Quicky Update!

OK Blog fans,
Just wanted to drop a quick entry to let people know we haven't disappeared off the face of the earth. I have been extremely busy, and am leaving this weekend to run a half marathon in Moab, Utah, also known as "GODS COUNTRY".

I have received many messages notes, and other communication from many of you asking about part II of my personal story. Just so you know, there IS a part II, and I am working on it. Sometimes it's not easy sharing all of your personal stuff and I have a harder time than you might think putting some of these things together.

I also have an entry on some personal milestones that have come lately that I am excited about to share as well. So bottom line is, though we have been slow in getting posts out lately, we are still very much commited to it. I will attempt to finish up a couple of things I've been working on during my commute to Utah, and rest assured there will be a full report on the half marathon when I return.

Thanks for reading, thanks for caring, and thanks for sticking around! I appreciate all of the little notes and emails I've recieved from so many of you!

Shane

"Beating Anxiety Part I" OR "How to tell the drug companies to SUCK IT"

I have been pretty healthy most of my life. I've been blessed with a good immune system, fairly good genetics, and a decent metabolism. So, what happened around my 40th birthday really took me by surprise.  It was around Halloween. I first noticed something out of the ordinary at my buddy's Halloween party. I was playing a werewolf out in the woods for an outdoor haunted house.

When a group of people would go by, I would jump out of the brush and chase them a few yards before returning to my hiding spot. Doing this, I began experiencing a strange sort of fatigue, and a vague shortness of breath...weird. Like most guys, I promptly blew this off.

You know what they say about middle aged men and doctors... basically if we see blood in our poop, we will poop in the dark! I have been guilty of that type of thinking in the past.  Over the next few days I started experiencing strange sensations. Tingling in my hands. Tightness in my neck. Shortness of breath. Oppresive feelings. Upset stomach and weird pains in my abdomen. Choking sensations. Something strange was going on. The shortness of breath was the most concerning.

A few days later sitting at my desk at work, it really hit me hard. I decided to do what anyone would do--go for an intense walk on my lunch hour. I figured I was stressed and a good blood pumping walk would help. It didn't. By the time I returned I was really concerned. I had a tight feeling in my chest and couldn't seem to take deep breaths. Now I began to get scared. The 'H' word swelled up in my mind. Heart Attack. I decided not to screw around with this any longer. I asked a coworker to take me to the hospital.  A coppery taste worked it's way into my mouth as the fear really started sinking in. I had a new baby! What if I need surgery? How will my wife take this? Will she be ok? Will I be ok? A millions thoughts raced through my head, none of them comforting. So off to the ER I went.

When I arrived, they heard "middle aged guy with tightness in chest and shortness of breath" and immediately got an IV in me and an EKG on my finger. The IV guy put the IV in my forearm, which was stupid, I have lots of good veins in the crook of my arm, but he sticks a big needle right thru a big muscle. I can already see my forearm turning black and blue. I laid there for a while and tried to relax. Strangely, the shortness of breath had seemed to dissipate when I arrived at the hospital, but as I laid there, it started to return. Since I was at the hospital, it didn't seem as scary. I decided to ride it out and see what happened. For a while, it got kind of intense, and I felt like I just couldn't get enough air, and my chest felt like a had a large concrete block sitting on it, but it never got unbearable. I told the nurse, she looked at my oxygen and said I seemed to be getting plenty of oxygen in my blood. Then I was off for a chest x-ray, which was all clear.

I was starting to get tired of sitting here with nothing really happening. I settled into a vague uneasy reverie. A guy came in having intense stomach pain and seemed to be drunk. They asked him a bunch of questions like how much he drank, he said a lot.  After a bit a nurse came in carrying a chart. She looked at me and said I had elevated liver enzymes in my blood. I asked what that meant. She said it was a sign I could have liver trouble or even failure in my future. She then recommended that I might want to reconsider how much alcohol I drank. I was puzzled at this, and said okay, but it shouldn't be a problem because I rarely drink alcohol. She looked at me oddly and said "what's your name?" When I told her she turned red in the face and said... "Oh... Mr. Bumgarner... I'm sorry, I was reading the wrong chart. Turns out Mr. Stomach Pain in the next bed was the one with the liver enzymes! Then I heard another nurse telling Mr. Stomach Pain that he had a major ulcer that was causing the pain.  I didn't have a lot of sympathy for the guy, but at least he was keeping me entertained!

Eventually the ER doc came around and said, "It doesn't appear there's anything really wrong with you. It is my job to make sure you are not going to die. From what I can see you appear fine and our tests found nothing. I want you to follow up with your regular doctor. I don't want you to return to work until you see your doctor." Well that was both good and bad. It appeared I was fine for the moment but something HAD been wrong.

Finally I walked out of the ER. I got home and called my boss and told them what was going on. The next morning, I called my doc and they told me they couldn't get me in for 3 days but until then I was to stay home and relax. Great. Three days of doing nothing. This was not going to be fun or easy at all!

