being on a Saturday, but once a week is fine IMHO.

  6. Thank you for the show, I hope you guys continue to encourage our fellow comic book enthusiasts to take care of themselves.
    It’s great that you’re using apps to track activity and meals, etc. I use the “SuperBetter” app to track my good habits (and the number of days I avoided my bad habits. https://www.superbetter.com/
    I do need to comment on the “burn more calories than you consume” mind frame. I hope that at some point you help out our community by exploring how calories are not endocrinologically neutral.
    Will this be a monthly or quarterly show?
    Have a great Fourth of July!

    1. I hope that at some point you help out our community by exploring how calories are not endocrinologically neutral.

      Jason, can you explain what you mean? I hope I didn’t say anything on the show that was misleading or just plain wrong, but I know there’s a good chance I did.

      1. Food isn’t just a fuel, or just the building blocks of your body’s cells. Food also sends hormonal signals to your metabolism.
        The low-carb/Paleo/ketogenic approaches all recognize that excessive carbohydrates will spike blood sugar, leading to a release of insulin (the hormone that directs the body to store the excess blood sugar inside of fat cells).
        I’ve seen people at work attempt to drop weight by limiting their caloric intake to 1,500 calories per day, but that will consist of a bowl of oatmeal in the morning, 4 cans of Coke during the day and pasta for dinner. Sheer madness, because they’re elevating their blood sugar all day long.
        Knowing that a calorie from a carbohydrate will affect your body differently than a calorie from dietary fat/protein is an important tool to have in the toolbox!

  7. Well, this was different, nice one, it’s good to hear people’s stories. I don’t touch alcohol (can’t get drunk, can’t metabolise it), have never smoked or done drugs, walked to and from walk every day, went to the gym four times a week… and had a heard attack two years ago. Super! Mainly genetics, though I do like cheese far too much.

    Anyway, after the insertion three stents, six weeks off work and a rehab programme (have I mentioned that the NHS is amazing?) I got back to the gym but took on a personal trainer for one session a week. I don’t look amazing but I feel more motivated, lost weight, firmed up and do a much wider range if activity. My favourite is core work, but I like lifting and legwork too. Hate star jumps and burpees and lat raises. I still walk loads – my boyfriend hates gyms but is obsessed with getting his 10,000 steps every day, so that’s my weekend!

    I downloaded the Fitness Pal app, turns out I registered years ago. Oops. I checked my breakfast calories but there was nowhere to put them, and couldn’t really work out how the food business worked. I shall just try and eat less cheese. After all, it’s basically ‘move more, eat less’ and I move plenty.

    Anyway, thanks again, great idea!

  8. Fascinating episode guys. I’m a family doctor, and – especially in my diabetic patients – I’m convinced that it’s lifestyle measures (diet, exercise & weight loss) that are considerably more effective than any medications I prescribe!

    Speaking personally – whilst recognising the benefits – I find it difficult to find the time to exercise, and as a result, I guess I’m less “The Flash” and more “Bouncing Boy”! However, I’m going to dust off the MyFitnessPal app from a dusty, under-used folder on the iPhone and see if I can record some of the gardening & dog walking I already do and then try to adjust the calorie intake to match.

    Happy to be part of a group if there’s one being set up – there’s nothing like a little group motivation to get you going!

  9. I think I can speak for Gene and say we are quite delighted at the response to this episode! Thanks to everyone who commented and offered suggestions.

    We really didn’t have any intention of doing a follow up show, because this one seemed to improbable in the first place! But we would like to continue this somehow, and are considering ideas. One of which is a private FB group that way whoever wants to be involved can join, to discuss their health, their exercise routine, etc. Let us know what you think of this!

  10. I’m interested in that geek running club idea. Or even just hearing a follow-up to this. I don’t run as much as you guys, especially recently, but maybe the accountability would get me back on track.

    1. I’m interested in general fitness chat, including running, even though I find running incredibly dull, despite regularly dreaming of running and loving it! G figure!

      We could call the group Geek Gods…

  11. Keep up the good work, guys. Let’s break our stereotypes! While I was listening, especially to Rob’s story, I was wondering is there might some connection between the step/calorie-counting/fitness-tracking, etc. and the collecting mentality. I expect that listeners of F & W podcasts are comics collectors who track which issues they have, which issues they need, how much to budget for back issues and new issues, etc. Could there be a similar thought-process in fitness goals? Any thoughts?

