Paleo Marine

I’ve been asked this question a lot lately: “How goes the exercise?” I’ve thought about it, and here’s my answer.

Yesterday, I posted about not needing exercise to lose weight. That is true. Exercise IS good for you, and I have never, nor will I ever dispute that fact. However, it’s no secret that I’m not a fan of it, and I don’t like doing it. With that said, I’ve accepted the fact that for me to continue losing weight and getting the body shape that I want, I have to do something more than what I’ve been doing. Therefore, I’ve begun with push ups.

Why push ups? It’s one of the exercises that can be done to strengthen your core, arms, and back. Also, I have a pulled muscle on the right side of my back that hurts terribly when I do kettle bells but doesn’t hurt when I do push ups. So, for now, I’m stuck with push ups and planks.

I will be adding some other exercises like crunches and what we in the Marines called Mountain Climbers, but that’s about it for now. I have said before that I’m easing gently into this exercise thing because 100% of the times I’ve tried in the past to get back into it, I’ve injured myself. I’m not allowing that to happen again. Also, have you heard I don’t like exercise?

I have been able to increase my number of push ups, and on some days, I even do them twice. I’m not doing push ups to failure. I’m not interested in strength or bulking. I just want flexibility and fitness. So far, I’m pretty pleased with the changes I’ve noticed in the past few weeks, and I’m looking forward to continuing the trends I’m seeing.

So, short answer is: it’s going well enough. It hasn’t killed me yet, so it must be making me stronger.

The last major trip Sherry and I took was to Vancouver and Seattle, and it was a completely new experience traveling while thinner. Our last trip overseas was in 2014, and I weighed over 310 lbs. Sitting in the seat on the plane was tight, walking all over Budapest and Vienna was hard for me to do, and in some ways, I think our enjoyment of the cities was hampered by my weight. I was limited in the amount of activity I could do each day.

In Seattle and Vancouver, the opposite was true. We did so much each day, we couldn’t believe we were getting it all in. On our first and second day, I was literally running from place to place as I was so filled with energy and excitement that Sherry literally had to chase after me. She was laughing most of the time because it was such a contrast to our last major trip.

On Monday night, we found ourselves planning our next major overseas trip: Spain. I am really looking forward to it, not only because I have yet to visit Spain, but because we are once again traveling with our good friends Kenny and Elaine with whom we went to Hungary and Austria with in 2014. We’ve done some smaller trips with them as well, and it turns out we travel well together. The main difference this time will be the fact that I’m over 125 lbs lighter than I was on the previous trips. I’m really looking forward to all aspects of it now, as well as the walking, hiking, and exploring.

It’s funny. When people find out I used to weigh over 310 lbs, they get excited and want to know how I lost the weight. When I say the word, “Paleo,” the reaction I most often get is what I can only imagine the reaction would be if I told them, “I have a third eye on the back of my head.”

The name Paleo has some baggage; mostly from our learning about cavemen in school. When I say I eat a Paleo diet, I’m sure lots of people are wondering where I get the mammoth meat from, or if I run from sabretooth tigers. Others, still, think it’s a fad or a craze and that I’m not only denying myself entire food groups, but that I’m eating things like raw meat and grass. OK, I will admit that I like my steaks medium rare.

It’s a shame, because eating Paleo is really eating healthy. It’s avoiding foods that have incredibly high carbohydrate content which is where the fat in our bodies comes from. It’s also focused on eating foods that don’t have additives, chemicals, or drugs (for the meat), and ethical treatment of animals is also taken into consideration by many who live Paleo.

Sherry and I have been at it for a year now, and we can’t be any happier with our diet. Sure, it’s challenging sometimes to find foods in restaurants that are Paleo, but it’s not as hard as you might think. What is amazing to me is how challenging it is to find simple foods like nuts in the grocery store without it having some sort of wheat, soy, or sugar additive.

I’ve had people ask me if Paleo is like Adkins, and I usually tell them, “Mostly,” but not exactly.

Compared to Paleo, there is some overlap between the foods to include (meat, vegetables, and fats) and the foods to avoid (grains), but in the end Atkins is a diet for weight loss, while Paleo is a diet for health. –Paleoleap.com

I’m sure you’re saying, “Ok, so what about the specific differences?” I’ve got that answer for you as well:

Accordingly, Atkins is focused primarily on macronutrient ratios, while Paleo is focused primarily on food quality (eating plenty of nutrients while avoiding toxins). Paleo can be low-carb, but it doesn’t have to be. –Paleoleap.com

Sherry and I have adopted the lifestyle and we have lost weight, improved our health, and we have not suffered nor have we been hungry. Heck, we’ve been enjoying the food and all the new flavors! We’ve even found restaurants locally that cater to Paleo clientele, and the food there is simply inspiring!

Do I miss pizza, pasta, and bread? Honestly, not anymore. I did for a while in the beginning, but now, it’s not something I crave or miss. There are so many other things I eat now that are delicious and satisfying that those other things don’t factor anymore.

If you’ve been looking past Paleo because of it’s name, I implore you to give it a chance. Do some research, read some sites, and look at the science of it all. It’s not hard to understand, and it’s not too complicated. The information you read can change your life. Heck, it might even save it. It saved mine.

On Saturday morning, I weighed in at my new low: 180.2 lbs! This puts me just 5 lbs from my penultimate (there’s my favorite word, again!) goal, and only 15 lbs from my final goal! I’m excited to be so close.

