Day 398 - Leadership 199 / Trait 5 of 14: Endurance

We're you decisive yesterday? Not just yesterday but think big picture, have you been decisive about what it is you truly want to succeed at? Speaking for myself, I have decided I will run three miles by the end of summer. And do it in 28 minutes or less. That is going to be a challenge for me, but one I have decided to achieve.

If you missed our previous posts in this series on leadership traits do not cry out in agony, do not throw things, no no no. Simply click through the links below; easiest thing you will do all day...
Leadership 199 / Trait 4 of 14: Decisiveness
Leadership 199 / Trait 3 of 14: Courage
Leadership 199 / Trait 2 of 14: Bearing
Leadership 199 / Trait 1 of 14: Dependability


Time to tee up our fifth trait…

Leadership 199 / Trait 5 of 14: Endurance

Defined: The mental and physical stamina measured by the ability to withstand pain, fatigue, stress, and hardship.

Discovered: When we think of endurance we quickly think of a long and grueling physical challenge, e.g a marathon. A much younger version of myself would blurt out that a pub-crawl requires endurance. While fun, a pub crawl is not going to help us understand this trait. And neither is a marathon quite frankly. No one specific challenge is sufficient to understand the importance that endurance plays in our ability lead ourselves to success.

Our missions to get healthy are made up of many different challenges; challenges that will last our lifetimes. Lets look that deeper into that definition...

to withstand pain; what causes us pain in our mission? Exercise does. Or at least it ought to cause some degree of pain if we are properly breaking down muscle and burning fat in our quest to become stronger and leaner. Pain is not fun, I mean hello; it is called PAIN. Yet to succeed we have to lead ourselves to accept that pain will be there, that pain is part of the process, and that we can deal with it and overcome it's discomfort and the doubt it will try and have us believe.

to fatigue; so many aspects of getting healthy can get tiring. Sure, exercise causes fatigue; that's too obvious. What about doing the same thing day in day out? Eating the same 'healthy' meals, performing the same exercise 'routine'? Does doing the same thing cause you mental fatigue as the days become weeks and months? Oh it sure does for me. Call it fatigue, call it boredom. It wears on me, causes me to dull my focus and invite in failure. We have to lead ourselves to recognize that which cause us fatigue, and make changes necessary to maintain focus, maintain motivation to get up each day and choose success.

to stress; oh how we can put pressure on ourselves to do what we know we should. When we know we ought to exercise today, just knowing that can eat-away in the back of our minds until we do. And should we opt out, find an excuse not to do so, well multiply that eating-away by ten. Leaders know that we are our greatest stressors, and those tasks that stress us the most. Leaders also know that there if no way to relieve the stress of a challenge other than to tackle it, defeat it and remove it. You know you need to exercise today, do it now. Don't wait, get to it. Can't do it now because you are in a meeting at work reading my blog from your handheld, well good for you; now switch over to your calendar app and plan precisely what time today you can exercise and block that time off. Leaders manage stress, they are not managed by stress.

to hardship; why can't this always be easy? It is true, losing weight, getting and being healthy is not easy at times. As if the pain, fatigue and stressors weren't enough to overcome in our mission, we have a host of additional hardships confront. I could list 74 off the top of my head, but to keep this short and to the point I'll reference two. People, others around us make this harder at times. Well, they only really make this hard if we let them. They will toss a wrench on our well planned day at 4:29 p.m. when they come home and say, "can we order pizza and wings for dinner?" Or when they see what we are planning for lunch and say, "you expect me to eat that?" Ourselves, we can make this hard for us just the same as anyone else can. When you look in the mirror and see yourself, do you think to yourself, "wow, I am one gorgeous, healthy, amazing creature!" No, you don't. What do you say, something like, "ugh, I am a fat slob of a pig who needs to be skewered." Ever see youself in a negative sense and acknowledge it? If yes, you are making this harder than it needs to be. Stop looking at yourself and seeing what you are that you dislike. Start seeing yourself for who you are becoming.

Da-Point: Stamina is the bridge between succeeding today becoming victorious for a lifetime.

How heavy is the pain, fatigue, stress, and hardship in your life today?

And what are you doing to lead yourself to victory in spite of it all?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 388 - Leadership 199 / Trait 1 of 14: Dependability

Who is it that is in charge of leading you to accomplish your mission to get healthy?

If you answered that question with a name other than your own, PLEASE do comment below. I really want to discuss how it is that someone other than yourself is on the hook for accomplishing your mission.

I am my own leader. While my actions and outcomes may affect others, and while I may depend on others for input and assistance in my tasks; at the end of each decision it is "I" who must lead myself to success, or failure, whichever I choose to deliver.

Are we clear?

I am MY own leader!

You are YOUR own leader!!

Now for the real question: Am I (are you) ready to lead?

Leadership is an innate ability which can be honed into higher degrees of effectiveness with education and experience. Note I said 'and', not 'or'. You want to lead yourself to victory, then you have to 'do' it, not just think about it. For the outcome of what you do to be successful you need to first know the success factors of leadership.

These success factors, or leadership traits as I prefer to refer to them, were taught to me nearly 30 years ago. Learning them, and living them are two different choices. To get myself from here, to my goal of 199, I am going to have to live these traits each day along the way. On any given day where I can reflect and see that I have come up short, you can bet that I can identify one of more of these traits which I did not hold true to.

Let us get busy learning these leadership traits, there are fourteen of them. Yes 14; no moaning or sighs of hot air allowed! Anything worth learning is worth learning in detail. Therefore we are going to learn all 14 of them. To increase the potential of learning and retaining them so that we can put them to practice, we are going to learn them one at a time; one per day over the next fourteen days.

Without further introduction as to my intent here, away we go…

Leadership 199 / Trait 1 of 14: Dependability

Defined: The certainty of proper performance of duty.

Discovered: Duty, a very powerful word as I see it. When we have something to do, the degree of importance which we associate it with goes up if we accept it as our duty. If we associate it as something less, then I would suggest it is a 'want' and not a 'need'. Would you agree that getting healthy and living healthy is something you need to do? Myself, I do. The it is our duty to do just that, get healthy and stay healthy.

