New Location

I have moved this blog over to http://saygoodbyetofatguy.blogspot.com/

To continue reading about my body transformation, please go there.

Thank you.

My 40th

Yesterday I celebrated my 40th birthday.  I would like to say that I ate nothing but healthy stuff, but I would be lying.  

Hey, you only turn 40 once.

Back in July, I set a goal for myself to lose 40 pounds by my birthday.  I started at 270 pounds and Friday morning when I weighed myself, I weighed 230.6 pounds.  I can't tell you how discouraging that was, considering the fact that I knew that I was going to be "bad" throughout the weekend.  

It didn't stop me from trying.  I did my usual workout on Friday, drank vast amounts of water and ate fairly well on Friday.  

On Saturday I woke up and the scale shocked me: 231.2!  

What in the name of Elvis?

Saturday was not a great day.  I ate a decent breakfast (egg white omlette with mushrooms and chili peppers) then my mother-in-law took us out to German food for lunch.  I am happy to report that I was able to pass on the bratwursts.  (A huge accomplishment for me.)  However, I ate enough spaetzle, wienerschnitzel and sauerkraut to make up for it.  For dinner we had a homemade hoagie, but then I splurged when I went to see Mission Impossible (finally).  I bought some nachos. 

Sunday's weigh-in: 231.8.

Sunday was my fast day for my church, so all I had was dinner (chicken & rice) and then my wife made me a German Chocolate Cake for my birthday.  (We figured since we were going to be with her family, she would make it on Sunday so they could eat most of it, leaving less left-overs for me.)  

Monday's weigh-in: 230.8! 

I was bummed.  Granted, I could've done more to reach the goal.  I should've done more.  I was so close!  .8 pounds!  That's not even an entire pound!

After feeling sorry for myself (while doing the 30 Day Shred), I realized that instead of focusing on the negative in this, I should focus on the positive.

I've lost 39.2 pounds!   That's the most I have ever lost on a "diet".  As my friend, Andria, pointed out, "That's nearly 8 bags of flour!"

My next goal is to lose another 40 by my wife's birthday in September.  

40 pounds in about 30 weeks!  I can totally do this. 

Here's to a great kickstart in February.  Let's do this thing!!!! 

The Month of Eric

Since this is the month of my 40th birthday, I have decided to make February the biggest month in my trek to health.  My goal is to lose 10 pounds this month.  (Weight this morning: 230.8).  


It's not going to be easy, but it can be done.


After all, I did it in January.


One of the big things this month is going to be my workout.  I am getting a few exercise DVDs for my birthday and so the base of my workouts will be those DVDs.


I realize that things like the 30 Day Shred are supposed to be done every day, but I can't do the same thing every day.  I get bored too quickly.


Here is my workout plan for the month of February. (Starting February 6th, since that is when I will get these DVDs.)

Monday (50 Minutes)
4:00 AM - 30 Day Shred (20 Minutes)

4:20 AM - Strength Training: Back, Chest, Abs (30 Minutes)

Tuesday (50 Minutes)
3:00 AM - This Is Tae Bo (50 Minutes)


Wednesday (1 Hour)

4:00 AM - Biggest Loser Yoga (30 Minutes)
4:30 AM - Strength Training: Arms, Shoulders, Abs (30 Minutes)

Thursday (1 Hour)
3:50 AM - Boxing (3 x 3 Minute Rounds, 30 seconds Jump Rope)
4:00 AM - Cardio Kickboxing (30 Minutes)

Friday (1 Hour)

4:00 AM - Biggest Loser Boot Camp (30 Minutes) 
4:30 AM - Strength Training: Back, Legs, Abs (30 Minutes)

Saturday (1 Hour)
6:00 AM - Tae Bo Power

Being Yourself

I don't know what it is, but there is something about us humans that love to compare ourselves to other people.  

"If only I had biceps and abs like that guy," I think to myself at the gym.  (That is, until that voice in my head that sounds a little like Elvis says, "Dude, you're staring at a guy!  You better stop before he sees you and pummels you with that dumbbell.")

I admit it has gone the other way, as well:  "Sure, I may be fat, but at least I don't look like Chris Farley as a Chippendale."

I dare say that all of us have done one or both of these a couple of times in our liife.  (Heck, maybe even a couple of times today.)

Let me let you in on a little secret: You are you!  You are not anybody else and nobody else is you.  We all have our strengths and weaknesses and we have to live our lives with those strengths and wekanesses that we have.

