GameInformer

I played through the entire Green Day: Rock Band career last night alongside Sean, Ben, and my buddy Ross to get the "Won't Make It for Dinner" achievement (reach the credits within 12 hours as part of a 4-player band) and had a great time. But I couldn't believe how much these guys have consistently and blatantly stolen from other songs throughout their career. Don't believe me? Take a listen for yourself. More

After seven weeks of exercise and healthy eating, Jeff Cork has lost 25 pounds and won the Game Informer Fitness Battle. Even though the rest of us will have to pay up and buy him one game each, we all made significant strides in losing weight and adopting a more healthy lifestyle. As of week seven, the official results are:

1) Jeff C: -25
2) Bryan: -17
3) Dan: -10
4) Meagan: -10
5) Annette: -9

And a speech from the victor:

Well, it’s over. Fortunately, I started out so out of shape that I still have a ways to go before I hit my ultimate goal weight. The 25 pound mark is certainly a nice milestone, however. I have to say I feel better than ever since losing the weight. My wife says she’s sleeping better now that my bloated carcass isn’t snoring through the night. Since it’s winter I haven’t spent much time outside with the kids, but let’s pretend that I can keep up with them now or something. (That’s what old people usually say when they shed extra pounds.)

Five Game Informer editors are squaring off in a weight loss competition to shed 25 pounds. Every week they weigh in on Wii Fit Plus to see who's working it and who's sitting out. Both Dan and Meagan are out of town this week until Thursday so we'll have to see if they can maintain healthy eating and exercise practices on the road. At this point, Annette has jumped up to first place in the weekly results after last week's tough showing. Bryan continues to shed meager slices of weight, but not enough to take advantage of Jeff's slip up week. More

Five Game Informer editors are squaring off in a weight loss competition to shed 25 pounds. Every week they weigh in on Wii Fit Plus to see who's working it and who's sitting out. This week, Dan actually gains weight despite his most rigorous workout routine yet.

Sorry for the delay on this week's post. Jeff was out of the office on Monday so we had to push back the weigh-in a day. Next week's post will also be on Tuesday the 9th due to absentee editors.



From left to right: Meagan, Jeff C, Dan, Annette, and Bryan. [Dan's line got messed up this week. See below for his true results.]

Week 4

1) Jeff C: -6.8
2) Meagan: -2.4
3) Annette: -2.2
4) Bryan: -1.8
5) Dan: +0.7

Total Approximate Tally

1) Jeff C: -16
2) Bryan: -11
3) Dan: -10
4) Meagan: -8
5) Annette: -7

Jeff C:
Whew! I didn’t expect to see a number like this week’s result, and I don’t expect to ever again. I’m not putting too much stock into the number, since weight can fluctuate so wildly from day to day—and throughout the day as well. I added some more cardio time to my weight training, which I think helped. When we started this competition I wasn’t able to do steady-state cardio for any real length of time, but that seems to be changing. As fun as it is to see numbers dropping, I’m more inspired when I realize that I’m able to run longer than I was physically able to at the start. Also, Dan sucks.

Meagan:
My new motto is “slow and steady wins the race.” Well, that may not be entirely true, considering that Jeff now has lost twice the amount of weight that I have, but I am happy with my 2lb loss per week even if it hasn’t positioned me as a front runner. As far as changes to my routine, I started P90X last week and it is kicking my butt in every way possible.  And in the best way possible. Although every inch of me hurts now, I think that using the videos 3-4 times a week between my normal cardio workouts is going to help me get the results I want in terms of toning my arms and so on. All and all, 8lbs is nothing to scoff at, and I am well on my way to losing those 15lbs that I’ve been trying to get rid of for the past five years. Things are getting exciting!

Annette:
I’m still pushing through P90X and showed modest weight loss results this week. While it’s not as awesome as last week’s results, I’ll take it considering my performance the first couple weeks of the competition. My current routine seems to be working well. Now that my body no longer hates me for doing P90X, I may inject more cardio into my workout schedule. I plan on working a little harder this week, though. If I lose three pounds next weigh-in, I will be down a total of 10 pounds!

Bryan:
I have no problem blaming Mass Effect 2 for my less-than-impressive results this week. If I wasn't stuck on the couch playing this fucking fantastic game, than I wouldn't have missed out on hours of exercise. Add this to the fact that I went to three birthday parties for my favorite future-sister-in-law (hey, Lori!), all with delicious, calorie-rich foods. Next week, ME 2 will be out of the way and I'll be back on track.

