Month: October 2020

I just watched a clip from the last Rocky movie (Rocky 23, was it?) and there’s a quote in there that I love (and I’m going to paraphrase it just a little bit): “It’s not about how hard you hit, it’s how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward; how much you can take and keep moving forward. That’s how winning is done. You have to be willing to take the hits and not point fingers saying you’re not where you want to be because of him, her, or anybody.”

This applies to taking on a new lifestyle of eating (also known as a new diet), tackling a new fitness plan, or any other challenge in life. Taking the hits with a diet is not caving in to temptation or cheats (or, as I call them, sabotage). Taking the hits is when people try to entice you to have “Just one bite” of a sweet or non-compliant meal. Taking the hits is when someone calls your diet “Weird” or tells you that it didn’t work for them or it won’t work for you. You just keep on going; keep on putting in the work, stick to the discipline, and persevere.

Taking the hits in fitness is getting out there even when you don’t feel like it. Taking the hits is working through the muscle pain and stretching to get ready for the next workout. Taking the hits is getting on the road even if it’s cold out (or hot out). Taking the hits is getting out on the street or into the gym even when you know you don’t look your best (or your body image is poor). Get in there, and get it done.

Perseverance. That’s the name of the game. Don’t let ANYTHING or ANYONE stand in your way. You want it? TAKE IT! It’s all up to you! TAKE THE HITS!

This should go without saying, but sometimes, you need a reminder that with all the work you put in, there’s a payoff. For me, that came in the form of my pre-WOCS (Warrant Officer Candidate School) drill this past weekend. I had to perform the new Army Combat Fitness Test (ACFT) and the next morning, a 5km/3.1 mile road march with a rucksack weighing a minimum of 48 lbs while wearing the helmet and carrying a rifle. I was also subject to a weigh-in to ensure I was within the Army’s height and weight regulations.

I have to admit that I was nervous about the ACFT. It’s brand new, and reputedly pretty tough, with roughly 80% of all people taking it failing at the leg-tuck exercise, and a large percentage failing the test overall. I have never failed a physical fitness test either in the Marines or in the National Guard, so I’ve been working hard on my running and with doing the StrongLifts 5×5 program every day before I run to ensure that my body was ready. As I started the first exercise in the ACFT, the deadlift, I gained a lot of confidence. I do deadlifts every other workout, and I know what my max is. I kept my max down on the test and kept it just over the minimum required because the rest of the ACFT was an unknown to me.

The next test I worried about was the sprint/drag/pull. We had 3 minutes to do it in, and I completed it in 2:30. The one test that got me was the leg tuck. I couldn’t do it properly due to bad form and still being weak in my upper body. Fortunately, there is an alternate event right now that I am good at: a 2-minute plank. After the first 5 exercises, it’s onto the two-mile run, which I also knew I was ready for. In the end, I passed the test on my first try, and it built a lot of confidence in me for the next event the following morning; the road march.

Before getting out of the barracks, we all weighed our packs to ensure we met the minimum weight requirement of 48 lbs. My pack ended up weighing 54 lbs, but we were short on time, and I didn’t have an opportunity to remove the excess weight. I decided to just go with it and see how it went. I figured it would be good training.

It turned out that it wasn’t too much for me, and that all the weightlifting and running together I’ve been doing prepared me well for this road march. I ran the first 1/4 mile and then settled into a fast-paced walk. Intermittently, I would run for 50-100 yards when I caught my breath, and this allowed me to beat the 53 minute goal by 6 minutes. The best part for me personally was that out of the five candidates there, I came in 2nd. I am the oldest by far, and on top of that, we found out that one of the candidates underpacked his rucksack by 14 lbs, so I performed better than someone younger than me and also carrying a lot less weight than me. Talk about an ego boost.

I didn’t feel sore or tired after the ACFT which was a great feeling, and I wasn’t as nearly wiped out after the road march as I have been in the past after such events. These two things tell me that I’m on the right track with my fitness, and that I just need to keep doing what I’m doing to improve and make more progress.

Finally, we did our weigh-in, and this is where it got interesting. For my height, my weight is over the limit. However, the Army knows people who do a lot of weightlifting will tend to weigh more, so they allow for calculating body fat percentage based on measurments. I was measured and found to have 21% body fat, which at my age, is pretty darned good and well within the standards. This is a vindication of my careful eating habits and sticking with Paleo and coming off a successful Whole30.

All in all, what I’m doing is working well for me. Running and weightlifting every other day coupled with Paleo is giving me the results I’m looking for in a way that isn’t taxing on my body or keeping me hungry between meals. I learned a new exercise hack from one of my TAC Officers this weekend; I will be eating half a banana before my run and the other half afterward. I usually have enough energy in the gym during my weightlifting but then my energy levels drop when I go out for my run. Today, I will add the banana to the regimen and see how it goes. I want to extend my runs out a bit, too, to help prep me for the longer road marches I’ll have to do later at WOCS.