Certainty, a word that infers an absolute. This word, I like! Absolutes are empowering, motivating, as they demand accomplishment. "For my duty this day I will certainly exercise by running 2 miles and executing my push up & sit up routine"; if you see this as your duty you would proclaimed it just as I wrote it there. However if you do not see this as your duty, you probably have proclaimed it as follows; "I need to exercise today and will do so as soon as I can."

Da-Point: Your success is dependent upon your ability to perform your duty as required.

Can you depend upon yourself to do your duty?

 
Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 354 - Leslie, Elle, Kathy, Jenn & Me

This morning I opened up Blogger to see what's up and write a post. Lots going on out there, and lots of thoughts bouncing about my head. So many I am at a loss as to what topic to snag and gab about today. So, since I seem to be a bit scatter-brained this day, let's just spitball shall we; random thoughts/comments/whatever coming at you ready or not…

The Chicago Blackhawks are going to kill me before anything else. With just 3 games to play they have yet to clinch a berth in the playoffs; not what we expected from our defending champions. They can still make the playoffs and probably will, but their recent inconsistent muckiness has seen many fans move on to chewing other peoples finger nails.

CRAP a tweeter I follow tweeted this recently: @LeslieGoldman "Don't eat CRAP: Caffeine, Refined sugar, Alcohol, Processed foods. @ellemcpherson (Her trainer's philosophy. Seems to be working for her!)". First this tweet gave me flashbacks of the early 90's when Elle Macpherson was 'the' gal who could get us guys drooling the fastest. Well, most guys; I still say Kathy Ireland was 'the' gal of that day. As much as I enjoy reliving fantasies of Kathy & Elle, this tweet grabbed my attention more for the CRAP reference. Think about… what percentage of your daily intake was CRAP when you were at your worst? Honest reflection; I'll say 60%+ myself. On my best days; 20% or less'ish… meaning I am not certain. Something to pay more attention too. Check out Leslie's blog here!

And you can check out Elle here, and, Kathy here (yeah, Kathy rules but Elle's site is better).

News is that the U.S. Government may shut down soon. Huh, meaning they have been working up until now?

My Ford Expedition hit 145,000 miles this week, picture proof above. This week it has also been knocking and making uncool sounds. I think it is a tank of bad gas, something I personally have been accused of often. But ever since filling up at a grocery store last Sunday this racket has come & gone. Hopefully the octane boost added and running this gas tank dry remedies this woe. My goal is to have this ride around for another 145,000 miles of 7 years, whichever comes first; I know, not realistic.

Seriously, word is that 2 Billion people are predicted to tune in to watch the royal wedding; Seriously?

I have another shout out for you: Jenn over at AGirlWhoLovesCupcakes, also tweets as @iheartreading. Jenn achieved some cool fame recently that many of us will only dream about; she found herself on a highway billboard, the link there will take you right to her proud post. Did you check it out? Yep, pretty cool huh? Plenty more reasons to follow Jenn… the food pics on her blog are tasty looking, her writing is top notch, and my fave Jenn'trait is how she ends each blog post with an {I am grateful for} list. If you didn't check her out yet, stop being a fool and get over there!

My final thought for the day, and a thought for everyday really:
There is no such thing as courage without fear.... to be fearless is to be foolish...

Respect Fear, Embrace Courage, Achieve Victory!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 350 - Engagement + Opportunity

WARNING: Long Post Alert; I know the day after I mention I don't write long posts for a reason, I go ahead and write on. Feel free to curse me out as you read on, but do read on please...

This Thursday two of my boys & I visited Northern Illinois U, here they are...

Don't they look thrilled to be there on a nice day during spring break? It was a great visit all in all. I believe the boys liked what they saw and NIU will remain on their lists for now.

This visit was a reality check in a number of ways. Hopefully for them in some way it underscored the importance of taking time to be thorough in making the critical decision of where to invest their time (and our money) on their education. One can hope, although the 'sights' they wanted to see were walking all over the campus so not sure they came away with the same appreciation for the place I did.

For me, there were two distinct reality checks. For one, higher learning is a gift. Yes we pay for it, and pay allot for it, it is still a gift even though we buy it for ourselves and don't unwrap it on a holiday.

Just looking around at various kids deep in study, those focused on a professor working through a formula I long ago forgot, and that duo rehearsing their lines in hallway of who knows what performing arts hall we were in; they were engaged in something that can increase their opportunities for success. I say 'can' very purposely here.

Going to school and accumulating grades, class ranking, alphabet-soup test-score; these trophies of your academic career will do next to nothing to bring you success. Success does not come to you, so please do not wait for it to be brought to you.

Success MUST be achieved.

Success is achieved by PURSUING opportunity.

True, all of those things I just labeled as academic trophies, they can do something for you; just ONE thing actually. They can buy you opportunities. Or as I prefer to hear them referred to, 'tickets to the dance'. And we need opportunity, we MUST have tickets to as many dances as possible to succeed at that which we are passionate about.

So YES, go to college, graduate with the highest grades, class ranking & test-scores; striving for less from you're educational investment is to foolishly tear up dance tickets that are there to be had. Celebrate yourself silly when you graduate, celebrate like you've never celebrated before; you've earned tickets and celebration is in order.

When the celebration is over, you need to sit up & guess what, that degree you receive in the mail a few weeks after you walk down the aisle wearing that funny gown & cardboard hat, that envelope it comes in does not also have one ounce of success in it. Nope, NONE!

Opportunity is everywhere, degree or not; opportunity is there to be had by all. With degree in hand, much more opportunity awaits you and some will be amazing close too. But, just because you are at the dance does not mean you have obtained anything real, anything you can convert into the wants & needs your life craves. Nope, not just by dressing pretty & arriving at the dance, you still have no true success.

You want it success, you have to achieve it (repeating myself from above). You achieve it, by being engaged. The same way you engaged in school to earn your credentials, honor cords, and potpourri of awards. That same engagement, when applied to the opportunities you can now see... That same engagement, when performed for the dance partners that now recognize your presence...

That same Engagement + Opportunity = Success

 

For two, NIU reaffirmed that life is a gift. Sure, I acknowledge this is such a simple notion. And coming from one who is engaged in a battle with cancer, such a public proclamation of this notion is probably no surprise.

But it is not from my own walk which I refer to this notion. Some will recall that on Feb 14, 2008 a lone gunman (student) opened fire on the NIU campus and took the lives of 5 students. Another 21 people were injured in the tragedy.

