Farewell Fried Foods

Today I went to Buffalo Wild Wings and ordered 12 boneless wings. I know this seems like a lot, but it was necessary. I was saying goodbye to an old friend. That's right, for this week's Dr. Oz challenge, I'm giving up fried foods.

The truth is, my personal diet has involved some level of fried foods for as long as I can remember. Its hard to remember my childhood without Happy Meals and mozzarella sticks. I've always known they were bad for me, but its almost like they've always been a part of me.

I get that it seems like I'm building this up way too much, but I'm pretty sure that if I don't treat this like a big deal, I'm going to be overwhelmed. This is a pretty huge lifestyle change. The easily eliminates probably about half of the unhealthy foods that I eat.

I'm ready to take on this challenge, its like I'm entering a new stage in this training. This diet just got real.

Getting Off the Gravy Train

Its been a challenge coming up with my next Dr. Oz food item to eliminate. This week is Thanksgiving, so I don't want to give up anything too crazy that I won't enjoy this Holiday season, but I do want to give up something big that will make my diet healthier overall.

After raking my mind, I thought of something that, honestly, I should have given up a long time ago. Something that is a staple in southern cooking that I eat at least three times a month. Something that's ingredient list alone makes you feel like you're gaining weight. This week, I'm giving up Gravy.



For those of you that didn't grow up in the southern part of the country, you may not be plagued by this white devil, but trust me, once you've tasted it, it is impossible to let go. Country gravy is made with grease from whatever you happen to be cooking, could be anything from bacon to sasuage and even chicken. Once you've secured your grease, you put in some flour. After browning this mixture, you then add cream. That's right, this dish is essentials grease and flour, with a little bit of dairy thrown in. Someone should never eat this. The problem? It tastes amazing!

Although I have went through periods of eating well, I've never given up gravy. It is time. I don't know if I'm ever going to eat gravy again, but I do know that when you're training to be a super hero, sacrifices need to be made. Goodbye gravy, I knew you well.

The Dr. Oz Strategy

About a year ago I worked at Autism Services. Even though it was a really fulfilling job that allowed me to really feel like I was helping people, about 50 percent of the job consisted of watching T.V. Whenever I worked the 3-11 shift, it was pretty normal for us to watch Oprah, then clients really seemed to like it.

This is where I saw an interesting way to start eating healthier. For a few months, every week Dr. Oz would come on and recommend changing one thing in your diet. Nothing huge, just something small that could make a huge difference. The logic behind it is if you keep up with all these little things, eventually you'd be eating really healthy, without really realizing it.

I really like this idea and it seems completely doable, thus, I'm going to tell all of you what I'll be changing in my diet, but I encourage all of you to do the same, if you don't already.

This week, I'm going to stop drinking anything that isn't water. It is recommended that we all drink at least eight glasses a day, and many people hardly even drink one. Before you ask, the Dixie cup after you brush your teeth doesn't count. It is important for us to drink water because it can flush out all the other bad things we put into our bodies, among other amazing things it does that make our body function better.




Although training yourself to drink eight glasses a day may be a few months away for some of us, think about if you would replace every other thing you drink in a day with water. I'm sure that would be at least three glasses a day more then you're drinking now, probably four or five if we're being honest with ourselves.

I know that drinking water won't make us lose weight overnight, but it is a huge first step. If you ask any doctor, one of the best ways to lose weight is to drink more water, and its really easy. I know it seems like a huge hurdle to you soda addicts out there, but after you get over the caffeine headaches, you'll be a lot better for it.

The Name Game

Now that I've been getting more serious about my blog, the time has come to think about buying a domain name. With that, I feel it makes sense to rename my blog. I really love the name, "To Train for Comic-Con," because it really encompasses what this blog is about. Getting in shape and pop culture. But let's face it, www.totrainforcomiccon.com is a very long url and I don't know if many people would be willing to type that in their address bar regularly to read my most recent tips and musings.

Which brings me to you, the reader, fan or friend. I need help renaming this blog. There's a lot of subject matter here and its really hard to sum it all up in a few words.

All I know for now is I would love to keep the theme of Booster Gold. He's kinda a role model for me and if there could be a way to incorporate even part of his name in the new title, that'd be amazing. And don't forget, the biggest goal of this blog is to rid the world of the overweight geek stereotype, so think about that when coming up with new names too.

Thanks a lot for any help, leave a comment, shoot me a tweet at @terrybartley or email me. I'd really appreciate any and all suggestions!

A Very Potter Glee Guest Star

I've been trying to wean my way back into talking about other forms of entertainment, since this blog has been a place for fitness tips, then a little bit of comic book analysis mixed in and now I'm going to firmly place myself back into the world of pop culture by talking a little about tomorrow's episode of Glee, "Never Been Kissed."

