Beating the Odds

   Every goal we set for ourselves has limitations and set-backs. I have had not one drop of accomplishment (fitness or in life) that did not put pressure on my mentally or physically. The funniest thing is that we put this pressure on ourselves and it can be the main reason that we crack. I know it's easier said than done and I personally know how it means everything to us to be able to change ourselves for the better. I will share with you my tactics in fighting this pressure monster that lived inside of me and how it led me to finally discover success with losing weight.

  I dieted and failed for years. So much so that I developed a sense of hopelessness. That in turn made my eating worse. This will never change because I just cant get it right. I spent my childhood from 3rd grade until I was 19 years old, overweight and unhappy with myself. Finally as I reached my highest weight of 232lbs (never having worked-out a single day in my life). I looked at a picture of myself at this weight and I knew that it had to change.
 
  I needed to do what I have never done before. I had to try something tougher and I had to accept that I have to work this plan for as long as necessary. Although I felt hopeless, I knew that it was not impossible to change. I just needed a few pointers. I asked my dad, "What do I have to do to look like this?" His reply, "You have to lose weight." I asked him how and he brought me into the basement. He said, "grab a notebook, write this all down, and log every day exactly what you did." So I did. My parents at the time were successful on the low carb craze so I gave that a shot. I will revisit this later.

  Now that I had a plan and all of the means in front of me it was time to make it happen. I knew that in the past I did several things that always seemed to end my diets. Those were excessive use of the scale, lack of patience, and ignorance. So, I weighed myself day one and decided not to do so again until I felt that I looked different in the mirror. I also told myself day after day that it will come when it comes and that I don't really know anything about dieting. All I knew about dieting was that I sucked at it. New rules and hopefully a new me.

  I went down into that basement 4-5 times a week and did my routine. I worked in the afternoon so I usually did my routine and showered before work. At first I noticed that I was not really that strong even though I was bigger for my age. That was a little embarrassing but it was another incentive added to the list. As time went on I began to enjoy my workouts more and more. I found such a huge stress relief from lifting weights (something that I probably needed more than anything).  I was hooked.
 
  I continued putting time aside for my workouts week after week. My next discovery was that in the past I made a lot of excuses for not working out. I had at this point a few months of training and the makings of a new habit. Things were going well but the goal was still far away. I began to notice muscle definition in places but when I first saw it in my traps that was my first proud moment. That was the most progress that I have ever made in my life and I loved how it looked. Of course, traps then became my favorite muscles. It was beginning of one glimpse of hope, but it still wasn't enough. Now I began to put more pressure on myself because I didnt want to ever lose the progress that I had made. I wasn't even finished and I swore to myself I would never let this go. At this point in my success I found it important not lose track of my goal and to reel my thoughts of accomplishment back in. My work was far from over. I continued to apply the plan and that was actually what gave me satisfaction and helped to balance the added pressure. It was the fact that here was my first crossroad since starting and I was able for the first time in my life able to refocus in the right direction.

  After about 4 months of exercising regularly plus eating chicken and hamburger without bread my friends began to notice that I was dropping weight. I decided that this would be an ok time to weight myself. I will never forget how I felt after I read that scale and it said that I was 192 lbs. I had lost 40lbs!! This was nothing short of a miracle and it became a new beginning. It all finally was working. I began to reflect on a few immediate things.

     First, I realized that I ate horribly and constantly. The things that are readily available and our acceptance of them as rational is a so misguided. People should not be eating candy bars, super-sized fast food meals, or even many of the delicious things that are marketed as snacks. This does not mean that we cannot enjoy ourselves but I realized how I normalized these foods in my life for years and that could never happen again. Second, I had plenty of time for exercise. I had even more time than that. My negative mindset of laziness and hopelessness taught me that this was something that I was not capable of and here I proved it wrong. There was no way that I could stop now and I knew that if I ever had to do it again I could.

     Lastly, I wanted the world to experience what I did. I knew that given the time and place I could teach it to others. So, I began by dragging my friends and family to the gym. Here was the first thing that I learned from this. You cannot force people to exercise. Having been someone who was never interested in exercise so I was able to relate well to this. I let everyone know how much I wanted to help and that I would always be available to share my experience with them.

     So, the work continued. Now my motivation was sky-high. You couldn't pay me to skip a work out and I made sure I got it in no matter what. My clothes fit better, my mood was better, and I was finally happier. Everything from here on in was a success. Now, 6 months have passed and I was hearing things like "oh you're so skinny" or you've lost so much weigh, you look great!" I took another trip to the scale and it now said 170 lbs. That's 62 lbs in 6 months (at 19 years old) if you've been adding.