The picture above is of the memorial that has since been erected to honor the victims of that day. Behind the brushed metal sculpture are five red granite walls (my cell phone camera could only fit in four), each wall features the name of one of the students whose life was taken that day.

Life is a gift, whether that life is short, long, or somewhere in between. Gifts should receive our earnest attention and be treated with our sincerest appreciation.

I can think of no better measure of attention and appreciation than the level of engagement we give a gift we receive.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 293 - They Said What?

Good Morning. Your snow storm (a.k.a. Snowmagator) update for today; our schools are closed again. Urgency is lacking in getting the roads back to normal. A bit surprising it is taking so long for me it is no big deal really, I can work from home easy enough.

Yesterday it took two of my teenage boys & I 1.5 hours to remove all the snow from our driveway & sidewalks. They say we had 20 inches of snow fall, I believe them.

There you see a picture before we got started. My daughters car had drifts around it that I took a tape measure to which were 35 inches deep. Bummer too as I really wanted go out and shoot some hoops!

Today seems like a great day to give some Shout-Outs to some bloggers and their posts which grabbed me good recently. Check them out, I think you'll be glad you did and follow on with these fine bloggers if you are not doing so already...

MARY from A Merry Life gave us this cool & very unique insight into what has been motivating her over he long journey. Literally long!

Do you have your own, "The Stack" story?

Myself, nothing as cool as Mary, but I have a bunch of T's I've received as gifts over the past decade that are 1x which I am determined to fit into this year.

DEB from Deb Shrinks got my attention quickly with the title of this post, Vaseline, frozen eyelashes, oh, and ONEDERLAND BABY!!! Actually when I saw it all I read was 'Vaseline' and I raced to click open the post; what does that say about me? It wasn't until I read onto the final paragraph that I noticed her HUGE NSV NEWS where she has arrived in ONEDERLAND.

Have you had an NSV recently you have yet to share?

Myself, well, I have a pre-NSV in that I am on the verge of taking hammer & punch to my old belt again. Maybe in a week or two; NO, definitely in a week or two!

BETHANY from Bethany's Journey is a new blogger. She is also the daughter of KAREN from Sunshine's Heart, so you can call this a Two'fer Shout Out entry. CAUTION, if you do not like cute pictures of infants & toddlers, don't go here. Bethany has begun her weight-loss journey, lets share our experiences with her to help get her off and moving here.

Remember when you started your weight-loss journey?

Myself, absolutely. The difference from then to now in my knowledge of the topic and understanding of my capabilities is as different as the taste of cow-pies and moon-pies (making an assumption here that cow-pies taste worse than bad).

Spread What Moves You & Shout Out Some Link Love This Week!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 227 - F-18 Flyover Accomplished

Monday was owned. Food near perfect, Exercise nailed!

Queue the anthem and the F-18 flyover... Ok, maybe the fly-over would be a bit much. But that feeling of accomplishment where your are brimming with pride for a job well done, that is how my Monday came off for me. Of course you really can't get the full effect of that feeling until you wake up the next day when there is no longer any opportunity to ruin yesterday.

One key to yesterday's feel-good, how I balanced the days food. The picture there is of my lunch for Monday. Where Monday was spot-on for me is that the calories on my lunch plate exceeded those of my dinner plate. Why is that a big deal?

For so very very long (yes 2 very's) that has not been the case. Even while on this mission which has been largely successful I have struggled to avoid eating 40-50% of my days calories at dinner.

What you see there is garden salad with egg splashed with a bit of sesame oil & ranch accompanied with a bowl of veggie chili; this meal rang in at about 625 calories. My dinner (not pictured) of turkey breast (yes leftovers from Thursday) & fruit salad rang in at about 350 calories.

Over the past several months I have come to know my body fairly well. And I know it feels better, performs better, and maybe even looks better (underscore maybe) when I eat in better balance and when my mid-day meal is larger of the three meals. This I need to remember and strive for daily for what I hope are obvious reasons.

Now I am writing this post read as if such feelings of accomplishment are rare for me. Not the case, they are far more a regular part of my days these past 7+ months than ever. Such feelings of accomplishment can motivate greatly and ought to be recognized and sought after; my opinion.

Hit me with what gave you your last F-18 flyover feeling of accomplishment.

Oh, and for those who may not know what I mean by F-18 flyover, then for crying out loud get yourself to a big time football game, or better yet to a Nascar race; stand, salute, cheer & hang on... Until then just watch THIS.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 216 - Attitude Change Charge

When I was a young adult I didn't have an appreciation for attitude and it's role in success. After a trio of decades I began to acknowledge how a positive and aggressive attitude could make the difference in the results in teams at work. Applying the right attitude injects ability into that which is worth doing.

For me, experience was needed for that realization to emerge. In my fourth decade I discovered the application of attitude also works at home. An attitude of respect and appreciation applied at home launches our contribution to each other and emboldens our courage to overcome the trials of marriage and family.

In my fifth decade I now understand, finally, that it is attitude more than anything which I can leverage to become better as a person. Finally, I get it. Attitude has been the key to every professional and relationship success I have enjoyed. Attitude is what will see me succeed in my personal mission. Attitude more so than the technique I apply my mission; more so than action plan I adopt, more so than the knowledge I summon to my cause; Attitude when embraced changes impossible into inevitable.

Embrace your Attitude.

Enable desired Change.

Enjoy being in Charge.

.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 214 - Feeling Great Because

From R2D2's wife to a variety of lamp switches, as always no shortage of creative guesses at our picture riddle. Ann of Ann Is Livin' Large No More gave us two guesses, Her first was a "chrome-plated under-desk-mounted bourbon dispenser", which falls into the category of 'how cool would that be to have'. Her second was a "Liquid Soap Dispenser" which was correct. Well done!

There you see it, a Liquid Soap Dispenser. I took that picture last week while at my annual visit with my oncologist. It has been a bit more than nine years since I kicked the beast off me, or out of me if you prefer. This annual is an extension of my annual physical with my primary care doc with the added bonus of extra blood work up and extra poking & prodding. All in all very routine from year to year. However this visit comes after this summers brief dance with melanoma. He was surprised to hear that the spot on my my cheek he labeled 'nothing to worry about' a year ago was later diagnosed as as melanoma in situ. I could tell he was bothered by this, and maybe he should be. I chose not to make much hay out of it as the good news is it has been removed and I am feeling great.

