I grew up painfully skinny. The best way to describe my physical stature was as that of a Preying Mantis. In High School, when we'd lift weights for basketball, I could barely bench press the bar. I could eat all day, to try to gain weight and put on muscle mass, but inevitably I would LOSE weight. Now, people I know that have always had trouble losing weight hear this and say that they wish they had my problem.
No you don't...
There was nothing awesome about being in high school and looking as my mom best described as "looking like I just got rescued from a concentration camp". Her words. As a young man, when the hormones are starting to kick in and your measured worth is in size and speed and strength and you resemble a walking skeleton, it affects your psyche.
Getting out of high school, I enlisted in the US Army Infantry. At the end of basic training and Infantry school, everyone was excited to see that they had put on 10-20 pounds due to the rigorous exercise we were just put through. How much did I gain? Well, I felt much stronger. I felt like I was growing physically. So when I weighed in one last time I was in complete shock to see that I went from a weight of 139 pounds at the beginning of basic training to a final weight of 139 pounds... I hadn't gained an ounce. I'm 6'5". I'm not 5'6", where 139 pounds is a good weight. I'm tall. Really tall. And I looked like a standing coat rack.
Fast forward to recent years. My metabolism slowed down. The weight started packing on. I peaked at around 240 due to heavy drinking and late night eating. I didn't recognize myself in photographs. I was in denial about being fat after years of being emaciated. But after seeing so many photographs and realizing that I'd become larger than desired, I knew it was time for a change. On May 27,2001 I stopped cold turkey all drinking, smoking and drugs. I went off and on to different gyms and did about 5 or 6 different exercises repeatedly and didn't make much change.
In 2002 I began surfing nearly every day and my waist line began to trim down but that ended in 2004 when my surfing went from almost daily to maybe a couple times a month. I no longer went to a gym until mid 2006, where I fell back into the routine of doing a few different exercises but not a complete body workout. Add to that a new found love of gelato and living in a building that had a gelato shop in it and you've got a guy who's not very physically fit... Again...
In the past year, we've been going to the YMCA. I go at least 3 times a week though I try for 5 times a week. This time around, I've made sure to commit a day to all parts of the body and core for a total package, so to speak. In the past month and a half I began focusing on the nutrition aspect of exercise as well.
Now, we have a juicer. If you don't have one, I highly recommend one. I've maintained a weight of 215 for over a month now and I've increased strength in all areas of my lifting. I'm feeling pretty awesome about myself now and looking forward to getting in even better shape. As I like to say, I take seriously being a trophy husband ;-)
My whole goal for all of this? I don't want to be a body builder. I'm a musician, a singer/songwriter. Not a body builder. I want to be in peak physical fitness/health in order to be able to do stuff with my kids as they grow and age. I want my wife to look at me and get excited. And if I can, I'd like to motivate others to do what they can with regards to living a cleaner, healthier life.
If I can motivate people to get off the couch and go walk or do push ups and ab crunches during commercial breaks of their favorite TV shows then that would give me a great sense of accomplishment. To see people take back control of their lives inspires me and makes me feel good.
I've watched "Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead" four times now and recommend it to everyone I know. If we can individually hold ourselves accountable to the way we've lived, the way we've stressed our bodies with over eating and other indulgences and have people, on their own, come to the conclusion that they want to change than that would be a beautiful thing.
The best time to start is yesterday and you are capable of taking back control of your life. I believe in you!
Cheers
This is me a couple weeks ago
*Always consult a physician before taking dramatic changes to your lifestyle in regards to diet and exercises. I am not a doctor or a nutritionist, just a guy that is trying to better myself. Follow along or don't
.JPG)
No comments:
Post a Comment