It's done, it's over, let's move on...

WRONG.  To go back to the old ways before the Summer Challenge would all be for naught.  We need to think about what we learned.  I look back and think about how much I learned over the summer regarding good health.  I found that ironically, getting to the gym and exercising is a much easier responsibility than changing you eating style.  In which case, while you may not be able to eat healthy all the time, especially when the American lifestyle demands so much of our time, you can at least fight it with good exercise.

Fall is upon us, and the summer has ended.  The summer is the easiest time to lose.  It's nice outside, the work load is less, and those of us who are students are not occupied by papers and assignments.  The new challenge is facing the Fall...  how can we adapt, especially without a weekly check-up from Dave Gau?  

For a more detailed wrap-up of the Summer Challenge, and if you want to know which team won, check out my personal blog at thedunnchronicles.blogspot.com.  I"ll continue posting throughout the year on my most recent battles with health and weight, and probably writing on some other things.  

Till next summer, Captain Bryan signing off.

BRING IT ON

TOMORROW NIGHT we find out which team deemed successful in their quest to drop the most pounds over this summer.  

You know you'll want to be there too...  cause I refuse to post which team won on here.  You have to come.  There, I said it, you are obligated to show up if you wanted to know the outcome.  I won't tell you.  

The bonus pounds show the Darwins in favor, but the Albatrosses have been kickin it in actual weight lost...  It's anyone's game.

Plus, Friday's show will feature Jack & Jen from Mix 103.7 as Guest Players, as they have been the mascots for either team.  Ever wonder what a radio person looks like in person?  Well, here's your chance! 

It's Called WINNING

Let's recap the past couple weeks of events.  

August 11 - ReMatch Volleyball:  Many games were played, but only the first one made the cut for the 5 Bouns Pounds (BPs).  Being that the Flaming Albatross team had not won a single physical challenge, it was a long over-due win for them.  I must say they had an awesome captain serving the first seven points of the game (So what, I'm a little biased for my team, so sue me).

August 18 - Hypnosis Part Two: Well, we all got to experience a little bit of a past life here, but the true BP challenge this week had nothing to do with who got more hypnotized.  Over the past week, the Gau challenged both teams to a miniature summer challenge by seeing which team could drop the most weight in a week.  To my knowledge, no cases of Bulimia or Anorexia were reported.  The Darwin's didn't do so hot, but the Albatrosses got back up to their 100 pounds lost mark, giving them another 5 BPs

August 25th - LaserTag:  What can I say?  It was a heated game of lasertag.  I even wore my black jogging suit...  no one joined me in my overexaggeration of wearing black.  In all fairness, the vests you wear have flashing lights on them, so it makes no difference.  After 15 minutes of mad lasertag skills, the Albatrosses took one more win...  5 more BPs.

It was quite the time for the Albatrosses to take back some BPs and make it a true challenge.  Although, the Darwin's revenge took one win with them in the Amazing Race challenge this past Saturday (Aug 23rd).  Pictures coming soon (I hope).  There's only a few more challenges left - including a pool V-Ball at the final weigh-in party.

The winners will be announced in just a few more weeks at our Summer Challenge Show September 12th!

Being Ultimate

This past Monday, the Flaming Albatrosses and Darwin's Revenge were pitted against each other once more in a game that required much physical exertion, hand-eye coordination, and a frisbee.  That's right, five bonus pounds would be rewarded to the team who won in a match of ultimate frisbee.  The rules?  Be the first team to score seven "touchdowns" by moving the frisbee to your endzone.  You must win by two points, unless challenged otherwise.  The Darwins scored the first two points, followed by a score by the Albatrosses.  In the end, the Darwins took the win, but not without a struggle against the Albatrosses.  The final score was four to seven in the Darwin's favor.

A second game was played, and though the offer was on the table for five more bonus points, I made the decision as captain not to risk letting the Darwins jump too far ahead.  And wouldn't you know it, the second game ended in an over time match, both team having scoring seven points and being evenly matched.  The sun was setting, and visibility became reduced.  Micah from the Darwins brought out the light-up frisbee and the gage was thrown down that the next point would win the match.  The Albatrosses, in a fight again the Darwins made the last goal, winning the second game.  I regret not taking up the offer for the bonus points, but looking at the results of the second game, it may have just as easily been the other way around. 

Hypnosis, Black Belts, Monkeys and Birds

A few more weeks have gone by and the Summer Challengers have passed that half-way mark! As of this writing, the Flaming Albatrosses are in the lead with a total of 102.2 lbs lost, while Darwin's Revenge has only lost a cumulative 79.2 lbs to date.

