Determination, Not a Resolution
So, here we go. I'm not doing this for other people as much as I'm doing it for myself. To keep me honest. So, if it helps anyone else, great. Hopefully, it will help me.
This past Fall, I was in my third season coaching my niece's U10 soccer team. Due to the way I had to arrange my work schedule in order to make practices and games, I didn't have a whole lot of time for me. That sounds like an excuse and maybe it is. But, I made a decision at the end of the season to get my ass in gear and get myself into a routine that wouldn't be so easy to ignore once the Spring season rolled around and my schedule got blown to hell again. If I'm being honest, I also looked in the mirror (literally and figuratively) and didn't like what I saw. I know, I know. I'm not supposed to be critical of the way my body looks, but I realized I didn't feel good. I didn't feel healthy and I certainly didn't feel like someone who should be coaching anything.
So, it was time for a change. I was pushing 40 (literally, my birthday was a month after the season ended) and needed to make some changes. And, of course, I picked the absolute worst time of the year to start anything fitness and healthy eating related...November. Thanksgiving. The holiday season. But, I was determined to start before my birthday and the new year. I didn't want to others (or myself) to start thinking of this change as a midlife crisis or a resolution. So, I dusted off the Planet Fitness membership and off I went.
Time for some brutally honest numbers and I pictures I hate:
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 216 lbs (WTF?)
So, there ya go. But more than anything I felt bad inside. No, I don't look great. But, I wanted to feel better. I don't mind if I look like this if I can run around a soccer field. I don't care about my waist, percent body fat, pants size, etc. I just wanted to be able to do things. I will admit, I didn't like that weight. And that potbelly needed to go too. The rest...eh.
Okay so time for goals. Again, I know me. If start thinking too far ahead, I'll overwhelm myself and give up faster than anything. But, short term goals are infinitely more palatable and achievable.
Short Term Goals:
Get to the gym: I work evening shift, so gym time is 1130 pm on the way home.
Make better eating choices: I cut out the sugary drinks and started drinking a LOT of water.
Lose weight steadily: see at least 1-2 lbs come off each week, but only look at the scale once a week.
And and I got to it. The first week I figured out my work out (I hate the gym, just for the record) and got busy. After that first week, I dropped 4 lbs and set some more specific gym goals. I'll cover my workout plans in more detail in another post. But here are some of my more specific goals:
Workout Goals:
Increase jogging vs walking time on treadmill
Get off my knees for push ups
Be able to do 50% of body weight for pull-ups
Increase flexibility (hands beyond my toes when touching toes)
The second week, I was well on my way to achieving some these. I was jogging for 15 mins on the treadmill (before it was 10), I could do 4 pushups off my knees, I had decreased the amount of "help" I needed for pull ups but still wasn't at the 50% mark, and I could reach beyond my toes. I also dropped another pound. Things were looking promising. Then, life happened. The holidays, my dad broke his foot (at the gym of all places), mom needed/had surgery, family obligations, work schedule got FUBAR'd. Consequently, my gym time (and free time) got sucked down the tube.
But, I'm back at it now. I cringe at the notion that I had to wait until the new year to get going again, but life happens. I've done a ton of research, figured out what I want to do and how I'm going to do it. My original short term goals are the same. Most of my Workout Goals are the same. I have a plan and the determination to get this done. I need it. Not for anyone else but me. I need to feel better about myself. And I know me. I need to do this slowly and steadily. Or I'll quit. I'm hoping that this blog will help keep me honest. I've given myself three months. I started (again) on January 15. I have a very specific goal in mind for after this first 3 months. If it takes me 4 months or 6, so be it. There's something I want to do after I get on track, but I'll save that for another post.
Be blessed. Be safe. Be you.
This past Fall, I was in my third season coaching my niece's U10 soccer team. Due to the way I had to arrange my work schedule in order to make practices and games, I didn't have a whole lot of time for me. That sounds like an excuse and maybe it is. But, I made a decision at the end of the season to get my ass in gear and get myself into a routine that wouldn't be so easy to ignore once the Spring season rolled around and my schedule got blown to hell again. If I'm being honest, I also looked in the mirror (literally and figuratively) and didn't like what I saw. I know, I know. I'm not supposed to be critical of the way my body looks, but I realized I didn't feel good. I didn't feel healthy and I certainly didn't feel like someone who should be coaching anything.
So, it was time for a change. I was pushing 40 (literally, my birthday was a month after the season ended) and needed to make some changes. And, of course, I picked the absolute worst time of the year to start anything fitness and healthy eating related...November. Thanksgiving. The holiday season. But, I was determined to start before my birthday and the new year. I didn't want to others (or myself) to start thinking of this change as a midlife crisis or a resolution. So, I dusted off the Planet Fitness membership and off I went.
Time for some brutally honest numbers and I pictures I hate:
Weight: 216 lbs (WTF?)
So, there ya go. But more than anything I felt bad inside. No, I don't look great. But, I wanted to feel better. I don't mind if I look like this if I can run around a soccer field. I don't care about my waist, percent body fat, pants size, etc. I just wanted to be able to do things. I will admit, I didn't like that weight. And that potbelly needed to go too. The rest...eh.
Okay so time for goals. Again, I know me. If start thinking too far ahead, I'll overwhelm myself and give up faster than anything. But, short term goals are infinitely more palatable and achievable.
Short Term Goals:
Get to the gym: I work evening shift, so gym time is 1130 pm on the way home.
Make better eating choices: I cut out the sugary drinks and started drinking a LOT of water.
Lose weight steadily: see at least 1-2 lbs come off each week, but only look at the scale once a week.
And and I got to it. The first week I figured out my work out (I hate the gym, just for the record) and got busy. After that first week, I dropped 4 lbs and set some more specific gym goals. I'll cover my workout plans in more detail in another post. But here are some of my more specific goals:
Workout Goals:
Increase jogging vs walking time on treadmill
Get off my knees for push ups
Be able to do 50% of body weight for pull-ups
Increase flexibility (hands beyond my toes when touching toes)
The second week, I was well on my way to achieving some these. I was jogging for 15 mins on the treadmill (before it was 10), I could do 4 pushups off my knees, I had decreased the amount of "help" I needed for pull ups but still wasn't at the 50% mark, and I could reach beyond my toes. I also dropped another pound. Things were looking promising. Then, life happened. The holidays, my dad broke his foot (at the gym of all places), mom needed/had surgery, family obligations, work schedule got FUBAR'd. Consequently, my gym time (and free time) got sucked down the tube.
But, I'm back at it now. I cringe at the notion that I had to wait until the new year to get going again, but life happens. I've done a ton of research, figured out what I want to do and how I'm going to do it. My original short term goals are the same. Most of my Workout Goals are the same. I have a plan and the determination to get this done. I need it. Not for anyone else but me. I need to feel better about myself. And I know me. I need to do this slowly and steadily. Or I'll quit. I'm hoping that this blog will help keep me honest. I've given myself three months. I started (again) on January 15. I have a very specific goal in mind for after this first 3 months. If it takes me 4 months or 6, so be it. There's something I want to do after I get on track, but I'll save that for another post.
Be blessed. Be safe. Be you.
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