About two years ago I made a conscious decision; to better myself physically, mentally, and nutritionally. I had reached a point with my weight where I was not happy, and knew that if I didn’t make a change, it would continue to go down a path that I did not want to. From my last blog entry, you had the opportunity to learn my reason why I started this life style change. Today, I would like to share with you my how.
15 years ago I was in the best physical shape I had ever been in. I was at the peak of my military enlistment. Push-ups were never my strong suit, but I still knocked out about 75 in 2 minutes. I cranked out 106 sit-ups in 2 minutes, a personal record, and set another personal record of running 2 miles in just over 13 minutes. My average time prior to then was about 15 minutes. I weighed 166 pounds.
In 2002 my time in service came to an end and I rejoined the civilian sector. I had put on a few more pounds having not focused on my fitness as much and being stuck behind a desk for a year near the end as a recruiter. I had got up to about 175 lbs., still respectable and I was still in good shape, so I was not concerned. My first job after the military started off very active, as I worked outside 8-10 hours a day and my weight decreased back down to about 167. I thought I would stay in good shape forever.
Over the next several years, that all changed. I wasn’t exercising anymore and I was eating whatever I wanted. I was promoted to a supervisor position, so my time in the field was very minimal. Slowly my weight started to creep back up. 170. 173. 175. 178. Still under 180, so I wasn’t too concerned, but realized I needed to be more active. Around 2009 my wife convinced me to start running again and we had a big family vacation we were taking that next summer, so I wanted to look the best I could. That 1st mile about killed me. It took me 12 minutes to do that one mile, something that I used to do in 7 minutes average. But I kept at it and eventually ran my first 5k. I got back down to about 170 and was feeling great. About a year later I was introduced to P90X by a friend of mine. So, I gave it a try. I made it about 9-10 weeks and just couldn’t do it anymore. I wasn’t really seeing any weight loss. Sure I was a little stronger, but I felt deflated since I didn’t even finish all 90 days. So I shelved that and went back to running.
My eating habits didn't change, my age started catching up with me and I started gaining weight again. By around September of 2012, I had reached about 190 pounds, and it was still going up. The last time I remember looking at the scale I was around 196 or so. Now, keep in mind, I am 5’9”, weighed 148 pounds when I graduated high school. I am a very lean man, so to be pushing 200 lbs. was scary, especially with my family history. I knew I had to do something. Another friend of mine had Insanity, so I gave that a try. I was bound and determined to finish that one. So I put everything I had into it and lost about 5 pounds. Not a great start, but it was a start. I purchased my own copy and went for a second round. Half way through that, I had not lost any more weight. Why? Because I hadn’t truly changed my eating habits and didn’t follow the nutrition guide that came with the program. I reached out to everyone I could, found someone that was genuinely interested in helping me, learned where my mistakes were, made the corrections, and started losing weight again. I was able to get back down to about 175 and have stayed there pretty consistently over the past year and a half.
I wanted to share my back story with you because I wanted you to understand that regaining your physical fitness is not a quick trip, it is a journey. I see so many people get discouraged because they do not see the weight loss they want within a short amount of time. One has to understand that significant changes do not happen overnight, good or bad. You don’t go to sleep, and then on the next morning weigh 50-100 lbs more. So you cannot expect to change your eating habits, begin exercising, and lose all the weight you put on in a day, a week, or even a month. Depending on how much weight you want to lose. It takes time. It takes consistency. It takes discipline, and it takes determination.
So please, the next time you get discouraged, DON’T. Just take a moment and reflect. You did not gain all that weight in one day, so you cannot lose all that weight in one day.
It’s Not a Quick Trip, It Is a Journey.
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