STAY THE COURSE

You cheat just ONE DAY, and it screws everything up – ONE DAY!!  I stuck to under 2,000 calories EVERY day, except Saturday.   Once you take a bite of the forbidden fruit (in this case it was Pizza and Pillsbury Cinnamon rolls), the taste buds explode and the gorging begins.   I’m only disappointed because I needed to lose 3 lbs, instead of 2.5 to really stay on target, but what the heck – It’s still good!!!

The winner of the FREE Original Retro Brand shirt this week is Marybeth  Seeback  from Huntington, New York.  Weebles (her nickname) was the only person to guess 237 exactly.   We’ll find out what shirt she chooses and post it up later today.   So, I’ve lost 7 lbs in 2 1/2 weeks with 10 weeks to go, and need to drop another 23 to reach my goal by Halloween (214 lbs).    Maybe I need to put my XL Georgia shirt back on to remind myself  just how far I still have to go.  I thought I could wear a 2xl Michigan State ORB shirt comfortably, but the GUT STILL protrudes out of a 2xl!!   Well, I’m just going to fast today like it’s Yom Kippur, and ride my bike to the Georgia Dome (that would be very far from where I live!)

NO SPARTAN YET, BUB!

3 weeks – 3 winners.  Remember to follow me on http://twitter.com/retrobrand and Facebook to see how I am progressing (or not!)    It is SO easy to win a FREE Original Retro Brand shirt in this FIGHT FOR THE FIT challenge!  All you have to do is guess my weight, and enter it in the Post/View Comment section of the latest FIGHT FOR FIT post before every Monday @ NOON EST.    Whoever can guess (or come closest) wins the free shirt.

I am donating $5 a day to the American Cancer Society’s Relayfor life during my FIGHT FOR FIT CHALLENGE, and urge all to give to the charity of their choice.

Quick shout out to the folks at 24HR Fitness, who sent me a bodybugg for motivation.   After the bugg shot back the disastrous results of my one day Pizza-Cinnamon bun breakdown, I ran extra hard on Sunday.  The bodybugg does not lie!

PROGRESS!

One week down, eleven to go.  I’ll get right to the point: Lost 2 more lbs.  Was hoping for at least 2.5, but I’ll take it…That’s a total of 4.5 lost in 9 days.  Had several folks guess 239, but only one guessed 239.5.  The Winner of the FREE Original Retro brand shirt is Keith Hughes, from Rye New York.  I know Keith personally, and he in fact is the person who brainwashed me into becoming a Bulldog Fan before I even moved to Georgia…ok, he’s my cousin!  Sounds fishy, right?   Pick was legit, I promise.

MODEL T

I’ve really put my ORB Georgia shirt to the test, and it is passing the test with flying colors.   I mean I’ve swam in it, ran many miles in it, played basketball and tennis in it, and rode 20 miles in it.  It’s been washed at least 20 times in 9 days and HAS NOT SHRUNK, or beaded up.  It still fits…a little too tight.  BUT IN A FEW WEEKS IT WILL loosen up as I will continue this FIGHT FOR THE FIT, and keep losing the weight!    As much as I love my Georgia shirt, I wish I could mix it up a little and wear a different ORB shirt ( I think I’ve proven the shirts are durable!) every week for the remainder of the challenge.    I have this vision of wearing a San Francisco Seals t when I’m 214 lbs…..

AND THE WINNER IS?....BODYBUGG!

FIGHT FOR FIT UPDATE:   Remember Carter?   My wife’s nephew who cleaned the floor with me in basketball a few weeks ago?   Well after losing roughly 30 straight 10 point games, I finally knocked him off yesterday 10-8!  I blew an 8-0 lead (he tied it up), but hit a 2-pt desperation bomb when I could barely take one more step.    Was it luck, or am I now more fleet of foot with my under 240 lb. frame?    Coincidentally, I had just started wearing my bodybugg, and believe it brought me good luck.   What’s a bodybugg you ask?   My good friends @ 24HR Fitness caught wind of my little challenge, and decided to show their support by sending me a bodybugg (THANK YOU FELLAS!):  THIS IS NOT YOUR MOMMA’S PEDOMETER!!   The bodybugg keeps you HIGHLY motivated by providing you with daily calories burned vs calories consumed,  customized meal plans and workout plans designed  specifically for each individual.  There is a 24 HR hot line for assistance, and they even have a personal COACH assigned to you!     I’ve only used the bodybugg for 4 days, and I am hooked!   I highly recommend you check it out.

