Then and Now: Dedicated to Change

Tuesday, April 6th, 2010

Back in February of 2009 I decided that I needed to get into shape. I was already turning into a shape that I didn’t want to be… round. I borrowed a friend’s P90X workout program and minus the strict diet portion of the program I decided that I was going to stick to it no matter what. First off, let me tell you that this program is not for that faint of heart or for those who just want a quick and light workout routine. It’s also not for someone who doesn’t want to work out hard, feel the burn and be sore a few days after the workout. If that’s you then don’t even think of starting the P90X program.

Unfortunately, I never made it through the entire 90 days of the program. In fact, I probably made it two months top, before stopping for a long period of time then starting back at day 1 again. I actually did that a couple of times. It was hard because I didn’t have anyone to do it with. Working out with a partner is probably the best way to stay motivated. If one person doesn’t feel like working out that day then it’s the other person’s obligation to kick them in the butt and get ‘em going. When I started Ally and I worked out together, but since we were doing it at home after a while it became very easy to take a night off and relax together. However, eventually, the working out stopped all together. First we stopped working out together (I think Ally didn’t like me pushing her harder than she wanted to go), then Ally stopped (mainly because of having to study for school), then I stopped (because I got lazy and didn’t want to do it anymore). I would like to mention that during the time I was doing the program I did notice that I felt better, I had more energy, and I did start to get into better shape by losing a little weight and putting on some muscle. Every day activities even started getting easier.

Months went by and toward the end of the September it was brought to my attention that I really needed to start working out again. I didn’t think I looked all that bad, but it took a good, long look at myself (figuratively and literally) to see that I had gotten complacent in my every day routine of not doing anything to stay in shape. I realized that I needed a change. I thought if I attempted the P90X routine again the same thing would happen so I needed more incentive to keep working out. Sfter contemplating it for just a little while I went out and joined a gym. I figured that if I was paying to work out and I passed the location 5 days a week on my way to work and home then I wouldn’t have any excuses. Up until just recently it has worked.

For the first two or three weeks I did nothing but run. Some days I would run before and after work 5 miles at a time. I got blisters bigger than my head on my feet but I lost 10 lbs in less than fourteen days! During that third week I realized that I needed to be doing more than just a bunch a cardio. Sure I was losing weight, but I was also losing muscle mass. I picked up the Men’s Health Big Book of Exercises, formulated a work out routine and started to live on lean proteins like albacore tuna, turkey and chicken, steamed veggies, and water.

I went the entire months of October through February working out a minimum of 3-4 days a week and cut out all of the junk food in my life. I stopped drinking soda. I stopped eating popcorn and ice cream (two thing I LOVE). I stopped eating hamburgers and french fries. I also cut out drinking alcohol. I know you may think that having a beer or two every now and again isn’t a big deal but how many times do you buy a six pack and have it completely gone in more than a month? Almost never, right? Usually it’s gone in a few days. Each bottle of beer has unnecessary calories and it has no nutritional value at all. I think maybe I cut back to something like one beer a month, and that was only as a reward while eating a healthy dinner. Liquors are even worse than beer. More calories in a smaller serving. Trust me, if you want to see results, you’ll want to stay away from as much junk food as much as possible.

My diet consisted of a protein shake, two eggs, and a slice plain whole grain toast for breakfast, oatmeal a couple of hours later, followed with a can of albacore tuna mixed with steamed veggies for lunch, a few pieces of baked chicken or turkey about an hour before leaving work, a recovery drink after working out, and baked fish and steamed veggies for dinner. I know it seems like a lot but you don’t eat to fill up. You eat to keep your metabolism up. When you eat small, healthy meals 5-6 times a day your body’s metabolism never stops thus helping you shed the bad fat. I admit that after a couple of weeks of eating completely healthy I’d reward myself with a couple of scoops of ice cream or frozen yogurt or even the very occasional hamburger. Trust me, it’s good to reward yourself every now and again, if you don’t you’ll go crazy. Nothing says you have stop eating what you love, you just have to pay closer attention to what your eating and how much of it you consume. Another thing to do is drink lots and lots of water. Any time you feel hungry between meals throw back a bottle of water. It’ll give you that feeling of being full without compromising your diet. The only downside to all of the water is amount of time you spend peeing. However, it’s worth it.

Before going on, let me point out that I’m not a personal trainer or a nutritionist or a health expert. These are things that I decided to do on my own that happened to work for me. The only reason I’m sharing it is to share what I have learned over the course of the last 6 months.

There was a week in December that I didn’t work out. It was the Holiday season and we were out of town. I did, however, play basketball a few times that week so that made up for any days I missed in the gym. When Ally and I got back home from Kentucky after the New Year I went straight back to working out. Sadly, I haven’t done any working out since March 13 this year, not even a push up. However, I was over a friend’s house last night and did about 6 sets of pull-up variations. It made me want to get back in the gym right away. So, back on February 22 Ally drove to Kentucky to start her preceptorships (it’s basically curriculum required internship) for school. This is an eight week process and we’ve been apart since then. On March 20 we met in Nashville for a weekend. You can read about that here. I took a week off before meeting up with her so I wouldn’t be sore (plus I had a lot going on) and I’ve been so busy trying to get our house in order to sell so I didn’t get back to the gym right away. My diet has also gone down the drain. I’ve been drinking soda and eating donuts and pizza. I think it’s time to get back to my routine. I feel guilty about not working out plus I feel much more tired than normal. It’s not fair to my body or my bank account to just stop going to the gym.

You can see that a year ago I a little “loose in the cage” and after only 3 or 4 months or taking better care of myself I look and feel much better. It’s funny that when you think everything is fixed and okay how easy it is to give up a routine that you had adopted for a few months. That has been the case for me. My goal is to get a certain amount of things crossed off of my to-do list at home then make it a point to back in the gym as soon as I can. I think I owe myself that much.

P.S. Don’t forget to subscribe!

…. I’d also like to say that putting in the effort to work out really pays off when at some point you take off your shirt in front of your significant other and under their breath you hear them say, “damn.” Yeah… my wife and I have been together for almost 12 years and that’s the first time I’d ever gotten that kind of reaction from her. It feels good to know that the hard work isn’t going unnoticed or unappreciated. …

Tags: fitness, health, nutrition
Posted in Life and Marriage | No Comments »