I am not a patient person. I don't deal well with WAITING.

The next three days were both boring and very stressful. I was really concerned about my 'episode', but seemed to be feeling OK. Still, I didn't want to take any chances, so I literally laid on the couch and did NOTHING for three days.

WAITING.

A lot of times with health issues the worst part is the waiting, and the not knowing.

WAITING.

I had a friend with cancer and he told me when it comes to dealing with the medical system, nothing moves quickly and you have to learn to live with endless WAITING.  My friend's cancer turned out to be terminal, but he lasted 13 years, beating everyone's expectations. Even his own. When the doctor finally told him that the cancer had started growing again and he should get his affairs in order, I asked him if he thought about dying a lot. He said it was on his mind when he woke up in the morning, and on his mind when he went to sleep at night, but the living was everything in between.

WAITING.

I was starting to understand that mindset. I had no idea what to do with myself, besides sit on the couch and worry and wait for the next three days. Welcome to age 40!

Change was coming my way...

WAITING.

Lose and Win!

Want to make some extra money? Try dropping a few pounds.

One company in Colorado is literally putting it's money where your mouth is. They are offering to pay cash to anyone in the state who is willing to lose weight, and be accountable for it.

Check out the story below:

Get Paid to Lose Weight!!!

The last few years at my workplace they have implemented a program with a similar goal called the Health Improvement Program. Basically they incentivise a healthy lifestyle by offering cheaper health insurance with lower out of pocket expenses if you will submit to a yearly health screening, and work with trained nurse / coaches on any health issues you may have.

The program was fairly unpopular when first implemented. But management recently announced a major costs savings in our health insurance program, so apparently it's working. Or it's propoganda! (Hehehe, only kidding!)

As for myself, I wasn't thrilled when they first put the program in place, but wasn't about to pass up cheaper health insurance so I kept my grumbling to a minimum and tried to jump in with a positive attitude. And I can honestly say I've come to like the benefits it provides. I have found myself slowly changing many of my habits over the last few years, lost weight, took up running, improved my diet, etc.

The program is designed to get good information into our hands and brains, via force if necessary. Not only are we required to submit to the health screening, but we are required to take quizzes periodically that are designed to teach us good health habits. One of the quizzes is required before each yearly health screening.

Honestly, it seemed like a pain in the butt when I first started doing it, but I found over time the information was sticking in my brain.

Each year I have made small changes to try to improve my score. I have recently started taking a multivitamin, mostly because they recommend that we do, to boost immune systems, and they provide research that shows that people who regularly take a multivitamin get sick less often that those that don't.

I also deal with high cholesterol. It runs in my family. So one of my goals is to try to get that number down. Last year I was excited to see how all of the running and exercise would pay off. And there was a significant improvement. But nowhere near what I thought it would be. This year I am at least 25 pounds lighter, and have made a lot of positive diet changes, so I'm really hoping it to see a big improvement. My cholesterol was 270 the first time I got it checked. Normal is supposed to be less than 200. There was a drop in my bad cholesterol levels last year, and an increase in the good kind so I'm going in the right direction.

It's good to have goals, as many contributors to this blog have pointed out.

Even if your goal is to avoid a phone call from a nurse practitioner from a health screening plan!

Weight issues are a plague to the United States. It is getting so bad that predictions are within the next 10 years over 2/3's of Americans will be overweight. We will literally bankrupt ourselves by eating our way to early graves if we don't change our ways.

I think the insurance company in the article above is on the right track, and I hope to see more offerings like this going forward, and better yet, I hope we can stop the free fall as a society, educate our kids, and help them learn a healthy relationship with food, and the bounty most of us have by proxy of living in the best country on earth.

Run Forest Run! How To Go From Couch Potato Zero to Local Running Hero!

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run." -John Bingham

'I wish I could run like you'

'I want to run a 5k'

'I want to run a marathon'

These are all comments I've heard recently from people who've been following my blog or even just friends who decided they want to become a runner, or lose a few pounds.

After being accosted in a church hallway by a skinny miles reader about how to become a runner, I figured I better get something posted.

When I first started running, I had no experience. I didn't take the two minutes it would have taken for a google search on the subject, which would have been incredibly helpful to me. I just figured as long as I was wearing sneakers and willing to try, I was good to go. I must have looked like a real goofball huffing and puffing down the sidewalk in jeans, a cotton T-shirt and worn out basketball sneakers in the 80 degree heat. Talk about naive! I know it sounds stupid, but the first time I ran in a pair of shorts, a sleeveless shirt and new shoes I couldn't believe how much easier running seemed! DUH!!!

Luckily, it worked out for me in the long run, but it certainly was not the smart way to go about it. Hopefully I can help new runners or people who may be coming back from a long break acclimate smoothly with minimal discomfort, minimal chance for injury, and maximum fun!

