Zach's Boot Camp Journal

[zach]

Ok here we go.

I'm taking a hint from tigers post and going to attempt to keep a daily journal. I actually started week one on thursday (today is sunday) but am going to treat it as if it started today.

But before I post on todays achievements I'm going to let everyone know where I stand. I am two weeks from getting divorced from my wife whom I haven't seen in 4 or 5 months. Divorce is first weekin September. She left, I wanted to work on the marriage. I have dealt with the emotional stress and focused it and my anger into my workouts and cardio. I am getting close to the best shape of my life and at 245 pounds only have a little bit of fat around my lower abs and this strange and annoying strip from my armpit to my peck. I was a power lifter during my marriage and actually hit the weight of 315 last december.

I feel I'm average looking. I hate my complexion (I got freckles at 30) but I tan at the beds and it covers it up well enough. Though I am a big guy, I am not overly aggressive. I release most my aggression in my workouts. I have a middle class paying job and am a shift lead with a computer systems support group.

Do I fear rejection? I think I have a level 7 (on a scale of 1 to 10) fear factor of it. I still have a bit of bad taste in my mouth from my wifes rejection. Problem is I am confident in my appearance and my looks, just not my approach in one on one situations. In groups I am fine.

Oh well, I will begin later today with a report on Week one day one.

 

[SamePendo]

Keep it up man!
Hopefully this and other recent bootcamps help us to get a bootcamp forum.


In the mean time, keep it up !

 

[Walden]

Good luck man.

BTW I'd actually argue against a bootcamp forum. I think it's better that they go here on the busiest forum of the board where everyone will read them and comment , rather than tucked away in some back corner where only other bootcampers will check 'em.

 

[zach]

Week One, Day one

Well today wasn't much of a first day because of little oppurtunities.

Started off going tanning in am, I stopped by bp on the way to pick up the paper and coffee. Girl behind the counter was a 5 at best but smiled at her and asked her how it was going. *1* She smiled back but looked like she was hating her job at the moment.

I get to the beds and as I walk in, a girl I always see there is there. She smiles at me and says Hi Zach. I'm already smiling but had my sunglasses on. I took them off and squinted as my eyes adjusted to the lights. She laughed and told me what bed I got. I guess I shouldn't count this one as she's not a complete stranger but I realized I didn't know her name so when I was leaving I told her she never told me her name. She said it was heather and I smiled and said See ya later Heather. *2*

I stopped for more coffee on the way home (Hey I'm running off two nights of partying...give me a break). I'm thinking, ok that wasn't so bad. As I pull in, a blonde gets out of a corvette parked right next to me. She follows me in and I swear she had to be a 9. I got my coffee and walked up to the counter next to her. I looked at her and felt a big lump in my throat. I still said hi and she gave me a half smile.*3* I'm frantically thinking say something else and was about to tell her nice car but she had payed and walked out before I pulled the safety lock off my stupid mouth. I settled for smiling at the girl behind the counter and said "yep, back again". She didn't react much and I'm thinking I just might stay home the rest of the day.

I get to the gym around 10am. I'm thinking theres a chance I will see some hottie there. One thing I have learned is I don't want to be someone who picks up girls at the gym. I have always hated that. I go there for one reason only and I demand focus but I don't think smiling and saying hi would hurt. Theres a girl way to young behind the counter. Nothing special but looked at her and smiled, hi, and told her she looked bored. She smiled and said something I don't recall.

Only other girl I saw was about a 7. This was later when I was on the bike after my anaerobic workout. I noticed her on the stairmaster. She saw me when she started going from machine to machine and then gets on an abducter machine right in front of me. If you don't know what an abducter machine is, it puts you in a seated position with pads that come up vertically between your knees. You open the machine up so your legs are spread wide and you squeeze your knees together.

She got on it and started a set and looked right up at me. I was thinking OMG WTF is she trying to do to me. I couldn't help but smile. I mean a big smile and I think she was shocked. She did her last few sets. I was still on the bike and she started running the track. When I got off the bike I didn't know where she went and figured she left. She actually did come by while I was stretching later. I looked up at her and said Hi *4* and she smiled and said Hi back but kept walking by. I felt embarrassed anyway from earlier so was sorta relieved.

