Struggling

     I've made a few changes recently and one or a combination of them is wreaking havoc.  I have been eating lots of things I probably shouldn't.  (Including sugar and salt).  I haven't been drinking enough water or taking my fish oil pills.  I stopped taking my allergy meds, my diabetic meds and halved the dosage of my bp meds (at doc's direction).  My legs and feet have felt like lead lately.  I have had a hard time making it through workouts I have already done with ease and my joints are stiff.  I need to get this figured out.
     I have also had pain in the arch and top of my foot.  Waiting on custom inserts to arrive at the podiatrist office.  I keep pushing through.  Weight has yo-yo effect lately, but I am down more this week.  Down to 207.6 at home.  That is my lowest to date.

Personal Win

Yesterday the doctor took me off the blood sugar medication I was taking! I am so happy.  I still have weight to lose and fitness to gain, but things are falling into place.

Celebration

     Not only did I have a birthday a few days ago, but as of this morning, I have officially lost 25.5 pounds since the beginning of my weight loss/ health journey.  I skipped a weigh-in at work last week because we were out of town on vacation.  I thought for sure since we ate out almost every day that things were going to be questionable.  I managed to get in enough activity, watch my portion sizes and make decent choices.
When I got on the scale at work today, I was down 4 pounds from 2 weeks ago! 
     This morning I got back into the gym.  It was rough, but I got back into the swing of my weight lifting routine.  One of my legs was protesting having to do lunges, but I pushed through.

Catching up and taking Vacation

     If anyone is still following my blog, I thought I'd let you know how things were going.  I am sorry I fell off the grid.  During the finale event, the UNC Wellness Center offered us another 6 months of free membership in return for participating in a study.  The study's requirements were to work out 8 times a month minimum at the Wellness Center, weigh in once a week, continue to take advantage of coaching and fill out any surveys they sent out.  After much thought, my wife and I decided to pass on the offer.  It really is a great opportunity and some might think we were crazy for passing it up.  For us though, there were lots of factors involved.  We were spending 50+ dollars a week in gas driving to the Wellness Center, it took 40-60 minutes round trip in travel time plus the hour workout was a serious time commitment (especially when you factor in that we were already paying for memberships at a gym 5 minutes from the house).
     So I had Paula introduce me to a co-worker who also does training at my gym.  I met with her and she did her own assessment and set up a program for me to following as well as some goals.  I have continued going to the gym every day except for last Thursday and Friday when I was getting ready for vacation.  My wife and I drove down to Hilton Head Island with our travel trailer and we are staying in one of the most posh RV parks we have ever seen.  It has a gym, 2 pools, 2 tennis courts, a kids park, a little store, fishing pier,  laundry facilities and all the standard hookups.
     The kids have gotten to go to the beach yesterday and the pool today.  I realized as I climbed the ladder to get out of the deep end of the pool, that I had tried to do that very thing when we had gone to a pool at a resort near Myrtle Beach and couldn't make it up the last few rungs of the ladder.  The workouts are definitely making me stronger.  I also tell when I hefted the pack-n-play around and it didn't make my arms tired.  Still losing weight, but I'm much more excited now about the health and fitness benefits.
     My wife and I have both been training for a 5K as well.  I'm in week 3 of a couch -to-5K training program.  I wouldn't recommend that someone literally go from the couch and try one of those programs, but it is very much the way to go if you aren't a runner and you want to get into (or back into)  shape for a race.

I Have Been Weighed, I Have Been Measured.

     So, as expected, I was a little heavier late in the day when I went in to get the final measurements taken.  Here are the results:

• Weight - 213.3
• BP - 138/82
• Chest 41.5 inches
• Waist 41 inches
• Abs 43 inches
• Hips 43 inches
• Right Bicep 13.25 inches
• Right Thigh 22 inches
• Percentage Body Fat 28.4
• BMI 32.4

     They will give us printouts tonight that explain what the measurements were to start with and how we've improved. 
     I started working out at the gym by the house this morning.   I've been doing a lot of walking on the treadmill lately for that extra boost of cardio in the last few days before the final weigh in.  Both trainers said that walking without holding on (even just a little for balance) is a much better workout.  They said that I should concentrate on trying to walk at a 3.0 with no incline and strive for comfort walking with swinging arms.  That speed is uncomfortable for me, and it is starting to cause pain on the top of my right ankle which causes me to walk funny and lose balance.  This morning I had to drop the speed to 2.5 because of it, but I did the whole time without holding on.  I am going to ask someone about stretches or therapy to push through this.  The top of my ankle was pretty inflamed yesterday and hurt all afternoon.