I have always said to look past the scale for signs of success and feedback. If I used the scale only, I’d still be disappointed and likely demotivated to be doing all the work I’m doing. But with this incredible weekend of feedback, I know that my diet is good and that my fitness plan is working. Feels good, man. Feels good.

I saw a cool mug design at this site today (not an affiliate link; I make no money from that site) that really hit home: “The Dream is Free: Hustle Sold Separately.” If what I’ve accomplished in my healthy living journey hits home the most, it’s that it requires work. You’ve got to hustle.

In the past, I made all kinds of goals, had all kinds of plans, and yes, even dreamed about losing weight and getting healthy. That part was easy. The problems started for me when it came to the hustle. It required discipline, motivation, perseverance, and dedication. It required me to stick to the plan TO THE LETTER and to not allow myself to sabotage any progress I made. It required me, for fitness’ sake, to get into a gym and out onto the pavement and move. In short, it required me to hustle, and for me, that was the part I just couldn’t get through.

What changed? For me, there was a “Straw that broke the camel’s back” moment when I tried to tie my shoelaces one morning and found that I could not do so without holding my breath. My gut’s girth was so large that I was unable to bend over and tie my own shoes. That did it for me. Of course, there have been the health scares, the tingling in my toes, the liver enzymes off the charts, my cousin (a PA) telling me that the chances of an early death were elevated due to my obesity, and the diabetes that all contributed to that decision, but looking back, I find it sad that it took physical discomfort to get me to the point where I would actively hustle to get into better health. As if declining health, Diabetes, and the prospect of a shortened life expectancy weren’t enough on their own.

Now, I hustle daily. I hustle by staying motivated. I hustle by being dedicated to eating right and exercising regularly. I hustle by persevering through any adversity put in front of me. I refresh my discipline by looking back at photos of myself and remembering not only what I looked like, but more importantly, how I FELT being obese and unfit. I never want to feel like that again, if I can help it. I will hustle and do what it takes to stay fit and at a healthy weight.

Stop dreaming and start doing. It’s well within your power to find the strength inside you to make your dreams a reality. If you were able to get through high school, get a college degree or an advanced degree, get through boot camp or basic training, attain a certification, or raise amazing children, then you have the power within you to do this. Stop making excuses, stop planning, and stop putting it off. Start now. You won’t regret it; that, I can promise you.

I remember hearing somewhere that to truly succeed at something monumental or difficult, you have to want it as badly as a person who is underwater for a long time and wants air. If you’ve never been under water too long, it’s a horrible feeling of anxiety coupled with an unbelievable desire to get to the surface. But while it’s frightening to be underwater and needing air, that strong desire is something you need to feel when working toward a goal. That desire, that almost instinctive yearning; you need to channel that into any goal you want to achieve.

I feel that strong desire when I’m lifting weights or when I’m running. I feel that as I’m about to embark on what is most like going to be the most difficult training experience I’ve ever had in the military: WOCS. As a 53 year-old, it’s going to be challenging physically trying to keep up with the much younger candidates. But, my desire to get through it is very strong, so as long as my body can handle it, I will push.

When I started my first Whole30, my mindset was that it was my last chance at changing my life and losing weight, and that failure wasn’t an option. No, I didn’t use that just as a catchphrase; I actually believed it wholeheartedly. That’s important to note. Catchphrases can help motivate people, but saying it or repeating it doesn’t confer any magic abilities or power to you. Words are just words unless you grasp the meaning and take it to heart.

No surrender. No sabotage. No failure.

Those three danced through my consciousness throughout my entire first year into my new lifestyle. They are what kept me from drinking alcohol, eating large portions, or eating foods that weren’t Paleo (or Whole30 when I was on a Whole30). They are how I’ve been living my life for the past 29 days (today is day 30 of my latest Whole30).

What happens when you lose sight of the goal, or lose focus? This is an easy one to answer. Re-focus. When I’m running and realize that my breathing is too easy or that my pace has gotten too slow, I pick it up and push harder. The same holds true when I find myself doing something I shouldn’t in regards to my diet. There’s no need to beat yourself up. It’s not productive, and can actually lead to you not getting back on the horse, so to speak. Brush yourself off, refocus, and go.

How badly do you want to succeed? How sick are you of your current situation, either with your weight or your fitness? Get mad! How excited are you at the prospect of wearing sexy clothing? Get excited! Let those emotions flow! Use them to empower you to set realistic goals, and then do not accept failure from yourself. Promise yourself that you’re going to do this. You will not sabotage yourself. You will reach your goal, and you will take on this new lifestyle for your health and for the benefit of those who need you in their lives. You can do this.

