Yesterday afternoon after work, I had one of those runs that really sticks out from the rest. I’ve been experimenting with eating some dried apricot 30 minutes to an hour before a run, and the results have been blowing me away. I had no fewer than five personal records yesterday and I felt great during and even after the run.
I also weighed myself after the run and I came in at the lowest weight I’ve been at since I began this weight loss journey back in September 2015: 170.6 lbs. That’s over 142 lbs lost since my highest.
Wow.
This morning, the scale was still very nice to me at 172.2 lbs (my previous lowest weight which I hit before going to Spain in February), which is to be expected. We ate a rather big dinner welcoming my daughter back home on her visit from NYC and some of the weight loss I experienced yesterday was surely water weight I sweated out during the run.
Regardless, hitting a new low in weight is a new high point for me. I’m just 5 lbs away from my FINAL GOAL! It’s also been very educational to me in demonstrating the following:
I can maintain a certain weight with allowances for non-Paleo things every now and then
I can lose weight when I go back to following the rules
I’ve been doing EVERYTHING right this week, and the weight has been coming off me like it did in the beginning. There were things I was doing wrong and some bad habits I allowed to slip in, but since I’ve gotten rid of those, I’m back to losing weight.
Five more pounds. I can see the finish line now. Just a little bit more and I’m there. It feels great.
I’ve done both. I’ve failed many times to successfully lose weight, and in my last great attempt, I’ve been successful. I’ve been keeping off my weight for nearly a year now, and it’s been a lot easier than I ever thought it could have been possible. What is the difference today versus all the other times I tried to lose weight? Diet.
I don’t mean diet in the modern sense: a special course of food to which one restricts oneself, either to lose weight or for medical reasons. I mean diet in the traditional (and proper) sense: the kinds of food that a person, animal, or community habitually eats. So, what is it specifically that allowed me to be successful this time? I no longer eat anything with sugar or added artificial sweeteners, grains, dairy, soy, or legumes.
The Paleo Diet. Whole 30. Those two programs are what got me to where I am today: 140 lbs lighter and fit.
I’ve met lots of people who have all the determination necessary to be successful at losing weight, but they are going about it all wrong. I know a guy who has been walking every day in my neighborhood for over five years. He walks about 8 miles a day. Amount of weight lost in the past five years? About 20 lbs. What does he eat for breakfast? Oatmeal. Lunch? Salad and a whole wheat sandwich. Dinner? Rice and Beans with chicken breast. Can you imagine eating that for five years and getting only 20 lbs worth of weight loss? No wonder he thinks it’s impossible for him to lose weight. I lost 6 times as much weight in 1/5 the time with diet alone.
I alone am the captain of my health.
Sometimes, the difference between success and failure isn’t the amount of effort, but the type of effort. Do the research and eat good food. You can’t out-exercise a bad diet.
It just hit me. I’ve accomplished some amazing things in the past 18 months:
I lost over 140 lbs
I got back into decent shape
I can fit into clothes bought directly off the rack at any store
I can run three miles with a 9 minute/mile pace (or better)
I can do 80+ push ups
I am no longer diabetic
I can use the tray table on an airplane in economy
All of this because of Whole30 and Paleo and a lot of perseverance.
I thought of this because I used to watch other people start diets or exercise plans and invariably, a year or so later, when they posted their accomplishments, I’d look back at that same period of time and think to myself, “I did nothing to make myself better in that time. Here I am, same as before, while this person has improved their health and/or fitness. I wasted all that time and could have done something better!”
Now, I’ve had people tell me that very same thing. “If I’d have started when you did, I’d have lost a lot of weight by now, too!” Yes, probably. So do the next best thing: start today!
I made a short video on my running blog in which I talk about getting started with exercise, and how sometimes, I really am not in to it. I said it was discipline that gets me past not wanting to do it, and keeps me going. That’s completely true. But I think I didn’t go into how I do that, because I think I made it sound like, “All you have to do is just do it and it’ll get done.” That’s kind of silly. Like, “No kidding!”
What I was trying to say and didn’t do as good a job of as I’d have hoped for was that the single-most difficult part of exercise for me is getting started. From the time I just decide to do it and when I get started, it’s pretty easy. But to get to the point where I commit mentally and begin preparations for a run? That’s the difficult part.
Me after running my first 5k distance since starting running in September, 2016.
I run every other day. As an older guy, I need the recovery time. I know there are lots of folks my age out there who run 5-6 times a week. That’s great for them! However, for me, it’s just not feasible. I don’t want to invite the possibility of injury, and so far, this regimen has been doing well for me. My run times are steadily decreasing, my pace increasing, and my resting heart rate decreasing. My cardio health is improving, and I continue to make solid, steady progress. The down side of running every other day is it gives me a lot of time to begin dreading a run.
