Posts tagged weight loss
Diet Results and Fat Loss Update
Aug 6th
“Life is always walking up to us and saying, “Come on in, the living’s fine,” and what do we do? Back off and take its picture.” ~Russell Baker
I have had a problem with my weight since I became a non-smoker in May of 1999. Before that, my weight would fluctuate up and down and was relatively easy to control. I’d get heavier slowly if I stopped exercising and I would lose weight quickly by adding exercise back into my life. I really didn’t need to pay much attention to what I ate or how much of it. Once I became a non-smoker, everything changed!
I began to rapidly gain weight and nothing that I did seemed to make a difference. I exercised, I dieted, I fasted – nothing stopped the weight gain. Within 12 months, I had gained 95 pounds. My waist went from a relatively trim 36 inches to a whopping 46 inches. I competely lost my ability to run or jog; I was just too heavy and it hurt my knees. It was fairly common for me, when I was a smoker, to go out and run 4 miles in 35 minutes or so, and then light up a cigarette as soon as I finished running. I played tennis at a good competitive level in the smoking days and I was proud of the fact that I could beat almost everyone that I played while smoking – literally holding a cigarette in my off hand while I was returning serve.
I became desperate to make a change. I thought many times of becoming a smoker again even though I was committed to being a non-smoker. Smoking violated almost everything that I believed was true about health and it particularly violated what I was speaking about – success and the ability to change. In those smoking days, I had to carefully plan all of my seminars so that I had time, every hour, to smoke a cigarette, brush my teeth and get back on stage -all without the audience noticing. I felt like a liar. This wasn’t what really kept me from going back to smoking though. What kept me from going back was a promise that I had made.
A Promise That I Wouldn’t Break
In the last months of my smoking addiction, I was splitting my tiime between San Francisco and Vancouver, British Columbia. I was dating a great gal that lived in the Bay Area and we were talking about getting engaged to be married. She had a cold that wouldn’t go away and after numerous visits with doctors, we got the horrible news that she had advanced agressive breast cancer. Talk about life changing news, everything changed as we tried to overcome this disease. I am still humbled and inspired by the courage and efforts of my friend Becki as she lived with this and did her best to recover.
Next Time
Sorry to leave on such a note, but my time is gone for today. I have coaching and consulting starting in just a few minutes. Next time I’ll finish the story, talk about what wonders NLP did for my cancer riddled friend, and talk about what is finally working for me in regaining my health and optimal bodyweight.
Till next time faithful reader…Jack
“I still find each day too short for all the thoughts I want to think, all the walks I want to take, all the books I want to read and all the friends I want to see.” ~John Burroughs
Protein Fasting Results
Jun 23rd
“Commit to be fit”. ~Author Unknown
So I did complete my 3 day protein only fast. I ended up losing 7 pounds of bodyweight in those 3 days. My energy was pretty good during those days – I was able to walk and workout and function at a fairly high level. Today was my first heavy workout since I returned to more normal eating. I will be curious to see how sore I am tomorrow. In the past, when I would water fast, I would be quite sore after my initial workouts. I expect to see some different results with this protein fast. The really intriguing question will be anwered over the next week: What did protein fasting do to my set-point? Or to say it another way: how much of that 7 pounds do I keep off in the next week?
Stay tuned for more adventures in returning to optimal bodyweight!
Bye for now…Jack
“A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise”. ~A.A. Milne
Fasting and the Next Step
Jun 17th
“The best of all medicines is resting and fasting” ~ Benjamin Franklin
I am going to fast for the next 3 days. This will be a little different than the fasts that I have done before – my longest water only fast was 24 days – for this fast I will be exercising and taking vitamins and consuming protein – only protein. I am not going to be eating any carbohydrates. I am not going to be eating any fats – with the exception of the fats that I am going to supplement thru flax seed oil and fish oil. I am only going to be consuming protein. How much protein? Well, for this short experiment, I am going to consume approximately 180 grams of protein per day. This works out to about 1 gram of protein for each pound of what I would like my lean body mass to be.
So, why am I doing this? I am doing this because I am ready for the next step in returning to my ideal weight. I’ve made great progress this year. I am wearing clothes smaller in size than I have been able to wear in nearly 7 years. Still, I have a long way to go and I am anxious to get there.
So, why a protein fast? I want to see how well I feel while protein fasting and I also want to see how it affects my set-point. I think that water fasting has a natural tendency to raise my set-point…the natural weight that my body tries to maintain. I want to see if exercise and protein fasting will achieve a similar result in quick weight loss without raising my set-point.
