QUICK STORY

So I have been talking about this for the last week but my voice is wrecked, and I finally went to Walgreens to buy some throat lozenges. As I get up to the counter to pay the cashier gives he gives me the normal greeting and I say, “What’s up”, in my just finished a carton of cigarettes voice. He then asks me if I want some candy that they are selling. I of course tell them thank you kind sir but I will have to respectfully decline your offer for the candy. He then says, “Come on man you know you like candy” and then just stares at my stomach! I wanted to jump over the counter and show him what my new training would allow me to do, but I just said, “No man I am cool”. Things like this really upset me, because I am pretty sure I am not the only big person that has to deal with things like this on a somewhat daily basis. I understand he is just trying to sell a product, but he does not have to stare at my stomach suggesting I would want it since I am a big guy. Anyways, my lesson today is just don’t expect every big person to agree to candy, some of us don’t want it!

TRAINING WITH DIANA

Today I worked out with Diana and it was the first time I got to work out with her in 2 weeks because last week she wouldn’t let me work out because of my chest congestion. What I normally do with Diana is a walk/jog on the treadmill and maybe some core stuff, but she hit me up with a whole new routine today. We did squat thrusts with 12-pound dumbbells for 20-second spurts and 10 second rests. Then we did pushups on the bench. Then she moved me onto lunges with a 12-pound dumbbell. I could continue, but basically it was a circuit training that lasted about 25 minutes, and it was EXHAUSTING! And after that we tried some interval running but I started coughing too hard and I just did a nice walking mile. It was a great workout and a step up from previous workouts with her. I can really start to tell how much everything is improving even with my illness right now.

CHALLENGES FROM MY TRAINERS

 There are a lot of things that I love about my trainers at Workshop Fitness, but something that they just recently started with me that I am enjoying is giving me challenges to conquer.

One of the challenges is getting ten sets of ten reps with a certain amount of weight on the bench press. My trainer Thomas presented this challenge to me.  The first attempt was with 95 pounds and I got it up 63 times. Then two weeks later we tried it again and I got 84 reps. Then we tried it again last week and I got all 100 up! He is now moving the weight up 10 pounds and we will start all over. I really like this style of training because it shows you a different kind of progression than your normal max numbers.

FEELING SICK

Last week I went to see some friends in San Antonio on Monday and when I got in there I started to feel my throat hurt a little, and ever since then I have had this slight sickness that I have not been able to knock. I am trying everything, and I thought on Friday I was starting to turn the corner, I even jogged and did my full workout (Which I have only got in 2 good workouts since Tuesday). But the past two days its gotten worse it feels and I am not too happy with that. I am hoping my workout today will help clear some of this out, and then taking some meds and drinking water will cure this all. I still have a lot to do before this week! Oh well, here to wishful thinking!

HOW DID I MEASURE UP? ROUND TWO

  There are a few things I would like to address before putting the numbers down. I have been getting a lot of responses from people who are checking this out, and I want to say thank you so much for being vocal about it. I love hearing that my work is inspiring others and it makes it that much easier for me to push that extra mile in the gym. People have also been asking me what they can do for me, and this is what I tell them every time… Tell people about my experience! I want to help as many people as possible. Either by gaining inspiration from my stories, or realizing that if I can do this they can too! I am just a regular guy that fell into an amazing opportunity. I couldn’t be happier than I am today and I love sharing it with all of you!

Okay…now to the numbers that you all been waiting for…lets first look back at what I did the last time I did my measurements:

 Weight:  19 lbs

Neck: .25 inches

Arm: 1.0 inch

Chest: 5.5 inches

Waist: 6 inches

Hip: 3 inches

Thigh: 1 inch

Calf: .5 inches

Total: 17.25 INCHES!

