Secret Project Revealed!
Secret Project Revealed!
Good morning, gentle viewers!
Oh, I’m so excited.
If you’ve been around these parts for a while, you’ll remember a series of posts about SuperWomen. Ever since I was a kid, I longed to see female superheroes, but as we all know, they’re rather thin on the ground. After my recent post about superhero clothing and the sexist attitudes toward women displayed by the creators, I got to thinking.
There’s been a lot of stuff in the media lately about women in geek culture, from Jim C. Hines posing like the women on fantasy covers (with John Scalzi, and for charity to boot!) to showcase how ridiculous the poses are to Tor.com posting about one particular pose. Then there’s the amazing Hawkeye Initiative and my new favorite Tumblr in which artist Alex Law uses the superhero costumes of little girls to show that their gender expectations haven’t been set in stone yet, and they are better at creating badass superhero costumes than the people who do it for a living.
And I thought, “This is all great stuff.”
But I wanted something more. So I’m making it, along with three other women.
We’re creating the Searching for SuperWomen blog. It’ll be a place for geek women (and the men who love us!) to come and love the things we love, from sci-fi to superheroes. It’ll be a place to celebrate the role of women in geekdom and show Hollywood that we ARE the audience they want us to be. A place where we make it clear that after eight Superman reboots and two Spiderman trilogies and eight Batman movies, it’s about goddamn time that they make Wonder Woman and make it well, without giving it the Elektra-deluxe treatment of shame.
Pretty soon, we’ll be looking for YOU. People who love geek culture and have something to offer. Art. Music. Cosplay. An essay on Xena. Whatever you love in geekdom. So come by, get to know us, and get ready to go on an expedition.
We’re Searching for SuperWomen. Follow the link and come see us!
The Searching for SuperWomen editors are:
- Emmie Mears @emmiemears
- Fran Roberts @CatWomanFran
- Kristy Lyseng @Kristy_Lyseng
- Meg McNulty @charitygirlblog
Our first post will go up on Wednesday. For May and June, updates will be Wednesdays, but look out for more, because we’re on the prowl.
We can’t wait to see you there!
Back on the #ZAP Wagon
Back in November, a funny thing happened.
I got on the scale, and it exploded.
Okay, it didn’t really explode, per say. But it showed the highest number I’ve ever seen it show. I got off and got back on just to check.
Yep.
I looked up my BMI and it helpfully informed me that I was on my way to becoming obese.
I wasn’t okay with that.
So when December rolled around, Spouse and I began a drastic shift in diet. I dropped about 12 pounds in fairly quick succession, but I also gained a serious bug. For most of December and January, I was very ill, and the scale went back up due to my having to stay in bed.
Finally, last month, I got myself to the gym again. I’ve gotten my weight from borderline obese to just under the “overweight” line. I’m officially back to a normal weight. It feels good, but I still don’t. I feel the pain in my knees and my back. I’m still lugging around 25 pounds that I didn’t have when I moved here.
This where ZAP comes in.
If a zombie pandemic started today, I’d be in trouble. I can barely run two miles without getting really winded, which is a far cry from the easyish 5Ks I was running five times a week in the autumn. I know that the ideal weight for my body is about 20 pounds lower.
So I’ve started running again, and today (hand in hand with a friend), I’m starting to get my diet in check again. This time no excuses. It’s taken a couple bouts with the exploding scale and experiencing knee issues for the first time in my life to drill home the message that I have to make a definitive change. Plus, I need to be in the best shape possible for when those zombie hordes start shambling down the sidewalks.
Here’s my goals:
– lose 25 pounds by September and keep it off
– run three times per week (at least one mile)
-run two miles at least once per week
-begin strength training with the goal in mind of being able to complete 100 push ups in four sets or less and do at least 5 pull ups in one set
-stay within calorie goals five days per week
And that’s that.
At work, I’ve had a lot of people tell me recently that they can’t run. If I can do it (an asthmatic with a history of severe lung infections and shin splints), I can’t be unique. I first ran a straight mile last summer after avoiding it since high school. Then I slowly upped it to three. By the time I do the Run For Your Lives zombie obstacle course 5K in October this year, I want to be able to run 10K without stopping. That’s about 6.25 miles. Possible? Well. If I used to think running three miles straight was impossible and did it anyway, what else can I do?
It’s time to find out.
What about you, folks? Any fitness goals heading into summer? How are you gonna thwart the zombies?