Today it's working

Despite the fact that I got a good nights sleep, I still wrestled with my brain @ 5:10 AM in order to get out of bed. Actually I was already out of bed after the alarm went off (had to pee) rather, I had to fight not to crawl back into bed.

Then I got to thinking...

a. you are already awake and out of bed
b. your workout clothes and gym bag are already out and ready to go (nightly prep work before bed)
c. don't be like - "I'll just wait until Monday to get started" - WRONG!
d. if I had bought into letter c. above, I'd probably have set myself up for a bad weekend of eating and drinking - you know, the "last time" before I really get started on Monday

Instead I got dressed, went to the gym and had a great workout. Then I came home, made a smoothie, showered and greeted the day with a whole different attitude. I'm certain the weekend will be better as well.

Gene - 1
Brain - 0

What a mess

"Is there anybody alive out there?" -- Bruce Springsteen (at most every concert I've ever seen him at).

Sometimes I wonder....

In this case I'm referring only to me.

Based on posts from the Coalition I see that you all are alive and well. Good for you.

The greatest piece of Real Estate I own, the 6 inches between my ears, has once again betrayed me. Bad brain...bad, BAD brain. Just a few short weeks ago I ran the Lincoln Tunnel 5k. I didn't beat my time from last year, but I completed it without stopping (despite that fact that I wasn't really running a lot in prep for the race - I had a mild foot injury & I didn't want to aggravate it prior to the race), so all was good.

Then all hell broke loose and I don't know what happened.

Poor diet, poor nutrition & a poor mental attitude. I had to travel for work - totally last minute. Stress at home with 2 small kids (I love them to pieces but it's a lot of work) and my aging father & grandfather seem to pull me in opposite directions as well. I've gained weight and have been inconsistent at the gym. I'm angry because once again Memorial Day is right around the corner and I'm in the exact same place I was last year. Talking the talk, but not walking the walk.

I'm not gonna bitch about it because I can't do anything about what I've already done. What I need to do is get my head out of my ass, stop feeling sorry for myself and DO SOMETHING!

If I'm lamenting about another Memorial Day - just how bad will I feel in 5 months when I turn 40? Wasn't that the whole point I was trying to make? What am I going to do - change my blog to "The Journey to 41" and say better luck next year? What a tool.

I found this list recently & it inspired me to get back on the blog and post.

1. Be consistent.

2. Focus on improving every day.

3. Follow a professionally designed program & advice. Success leaves clues.

4. Fuel your body with the right foods.

5. Accept that things won't change overnight, but that with time & persistence, YOU WILL SUCCEED.

6. Train with purpose.

Call Me Irresponsible

Well, if I were Micheal Buble perhaps you could but in this case it's simply for letting an entire month go by without a single keystroke. Shame on me.

March was a difficult month on the family front. Pop came home from Harborage (Rehab facility) which is where he was for 2 weeks after his hospital stay. I was fortunate enough to find a woman caregiver who spends mornings with him but I still find myself over there 4-5 nights a week cleaning, administering meds, just spending time. I am lucky he lives so close so I guess it could be worse. I told him that when I was young he took care of me so now it's my turn to take care of him. He's a big Met fan (as am I) so I hope with baseball season upon us it turns his thoughts to better things. Maybe he'll see them win the World Series one more time?

Weight has been consistent around 193. I've kicked it up a notch with the NROL Fat Loss II routine. "Wow". I haven't lifted like this in well over a year and it feels fantastic. I have also given up booze for 30 days. Too many Friday nights with the bro-in-law getting (as we like to say) "shimmed up". Beer helped make me fat and unfortunately beer keeps me fat. So I'm off the sauce until the end of April and I know it will have a positive impact on me.

Remember that eating 7 apples in one day is not the same as eating 1 a day for 7 days.

Think about it.

Stay focused - stay strong fellow FATties. April Fools are upon us.

Life is full of challenges

Yikes. I can't believe I let a full month slip away without even one blog entry. I'm not going to make excuses. Since I won't except them from others, why should I waste the coalition's precious few seconds of reading time on lame ass excuses & whiny bullshit?

Currently "life's plate" contains helpings of...

Sick children. Baby has an ear infection and the older one has Strep. Joy. So my wife, who envisioned a week of mall lunches & playdates for the kids with her teacher girlfriends (Winter break here in the NJ public school system), has been captive to the house. You can only watch so much Noggin.

Ailing & aging family. My 96 year old Grandfather (the last surviving grandparent I have), who has raised me like his son & who I love like a father (mind you this has caused much conflict over the years with his son/my dad, but that's another story in itself) has been in the hospital for over a week. He's still currently there. As his caregiver and his P.O.A., I am going to be faced with some difficult decisions in the coming days/weeks. He can still take care of himself, but he can no longer be alone. Ideally I'd like to bring him home and get a home health aid, but it's too soon to tell if this is going to be possible. He's still sharp as a tack & I cannot bring myself to put him in a nursing home. Still praying over this one...a lot.

