40 lbs of Wisdom!

My health is my #1 priority. For me, it takes priority over all my other commitments because I realize that if I am healthy, fit and feeling good, I have the best chance of being around for a long long time and enjoying my life, my family, my friends and my work.

Health wasn't always #1 for me. Six years ago I was almost 35-40 lbs heavier than I am now. I put taking care of myself last on a long priority list - everything came before my health. My priorities were working, then working more, then family time, going out with friends and then sleeping in. Then maybe, just maybe, once in a while, I'd get motivated to workout.

What didn't work.
I never went to the gym and whenever I did go, I didn't have a strategy. I didn't eat right and whenever I thought I was eating right, I still didn't lose weight.  I didn't "have any time" (i.e. make any time) to workout and it was getting worse, not better.

The bigger problem was it wasn't just about being overweight that bothered me.  My dad has heart disease. He had open-heart, quadruple bypass surgery 24 years ago when he was only 50. Both my grandfathers died of heart disease. I knew I had to do something but didn't know how.

Then, one summer day in August 1999, a friend made a book recommendation to me that helped me take the first step. The book was called Body for Life, by Bill Phillips. 

What did work.
I had seen many books over the years but this book and The Body for Life Program was different for several reasons. One reason was that my friend Brian was using it and he had lost weight and kept it off by following the recommended program. The other, more compelling reason for me was that it gave me an easy plan that I knew I could follow for a long time (hence the title "Body for Life".) This plan wouldn't take up a lot of time, which made all the difference in the world to me at the time (the difference between getting motivated to workout every morning and not working out because "it would take too long")

Within 6 months I went from 218 to 180 and by the time I got married a year later I was down to 174. The program was easy to follow and I kept it off for the past six years, maintaining a healthy weight of 175 lbs. Besides the workout plan, I also used protein/nutrition shakes in between meals and began mixing a protein with a carb whenever I eat. That kept me from eating the junk I used to pick up when I got hungry in between meals.

I've recommended the book to dozens of friends and most people I have recommended it to have also lost the weight and kept it off.  I know that there are a lot of the other books on the market that work - some just initially and then people fall off the wagon because it's either too cumbersome or to hard to stay motivated and others really work because the author connects with you for one reason or another. For me, Body for Life works. It's a long term plan that is easy to follow.

In summary, over the six years of working out and keeping my weight off, this is what I've learned:

1. Set an actual weight goal that you want to reach or maintain - I like to be at 175lbs. Some people like a body fat goal. Whatever works for you but I know just saying "I want to lose weight" and not committing to an actual number doesn't work.
2. Find a fitness program to follow that works for you - as I mentioned above, I really like Body for Life, by Bill Phillips because it's not a huge time commitment that keeps me motivated to workout almost every day. The biggest thing is that I knew I could get motivated to do the workout and not burn out after a few weeks or a few months. That is key to me. The program only takes approximately 45 minutes, 3 times per week for weight training and 20 minutes, 3 times per week for cardio. There is a reason its been on the NYTimes Bestsellers list for more than six years. I am just starting to use a new program called Flex4 that I will tell you about in my next post.
3. Set the same time every day as your time to workout - the mornings work for me. I know the nights work for other people. I like the idea of getting it behind me before I start my day, before I take a shower and before I eat anything. That way, I have few excuses not to work out. 
4. Find a place you like to workout. He recommended joining a gym close to my home that was on my way to work so I would be forced to workout before I go to the office. This way, I would bring my clothes to the gym and get ready for work there. Worked like a charm. I joined Reebok Sports Club because its across the street from where I live and I stopped there before going to work. It was great but since we moved, I now workout at the gym in our building because its easy and has great facilities
5. Learn how to eat well and, if necessary, find a program that works for you. Once again, Bill Phillips wrote another book I really like called Eating for Life. It elaborates on the eating program in Body for Life and is an eating plan that was realistic for me. It is also a plan that makes sense to me - 6 days per week eat 5-6 times per day a simple, balanced protein/carbs combination of normal food like turkey on whole wheat. The best part was that it gives me one day per week called a Free Day where I eat anything I want - and I never miss a Free Day.

This is what works for me. What works for you?