My brother sent this link to me about one of the latest obesity studies.

Wow.  The best state out there has a ratio of 1 in every 5 adults being overweight.  Think about that.  1 in every 5 is the best we can do.  And if you look at kids, the numbers are even uglier.

So, my question for you is this: What does this mean to our trillion dollar health care reform initiatives?  It means that as everyone gets older — especially all those baby boomers that are starting to retire — it’s going to cost a lot more than that.  And if it costs more than that, it’s going to fail.  Of course, I’m making a big assumption that it would succeed in the first place.  Comparing the costs to the taxpayer, obesity makes smoking look like pocket change.  Can’t wait until the government decides to levy 25% tax rates on bacon and butter only to find out soy is worse for you.  Then they’ll offer tax breaks to folks who buy new fitness related items only to realize that Americans already spend more money on fitness than anyone else but I digress.

It means that until this country gets up off our asses and stops shoveling crap into our pie holes insurance premiums will be so high that no one will have any health care coverage.  And before you get all up in arms, I put myself in there as well.  I lost 20 pounds 10 years ago and since then have put it all back on plus an extra 5.

Which brings me to my training update.  Since starting 5 weeks ago now, I’m down a measly 4 pounds.  On top of that, I failed to listen to my body and pushed harder to try to lose more weight.  The results?  Running too far, too fast has led me to cramping calf muscles and signs of developing shin splints.  So, now I’m using the exercise bike instead.

Why no real success yet?  I failed to accomplish my number 1 goal.  Do you remember what it was?  The one thing I said would prevent any of the other life changes from being successful.  I was going to get more sleep.  On top of that, I really haven’t watched my eating because when I’m tired and wore down I lack the wherewithall to say no to bad food that tastes really good.  So, I pushed the training harder and harder and now have to dial it way back.  So, my personal health care reform plan seems to have hit some snags as well.

Yet, I’m still hopeful.  Why is that you ask?  You were asking that weren’t you?  Anyway, I’m on vacation next week.  So, I should get caught up on some much needed rest.  I also tend to eat worse the more stressed I get.  Less stress should mean less eating.  And I’ll have plenty of time for exercise.  With some planning and maybe a little luck, I’m hoping to replace some bad habits with a few good ones and they will hopefully carry on after my time under the stars in the northwoods.

That was quite a rambling post.  I must really need that vacation so my brain starts working again.  Thanks for reading to the end.

In the past I’ve posted attempts to get healthy again only to have my efforts derailed by injury, work demands, sleep deprivation, and an all out apathy to the idea of getting into shape.  But, I’m hoping I’ve found 2 sources of motivation.

1) My lovely wife.  My son recently had his 2nd birthday and that was a pretty rough pregnancy on my wife.  My son was/is a big baby/kid.  People often look at him and wonder why he’s only using 3 and 4 word sentences.  Why?  Because they think he’s at least 3 years old based on his size and coordination.  He has 3T clothes that are too short for him, yet pants fall off of him because a kid his height is “supposed” to be fatter than he is.  He’s always been that way, even before he was born.  The result of which was that he was pretty rough on my wife.  After his 1st birthday she’d decided it was time to reclaim her body and proceeded to lose more than 20 pounds last year and she’s still moving forward this year.  Meanwhile, I gained about 5 pounds.

2) Fit and Busy Dad.  If a guy can find that much time for his kids, wife, job and the rest of life, maybe I can too.  Granted, his job relates to working out, but his workouts are based on the premise that most dads don’t have the time to work out. 

I’ll also grant you that Chris Lopez is 5 years younger than I am.  So what?!  Once upon a time I used to be an in shape athlete who ran up and down a soccer field for 90 minutes.  I used to run up and down a basketball court for 2 hours, go to school, and run up and down the court for a few hours more.  I used to have more than a 6 inch vertical jump.  Used to, used to, used to…

The fact is, my wife is the same age I am and she’s given birth twice.  Talk about abusing your body.  Workouts have nothing on a pregnancy!  And, after all that, she’s gotten back into shape.  So, here’s my plan.

