I don't know what kind of fan I am but, I love to watch NBC's The Biggest Loser. Would it be fair to say that I'm not a dedicated fan, because, I don't watch the entire two hours. That is way too long for me to watch a show about a bunch of people who have spent most of their life eating and sitting on the couch. If I wanted to see that show I'd install a mirror on the wall opposite my easy chair. I watch only for the weigh-in.
My life, since I was in high school, might be best described in my second favorite phrase; "You look like you've been through a famine, I looked like I caused it." I am the "I".
My favorite quotation is "How beautiful it is to do nothing, and then rest afterwards." I guess that that motto created the environment for the famine quote.
I weighed 160lbs when I graduated from high school. Height, 5'10". My pant size was 31". Shirt size, 15 and a 1/2.
I ran six miles a day, just for fun. I didn't grow up on video games, TV, and computers, primarily because there was only TV and that was just a few channels. The only good show on TV was JP Patches, so getting hooked on TV was no big deal. I worked as a salesman for a big and tall mens' clothing store. I was too small to fit the clothes.
Fast forward, October 3, 2010. It's a Saturday. I didn't intend to get to this position in life but I have.
51 years old, 5'11" tall, weight, 297lbs., 44" waist, shirt size 19". I'm not working in the big and tall store anymore, I'm the customer. And I've heard all the justifications for nearly 30 years.
"You don't look that big" or "You have a big frame", "You carry it well". The only thing that anybody said that was true was that I look good regardless of my weight. Which was true.
I'm humble too.
But 297 is so close to 300 that I really started thinking that I was 300. But I looked good.
And at 6am, early on that Saturday, October 3rd, I thought about my grandmother, the only one that I grew up knowing. She died in August of 1981, complications from diabetes. She was 61. Her doctor's told her what to do all her life to control her diabetes.
For the past two years my doctor, a brilliant doctor named Rachael Gonzalez, has been treating me as "pre-diabetic". Which means I'm just one step away from having Type II Diabetes. My "A1C", one of the most important numbers that you can know, was 5.9. 6.0 would make me a diabetic. I was on blood pressure medicine, diabetic medication, I have sleep apnea (I snored at 84 decibals!) and I have used a CPAP machine for about 13 years. But at 297lbs. people said I looked good.
Liars.
Saturday, October 3rd I woke up and realized that I was my grandma. Well, not literally. That would be a silly thought. I couldn't pull off the blue hair. No, I was 51 and she died at 61. I woke up and realized that I was going to die in 10 years.
And I love my wife, and my children, and my grandchildren. I want to know my great-grandchildren. Maybe even their children. But guy's with my lifestyle don't live to do that.
Of course, I could end up as a flaming ball of fire on the freeway on any given day.
But I can't control that. Saturday, October 3rd I decided that I can do something about me.
I've tried over the years. Every fad diet, countless exercise machines, ephedra, the Atkins Diet, and the South Beach Diet. I've lost 25lbs, gained 50. Lost the 50, gained 60.
I woke up and realized that I was dead in 10 years, if I was lucky to live that long.
So I got up and did something about it. I went for a walk around the block. It was a long block. 3.7 miles to be exact. And I started doing that every day but Sunday.
A few days later I was watching Dr. Oz on TV. I really like his message and his straight talk. He laid out the five things that you can do to shorten your life. Interesting topic. I might have been guilty of doing a few of the things that would shorten my life.
Rather than take up smoking and make it five-for-five I decided to continue walking. And I have since October 3rd.
It’s different this time. I want to live a long, long, long, time. I just don’t want to die.
I’m thinking 125… years.
And since October 3rd I've lost...
"You don't look that big" or "You have a big frame", "You carry it well". The only thing that anybody said that was true was that I look good regardless of my weight. Which was true.
I'm humble too.
But 297 is so close to 300 that I really started thinking that I was 300. But I looked good.
And at 6am, early on that Saturday, October 3rd, I thought about my grandmother, the only one that I grew up knowing. She died in August of 1981, complications from diabetes. She was 61. Her doctor's told her what to do all her life to control her diabetes.
For the past two years my doctor, a brilliant doctor named Rachael Gonzalez, has been treating me as "pre-diabetic". Which means I'm just one step away from having Type II Diabetes. My "A1C", one of the most important numbers that you can know, was 5.9. 6.0 would make me a diabetic. I was on blood pressure medicine, diabetic medication, I have sleep apnea (I snored at 84 decibals!) and I have used a CPAP machine for about 13 years. But at 297lbs. people said I looked good.
Liars.
Saturday, October 3rd I woke up and realized that I was my grandma. Well, not literally. That would be a silly thought. I couldn't pull off the blue hair. No, I was 51 and she died at 61. I woke up and realized that I was going to die in 10 years.
And I love my wife, and my children, and my grandchildren. I want to know my great-grandchildren. Maybe even their children. But guy's with my lifestyle don't live to do that.
Of course, I could end up as a flaming ball of fire on the freeway on any given day.
But I can't control that. Saturday, October 3rd I decided that I can do something about me.
I've tried over the years. Every fad diet, countless exercise machines, ephedra, the Atkins Diet, and the South Beach Diet. I've lost 25lbs, gained 50. Lost the 50, gained 60.
I woke up and realized that I was dead in 10 years, if I was lucky to live that long.
So I got up and did something about it. I went for a walk around the block. It was a long block. 3.7 miles to be exact. And I started doing that every day but Sunday.
A few days later I was watching Dr. Oz on TV. I really like his message and his straight talk. He laid out the five things that you can do to shorten your life. Interesting topic. I might have been guilty of doing a few of the things that would shorten my life.
Rather than take up smoking and make it five-for-five I decided to continue walking. And I have since October 3rd.
It’s different this time. I want to live a long, long, long, time. I just don’t want to die.
I’m thinking 125… years.
And since October 3rd I've lost...
1 comment:
lost...
lost...
come on, don't leave us hanging.
I'm thinking you've lost 60 lbs.
Am I right?
Is there a prize?
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