Of course, we also have a wide variety of Bonus Pounds opportunities to help the teams with their totals. And although the Darwins are leading in that department 24 to 14, it doesn't bring their total quite up enough to claim the lead, THIS week. But it's really been a close race so far, sometimes within .2 lbs, so it's still either team's to win. And with a big limo ride and dinner celebration waiting for the winning team, both teams seem to be fighting pretty hard.

A couple of weeks ago we were enlightened in a class taught by Dr. Pat Walker about the benefits of Hypnosis and Emotional Freedom technique (EFT) in working on your weight loss goals. And this week, we were all at Master Cho's Tae Kwon Do, learning punches, kicks, and evasive maneuvers guaranteed to make your hamstrings scream in agony for days to come. Or at least mine did, anyway. Highly recommended, by the way. Adults and kids alike.

Next week some of our players will be off to Portland, Oregon for the ComedySportz National Tournament! Wish them well, and encourage them to keep hitting the gym while they're gone!

No pictures from the last couple of weeks, but here's one of a monkey hugging a pigeon:

















It represents the support that each team member, um, gives the, uh... It shows that no matter what the challenge, there is, uh.. a .... um.... The monkey represents Darwin, and the pigeon is pretending to be an Albatross, and the two teams are working, uh... together... to... uh...

Actually, it's just a monkey hugging a pigeon.

Safety, The Jackson 5 and the Golden Arches

Ask any improviser about the basics of improv, and you'll usually get the same answers: teamwork, trust, "Yes And," among others. These are essentials to performers who must risk getting up on a stage, without a script, with other performers, and attempt to create genius out of the suggestions "Jell-o" and "Grandma", making it look as easy as breathing. They have to trust that the members of their team have got their backs, and are going to support them in whatever choices they make so that the whole team looks good. The "Yes And" attitude refers to acceptance of your teammates' performance offers, because when we deny each other, our scene stops dead and falls flat. We say "Yes, and..." whatever helps us move forward, together.

I could elaborate for pages and pages on this concept. But this isn't an improv 101 blog. Google it.

We learned tonight that doing things with improvisers is not safe. I don't mean physically, as so far, 7 weeks into this active challenge, we have not yet had one serious injury. A couple of funny ones, but none serious.

My reference is more along the lines of what to expect each week. For example, who knew that on our Belle Isle visit, teams would be required to run straight up a steep, root-ridden hill without using their hands. Or throw a frisbee to a teammate across the James River. Or, as we saw tonight, publicly prove that I was born with a serious lack of rhythm.

Tonight was our Dance Class with Shannon Stott, not only a participant in the Summer Challenge, but a CSz performer and local choreographer extraordinairre. We all fumbled through the dance lesson, some with a little (alright, a lot) more grace than myself. By the end of the evening, we were a pretty sharp looking group, with a couple of dance routines not looking half bad and actually a bit polished.

But then came the final challenge: go over to McDonalds and perform one of the dances, as a group, right in front of the cash registers, crew and anyone who happened to be in there at 9:00pm on a Monday.

This was definitely NOT written on the syllabus.

Now, improvisers are used to such challenges. We may not necessarily crave them, but we've been pounded with the "Yes And" lesson so much that we're almost on auto pilot to just do whatever the teacher says, no matter how insane. But our loyal fan participants, however, can't really say that they're used to someone making them dance, not only in public, but at a Mickey Dees, no less. The concept was met with certainly more than a little hesitation.

But I'm proud to say that our entire group went as a team and gave those security cameras something to record. Not everyone did the final dance, but everyone supported their teams, "Yes And-ed" the concept, and saw it through to completion. The applause was uproarious from all who watched, and no-one will ever hear "Dancing Machine" again without visions of sweatpants and french fries.

(BTW, this was the McDonalds at 7527 Staples Mill Road, who "Yes And-ed" us by agreeing to have us dance in their restaurant with only 2 hours notice. Go thank them by buying a Grilled Chicken Asian Salad, or a tasty Grilled Chicken Ranch Snack Wrap!)

Tonight, we learned that we sweat when we dance and when we're put on the spot. We learned that random people who don't know you will give you a standing ovation when you surprise them. And we learned that if you try to make me move my hips at the same time as my arms, even the Jackson 5 can't save the impending trainwreck.

Glad I was with the Summer Challenged.

Here is link to the video of the dance in McDonalds:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=wHVQ_DTynZE

- Dave "Catman" Gau, Summer Challenge Host

Dance our Butts off!!

So the last two weeks have been exciting for the summer challengers. Last week, we had a group workout at the new American Family fitness center at Short Pump. The facility is absolutely amazing!! They have state of the art equipment and very helpful and friendly staff.
Last Tuesday, some of the summer challengers returned to Belle Isle. For some this was a make-up for missing out on the original Belle Isle trip and for others this was a return trip and a way to earn bonus pounds for their team. WE had 18 summer challengers come out for this trip and most brought along family and pets. All in all last week was fun

This week the group Activity was dance lessons with our very own Shannon Stott!! We learned 2 dances and sweated a lot. At the end of the class we were all surprised that as a final challenge we had to go to the nearest McDonald's and, as a group, perform one of our dance in the McDonald's!!!!!! Needless to say we did it!! The night was lost of fun and we discovered that dancing is a fun way to exercise.