Going to bed at 10:00 on a regular basis is step 1.  Why?  Because I can’t continue to run on 5-6 hours of sleep and as much caffeine as I can consume.  That’s what I’ve done on and off (and more on than off) for the last 15 years.  Why?  Money mostly.  The more I work, the more money I’ll make, right?  Take a look at the economy lately.  There’s a whole bunch of unemployed people who have proven that hypothesis wrong.  They worked their butts off and now they’re unemployed.

Step 2, finding 20 -30 minutes a day to work out.  Probably in the mornings before work.  If I don’t do it then, the day will take over, fly by, and I’ll be asleep on the couch without having lifted a finger to improve my health.

Step 3, the hours of 8 -10 PM need to be dedicated to my marriage.  There are so many things going on in life and so many interruptions with the kids that if I don’t carve out some time daily for my wife, we’ll never communicate until sometime after 10:00 when we’re both exhausted and only partly “there”.

Step 4, leaving work on time.  This is a hard one for me.  There’s always one more thing to finish up.  That one more thing leads to 3 or more and suddenly I’m leaving much later than I planned.  I’ve been doing a better job of it lately, only to turn the computer on at home and work from home.  Yet, this is one that needs to happen for the rest of the steps to be successful.  If I don’t get home on time, I don’t get time with the kids.  If I don’t get time with the kids, my wife spends even more time of her day trying to keep up with them.  8-10 is out the window and that means I’m not going to sleep until 11.  Go to bed at 11 and get up before 5 to workout?  Not sustainable.  And, then I’m right back where I am.

So, there’s my plan.  We’ll see how it works.  I’ve got 3 months before our summer vacation.  I’d like to be able to take my shirt off on the beach without people trying to roll me back into the water.  Wish me luck!

Okay, this cold thing is really getting annoying.  I have been fighting some kind of cold for the past 4 weeks now and I’m sick of being sick.  I’ve have managed just 2 workouts a week for the past four weeks.  The only positive is that sickness seems to be an appetite suppresant.

Good news:  Despite not working out the weight rings in at 213.5 pounds this morning.  So, at least the weight is not going up.  The bench press is up to 228 for 8 reps so I’m hoping to move that up another plate and see how many reps I can do.  Plus, the image in the mirror is looking better.

Bad news:  The lack of workouts is making it difficult to burn off the fat around the middle.  I know there are abs in there somewhere, but I just can’t see ‘em.  Plus, when I do workout I just don’t have the strength or endurance while I’m fighting this onslaught of colds.

The Plan: Well, I know what works from a workout standpoint I just need to do it.  The cold seems to be better than last Monday so maybe we’re finally on the back stretch there.  So, we’re going to get in more workouts and try to lower the weight some.  Depending on how quickly the cold goes away, I’m planning on adding a core workout a couple of mornings each week as well.  My abs and lower back could use the extra work as it would help my posture and I wouldn’t get such a stiff neck sitting in front of the computer screen all day.

Wow, weight training really seems to work.  Not only am I stronger than I ever have been, I’m quickly getting lighter too.  Last week the scale finally read 214.5 pounds.  Finally under the 215 mark!!!  This week it read 214.  So, I’ve managed to go from 222.5 to 214 in 8 weeks.  About 1 pound a week although it has been getting slower and slower, I’ll take it.  Especially when you consider I worked out 3 times the previous week and only once last week.  On top of that, I definitely think my metabolism is heating up.  As a kid I walked around in shorts and a T-shirt all winter because it was hot.  Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve had a hard time sleeping because I’m too hot.  This was not a problem when I sat on the couch all of the time.

 Good News:  I managed to bench 228 pounds 8 times this afternoon!  As I said, I have never been stronger.  This is a good thing!  The superset lifting workouts followed by 10 minutes of intense interval training seems to be making quite a difference even if I only get a few workouts a week in.

Bad News:  I really need to do a better job of fitting workouts into my schedule.  Imagine the progress I could make then!  I also need to do a better job of watching what I’m stuffing in my pie hole.  If it tastes good enough, I seem to keep eating more even if I’m not hungry anymore.  When I get those 2 things in line, I should see much better overall progress.