So this time around we did it one week earlier than last time, but I feel got just as good about the results:

Weight: 16 lbs

Neck: .25 inches

Arm: .25 inches

Chest: 4 inches

Waist: 6.5 inches

Hip: 2.25 inches

Thigh: 2.25 inches

Calf: .25 inches

Total: 15.75 INCHES

When we total that up since my birthday on July 23^rd I have lost:

Weight: 35 lbs

Neck: .5 inches

Arm: 1.25 inches

Chest: 9.5 inches

Waist: 12.5 inches

Hip: 5.25 inches

Thigh: 3.25 inches

Calf: .75 inches

Total: 33 inches

After looking at these numbers it’s hard for me to not just sit here and wonder how lucky I am to have met all my wonderful trainers at Workshop Fitness. If it weren’t for them I would not be in this situation.  THANK YOU GUYS!

I have also included some pictures of myself in the jacket I wrote about earlier this week, jeans that I haven’t fit into in years, and a t-shirt I have not been able to wear since I moved to San Marcos over six years ago. The other picture is my goal picture, which I will be taking a picture with once a week so that you can see the gradual change of my body, and once that one goes I will find another shirt to do this in. I hope you guys enjoyed the post, and I look forward to bringing more positive results to the table!

TRAINER DIARIES

I am working really hard to get fit and be healthy and I have to say its been working a lot better than I could have ever dreamed. Just this past week I walked over 10 miles in 3 days…something that I could have never done without the training I have received at Workshop Fitness. So I think its time to give the people who check out my blog some insight on my training with each of the trainers I have. So over the next six weeks I will be writing about each one and giving you a typical workout I do with them. But before I do that I want to talk to them a little more in depth about it so they will start next week.

LAST TIME I WENT TO SCHLITTERBAHN

Oh man I wish this was a good story but it still really hurts thinking about it.  It was the summer between 7^th and 8^th grade and I was going to Schlitterbahn with my dad and a friend. My dad had been taking me there pretty much every summer since I was a little kid and I had always enjoyed how much fun you could have there as a kid. There had been a new addition to the park called the Master Blaster and my friend and I really wanted to ride as soon as we got to the park so we showed up early to next to the door as soon as it opened. We get to the gate and there is a ton of kids with the same idea as us so we get the game face on. As the park opens up its like a sprawl of children running crazy in all directions. We start our descent up the massive amount of stairs to get all the way up to the ride.  We get in line and there are about 20-30 kids ahead of us and the line just keeps growing behind us as kids continue to run up the stairs. We finally get to the top to get on the ride and the lifeguard looks at me and is sort of perplexed. I was a little thrown off but I just walked into the water to get into the inner tube. The lifeguard stops me in my tracks and says “dude you are too big to ride this I can’t let you on”. I was a little shocked but I asked him to just let me ride, and he said he would get in trouble if he let me down so I would have to walk back down…and that is exactly what I did while my buddy got to ride the sweet ride that is Master Blaster. I felt embarrassed that I had to walk back down in front of all those kids waiting in line and it was one of the worst feelings in the world. The looks I got from kids that laughed and snickered as I walked down will stay with me forever. Even though this may seem sad its something that I look at and feel that this story gives me inspiration to never be like that again. I don’t want to have to sit out of life that’s not fair to who I want to be.

I can’t wait to go back to Schlitterbahn and slay some of those water rides. When the time comes I am going to get on every ride I have never been on and enjoy every minute because damnit I DESERVE IT!

MY JACKET DOESN'T FIT ANYMORE...

So I went to my dad's storage unit this weekend because I am in need of some smaller clothes. (Great feeling!) So I found a bunch of clothes from my late high school and early college days. After examining all the clothes I saw a suit jacket that I got right out of high school for a party I was going to that summer. I grab the jacket to try it on and the last time I tried it on, about six months ago, I could not fit in it. Well turns out the jacket still doesn't fit, ITS TOO BIG!  I will post a picture of me in the jacket as soon as I can. Thank you again guys for the support and I am so pumped about the week ahead.

55 DAYS, 33 POUNDS LOST!

55 days ago I was not happy with what I had done with my life, but Workshop Fitness has given me my life back. I am only 1/6 of the way to my goal but I can see the finish line a little closer each day. So when I stepped on the scale to see I am down 33 pounds what did I do? I went to my workout jogged about a 1/2 with my trainer did a killer workout, and then a 3 mile walk at town lake trail with my cousin!