Other than that I didn't see any other women. I spent most of the afternoon over at my moms washing my jeep and some clothes (wife took the washer and dryer). I went to the track but there was no one there but me and the skeeters. I plan on going to the mall and some stores tomorrow to try for more.

Current Count *4*

 

[Tiger Eye]

Hey zach, glad to see you're onboard. Making a daily report really helps keep me committed. And as long as I remember not to try too hard or take it too serious, I'm actually having fun with this.

 

[zach]

I've been having internet connection problems at home the past two days....as no connection at all, so haven't had a chance to post. I have worked the past 2 days. I can honestly state I"m at around 40 his but only about 80% of those have been to HB's. I will post later when I have more time some of the highlights.

I'm currently at work

 

[jsgii]

I'm with you zack. keep up the good work

40 HB and 10 to go.

 

[zach]

week 1 day 4 Mon

I think if we count tommorrow(thursday) as the last day of week one, then I just finished day 6. My internet has been fried and I had the work 12 hour shifts the last two days so I haven't been able to post my progress. Now. I'm currently at 41 hi's. I know I will easily meet my 50 by tommorrow because of taco night at the local pub is always packed with hb's (gotta love them tacos! )

Most of the situations I've had the past three days have been non interesting. I have noticed a few things. On Monday I went to two malls and did my 2 hours of EC mixing in some His with HB's when I could. Everything was packed with moms with their kids and it was really annoying. To many packs of people to really do much effectively.

During the first hour I noticed something odd. If I make EC initially and then quickly pull it away and try to go back its no good. The moment is lost. I learned that I have to hold EC from start till the other person looks away. I was having problems with this at first cause I kept worrying about what the other person felt. I began to make a game of trying to make the other person feel uncomfortable first until they had to look away. I don't intend to keep this approach but it allowd me to get over my discomfort of making EC. A few times I realized I wasn't smiling and was pretty sure that freaked out some people. Luckily I didn't do this to any HB's.

At the second mall there were many more HB's and I said a lot of Hi's Around 12 I think. I again found something odd out. I had went home and changed from my t shirt to a muscle shirt. I think this showed a little too much muscle though. I am a former powerlifter who has cut weight big time and my arms and legs usually have the thick veins showing through slightly when not pumped. I caught a lot of women looking at my arms at first but when I approached they would nervously keep from making eye contact. At first this really bothered me because I thought they were getting disgusted or found me unattractive. I finally walked by one of those mirrored pillars in the mall and saw my reflection and realized I looked too big. I looked good, maybe too much of my muscle showing. Maybe too intimidating.

I could have went home but decided not to. Once again I made a game of it and found something out to my advantage. The first big boost to my ego was when there were 4 girls walking toward me. I couldn't tell how old they were but deffinately out of highschool. Most likely early college. Any way the two in the center were deep in convo but the one closest to me was looking at me from about 25 yds away. As we approached she looked down but I looked over at her and with enough room before we passed for a reply, said 'How's it going'. She looked up shocked, the other girls looked up at me and right before we passed the one I spoke to beamed a huge smile and said 'awesome'. They passed and I could here one of the other girls saying something like 'yeah baby' behind me. I was a ways away but i looked back and saw them all, still walking away from me but they were looking back at me. I realize people weren't unattracted to me but just intimidating. They needed me to let them know it was ok to be friendly.

That was it. After that point I learned to say hi to just about anyone. I wasn't trying to over do it but just having a fun time. I saw a few other HB's in the course of the day and one who was older and probably an 8 didn't look away as I approached. I said Hi and she just smiled but looked down at my arm right after that. I got a few more hi's after that but decided that I was not going to bear my arms anymore. Either they are too distracting or they are too intimidating.

