Getting back to basics

     For those of you who don't know, I was eliminated last week from the Big Loser competition, I gained .8 lbs. Initially I didn't feel hurt by the elimination. I already set my mind to the idea that I won't look at this as a "competition" and that I need to do all I can get an edge on my competitors. In the beginning they were looked at as my competition and  I saw them as a threat. Now I know them as my friends, and I'm happy to be going through this experience with them and the things that we've learned from each other. Just like every other issue that you may face in life, there's nothing like having someone there by your side who is going through the exact same thing as you are. In the end, I was very upset about the outcome of our Wednesday meeting but not because of what you might think. I'm upset that I gained weight! Looking back at before I started this program I worked for Five Guys Burgers and Fries. I got a free hamburger and fries every day I worked. Drank soda and powerade all day and didn't exercise! At home I would eat at least half a pot of rice, have 4 packages of Ramen Noodles with 3 eggs and whatever else I felt like eating. At that rate I figured I would have moved on to being close to 500 lbs. but oddly enough I maintained at 415 lbs. With the better food choices I've been making, the more effort I've been putting into my days and even "thinking" healthy I think I should at least be loosing 5 lbs a week. But I didn't, I gained weight and that's very upsetting and frustrating. Making me feel like I put forth all that effort just to gain weight, I was under the impression that it was supposed to go the other way around.
     I think now, in this blog, would be the part where I evaluate what went "wrong" in my week that contributed to me gaining weight and resulting in being voted out. But I'm not going to do that. I took the necessary time I felt I needed to just be in my own thoughts, kick myself for getting too cocky and am ready to move on. I've made the choices I thought were necessary last week, I know that it helped me physically and emotionally. It's just that gravity and I didn't agree with each other at the scale. Last week I walk/ran a 5K in 49 minutes, I swam 900 meters in 45 min (which is something I've never even attempted), I did 2 sets of 15 (real) push ups on the little balance ball thing that they have at the gym and when I first started this contest I could only do 3! I pushed my three babies in a stroller through the entire stop sign hike out in Ivans! FORGET WHAT THE SCALE SAYS! I had one of the best weeks of my life, physically, than I have had in....I can't remember when I was that active. I fit my clothes a lot better, I can wear more of the clothes that I have, I don't mind walking up the stairs, getting off the floor doesn't make me lose my breath, I don't have to hold my breath to tie my shoes, when I watch tv lying down I don't have to strain to look over my stomach to see the tv...the list goes on and on! I entered this contest to lose weight and I have! I entered this contest to be happy and I am! I've come here with many objectives and I've been accomplishing them. Ya being the winner would have been awesome let alone it would've been really nice to at least make the top 3 but the bottom line is that it doesn't matter what place I'm in. In the long run, my wife and my kids are getting everything from me that I couldn't give them before losing the weight and WANTING to be more active.
     Three more weeks are left and that's a whole lot of time to really do some damage in the gym, out on the road and less at the table ( hehe, get it...damage...at the table :)...well I thought that was funny, anyhoo). I'm sticking with the game plan and going back to the basics. You bite it you write it, go hard or go home. There's no need to be fancy about anything, just do it. Once these next three weeks are over, you will be seeing a lot less of me ;). Aloha!

No more stress for me!!

     THAT'S IT! I had the most stressful week I've ever had with this whole weight loss thing and I am done with all that stress and worry about how my week is going because I'm gonna take Nike's advice and "JUST DO IT!"  I had thoughts of how everyone else was doing and I would just hope I was doing enough to keep up with them. I would try to get technical with my work outs by trying to make sure I didn't work too hard and end up being counter-productive. I also made sure that I was doing enough and was constantly unsure with myself whether or not what I was doing was adequate enough or not. I think the base to all this nonsense was the thought that I was part of a game/competition. Without even thinking about it my competitive self was whispering through the back of my head egging me on and pushing the stress of getting the big "W" and telling me that I need to be methodical about how I approach everything and be analytical. I wanted to win it not only for me but also "do it for the family" and everything else that comes along with that attitude. Boy was I wrong about going about it like that! And so I'm here to tell you that it's not a game, contest, thinking game or what have you. I've lost 34.6 lbs. up to this point and you know what?....I've already won. My kids have a more active Father again, my have has someone who shares the idea of..."hey ya we should go on a walk" or "ya, next chance we have lets take the kids on that hike."
     My decisions over the course of these past six weeks have been a massive change in my thinking and desire to want to do more "productive" things. Rather than sit at home and play xbox, watch a movie or sleep. I have most of my life back that I had before the weight gain. And soon enough I'll ready to run the court again for some basketball for more than 5 minutes. I'm actually going to participate in a 5K this Saturday WILLINGLY! This past week I was upset with myself because I ONLY ran just under 2 miles. REALLY?...I can't believe I made it through a jog past the first block down the road, and that's down hill! The other day I was at the gas station and was feeling hungry because I haven't eaten in a bit so I went inside to find something and (long story short) I came out empty handed. There's also a Jack in the Box right next door and that drive thru was calling me by my FULL name and I managed to drive in the other direction. The old me would've gotten candy and a soda from the gas station then an Ultimate Cheese Burger meal, Large, four regular tacos and a chicken sandwich and a jumbo jack. That just makes me wanna hurl reading about it...LOL.
     Here's the bottom line, I'm coming at it full bore these last four weeks and I'm gonna KILL IT!! I'm not going to worry about everyone else, how they stack up to me or if I'll be in the bottom two the next week. I'm doing this for ME and everything else will just fall into place. Should I happen to win along the way, sweet as, it'll be an awesome treat for working so hard but if not...NO WORRIES! I couldn't be happier working with any other group of people than the one I'm with now. The support we all have for each other and the friendships we've built isn't something that's just handed to you, I call them Blessings. We all deserve to "win it all" and in the end, we already have.