Here are some tips to help you get started!

1. Have A Goal. It's amazing to me how many people just jump in headfirst with no clear goal in mind. If you just want to run to run, that's fine, but at least be clear on why you're doing it. So many people give up after a week or two because they don't have any greater purpose for their training. If you need a goal, sign up for a 5k. There are dozens of races to do, and most support a good cause of some sort. If your goal is a marathon, you should definitely break that goal into smaller pieces. If you've never run three miles and you start out by saying 'I want to do a marathon', you might be biting off more than you can chew. Break your large goals into smaller pieces.
2. Buy Good Running Shoes! Your feet, legs, knees, etc. are going to take a beating, especially in the early stages of your running program. It takes time to acclimate to running and it pays to start with a good foundation on your feet. Don't skimp! Good shoes are pricey, but well worth the bucks. Getting injured sucks, and your shoes are your first line of defense against that. I prefer Asics 2160's, but running shoes are a very personal thing. Experiment. Read the reviews from Runner's World--research! I also recommend you go to your local running store for you first pair. The staff will usually be very knowledgeable and can look at your stride and gait and pick the correct shoes for you. Be sure and ask questions, find out which type of support you need if any, and remember this information. It's good to know. 
3. Get Good Gear! If you're going to be running outdoors (and I recommend that you do!) you'll need some basic running gear. The bare minimum I recommend is a few pairs of running socks (yes, there's a difference, yes they're expensive, yes, they're worth it!), a pair of compression shorts for your under layer, a tech running shirt and a watch. You can pick up a pair of compression shorts at Walmart for $10. The tech shirts you can often find at Kohls for a similar amount. Tech shirts, and running socks wick sweat away from your body and help you stay comfy while you run. Priceless! Obviously if you're starting in cold weather, there is a lot more stuff you'll need. Hats, Gloves, Layers, Layers, Layers. Runners world makes a great web tool to help you HERE.
4. Use a Couch to 5K program. This is the meat and potatoes of my recommendations. If you are a newbie runner or haven't put down more than a mile in months, this is the way to go. This program will ease you into running slowly and surely. This is the best way to avoid injury, build up your endurance, and maximize enjoyment! Most plans have you run/workout three days a week over a period of several weeks, working you from a brisk walk up to a healthy three miler. One of our contributing authors, Scott Nichols is chronicling his Couch to 5k experience, so you should be able to read what it's like from a regular non-runner's perspective. Start here to read Scott's post on his progress. There are lots of Couch to 5k programs out there, most are similar. The one at Cool Running is my personal favorite. Check it out! If anyone of you has done the Couch to 5k and would be willing to share your journey with us, we'd love to hear from you. I would like to provide success stories for newbies to read so please, send them my way! 
5. SLOW DOWN!  Time and time again, I hear someone say they hate running.  It's too painful.  It's too hard.  This is probably the number one reason why people quit running.  What this tells me is that person is trying to run way too fast.  If you go slow enough, and don't break your running stride, you can run so much farther than you think you can.  If you ever feel like quitting, don't.  Just slow down.  Don't worry how far you are running at first.  Get yourself running for a long stretch of time non-stop (at least 30 minutes).  Funny thing happens in the meantime though--you'll get faster without even trying.
6. Read an Inspiring Book or Two. Sometimes we need a little more motivation. A couple years back I read a book that literally changed my life, and convinced me to give running a try. I was never able to run more than a few minutes without having shin pain in my younger days. This book convinced me to try a different running form. To my amazement, for the first time in my life I was able to run till I ran out of breath, not till I couldn't take the pain anymore. The book is Christopher McDougals "Born to Run", and it is very informative, as well as very entertaining and inspiring.  I also recommend "ChiRunning" to beginners. It's really a method of running, designed to help you run injury free. It may not be for everyone, but there is a lot of really good information in there for new runners.  If you are looking for something a little more motivational, John Bingham's "The Courage to Start:  A Guide to Running for your Life" might be just what you are looking for.

These tips are a great starting point for the beginning runner. For those of you who may feel that you are not ready for running due to obesity, there is still hope for you! Here is a program designed to help you acclimate your body to being on your feet till you're ready to tackle a bigger challenge:
http://www.beginnertriathlete.com/Programs/conservative_program.htm

I hope if you're reading this you are considering the possibility of becoming a runner. I never thought I would be able to run a half mile, let alone a half marathon! But you might be surprised at what you can accomplish if you put your mind to it. So get going! What are you waiting for? You can do it! You too can proudly wear that label, 'RUNNER'.