I am seeing all kinds of results and in two weeks I will have my official measurements done, but I know my waist has gone down because my pants keep falling down when I am jogging (HAHA). Workshop Fitness has blessed me so much and I really encourage anyone out there who is having trouble finding the motivation to get their butt in motion to contact them because you will see results and you will find happiness with them.  Thank you again to Thomas, Paul, Diana, Mariesa, Jason, and Christine. You guys RULE!

Dudley and Bob Spot 9/17

I got on the show today to talk about workshop fitness, my challenge to co-worker Daniel, and my assignment from Dale. Note: At the beginning of the clip he is talking about if I would take the swine flu vaccination.

TUSA FITNESS SEMINAR

 

One of my trainers Christine Tusa is having a seminar tomorrow afternoon entitled, "More Engergy PLEASE!". Its from 12:00-12:45 at the Frost Bank building. I am looking forward to the event because energy is one of my main problems with my weight loss. Its hard to find enough energy when you are supposed to work out 1-2 hours a day. If you are interested in the seminar please go check her web site here. 

SOME NOTES FROM THE WEEK SO FAR

Last night I went to go see my good friend Monty who is my go to guy for photography. I took some pictures that of myself with no shirt on so that I can have a pretty accurate before picture to show off for my final results (Even though I have technically lost a lot of weight before this picture it still gives me a good idea when I am looking at them again next July).

Once Monty showed me the pictures my initial reaction was feeling really upset at myself for getting so big. How could I have done this to myself? I am so young, and have so much to give and I was too selfish about my eating habits to see this.

But then I remembered that I am making a change for myself. I am making this happen. I have lost an incredible amount of weight this week (10 POUNDS!) and I can only thank my trainers and my support staff for all their encouragement through this process. One of my goals is every 35 days to be down 19 pounds. I know this seems a little high, but with all the training I am doing it is a reasonable goal. And I made it the first 35 days, and now I have 15 days to lose 5 pounds to get 19 pounds lost so I know I will go two for two.

Some fun facts about my workouts this week:

• I have had to stop jogging multiple times because my shorts can't stay on me anymore!
• I got to drag a tire in an alley, and I have to say it makes you feel like you can do anything after that workout.
• I have increased my bench by 20 pounds, and my incline by 15 pounds.
• When I started at Workshop I ran probably about a 23 minute mile, and today I ran one mile in 16:20.

Note on the Green Tea: I just started drinking green tea a couple of days ago, but I am up to 3-4 cups...it makes me feel energized, and Kerri was right I don't feel as hungry when I drink it and with its help I have seen a crazy amount of weight loss.  I am drinking the HEB Orange Green Tea at the moment, and would love any suggestions.

LINDSAY ON-AIR

A lady friend, Lindsay Mears, rocked Dudley and Bob today! She was asked by Dale to write a 700 word essay about her life, and they discussed the finer points of the essay. Here is the audio.

BEST I HAVE FELT!

I am not sure what happened in Houston, but since I got back my body has been full of energy, and I haven't been able to contain it! Thank you again for a great visit.

On to my week at the gym...when first I came to Workshop Fitness back in July I was huffing and buffing on the treadmill when walking 2.5 miles a hour. I felt so out of shape, and so lost in what I was doing with my life. I have been working hard on my cardio and yesterday something came over me and I felt I could do more, and I just started going over 4 miles a hour and I kept it up for over 5 minutes! This is a new high for me and I can't wait to jump back on the treadmill today and get cracking on some more jogging. With all this positive thinking going on I even lost 4 pounds this week and I still have two more days to lose more before my official weigh in. I could not be happier right now, and I hope everyone else is having a beautiful day. Last thing I want to say is please find time today to make someone smile...I know its so cheesy and lame to say, but it needs to be said sometimes. =)

GREAT WEEEKEND IN HOUSTON

 I got to go visit the family in Houston this weekend for my nephew's birthday (He turned 8!). Chuck E. Cheese may not exactly be my scene but it seemed like he was having a good time. I also hung out with my friends Ryan and Kerri at Lucky's in Houston.