I don’t dread every run. Not even every other run. But every now and then, the last thing I want to do is go out, run hard, and be out of breath with my heart beating out of my chest. Don’t get me wrong: I actually do enjoy running now, and there are days when I really look forward to my runs. Heck, there are days when I’m obsessed with getting out on the road and running. But for the times when I’m not so motivated, I need to draw on an inner strength and discipline that sometimes is hard to harness.
That’s where perseverance and discipline really comes into play. I talked about perseverance on my PaleoMarine blog, and it’s the single most important factor in my success in losing over 140 lbs. This is another case of the answer being simple but implementation being difficult. It’s easy to say, “Just push past the negativity and start and get it done,” but actually doing it is another thing entirely.
I get it. I’m right there with you.
I don’t know how you motivate yourself, or what drives you to make yourself better, healthier, or more fit. That’s something you need to discover for yourself. I don’t have the answer here for you for that one magical thing that can make getting started easier. Heck, if I knew that, I’d be using it myself! The only things that have helped me and may help you are the following:
Fake it ’til you make it. This has been a big one for me. I used to hate running and all exercise. One day on a run, I realized that I would do better during my runs if I liked them, so I decided on the mantra, “I love running.” I would repeat it to myself often during runs, and lo and behold, it worked! I actually enjoy running now!
Setting a goal for running pace and distances. I’m not overly competitive, but I do like to take on challenges. I set goals for myself for running pace and distance based on the Marine Corps PFT standards. Now as a National Guard Soldier, I make sure I can exceed those standards to the best of my ability. This drives me to keep going and to get better.
Technology. I love tech, and having a Garmin Fenix 3 HR has made collecting data during my runs not just neat, but downright amazing. The data collected during my runs really allows me to analyze my runs from many different angles to compare my efforts and results with previous runs.
When all else fails, discipline. I have decided that I will run a minimum of three times a week, with no more than two days off in a row. When I get to that third day, I leave myself no option to consider not running. Perhaps that’s the trick: I don’t allow myself to even consider not running on those days. I can’t put it off if I don’t allow myself the opportunity to call it off. The exception to this rule is bad weather. I won’t run in the rain. Sorry. It’s not happening.
While those work for me, you may have to find what works for you is different. Heck, it may be the same (yay!) and if so, get out there and do it! My life has been improved dramatically not only through my weight loss, but through my fitness. Being more fit has enabled me to experience things I would otherwise not be able to do, and opportunities that would not have been possible for me. It honestly has been a life changer. Getting started can be tough, but once you get going, the momentum will carry you. Just give yourself that nudge to get rolling.
As I was losing the bulk of my weight, I was always curious about where the physical fat went. Did my body eat it up? Did fat cells die and get flushed? Were they burned up in some process? This article helps explain it all. The tl:dr version is this: “When fat is lost, it is mostly exhaled as carbon dioxide (84%), with the remainder (16%) being excreted as water.” Wow. The processes within our bodies are extraordinary and complex.
I’m asked every now and then if I think weight loss surgery (gastric bypass, gastric bands, etc) is a good option for people who just can’t seem to lose weight every other way. My answer here is the same answer I give to everyone who asks: It’s risky and just not worth it if you’re not going to make the effort to change your diet for the rest of your life. And, if you’re going to do that, then you won’t need the surgery anyway because you will lose the weight safely and naturally.
I know two people who died from gastric bypass. That’s two too many. I also know at least half a dozen people who had the surgery and had great results for a year or so but then slowly gained the weight back and became obese once again because they didn’t change the types of food they ate. Sure, when you have a gastric bypass, your stomach size is greatly reduced, so it becomes impossible to eat a lot of food, but if the food you continue to eat is rich in carbs and sugar, you’re still taking in a lot of calories. Also, these people have failed because eating the foods high in carbs and sugar kept them hungry, forcing them to eat more often due to cravings, which in turn stretched out their little stomach pouch back to original size.
Forget surgeries. Do a Whole30, commit to doing it right, and then transition into something. I transitioned into Paleo and I’m now 140 less than I was a few years ago. I am often asked if I had surgery and people are always surprised when I tell them that not only have I not, but that I lost over 110 lbs in 12 months through diet alone. They assume I suffered; they couldn’t be more wrong!
I remember walking about a mile to a convenience store with my uncle who was visiting from Hungary when I was 9 years old and I asked him, “How soon will we get there?” He replied simply, “With each step, we are one step closer to getting there. Keep making those steps, and before you know it, we’ll be there.” I thought about this a lot through the years, and it’s one of those little things that motivated me while I was waiting to see results throughout my weight loss journey. I wasn’t going to lose the weight quickly, but with each day, I was one day closer to my goal.