"If you run, you are a runner. It doesn't matter how fast or how far. It doesn't matter if today is your first day or if you've been running for twenty years. There is no test to pass, no license to earn, no membership card to get. You just run." -John Bingham

The Weight Loss Secret Weapon

Lets face it, weight loss is all about calorie management. The tried and true formula of running a calorie deficit does the job every time. But it can also be a pain in the rear to figure out just exactly what you're burning. The job of figuring what you take in is made fairly simple these days by the creation of some super simple websites with apps like MyFitnessPal or Livestrong. They make tracking what you eat a snap because they have huge databases of food with calories already entered by other users. If you come across something that's not entered...then you are eating very weird stuff.  You can track exercise burns here too...but that's where the problem comes in.

There is a lot of conflicting information on how many calories any particular exercise burns. Anyone who has spent time trying to find out how many calories vacuuming the living room or riding a bike for 30 minutes burns can attest to this.  And how accurate are those calories burned on exercise machines anyways?  Those things seem to good to be true.

That's why a few years ago when I first saw the BodyBugg on an episode of the Biggest Loser, I was intrigued. The BodyBugg is a device that straps on your upper arm and uses a variety of measurements to calculate how many calories you are burning just doing normal, everyday things. You can even wear it while you sleep.

In my first attempt at weight loss several years back, I wasn't so calorie savvy as I am now (after a lot of research and experience), so when I heard what it was supposed to do, I really, really, really wanted to get one. The problem was the price. Back then, it cost $300, plus you had to buy a monthly subscription to their website to keep track of your burn. I tried to justify it for a long time, thinking I could share it with my wife, but I just couldn't bring myself to shell out that kind of money.

So, when my wife messaged me one day about a huge sale on BodyBuggs, I jumped on it. I have come to view such expenditures as an investment in my health, and the short term sum is negligible when compared to the long term gain.

When it arrived, we were so excited to get it going.  I strapped it on and started experimenting with different exercises each day.  Of course, running was the number one experiment. 

We had all sorts of questions about burns.  Are online calculators and MyFitnessPal entries accurate?  How about those exercise machine readouts?  Does pace affect your burn while running?  What does the after-burn look like on different exercises?  Just how awful is my sedentary desk job?  So many questions, and for analytical junkies like us, we were like kids at Christmas time!

How it works
The BodyBugg uses four measurements to calculate your burn per minute:  motion/steps, sweat, skin temperature, and the rate heat is dissipating from your body.  No, it doesn't measure heart rate, which totally surprised us.  Wasn't the heart rate supposed to be the be-all end-all of calculating calorie burns?  This worried me a little, but we were giving it the benefit of doubt.

This is what the readout looked like part of the way through the first day while my wife was wearing it: 

She put it on around 8:00 a.m. as you can see the calorie spike while she was getting ready for work.  You'll notice the tremendous drop off in the burn around 8:30 when she got to her desk.  Or maybe she was a little late that day...looks like 9:00 really.  Oops. 

This shows how bad sedentary jobs can be on us.  The burn from 9:00 a.m. to about 10:15 when she takes her morning break and walks outside, her calorie burn is as low as if she was asleep--about one calorie per minute for a 140 pound female.  The walk burns about 4-6 calories per minute depending on the intensity.  Then you can see a little spike for her lunch hour at 1:00 p.m. and her afternoon walk at 3:00 p.m.  She got off work at 4:30 p.m. and you see the activity start picking up.  She's doing every day things like walking to and from the car and getting dinner ready, and she's already tripled the burn from sitting at her desk.  So, if you don't think that taking a walk on breaks will do much for your weight loss, you are wrong.  Get up and move as much as you can during the day.  It all makes a difference!

From the questions we had before using the BodyBugg, here are the things we found out:

(1) Exercise machine readouts are very high.  I've always suspected, but couldn't tell you for sure that our elliptical machine wildly over-estimated calories burned on its screen.  Before I knew much about calorie burns, I happily accepted that I could burn 300 calories in 20 minutes on the elliptical (WRONG!).  In reality, it was about 140 calories.  See the problem here?  You THINK you burned twice as many calories as you actually burned, so maybe you feel you can eat a little more today.  Then you wonder why you are not losing weight like you think you should.  Bottom line, the machines lie!  Never trust a calorie readout on an exercise machine.  Even if they have those little heart rate monitors--those will get you closer, but they still aren't accurate. 

(2)  Running and other high intensity workouts have an after-burn.  I was happy to know that I burned an extra 100+ calories for the 15-20 minutes after I stopped running.  I already knew, but was curious about how much.  Your elevated heart rate takes a while to get back down, and your body take a while to get back to normal temperature, so all the while, you are still burning calories.  So, get that heart rate up and get your bonus burn too! Weight training is even better. After an intense weight training session, your calorie burn can stay elevated for up to 36 HOURS after you stop. All those muscle repair processes in the body burn calories!