Last workout before final weigh-in

     I went to the gym this morning (Sunday) for a last minute push.  Afterwards I weighed on the scale that I've been using every Monday morning.  I wanted to have a way to compare what they told me tonight so that I knew what my actual numbers were.  I know that tonight it will be slightly more than what it was this morning because as I drink water throughout the day, my body retains fluids and I am always heavier at night.  Since I have been regularly weighing in the morning, I wanted to have a good baseline.  I weighed in at 211.5!  That's down 3 pounds from last week.  According to my calculations, I've lost 17.7 pounds which is 7.72%.  I know it is silly, but my favorite thing about this whole thing is that I'm under the red line.  I exceeded my goal of 2 pounds a week!

     This past week I have done a lot of extra cardio to get this result.  We had a boot camp on Thursday morning.  We had a few guests join us from another team.  It was nice to see them and find out that one of them reads this blog!  I followed the Boot Camp up with a visit to Massage Envy on Friday night to help recover enough so that I could continue my cardio workouts over the weekend.
     This week I did a few things to keep myself going after the finale on Monday.  I joined the Biggest Loser Competition at work.  (I'll keep you posted on that.)  And then, Thursday at lunch, I went to a local gym near the house and met with a trainer I will work with going forward.  I will miss Paula, but I think this will work out better because it is much closer to the house.  Paula suggested that I begin training for a 5k race in the fall.  Paula, my new trainer, Kari as well as a few runners at work have said that it is definitely possible to be ready in time.  My wife is going to try to train for the race along with me.  There are a few runners on my team.  Maybe I can get them to run with us as well.  Paula doesn't want us to lose touch with the team members and said she had some ideas that might allow us to get back together periodically to work out together.  I'm looking forward to that and to seeing how everyone is doing on Monday night.

Week 7 weigh-in

     Down a half a pound.  Not stellar by any means, but still down.  I think this may have to do with the fact that we ate out on Friday night.  We had taco salad which isn't horrible, but it is higher in sodium, has beef which sits pretty heavy on my stomach and I ate the fried shell.  I think I have one more weigh-in, so this week, I plan to do extra cardio to really make the last one count!

Tennis

     My wife and I started playing tennis some time ago as an activity we could both share that would give us some exercise and allow us to spend time together.   Since our children came along, we haven't played much.  My wife has played on a few teams, but I have been busy with other things. 
     We got a sitter this weekend and Saturday went to some local courts and hit around.  I was still stiff from my boot camp workout, but after a while my muscles warmed up and I could move better.  Up until that point, I was frustrated that I couldn't move very well and said as much to my wife.  As an encouragement to all the effort I've been putting in and also kidding with me, she said, "Well, honestly you are moving as much as you ever were."  And she was right, I have been dealing with muscle/ankle issues for quite some time and I would become very tired and winded after a very short tennis session because of the amount of effort I needed to put forth to get to the ball (or keep my opponent from running me around).
     I am pleased to say that after the hour session we had, I wasn't tired at all.  I felt that my muscles had warmed up and I had loosened up a bit, but I didn't get much of a cardio workout.  (Which is good because I really didn't move that much).  I am looking forward to continuing this journey and getting to the point where I can play at the level I think I am capable of because I am not hindered by my lack of fitness.

The Benefits of Massage

     I never realized just how much a massage could help.  By Friday night, my muscles were really protesting from the boot camp the day before.  I had signed up for regular sessions with John to help loosen up the muscles in my lower body.  Boy am I glad I did.  Usually the 2nd day after a workout is worse than the day after as far as soreness goes.  I wasn't looking forward to it at all. 
     Saturday, I was still stiff, but the massage had gotten most of the soreness out.  I still had a small area of my hamstring where I could feel pain, but it was so much better than the day before.  Thank you John for becoming an integral part of my road to wellness!  I don't think I could have walked let alone gone out and played an hour of tennis with my wife if I hadn't had that massage.

