Challenges, Putting it all together

I have been working hard on my fitness to be able to accomplish my challenges. I have been putting all 3 components together doing the swim, bike, run using the YMCA pool and indoor bike followed by a outside run. I have gained a lot of confidence doing this as I realize I can make the distance and time required for the Olympic Distance Tri's. My swimming stroke is getting a lot better and I feel way more efficient in the water. I scored some new jammers and goggles this last week. I have come to accept the indoor training bikes are just not a ton of fun but required when its freezing outside. I tried one ride and parts of my body got colder than they are supposed to.

I am riding the bike a lot further and faster now and feel I kinda let the bike training get behind due to the weather.

My running is improving every week. I am running long distances at a heart rate of 140 and have completed 16 miles and will be pushing 18 miles this week. I am getting in some really good sprints and interval training. My shorter runs are now 6 miles. I really cant believe I've become a runner. I started helping coach soccer and find myself having to play some which is keeping me moving. I find my hot tub indispensable I sit in it sometimes twice a day.

Food is really tough for me and I have to really stay focused on what I eat. Eating for fuel instead of comfort is really different for me. I have cut back on some of my fat intake and am spending a few weeks at about 15% of my calories as fat calories. Which amounts to about 200. I realize if I'm going to push this body to accomplish my challenges I don't want to take extra weight along with me :) speaking of which I have now broke the 200 lb barrier and weight 199 lbs. for me this is bigger than running 16 miles. I have finally won the war against eating to much. I have tons of stamina work out 3 hrs a day most days and recover well. I am taking 2 rest days a week and only running long every other week.

Challenges

I have decided to challenge myself to keep on track and motivated to push my fitness to the next level. I have taken up the sport of triathlons. I will be competing in sprint and Olympic triathlons this spring and summer. I have also entered the Eugene marathon May 1st and am shooting for a sub 5 hr first marathon. I am currently in training and at 16 miles I am running close to an 11 min mile. If all goes well I will be pushing my limits even further in 2012.

My 2012 Dream :)

I am at this point able to swim over a mile, Run 16 miles and Bike 25 miles. When we get better weather I will be pushing my bike ride further. I have found some great books im reading

Total immersion for swimming
Marathoning for Mortals for running or walking

I am working out 5 days a week and cross training between weight lifting running swimming and bike riding total weekly hrs are about 10-12. Nutrition is getting more important as I train harder and I find myself eating better.

When I need inspired I look at what this man did. Missing both lower legs and half of his right arm.
Amazing Human feat


More to come

Fitness

After loosing the weight I needed to I turned my ambitions towards fitness. I felt pulled to get into better shape and make some goals along the way. I started to read a lot about fitness and how to achieve it. I was very interested in endurance sports and activities. My older brother Brian got me started using a HR monitor and I wish I would have had it from the start. The secret to fitness is kinda like the secret to weight loss, (there really is no secret ) but what I learned next was invaluable. getting in shape is all about your HR.
Heart rate calculator I use.
When I go for longer runs I stay about 70-75% of my max hr. for me about 135-140.
When im working on my speed and power I stay about 155-160. like running a 5k or some sprints.

If you run to fast your hr is to high and you will build up lactic acid faster than your body can remove it. you will then be done running. Before using  a hr monitor I suffered from this. I didnt really know my pace and would get feeling great then speed up only to have to slow down and not reach my distance goal. With the HR monitor I just watch my HR and keep it in the zone I need for the workout im doing.

I also got fit at a running store for a pair of running shoes and man do I wish I would have done that sooner as well. I cant believe the difference a pair of shoes that were designed for the way I run felt like on my feet. Cost is close to the same and feel is worth $1,000. I also went to all dry fit workout clothes and compression gear for my running, it keeps my muscles from getting jarred around as much.