How about you, are you feeling GREAT today?

If YES, why?

If NOT, why?

I am feeling great because I am healthier today than I was yesterday.
Because I am way more healthier than I was on April 17th of this year.
Because I have a gorgeous wife who I love dearly and kids that haven't worn me out yet.
Because I know how to be healthy and know I can do it.
Because I believe the Chicago Blackhawks are going to break out of their funk soon.
Because I look forward to exercising which is something I never thought would happen.
Because I get to go deer hunting this weekend.
Because I have come to know so many cool people through blogging my way to a healthier me.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 196 - OctGTD to NovGTD

Look at those geese. They are totally fearless, nothing disturbed them. Not even my presence. Do you think they somehow know I hunt deer and not birds? Yet, that is.

Big day today, party day for the six in the family (three that live under our roof) whom have birthdays in October. We'll have about twenty people in all grazing and drinking this afternoon. Good times, and, an afternoon of temptations.

October is all but done and that means the October Go The Distance challenge is winding down. For myself this challenge was to Walk/Jog 25 miles in October. I accomplished that with a weekend to spare. However, I feel I should've hit that goal at least a week ago. Having shared that thought with Robby (Fit Girl Vs World) she had a great counter thought, "I think it's an eye opener for a lot of people to see how much it takes to be consistent, to find the motivation, to do the work. I mean, try not to think of it as a finish line, but a launching point for other challenges."

She has an excellent attitude, even more excellent perspective. Fit Girl Vs World organized this challenge and her post HERE yesterday ask us participants to consider a few things as we wrap up. In appreciation for her fine challenge I've decided to dedicate those considerations to this post. Here are my thoughts...
How do you think you did over the course of the month?

• How do you think you did over the course of the month?
In a word; inconsistent. I accomplished roughly 1/2 my goal in the 1st week. From there I struggled to make the time to do the other 1/2 by month end.

• Did you overestimate or underestimate your capabilities? Why is this? Is this representative of a larger trend in your life?
Under; even though I got my mileage in by month end I know I had more miles in me. Why? I simply poorly planned for exercise time. Challenges, & anything goal worth attaining, deserve better planning rigor.

• Did you learn anything about yourself while doing this?
I learned, or validated, that I am capable of much more when I CHOOSE to go for it. I come away here believing that I need to either come up with a valid reason to not go for it, or, GO FOR IT.

• Can you apply what you've learned in #OctGTD somewhere else in your life?
Sure, we all have other aspects of our lives which need marked improvement. One such area for me is career planning. I've attained allot in my career, but, so much more is attainable and can be achieved soon if I put more rigor to going for it.

• Did you make any new friends through #OctGTD -- were you able to support each other?
Oh yes, especially through twitter & using the #OctGTD hashtag. I would not have met as many new fitness blog/tweeps had it not been for this.

• What was the hardest part of the challenge? (physical? mental/psychological?)
Hhmmm... I am going to say mental. It was purely my own mental 'greased-albatross-wrangling' which saw me barely achieve my goal versus exceed it. Physically, to walk/jog 25 miles for the month was not too difficult. Although when I set the goal I did think it would be more difficult as I was just starting to add jogging to my cardio mix.

• What do you think you did really well this month? (doesn't have to be about #OctGTD)
Follwoing through to see the goal was achieved. The old me would have seen my inconsistency and given up or cared less if I got to mile 25 by the deadline or a week late. My new 'determined commitment' saw to it that I succeed just as it has fueled my overall transformation for nearly 200 days.

• What do you think you could improve on? (again, doesn't have to be about #OctGTD)
Other than the previously stated plan to exercise better, I'll go with eating consistency. I've had some struggles this month eating very good day in and day out. More fair or even poor eating days in October than the previous five months.

• No matter the numbers you already entered, are you going to finish strong, or taper off?
I took up this challenge for added inspiration, a reminder if you will, to do the work needed to get healthy. Just because I have hit my #OctGTD challenge goal does not mean I have achieved good health. The need to keep going strong remains and actually never will end in my 'new' belief.

• Did you go the distance? And no, I don't mean did you hit 100% of your goal... did you put yourself out there and really try for it? Is 80% still something you can be proud of?
This answer is entwined in all of my above answers. In short; I left gas in the tank. But I am proud of myself, very proud. I shall not allow a moments negativity in my reflection here.

I'm ready for #NovGTD; are you?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 194 - Courageously Burning Lettuce

To shed the darkness of obesity for something better is Courage necessary? If you consider embarking on a mission to get healthy to be very challenging, to be unknown in some respects if not many, or to be one where you success is at risk from the start; then you likley also consider courage to be a necessary attribute to embrace. If you disagree, please share with the class.


Good day yesterday, no great day. Had a follow up visit for my cheek scar and all is healing as it should at this point so says the doc, excellent. Got in the cardio I mentioned yesterday in the morning and followed that up with solid eating through to the end of the day. Let's see if I can follow that up with a repeat today.

For those that asked to see the new clothes, I am here to make your requests reality; feast your eyes to the right... clashes withe sea-foam'ish green walls doesn't it?

How many are a fan of the show Burn Notice? My kids love the show so I see it on from time to time, thus I am familiar with it. I win't go as far as to say I am a fan as if there aren't goals being scored or checkered flags being waved I have a hard time giving the television time.

That said, this not a post about a television show, rather it is sort of about calories. Each day we take in calories and burn off calories. Most if not all reading here understand how the math works. Knowing the math is important. No, it is critical for understanding the basics of health if I may dare say so.

Breathe easy, I am not going to bore you with a caloric math lesson. If you want that, there are a zillion websites, try this one. Or better yet, Allan over at Almost Gastric Bypass has written some great posts on the math, give his site a search.

Knowing the math, I am interested in how to make it a fun ride on the caloric teeter-totter? Why make it fun? Well, because I like it fun, and fun it will be. If that is not reason enough then consider my (or maybe your) dozens of previous missions to get healthy. Myself, many times I just plodded through focusing on the math, and just the math. Sadly, I quit each of those missions.