Radio Interview

Well I got my 30 seconds of fame on Friday morning when teammate, Stephanie and I showed up early for a radio interview on WCHL 1360 AM .  We had a total of 2 minutes for our segment and the time flew by.  If you want to download the broadcast, you can find it here: (we were on about 8:30 - 8:40am) Radio Interview

Our interview starts at time stamp 36:35 of the mp3 file.

Visit to the Doctor

Friday Morning I visited the doctor for my 6 week check-up.  She was very pleased with the weight loss and also that my numbers were coming down.  She said that in 6 weeks if everything kept progressing, she'd start to ween me off the medications at that time.  Yay!

Boot Camp

     Had another boot camp last Thursday.  I was already starting to feel my muscles start to tighten up that afternoon and sent an email to Paula and my teammates to tell them how I was feeling that night.  I was so sore in my hamstrings the next day that I could barely walk.




     Here's Paula demonstrating proper gut wrenching technique, while Stephanie and I do it and Diane takes pictures! I really hate those core exercises and threw the little ball that was supporting our lower backs as soon as it was over.










     Ah, my favorite part of the boot camp workout!  The stretching!  As you can see, all of us need work stretching those hamstrings and our hip flexors.

Benefits keep rolling in

     I took my blood pressure at home during lunch yesterday and was pleasantly surprised. The machine said 125/70 with a resting heart rate of 75 bpm. The last one I took was before the challenge and it said 134/90 with a resting heart rate of 93 bpm (and that was after doing some breathing exercises).

Week 6 weigh-in

     Yesterday I weighed in and was happily back to where I was the previous week.  I say happily, because everyone knows that it is difficult to maintain, much less lose weight during a holiday weekend.  I was back down 1.5 pounds and hit the workout equipment with renewed vigor.

     Also as an added bonus, my wife dug some old t-shirts out of the closet and had me try them on.  Before the competition, I was routinely wearing XXL t-shirts and they were a bit snug.  The t-shirt I am wearing at the moment is an XL and it has some room in it (it fits correctly without being snug).  

     On the fitness side, when I started the competition, I got on the bike and could handle a resistance level of 4 and pedal 70-80 rpms for 15 minutes and my heart rate was in the 150s after just a few minutes.  This morning I did 30 minutes at a resistance level of a 9, 70-80 rpms and my heart rate was staying steady in the mid 140s.  When I finished the bike, I got on the treadmill for 30 more minutes at a 3.0 with 4.0 incline.  

     Another thing I notice is that my heart rate is coming down much faster now when I end my workout.

Visit to a sponsor 5.0 - Core Pilates

     In a remote office above all the hustle and bustle that is Carrboro on a Saturday morning, I got a very unexpected great workout.  I thought Pilates was all about mats and exercise balls.  Boy was I wrong!  This may be insulting to anyone who has done Pilates, but it is not meant that way at all.  The best way I could describe it to someone who has never seen it before is this:  A full body workout on an apparatus that uses spring resistance and your own body weight that is highly adjustable for various exercises and positions.  (Sort of like the total gym - endorsed by Chuck Norris - but much more sturdy, solid and versatile).  See picture below.
     Once I found the place... Carolina Core Pilates ....up above Panzanella on the far end of the Harris Teeter parking lot - I was late, I found a teammate already in her workout.  They have 4 machines available for group sessions if you want to work out with friends, but you need to schedule your sessions.  Our instructor, Rebecca, was very knowledgeable and friendly and gave us a great workout.
     I thought it was going to be an instructional session where I was introduced to the various Pilates equipment.  This was much more hands on so to speak.  We got a full body workout, but it wasn't very stressful on the body.  Very low impact (virtually none) and easy on the joints.  If you like a more intimate setting than a big gym, lots of personal attention, and a workout you can do no matter what your skill or fitness level, this is the place for you.  The machines can be adjusted to make the exercise more or less difficult.

Visit to a sponsor 4.0 - Yoga

     Last Tuesday night I went with a few of my teammates (Thanks for showing up!) to Franklin Street Yoga.  As you can imagine, to say that I was out of my element would be an understatement.  Thankfully, one of our teammates sent us a "what to expect" document from their website.  First of all, it was hot.  If all I had done was sat in the room for an hour, I would have sweat.  That is not even close to all we did.

