Achieving my Goal

It's now official. In the last 28 months I have lost 60 pounds and now weigh in at a svelte 165 lbs. I went from a 38-inch waist to 31-32" (depending on which brand). I don't think I ever thought I would get to that goal weight but I have and am proud of it. I look very different and feel very different.

When I first made the decision to take control of my health we were expecting our first child. Since that time a lot has happened and yet I was able to "stay on target." (Star Wars reference for the geeks in the crowd.) I remember during the first few weeks talking with Cathy and both of us thinking that 185 lbs. would be a good goal weight for me. "Anything less and I would look unhealthy," I can remember justifying. Plus that would've been 40 lbs. of weight loss. That would be good, right? Wrong!

At this point I kind of forget when I hit various stages. I believe I was at 185 around Christmas of last year. Not bad but Cathy would say to me, "Honey I think you could lose another ten pounds and look better. Then at 175 she said, "Maybe another 7 pounds would be your ideal weight?"

Well I decided that if I was going to go from 175 lbs. to 168 lbs. I might as well just hit the 60 pounds of weight loss mark. And I have.

In the beginning I did research and found that a man of my height would be considered overweight if he were 168 lbs. or more. Cathy and I both laughed this off as extreme and out of date. Now looking at it I guess it wasn't too out of line.

I know in the past I've rattled on about my progress and how good I feel but I honestly do. Being able to go out and think nothing of running 9 miles or biking 37 miles gives me great confidence that I can complete a difficult task no matter what. Also the fact that I've lost 60 lbs. shows me that the mind is an amazing thing when you harness it.

Alright now where are the Dunkin' Donuts? I'm starving!!

Still a Loser

As some of you may have seen on my Facebook status the other week I've officially lost 50 pounds over the last two years. It feels great and I would like to shed about 5 more pounds to reach my goal weight of 170. The Body Mass Index charts say that a man of my height and age should be around 167 but I think 170 will be just right for me.

So now that I've been running and swimming to help with the weight loss I also borrowed a friends bike to get some miles cycling. Then one day it hit me. Why don't I enter a triathlon and see how I'd do. So I'm entering the Central Florida Triathlon Series in Clermont next month. It's a sprint style triathlon where the segments are shorter.

The race will consist of a 1/4-mile swim, 8-mile bike and a 3-mile run. A couple of weeks ago I did a test run with mileage a little longer than the race to see if I could complete it and how I would do in the transitions.

Well I didn't die. In fact, it was pretty cool. I think I'm going to like triathlons because of the different elements. I like running but the long distances can be a little boring at times. When competing in the triathlon there's more strategy involved which I like.

So here I am 50 pounds lighter (the equivalent of the two dumbbells I'm holding in the picture) and gaining more confidence. As a side note, now when I walk around with the dumbbells it's amazing that I used to do that every day. I'll let you know how the race goes.

And BTW I always give credit where credit is due. Cathy shot the portrait of me so thank you honey.

A Complete Turn Around

  So it's now official. I've changed my bad habbits of eating whenever and whatever I want to making healthy choices and seeing the benefits. As you can see from the picture above I really was letting myself go. That picture was taken while covering Hurricane Katrina in September of 2005. 

  As I have mentioned previously, around the time Cathy found out she was pregnant I had a close friend suffer a heart attack. Those two events were the catalyst for me taking a greater interest in my health. I wanted to make sure I would be around a long time for my child.

  I didn't truly know how bad I had gotten until the insurance exam came back in the Spring of 2007. I weighed 225 lbs., my blood pressure was 142/80 and my cholesterol was 211. This was definitely not the way to start fatherhood.

  I immediately changed my diet and started a cardio regimen. Gone were the red meats and fatty foods like McDonalds. In were green veggies and chicken. Out were the times I'd sit on the sofa and watch 90210. That was replaced with biking and eventually jogging (although it was more of walking with a little running in the beginning).

  I called my financial planner in January and told Eric I wanted to option the re-examination clause of my life insurance. I had two years in which to be re-examined to determine if I qualified for a better premium status which I knew I would.

  A few weeks ago the nurse who had examined two years ago came back out to the house to do it all over again. When I answered the door she said she remembered the house but thought it was because she examined Catherine. When I told her that she had examined me she replied, "That's right! Wow I didn't even recognize you."

  So yesterday I received the letter that confirmed I had changed my ways. My blood pressure was 110/70, cholesterol was down to 160 and as of yesterday's weigh the scale read 178. I think I would like to get my weight down to 170 but I'm pleased with where I am currently.

  As I was out on my 7-mile run yesterday I thought about how much better I feel when I'm exercising and how I feel like crap when I eat like crap. I have more energy these days to keep up with Benjamin (although he has that unlimited source I lost when I turned 30). 

  With the weather warming up again I've gotten back in the pool and swim 2 km a couple times a week which helps offset the 15-20 miles I run. Later this year I hope to enter and complete my first half marathon. All of this is in the hopes I never have to see Fat Chris again.