Glee has a special place in my heart, not only because they're a show about everything I love, but also because their first Comic-Con panel was at my first Comic-Con. It is for this reason that I will always associate them with Comic-Con, no matter how mainstream the show becomes. On top of that, the show is pretty geeky. Pretty much all the main characters are outcasts in one way or another and they find their escape in music. Sure, they're more talented then most of us were in high school, but at its heart, this is a show about theatre geeks, movie geeks and music lovers. A pretty good description of most of my friends.

Tomorrow's episode is especially geeky because it will feature the star of my favorite fan-made musical, A Very Potter Musical. It is a seriously amazing musical and its Harry, Darren Criss, is really talented. Criss has a great voice and is really funny, which makes me very excited to see him on Glee.

However, Criss isn't the only reason I'm pumped for tomorrow's episode. I'm a huge Gleek, but my favorite part about the show was how much story the writers were able to cram into one 40ish minute episode. The first five episodes of this season feels like they've been dragging their feet. I've loved the musical numbers, but the show is so much more then that. But this next episode looks like its going to deliver a very meaty episode I've been craving. In the promo, the narrator even opened with "Glee's got so much action, we don't even know where to begin." That sounds like my kind of episode.

Thus, I have very high expectations for "Never Been Kissed." It features one of my favorite online performers, promises lots of story and has some pretty amazing songs lined up, including a cover of Bob Marley's "One Love." After tomorrow night, one thing's for certain, I'm either going to be very happy, or very disappointed. And by the looks of the already released musical number by Darren Criss, I don't think I have much to worry about.

How to Save the Comic Book Industry

Another great Comic blog, Popgun Chao$!, recently posted an article about the decline of comic sales over the years and what the industry could do to get back to a time when its not bizarre for one comic to sale 300,000 copies.

As a reader, I feel like I'm still getting good stories for my money. Admittedly, I do spend way more on comics then I should, and I only really buy about a fourth, if that, of the titles from one of the major comic franchises. I hate to imagine what a hardcore comic geek shells out per month. With that said, there has to be a way for the industry to pull in new readers without them feeling like they're making a decision between eating that month, or reading comics. Trust me, any real comic book fan can tell you they've been there, whether they're willing to admit it or not.

Which brings me to my main point. As an honest-to-God comic book fan with a little PR training, who is better qualified to give the comic industry advice on how to improve their income. Certainly not the company's actual PR department, they're partially responsible for the shape the industry's in already. Thus, with a little help from Popgun Chaos$'s comments section, here are my suggestions for improving their sale potential.

1. Embrace Distribution of Digital Comics

The key to any successful company is the ability to adapt to a changing market. The landscape of the way people buy anything print is changing to digital. As hard as it is to admit, the idea of people buying a physical book will soon be a thing of the past. Products such as the Kindle make it easier then ever to purchase and read digital media. No longer are the days of having to pack several books before a trip, pack up your e-reader, and you've got entertainment for hours.

I can already hear the groans of comic book fans as I'm writing this. I know what you're thinking. "Reading comics on my computer is horrible, and the Kindle doesn't have the ability to convey the amazing art I've come to expect from my comics." To you I say, you've clearly never seen a digital comic on the iPad. Don't believe me? Go to your local Apple store and hold an open comic book up to the screen of an iPad. See that, almost the exact same size. If more products like this spring into the market, a legitimate platform for digital comics will exist.

Now its time to address those of you who are telling me that DC and Marvel are already embracing this new technology. On sites such as Comixology, you can purchase digital comics from all the major players. But do me a favor. Click on that link and browse the selection. You'll soon notice that there are very few new comics there, I wouldn't exactly call that "embracing new technology."

2. Provide an Cheaper and Easier Way for New Readers to Jump On

This one's tricky. I wasn't really sure what comic book companies could do, outside of making comics cheaper, to make it easier for new readers to dive head first into comics. Then after someone compared comic books to other periodicals did it hit me. Comic books could do something that Manga has done for years. Publish a group of comics in one periodical. Group together similar comics (a monthly compilation of Bat-verse comics comes to mind), and sell them in a Shonen Jump-like format with lower quality paper, maybe less color and a much cheaper price tag.

This would provide a sample of the DCU without breaking the bank. The hardcord fans could still get their amazing art and collector's copies and the casual reader could get the same stories. I'm sure there are other methods for making comics cheaper, but this is the first one that came to me.

3. Change the Public Perception of Comic Books

This is a biggie, and a much more complex issue then I have time to discuss here, but comic book fans have a horrible wrap. When the majority of America thinks about comic fans they picture one of two things. Either the stereotypical over-weight, or under-weight, anti-social guy that lives in his mother's basement or in an even more bizarre twist, children. With the amount of adult content in comics, I'm not sure why people relate kids to comics, but there are always those that do.

Its curious that with comic based movies, such as Iron Man and The Dark Knight, regularly taking top gross in the box office, that these same movie patrons don't feel the need to pick up a comic. I do feel a big part of it is that these people are afraid of being grouped with the previous stereotype.