Some things I took from the trip is that when you are trying to lose weight changing up your routine makes everything in the day seem so much harder. In the morning I wasn't eating the same thing I have had since starting to work out, and it really threw me off the entire day. I had less energy, and just felt lazy.

But some of the positives is I fought off a lot of potential diet busters! I was offered pizza at the party and had to decline, and only had the tiniest piece of cookie cake. I think this part of the diet is getting way easier, and my temptations for Chuy's and Pluckers is decreasing.

Anyways, I am really pumped for this week ahead, and ready to kick some major butt in the gym!

THE AMAZING POWERS OF GREEN TEA

This past weekend I went and hung out with some friends, and one of them was telling me about the amazing powers of green tea. She was filling me in on the fact that it boosts your metabolism, and suppresses your appetite. She drinks it three times a day and she says it really helped with her own weight loss. That is all I needed to hear so I picked some up, and going to give it a try and see if it helps in the last two and a half weeks before my next assessment. Cheers to you guys!

STORIES OF INSPIRATION

Today I was feeling a little down about my weight loss this week (I haven't lost any weight this week!). Whenever this happens I like to watch videos of people that have already lost their weight to get re-inspired! So I was looking on Youtube and found Samantha Schobel. Here is an excerpt from her blog:

I am a 21-year old girl from the small town of Columbus, Texas. I am an emotional eater, an over-eater, and a binge-eater. By the time I was 20 years old, I ended up eating my way to 300 pounds and 45% body fat. I ended up starting my weight loss journey on June 26, 2008 and lost over 130 pounds in six months. By February 2008 I weighed 165 pounds. I have been keeping the weight off ever since with a good nutrition and exercise. 

WOAH! 130 Pounds lost in six months! She is so awesome, and exactly what I needed to read about and see to remind me of the highs and low of my own journey.  You guys can check here out at her site here, or watch her video I posted. I shared my inspiration for today with you guys so I want to know who is your inspiration when you are feeling down about a goal you want to achieve? 


 

THE BIGGEST LOSER

One of my favorite shows starts this Tuesday, and I am so pumped! I always wanted to be on The Biggest Loser, but I am sort of glad it never happened because what I am doing now with Workshop Fitness fits my life way better.




After every episode I will post my thoughts on the show because I have a feeling people that read this might also be interested in what goes on "The Biggest Loser".  Please feel free to join the conversation!

SEAGAL IS BACK!

My old roommate Nick is a huge Steven Seagal movie fan, and I have had to see Under Seige about 20 times because of this. I am tired of his movies, but I don't think I will be tired of his next project because he is getting his own reality show on A&E called Law Man. Here is the preview for it.

Weight Goals for myself

I have some huge goals for myself within the next 365 days, and with the help and support of my friends and family I will be able to achieve them.  For right now I am going to discuss my weight goals and then after I talk to my trainers I will see where my fitness goals will be laid out.

Current Weight – 347

BMI – 45 Percent Body Fat

Weight Goals

Short Term

January 1st – Be under 300 pounds and under 38 percent body fat.

Long Term

July 23^rd – Be under 200 pounds and under 25 percent body fat.

I think both of these goals are very lofty, but for the amount of working out I get every week and the extreme measures I have gone through in my diet I think they can be obtained.  So every Friday I will post my weight, and how close I am to my goal weight. Maybe I can make a goal graph of me chasing down a hamburger with my goal weight on it! So next week I will post my fitness goals and share them with you.  Ricky out!

WORDS OF INSPIRATION

This past week has been really crazy for me. I have not seen the same results on the scale as I was getting the past couple of weeks (Only 1 pound lost this week). I am so competitive that I want to see results at all times. And if I don't I usually get down on myself for not living up to my standards. This is a bad habit I must get over if I ever want to have long term goals.