The Plan:  For starters, I’m going to lift M-W-F this week with some lighter cardio on T-R to help the calorie deficit along.  Additionally, I’m going to dump some of the fried foods and excess food in general to see if we can’t get this thing down below 213.  I’d love to be able to say that in 12 weeks I’ve lost 20 pounds.  That means I’ve got 12 pounds to go in 4 weeks.  That doesn’t sound possible or healthy, so I’m going to revise that to shoot for 208 pounds.  That’s 6 pounds in the next 4 weeks.  And my heart will be happier I did.

Wow, is it really only the second update?  Okay, I’ve been slacking on the posts because I keep slacking on the workouts — only 9 workouts over the last 3 weeks.  As a result, I haven’t wanted to check my progress as I’ve been afraid it hasn’t been good.  With a newfound surge of determination this weekend, I decided I needed to make a change.  So here’s where we’re at.

The Good News:  Things didn’t get nearly as out of hand as I had thought.  The lifting is starting to show didvidends.  Of course, that’s the only workouts I’ve been getting in, but my bench press is now higher than it has ever been.  For the first time ever, 2 weeks ago I broke the 200 pound mark.  Last week, I bench pressed my weight.  I had hoped I could get my weight down to make that easier, but I’ll take it anyway I can.  I got on the scale this morning, and I’m actually down to 215 pounds.  I haven’t gotten under there yet, but I’m as close to it as I can be.  I’ve also given up the elevator at work and have begun taking the stairs.  For me, that means 15 flights of stairs every morning and evening but I figure every little bit helps.  We’re on 6 days and counting with the stairs.

The Bad News: Injuries.  I really need to get the weight down because as I try to push myself on the treadmill further, I keep getting injured.  I finally hoped back on the treadmill 2 weeks ago after my back improved.  After about 15 minutes I started to feel a twinge in my calf.  Having pulled calf muscles before I decided to hop off the treadmill and go lift weights rather than risk 6 weeks of training time while waiting for my calf to heal.  It’s made it difficult to keep up the cardio exercises.

The Plan: (I like that description better.)  So, I’m going to keep climbing the stairs.  I’m going to keep lifting weights.  I’m going to switch from the treadmill to the eliptical machine for a couple of weeks.  While I love running, it doesn’t do me any good if I can’t workout at all.  Plus, if I crank up the tension on the elliptical, I get quite the muscle pump in my legs.  Hopefully — no bad thinking — definitely next time I give you an update I’ll be under that mystical 215 pound mark.

Well, I knew last weekend was not going to be kind to my waistline.  Between a birthday party on Saturday and tailgating at the ball park on Sunday, I consumed enough salt to retain an extra gallon of water alone.  Not to mention all of the fat filled goodies and barley pops to go along with everything.  But, things were not as bad as I thought they’d be. 

The Good News: The weight is currently at 216.5.  Which is not as high as I thought it would go.  Plus, I got the results back from the cholesterol tests.  I guess that Lipitor stuff actually works.  Here’s the numbers:

The Bad News: For any of you who don’t know, I’m some kind of klutz.  I was actually voted most accident prone by my high school classmates.  As a result, I seem to be prone to injury.  So, from carrying my kids around and doing yard work I pulled a muscle in my lower back.  It was getting better and then I spent Thursday morning on the floor playing with my son while I also typed away on my laptop working.  On Friday, I could barely stand up straight.  The self medicating barley pops helped a little bit, but the best thing has been the heating pad and the heated seat backs of my car.  This morning it is starting to feel better again.  The result of all of that was I only fit in 2 workouts last week.

The conclusion: With the back starting to feel better and no big parties planned this weekend, this should be a good week.  I’m hoping to get down another pound or two.  I can’t remember the last time I was south of 215 on the scale.  So here goes.

This story talks about how vitamins could shorten lifespan.  Apparently some researchers combined a bunch of studies and it would appear that what we’ve been told ever since our Moms’ gave us those Flintstone’s chewables could be wrong.  Quick, everyone throw out your vitamins and rip up your GNC Gold Card!  Wait.  Calm down.  It would appear there is some disagreement with the findings of the study, albeit from someone who gets their paycheck from the supplement industry.

So, the health sciences folks are in the midst of potentially changing their minds…again.  These people drive me crazy.  Not because I don’t applaud their goal of trying to help people live longer.  Rather, we just go crazy over the latest greatest news.  Remember Atkins?  That diet originally came out in the 70’s.  Then it hit a tipping point and everybody was trying Atkins 5-10 years ago.  Today it’s South Beach. 