     The studio is located on the back side of the University Square complex.  Thankfully I had been to the complex before and I knew that there were more shops around back.  I arrived as a prior class was leaving, so there wasn't any spots available in front of the studio.  The reception area was very small compared to the studio.  There was a small area of cubby holes to leave your personal belongings (and shoes as I found out when I tried to enter the studio wearing my tennis shoes).   The instructor stopped me and asked me to take off my shoes and directed me to the mats, blocks and straps that were available to people who didn't bring their own.  I had brought water and a towel (thanks to Joyce's email).

     After a few minutes, the instructor came in and turned on some music while people were filtering in.  Everyone who came in began by lining up their mats with the taped spots on the floor, sitting down and stretching or meditating.  Not knowing exactly what I should be doing, I just sat on my mat.  My teammates showed up after class started, so I didn't even see them until at one point the instructor told us to turn to one side and I noticed that one of them had placed a mat beside mine and another person was toward the back of the room.  It really helps to have a familiar presence when you are in uncomfortable surroundings.  Not to say that the studio was threatening in any way, but it was not the sort of place you'd usually find me.

     This class was a Vinyasa Foundation class - if you are familiar with yoga.  Here is the description from the website: 

     "These classes are taught at slower pace and focus on building awareness. A steady and informative class that combines movement, breath, and meditation to foster flexibility, relaxation, and self-awareness. Special attention and modifications are offered to each student while emphasizing alignment and attention to breath."

    The instructor told us if we couldn't do something or felt pain then we should go back to "child's pose".  I did that a lot since many of the poses were either difficult, extremely tiring or actually caused me a bit of pain.  At one point, the instructor came over and put some blocks under my hip to support me while I did one particular pose.  I had no idea that yoga would be so hard.  Some of the transitions (for example from "Downward Dog" to "Warrior") and back multiple times were very tiring because you go from laying to standing and back very slowly and controlled.

   The next day I was very sore.  I think I had overstretched some muscles.  This didn't feel like a workout sore, this felt more serious.  It was a few days before I was back to normal.  I noticed this was a level 1 class and that there was a beginner class that actually teaches you the poses.  I think this is where I should have started.

   One of the things about the studio I didn't mention was that there is a lotus flower painted on one wall and frosted glass windows on the opposite wall.  There is a column in the middle of the room with various quotations written on it.  Most of them are of a spiritual nature.  The talk about things regarding peace and "the now".  One in particular caught my attention and forgive me if I don't get it perfectly right.  "Yoga teaches us to cure what need not be endured and endure what cannot be cured." ~B.K.S. Iyengar.  I don't know if I agree, but it was a good parting sentiment.

Weigh-in week 5

     No fanfare this week.  I was amazed at the effect that this week's weigh in had on me psychologically.  I was struggling all week with water weight.  I had huge swings in weight all week.  One day up 3 pounds, the next day down 1.  When I weighed in, I was on the up swing.  I was up 1.5 pounds.   It made me question why I was dragging myself out of bed at 4:30am every morning.  My team encouraged me to not let it get me down and my wife encouraged me by pointing out all the benefits I've gained thus far.
     Last week someone at work asked me if I had been losing weight!  I had the biggest grin on my face when I answered.  Yesterday I was spending time with my daughter.  She was in a jump toy that suspends from a door frame.  She grabbed a laundry basket that was propped up on its side tall wise and dumped it over.   I shifted my weight to one leg and picked my opposite foot up to "catch" it.  (Think soccer drills).  I did this to keep the laundry basket from slamming loudly onto the wooden floor.  Well my daughter thought that me slowly lowering it to the floor was hilarious.  She giggled, so I lifted it back up.  We did this a few more times and then I switched legs.  I used to play soccer, so this was a common ball trapping drill.  I HAVEN'T BEEN ABLE TO DO IT FOR YEARS!  My balance is improving - though last night when I went to yoga, that was seriously in doubt (but that is a story for another post).
     The point is that I'm seeing benefits in a lot of other areas besides just weight loss.  So my plan is to watch the sodium, increase the water intake and make sure I'm eating the right number of calories.  I know from weight watchers that too many or too few calories will cause weight gain.  Obviously we all know that too many will cause gains, but the crazy thing about too few - and this is the same with water - if your body thinks you are depriving it, it will go into starvation mode and store water/fat.