A common and key learning from all of those attempts; if you don't enjoy what you are doing, your chances of success are a skosh above zero. Accepting the mission to become healthy is hard enough, particarly mentally; why make it harder still by accepting that it has to be boring? Not me, not this time. Here is one way I try and keep it fun...

I wake up, and while attending to the 3-S's I ask, What will I burn off today?

Yesterday, I committed to burning off not exercising the day before, at least 400 calories.
Today, I committed to burning off a piece of birthday cake since I will be avoiding three birthday cakes this weekend. I do not plan on eating any, not one bite, but I am going to burn one off anyhow!
Recently, I committed to burning off 10 heads of lettuce. Figuring 75 calories per; 750 was my target that day.
Once, I committed to burning off all the carbs I ate the day before. Figured a target burn of 200 carbs or 800 calories; the biggest culprit in that number were the 150 carbs of spaghetti with bolognese from dinner.

Sound goofy? To some it will. To others it won't.

Getting healthy ought to be fun! So get busy having fun & fit.

What will you burn off today?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 193 - Rewards Rock, But

GO, that is my word for the day. I am not at work this morning, so no fancy white board. Just cheap ball point pen to scrap paper. No picture of new clothes today either. I just got back from a 2 mile walk/jog combo where I posted a new PR at 29:03 minutes. So you see me in my cheap workout shirt trying to get this post put together so I get on to eating some breakfast and a take a shower...

Where do you want to GO today?

Rewards rock! And they certainly can help motivate, they do for me. But those of us that use rewards for attaining milestones must keep rewards in perspective. The rewards are not meant to be the primary, or even secondary, reason we strive to get healthy.

Rewards are simply carrots we dangle to help us alongside the real reasons we do this. For everyone our real reasons are different and most of us have shared them from time to time with each other. If I were to hazard a guess, and I shall; a guess at the commonality amongst all of our real reasons I would say longevity & happiness may be the big two. Fitting into smaller stuff may be a close third :-)

For my 40% to goal weight reward it took me a couple months to cash in that reward. Simply I debated whether I really needed the hitch-haul I had originally set out for that goal. Mixed into that self-argument was the looming reality that I needed a whole new set of work clothes. As I shared last week my wife ended my internal argument for me and took me shopping, so new clothes it was. I Love My Wife!

For my 50% to goal weight reward it took me a couple days to cash in. There it is below, my new hunting rifle. Bought it on Sunday, the day I verified I had eclipsed the 50% mark. Illinois has a 1-day waiting period before you can pick up purchased rifles yet it took me two days to get back to the store to bring it home. For any fellow hunting or shooting enthusiasts out there I picked out a Savage Arms 7MM Rem Mag Rifle w/3-9x40MM Scope.

Now on towards the 60% milestone which I hope to attain by end of year at the latest. 

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 191 - Pic At This

Thought I'd spend today putting up some pictures. Why not start with a picture of something, something that you may or may not know what it is. If you think you do, offer a guess, otherwise, I'll come back tomorrow with what it really is. So take your best guess, it costs nothing and won't hurt a bit.

- - -

Our daughter Ashley turned 18 this week. It was just another day as a high-school senior for her in most ways with one exception; she got to vote for her first time. Thanks to early voting in Illinois . Her birthday cake was as she wanted, a stack of chocolate donuts with candles on top; and it was for breakfast. Hey, she wanted chocolate donuts before getting off to soccer practice.

- - -

Part of her day also included a trip to a couple of banks to close out her children's savings account and get her properly set up to bank as an adult. I wonder if she can spot me $5 until Tuesday?

- - -.

My wife and I went for a walk yesterday evening. Felt good to get out and walk for some exercise, first real cardio I've done in a week. All of the neighborhood trees planted along the roadside parkways are void of leaves. The rapid leaf loss this year has more to do with the high winds of late versus the temperatures which have been quite warm the past few weeks.

- - -

Good thing I saw this lawn decoration while it was still a bit light out. If I hadn't noticed it until one of my 4:30 a.m. walks I may have well been freaked out enough to run. Hmmm, that may not have been a bad thing. We used to go bonkers on the holiday decorations when the kids were grade schoolers. These days they could careless and participate less in such things. Thus we do not decorate at all for Halloween and my once Grizwold like Christmas display pales in comparison to a decade ago.

- - -

This past weekend my wife & I went on a date. We took in our first hockey game of the 2010-11 campaign.

The Blackhawks 2010 Championship banner looks great hanging from the rafters of the United Center.

Now we need to get another, and another, and...

- - -

Today's word of the day is ABLE.

I am able to rule this day and end it healthier than I started it.

How was your weekend?

 Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 188 - Today's Word Is

As of late I have noticed more and more folks using visual aids for motivation. More specifically the use of single words scribbled on cubical white boards, or on sticky notes slapped on their monitors, refrigerators, etc., or even up on walls in the form of vinyl letter applications. Others we know goes as far as to tattoo their fave words that inspire them on their arms, legs, chests or...

Giving the use of single words some thought, I have decided to not get tattooed. Just want to end any anticipation I have may have created in the first paragraph that I am about to ink up here. Nothing wrong with ink, just not going there; not today anyhow. Giving thought, I believe that whatever we can find motivation in that gets us to set goals and achieve them, them leverage whatever that is. If it is a word, a quote, a poster of the U.S. Constitution, then get it up before your eyes and feed off of it.

We wade into each day with differing levels of energy, intensity, desire (how is that for some rapid-fire motivational words?)... Some days we need a bump to apply ourselves towards what we desire. Sometimes that bump is a simple nudge of a reminder that there is something worthy to be achieved today. And sometimes that bump is a hard slap to the face that you are in a hole and need to stop digging and climb up, out and move onward.

Motivation is whose responsibility? It is our own, What we say to ourselves, that is what more often than not is what keeps us on mission. A word, just one, can be all it takes to provide the bump of motivation needed today. Tomorrow, the same word may be the right word for the day. Or, maybe a different word is needed to get the fire started, stoked and ablaze. Perhaps one words gets the morning moving and it is another that is needed to carry the afternoon. To each his/her own!

What is your motivational word for this moment you are in?

For myself, you see mine for the moment there in the picture of my own cubical white board: DARE
I know, not your typical word that inspoires. But today I find I need to remind myself to DARE to be better. Being better is not easy, it is not just going to happen; I need to be bold enough to DARE myself to do that which is hard and requires effort if I want to reap the rewards that are quite obvious.