When I get down like this I always like to look at words of inspiration to pick me back up and to remind me that people have been through harder situations than me. My favorite is the quote by Winston Churchill above. I look at it every morning to remind me of the mission at hand.

So I was wondering if you guys had any words of inspiration you like to look at in troubled times? Hit me up with them so I can have a little variety. Thanks guys!

FORGET SALSA CLASS

I might have to reconsider going to salsa and instead start attending the classes this kid is going to. I have never seen moves like these, simply AMAZING!

SIX WEEKS FINISHED!

Today was the last workout for week six, and I really can't remember the last time I felt this good. This week the trainers worked me so hard! Some things they made me do this week: Flipping a giant tire, lunge squats, crazy uphill walking, and much much more. Then I went on a 3 mile walk again this week at the town lake trail. I have done it now twice, and I think I will continue doing this. If anyone is interested in joining me in my walk I have a slower pace but would love the company!

Anyways I have an awesome weekend ahead of me. I am going to the UT game on Saturday, and then my buddy Ryan is having a BBQ on Sunday so I will have a ton of temptation, but will fight the urge because of all the great success I have had. Thanks guys for being so supportive!

Dudley and Bob spot today

I went on the show today to talk about my training, some unwanted hair found on Charlie's traffic spots (My hair is falling out), and my fashion concerning underwear. Thanks guys!

Calorie Count

I found this really cool website called "Calorie Count". What you do is you fill out some information about yourself such as your weight, height, age, amount of activity, and how much weight you want to lose by a certain date, and it spits out the amount of calories you need to eat, and then how many you need to burn. It also has a really cool feature that lets you keep a food diary online so that you can keep track of everything digitally. I am going to start using this, and keep myself honest with what I eat. If you want to check out more go here.

Being Lazy can pay off!

I ran across an article today about how having some habits that some people say are bad can actually turn out to be good. Here are just a few, but you can check out the whole article here.

Laying around the House
People who get up early and busy themselves all day long are heading for an early grave, says public health expert Professor Peter Axt. He believes lazing about is the key to a long life and an antidote to professional stress, provided people are otherwise healthy.
He suggests: 'Waste half your free time. People who would rather take a midday nap instead of playing squash have a better chance of living into old age.' Research shows that people who run long distances into their 50s are using up energy they need for other purposes such as cell renewal and fighting disease, he adds.
As examples of his thesis, he has pointed to the increased longevity of zoo animals - for instance lions in the Serengeti live only eight years, but can live to the age of 20 in a zoo; Arctic polar bears last 20 years in the wild, but 40 in captivity. Human examples are priests, nuns and monks, who tend to live quieter lives.

Listening to Loud Music
Heading off to rock festivals, or simply turning up the volume on your home amplifier might be good for your brain power.
According to researchers at Manchester University, music fans are stimulating part of the inner ear known as the sacculus, which responds to the beat in music. This gives the brain pleasure and makes us feel good - during the music and afterwards.
The sacculus, which is not thought to have any hearing function in humans, appears to be sensitive only to very loud volumes, above 90 decibels.
Neil Todd, an expert in the scientific study of music, explains that the sacculus seems to be part of a primitive hearing mechanism that has slowly been lost as humans have evolved.

He said it has a connection to the part of the brain responsible for drives such as hunger, sex and hedonistic responses.
When these desires are satisfied, the brain is stimulated into releasing feelgood hormones that make us calm, happy and responsive. So to trigger a dose of happy hormones on a Monday morning, you should, in theory, choose Black Sabbath over chamber music. 

Now I don't feel as bad sitting on the computer and typing on this blog, or cranking up the volume on my stereo. My big goal in this experiment is to change my bad habits, and be a better person, but its hard to stop laying around the house after reading all the benefits! :) But seriously, if you believe this research to be true what are your feelings toward your bad habits that could potentially be beneficial?