(3)  Online calculators and user-entered stats (MyFitnessPal) are hit and miss with accuracy. 
User-entered stats are only as good as the information entered.  Some good, some bad.  I've found that they can be trusted sometimes, but not all times.  The running and walking entries can be accurate when they take pace into consideration, because if it knows your weight and intensity it's fairly accurate.  They seem to be close to what the BodyBugg comes up with.  However, things like "Aerobics, high impact" is subjective.  You may think you did high impact, but the BodyBugg might say otherwise.  That one wasn't too accurate.  As for other online calorie burn calculators, they are most accurate if it lets you enter your weight and gender, but again, there is the problem with not being able to enter the intensity.  Not everyone ellipticals at the same speed or resistance.  You will have accuracy problems for sure.  No way to know for sure by just using the online calculator.

The bottom line is it helps to use something, anything: a BodyBugg, a heart rate monitor, or one of the other calorie gadgets out there.  Just make sure whatever you buy that it has a lot good reviews.  There are some really junky heart rate monitors out there so don't waste your time or money on them.  Better to spend a little extra and get what you pay for. 

We highly recommend the BodyBugg, especially if you can catch it on sale (maybe right now), or use the link to the $20 off discount code we posted below.  Even if you only keep the subscription for 6-months, it's well worth it to learn what you burn (accurately) if you are serious about losing weight.  Six months is a good amount of time to get familiar with your base metabolic burn (calories burned if you were sedentary all day) and your burns during different activities.  You'll be surprised at how accurately you can estimate your burns on most days after wearing the BodyBugg consistently for a couple weeks.

24 Hour Fitness has the best deal going on BodyBugg's right now, you can get yours here.

Not this kind of body bug....totally different.

The Official 'How To Not Be Fat" Formula OR How to look like Kara Goucher in just weeks!

There is a secret to losing weight. It's been proven to work every time. It has two equal either/or halves.

Are you ready? Cause this is big... look around... make sure no one is looking over your shoulder. I'm about to share it with you.


Here it is:
"Burn More Calories Than You Take In."
OR
"Take In Less Calories Than You Burn."

Wow. Isn't that impressive? I bet you've never heard THAT before. Okay, I'll stop being facetious now.  But honestly, this is the formula. Now obviously there are more "details" to it then that, but that is the basic formula.

Here is the nuts and bolts outline of my formula to lose weight.

Step 1. Establish a baseline understanding of how many calories you're eating each day. This means counting calories for everything you take in, including liquids. There are a few great websites that make it easy, Livestrong and My Fitness Pal are two that I've used. Both make it easy to count your calories with just a few clicks.

Step 2. Remove 500 calories a day from your diet. How you do this is up to you. You can either control portion size (good practice anyway) or replace something in your diet with a lower calorie version. You just need 500 less a day. No restrictions on what you eat, but you'll find the more healthy a food is, that often it will be much lower in calories than foods that are bad for you. All green vegetables are extremely low in calories for example.

Step 3. Add 500 calories to your daily burn. This essentially means some sort of intensive exercise for roughly an hour a day. You can split the hour in pieces if you like, but you need to be putting real heart pumping effort in each time. Weight training is the best because it elevates your calorie burn for up to 36 hours after a session. Running is probably your best bang for your buck in terms of calories burned per minute of cardio exercise. Most people do fine just by walking 60 minutes a day. If you can only manage a half hour a day, you will still lose weight, just not as fast.

This should lose you two pounds a week. Probably more the first week as water weight gets sweat away.
3500 calories equal 1 pound. With a net reduction of a 1000 calories day, 7000 calories per week equals 2 pounds. I guarantee you if you follow the above steps you will lose weight. Roughly 2 pounds a week.

I think it bears mentioning also that one of the easiest places to cut calories is often in our liquid intake. Switching to water can be such a huge benefit. If you regularly drink soda or juice or coffee, you're probably adding a great many calories into your diet that don't need to be there. My rule is: EAT your calories, don't drink them! It means more FOOD on a daily basis. This is important, especially in the early stages when you might be missing those 500 calories you cut out.

For many people who need to lose a significant amount of weight, this is a rock solid plan. However, if you only need to drop 5 or 10 pounds, I would recommend cutting these numbers in half and going for 1 pound a week. Cut 250 per day, and burn 250 per day. This will get you one pound a week. When you are closer to your ideal weight, it is easier on the body, schedule, and mind to drop weight a little more slowly. Part of the advantage to losing weight in small amounts each week, is it gives you plenty of practice to keep it off. Remember, you're not just trying to reach a goal, you're making changes that should stay around permanently.

Sounds simple huh? It is! The hard part is practicing it, every day.
I'll be the first to admit, after having done this for a whole year, that when I miss a day or two, I immediately start slipping in other areas. I don't know why it is, but bad habits seem to be contagious.  A little slip here, a little slip there, and the next thing you know I'm slipping everywhere!

I usually weigh myself every morning. It keeps me focused and on point. This is one of the first things to go when I start falling out of my regimen.
One thing that has been really helpful for me is constant goal setting. I usually do this in the form of signing up for a race. Last summer I did a triathlon. In the spring my wife and I have 3 half marathons in 3 months booked. So having a race on the horizon helps me stay in the groove as I get into my race training cycle. It's good to have a goal to work towards. In the past I joined weight loss contests at work or with friends because it motivated me. Find something that works for you and use it to stay motivated.