Not sure what word it is that will amp you up today, that's ok. Nothing wrong with doing a little word shopping for the one that pops up and grabs you...

Accomplish ~ Achieve ~ Act ~ Action ~ Ambition ~ Attain
Attitude ~ Believe ~ Challenge ~ Commit ~ Confidence
Control ~ Conquer ~ Courage ~ Desire ~ Determination
Empower ~ Encourage ~ Endure ~ Energy ~ Enthusiasm
Faith ~ Finish ~ Fire ~ Focus ~ Goals
Happiness ~ Honor ~ Humility ~ Imagine ~ Inspire
Integrity ~ Joy ~ Knowledge ~ Laugh ~ Learn
Love ~ Mission ~ Motivate ~ Opportunity ~ Overcome
Passion ~ Perseverance ~ Positive ~ Pride ~ Risk
Satisfaction ~ Spirit ~ Spunk ~ Strength ~ Succeed
Trust ~ Value ~ Wisdom ~ Zest ~ Chicago Blackhawks

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 183 - Get Looking Up

On Friday (two days ago for those of you still half-asleep) I mentioned a minor set back I had on Thursday (Thanks again for all the enouraging words) and that I was moving onward. And I did, Friday was a banner day actually. It was banner in that I ate great and exercised and got my healthy back on.

Yet, even though I knew what I needed to do, and I did it, I still found myself wanting to get angry and argue with myself over the set back. It must be cruel human nature to want to get down on yourself and needlessly drag out the negative. Why that is I do not know, but I don't like it. More specifically what I don't like is that I came to terms with the set back, and step forward again physically, but still I stepping forward mentally took an extra day or so to catch up.

Oh, maybe I am whinning here and I really ought not too. Especially since it was a small hole I dug myself into. If so, then I will stop as I dislike whinning and doing it myself is not something I can tolerate. What really matters is that my brain has caught up to my body and all is well. There is no perfection really, just great effort to be better. And better I am, that I am positive of.

Looking up, well you see me there looking up, and that is just what I am doing. Something that keeps me looking up is you, my fellow bloggers. And I'd like to share a few shout outs with you from some cool posts I've read this past week...

Luke over at "The Super Fatlete" had this post on Wednesday.
He shares a cool idea to pair up the obese / over-weight with mentors from endurance sports in effort to break their cycles of unhealthy living. Luke is looking to move this idea into reality He has hasked for feedback about the concept and suggestions about the execution. Check him out and share your words whether they be wise or whimsical. 

LauraLynne over at "Taking the Scale by storm!" had this post on Thursday.
She shares her boot camp experience and love she has for it. What really tugged at me with this post is this quote, "I'm not there to impress anyone". I know, that by itself doesn't say much. But read the paragraph it is in, and tell me you don't get tugged in too. She also goes on to talk very frankly about parenting. And after reading that if you want more LauraLynne as I did, read her NSV post from Wednesday. Oh heck read all of her posts! Seriously, check her out if you two have not met.

Hope everyone had a Saturday they can call great and that your Sunday will be better yet.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 179 - All The Weigh

Kenz, over on All The Weigh posted a questionnaire last week. I've seen it answered on a few blogs, have enjoyed the Q&A and am giving it my attention here and now. If you enjoy this, take the time to answer these questions too in a comment on her fantastic blog, or in your own blog post. If you do, let Kenz know so she can enjoy your answers too.

Here are my answers...

1. What was your highest weight, what do you weigh right now and what is your goal weight?
320 pounds, my last weigh-in on 10/3 was 261.5 pounds; my goal wight is 199 pounds. Whew, 320, i can't imagine how I tolerated lugging that load around for as long as I did.

2. What is your #1 motivation for losing weight?
I probably answer this question a bit different each time when asked, there simply just is not one reason. But if I treat '#1' as if it is the most important reason possible, then that reason would be to do all I can not to die at a young age as a result of my own poor choices. And to a lessor extent because I want to wear with confidence swim trunks without also having to wear a tarp of a shirt to cover up the moobage.

3. Have you always been overweight?
No, although I have most of my adult life. I was 'puffy' in high school. I was fit in my early adult years. That gave way to weight gain in my later 20's and eventually obesity by my mid-30's.

4. When you want to give up what inspires you to keep going?
The fear of posting on my blog that I gave up, that I quit something. One of the greatest benefits of blogging is the accountability factor. The thought of having to say to all who read that I gave up; not a pleasant one in my head.

5. What is the #1 thing you look forward to when you hit your goal weight?
Writing that blog post. I have it scripted out in my head, it will be epic! As well I look forward to strapping on 121 pounds of weight (not sure how) and feeling once again - one last time - how that used to feel as a celebratory remembrance of what I used to be and how far I have come.

6. Do you have support on your weight loss journey?
Yes, oh my yes. My wife is there for me. My kids are too. Our cats benefit too as I give them more nibbles off my plate; yes our cats beg like dogs. And of course, the weight loss / fitness blogging community is in my corner in a big way too.

7. What is your favorite exercise?
Weights, free weights over machines. I love feeling strong and acting strong.

8. What is the most important thing you have learned on your weight loss journey?
Choices, it all comes down to choices. You have the power to choose, nobody forces you to eat crap and lay around like a pile of it. The program, the diet, the exercise, the secret to succeeding is not in any of them. It is within you. CHOOSE one that you feel good about, CHOOSE to make up your own, but just CHOOSE to get up and move more and eat smarter.

9. What is one thing you have given up that you miss the most?
Ordering at the drive thru and getting your feast within 38 seconds. That instant gratification stimulus of the fast food world is as addictive as the food itself. Eating healthy takes more effort, time; and it should. Being healthy, being happy, being alive is an amazing reward and the best rewards come from passionate & determined effort.

10. What is your strategy for losing weight?
I follow no plan because I find them to be boring and not very fun. If I can't have fun doing this then take me back to 320 please. Let me tell you something, I am having allot of fun. What fuels the fun is myself, I believe in myself. I simply believe in myself to make the choices necessary to get healthier each day. Think about that for a second... believing in yourself, how simple is that? Simply I choose each day to eat less, or burn more, or both. Keeping it that simple removes allot of stress from the mission.