I have water fasted before and experienced great results. Water fasting is a wonderful way to heal yourself from serious injury. Water fasting is however very challenging mentally and ultimately, the weight that you lose comes back. I’m going to see how protein fasting works instead…just for three days! Stay tuned and see what happens. I will be blogging and tweeting about this daily.
Till next time…Jack
“Life expectancy would grow by leaps and bounds if green vegetables smelled as good as bacon”. ~Doug Larson
And the Winner is…
Feb 9th
“You can be anything you want to be, if only you believe with sufficient conviction and act in accordance with your faith; for whatever the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.” ~Napoleon Hill
Atkins. I have decided that I am going to use the Atkins Low-Carbohydrate diet as my mine dietary tool for getting back in shape. I used this diet successfully the last time that I got into decent shape and it worked well for me – with one glaring exception – previously I had a strong tendency for gout attacks while using this diet. I think I have this worked out now with the addition of some different supplementation.
For those of you familiar with Atkins, I will stay at the induction level of carbohydrate consumption until I am nearly at my ideal bodyweight of 195 pounds. Should this occasionally become too challenging, for example when I am on vacation with my family, then I will follow the Carbohydrate Addicts Diet. This is the diet from the Heller’s and is one of the few other diets that Dr, Atkins also felt had validity. I have also used the diet in the past. For me, I did not lose weight at any significant rate while following this diet, but I also never gained any weight – for me this is a good thing.
I am not choosing Atkins at random. I have tried many diets in the past. I have tried being a vegetarian. I managed this for 3 months and was enjoying it in some ways – until I developed an allergic reaction to soy and soy-containing products. I was using soy as my main source of protein and my body had eventually had enough and told me this in spectacular and unforgettable ways. No more vegetarianism for this boy.
I have tried the South Beach Diet. This is another one that allowed me to comfortably maintain my weight but did very little for helping me to lose weight. It is something that I can use once I get back in shape to stay that way.
I have tried calorie counting and all of it’s variations. I am not a good calorie counter – in fact it drives me crazy. When I can afford a professional chef that works for me and my family, then I will consider this one again and the chef can count the calories!
I will talk more about Atkins and low-carbohydrate dieting in future entries, probably once per week or so. I expect it to work very well indeed – as long as I do my part and keep my carb consumption under 20 grams.
Till next time…Jack
I book-ended this entry with quotes from Hill and Carnegie. Can any of you tell me the connection – there is more than one!
“Here is the prime condition of success: Concentrate your energy, thought and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged. Having begun on one line, resolve to fight it out on that line, to lead in it, adopt every improvement, have the best machinery, and know the most about it.” ~Andrew Carnegie
Planning for Success Part One
Feb 3rd
“Come to the edge, He said.
They said: We are afraid.
Come to the edge, He said.
They came. He pushed them,
And they flew . . .”
~Guillaume Apollinaire – French poet
This is going to be a multi-post series of articles about planning. I am going to show the exact techniques that I teach to my clients and I am going to illustrate these techniques by creating my own plan for getting back in shape.
In the last entry I shared and clarified the goal: “I will return to my optimal bodyweight before the end of 2009.” became “I will return to 195 pounds of bodyweight by the morning of December 31st, 2009.”
So the first step was to clarify the goal – to make sure that it was easy to understand and told my brain exactly what I wanted to achieve by what date. (By the way, if there is some big goal that you really want to accomplish, you might consider taking it through this process with me. I know that you will find it useful.) So, now I have my goal and my deadline. The next question that I am going to ask is: Is it possible to achieve this, is it reasonable to achieve this, in the time that I have allowed? I believe yes, just!
Let me explain. I have 11 months to achieve this weight loss and I currently weigh around 330 pounds. I intend to return to my ideal weight of 195 pounds which means that I must lose 135 pounds in 11 months. Simple math tells me that equals 12.28 pounds per month or approximately 3.07 pounds per week. Is this possible? Yes it is. From my past efforts at losing weight and my research, this is indeed possible. Is it reasonable – probably not completely. It is however exciting, and I will take the excitement over a more reasonable goal.
How about you? Does your goal excite you? Is it possible? If it seems impossible to you, then move out the date or reduce the goal until you get a signal from your brain that you believe it can be done. It is okay to be afraid, we will talk about what that means in this series, but you must at least believe that the goal is possible in the time that you have allowed. If not, make a change in the quantity of the goal and the time allotted until you believe that it can be done. It is okay if it is a stretch. It is okay if it feels a little scary to write it down. It is okay if you don’t know how you will achieve it yet. It is okay if you have failed to achieve this same goal in the past. We will deal with each of these things.
