IF Update: Day #53 (Eating)

Yes, I know. It's a Monday, and I'm eating. Given the lack of posting, you might be thinking I fell of the wagon. In truth, I did fall off the wagon last Monday, but it was an intentional attempt to try to get over a back injury that just won't go away. Due to my inability to gain muscle while doing IF, I decided it might be worthwhile to eat for a few days straight to see if it would improve my back's condition.

Unfortunately, I never found out. By the end of Monday, I was dealing with a full-blown stomach virus, and it dug its nails into my guts for the long haul. In 24 hours, it knocked me back by 10 pounds. Today is the first day since last Monday morning where I've felt anything close to normal and could eat normal food.

As of this morning, I was 186 lbs, 13.3% body fat.

I'm still deciding how to proceed from this point forward. Almost all of my weight loss during the illness was muscle which is easily confirmed by looking in a mirror. As a result, I need to put the muscle back on which may require eating on my fasting days. One option I've considered is using protein shakes or possibly high protein Naked Juice on the fasting days to help build muscle.

If anyone has any recommendations, let me know.

IF Update: Day #43 (Fasting)

After a terrible week of eating, I miraculously came in at 189.8 lbs this morning. I've decided the body fat measurement on the scale is nearly useless in the morning so I won't report that number as often. The last good reading was at the end of a fasting day measuring 13.1%.

Movie Review: The Departed (Spoilers)

Starring Jack Nicholson, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, and Alec Baldwin, you just knew going in that this movie would be something special. The only question mark was Martin Scorcese. I know, I know...he's a legend in the business, everything he touches is brilliant...blah, blah, blah. I just want to know if I'm going to see wonderfully directed boredom like Gangs of New York or something interesting like The Aviator. Not only was this not another outing like Gangs of New York, in my opinion, this movie surpassed The Aviator and rose to the level of Goodfellas or Raging Bull.

The Departed tells a not unfamiliar story of the mafia and the police, but in this story, we have moles on both sides of the fence. Nicholson plays the mafia boss forward-thinking enough to work a neighborhood kid into the police force and up the chain of command. Martin Sheen, Mark Whalberg, and Alec Baldwin work in the police force trying to catch Nicholson's character using Billy Costigan, an undercover cop played by DiCaprio. The story devolves into a battle between the moles to uncover each other and survive attacks from both sides.

Each performance in The Departed is brilliant in its own right, but two actors really elevated it beyond the usual fare. DiCaprio played the role of Costigan, the undercover cop, so unhinged that you literally had no idea what he might do next. Would he kill his contacts in the police force and join the mafia permanently?
Who knows? On the screen less than most, Baldwin turned in some well-needed comic relief by creating an extreme characterization of a Boston detective. With lines like "Patriot Act! Patriot Act! I love the Patriot Act!" you have to believe Baldwin added a little of his own sarcastic flavor to the role. Aside from that, I think that was his only line without an expletive so I had to use it.

If you can handle lying, stealing, cheating, murdering, stabbing, cussing, etc., I highly recommend this movie.