The hardest part was realizing that this is what I want. You have to want to be healthy more than you want to just eat food to eat food.... Until a person can say that then he/she hasn't made the commitment needed to succeed; I myself have made that commitment. I've said it before, many have, getting healthy starts mentally; realizing why you want to get healthy and what it is going to require from you. If a person doesn't know how much, or how little, work this will be... how do they know they are ready for it?

Healthy weight loss does not happen by accident. We have to get ready for it, do a little homework. Know why you want it, what is involved is, and how you will achieve what you want. If you've done that, you've done the hard part. Now, if you believe in what you have come up with, you've set yourself up for success. All that is left is the simple part, commit to your belief in yourself and go gett'em.

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 141 - 43% Progress & Five-Oh'Yeah

A good morning to you all...

This morning was weigh-in day, and a it was great validation of all the hard work, mental & physical, I've put in over the past 4-1/2 months. The milestone hit today is just a number, but if you asked me 4-1/2 months ago if I'd have been able to hit it by the end of year, let alone in 141 days; I'd have said nope, not likely.

This morning I have lost 43% of the weight I have set out to lose.

That's 51.5 pounds lost over NINETEEN weeks; 2 of them this past week.

Today I weighed in at 268.5 pounds. Oh Yeah!

Yes, 50 is just a number. It represents what? Well, let's see...

• 50 less pounds to threaten my cardio-vascular health
• 50 more pounds of confidence to believe I can accomplish this mission
• 50 less pounds to inhibit my ability to do the exercise I need
• 50 more pounds of motivation to try things I thought myself incapable of 4-1/2 months prior
• 50 less pounds to have to explain when I get my annual physical
• 50 more pounds of energy to keep me off the couch and on task
• 50 less pounds to prevent me from getting on a roller coaster
• 50 more pounds of knowledge to put to use in getting healthier and healthier
• 50 less pounds to toss around as excuses for not living life as I wish I could
• 50 more pounds of blog followers who fuel me with the wisdom & respect of their own stories
• and I could go on...

So 50 is just number; and today it is my favorite number.

What is your favorite number today?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 140 - Rebounding From Wedding

The afternoon is almost gone and I am just sitting down for some blogging. It will be a short sit as I need to get ready to go see my son play soccer soon. But at least wanted to get a post up and checkout a few blogs before I go. I'll be back this evening to read more blogs and see how everyone is doing.

Hope all of you are doing well as we start this weekend. A long holiday weekend it is too. Myself, woke up feeling sluggish. Between the wedding rehearsal on Thursday evening and then the wedding Friday I am wiped out. And I was not even in the wedding party, so you can imaging how wiped out my wife is. So much so she is upstairs taking a nap before the soccer game.

While I didn't go binge crazy over board at these two events I did eat a good 300-400 calories more that I intend on a given day, where a given day day for me is 1700-2000 calories. Lets just say I likely took in 2500 calories on each of the last two days. Not terrible, the old me would have taken in 3-times that. Not good either as I did eat more than I should have. Thus why I felt sluggish this morning too.

But I did not let that feeling get to me, I did the opposite actually. Instead of wallowing in some pity I used that feeling for motivation and declared this a Two-A-Day day. In part to get moving to relieve myself of the sluggish feeling and in part to undo any damage I may have done the past two days. Weigh in day tomorrow, and I am weighing in and announcing the milestone achieved tomorrow as I set out to do at the beginning of the week.

First up on the Two-A-Day: Stanton Hill. My son was with me and as well the JV high school football team was there using the hill. Luckily the section I use was available and off we went. A brisk 60F day out made it pleasant, though the high winds were a bit of a nuisance. Last time out here I missed a new PR on this hill by a few seconds. It had been over a month since I hit the 20 laps up & down mark. We set our sights in on 21 this time and gave it all we had. And have it we would, we nailed 21 with about a minute to go,not enough time to get in a 22nd lap, that'll have to wait for another visit and be happy with this PR, Oh Yeah!

Second up on the Two-A-Day: the 3.6 Mile Neighboorhood II loop. AI had a light lunch after the hill and a brief rest and then off I went by myself for this walk. My goal was an hour, my best so far was just over 61 minutes. This is a loop through our sub-division, into the next and around two large park and back. All concrete and asphalt, some small inclines and declines; friendly walking terrain you could say. Along the way I listened to the latest podcast from MizFit & Shauna, which was both motivating and at the same time there were parts where I just wanted to sit on a park bench and listen because my own breathing was getting in the way of listening. But know I had the luxury of listening to it again later on, I kept going. And going I went to a 60:43 finish. Aother PR for this day, Oh Yeah!

Ok, I am off to the shower and to soccer. Have a great day everyone!

Catch your blogs later this evening and catch you back here tomorrow for my weigh in.

Oh, have you checked out MizFit & Shauna's podcast? If not use that link up there and give it a listen; good stuff!

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 131 - Seen Da Light

Top-o-Thursday to you.
"Time sneaks up on you like a windshield on a bug." -- John Lithgow
 
Great day yesterday, near perfection in eating & exercise. All meals balanced, portioned well, and mighty tasty too; what more can a healthy wanna be ask for?

Exercise before work was 5 sets each of sit-ups and push-ups with stretching exercises between sets; Thanks to all who answered my call the other day for help with stretching. After work my son & I walked Lake Andrea. Well, we didn't walk it all, we jogged the last .2-.25 miles of that 2.25 loop.

Funny thing was my pants were falling down while jogging. Picture if you can my 272'ish pound frame jogging in dockers & a dress shirt (on Wednesday's I don't go home before going up to hang with my son), having to hold his pants up with my left hand while fumbling an ipod nano with the other because I knocked the ear cords out with my right hand as it pumped away. I must have looked a mess, or a fool; and I loved looking just as I did.

We finished that loop in 35:29 minutes, a good 2.5 minutes faster than the previous best. Guess I can't call the Lake Andrea PR a walking event any longer. It is now a place to get my body around as fast as I can with a mix of walk, jog, crawl, skip, moon-walk, and dare I say better fitting clothes?

So yes, I enjoyed ruling the day yesterday - have you ruled a day lately?