Yesterday, while weightlifting, I hit a new milestone: I lifted more than my current body weight in a deadlift. I’ve tried to get to that weight for over a year, but three non-exercise related injuries sidelined me and delayed me. Now, I am finally there.

Why do I mention this? Because I’m bragging? No. I am proud of my accomplishment, but I am not putting it out there to make anyone feel bad. To the contrary, I’m putting it out there because it coincides with something I saw my mom post on Facebook this morning:

“Being obese is hard. Being fit is hard. Pick which hard you want, because life is hard no matter how you do it.”

I hadn’t thought of it this way, but it is so true. When I was obese, EVERYTHING was difficult. Getting up out of bed, tying my own shoes, or (heaven forbid) going up the stairs. They were all hard. I decided that I would rather deal with a more disciplined lifestyle and exercise than with the discomfort and pain of being obese. The disciplined lifestyle and exercise are not easier; in many ways, they are harder. But the benefits outweigh the cost, and when I get done with an exercise block, I may be tired, but I always feel satisfied with the work I did.

After yesterday’s great weightlifting session, my run was very “Meh.” My legs were tired from the deadlift, and it was hot out, which led me to a slower runtime than the past three times I’ve been out. That’s okay. There will always be days like that were things just feel harder than other days. Again, I’d rather choose the hard life of exercise and eating right than the hard life of being obese, not being able to be comfortable, and all the illnesses I kept getting due to my degraded physical condition.

You have choices to make. Life is hard, no matter what you choose. Make the hard you choose benefit you.

I received this message this morning from a former fellow National Guardsman regarding exercise and getting back into a successful regimen:

Hey so I know you’ve posted about it before, but I was curious about your exercise routine? I’ve been out of the Guard for a year and a half now and it shows haha. I’m mainly just looking for some pointers on getting started again with exercising.

I started with push-ups and walking. Don’t do the push-ups until you can’t. Do them until you start to feel like it’s getting hard and stop, even if it’s less than 10. Then, every other day, just do them until it gets hard. In 3 months, I went from doing 8 to doing 100. Same with walking/jogging/running. Go for 30 minutes. Start with fast walking (like ruck march pace) for 30 minutes. Then, take a day off. Then, walk again. Eventually, your body will feel like walking is too slow, and you will start jogging, and then, running. Doing this does two things. First, it lets you get back into shape without pain, and second, the rest days ensure you actually make improvements faster than exercising daily which wears your body down under fatigue.

After 3 months, I added Stronglifts 5×5 which is super-easy weightlifting that builds functional strength. If you have access to free weights, it’s an excellent way to get strong without the muscle fatigue and pain.

Awesome! I definitely have been going until exhaustion recently haha, but taking time and doing it at my own pace sounds way smarter lol. I don’t have access to weights yet but hopefully I will soon.

I’ll be honest; the weightlifting isn’t as important, but it does help you get stronger which makes your joints safer as you get older (I know you’re not old like me, but you’ll be in better shape when you get to be my age if you start doing some functional strength training now).

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Getting back into good physical fitness doesn’t have to be horrible. In the past, we were taught to exercise “Until it hurts,” but it turns out that that’s not the best way to exercise. Special Forces Operators and elite Soldiers and Marines have found that the 80% workout is far more successful in improving strength while maintaining readiness.

As I understand it, some of these elite forces found themselves unable to perform to 100% of their capabilities when called out on a mission after a workout session, and they realized something had to change. They needed to maintain their top conditioning while also being able to respond immediately when called upon, even after a workout. The 80% workout turned out to be a huge success, and the Soldiers and Marines found that not only did these workouts allow them to remain ready for the call, but they made improvements faster than when they used to train to failure.

The reasons for this appear to be the way in which the muscles respond to load and recovery time. When you “Work it ’til it hurts,” you are creating a large amount of micro-tears in the muscle. These not only take time to heal, but are painful. When you work to 80% of your load, you don’t create as many tears (which are necessary for muscle to grow). The rest time between workouts allows the body to bulk the muscles to get ready for the next workout.

I’ve been doing StrongLifts 5×5 for over a year now, and while I’ve had to stop a few times due to non-exercise related injuries, I find myself in less pain daily and better able to lift things in my day-to-day life. Just yesterday, lifting a 20 lbs bag of smoke pellets for my smoker seemed so easy I questioned whether the bag I picked up was full. More importantly, being stronger helps your back and joints stay straight, issues that are compounded as you get older.

One last thing to consider about fitness: it’s not a race. There’s no need to try to make progress too quickly. Do your exercise for a day, and then take a rest. Repeat. Keep this up. Before you know it, your run times will improve, your number of push-ups will increase, and if you added weight training, you will see those plates start to add up on the bar.