Reminder to please give generously to the charity of your choice.  I am sponsoring The American Cancer Society and Relay For Life, in my FIGHT FOR FIT challenge.   You can follow my progress daily on http://twitter.com/retrobrand and Facebook.

Thanks again to all for their encouragement and support, and be sure to guess again next week, and you may win a free shirt from Original Retro Brand!

Yes people, it is reminder time to those of you following me in my “FIGHT FOR THE FIT!”  challenge.   If you are not following, then please jump aboard!  I will be standing on the scale first thing this coming Monday morning, to see if I’ve gone up or down in weight.   My goal is to lose 30lbs by Halloween so I can dress up as an Original Retro Brand Model.   Each week up until then, we’ll be giving away an Original Retro Brand shirt for FREE, so what do you have to lose by giving it a shot?   I will post my result @ NOON this Monday, August 10th, and whoever can guess my weight (or come closest), will win a FREE Original Retro Brand  T of their choice.  All you have to do is place your guess in the POST/VIEW COMMENT section at the bottom of this post.   You must get your guess in BY 11Am this Monday 8/10.  I will anounce the winner @ NOON in the post.

SOYBEANS, FLAXSEED, FISH OIL, OY VEY!

I will share a small piece of Insider information with you.   I WORKED OUT LIKE A WILD MAN THIS WEEK!!!    Can’t give you any clues as to what I ATE though, and the weekend looms large with temptation.

Speaking of diet, I met with a nutritionist today (Doctors orders due to my out of whack cholesterol.)    I was a little apprehensive, expecting the riot act to be read by some Vegan Guru, but was pleasantly surprised because: 1) She is a GEORGIA BULLDOGS fan! (married to a Florida fan -  but hey my wife is a Georgia Tech fan)   2) Easy on the eyes ( purely professionally speaking here!)  3) Had fun plastic food samples for me to play with.   4) Gave me FREE  real samples of Flaxseed and Benefiber!  5) Put up with my sarcasm like a champ.   The truth of the matter is that Alisa Winters is a Registered Dietitian who really knows her stuff, and really educated me and further inspired me to reach my goal.

FIGHT FOR THE FIT STAT: week 1 weigh in, August 3rd…..241.50 (loss of 2.5 from start date 7/31)

FIGHT FOR THE FIT STAT: week 2 weigh in, August 10th….?????  GUESS & WIN!

Thanks again for all the words of encouragement folks and good luck Monday!

Hey all, I just got back from the amazing Bread and Butter show in Berlin. 

it was held at the Templehoff airport (a cool abandoned airport). The show was HUGE over 2.5 kilometers long with over 600 brands. There were art shows, golf carts and buses (to trek you the length of the show) and of course, Beer Gardens!

The show was a success and I made sure to take some video so you could check it out for yourself!

Here are some of my favorite NHL logos. The first two were also in the playoffs… good teams with great logos are winners in my book!

RED WINGS:

PENGUINS:

BLACKHAWKS:

RANGERS:

Whoever can write me the most compelling reason why their favorite team logo is the best will receive a FREE ORB NHL shirt from me!

Leave me a comment with your name and email address, and I will contact the winner!

*To purchase any of the featured tshirts in this post, click on the picture or visit our online store at http://shop.originalretrobrand.com.