I shall soon post that I have lost 50 pounds, it may be this weekend or next; but it is coming soon...
I shall RESIST temptation to return into the dark and put back on any unhappy weight; nope I have Seen Da Light.

I have learned so much in the past 131 days, thanks in large part to many of you; and I thirst for more...
I have LAUNCHED this mission to 199 pounds or less in pursuit of greater happiness; yes I have Seen Da Light.

I will remember that being healthy is all mental, my will to change and my choice to act; I and I alone decide success over failure...
I will FORGO excuses of all form as cause to choose unhappiness; I have Seen Da Light.

I am happier today than yesterday, tomorrow will be happier today, the next 45 years will be my happiest yet...
I AM Responsibility 199; I have Seen Da Light.
(picture of me up there at son's soccer game this week seemed fitting)

Have You Seen Da Light?

 
Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 123 - Misunderstood and Admired

Good Morning!

 

No early a.m. exercise yesterday, I had to have the boys up, out and at school at 545 a.m. for soccer practice so no time for myself in the morning. But in the evening after dinner and wrestling with a plumbing project I got on the treadmill and burned off 500 calories in 50:47, so I've got one cardio and one strength workout in this week; need another of each minimum before Sunday's weigh in.

 

As promised here is yesterday's log looked like this....

• 615a - Grapefruit, Tomato Juice
• 9a - Milk, Banana
• 1045a - Almonds
• 12p - Garden Salad with Hard Boiled Eggs, Sesame Oil Dressing
• 3p-Peach, Premier Protein Shake
• 6p - Country Pork Spare Ribs (2 small ones for me), Cole Slaw (Homemade)
• 730p - Exercise: 500 Calorie Treadmill Walk Off (50:47 Minutes)

Every once in a while you read a post that makes you stop, re-read it, and feel moved. Yesterday I had that pleasure when I read THIS post by Misunderstood and Admired, I don't know his real name. As I commented to him this was a post that left me feeling as if I knew why he is on this mission. If you are not familiar with him you owe it to yourself to check him out even if you just read this one post.

 
Myself, I have rewound his blog and read all his posts, start to finish. If you have the time, it is seriously worth the reading time. I wish I had jotted down a few of the more insightful posts as I read, but I didn't. Not necessary though as the blog is not that long, less than four months worth of entries. But those few months of entries are gripping, you feel him grow from post one to post yesterday. His journey is not just about weight loss, it is one of making things better; his marriage, fatherhood, his overall happiness.

 

There was one other post, in addition to yesterdays, which I found very revealing about him, his feelings, his struggles along his journey, his perseverance; that other post is THIS one he made on Monday, July 12, 2010. As I did not come to follow him initially until later in July yesterday was the first time I read this particular post. I'd call it a must read...

 

Actually if you have very little time left for blog reading today stop reading mine, click on that link, and spend it reading his post. Go ahead, trust me. For those of you who have more time and are still with me here; do the same - go read it and then come back for more of my observation on Misunderstood and Admired.

 

Honestly I hesitate to summarize his blog further because there is the chance that I have read him wrong; what I read has been a hard but rewarding if not successful journey to date for him. But he himself may not feel as good about the results as I've read it to be, so, I'll stop my pitch there and again suggest that if you have the time, it is seriously worth the reading time. It is worth it because he is doing what we all want; he is achieving what he desires. And dare I say, he his becoming a better person beyond just becoming a healthier person.

 

"If you have the desire to change your thinking followed by the motivation to act achieving is inevitable"
– misunderstood and admired

 

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!

Day 118 - We Win When

Yesterday Christine asked me this; "So, um....what are you doing this week to ensure that when you step on the scale on Sunday that you'll see a loss? Because you came out even last week, right?"

Now that is what I call great; friends holding friends accountable. Thanks Christine. And to answer your question, here is what I have been doing…

Exercised on Tuesday & Thursday. Tuesday was the mosquito walk I blogged about and yesterday was a lunch time walk. Both about 2 miles. Accountability consideration; not enough. Argh, it is true, just that plain too; not enough. More cardio will be had today & tomorrow and a stint with the dumbbells will be had too - promise!

Food has been good this week, not great and not bad. I have found that I am being tempted more and pondering giving into to temptation more as of late. Not sure why, perhaps all of the change influences I blogged about yesterday. Really I don't want to ponder that too much as it feels like I am searching for excuses.

Certainly I have no excuse for any giving in to temptation of which I can cite two instances this week. Our team at work went out earlier this week to welcome a new hire to the team, and beer & pizza was everywhere which I did dabble in. I didn't dive into it as I would have in the days of old, but, if honest I dabbled more than one who is looking to drop pounds ought to have. The other was whipping up some homemade Mac N Cheese for the wife & kids for dinner, I think it was Monday, and then having that as my dinner too. Lately when doing something like that for them I've usually whipped up a salad for myself. That night we had no salad fixings in the house, so I had a small bowl of that sinful nonsense. Weak, that was just weak of me!!

Yesterday, thanks to Christine's poking me accountability nerve early in the day, I decided to make it a two'fer. I had two salads yesterday, one for lunch and dinner each. Would have been bad if I had two for lunch or two for dinner, no? The picture up above there, that is lunch. The one below here, that was dinner. I love mozzarella & tomatoes, a near perfect pairing if I ever tasted one.

Today will be just as good as yesterday I am certain. Um, no, it will be better; why not?

It is reflection like this that makes the difference in the success of a mission. It is people like Christine asking one simple & direct question that make the difference. It is that which will make the difference this time around which we all seek, I know I seek it.

This reflection has inspired me to title today's post, "We Win When"

We Win When - We blog, when we share our successes & struggles. We all need help, knowledge, accountability & an avenue to vent. Blogging gives us that and we get more of what we need when we give & take with those we follow.

We Win When - We say immediately say No to temptation & then say Yes to a better choice. Saying No should not be negative, it should not leave you feeling left out or punished. It should in fact feel good & empower you further. Following each No with a Yes enables that.

We Win When - We have fun with the changes we are making to our eating and exercise habits. Forcing ourselves to eat food we despise or perform exercises we dread or are not yet capable of doing, there is no fun there. Find the healthy choices that you can call fun, and have at them.

We Win When - _____________________________

You fill in the blank, We Win When ?

Responsibility 199 - Gotta Do It!!