But what can we do to change this perception? Primarily, we need to stop perpetuating this image. Firstly, it would seriously help if we could all jump on my bandwagon of getting us healthier (think of how much awesome-er your super hero costumes will look with real muscles beneath them!). Secondly, we need mainstream figures to represent us to show we are normal people. It did my heart good when Sam Evans on Glee casually listed comics as one of his interests and I love it anytime Adrianne Curry, America's first Next Top Model, posts pictures of her cosplay. Everytime someone see a non-stereotype do something geeky, it helps our image a little bit more. So, for now, we need to encourage more celebs and media writers to not be afraid to come out of the geeky closet.

That's it for my tips, I'd love to hear anymore you guys can offer. Feel free to light up the comment section below this post.

The Booster Gold Workout Plan: Part 2

Now that I've covered cardio, its time to cover the strength training portion of the Booster Gold workout. He had to get those abs somehow! As I've stated previously, one big goal of the workout programs I've come up with are to be as cheap as possible (primarily free). I realize that not all of us can afford a gym membership and tons of equipment, I've continued this trend with the weight training.

A few years back I heard about this website called One Hundred Push-Ups. Its focus is that by the end of the six week training program, you'll be able to do, you guessed it, 100 push-ups without stopping. After thinking about the kind of training I wanted to do for my quest towards super hero-dom, I knew this should be a part of it. Upon going to the site, I'd realized that the folks over at One Hundred Push-Ups have expanded since last I'd checked them out. They now have programs for Two Hundred Sit-Ups, Two Hundred Squats and a few more.

After this discovery, I had already put together my strength training program. The way these programs are set up involve six sets of the exercise in question with breaks in between. My hybrid program, involving push-ups, squats and sit-ups, is non-stop strength training alternating the sets of specific exercises. This allows a rest period for the body parts involved, without forcing my body to rest and losing that precious, extra, cardio.

Now that I've done this program for a couple weeks, I will warn you. This method gets really intense the farther you go. My most recent workout was Week 2, Day 2 and by the end of it I was sweating buckets. I was able to complete it, but I was near the end of my rope endurance-wise. I think this program will work, but in the very near future, its going to get much harder for me.

I do this program three times a week as instructed. Its very important to follow the program exactly so you don't over, or under, work yourself. By the end of this program I'll be able to do 100 push-ups, 200 squats and 200 sit-ups, this will drastically increase my strength, and with any luck, the appearance of muscles.

Superman's Pal Jimmy Olsen

Recently DC comics debuted a backup feature in Action Comics starring Jimmy Olsen. Whether you're a Jimmy fan or not, I'm excited for this feature for two big reasons. 1) I feel that writer Nick Spencer will bring the fun back to comics with the help of Mr. Olsen and 2) This comic features the DC Universe Debut of my favorite Superman Universe character, Chloe Sullivan.

To address my first point, I have high hopes for his comic. In recent years, we've seen the deaths Captain America and Batman, a very clear image of Wonder Woman killing a man and the near Genocide of a new group of Kryptonians. Its time for a comic that doesn't have all that drama going on. Reading about Jimmy taking down a pack of evil cats, or whatever, could be a nice change of pace. That's the great thing about Jimmy Olsen as a character, he doesn't have a ton of baggage. He's a photographer that knows Superman and ends up getting himself into trouble, that's pretty much it. And that's all we need.

In this first issue, we catch up with Jimmy after the events of War of the Supermen. He's in a little bit of a rut, now that the big S has gone on a PR trip around the world and isn't really able to protect his little buddy at his beckon call. It is written very cleverly in that the narration and the dialog has a tit-for-tat kind of relationship. I'd never seen this done before, but it works perfectly. We meet a new cast of supporting characters, including Jimmy's very own arch-nemesis, a big-shot Lexcorp exec which prompts possibly the best quote of the comic, "Right, that's what I'm saying. Lexcorp. . . . Being good at your job there means being bad at your soul."

And while we're talking supporting characters, let's not pretend like this comic is going to be anything but:

Chloe Sullivan is possibly one of the best characters created by a comic-based T.V. show, maybe ever, at least a close tie with Harley Quinn. She is essentially a blonde, unparalyzed Oracle that is Superman's bestie that talks in Buffy-speak. I'm sure the character in Action Comics isn't quite the Chloe we've all grown to love over the years, but we'll get there. I'm sure Superman writers have been watching Smallville waiting for the day they get to play around with this amazing character. This introduction is possibly the biggest thing this feature will accomplish. Whether this particular comic lasts or not, Chloe Sullivan is now firmly placed in the DC Universe. I'm very excited for what this could mean for me, the reader.

Best of all, comixology has a free preview of the 10-page backup feature. Be sure to check it out, unless you hate fun of course.