Now, as I am transitioning from having a focus on weight loss to fitness, the saying still applies. I won’t get fast overnight, nor will I be able to run longer distances overnight. I need to do the work, one step at a time. Sometimes, it’s hard to do, but it won’t get done any other way. There are no shortcuts. There is only good, honest, solid work. Anything less is letting myself down.
No. Not even close. The only person I’m trying to be better than is the person I was yesterday. Plain and simple.
Someone said to me that they believe that I think I’m better than everyone else. This is patently untrue. So crazy untrue, it’s laughable. Yet it gave me pause. Why would anyone think this?
I talk about my success with weight loss. This is true. I do talk about it. A lot. But that’s why I have this blog. I am hoping to motivate others. I hope to give inspiration to those who may think that losing weight is impossible.
I talk about my success in fitness. Also true. Same as my talking about weight loss, this is something I’ve tackled in my life that I want to inspire and motivate others with.
I discuss the positive changes in my life. These positive changes are the result of a lot of hard work, dedication, perseverance, and discipline. Losing weight and getting fit is based on a simple formula, but it’s not easy. The rewards, however, are definitely worth it, and again, I hope to inspire others to attain good health and better fitness by showing my example.
I post lots of selfies. I sure do. I aim to inspire and motivate. The best way to do that is to show before and after pictures of myself. They are my resume. I could have a page dedicated to my qualifications, what I’ve read, the sites I use as my source of information, etc. None of it matters. What matters is that I was fat and I’m not anymore. I used a healthy diet to lose weight and exercise to get fit. The pictures speak a thousand words.
I don’t, however, talk about my success with weight loss, fitness, the positive changes in my life, or post selfies to condescend or to make anyone feel inadequate. If someone infers it that way, they need to look inward and discover why they feel that way. If I remind you of someone you don’t like, that’s your problem and not mine. I can only be who I am, and as I strive to be better, there is only one person I can ever hope to be better than: the person I was yesterday.
In the photo above on the left, I was a Marine Staff Sergeant in March, 1997. I was pretty heavy, at my max weight of 175 lbs. I worked hard to maintain even that weight as I had no idea that my diet was so horrible, and that I was fighting a losing battle. I ended up leaving the Marines six months later to pursue civilian job prospects and to move my kids closer to their extended family.
On the right, that is the photo taken for my Army National Guard ID card this past Friday. I weigh 173 lbs in the photo on the right, but I’m in much better shape. I’m far more fit today than I was when I was a SSgt in the Marines. I run more often and exercise regularly without being told to do so. The difference is amazing. Considering both pictures are within 2 lbs of each other, the appearance of my face is very different. I used Photoshop to create the image above, and I matched my eyes and mouth perfectly; those two photos are exactly the same size. Yes, I’m 20 years older (of course), but I am visibly thinner today than I was 20 years ago.
If weight were the only measure I cared about, I’d probably look more like I did on the left than I do on the right. Although I weigh nearly the same, I wear pants 4″ smaller than I did on the left, and I wear smaller shirts as well (M instead of L). My legs are very muscular as are my arms. My abs are trying to pop out from the excess skin I still carry from when I weighed over 300 lbs.
The point I’m trying to make is that there are two Staff Sergeants above. They weigh about the same. Only one of them is really fit, though. Don’t put all your eggs in the scale basket. There’s far more to your health and fitness than what the number on the scale is.
There are days when I really don’t feel like running. And by not feel like running, I mean really, really, really, I would prefer to just sit on the couch or in my chair and just sit and relax. You know what that’s like. We all do. But when you’re trying to stay fit, that’s not acceptable. There has to be some way to motivate yourself to get up, get out, and get that run done. I found a way that has been working for me better than anything else.
I remember all the times I sat in my chair at my desk in my home office watching the hours tick by, the entire time thinking to myself, “If I’d have just gone out for thirty minutes, I’d have been done long ago.” That stuck with me, and yesterday, when I really, REALLY didn’t feel like running for no other reason than because I was just not in the mood, it struck me: it’s just thirty minutes. There’s not much I can get done in thirty minutes anyway, so I may as well get this run accomplished.
I’m glad I did. I felt so much better when I was done, and yes, I accomplished something important. My runs are very important to me, and while I am always happy to be done with a run, I’m not always happy to start one. The difference between enthusiasm and discipline is that when we are enthusiastic about something, we are happy to do it. Discipline is what we use when we aren’t happy about doing something but we need to get it done anyway. Yesterday’s run was all about discipline, but even then, it sometimes takes a mind hack to get past the obstacle of “I don’t feel it.”
After a run. I’m always smiling, because I accomplished something good for me.
It’s just thirty minutes. There’s not much you can accomplish in that time that is as good for you or can have such a long-lasting effect on your quality of life. Get out there and get it done. It’s just thirty minutes.
No. Not even close. The only person I’m trying to be better than is the person I was yesterday. Plain and simple.
Paleo Marine 