Nutrition was in need of some work and Ive put a lot of time into this topic. Food used to be my enemy and to some point still is, but i needed to find a way to fuel this body I was pushing so hard. I turned to books written by top coaches and athletes and found they all seemed to agree for the most part on how to eat properly. I discovered that most people over eat their training program and gaining weight is a common mistake. I have found that if I eat just a little more than normal prior to a long run exceeding 90 minutes I just need to take gel and gator aid while I'm running. I have been staging aid stations along my runs as well and try to consume about 300 calories an hr while I'm on my long runs. I use a sports drink for most workouts lasting longer than an hr. If I feel like im losing energy I supplement in carbs and calories with my gel packs and sports drinks.

I have joined Anytime fitness and the YMCA and now lift weights and swim on my off days from running. Swimming was a huge challenge to get down the rhythm and be able to breath while swimming. I have watched you tube till im blue in the face and have improved my swimming a ton.

Not me but an impressive picture :)

I have started riding a road bike for the first time and am enjoying cross training between the 3 sports immensely. If I keep my nutrition balanced I recover quickly and it feels great to be able to do the things in life I love.

So to recap. I use a heart rate monitor, great pair of fitting shoes along with compression gear and proper nutrition. Great book about working out even if you dont do triathlons and if you want more marathon specific information Id recommend Marathon for Mortals.

Starting out

I started my weight loss on Feb 1st of 2010. I put a plan into place to cut my portions in half and start walking on the treadmill, which became my new friend for the next 6 months.

I started off walking then worked up to jogging short periods at a time. I clocked a mile at about 20 minutes. I would do this twice a day every day. I dropped from 265 down to 250 in about 2 months time. During this time I learned the secrete to weight loss, their really isn't one but what I learned was crucial to my success. Its all about burning more calories than you eat. I found out that if you just lay on the couch and do nothing all day you will burn about 1200 calories. I also found out that it takes about a 3500 calorie deficit to lose 1 pound of weight. I then figured if I burn 2500 calories a day and keep my intake below 1500 I would lose about a pound every 3 days. I realized I usually failed in the past because I just got too hungry and started eating more food so I would stay satisfied. So off to the store I went to find the lowest calorie food so I could eat more and feel fuller. I think my wife and I spent a whole day at the store looking at calories.

What I choose was
Coffee in the morning with sugar free creamer( 60 calories ) and ice tee and diet soda for drinks ( 0 calories )
Breakfast option 1.  Honey Nut cheerios with 1% milk was about 400 calories for my size bowl
Breakfast option 2.  Lean pork pure, with veggies garlic and egg whites. 350 calories

Lunch option 1.  Subway 1' oven roasted chicken breast no cheese and no dressings at about 500 calories.
Lunch option 2. Make my own sandwich with a few pretzels at about 500 calories.

Dinner option 1.  chicken and veggies, One bag of frozen veggies and 1 chicken breast. 400 calories.
Dinner option 2. Substitute fish for the chicken and add a small serving of rice. 500 calories.


I stuck to this like glue for the first months.getting my weight down to 228 lbs which was my goal. I hit that goal in time for my next Dr physical. I dropped my cholesterol down to 150 my bp was 120/72 and hr resting was at about 70. I scored really well on the stress test and my Dr came into the room and hugged me with excitement. I told him I had some concerns that I was cutting to many calories after listening to family and friends. He told me he was the one that had questions for me because he had never seen someone loose weight so effectively and keep all of their blood lab values so perfect. He told me to not change anything.

I have read that eating 5-6 meals a day is better for you and I'm sure it is but I tried it and always overate, so i stick to just 3 meals and do great on it.

My first time I let my wife take a picture. 228 lbs.


I decided to make a new goal of 218 lbs and see how I felt there. I found out that as you lose weight you don't burn as many calories for the same exercises, so I stared to run on the treadmill twice a day a mile at a time. It was all I could do to make it the full mile and it took me about 12 minutes. After a few more months I was able to reach 218 lbs. and added hiking to my hobbies.