Dan:
Something’s awry here. My last week was probably the most exercise-intensive week of my life, and I still managed to put on 0.7 pounds. I’ve done P90X every day, and I usually followed that by running anywhere between 3-5 miles. One of my goals for this competition was to be able to run 3 miles in 30 minutes, and I did that twice over the last week. So basically, I’m not really sure how I put on almost a pound this week. The only thing that makes sense to me is if it’s muscle weight, but I’ve focused far more on cardio than anything else. I’m definitely concerned about the next couple of weeks, because my dad is visiting Minneapolis this weekend and that means several days of drinking and eating nothing but crap. After that I’m going on two trips for work, so that means travel food. I’m expecting some subpar weigh-ins for about two weeks before I can kick it back into high gear.

To follow the fitness competition, type "GI Fitness" in to the search field or hit the blog tab above the story.

Five Game Informer editors are squaring off in a weight loss competition to shed 25 pounds. Will the second weigh-in be repeat of last week's results or will a new champion rise to the top? Check out the surprising numbers. More

Rolling into the Game Informer office after the holidays, several editors felt the repercussions of too many cookies, pies, and other assorted treats. So instead of just making an empty resolution that we’d quit after three days, five of us decided to make it interesting.

Annette, Dan, Jeff Cork, Meagan, and I have made a wager in which the first person to lose 25 pounds receives a video game from each of the other contestants. Every Monday we’ll weigh in using Wii Fit Plus to verify how everyone’s coming along. Since it’s such a large amount to lose, we’re expecting the contest to last several months before a victor is determined.

Keep an eye on the blog section if you’re interested in tracking our progress or if you’d like to share some of your own New Year’s fitness resolutions. To start off, I asked all of my rivals to share why they were interested in losing to me in this competition. I’ll start:

Bryan
It's the time of year for resolutions and I've wanted to get more active for a while now. The problem has always been incentive. Why would I work out in my free time when I could do absolutely anything else? I even put a TV in my exercise room to sweeten the pot, but that didn't work either. The competitive nature of this competition is just what I need to really get going on this. I just picture the slack jawed look on everyone's faces at weigh in when I totally destroy them.

Annette
This is something I've been thinking about for a while. For a few months last year I'd start some hardcore diet and routine, and quit within two weeks. I did this repeatedly. With this competition I'm really looking forward to losing a few extra pounds, eating better and just being more active overall. This whole thing originated after Dan and I talked about weight loss goals for the year and figured the best way to encourage us gamers to lose weight is to, well, make it competitive. News spread of what we were doing around the office and next thing I knew there were five of us weighing in with Wii Fit to kick off the competition. Chocolate started "mysteriously" appearing on my desk the past couple days courtesy of my competitors. Things are going to get ugly.

Dan
I spent two weeks back at home over the holidays, during which I exclusively ate crappy food and drank a lot with old friends. From what I hear, this is not healthy. I think the moment that sealed the deal was when my grandpa looked at my gut, said "I wouldn't even want to be in a car with you! What the sam hell's the matter with you?" and then put his ear up to my stomach and made baby sounds. This is not something that is supposed to happen, so I knew it was time to get in shape.

Jeff Cork
Through a patented combination of excess and sloth, I've managed to bulk up nicely over the past few years. It's been ridiculously fun, but it's probably not the most healthy way to live. Also, I like to get free games. Looking at who I'm up against, it's basically a done deal. The competitive angle definitely helps.

Meagan
I work out nearly every morning and, for the most part, eat pretty healthy. But there is always room for improvement. Especially when you plan on cosplaying as LeeLoo Dallas from The Fifth Element at SDCC this year. Belly shirts = scary. Initially I was a bit hesitant to join the 25lbs club. I tried to create a second-tier group interested in losing a cosmetic 15lbs, but when no one was found I decided to jump on board. I'm a bit competitive. I don't know if I will (or want to) lose the full 25lbs, but the way I see it, the competition is a way for me to trim down a bit with the support of some friends. I am a big proponent of healthy body images and being comfortable in your skin, so I am okay losing the competition if I am uncomfortable dropping the full 25. But I will take it day by day and see how it goes.