Also, today is the one year anniversary of the start of our new lifestyle that has lead to my weight loss and improved health, and I never dreamed that I could get this far so soon. I hoped, but I didn’t really think it could be done.

Yet here I am.

When I set out to do this, I had lofty goals, but no real expectation of getting there. When I met my first goal, I was happy and surprised. When I hit my second, third, and fourth goals, it was intoxicating. I wanted to hit that next goal!

As it turned out, I missed the deadlines I had set for myself for my last two goals, but I’m okay with that. Losing over 105 lbs in the period of one year is a great accomplishment, and I’m proud of myself and of my wife on her loss. We’re both feeling great, and we’ve improved our quality of life.

You can do this, too. A year goes by quickly. I can’t believe I’ve come this far in so short time.

Adhering to a lifestyle like Paleo can be tough for people who are new to it, especially for those who have not very seriously looked at their relationship with food and how it effects the choices they make in their diet. Personally, I find the Paleo Lifestyle to be full of delicious, satisfying, and diverse foods. I no longer miss grains, dairy, or sweets. Honestly. I’ve learned to not only live without those, but to savor and enjoy the plethora of foods I am able to eat without consequence.

When Sherry and I began Paleo, we added foods to our diet that included Paleo-friendly sweeteners like honey, dates, and coconut sugar. We thought, “It’s Paleo: we can eat it!” What we found, however, was that while these were Paleo-friendly, they slowed or halted our weight loss progress. For me, I could count on at least a three day cessation in progress anytime I ate one of these Paleo-friendly “Treats.” I learned quickly that just because it’s Paleo doesn’t mean it’s okay while trying to lose weight.

That brings me to something that I missed early on in my own journey that I’m hoping to clue you in on: there’s a difference between Paleo for weight loss and Paleo for health and nutrition. Technically, they involve the exact same foods and rules. However, I have modified it a bit to suit my mission.

For weight loss, I restrict the amount of foods made with any kind of sweetener at all, even if it’s Paleo-friendly. Sugar is sugar, even if it’s natural and unprocessed. In my experience, it’s hitting the same craving hot spots in my brain, and eating some of these Paleo treats makes me want more of them. Thus, I have concluded from my own experience (and Sherry has echoed this) that even the natural sugars bring about the cravings. This is bad, especially when you’re trying to lose weight and eat well. What’s worse is that my weight loss slows or stops completely when eating these Paleo-friendly treats. No thank you!

For health and nutrition, Paleo is sustainable and the Paleo-friendly treats don’t have the same effect if you’re looking to maintain your weight. I will introduce more of these muffins and treats when I’m at my goal weight, but for now, I’ve asked Sherry to avoid them for us. She’s also noticed the same thing with her weight loss, so it was an easy sell.

I will admit that we are both looking forward to hitting our goal weights so that we can start enjoying more Paleo treats. For now, however, we just have to pass.

Thank you for reading this site. Seriously. All of you who read this site, comment, send me messages and emails, or talk to me in person: you’ve changed my life.

Through my posting, website, Twitter, and Facebook posts, I’ve become sort of a role model for people who are no longer content with being overweight, unhealthy, or are looking for a way to eat healthy foods without starving or sacrificing flavor and variety. It’s humbling, exciting, and terrifying all at the same time.

I make every effort to point out to people, whether in person or here online, that I’m not a nutritionist, a doctor, or medical professional and that I’m not saying that my experience and results will be the same results anyone else will get. I do say, however, that my results are pretty typical for people who are as strict about sticking to the lifestyle as I have been, and that it has worked for me and very well might work for them, too. I know that it’s not easy, and I don’t judge anyone who is unable to follow my lead. It’s okay. We’re all different, and I know first-hand it’s not easy. I will do what I can to help you if you ask.

As someone who struggled with weight for so long, I’m humbled when people congratulate me or celebrate my loss. When they tell me their stories, of how they struggle or the challenges they’ve faced, I remember my own challenges and struggles. When they tell me they look to me for inspiration and courage, I can’t help but step up to the challenge and help. Some awesome people did that for me (Matt and Sarah) and I feel it’s my responsibility to carry that torch that’s been passed to me through my success.

I do enjoy talking about the journey and the process; sometimes a little too much. It’s easy to get excited about success, especially in something that is perceived as being so difficult. I am excited when someone reaches out to me for information: it’s as if you’re seeing someone finally get the blinders lifted off their faces and they finally realize that a healthy life is not difficult at all!

There are times when it’s terrifying in ways I never would have expected. I feel the pressure to be a perfect role model, which is a good thing, but I worry a little too much about foods with ingredients that are non-Paleo or treats. I know they won’t kill me or derail me, but I worry about the slippery slope of allowing treats into my lifestyle. I am also terrified of backsliding into the life I led before. Pizza, hamburgers, and cake aren’t any less delicious today than they were for me a year ago. They are every bit as enticing now as they used to be. It’s for that reason I need to stay away from them. Thankfully, there are many Paleo analogues for these foods so I can sate my desire for them, but that fear remains. I’m also terrified of letting people down by not being understanding or patient enough. I try hard to be both.

This post may seem silly to some folks, but it’s all from the heart. I am sincerely honored to be someone people look to for inspiration in losing weight and getting healthy. I take that responsibility very seriously, and I strive to always be the example people can respect and look up to. I’m not perfect, and my way isn’t necessarily the best way for everyone, but it’s the best way for me, and I’ve been fortunate to have friends and family who have done the same and achieved the same results I have.

So, once again, I thank you.