This is the basics of my 'How To Not Be Fat' formula.

So who wants to  take me up on this challenge: Try this plan for 2 weeks. I guarantee (or your money back!) that you will lose 4 pounds in 2 weeks if you actually reduce your calorie intake by 500, and burn 500 a day. The chances are if you are just starting out, you will probably lose MORE than 4 pounds. The first week or two tend to eliminate a lot of water weight when you start an exercise regimen. It's not unusual to lose 5 pounds that first week. If anyone is willing I would love to hear about it!

I should also mention that I am starting a photography business, and I would be more than happy to take before and after pictures of you:

Ok not like those, that would just be wrong!
Maybe more like Erik Chopin, of Biggest Loser fame:

So Get Going! And Please let us know if you take the challenge how you do. We'd love to hear from you!!!

Cause I'm Free... Free Fallin'

"She's a good girl, lovers her java, loves pizza, and cheescake too,
And I'm Free! Free Fallin!"

It's true. I am currently in the midst of what they call a 'free fall'.  Meaning, I've been eating like crazy for a couple weeks now, and not exercising much.

In fact, it's EASY for me to do this. I am a creature of habit. Translation: I get on a roll with things. That cuts both ways. When I'm on I'm on. When I'm off, I'm REALLY off!

In the normal course of things, I weigh myself every morning. It keeps me honest about where I'm at. As it stands I haven't been on the scale for about a week. I've decided that if I only gain a couple pounds during the holiday season, I can live with that. The danger is it takes about 2 weeks for a habit to form. I could easily fall back into eating way more than I should, and easing up on the exercise routine.

Luckily, I have a few things going for me.

One: I can't afford new clothes.

Two: I have accountability. Every day at noon, there are guys waiting a block away at the Y to run our customary 5 mile loop. There is no pressure to be there, but knowing they're there in itself is a great motivator.

Three: I absolutely love being in shape. It took me a long time to get here, and I'm not ready to let it go after so much effort.

Which brings me to a couple of points. There are two kinds of habits... can you guess what they are? It is within all of our power to create good habits or eliminate bad ones. Small changes done repeatedly, equals a habit. We can replace things that are bad for us with things that are good for us. I replaced smoking with running. There is obviously more to that story, but I will expand on that in another post.

Accountability is key. Having a partner you can workout with, share your successes and failures with, whine to, high five, or push you that last 1/4 mile is HUGE when it comes to maintaining the desire to go do it. Just knowing that other person is going to hold you accountable can be a great asset. If you are really trying to lose weight, by ALL MEANS, find someone to fill this role. You can do that. If you have no one willing to join you, there are many, many ways to find someone who will. Facebook and Meetup come to mind. Social networking makes it easy to find people with similar goals, interests and schedules. Find them and get started! You may make a new friend as well.

I started this post a couple days ago. As of this morning, I DID get on the scale and I've gained a couple of pounds.  I'm not worried. Things will smooth out when I get back on a regular schedule. The key is to not beat yourself up when things stop going in the right direction, but to stop, reassess, refocus and go on. Along the way to my 45 pound weight loss I hit several plateaus. Some of them lasted two or three weeks. Each time, I was able to overcome them by refocusing on my plan and moving forward. Occasionally my plan needed adjusting. But each time, my desire to keep going overrode my desire to give up.

Weight loss and even weight maintenance IS a journey. But it's also a journey that never ends. You don't get where your headed and then stop doing what you did to get there. You keep going. You keep maintaining. You keep feeling good about the positive things you've done and are doing in your life. You remember that YOU are important enough, that YOU matter enough to feel good about yourself. It doesn't matter if it's three pounds this week or just breaking even. What matters is trying.

So GO! Get up off the couch! Take your dog for a walk. Play with the kids outdoors. Go to the park. Go for a run. You can do it! And feel good when you do. Don't beat yourself up over the failures. The only failure is not trying. Celebrate the successes!

As for me, I'm done. The free fall ends today. I've popped the parachute and I'm going to try for a graceful landing and get back on the plane. Until next time!

I Want You To Want Me

Are you losing weight? Inspired? Dieting? Hopelessly Uninspired? Want to start but don't know where or how? Scoffing at this?
Part of the reason for this blog is to share tips that have worked for me. I also wanted to enlist some people who are just beginning the process, or are somewhere in the middle. Hopefully we can all share, support, and motivate each other to work towards our goals.
If you are interested in sharing some of your own story, goals, frustrations, or just want to rant, send me a message.
We'd love to have you!!!

Drink Yourself to Death

There are those in the world that want to enslave us.