For example, my 5'7" body was not made to slam dunk a basketball.  No matter how hard I try, no matter how much I practice, I can barely touch the bottom of the net.  

And, even then, I can only do it while standing on a chair.

Obviously, I was not made to play in the NBA, but does that make me any less of a person than Lebron James?  ("Sure," I think to myself, "He is famous and has a bazillion dollars, but can he raise 5 children?")

The point is, you may be at the gym later today and see a guy easily lifting weight that is comparable to a Hyundai.  Meanwhile, the vein in your head is about to pop as you struggle to lift two 15-pound dumbbells.  That doesn't make him any better than you.  It makes him different than you, but not better.

Don't set your goals based on somebody else.  Only you can judge what you are capable of doing.  Push yourself to be the best you can be.  

I know you can do it! 

Congratulations! Let's Eat!

I wake up and look at the clock.  3:46!  My alarm will be going off in 14 minutes.  I have a mini discussion with the voice in my head that sounds a little like Elvis.

Me: I might as well get up.

Elvis: Go back to sleep.  You will do nothing exciting today in real life.  In your dreams, you might be a Jedi or Batman or Danny Zuko.

Me: True, but I could also have that reccuring dream where I'm a vampire and the only neck around to suck is Dr. Phil's.  Even as the living dead, I have my limits.

And so the discussion goes for a few minutes until I get out of bed. 

After a quick stop at the toilet, I step on the scale.  I am very pleased with the number I see there.  Elvis comes back, "Look at that!  You need to celebrate with a Sonic Breakfast Burrito, tots and a Vanilla Fanta Orange!"

I mentally give Elvis a high-five and I start figuring out how I'm going to get that many calories into my budgeted calories for the day.  (Meanwhile, he's gone back to bed.)

That's when I realize how stupid that idea is.  Rewarding weight loss with food - no matter how tasty it is - makes about as much sense as celebrating one year of sobriety with a bottle of Jack Daniels.

I have to admit, this is the hardest thing for me in this new healthier life.  For years I have used food as a reward.  ("I mowed the lawn without cutting off any major body parts.  I think that deserves a Double Double with cheese and fries.") 

I haven't had a problem starting - and sticking to - an exercise plan.  It's been relatively easy limiting the amount of pizza slices I consume in one sitting.  Yet, for some reason, I cannot overcome the tendency to reward myself with food.  ("I spent a lot of time typing this blog post.  I deserve a gyro.")

In the hundreds of health and diet books I have read over the years, it says to reward yourself with some clothes.  This doesn't appeal to me because I hate clothes shopping.

They also say to reward yourself with a piece of exercise equipment.  This I can do, except the piece of "equipment" that I really, really want is way out of my budget and even if I lost 50 pounds in one day, I would have a tough time convincing my wife that I needed to spend that much money on a set of DVDs to reward myself.

So that brings me back to food as a reward.  It's so much easier - and cheaper - to reward myself with Hostess Snowballs. 

I'm not saying that I should never reward myself with food, because there are times you just need to splurge a bit when it comes to calories.  (My birthday, for instance.)

I just really need to train my brain that there are so many other things out there to reward myself with.  (I did just purchase a cheaper workout DVD as a reward for when I lose these next two pounds.)   

When I can stop doing this, I know that my lifestyle has really changed.

(I would love to hear any suggestions from you on how you were able to overcome the "food as a reward" mentality.)

I Will Do This

On July 25, 2011 I made the decision to change my lifestyle.  

Well, the decision came a few days before that.  July 25 was the day I had set to start the journey.  (After a long weekend of "feasting for the famine" with my soon-to-be-famous pulled pork, cole slaw, BBQ beans and all the Henry Weinhard Cream Soda I could drink.) 

As I was writing out my goals, I decided that my first real goal - besides walking more than between the computer and the bathroom - was to lose 40 pounds by my 40th birthday in February.  (From 270 pounds to 230.)

I have been on diets many times over the years, and the most I've ever lost was at one time was 25 pounds.  And that was only because I was getting paid to lose weight.  (I was doing endorsements for a company on the radio.)  

I admit, I was a little skeptical.  Not that I didn't think I could do it, but more because I was skeptical that I would do it.  Sure, I can work-out daily and watch what I eat, but will I?

I started out with much enthusiasm.  I was walking, lifting weights, doing crunches and push-ups. I even bought a pull-up bar knowing darn well that I have never done one pull-up in my entire life.  (Much to the chagrin of my gym teachers.) 