So far the Flaming Albatrosses are in the lead for weight loss with Darwin's Revenge close behind. It looks like it will be a tight race until the very end!!

Have a good week all and keep having fun with fitness!
-Rachel Garmon

Belle Isle Adventures!!!!!!!!

Last nights Summer Challenge event was at Belle Isle!! It was a very exciting and fun night. There was lots of sweat and great teamwork!

The night started off with the summer challengers hiking around the island. Periodically, there would be team vs. team challenges. There were four "bonus" pound challenges, and they were:
1) Run up a hill without using your hands- Darwin's Revenge had the most team members make it up without using hands, so they won that round
2) Relay race- The summer challengers battled in out in an old fashion footrace. The Flaming Albatrosses put up a good fight, but Darwin's Revenge won.
3) Frisbee Toss- This was Frisbee with a twist. Each team had to choose one person to throw the Frisbee and one person to catch the Frisbee. The twist was that the catchers had to out on the rocks!!! Christine Walters and Micah Edwards participated for Darwin's revenge and Eric Stalling, myself and David Pijor(who tagged in) played for the Flaming Albatrosses. We found out that it is very hard to throw a Frisbee across the water and Darwin's revenge won by default since the Frisbee made it to the rock
4) The last challenge of the night was to find a shirt that had been hidden. We we given clues to the location, but after searching for 15 minutes , it was discovered that the clue giver gave the wrong directions and so everyone was looking in the wrong place!!!!

All in all it was a fun adventure on Belle Isle. There are a great number of hiking trails and lots of other fun activities. I recommend that if you have not been to Belle Isle, that you should try and go! It is a great Richmond landmark and offers lots of ways to exercise and have fun!!
-Rachel Garmon

Check back in next week because the Summer Challengers will be checking out the new Short Pump American Family Fitness!!!

Bump....set....spike!

Last night the summer challengers got to play volleyball at the Richmond Volleyball Club!!!! Darwin's Revenge and the Flaming Albatrosses battled it out for 5 games for the bonus pounds and the win. The Flaming Albatross were down a couple teammates, but they battled hard, but alas they lost to Darwin's Revenge
Congratulations to Darwin's Revenge for winning the bonus pounds!!!
Thank you to the Richmond Volleyball Club for teaching us how to play and letting us play at your place. Hopefully we will be back soon!!
-Rachel Garmon

This is getting good...

We're very proud of our supportive environment. Not only do our Summer Challenge teams have members that are supporting each other and encouraging each other to meet at American Family for the next work out, but all of the participants have really been pooling together with that sense of camaraderie and being in this together.

So of course, we had to raise the stakes.

It was announced this week that the prize for having the best Team Weight Loss at the end of the summer was a limo ride for the entire team to dinner at Penny Lane Pub. (Even healthy eaters get cheat meals, right?) And then, it was announced that teams would get the chance to get Bonus Pounds by winning mini-contests over the summer that would count towards their total team weight loss amount. Well, the gloves have come off.

Our first Bonus Pounds Challenge is this coming Monday night at the Richmond Volleyball Club, where the team with the most wins of the night will receive the first Bonus Pounds and will be well on their way to that limo celebration in September. It's gonna be Darwin's Revenge vs. the Flaming Albatrosses in a serious Galapagos smackdown. Balls will be flyin'. At least one of the ComedySportz players is going to cry. And another will leave with a bandaged appendage, but I won't say what. Or who.

Weight loss is a serious sport, folks. Especially when a limo is involved.


- Dave "Catman" Gau, Summer Challenge Host

Sweet sweat

First off we have mister David Pijor to thank for the AMAZING layout for the blog...It looks great!

Second, Thanks to the heat and lack of ac in my house I think I have sweated off a pound or two. But everyone should remember took stay hydrated during these hot times and wear sunscreen..summer is officially upon us

Third, Tonight the summer challengers are going to be getting a lesson on nutrition from VA Wellness Associates..WOOO HOO

-Rachel Garmon

Donuts, Chocolates and Beer

There's a donut just down the hall from me at work that has been calling my name all day. A whole tray of them, in fact. Right next to the coffee. Sure, I gave in to the coffee. That's not going to add too much in the fat department.