   Never was the weight that I lifted too heavy nor the time not there. Sure I got tired of eating the same dull and unsatisfying food. That was probably the worst part of it. However, when I looked back at those 6 months I had realized the most important obstacle. I was the only reason that I could not lose weight. I made excuses, I thought that I knew what I had to do when I fact I knew zero, and because I did those things I created even more conflict in my head. I was at war with myself. Two sides of me both wanted the same resolution and were fighting each other to get there. My ego and my fear. I put pressure on myself to change and I feared not knowing if I could do it. In order to succeed we must find bravery in ourselves. We must be able to face ourselves and say, "I give up. I don't want to live like this anymore because its not working." Beginning there will take a tremendous "weight" off of your shoulders. Only then can you give it your best shot and begin to try and change. The rest will be revealed as the journey continues.



* A low carb lifestyle has been shown to not be the best way of eating due to the effects that low blood sugar can have on the body. Please consult a qualified Dietitian, Nutritionist, or Fitness Specialist before changing your eating habits

Where do you fit in?

    Training regularly is easy if you commit to doing it. So what should you do? Well, there are several factors to consider. Each of us has some sort of body quirk about us whether it be back pain, bad balance, or we are overweight. These factors will and should be the biggest influences when beginning any training program because safety is always a #1 concern. Lots of trends that you see on tv or hear about in the gym may be the worst thing for most of us. It is imperative that you begin and progress yourself accordingly towards your goals within the confounds of our physical ability with appropriate exercises.


   Body-building is old school. Body building is characterized by heavy lifting with low repetitions in what is typically a single planed motion, with little or no detail to core and/or joint stability. Moreover, it lacks any sort of function to the body and is mostly done for aesthetic purposes. This type of training is what you are likely to see in your local fitness club. Sure, weight training will burn calories and build muscle, however, if you have never trained before anything will burn calories and build muscle. So if you've never lifted heavy weight before, have a physical limitation, then why would lifting heavy weight be the best thing for you? Seems kind of logical if you look at it that way but again, if that's the look that you are going for then please make sure that you are following safety guidelines with form and weight selection.

    Maybe your friend or your next door neighbor has suggested an exercise video or a place where they do  crazy power lifting moves as a workout. They claim that it really kicks your butt. Here are several problems with this suggestion. The last thing that anyone who lacks any sort of physical foundation and/or proper movement conditioning should do is explosive/over-the-top resistance training maneuvers. As a fitness professional for over 11 years I can assure you that 80% of my clientele should not be doing exercises that are over-the-top without having their foundational athleticism built first. There are too many variables that will cause people's bodies to breakdown, potentially causing injury and/or enhancing their already harmful postural distortions.. Sure it gets you going if you haven't done any exercise before or are used to the same generic "comfort zone" training. That is the draw of these types of work outs so please make sure that someone who is qualified to teach movement and exercise will see to it that you are selecting the most appropriate workout no matter what it is.


    Lastly, there is a very popular show on TV that is one of the most unrealistic views regarding weight-loss. Inappropriate isn't even a strong enough of a word to use. What are the two of the most typical body injuries that people face? In my experience they are back and knee injuries. It is far more than likely that morbidly obese people have numerous injuries for the simple fact that the body is not designed to carry that much weight and if they don't have any, then they will after they get put through these over-the-top training programs.  I can only imagine the things that go on behind the scenes. Furthermore, their cardio-respiratory system must be so compromised its a blessing that they don't drop dead. The nature of these shows are for shock value. Yes at the end of the day its about helping people lose weight but what have they learned during this time? They don't want to gain weight again and have to lose it? There's a no brainer. I'm almost willing to bet that they knew this before they went through the degrading torture that is designed to "help" them live better.

    Success is not defined as just completing a task, it is completing a task correctly with reward. Sure, lots of people can complete 26.2 miles somehow but completing it in the time range that is deemed acceptable is what makes one successful at a marathon. Too many people are being sold on trends. A trend is a popular event, methodology, or style that lives for only so long because it lacks a strong foundation of acceptance due to its controversial nature. Our bodies are the most scientifically understood entities in the world. Day after day countess research is done by qualified experts to help us prolong the functioning and longevity on them. It makes no sense and grants very low credibility to anything that is done without a purpose, for the wrong reasons. Make sure that you are doing the right thing for you and if you have any questions please consult a qualified fitness professional. This may be the best thing that you ever do for your body.