They are the makers of sweet-sugary-caffieney-creamy-caramel-mocha-frappa-fizzy-fuzzy-biggulpy-pulpy-poppy-hoppy-carbonated-teeth/intestine/stomach lining/esophagus rotting drinks that many, if not most of us consume every day.

They want your children. And they want your loyalty.

They will go to extremes to get you to argue over coke vs pepsi, bud vs miller, Starbucks over.... whatever it is that Starbucks competes with. I'm not  a coffee person. So shoot me.
You may think I am exaggerating. You would be wrong.

A quick check has the two biggies by name recognition (Pepsi and Coke) valued at a combined 250 BILLION dollars. A quarter of a trillion dollars. The soft drink industry has lobbied Washington DC to the tune of 50 Million dollars since 2000.

Why do I bring this up? Because I honestly believe the biggest, best step you can take to losing weight and better health is to look at what you drink. So many calories sneak into your diet in liquid form that it makes sense to make this your starting point. And for many people, this is the hardest thing to give up. If you regularly drink non-diet soda, or any type of gourmet caffeine drinks, it's a good idea to consider a change.

This is where  I started many years ago, on my first weight loss attempt. I was a regular 6 pack or more a day Pepsi drinker for years. Giving that up was not easy. At all. My personality changed. My wife suffered. My pets checked themselves in at the pound. But the mosquitoes thanked me. They could finally taste blood instead of the brown sludgy syrup that my bloodstream consisted of.

Some quick math shows the numbers: The average calorie count for a can of "Cola" is 131 calories. Now multiply that times 7, 917. If you drink one can of soda a day you add 917 calories per week to your diet.  A pound of weight  = 3500 calories.... so in roughly one month, you add one pound of weight to your body by drinking one soda a day. If you drink more than one a day do the math. It SUCKS!!!

Stop drinking soda!!! Or switch to something else. Water is best but find something you can live with and try it.

I've watched several close friends as they embarked on a weight loss plan. Many of them were big consumers of soda. They struggled to give it up, but those that did tended to lose big. From 5 to 10 pounds in a relatively short period of time. There is now evidence that even diet soda is bad!
http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504763_162-20075358-10391704.html

Juice is hardly any better. Fruit juices tend to be packed with sugar. Read the labels! And read close, the little bastards like to fool you with serving size wizardry.

For me, it took time to find an alternative. I grew up on sweet tea so that's where I started. First the bottled kind, which was better than soda, then homemade, then eventually on to green tea. I have slowly dialed back the sugar I add to it as far as I can tolerate. About 2/3 of a cup for a gallon is what I use. The calorie difference between that and soda is big. There are 774 calories in a cup of sugar. A 16 oz bottle of my tea comes in about 35 calories compared to the 131 average for soda! And I have become semi-annoyingly famous amongst family and friends for carrying a little red cooler with two bottles of tea in it everywhere I go.

So if you're ready to make a change, maybe the single biggest best change you can make is to throw the soda away and give something else a try.

The next time someone ask you, "Coke or Pepsi?" say HOW 'BOUT NOOOOOOOOOOO!
I'll take water thank you!

Being Fat makes you poor(er?)

According to a recent yahoo article, being obese means you will make less money per year!
http://health.yahoo.net/articles/weight-loss/obesity-linked-to-lower-paychecks

I think it's pretty much institutionalized that obesity is stigmatized in this country. I'm guessing that much like other negative associations, this isn't going to change anytime soon. I will add this to my ever growing endlessly boring yet somehow compelling list of reasons I don't want to ever go back to being overweight.

I am fascinated with what motivates people who have been stuck in a rut concerning their weight to finally do something to change it. I know what worked for me, but it was really a complex set of circumstances that finally got me moving. I guess if I knew the answer to this question I could get rich in a hurry huh?

Or maybe I'd have guys who look like this knocking on my door...

Fatness 2.0

I'm Scott.  ScotteeeRock to a lot of people.  That used to mean a lot more when I was a fit good-looking 80's-ish rocker front-man running around on stage acting like a crazy person...a good stage show can always make up for lack of real talent--just ask Brett Michaels.  Besides acting like a fool on stage, I have always enjoyed just about any athletic activity you can name.  I am probably best at basketball, but I have always competed well in just about any sport including football, volleyball, dodgeball, tennis, golf, even running.  In fact, if I could pic my top two favorite things to do (that don't occur in the bedroom) it would be being on stage and participating in sports.

So why am I not doing those things anymore?  Because I am fat.  FAT.  Flubbery.  Sorry if I offend other Fatty's out there, but I have never been one to be very diplomatic or politically correct.  When I joined my first band I was 5' 11" and weighed 125 pounds.  At my heaviest I was 225...granted, it has been 20 years, but I have gained 100 pounds over that time.  I wore 28 waist Levi's.  Unreal.  People that know me today would never believe I was once that skinny.  People used to say I looked like Brad Pitt or Val Kilmer . . . now they say I look like Sam Kinison.  Wow.

