Well I’m amazed it’s been a year already. I’ve undergone some serious life changes, some good some bad…but first and foremost is the fact that I still want to get healthier! I want to slim down and I want to get stronger! For those of you that know me, I’m a pretty solid guy. I may have some soft spots in the middle but overall I’m pretty athletic and I have some solid muscle. Transitions help me change my life style, the way I eat, the outlook I had on diet and exercise…I should note that transitions isn’t a diet, it’s a new way of eating, a lifestyle change (good marketing name huh?). I eat a ton of fruits and veggies, I have lean protein and still eat a small amount of carbs and dairy.
I’ve noticed that my appetite is down and my portion control is even better. I only eat until I’m satisfied, that’s been one of the harder adjustments for me. I used to eat everything that was put in front of me…the reinforcement of growing up under the mantra of “You took it, you eat it” or “finish everything on your plate.” Now I’m not saying this is a poor way to raise a family, my mother did a great job raising us, but it’s that mentality or social programming that begins to hardwire us as children and carries us into adulthood. I always ate what I took, even if I was overstuffing myself. Transitions Lifestyle System helped me break that social programming and has allowed me to reboot my food intake. For this I’ve been very grateful. I find that I eat more often, but I’m making healthier choices with smaller portions because I’m eating regularly.
So let’s get to the numbers. I’m fine with where I’m at, but I plan on going a lot further! There were my numbers at week 12 when I finished the program.
Week 12
Age: 35 Wgt: 256 BF% 31.8
So a year later:
Age: 36 Wgt: 238 BF% 26.8
Now I’m not happy with my BF% but at the same time I know that I had a few rough months at the start of the year that I didn’t work out, I didn’t eat right and I had a lot of stress in my life. I lost my grandmother in Feb and my grandfather followed her 4 weeks later. It was a very stressful time for me and my family. They were a big part of our lives growing up and it was a shock and blow to lose them so quickly.
So I admit I “fell off” the wagon for a little bit, I gained some of the weight back and I lost my focus. Well that focus is back and with a renewed fire. I know what I want to do and TLS is only one cog in the wheel. I want to share my successes with others and I want to help them gain the same freedom I have, not only with my health, but my life as well.
So I have started a new, intense workout, called P90X by Beachbody.com. This workout is the hardest thing I’ve done since I attended INDOC for BUD/S. It’s broken down into muscle building and cardio workouts lasting 1 hour each 6 days a week. And these work outs are anything but easy. The program is based on a term called “muscle confusion”, your body adjusts to certain workouts and you plateau getting no results. The reason I got P90X was for this very reason. I was hovering around 240 lbs with a BMI of 30% for about 4 weeks. I didn’t change anything, not the way I ate, not the powerbell workouts I was doing…nothing. So I knew I needed to switch it up. After 2 weeks of P90X I’ve lost 2% BF but I’m still hovering around the same weight, muscle weights more than fat so I’m ok with it.
Now this is one of the hardest things that people trying to lose weight, lose track of…a scale only measures your weight, not your worth. I’ve found that people have a serious mental block when it comes to the scale; they weight themselves too often and get discouraged when they don’t see a drastic change in the numbers. In my experience I’ve found that 4 weeks is the key. Take pictures and weigh yourself every 4 weeks and you will be fired up and encouraged by what you see. Also get a fabric tape measure and take your measurements. There is something pretty motivational about seeing a combined 20-30” drop from different parts of your body.
So I’ve set a goal to be at 17% BF by the end of my first 90 days. I’m planning on doing a second session of P90X afterwards so that I can get to be lean and mean again. While this workout program isn’t for everyone one, it has taught me some valuable lessons about working out. Don’t follow the same routine for weeks on end. There are literally hundreds and thousands of different exercises out there and you can change up and modify when you need to for your body to continue to burn fat and build lean muscle. But not just working out, you need to change the way you eat.
I challenge any of you reading my blog to just change one thing a day. Instead of going for a soda, grab a cup of water and squeeze in a lemon slice, or if you want the carbonation drink flavored sparkling water. Instead of ordering chicken tenders, toss a boneless (skinless) chicken breast in the oven and then slice it into tender strips. Instead of grabbing a ho-ho or ringding grab an apple or a banana. Just these little changes will make huge changes. If you are feeling especially froggy you can join me on a 12 week transitions plan and we can do the whole thing right, and together. Support is the key to making this, or any program really, work. Whether you want to do it with a group of peers or one on one with a coach (me), support will give you the nudges and pushes when you need them the most but it will also give you someone to be accountable to.
So in closing I want to thank Dr. Lydia Martinez for all of her hard work in pioneering this program and to all of the TLS coaches and trainers out there that give up their own time to make sure that this program touches as many people as possible. Last but not least my coach, aka my Mom, for taking me serious and keeping me honest. You are an inspiration to me. This isn’t the end; it’s the beginning of the next chapter as we climb to glory together. I will actually keep this blog going as my life unfolds, because like I said at the beginning this isn’t a 12 week program, it’s a life altering experience and you people will get a firsthand look at how my life is changing!