The weight melted off and I thought, "Nothing is going to stop me from reaching my goal.  Heck, I may even reach the 40 pounds lost mark by Christmas!"

Then my left knee said, "Not without me!" and he immediately went on strike.

My lungs followed suit, even going as far as trying to kill me by making it difficult for me to breathe.

For two weeks I sat there, waiting for the opportunity to exercise again.  Meanwhile winter was in full-force and excuses started making sense.

I decided at that point that I was running out of time.  I had 15 pounds to lose before February and I really needed to do something about it.  

I worked my tail off in December.  Not only that, but I avoided eating most of the snacks that co-workers, neighbors and family brought by.  The pounds began to come off again.  I lost five pounds in December, and started the new year sitting at exactly 240 pounds!  Ten pounds to go, with a little over a month to do it.  It would be tough, but not impossible.

On January 2, I weighed myself and I had gone up one pound.  (I blame the spinach artichoke dip my sister-in-law made for New Year's.  I couldn't stop eating the stuff.)  

I was depressed.  Even though it was only one pound, it felt like the difference of climbing a hill and climbing Everest.  I figured I would do my best and get as close to my goal as I can, but not to beat myself up if I didn't lose all of it.

Once again, I worked out religiously, ate the right foods, drank water like a fish and my goal seemed to be within reach again.

I sit here today at 232, two pounds away from my goal.  I have the rest of this week and all of next to get rid of these two pounds.  It seems like a daunting task, even though it's only two little pounds, but I am up for the challenge.  

I can do this!  

I will do this! 

Let Me be Clear

**Warning: The following blog post talks about the President and peeing.  (Not the President peeing, though.)  If you can't handle such topics without getting upset, you might want to avoid reading this.  p.s. Please keep political comments to yourself.**

As you may or may not know, the State of the Union Address is happening tonight.   I will avoid any commentary about President Obama because I don't wish to start any debates, but one thing can be said about the man, he sure has his catchphrases.

In fact, one of my co-workers has a drinking game with his buddies.  When they watch President Obama speak, they take a shot every time he says, "Make no mistake", "Here's the deal", "Win the future", "It will not be easy" or any time he uses the word "clear".  (They take two shots when the President makes reference to the past administration.)  Needless to say they are pretty wasted by the time the President is wrapping up. 

The Obama phrase I want to focus on is "Let me be clear". Thanks to my crack news staff here at the radio ranch, we have figured out that he has used this phrase about 1,034 times since he became a public figure.  

This got me to thinking.  (Scary, I know.)  I want to offer a challenge.  I call it "Water Wednesday".  

I will get to the challenge in a minute, but first, I should back up and tell you how I came up with this challenge.  

Ever since I started this path to health I have become a bit more obsessive than I ever was.  I set daily goals for myself in almost every aspect of my life and at the end of the day I do an inventory on how I did that day.

One of the things I like to do is to try to see how clear I can make my urine.  I do this by drinking a lot of water.  I try to drink at least eight cups - 64 ounces - a day. (Some days I go way over that.)   It's not hard for me to drink that much.  I drink water in the morning before, during and after my workout.  I drink at least 2 cups when I'm taking my vitamins & supplements in the morning.  I even keep a huge mug (52 ounce) of ice cold water at my desk and drink it throughout the day.

So, as I was thinking of Mr. Obama's usage of "Let me be clear" and my quirk of trying to make my urine run clear, my warped mind came up with an idea. 

Tomorrow - and every Wednesday - I challenge you to drink NOTHING but water.  No coffee, no tea, no pop, no milk, no juice, no alcohol, no gravy!  (That is for the folks in Wisconsin that use gravy as a beverage.)

On top of that, for tomorrow only, I will add one ounce to my eight for every time the President uses the word "clear" in tonight's speech. 

I know this sounds difficult, especially to those of you that "have" to have coffee in the morning.  I'll sweeten the deal for you.  Once you get your eight cups (64 ounces) in for the day, I'll allow you to drink other beverages.  

Obviously this is going to be based on the honor system, but the benefits of drinking water far outweigh the excuses not to:   

• Lose weight
• Eat less
• More energy
• Hydrates the skin
• Flushes out your system of toxins
• Aids digestion
• Can reduce the risk of certain cancers

(Not to mention the amount of walking you'll get in as you make frequent bathroom trips.) 

So please join me tomorrow for "Water Wednesday".  

And let me be clear, you will see a change in your health by doing so.  (That's more than any President can promise.)