I have struggled with my weight ever since I was a young teenager. Therefore the dynamic of needing to lose weight has never been something foreign to me. I have yo yo dieted over and over and achieve good results only to be disappointed as the pounds inevitably came back. What made things worse was not only did I regain the weight but also several more unwanted pounds.
This being said I knew last year that I absolutely needed a change in my life. not just one that last a few months, but a permanent change. I needed to be transformed from a couch potato where the greatest distance I would run was from the couch to the refrigerator to a man who would be fit, healthy, full of life and ready to take on challenges that I previously wouldn't even consider. Why? You might ask?
One of the first things that a person needs to do when they want to lose weight or any goal for that matter is to know exactly why this goal is important to them. For me to lose weight was a matter of life and death. My father and all of his family have been riddled with heart problems and here I was at 241 pounds, inactive and my blood pressure was starting to rise. I also wanted to be a father who could play sports, dance at my daughter’s wedding, and one who would be around for many years to come. This heart condition had to be bypassed and I know that an active, healthy lifestyle would put me on that track.
I can remember talking a walk with my daughter Jennifer and saying today we are going to make a change together. We are going to join TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) and we were going to stop making excuses, be accountable and we together would conquer this battle of the bulge once and for all with real change and not fad diets, starvation, and gimmicks.
We went to our first meeting at right from the first moment we walked in the door I knew I made the right decision as the people were friendly, supportive and loving and it was obvious to me that I needed a support group and that with this support I would be successful. The woman in charge said to me, you don't have to join today, you can just visit, but I knew I needed to get the ball rolling and signed up immediately.
What about the results? Well before I write about the results I want to talk about the process? Here was my plan and let me tell you when someone ask me what is my secret I always tell them the same thing much to their dismay sometimes that there is no secret, it is all about eating less, exercising more, and working hard with determination to succeed. No secret pills, no crazy diets that yield quick results with no ability to maintain, just hard work and support from my fellow TOPS members.
I decided that this would be my plan of action. I would journal my food every single day and I would limit myself to 1500 calories of real food and not junk food which was high in calories and low in nutrition. I also determined that I would exercise daily and that I would find one that I like to do and something I could do for life. That choice turned out to be walking. I started out walking 2 miles a day and eventually I reached 6.1 miles daily.
The pounds began to come off for the next 40 pounds. Then my weight loss began to slow and my body was adjusting to the routine I know I needed to make a change. What an amazing machine our body is but I needed to make a change to keep my body working and progressing so I began to mix my walk with some short, and I mean short runs of .4 miles. And even that killed me. Slowly over time the distance increased and I worked up to 3 miles when a friend said to me, Jim, you should run a 10k race and in utter disbelief I said there is no way I could do 6.2 miles of running without an ambulance following me waiting for me to pass out or have a heart attack. Nonetheless, I signed up for my first race and began a training regiment to get ready for the race.
No Way!!! I did it....6.2 miles and I held an 8 min mile pace throughout placing 219 of 990. Would have guessed I could do it, but I did and I was so proud I cried like a baby. A goal met, an achievement to be proud of, and it was one more stride to my goal of health and weight loss. I even ran up to 9 miles at once. Who would have ever thought that would happen?
By this time my weight had dropped significantly and I was gaining ground on changing my status from a TOP to a KOP and I can remember when that day came and how it made me feel. I did it; I achieved my goal through hard work, diligence, and support from others. But I knew this was only the beginning of the rest of my life of maintenance and I could not afford to be idle. I had lost 67 pounds and my life has changed so dramatically I cannot express what it has meant. I can remember when I tried on my first pair of 32 size jeans after being at a 44 and crying. That is pretty silly huh, but I cannot believe what I have achieved and it just keeps getting better. But, I needed to again add or change my routine.
So what was next? How about climbing mountains? Why not so I decided I would start hiking with my brother in law who loves the Adirondacks and my sister was probably happy I would go with him and free her from having to hike those monsters. I have been up there 4 times and I have racked up the following achievements. 1. Ampersand Mountain 2. Baxter Mountain 3. Wright Mountain (First High Peak) 4. Giant Mountain (Second High Peak) 5. Porter Mountain (Third High Peak) 6. Cascade Mountain (Forth High Peak) 7. Cliff Mountain (Fifth High Peak) 8. Owl's Head Mountain 9) Algonquin Mountain 10) Saw Tooth Mountain, Yosemite Panoramic Trial, Yosemite Falls Trial.
So maybe you are asking how can I achieve similar results?
1) Have a vision (know what and why you want to lose weight)
2) Make a Specific Goal and Plan on how you are going to achieve that Goal
3) Implement the plan and follow it while celebrating those achievements
4) Measure those Goals and Track your Progress
5) Attend your TOPS meetings and Participate fully
6) Take pictures, take pictures, take pictures (great motivators and proof to you of your progress)
7) Find exercise you lose not loathe
8) NEVER NEVER NEVER give UP! No matter what the scale says, no matter how you feel!
9) Take time for You....you deserve it and everyone around you will benefit from you taking care of U.
P.S. I was awarded TOPS International Division Winner Second Place, elected Leader of my Chapter. The first ever Chapter King in over 40 years of existence.
I guess a picture of before would be nice, wouldn't it for reference:
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