I think most of us will admit that we all had a “blanky” when we were in that three to five year old range. (Okay, I was eight by the time I let go of my blanket that had turned into shredded wheat). Like Linus, it went with you everywhere. The security, the bond to it, was as close as mother to newborn. What I remember more than anything about it was how incredibly broken-in and soft it had become over its life– like a well-oiled baseball glove. I get this same feeling every time I slip into an Original Retro Brand shirt or hoody…..REALLY!  I have owned THOUSANDS of sports tees, and I can say without a doubt, that the ORB tee is the softest, stretchiest, most comfortable and durable piece of fabric I have ever put over my body. When I put on an ORB tee, I really hearken back to wrapping myself in that dang blanky! Most sports tees are heavy cotton that shrink and have to be washed several times to get that “feel.”  I have asked CEO Marc Herman how he gets this done on several occasions, only to be told what you might expect to hear from the founder of Coca-Cola;  “The detailed technical information will never be revealed.” As the famous saying goes, “If I tell you, I’d have to kill you.”

Herman, getting pumped about his baby, goes on to say, “We design all of our blanks. We DO NOT buy crappy blanks like many of our competitors — they are mass producers, and cater to the masses and volume purchasing. . . Our blanks are designed for comfort and to appeal to have a flattering fit without being too tight. They fit almost anyone.” He goes on to describe the printing techniques as “state of the art.” He adds, “We take the time to research specific knitting techniques, sometime using vintage machinery to produce our tee.  These machines were used in the 50′s and 60′s, and are very hard to find.”

I have at least 50 ORB tees in my closet, and I wear them religiously. I think after reading what Mr. Herman had to say, you can understand the way I feel, but if you don’t, I suggest you hop over to www.originalretrobrand.com and order your first ORB tee.  Not only will the logos bring you back, but you will find your blanky again.

The firestorm that is surrounding Jon and Kate from the hit Show “Jon and Kate plus 8” has hit an all time high. This weeks US weekly magazine features Kate on the cover with allegations that she hits her children. Could America’s most infamous parents really be as bad as they are made out to seem?

Jon and Kate have rarely been seen in public together of late, and the picture above is one of the rare pictures of them together. As you can see Jon is rocking his Retro Brand Indiana Tee (RB100 IND) which got me to thinking about people’s relationships with their beloved sports teams.

From my research (not scientific, but based on boyfriends and guy friends throughout my life) men are extremely loyal to their sports teams. This loyalty and allegiance is usually born from an early age and is influenced by their father (or friends) favorite teams. This loyalty seems to stay with them for life, whether the team is winning is losing.  

With the crumbling of Jon and Kate’s marriage happening before our eyes,  I started to wonder if people are more loyal to their teams than to their marriages?  More than half of all US marriages end in divorce and I wonder if team loyalty also ends in “divorce” when things are going bad? I am thinking not as there are still Cubs fans, and they haven’t won in about 90 years…

Have you ever noticed that  ones significant other will be ignored while the game is on? Has this ever happened to you? Do you think this is acceptable behavior? On the flip side-is it acceptable to interrupt someone while watching the game?

With that in mind turn on the game and relish your favorite Retro tee…it might be the best relationship you have.

We are honored to be chatting with 3 year Secret Service veteran (for George W. Bush) and Fitness author, Jeff Hopeck

Andy: You are originally from Pennsylvania.   Are you a Philly Fan, or a Pittsburgh Fan?   Think the Pens will win game seven of the Stanley Cup?

Andy: Speaking of Presidents and politics, you are a big fan of the Original Retro Brand line of Poli-tees. Was this because of your affiliation to the Commander in chief?  I mean you ended up modeling them for crying out loud!   What is it about them that you love so much?

I was a Certified Fitness Coordinator during my time in the Secret Service. In addition, when I started my business in 2006, I was named a 50th Anniversary Partner for the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports, and an Advocate of the President’s Challenge Physical Activity and Fitness Program.   Two  very credible organizations that I strongly support!

Andy: Thanks for the time Jeff.   I’m going to lift some kettlebells so my middle-aged guns will bust out of my ORB tees!