Later that day I went to best buy to pick up a boxed set of Akira Kurosawa films (Collection of Samurai films). A young indian HB was nearby as I walked in and looked at the new CD's and I looked over at her and gave her a smile and said Hi. She smiled and said Hi back and was smiling at me for a moment till she seemed to remember what she was doing and walked away. I was to AFC to approach her but I got a huge vibe from her. She even wandered around looking at things in places I was looking. What really shocked me was she walked right down the isle I was looking in for the dvd's I wanted and she stopped right near me pretending (at least thats what I was telling myself) to look at a dvd behind me. I got nervous (yeah i'm such a big AFC in situations like this). I didn't go anywhere, and I kept trying to think of what to say but my mind was blank. I really wasn't there to do any BC stuff so didn't have my attitude in sync.

Still some good stuff.

 

[zach]

Week 1 day 5 TUE

I worked this day and didn't go anywhere. I work in a big corporate office building so saw a good number of people who were friendly and would say hi back with out much hesitation. I counted I'm not sure exactly how many but most had seen me before but were shocked I said hi to them. One female executive even stopped me after I said hi and asked me about what kind of cardio I did. She was a lot older than me but actually wasn't bad looking and was thought of as being a bit of a bytch so I was really shocked. We talked for a while and she actually knew my name. I don't know from where, my badge was in my pocket I knew hers and when we said goodbye I said her first name back and she smiled like she appreciated I didn't call her by her last name. Weird.

We had a crisis later that day so was busy working with our server support group most of the day. I believe I had counted 14 hi's before lunch that day but lost count after that. I came home exhausted and just went to bed

 

[zach]

Week 1 Day 6 WED

This was a pretty big day for me for being at work all day. We had a huge Corporate meeting this afternoon. I couldn't attend but the building was packed with visitors and some press. I said Hi to a lot of people, both men and women. Everyone was busy but seemed friendly enough for a few Hi's back.

The best moment at work was later in the day. I work till 7pm and the place pretty much clears out by 4. I was walking down to the caffateria to fill up my water and passed two very sexy HB's waiting for the elevator. They had to be exec assistants, they were dressed unbelivebly well. We were the only ones in the hall. As I approached they were laughing and in convo so I thought what the hell and said 'How's it going ladies'.

They both stopped and smiled and seemed to race each other to say great or wonderful, can't exactly remember the exact responses. I think I was getting dizzy cause I stopped in front of them, my heart racing like crazy from adrenaline, and said "Those our the nicest outfits I've seen all day." I couldn't believe what I had just said and I couldn't believe the reception I got. One actually blushed and the other, the one I'm convinced was a legit 9.5 was lost for words and just said something like 'oh gosh thank you' or ' Oh gosh thats so nice of you' I can't remember but she actually said Oh gosh. The elevator opened and they both said thanks again and were just looking at me smiling as the doors closed. When the doors finally did close I realized i had a nice wet spot of sweat on my back. I reviewed the entire encounter later in my mind and was relieved that I kept EC except for a brief look-over of their outfits. I felt so DJ, though I know I couldn't have gone further with my lack of skills at this point. I didn't regret any part of it.

On other noticeable encounter was later at the gym. There is a girl there, she's in her early 20's, that I have always been super attracted to. Though she may really only be about an 8 I see her as a 10 and have always been at a loss for words around her except for a few past moments of bravery. She works the front desk sometimes in the evenings. She was there but on the phone when I came in. She waved at me as I signed in and went back to work out. Later when I was leaving I was determined to Give her EC and some talk. When I walked out she was actually sitting on a couch nearby but away from our gym cards and was on the phone. I said I would get my card and she jumped up and was rushing over and tried to beat me to it. I then realized she had set them on the desk for us to pick up. I laughed and said If she wouldn't have been on the phone talking to one of her boyfriends she could have told me it was there. She was laughing and actually gave me some kino by squeezing my tricep and said something about her being lazy... which I jokingly called her once when she was laying on the couch when I came in.

I was standing there just giving her good EC and laughing and she was returning it. I realized she had the phone in her hand and I didn't want to be rude so I said see ya kelli and she squeezed my arm again and said see ya Zach. I was melting. I couldn't go any further cause I wanted to leave it on that good note. I felt like if I kept messing with her I would have came across to pushy. But I was so proud of the way that turned out. I can't wait for Taco Night.

 

[Walden]

I love that!