But the donuts? Oh, man. It is seriously hard to fight the temptation to just down the entire tray. I've got these mini Dove dark chocolates in a bowl on my desk. I've rationed myself to one a day, as dark chocolate actually has many health benefits. But today? I've had two, and have been fighting the urge to simply dump the entire contents of that bowl, wrappers and all, right down my gaping pie hole. The donuts must have emailed the chocolates and told them I was weak.

Creating healthier eating habits is a main focus of the ComedySportz Summer Challenge. Sure, we're competing to drop the most pounds and battling to see who can sweat the most, but all of that exercise is for naught (yeah, "for naught") if we follow it up with 5 Happy Meals. I've been working on this for a while, personally. But that sure doesn't mean I've mastered it.

Take for example the recent and amazing Richmond Improv Festival at CSz last weekend. Awesome shows, every single one. But as with any addiction, I associate enjoying comedy shows with drinking beer. Mmmmmmm. Beer. But since the Summer Challenge had just gotten started, I was determined to keep that to a minimum. Which lasted all of maybe a half-hour. During those 3 days, I made a serious dent in the CSz Bass supply. Woops. So much for my healthy willpower.

At ComedySportz, we teach that mistakes are golden, and we should celebrate them as we learn from them. I think I celebrated that mistake by opening another golden Bass.

So my Summer Challenge remains conquering my sweet tooth (and my Ale tooth, apparently.) This coming Monday we're welcoming one of our awesome sponsors, Virginia Wellness Associates, to come and give our participants a session of nutrition counseling so we can all work towards making the best food decisions we possibly can. In the meantime, I'll just stay here at my desk, doing whatever I can to resist the alluring call of temptation.

I blame the donuts.

- Dave "Catman" Gau, Summer Challenge Host

Week 2

Woot!! well we're are officially done with week 1 of the summer challenge. At our weigh-in there were plenty of happy faces and low numbers!!! The comradore among the summer challengers is great. With people supporting each other and working out together!!!

More exciting news later, but feel free to check Byran Dunn's own weight loss blog. http://thedunnchronicles.blogspot.com/
He is the captain of the Flaming Albatrosses!!

Here's to a healthy, happy summer!
-Rachel Garmon

Week 2, a skeleton plan!

Hey All!  It's the 2nd week of the challenge, how's everyone doing?  In case anyone wants ideas or plans on what they should be doing for the week, here's my plan.

Monday 2nd - Cardio!

Tuesday 3rd - Lift (Lower Body)

Wednesday 4th - Cardio!

Thursday 5th - Lift (Upper Body)

Friday 6th - Swimming

Saturday 7th - Body Pump class at the West End location, 10:30 AM

Sunday - Rest

If people call me, or email me (andrew.s.burns@gmail.com), each day I could give you a better idea of what times I'll be in the gym, I'll always welcome workout buddies.  Hit cardio every day if you're mainly looking to lose weight, make sure you're eating snacks during the day to keep your metabolism up, and never resistance train two days in a row.

OK guys, have a great week!  Stay healthy!

-Andy

Getting Started

Hey Guys!

It's 3 days in, and I've been doing great.  I hope all of you have gotten your American Family memberships set up at least.  Remember that I'm here for simple questions, send an email my way at andrew.s.burns@gmail.com

Starting Monday (hopefully) I'm going to start posting my planned week's worth of exercise, so people can start getting ideas for themselves.  If anyone requests me to start posting random, daily food intake logs, I can do that as well so people can see what I'm munching on.

No one else is required to, but I'm going to try to give you guys as much detail as you want on my progress.  That being said, on weigh-in night, I was 192.4 lbs!!! I'm attempting to get down to 185, keeping in mind that I'll be building muscle as well as cutting a little fat.  Sometime this week I'm going to try to figure out my max bench press and my max squat too, so we can see if I improve in those areas as well.

Lastly, if anyone is interested in personal training over the summer, please let me know!

-Andy

..AND WE'RE OFF!!!

The ComedySportz 2nd Annual Summer Challenge has officially begun! Thanks to Dave Gau for organizing this wonderful program again and Christine Walters for lending her theater and improvisers for this challenge. There were many laughs shared as each of the 31 "challengers" were split into two teams. The teams names are: Flaming Albatross, captained by Bryan Dunn and Darwin's Revenge,captained by Beverley Pugh!

Jack and Jen from Mix 103.7 morning show, stopped by to officially lend there support and become official mascots. Jack is the mascot for the Flaming Albatrosses and Jen is the mascot for Darwin's Revenge.

Soon there will be a photo from tonights exciting kick-off!

Stayed tuned for exciting adventures in weight-loss to come at American Family Fitness!! We'll try anything to make weight-loss fun and adventurous (because gym's get boring) from Laser-Quest to Hypnosis, Tae-Kwon-Doe to Volleyball, and of course hiking around Belle Isle!

- Rachel Garmon (Summer Challenge Coordinator)