    1. Not me. The only list I ever make is at Christmas, for buying gifts. With everything else it’s impulse and instinct. I’ve a good memory for remembering what’s in individual issues if you give me a number, and I’m excellent at shopper mental arithmetic, but basically fear maths!

  12. Thanks for the episode, guys.

    I was always very thin until about 7 or 8 years ago when my metabolism started slowing down. I put on a bunch of weight. I was getting very unhappy with how I looked. 9 weeks ago, my wife said “Try Weight Watchers.” I did. And, as of yesterday, I’ve lost 25 pounds. I’ve got 25 more to lose and then it’s Maintain Time. I feel much better and my waist has gone from 39 to 35 and shrinking.

    I do find that it takes a lot less eating to get me full or satisfied now, which is good. I allow myself two Pig Out meals a week. I throw caution to the wind and eat whatever I want. But, I have to skip a meal or do a Zero points meal during the same week to counterbalance it. And, I find that half the time I decide to just go wild I don’t. Last night, I sat down with the new Blu-Ray of THE APPLE, my DVD of STUNT ROCK, a beer and a big, sloppy pizza. My intention was to eat as much of the pizza as I could. I drank the beer, ate a slice-and-a-half of pizza and was done.

    I’m a walker, by the way. I don’t run unless chased.

    Thanks again, guys. Have a great 4th of July. Remember “Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the water – You can’t get to it”

  13. I loved listening to this episode guys.

    I think I make the excuse that I can’t find a way to fit it into my schedule, but when this summer hit and I couldn’t get into 4 of my shorts I was a little depressed. When I say a little depressed I mean slamming them on my bed and screaming like a primitive because that’s a “constructive way to deal” with these things.

    Plus recently, my girlfriend informed me that in addition to snoring, she thinks I stop breathing in my sleep. So I think it’s time to stop wasting time. I’m not getting any younger and soon I’ll have another daughter to chase around.

    And maybe then I won’t be afraid to go to the doctor.

  14. In high school, I was a bit of an athlete due to having to run (a lot) for JROTC and playing volleyball. College brought all that to a grinding halt due to a heavy course load (I majored in physics) and it’s been a near constant struggle with the weight ever since. I’ve managed to shrink down several times, but it never sticks. The last time was a couple of years ago and a really bad break-up led to the easy comforts of hamburgers and pizza once again.

    Thank you for putting this podcast together. It was great hearing the success stories and knowing that I wasn’t alone in struggling with extra pounds. On vacation this past weekend, I began walking about the beach house colony in the mornings. Hoping to continue that trend now that I’m back to the 9-5 grind.

  15. Reallly late to the party, but I really enjoyed this episode, and kudos to you two for achieving your goals, and encouraging others that they can do the same. I try to work at least a walk or two into each week, but life often gets in the way. I do try to watch what I eat, and balance things out, but I could do far better at both, and this has motivated me to do so!

    Chris

  16. I found this episode very inspiring. About 12 years ago, I had a similar moment of realization that I had to do something when I hit 255. After a year and a half of hard work and healthy eating I got down to about 190, which was the smallest I’d been since being a teenager. I kept under 200 hundred for a long time, but over the last 3 years, I’ve slacked off a lot and put some back on. I’ve been getting better about exercise but this episode has got me sitting down and working on a more specific diet plan like I used before. Thank you both for putting this one together!

  17. Wow – great episode! I recently started counting calories again and I am use MyFitnessPal. Thank you for the encouragement!!!

    I’m 50. A few years ago my wife was at the doctor and I stepped on the scales. I hit 379. Yeah. Even at 6’4″ that’s still a LOT. I started dieting with my wife and got down to 320 or so.

    Didn’t go up much till a couple years ago. I hit 359 at work one day and decided that was enough. I started counting and went to 302. Just couldn’t get over that hump…

    Then school started back – I work in educational technology and can pretty much eat at any of my schools that I want. So, as you can imagine, I stopped counting and got back up to 355.

    Now I’ve been counting and coming in under every day for a week plus. I’m down to 342 and feeling much better! Still a long way to go, but your show was a good booster shot!

    As for a podcast club, count me in! I’ve started up a gaming/comics/etc. podcast – http://www.madhatandmore.com

    There was also one a few years ago called couch to con. It was for people to listen to while getting ready to go to places like Gencon.

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