Well, next I felt 208 was possible and stared after it. I started running on the street and joined Anytime Fitness in Sutherlin because the treadmill I had bought was broke more than fixed and I returned it. At the Gym I have met people like myself and get a lot of encouragement and help from griffen kruse the owner 
The street felt different to me and I found new muscles to make sore. I started taking a vitamin, fish oil and glucosamine along with the running and made a goal of not only the weight loss but also to be able to run 3 miles nonstop. I used Google maps and choose a flat and easy route to run. after spending a few weeks pushing the distance I was finally able to make it the whole way it was the first part of August and I was in tears as I crossed the finish line. Shortly after that I was able to reach 208 lbs.

I seemed to have a lot of interest in my weight loss from various people at this point and was encouraged to eat more calories because people thought I was way to short on my intake for what I was doing. I upped my calories at this point to about 2800 a day and felt bloated. I then backed them down to 2200 and still felt like I was eating to much. I went on a 2 week hunting trip during this time and ate and drank what I liked, why not I was out walking every day in the woods and would surely burn off any calories I ate. I came home 2 weeks later at 215 lbs. and clothes that were now fitting not so well ( I had dropped from a size 42 down to a 34). I was obviously eating more than I was burning so I went back to what I knew worked. and got the weight off and then some, hitting 205 lbs.

I felt amazing and was able to run a 10k and could now run a mile in under 8 minutes. My resting HR is 45 and my BP is 100/40. As of 12/31/2010 I weighed 202 lbs have lost right at 65 lbs and reduced my body fat from 31% to under 15%. I now use a Heart rate monitor when i work out and will talk more about that in my fitness blog.

For all of you out there that want to lose weight remember it is not that hard. use low calorie food so you can stay full. work out moderately, you should be able to have a conversation if you are walking with someone.


I will be updating a fitness blog followed by a challenge blog of my goals in life.

Preparing for my Journey

Pictures of me before I started to loose weight.
I had reached 265 lbs couldn't run a mile. Couldn't walk up stairs without getting winded.

On February 1st 2010 I looked in the mirror and hated what I saw. I had made numerous attempts at loosing weight but they were always short lived and to hard to stick to. I tried starvation diets and minimal exercise as my plan. For years I hated what i looked like and the terrible shape I was in I was just not able to stick with weight loss long enough and smart enough to accomplish my goals.

I had chosen hobbies that were all sedentary and spent my time playing internet games, riding quads at the coast and watching TV. I had a habit of chewing tobacco that I had stopped but was using mint chew as a crutch. I ate my stressed and stressed about kid issues and a past divorce that seemed to always cause issues in my current life. I would find myself on the phone getting stressed out and standing in front of the refrigerator door open pulling food out and inserting it into my mouth. My diet consisted of about 4000 calories a day on most days and it was all food that was fast to make. pop in oven type like pizza and chicken nuggets.

My last drs physical was borderline to say the least. I had a cholesterol level of 205 my blood pressure was 136/84 and a resting heart rate of 86. I maxed out the stress ekg really fast and had a small run of tachycardia, The dr stated that I passed but I felt like I failed.

I had a hard time finding clothes that fit, the ones that did fit seemed to big huge and made me look even bigger. If they didn't fit they seemed to tight and showed my fat. I had attended (my very dear to me) nieces weeding and wore the only thing i had left that fit. My wife being the photographer that she is took pictures of me dancing with her because she knew I would want memories of such a great occasion.

I was shocked at how bad I looked to say the least.
I was about as discussed with myself as I have ever been and found myself depressed and wondering how I was ever going to change my life I had tried many times and always failed.


On Febuary 1st of 2010 I asked for help. Not from your typical person like Julian Michaels. Or calling a 1 800 number for the latest books, pills or powders to take.
I quietly went outside and had a long talk with God. I knew I needed a ton of help and I asked for his help in a big way. His answer came over the coarse of a year and with his assistance I was able to change every aspect of my life.

The following is my story.