In Recovery.

Hi, My name is Ron and I am a recovering fat guy.

I have worked very hard over the last few months to improve my fitness level and drop some excessive poundage.  I hit a milestone today and was very excited to share it.  I normally check the scale halfway through the week to see if I am still on track for the week.  When I weighed myself yesterday morning the scale read 199.  I haven't been below 200lbs in I can't tell you how long.  I don't expect that number to still be below 200 on Sunday for my weigh in though, we are headed to Burgatory on Saturday to celebrate Christine's birthday.  I am banking as many points as I can for this epic journey because its going to be a weight watchers points record most likely.  Crossing my fingers that I will have the willpower to resist getting EVERYTHING on the menu, and just keep things to the smorgasbord level.

I was working in my old store a few days ago, and one of my customers came in and said, "wow Ron, you look great!!" I thanked her for the kind words, and she continued on,  "what have you been doing?  you got a pill that I can take that will do that for me?"   I told her it was just eating right and recording my food into an online journal provided by weight watchers, and also plenty of regular exercise.  Mind you this customer really isn't overweight so I am sure she was kidding about taking a pill to lose weight.

As a Pharmacist though, this is a really common question that I receive at work.  People looking for a quick way out, a fast fix for years of bad habits.  I don't want to preach or get on a soapbox in this blog because it's supposed to be enjoyable and easy reading.  But it got me thinking.  Is what I am doing, or anyone else for that matter who is working hard to lose weight...is it really that hard??  I am not a guy who is much into willpower or resisting the things I want but I am learning to control those feelings.  I made simple, small, and healthy changes to my lifestyle and I set goals for myself and I reward myself when I attain them.  Is it really that hard to take lunch to work with you everyday and plan ahead for your meals during the week so that you don't eat poorly?  Is it really that hard to try to squeeze in a few 30 to 60 minute workouts a week?  I would say no, it just takes a will to succeed and some planning on your part.

Right now, my life isn't as chaotic as it could be but I am by no means sitting around all day looking for something to do either.  I plan my workouts most days and force myself out of bed at 5:50am to workout before I go to work everyday.  The wife and I plan out meals for two weeks at a time and we shop for all the items that won't spoil in that time period every other week.  We add veggies, milk, and other items that may spoil with small trips to the store once a week.  It just takes a little planning on our part, but rarely are we scrambling for a meal during the week.

Sometimes I lack motivation in the mornings to get out of bed and workout and sometimes I reward myself with 45-50 extra minutes of sleep (because sleep is healthy too right)?  But most days I trudge out of bed, put on the workout clothes, and get to work.  I have NEVER regretted a workout, (had to steal that line Susan.) and I always feel really good throughout the day when I have worked out.  I feel light years better than I did before I decided to change my life.  I have an amazing amount of energy now, I can just drop everything on a whim now and run 3-5 miles without even thinking about it.  I can hop on my bike and ride for 1 to 2 hours, come home and still have the energy to cut the grass, cook dinner for the wife, and spend a few hours watching the Pirates on Root Sports.  (Although that has been more difficult recently with the current 6 game skid).  I know that this will only help me when it comes time to raise our son.  There are going to be plenty of sleepless nights, plenty of long and difficult days ahead, and plenty of days where I won't have time to workout.  But when I do have time, I will because this is the new me and I never want to go back to the old me.

My name is Ron, and I am in Recovery.