"Clean Eating & Exercise". I weighed myself this morning and was 194.6. Not as bad as I thought. Considering my inconsistencies of late. I bailed on the MH Belly Off Club. I felt as if I wasn't getting a decent workout on M&W. I needed to hold some iron in my hands and these workout were just not providing that. The Friday Body Weight work outs were much more intense. I have been doing the MH transformation workouts and I find those to be effective. Eating has been hit or miss. Not spot on perfect as I know I have done in the past, but not over the "top pork rinds and cola" bad either. A few beers here and there and some desserts that I simply shoud not have eaten, but my wife helps keep me in check, she is the best.

I just finished reading N.R.O.L. (thank you Marcol, I first read about it on one of your posts) & will begin a new routine on Monday. It's a great book.

Thoughts and prayers are welcomed. I'll make a stronger effort to check in more often. While I have not made many comments lately, I have enjoyed reading all of the coalition's posts.

Focus

"You can have big plans, but it is the small choices that have the greatest power. They draw us towards the future we want to create."

- Robert Cooper

I've been reading a lot lately. Currently I am reading "Build Your Mind, Your Body Will Follow" by Vincent D. Cocilovo. This is not your typical "fitness" book, however the title says it all.

Oh the mind is a beautiful thing, yet it can still be the "poison pill" we all strive to avoid. The difference? Focus.

Last week during my cleanse (during which I lost 8 lbs. by the way) I had to make a choice on where to direct my focus. Was I going to focus on my hunger and how much I missed simply "chewing food"? Or was I better off focusing on the goal of cleaning out my system and spring boarding back into clean eating? At times it was hard, but I chose to focus on the latter and it really made things easier for me.

There has to be a "bigger picture" for each of us. It will be different for everyone (as it should be). Keep in mind that the bigger picture (long term goal) is compromised of "snapshots" (short term goals) that we build upon along the way. So metaphorically speaking we should take snapshots along the way, making sure that they are helping us create our desired bigger picture.

BTW - Week one of the Men's Health Belly Off 2008 (MHBO) is going great. I'll post some stats soon. I am taking "snapshots" each week , but I'm going to save posting them for a while hoping for a more dramatic effect.

Oh Pooh!

On Tuesday I began what has become an annual January ritual for me; the colon cleanse. Be warned before you click on this link there are some images not suitable for the squeamish.

http://www.blessedherbs.com/

I am on day 4 of a 5 day liquid only fast. My "meals" consist of a packet of the "toxin absorber" mixed with apple juice (5x a day), plus some vegetable broth for lunch and chicken broth for dinner. That's it. No chewing required.

In the past, Day 3 was always the hardest, but this time Day 1 seemed to be tougher. I think it was because up until I began the cleanse, I had been overeating and over drinking so my body was like "What the F?"

I'm not going to lie. I'm hungry. But at this stage (less than 48 hours to go until I break my fast) it's just as much a mental as well as physical challenge.

And yes...there has been some interesting "stuff" coming out of me.

Why do I do it? 2 fold I guess. One is as I age I do believe that getting all the crud out of your system is a good thing. To use the analogy of a car engine, I've got years and years of motor oil all clogged up in me. Even though there is no history of colon cancer in my family, it can't hurt to be proactive. Secondly, this experience has given me a far greater appreciation for food and what I will choose to put in my body.

"So why aren't you skinny if this is your 3rd cleanse?" you ask. Great question that I don't have an answer to. Maybe I wasn't ready to make "life changes". Maybe I gave into temptation too quickly and easily. Maybe I wasn't about to turn 40. Maybe I just didn't have a plan going forward.

Well now I do.

Sunday I break my fast & I'm gonna eat like a pig. NOT...just checking to see if you are paying attention as you read. I'll be having some egg whites and oatmeal. Probably the finest in quite some time. Monday I will be begin the Men's Health Belly Off 2008 challenge. I have a friend who will be doing it with me. Although I will be modifying the meal plan, I love the workouts and am a big fan of Craig Ballantyne's Turbulence Training whose principals compose the workout.

In addition I have the growing coalition (growing in a good way) as a support group. I plan to be more active (at least weekly) in both postings and comments.

One of my fitness inspirations, Jon Benson, has a program called M-Power, where the M's stand for Mind, Meals, Muscle & Motion...in that order. Get your thinking straight and the rest seems to fall into place.

There is a saying that success leaves clues. We'll, there are tons of them on these blogs.

Start Strong Monday

Hey everyone -

I've got a few minutes & I wanted to share this with you. Sean Phillips (Bill's brother) has a great website called Start Strong Monday. Each week he streams a 3-5 minute audio file which I find to be packed full of good insight.

This current series is a 5 parter having to do with New Years resolutions and what he calls "obligation based motivation". Man, it's like he opened up my brain and looked right in.


I hope you all start your week off on the positive. Enjoy this.

Motivation Part 1: http://www.startstrongmonday.com/vol042
Motivation Secrets Part 2: http://www.StartStrongMonday.com