Tag Archives: michael c mcgreevy

In Pursuit of the Pull-Up

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Photo by uuzinger

Photo by uuzinger

I have never, in my entire life, done a pull-up.

This is not an easy revelation for me to make.  The truth of the matter is that it’s downright painful.

Back when I was in Middle School (6th to 8th grades down here in Florida) physical education was a mandatory class that everyone had daily.  For some kids it was an excuse to get outside and have some fun during the school day.  For me it was a daily reminder of how much I sucked.  It was an opportunity for me to get picked on for how slow I was, how much I was sweating in the hot Florida sun, how I was horrible at team sports, and how ugly I looked when I didn’t have my shirt on.  The latter, of course, only happened on one of the very rare occasions when I would actually get up the nerve to “dress out.”  When I didn’t, which was most of the time, I got picked on instead because of how badly I smelled due to not taking a shower after class.

The absolute worst humiliation I had to endure during that time, however, was a direct result of The President’s Challenge.

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Namco/Bandai Is Weird

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You will never unsee this. Ever.

You will never un-see this. Ever.

I’ve been writing a lot about the whole fitness gaming genre recently.  I’m doing so because I think the genre has a tremendous amount of potential to really push video games as something good in our lives instead of the common misconception that gaming is bad for you (a misconception that, unfortunately, our current President seems to share).

As with anything that becomes a hit in popular culture, though, there will inevitably be a flood of cheap imitators that simply wish to capitalize on the success of those who came before them.  Airplane! was brilliant.  Meet The Spartans? Not so much.  Creativity and innovation have a tendency to get watered down in pursuit of the all mighty dollar in the long run.

I don’t think we’ve gotten quite to that point when it comes to the exergame genre yet, but I know we have at least one entry that’s causing me to react with a hearty WTF?

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Dieting on a Budget : 100 Calorie M&M Packs

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Pre-Packaged 100 Calorie PacksHealthy food is expensive.  There’s just no two ways about it.  Fruits, vegetables, lean meats, and low-calorie treats are all generally a lot more expensive than a box of Patio Burritos.  Many of the lower income members of society who struggle with their weight simply cannot afford to eat well (and it goes without saying that gym memberships, diet supplements, and pre-packaged meal programs are simply out of the question).  Even those of us who aren’t necessarily struggling to pay the bills have to deal with the fact that our money just isn’t buying as much as it used to, and with all the economic uncertainty that is out there today it just makes sense to save wherever you can.

With that in mind were here at ShrinkGeek thought we’d occasionally share some of the ways we have found to eat better and save a few pennies in the process.  Our subject for today is the 100 Calorie M&M Snack Packs.

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User Queries : Dealing With Loose Skin

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Question Mark

One of the things I am having to deal with already in my weight loss effort is loose skin on my inner thighs, lower abdomen, and pelvic regions. I have looked around on Google and gotten a LOT of conflicting information that focused mainly around BMI and lean tissue vs body fat content.  I am not sure what to trust short of going to a dermatologist or Cosmetic Surgeon for a consultation and asking, “What do I do?”

– Anonymous Reader

Well, anonymous, let me state right off the bat here that if you want a definitive answer to this question you SHOULD go see a medical professional for a consultation.  I’m not a doctor, nor is anyone here at ShrinkGeek, and all of what I’m about to offer is simply a healthy mix of some internet research peppered with my personal opinion.  I don’t have the fancy letters after my name to prove that anything you’re about to read is true, nor do I have the malpractice insurance behind me if it turns out I’m completely wrong.

Now that I’ve gotten all those messy disclaimer things out of the way to cover my posterior let me state that I have, indeed, done a bit of research into this subject.  I, too, have wrestled with the loose skin question and have often said that I may end up needing to have surgery to remove it as well.  I have even gone so far as to have consulted a plastic surgeon about my predicament, and as such I’m happy to pass on what I have learned to you.

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Meet The Geeks : Michael C. McGreevy

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Michael C. McGreevyI’ve been struggling with this particular post for a while now.  Technically?  I’ve been struggling with it for about six months.  As I said in my introductory post the other day I came up with the idea for ShrinkGeek over a year and a half ago, but we’ve had an actual blog running as a testing ground since November of last year.  During that whole time it was always understood that at some point we’d all write an introductory post about ourselves for those of you who come to the blog that don’t know who we are already.

As I’ve tossed and turned ideas for this post around in my head I’ve tried to decide where exactly I wanted to go with it.  Do I talk about my geek cred or my experience as a blogger?  Do I mention the fact that I’m an actor?  Do I bring the fact that I’m a parent into the mix?  What about my career?  Is the fact that I’m an I.T. Professional relevant to what I have to say here?  Do people want to know why I reject the term nerd and embrace the term geek?  Should I keep it short and sweet or is this going to be a post of epic length?

Am I worrying about this too much?

Eventually I just decided to sit down and start writing, and as I’ve been doing so I’m reminded of the way that Hollis Mason started “Behind the Mask” in Watchmen – Start with the saddest thing you know.  Since this is a health and fitness blog I figure I’ll start with the saddest thing I know of in my own life that fits that criteria.

In the year 2000, when I was 27 years old, I had two strokes.

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