How about excitement? Is this an exciting goal? Make sure that it is very exciting to you and that it is your goal – not a goal that someone else has given you. If you have been given a goal by someone else, then rewrite the goal until it deals with rewards directly related to you and it excites you!
For example, your boss might tell you: “You need to open 50 new accounts this year and they need to each buy an average of $4,000 dollars.” This is actually a more clear goal than most bosses will actually give. Still, it has nothing directly related to you in this goal. There may be an implicit “or else”. This might be: or else we will demote you. It might be: or else we will fire you. There will certainly be some negative consequences associated with a goal that you are given – an “or else”. Rarely, there will be some positive consequences discussed. For example: Do this and we will promote you or do this and we will give you a $10,000 bonus. This may or may not be enough to excite you.
For me, I am not directly excited by money. I am much more excited by thinking about the freedom and the experiences that the money will buy. I don’t know what motives you most – what turns you on – but you do! So rewrite any goal that you have, self created or given to you by another, until in positive terms, it talks about benefits that excite you.
What about my goal? Does “I will return to 195 pounds of bodyweight by the morning of December 31st, 2009.” excite me? Yes it does. Does it clearly state why I am excited about this? No. It doesn’t. Next time, I will show you how to create a vision to go along with the goal that will do this very thing.
To recap:
- Write down your goal
- Make sure your goal has a clear and easy to measure “What by When”
- Check for reasonableness or possibility – can this be done?
- If it can’t or feels impossible, the rewrite the goal, changing the amount or the time frame until you can believe it.
- Check for excitement. Make sure that you are excited about this goal.
- If this a goal that was given to you by another – check for all of these same things.
Till next time… Jack
“Courage is being scared to death—but saddling up anyway.” ~John Wayne
Your Plan for Success
Feb 2nd
“The first wealth is health”. ~Emerson
This is the year! After so many years of being out of shape, this is the year that I return to fitness. This is a big statement – a big goal. I have been out of shape, in varying degrees of terrible, ever since I quite smoking more than ten years ago. So how am I going to do this? What am I going to do to give myself the best possible chance of success with this goal? Excellent questions.
In fact, these questions are so excellent, that I am going to devote the next few blog entries to developing my plan for success right in front of your eyes. This will allow you to see all of the elements that I use to create a nearly unstoppable plan for succeeding at any goal – not just weight loss. You will get all of the steps that I use with my clients – without spending any money.
Let me start by restating my goal for health in 2009: I will return to my optimal bodyweight before the end of 2009. So, that is a fairly clear goal, but not quite explicit enough. Whenever possible, you should put a very measurable number on your goals. When I say very measurable, I mean a goal that clearly states ‘what by when”. So, let me restate my goal: I will return to 195 pounds of bodyweight by the morning of December 31st, 2009. Now that is a clear goal and gives my brain really simple things to remember.
Is this a reasonable goal? What will I do to achieve this? Why have I failed in the past? What exactly will I do differently this time? Wow! More great questions. Come back next time and we will continue the process of building a virtually unstoppable “Plan For Success”.
Till next time…Jack
“They claim red meat is bad for you. But I never saw a sick-looking tiger”. ~Chi Chi Rodriguez
Jogging Dreams
Jan 26th
“The greatest wealth is health.” ~Virgil
Jogging has been on my mind lately. Even though it is quite cold and icy here in Iowa and I am still far from being able to jog without needing a team of paramedics following closely behind, I keep thinking of jogging. I believe this to be a very good sign.
I was an athlete in high school and college. I played on the tennis team, the volleyball team (briefly) and the football team in high school. In college, I just played on the tennis team and was also a very active outdoorsman. I was also a cigarette smoker – a very consistent two packs per day. I can remember being so proud of my ability to jog four miles in under thirty minutes and then immediately lighting up a cigarette. I also found pleasure in beating others in tennis while smoking – literally holding a cigarette in my hand while I played.
Where and when I grew up, smoking was not discouraged like it is now. It was a badge of manhood and I gladly took it on. As the years progressed, and I learned more about the dangers of smoking, I decided that I needed to quit. Wow, was I in for a surprise – I was now a genuine drug addict! I had been smoking since I was in my teens and in the twenty or so years of almost exactly two packs per day, my body had really come to depend on nicotine (and the complete smoking ritual). I’m not going to talk in this entry about the epic steps that I took to become a nonsmoker. I’ll talk about that some other time – it is an interesting story. I will share that I added ninety five pounds of bodyweight in the four months after I became a nonsmoker. That’s right – in the four months after I finally quit smoking for good, my bodyweight went from one hundred and ninety five pounds to two hundred and ninety pounds. Wow! My waist went from thirty three inches to forty six inches. Wow again! I literally could no longer recognize myself in the mirror and I certainly did not need to worry about tennis or jogging at two hundred and ninety five pounds!
