Beginning Stats

weight --- 220.0 lbs
body fat percentage --- 38.0 %

neck --- 16 in.
chest --- 45 in.
bicep --- 14 in.
forearm --- 12 in.
waist --- 50 in.
hip --- 44 in.
thigh --- 21 in.
calf --- 15.5 in.

Crossing the Abyss

This is the new Body for Life book just now out in a bookstore near you. It is, in a word, fantastic. The book outlines in great detail how to transform your body, and ultimately the way you feel.

Those that know me know that I'm into psychology and counseling people struggling to deal with mental health issues...particularly depression. I'm a firm believer in the theory that mind and body are an intricate part of the same system; that is, what effects one effects the other. In other words, we can have a great deal of control over our bodies as well as our emotional state. All to often we fall in the trap into believing that we have control of neither; that outside forces cause us to be fat, to be depressed, that it is not within us to change, that it can only be repaired through surgery or medication.

The book describes this mindset as crossing the abyss. Some call it taking a leap of faith. It's making the conscious decision to transform. To no longer accept the status quo of your life. To take charge of your body and your mind and attain the quality of life you want.

Oh...it sounds easy.

It ain't. If it were, I suspect there would be no problems with obesity or depression in this country and I would be out of a job. It requires work, tremendous amounts of work. It will be my project for the next 12 weeks to transform my body as well as my mental attitude....to cross an abyss of my own making. Photos may tell half the story. Hopefully, the writings here can tell the other half.

Home Again, Home Again

A wonderful trip. First real vacation that I've had in years, but it's good to be back home. Actually....it's just good to no longer be on the highway with all those crazy-assed drivers.

Did I exercise? Nope. I was on vacation, remember? I did do a lot of hiking through woods and in caves. Did I eat clean? Well, kinda. Missouri is not known for its cutting edge culinary delights. The actual eating out at a nice restaurant experiences were a bit disappointing. Mexican and Italian places were a disaster because they have no concept in that state about spices or flavors. It looked mighty good but I've had TV dinners that tasted better. One Mexican restaurant had a course of bland food with salsa that was little more than watery catsup. I requested hot sauce and the waiter had no clue what I wanted or why. Another place seemed to have salt as their only spice along with some undercooked shrimp and gooey pasta.

So, I didn't really chow down much on the trip.

I did read though, and I'm going to be talking later on about what.

Honeymooning

Really difficult to stick to any type of eating or exercise plan right now...and I'm not really trying. Have finished reading the new BFL book (what would you do on a honeymoon?) and have to say it is amazing! I can't wait to get back home and get started.

I'm fired up!

Day ?

The days are flying by, so much so that I'm losing track. This wedding thing is pretty much consuming all my time and energy, getting worse the closer the big day nears.

Speaking of consuming....the above photo is one of the trays of chocolate truffles and fudge that will be available at the wedding. Of course, I will just sit with this in front of me and not even touch a crumb. I'll probably be sipping on a Myoplex while everybody around me in gorging on all the delicacies.

yeah, right

I'll have some work to do once this thing is over.

Day 7

Well...I've gotten through my first week and it has occurred to me that I never did put out my starting weight. My beginning weight was 216.4 lbs and 38.2 % bodyfat. After a whole week of eating right and working out, it is now....dah dah da da dahhhhhh.......216.4 lbs and 38.2% body fat.

Not even a decimal point in change. Weird!

The way I can explain this is that I'm not starting cold, so I'm not able to get those groovy drops in numbers that everybody gets excited about. I am going to have to push my cardio more and get that damn bodyfat percentage down though.

Day 5

My intent was to write about this transformation every day; but with my work schedule, marriage planning, severe weather, and just day to day chores....I can either sit at the computer or I can exercise. I choose the latter.

I'll be in with a full update in a couple of days.

Day 2

I've been thinking of the several times I've started challenges over the years. It seems that I've drifted away from what BFL is about and focused on the challenge instead of what the challenge is about. The original purpose of the challenge was a dare....Bill Phillips dared people to follow his plan for 12 weeks as a means to transform, well, everything about themselves.

I've been so focused on doing a challenge I have forgotten what it is that I am challenging, so here it is:

I believe that it is possible for a fifty year old, fat, and out of shape man to transform into the best physical condition of his life. I believe that this can be accomplished in a few short months without drugs, crazy diets, or surgery. I believe that it is never too late to discard bad habits and develop good ones.

I believe that I do not have to live the way I do. I believe that I have the power to transform myself.

Transformation Day 1

Today I started a challenge, though I'm calling it a transformation. I will be a different person inside and out in twelve weeks.

Began with a rainy day but as I said, no excuses....so I'll be posting update and stats tomorrow.