Alcohol is bad!  Wait, is it red wine in proper doses?  Then it’s good for you.  Fat is bad! Wait is it Omega 3 fatty acids?  Then it’s good for you.  Carbs are bad for you.  Wait, is it high fiber unprocessed carbs?  Then it’s good for you.  My great uncle used to take arsenic in small doses for medical problems he had, because the doctors of the time thought it would cure his disease.  Freakin’ arsenic!

You know, the more we study and learn, the more I think we keep coming back to the words, “Everything in moderation”. 

BTW – I always thought it was Aristotle who said that, but the first reference to that quote that I can find is Andria (The Lady of Andros) by the Roman playwright Terence.  The closest thing I can find Aristotle saying is “The virtue of justice consists in moderation, as regulated by wisdom”.  But, the whole Greek philospher thing probably ascribed to the idea thanks to Democritus who came before Socrates and said, “Moderation increases enjoyment, and makes pleasure even greater.”

I hadn’t posted anything here on my personal war on fat because I just hadn’t been that successful, and I don’t like to publicize my failures.  However, there is a certain kind of accountibility that comes with publishing these things.  Sort of a guilt yourself into success.  I’m not sure how successful that would be either.  But, these folks
have inspired me. 580 pounds combined! Wow, that is some serious weight loss. In fact, about 8 years ago, I tried the Weigh Down method of weight loss and had managed to drop 21 pounds in 3 months. I then spent the next 8 years gradually putting it back on.

Well, that’s not entirely true. I spent 7 years putting it back on (plus a couple extra pounds) and the last 3 of those with my doctor complaining about my cholesterol. So, for the last year I’ve been trying to get into shape. I managed to raise my HDL’s from 32 to 40, and I can now run a 5K in 26 minutes and my heartrate returns to normal so much faster from excerise than before. However, my weight went from 221 to 222.5 in that time (did I mention I’m 6′ 2″ tall?).  Also, my total cholesterol and LDL’s went up too.  I know have a Lipitor prescription.  I’ll let you know what the new numbers are next week as I have a blood test coming up on Thursday.

So, 4 weeks ago I decided I have had enough.  I got on the scale and it read 222.5.  I modified my workout routines to be either interval training on the treadmill (I kinda like running – dumb huh?) or weightlifting utilizing supersets and big muscle groups.  I did that for 2 weeks, went on vacation for a week and was back at it last week.  Results?  I got on the scale this morning and it read 216.5 pounds.  Down 1 pound from last week which was oddly down a pound from the previous week.  The best result was the first week of course when I dropped 2.5 pounds followed by 1.5 the next week.  But, if I can manage to keep up 1 pound a week, I’ll be quite the happy camper.

So, hopefully the fear of public humiliation should I stumble will keep me on the straight and narrow.  Stay tuned!

I got this study forwarded to me and I had to read it because I couldn’t believe it. It’s from a publication called Obesity Research, and it contands that this study does indeed support the U.S. governments position that 60 minutes of exercise (aerobic activity) a day for 6 days a week will help you lose weight. Let me say that again, 60 minutes/day 6 days a week.

First, who’s got that kind of time??!?! Second, it doesn’t really support that contention at all. After 1 year of studying 102 men and 100 women they did indeed lose weight, BMI, waist circumference, and body fat versus the folks who sat on their ass. Women lost on average — remember this is for a whole year now — 3.1 pounds, .6 BMI, .55 inches around the waist and 4.2 pounds of body fat. Men fared a little better with 4.0 pounds, .5 BMI, 1.3 inches, and 6.6 pounds. Although, the men on average exercised more than the women by 75 minutes a week, so they essentially got another workout in.  All that leads me to the title of this post (pun intended). 

I’m not sure why I’m shocked by the results.  I’ve read many other articles suggesting interval training and weight lifting are far better uses of ones time for losing weight.  And I had started to change my workouts over to those, but I really enjoy running.  I know my lung and cardiovascular capacity are greater than before, and I had manged to raise my HDL’s 25% since I started the treadmill, but my weight had pretty much stayed the same.  I just didn’t realize what a waste it was as far as losing weight was concerned.