Well, more than ten years have passed now. I am still a nonsmoker and intend to remain one. Sadly, I still am carrying around those ninety five pounds from more than ten years ago (plus a few more!). It is more than time for this to change!
I will make it back to my ideal bodyweight in the coming year. After what I went thru to become a nonsmoker, I know that I can do anything once I set my mind to it – and my mind is very set indeed. Over the coming months you can follow here my adventures in returning to health and you can bet that jogging and tennis will be part of the process. I dream about them both everyday.
Till next time…Jack
“The difference between a jogger and a runner is an entry blank.” ~George Sheehan
Fasting Begins
Jan 12th
“I recently had my annual physical examination, which I get once every seven years, and when the nurse weighed me, I was shocked to discover how much stronger the Earth’s gravitational pull has become since 1990.” ~Dave Barry
I started fasting today. For the next few weeks, I am going to be dieting very strictly. I am going to alternate fasting – drinking just water and eating no food of any kind with protein fasting – eating just protein without carbohydrates or fats. I am not doing this for religious reasons – I am doing it because I am fed up with being out of shape. Actually, I have a long ways to go just to get to out of shape! Currently, I am obese and I just can’t stand it anymore. This is a great mental place for me to be!
I don’t recommend fasting, water or protein, to anyone. You need to know what you are doing and you need supervision. I have both. I will document the results of this fast here on my blog. For the record, it is starting today, Monday January 12th and I intend to continue it through Sunday, February 22nd. Once a week or so I will check in and let you know how I am doing and how I am feeling.
What are my biggest motivators for this diet? 1) Being around to achieve my dreams. 2) Having the energy, the physical vitality to achieve and enjoy my dreams. 3) Playing with my daughters. 4) Running and playing tennis again. Remember my goals for 2009? This is my “Fun” goal:I will run in the USA’s largest cross-country race: The Living History Farms Seven Miler. This race starts at 9am, Saturday November 21st, 2009 and I intend to be ready!
My bodyweight as I start this diet? 332 pounds. Wow, that was hard to admit!
Till next time…Jack
“Research conducted by University of California, Berkeley suggests there are major health benefits to caloric restriction. Benefits include a reduced risk of cancer, the slowing of the aging process and the potential to increase maximum life span. Currently, the reduction of caloric intake is the only proven method of increasing the lifespan of an organism. Dr. Joel Fuhrman maintains that pure water fasting can not only “detoxify” cells and “rejuvenate” organs, but can actually cure such diseases and conditions as cardiovascular disease, rheumatoid arthritis, asthma, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes, colitis, psoriasis, lupus and some other autoimmune disorders when combined with a healthy diet. He believes that “Fasting is Nature’s Restorer.”"
So What is Holding You Back from Achieving Your Dreams?
Feb 25th
“God grant me the serenity to accept the people I cannot change, the courage to change the one I can, and the wisdom to know it’s me.” ~Author Unknown
I was thinking today about change. My work mostly involves helping people to change some, or sometimes many, aspects of their lives. It is often easier for me to help someone else to change than it is for me to help myself to change. That may not be completely accurate – let me say this instead: “It is always easier to help someone else to change than it is to help myself to change. Even with all that I know, and the many thousands of successful coaching sessions that I have conducted, I consistently have difficulty in making major changes for myself and by myself. That is why I am such a big believer in coaching. I think virtually all the people that I know have the same issue – it is usually far easier to help someone else than it is to help yourself.
I was also thinking about the easiest way to change and I believe that the answer there is focus. If you focus your energy on just one thing, changing for the better just one thing at a time, I think you are virtually assured of success (as long as you have a coach to help you). What should that one thing be? I know for me there are many things that it would serve me to change about myself. Here is how I choose: What is the one thing that I could change it, about myself or my emotional responses, or my habits, or my income, or anything else, that would make the biggest difference in my life?
For me, for 2008, the answer is my health. I needed to change my health more than anything else and I knew that this would make the biggest difference. So I have focused on it. I have a coach working with me on it and I am not investing significant energy in changing other aspects of myself until this is complete. The results? So far this year, in just under 2 months I have lost 4o lbs. of bodyfat. For me, that is exciting. I can see and feel the difference and it has happened because I have focused my energy, my intention around this change and I have a coach working with me to make sure that I stay on track.
So, what is the change that would make the biggest difference for you?
Till next time…Jack
“It is not necessary to change. Survival is not mandatory.” ~W. Edwards Deming