Everyone Needs Motivation, Without Motivation You Have Nothing.
The other day I went on a trip and had a great time but when I came home and looked at the pictures from the trip it served as a wake up call. It looked like I gained 50 pounds since the last time I looked at myself in a picture. I guess I actually gained about 20 pounds in the last year. It was a scary thing but it gave me the wake up call I probably needed to see.
Over the last year or so I have been focusing so much on Debbie's health issues that I guess I didn't really think about my own. I knew once I left the 9-5 job I had to replace the 10,000 steps I use to take during a workday. Did I? Of course not. I sat in my computer chair rarely eating the right things and drinking soda by the liter. The soda addiction stopped about a month ago when I switched it up to unsweetened ice tea which I actually like better.
Once I saw this picture and a few others you will see when you scroll down you will see that I just don't look healthy. That has to change, and it will. According to all the health sites I have been reading my weight for my height suppose to be around 165-175 while I don't see that happening I am going to get down to something I think is reasonable.
My thought is to loose 5 pounds in 5 weeks and when that happens repeat the process. What am I going to do to change the processes, I am not exactly sure but it will involve moving around and actually doing something to burn calories.
I will also have to change my eating habits since they really suck. Ice cream runs at 11pm have seen its last day. Going to the store to get a quart of ice cream is not exercise no matter how you do it. I am sure that having 1150 calories of ice cream fading from my eating habits will help with the weight loss.
No Extreme Dieting
There is no timetable for dropping the pounds since I know I didn't put it on overnight. It will take some time to take it off but that doesn't matter as this is not a sprint, it is a lifestyle change. We bought an elliptical machine in April and although I do a few minutes here and there that just isn't good enough. Going to have to pick it up a little bit on that also.
Minutes ago I just got off the elliptical where I broke my previous record by 5 minutes and that is what inspired me to make this post. I tell people on this site to follow your passion so here is me sharing my passion to get in shape. I probably should start a weight loss site but I don't have the time for that and it would be impossible for me to keep it up once I get down to a healthier persona so I won't do it.
I have noticed that the elliptical looks better when it is not being used as a coat rack. It is now right in the middle of the living room where I can look at it and jump on it if need be. Instead of doing like a half hour at a clip I will probably do one longer workout a day and some quick short ones to get the blood pumping.
What I need to do is remember to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner. Yep all three are so out of whack I find myself making a sandwich at 2 am an hour after eating a quart of ice cream.
When I was on my last trip my friend Amy said to me that I needed to get healthy with Debbie and I kind of shrugged it off but I guess she noticed the change and was trying to help me out. I thank her for that. Message has now been delivered loud and clear.
Time to Get Moving
So here is the last picture that I saw on the trip and all I see is my big ass stomach up against the railing of the ship. It looks like it is holding me up for goodness sake. It is a shame that I have such a big belly in this picture as I would probably use this picture as my logo since it has a nice background.
So my 236 pound body has to become a better shape. I am open to suggestions since my eating habits avoid vegetables, chicken and fruit. While I will never eat chicken again I guess I will be adding fruit and veggies to my new eating plan. Notice I didn't call it a diet? I am guessing I will post here when I hit a milestone like 220 210 and 200. My ideal weight is probably around 190-200 which is still considered fat but not obese.
So that is what is motivating me right now. What is motivating you and what are you going to do about it?
Getting motivated is tough, but there are plenty of others in the industry that are working at it too 🙂 Shawn’s Race to Affiliate Summit helps inspire me (http://www.dailymile.com/challenges/3292-race-to-affiliate-summit-east-2011) as well as friends of mine who check in and see if I’ve met my goals for the week.
“I am open to suggestions since my eating habits avoid vegetables, chicken and fruit.”
A good first step is to pick a fruit/veggie you like and have it handy whenever you are in the mood to snack.
-Amy 🙂
Hi Vinny,
Good post. Have my own machine that is gathering dust in a corner.
One item that helped on the build up to the 40 mile walk in Breckenridge is the app from Livestrong called the Calorie Tracker. It’s free, although there is a paid version I haven’t tried. It let’s you set a calorie intake plan based on health and weight loss goal. It then allows you to measure how much you’ve eaten vs how much you’ve burned through out the day. Good tool and one I actually use since it is one my phone.
Angel
TY Amy I joined that last week and I am up to something like 2 miles total on the elliptical. As for veggies I really have no sense of taste for any and they all taste like cardboard. I will be adding some cardboard into my lifestyle though.
Angel I have used a calorie counter on my droid and it seemed like work checking it out, I will look into the one you recommend.
Drinking plenty of water is one way to get started b/c it keeps you hydrated and reduce weight by slightly supressing the appetite. I suggest buying a water cooler for the home. I did and now I can’t drink enough of the stuff.
-Switch as much of your snacking to low fat. Switching to baked potato chips is a great way to do that.
-Buy fruit and vegetables each week and set them out in plain site in a fruit bowl. It’ll take a while but you’ll get into the habit of grabbing an apple rather than junk food.
-Reduce starches by switching to wheat pasta & bread (lots of people lose weight with this one simple adjustment).
-If you like pizza & stromboli experiment with making your own at home with all lowfat, non-fat ingredients. I make a great pizza with a combination of non-fat & low fat cheese, green peppers, onions, low fat dough and turkey pepperoni.
Thanks for the comment Darren
I am on the right path with the water, I brew my own ice tea and don’t use sugar in it. I am dropping a few pounds slowly but surely with my plan and I will try some of your suggestions. The pasta is the toughest for me. I love my pasta.
I was a guest on QAQN the other night talking about my plan to drop some pounds. http://www.qaqn.com/yet-another-weight-loss-show/yet-another-weight-loss-show-17-232-down-with-vinny-ohare/