...before I'd got the safety lock off my mouth

Brilliant!

 

[zach]

Beginning Week2 Day1

Though today is saturday, and its been a while since I've updated this, I'm going to start week two today.

I have been in an awkward place the last couple of weeks, finalizing my divorce and such, and decided to refrain from continuing on this cause my mind set wasn't there. I have been going out with my friends but the dive bars we've been to haven't giving many sightings of HB's and those I've seen locally I've only said hi to. I'm still doing the EC and Greets and have visited the boards to regain my inspiration (Now that they are back up).

I find that keeping this journal has helped me through the first week fairly well by keeping me more focused on what I'm doing. However while evaluating the speed this camp requires, I think I will be more comfortable expanding a few of the Weeks out to two week intervals. Why? Because my work schedule goes on a two week phase. I work 12 hour shifts and it makes it very difficult to do any DJ'ing on those days. Plus every other Weekend I have to work and we see no one at work but the skeleton crew that is there and none of them are women.

I have had some success during my 'hiatus'. I did get a number from a girl and called her. Believe it or not, she gave me both her home phone and cell phone number. Then when I called her I left a message on her answering machine but never heard from her after that so I nexted her. I will tell more about this one when I have more time to post, possibly tonight.

I also have a question, Is there somewhere on this site with a list of all the slang/abbreviations that are used here. I know EC is eye contact but I'm trying to find out what C/f stands for and neg hits are. (I think neg hits are teasing the HB with light, negative comments).

I will post Day 1, week 2's results tonight.

 

[Tiger Eye]

Hey Zach, glad to see you're sticking with it, I'm sure the divorce thing is pretty distracting right now. Do the boot camp at whatever pace works for you. Better to slow down and keep going than get frustrated and quit because you can't meet someone else's rather arbitrary goals.

Yeah, neg hits are basically teasing a girl.
c/f = ****y and funny.

more: http://www.fastseduction.com/acronyms.shtml
(you'd think there'd be a link to this in the DJ Bible, huh)

Hang in there!

 

[Golden Arms]

Zach - you say you're 245 with minimum body fat and veins in your legs ? I gotta ask you - are you juicing ?

 

[zach]

Am I juicing? No I have never used it. Its not that I really have anything against it. I know a lot of people who are able to use it UNDER CONTROL and use it effectively. I have always been big but never cut until this year. I was serious about powerlifting till last November and was at a peak weight of 315. I had very cut legs at that time (My biggest strong point) but the rest of me was just plain bulk/fat/muscle. I have since dropped to 250 through diet/heavy cardio and have cut up to the point where you can see the seperations in my muscle. I've sacrificed a bit of strength but I expected that. I'm still not at my preferred weight, which I now think is 230, but I feel and look better than I have since I was completely cut in highschool wrestling.

Today I had a conversation that enlightened me a lot. It was with a friends wife who told me that when she first met me she was intimidated by me. I asked why; because I was big or something? She said that that was part of it but it was mostly cause when she first met me I didn't smile much. I realize this is a problem area for me. I don't feel comfortable smiling because I feel it looks fake. I remember one of our teachers in high school who used to always have a smile on and it looked so fake. She always had it. It got to the point that we would tease her behind her back about it.

But I have caught myself making eye contact and saying hi but forgetting to smile. I gotta work on this. Anybody ever have this problem. Did you do something to fix it? I also think my smile isn't that good looking. Not brown teeth or anything, but it just doesn't look that great to me in the mirror.

 

[vdk]

Thanks for your great posts Zach. With all these journals floating around, makes me wanna go HB hunting, but with work and college assignments, it is unlikely.

 

[incognito]

Tension in your facial and neck musles make your expression a lot more forboding. Try stretching them out more. Also try go doing some yoga, since I have been hitting it recently I've been smiling a lot more and had a lot less tension in my body all over. It is also helpful for toning those parts of your body that are hard to hit with weight training.
You might have to look around for a good yoga teacher though, a lot of them are stoned hippies, and the skill level of instruction varies a great deal. Learning it from books it fairly useless, but videos are okay. I might make a post about this later.