So, finally, I have had it.  My friend Shane has been a motivation true enough, but recent trips to the doctor showing high blood pressure, trouble breathing, constant lethargic-ness, depression, hopelessness, and even envy, have finally pushed me to the edge and I am done with being fat.  DONE.  I know you have heard it before from people this time of year, but this time its different.

I have tried and succeeded losing wait before.  I can drop 20 or 30 pounds pretty easily by dieting, but when I reach whatever goal I set, I stop and slowly gain back the pounds until I am right back where I was.  My super ULTIMATE ideal weight would be about 165 I think.  My real goal is 175 to 180 depending on my muscle mass as I weight train.  But at this point weight loss is not my number one goal really.  It is my health.

I want to get in shape, period.  I want to be able to go toe to toe with my 16 year old on the court without getting winded after 10 minutes.  i want to be able to breathe at night without my stomach pushing my diaphragm up and choking me.  I want my blood pressure down without medication.  I want to avoid diabetes (which I am borderline after my last physical).  I want to hike and climb mountains like I used to.  I want to be able to swim farther than 20 feet and I want to be able to lift my own body weight into a boat without struggling.  And I would like to be able to do a rock show without sweating and huffing and puffing like the fat pig slob that I am right now.  I would like to have sex without being winded after 2 minutes.

So...like I have seen my buddy Shane do...I am going to run.  I am going to run until I am in shape.  And then I am going to keep running.  I started a program called "couch to 5k" yesterday http://www.coolrunning.com/engine/2/2_3/181.shtml and guess what?  it is doable.  Even in my fatness I managed to do the first workout with a fair amount of ease.  I must warn you that it was not easy . . . nothing worthwhile ever is . . . but I was able to do it without killing myself.  And I will tell you, last night before bed I felt great.  I told my friend Shane how amazing I felt for the rest of the day, just exercising that much.  He basically said, welcome to the club, that it is natural.

So off I go on this couch to 5k journey starting at a flubbery 223.8 pounds.  Let's see what happens.

My Weight Loss / Health Goal Journey Cliche Bla Bla Bla

Let me introduce myself, I'm Shane. I'm an ordinary compulsive obsessive musician, hobbyist, outdoor enthusiast, runner, dude. I've managed to lose quite a bit of weight--more than 20% of my body weight--which is 45 pounds from my largest to where I am today. 

Forty-five pounds may not sound like a lot (in this age of the Biggest Loser), but on my 5'8" body, it was much more than I needed.
The loss has now become very noticeable. I've gotten enough compliments and questions that I thought maybe I have learned enough to share what I know with others. Just maybe it could help someone else who is sitting where I was a year and a half ago. I know there are a million other people writing about weight loss, and there is oodles of powerful information on the web, but I hope I can contribute something to people who can relate to me, my likes, dislikes, style, or sense of humor. I get the question a lot, "How did you do it?".   It seems like people are looking for the magic pill answer, and I can clear that up right now. There is no magic pill. Period.

There is only one true healthy way to lose and maintain weight, and here it is, The Big Secret:

Burn more calories than you take in OR take in less than you burn.
That's it!!!! Of course it helps to eat real, healthy food. You CAN manage to eat low calories while eating crap, but it's actually EASIER to eat healthy. In fact, the best food is often very low calorie food!

It's been quite a journey, and I've learned a lot along the way about being a healthy weight, losing weight in a healthy way, and maintaining a healthy weight indefinitely. My weight loss is inextricably linked with my running, so this blog will definitely be covering exercise as part of the weight loss routine. Without the exercise, I never could have gotten to where I am.

So, where am I? I'm 5' 8" and currently 150 pounds. At my heaviest, I was near 195 pounds and beginning to have many unhappy health issues including high cholesterol, triglyceride levels, chronic acid reflux, snoring with sleep disruptions, and pains in my sides from ligaments around my rib cage stretching so much I had to go ask the doctor if something was wrong.  My diet consisted of fast foods, processed foods, very few fruits and vegetables, and lots of pizza. I had also been a smoker for most of my adult life. I had a sedentary desk job and didn't do much else as far as physical activity goes. A bad combination.

The bottom line was that I was killing myself. Not even very slowly. So, I began not one, but several attempts to get myself to and maintain a healthy weight. It has taken me several years, multiple attempts, through many plateaus, diet changes, learning processes, and personal discovery to get here.

Full disclosure, I am no expert on diet, nutrition, exercise, or physiology, but I have learned a great deal of practical information and how these things affected me. Don't take my word for anything, especially diet-related, because the information is constantly evolving. Check it out for yourself, and ask your doctor for advice.

I have friends who are in different stages along the way of major weight loss/health initiatives who I intend to invite to contribute to this blog as well, so hopefully there will be information here that will be useful and interesting to many people.

So... without further ado... welcome to the discussion!!! I welcome your comments and feedback.