I started exercising at age 49. I’m 53 now, and I’m in much better shape and in much less pain than I was five years ago. The greatest improvement in my quality of life has come from adding exercise to my weekly regimen. I don’t spend hours in the gym daily sweating. I spend an easy hour and a half every other day in the gym followed by a run. I make it a priority in my schedule because the benefits of that exercise far outweigh any benefit I would receive from doing anything else during that time.

Can your spouse make you get healthy?

Can your children or grandchildren make you get healthy?

Can your friends, gym coach, co-workers, or anyone else make you get healthy?

Maybe they can motivate you, support you, or assist with meal prep, but ultimately, none of them can make you get healthy. Only YOU can do that.

You are the beginning, the middle, and the end of your healthy journey. Only you make the final decisions for the food that goes into your body and the amount of physical activity you can get. (Protip: you don’t need exercise to lose weight. You only need that to get fit). You can get all the positive reinforcement in the world and still get nowhere. You can have a great support team and still get nowhere.

Why?

Because YOU are the most important link in the chain of attaining your goals and success.

This all sounds kind of obvious, right? If it does, it’s because it is. The work towards being healthy begins and ends with you. You have to do the work. You have to make the decisions on your food. You have to put on those gym shoes and get out there and actually run.

It’s not easy.

Well, the process itself is easy. Calories – effort/used calories = calorie deficit aka weight loss. Also, effort + time = increased fitness. However, the hard part is getting past the hump of, “I don’t feel like it.” That’s the most difficult part of the entire process. Coming in a close second is getting past, “I’m still sore from yesterday’s workout. I’ll just skip today.”

Excuses are easy. Everyone has them. Getting over the hump is the hard part, and it’s why people admire those who succeed. Successful teacher, successful nurse, successful doctor, successful engineer, successful professional sports athlete, military NCO’s and senior officers, professional musician, artists, and the list goes on. These are all people who had to put in a lot of time, effort, and sacrifice to make it to the elite. None of these people were given their status. They all earned it.

I have lost 150 lbs total. I gained back 20 here and there and went on to lose that last 20 again a few times. I’m currently on another Whole30 working towards undoing some of the damage I’ve done over the past year. I’ve increased my physical activity to prepare for Warrant Officer Candidate School in the Army. There are many days where I just want a cookie, or I want to skip a workout, but I don’t let that happen. I drop those thoughts as soon as I have them. Why? Because I have goals I feel more strongly about than any short-term gratification of a cookie or a skipped workout. If anything, the guilt and disappointment in myself is far greater if I were to eat the cookie or skip the workout that it’s not worth it to me. I would rather feel discomfort in muscle pain than the emotional discomfort I always get after a skipped workout.

Ultimately, reaching my goals is MY responsibility. Sure, some can help get me there, but at the end of the day, it’s my accomplishment because I’m the one who pushed past the little voice that suggests cheats or skips. I keep reminding myself that those are the voice of sabotage, and that little voice can go to hell; I’ve got things to accomplish and goals to reach.

This weekend, I was lamenting the fact that my weight loss has stalled at 7 lbs when Sherry reminded me that I’d recently gotten back into my size 32 inch jeans. She also reminded me of something I learned back when I lost my first 130 lbs: I usually lose weight OR size, never both at the same time.

I’m glad that she’s here to remind me of these things when I’m feeling down. Losing weight and getting fit is an emotional rollercoaster. There are days when I feel like I’m killing it and doing a great job, and then there are the days when I feel like nothing I’m doing matters or is making any progress. Usually, when I feel like I’m not making progress, it’s because I’m not looking at the right data points to find that progress. The truth is that as long as I’m doing the work, there are changes happening even if I cannot see them.

I’m definitely smaller now. My shirts fit better (the way they used to a year ago). I’m wearing my smaller pants again. And more importantly, my fitness is improving as I’m running faster, lifting heavier weights, and finally being able to do more than a few pull-ups. This is huge for me.

People I know have had difficulties in getting started with or staying with the healthy lifestyle. I get it. I’ve been there before. The key for me was to make small goals and not beat myself up when I can’t follow the plan perfectly. When trying to change your lifestyle, set a goal of one day of eating right. When you accomplish that goal, make the next goal of making it another full day of eating right. After a few days of this, set a goal of making a second week. “But what if I fall off the wagon?” It’ll happen, and it’s okay. You definitely want to try to not do that, but if it does happen, be defined by getting back on the wagon and keeping at it rather than throwing your hands up and surrendering. Do you know how many missed at-bats even the best baseball players have? We don’t count those; we count their home runs. How many lost games each NBA team has had? Nobody cares; we count championships. Missed passes by quarterbacks in the NFL? Not a stat we care about; we count completions.

Losing weight/size is like a pendulum for me. I either lose weight or lose size. I am fortunate that I have a supportive partner who reminds me of these things when I’m feeling down. She motivates me to keep going.