Good Morning All:
As I appreciate everyone reading (those of you who do) these installments every week, I believe that some testimonials will help hit home just as much as (if not more so) to show you that your goals can be reached no matter your circumstances. It takes patience, persistence and implementation of some, not all, of what I spew out every week.
So for this week, and for next, I will highlight two of those “success” stories.
Right before Christmas of 2010, I challenged a client of mine to get his weight down to 200 by his 60th birthday (July 4, 2010). He had six months to lose just 25 pounds. Not really a small feat, but doable. We worked out religiously for those 24 or so weeks and guess what happened…his weight shot up to 240 and his BMI increase from 32.3 to 34.4!
Needless to say, he lost the challenge. But in reality, I felt as though I failed him! So together we didn’t do very well. He is a great guy who has a great hunger for working out, but also for food.
It was at that moment that things began to change in his life. First for the worse and then for the better. His lung capacity began to diminish (not due to his weight, but it wasn’t helping the situation or his workouts). He had trouble just breathing while walking on the treadmill or even around the neighborhood with his dog. He began to take medication that also inhibited any potential progress as well as provided further setbacks; as one of the side effects was, of course, weight gain.
He finally decided to change his lifestyle.
Doctors finally discovered what was causing his breathlessness. So as he began to get weened off his meds, he decided to make the most of his opportunity. He stopped joining his colleagues for lunch. He eliminated all refined carbohydrates. He stopped snacking after dinner. And he began to eat slower…as it takes the mind 20 minutes to register that the body is being fed. Therefore, the slower you eat, the less emotional eating occurs.
His breakfast is now three egg whites and one whole egg. Lunch which was originally sashimi or a spicy tuna bowl (not bad) is now two Gelson’s turkey meatballs and a small portion of salad. His afternoon snack is usually six ounces of Greek Yogurt with Truvia and strawberries or some pineapple. Dinner, still without carbs, is either chicken or fish and veggies. His drink of choice is Pellegrino.
Also, his daughter bought him a Fitbit (a tiny pedometer) and, along with his continued three-day-a-week training regimen, swimming laps in the pool, he began to walk 10,000 steps (5 miles) a day.
After the first 12 weeks, he lost 38 pounds. Now, at 184 and a BMI of 26.4, he is now down a total of 56 pounds – just 10 shy from his latest goal of having a Body Mass Index of 25.
So my good clients, the next time you/we fail in achieving a short-term goal, remember the long-term goal is just a decision away.
