Get In Shape!

Posted on 08. Jun, 2009 by MJay in Other

We apologize for the lack of new content over the past couple weeks. Life has called and we’ve both had to put the blog on hold for a couple days. I plan on writing a few more posts this week, Chris should be drawing up something in the near future as well. Thanks for stopping by!

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Today is going to more of a motivational post that normal, but I think its one of the most important topics we hit on. If you’re like most college guys, you’ve spent the last 4 or 5 years in school, probably drinking beer, eating pizza, and considering that lazy afternoon IM softball game “exercise.” Unfortunately, you’ve also probably checked out the mirror and said to yourself, “Damn, when and how did THIS happen?” Well, it happened to me about 18 months ago and I decided to do something about it. It was a big step for me, but I’m just happy I pulled myself out of that rut.

The first thing I did was go buy a scale and see what the damage was. I reluctantly pulled out the scale, stepped on, and was horrified when I realized I had ballooned to 245 pounds! When I was a senior in High School, during preseason conditioning for soccer, I tipped the scale at a trim 205 pounds. The thought of another 40 pounds on my frame was downright disgusting. 18 months later, I’m down to 214, a mere 9 pounds away from my goal. Its taken a lot of motivation, discipline, and persistence, but at this point my changes have become habit and I don’t even see myself slipping back to my college self. It was a pretty big undertaking, but I’ve actually really enjoyed the challenge.

I thought I’d share some of the more useful tips and tools I used in reforming myself in hope that I can maybe inspire some of you to do the same thing.

Physics Diet

First things first, you need to figure out your starting measurements and I really like Physics Diet. At first, I weighed myself everyday, hoping to watch the pounds ooze off my body, but there are many things that effect weight. Body, Water Content, your last meal, and any number of other things can throw off your weight. I’ve personally seen my weight fluctuate as much as 5 pounds in 24 hours. Physics Diet lets you enter in your weight, then calculate an “average weight.” Its much more accurate than a daily weight-in, keeps a good record of your body, and has useful charts to help you meet your goals. Not only that, you can share your progress with friends and family! Nothing like support from friends and family. Here’s my chart, started January 2008.

progress

Strong Lifts

Strong Lifts Blog is a great resource to give you ideas on how to add variety to your workout routine. Posts come at a clip of three to four a weeks and they give any number of tips on new workouts to help you lose weight, add muscle, and feel better. How you workout is the most important thing when looking for results and this is a great resource for that.

Company Health Incentives

If you are working for any sizable corporation, check to see if you company offers any kind of health benefits for working out. Any my company, we’ve got two plans I’d like to highlight:

Fitness Incentive- I get reimbursed $500 a year toward anything health related. This includes, gym memberships, golf lessons, personal trainers, dietitians, home gyms, and workout apparel, etc. The sad thing is, I can only count on one hand how many people I know at the office that take advantage of this. I think I know someone that put the money toward a new Ipod they use when they run! Regardless, its free money, make sure you know whats available.
Health Insurance Incentive- I got $100 cash for filling out a survey from work and committing myself to a healthier lifestyle. If you stick with the program, you receive an additional $50 every year thereafter and a nice reduction in your heath care expenses.

Eat This, Not That

Brought to you from Men’s Health, their ever popular column “Eat This, Not That” focuses on helping people make better decisions on anything they eat. These small changes are totally doable and many of the swaps are actually quite tasty. I’ve signed up for the free newsletter and get great tips on eating healthier twice a weeks. What kind of information will shock you the most? For me it was the following from Macaroni Grill:

“Not a single pasta selection on Macaroni Grill’s menu has less than 50 grams of fat or 1,200 milligrams of sodium. Cut down on both, and shed 200 calories, by ordering lunch pasta portions at dinner.”

50 grams of fat on every dish?!@#?@$!@?#@!?! Do yourself a favor and check out the gut killers and savers before you sabotage your image.

Drink, Drink, Drink… Water!

I know this is called “NICBB,” but as many as 80% of Americans don’t get enough water in their diets. You should be drinking 8 glasses of water a day, if you aren’t you’re setting yourself for an unhealthy lifestyle.

“Water makes up more than 70% of solid body tissue and helps regulate body temperature, carry nutrients and oxygen to cells, remove waste, cushion joints, and protect organs and tissues. Lack of adequate water intake leads to headaches, grogginess and dry, itchy skin. Severe dehydration affects blood pressure, circulation, digestion, kidney function, and nearly all body processes.”

Ever see people carrying around water bottles? There’s a reason why 9 times out of 10 they are in shape. Water flushes your body of toxins, while delivering hydration to the body. Drinking things like coffee, alcohol, and soda further dehydrates your body. Drink a big glass of water with every meal and carry around water with you everywhere you go. If you are thirsty, you’re body is already dehydrated. It was actually quite challenging to incorporate into my life, but once I got used to at least 8 servings of water a day, I felt more energized and overall so much healthier! I’m not saying avoid alcohol, just limit it to one or two nights a week, and instead of pounding Nattie Lights, treat yourself to some good brews.

So there we have it. My current goal include running an Olympic Distance Triathalon and I’m still pushing toward that weight of 205. Its so close!

What are your goals? What strategies are do you recommend? Are there any other success stories out there?

All it takes is a little self-motivation… create a reasonable weight-loss, set your mind to it, and get moving!