I considered tagging this onto the weight loss thread, but it’s a bit more than just recounting the backslide and the newfound determination.
Recently I’ve discovered that I can’t do anything “part way” I’m either in or out. It’s how I operate best, I either dive in and swim like hell, or I sit on the shore. I either am at bat or in the locker room. I’m either working like hell, or sitting at home. I could go on…
Up to this point it has been me aimed in the vague direction of weight loss and better health. I peaked at 325 and knew it was too much. I then proceeded to over zealously cut my diet unhealthily though it dropped me to 313, a lesson that I’ll carry with me due to stretch marks which developed due to the very drastic weight loss. After that I got control of the ship again and got on a healthier route with working out, and I was seeing results but then hit a plateau at 300. I just couldn’t punch through.
Looking back I realize it was because I was exercising but I wasn’t watching what I ate as closely as I should. Part of my day job is to manage a concession stand, needless to say that candies would often suffice for dinner.
I still have that job, but I’ve gotten much better at managing and controlling my urges. My latest motivator is an online friend who shared his amazing results from an ebook by a guy named Tom Venuto, the book is titled “Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle.” I got it and have begun working through it.
I started reading with the obvious hesitancy that anyone approaches diet ebooks with, but this guy is for real. It isn’t a magic bullet, the book is more like a text book for losing weight and gaining muscle. He explains everything and provides citations as well as calls bullshit on himself at points.
My friend’s results though were astoundingly dramatic. He went totally crazy and was doing cardio twice a day. He ended up chiseled and cut. But he freely admitted that he took it to the extreme and that he was in a special situation which basically allowed his exercise regimen to become his life.
I’m not in that location, nor do I want to be. My goal is just to regain a slimmer figure. I would love to one day own a six pack to display proudly, but that’s a far off dream given my current figures.
Right now I sit at 306 lbs, of which (according to the pinchers from the YMCA) about 95 lbs of which is fat. Putting me up at 31% body fat. Rather unhealthy. My only saving grace is that I carry the weight extremely well and my large frame allows for me to look fairly decent. And as I type this, the voice in my ear is whispering that if I look okay with 30% body fat, imagine how good I’ll look with 20% or even down to 10%!
I’m not going to become a gym meat head, but I’ve begun to strictly monitor caloric intake, as well as doing gym trips in the morning with evening jogs / walks.
So here it is, my official return to the world of weight loss and kicking my own ass at the gym.
– IG