 

WORKOUT MUSIC

I am such a huge fan of music while working out! It pumps me up and gets the blood flowing when you are really working hard. I am trying to compile a real sweet list of songs to listen to while I work out and I want to get some suggestions from you guys. You can give me a song, or a band, or even a playlist you like to listen to. I did this with my old roommate Nick last year when we worked out for a little bit and we had some sweet songs but the list needs to get updated. Here is the list we came up with and see if you can do better.

80's Explosion Workout Playlist
Van Halen - Dreams
Journey - Separate Ways
Bon Jovi - Livin on a Prayer
Bonnie Tyler - I need a hero
Paul Stanley - Live to Win
Kenny Loggins - Highway to the Danger Zone
Stan Bush - You've Got the Touch
Survivor - Eye of the Tiger
Jefferson Starship - Nothings going to stop us now
Stan Bush - The moment of Truth
John Parr - Man in Motion
Europe - The Final Countdown

Can't wait to hear from you guys!

My Mom said we can't be friends....because your fat

I know that title is a little disheartning but it really could come out of a child's mouth soon after researchers found that kids eat more when they hang out with an obese child. Here is an excerpt from the article in Newsweek :

Now a new study by researchers at the University of Buffalo suggests an even more radical idea: banning fat friends from eating together. Sarah-Jeanne Salvy, an assistant professor of pediatrics at the university's School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, and her colleagues found that fat kids consume significantly more calories when they chow down with friends who are also overweight than when they eat with lean friends.

In the study, published in the August issue of The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers randomly paired 23 overweight and 42 normal-weight children between the ages of 9 and 15 with either a friend or a kid they did not know. There were 33 friend pairs and 39 stranger pairs. Each pair of kids spent 45 minutes in a room that contained puzzles, games, and bowls of both healthy snacks (in this case, baby carrots and grapes) and calorie-rich treats (potato chips and cookies). The kids could eat as much as they wanted, but only from their own bowls. The researchers monitored the youngsters on closed-circuit TV. Afterward they weighed the uneaten snacks to figure out how many calories the kids had consumed.

The results showed that in general, friends who ate together took in more calories than youngsters who were unfamiliar with their partner. That was true for both fat and thin kids. Not surprisingly, overweight kids ate more than lean kids, whether or not they were paired with a friend. And they ate even more when they were paired with another overweight youngster. The greatest number of calories was consumed by two overweight friends eating together in what Salvy describes as a kind of synergistic effect. "Being friends increased food intake, being overweight and eating with an overweight [person] increased eating, and when you combined those, the overweight friends were eating about 700 calories," Salvy says. (The lean kids consumed several hundred fewer calories.) And, she points out, this is snack food—which means they were consuming a good chunk of their daily calories in that one sitting.

Growing up always being chubby or fat, whatever you want to call it, I know that it was tough enough just trying to fit in. I was lucky enough that my charisma and humor allowed me to have more friends than bullies that picked on my weight. But I know that if another kid had told me we could not hang out because of my weight that would have really hurt my feelings. I think the article brings up some very valid points, but doing this to a child might do some major psychological damage to them down the road. I just hope that any parent that follows through on what the article is suggesting remembers how fragile the psyche of a child is, and how hard that will be for the obese child to hear. What are your thoughts?

Workshop Fitness

Here is a promo video for Workshop Fitness! Oh yeah and all my trainers are in it, SWEET!

Finding inspiration everywhere!

If I didn't have the motivation before I sure do now because I have been getting a lot of e-mails and messages from old friends telling me how proud they are of me for going through this process and how much of an inspiration I am to them. And I want to say thank you to you guys!

I thought since I am giving people inspiration I should share other people that I have found on the internet that are giving me inspiration to push forward when things seem tough. The first person I want to talk about is Gary Brennan. Gary had hit 546 pounds, found out he had diabetes, and was unsatisfied with life. Thats when he decided to change his whole identity by eating healthier and riding his bike to work. Gary in just 10 months lost over 200 POUNDS! He is still going strong on his workout plan. He is about to do a bike race to help support cancer research. Just an amazing story to me, and after I his story I felt I needed to share it with other people. You can get a deeper look into his transformation here.