How I Plan on Doing This

So you say you want to change your lifestyle but how are you going to do that…?

 

That’s the question that I kept asking myself a couple of weeks ago. I can’t always rely on Dudley and Bob, or Workshop Fitness to bail me out. I needed to figure out a plan that would utilize what I know while also allowing me to continue to learn about fitness with people who understand fitness and health better than myself. That’s when my longtime friend, David Becker, contacted me. He asked me to come check out his gym for an open session that he has every Saturday morning.

I had only worked out with David once before about two years ago, and he completely wiped the floor with me. He had me doing a fully body workout with jogging as my active rest within about a 45 minute workout. That was when I was in great shape. Now I am in the worst shape I have been in for about 4 years so I was apprehensive about the workout. Thankfully David put me through a workout I could handle but at the same time made me sweat my butt off.  It involved a low impact warm up, kickboxing, and doing sprints on his air-dyne bikes. After the workout I had a stroke of genius.

I need to get my butt kicked by David.  I need this to help me out because without a trainer I had lost all the success I had gained. There also needs to be accountability. What better way to create accountability than to workout at his gym and get a group of people to join me who are looking to get back into workouts. The truth is that I have been getting a lot of feedback about training again. The problem with training right now is that I am not fit to tell someone else to perform to his or her best. It wouldn’t feel right. So I want to see if people would be interested in starting a workout with David that would be specific to people I used to train, friends who are interested in working out with me, or anyone who is looking to be part of a workout community.

I want to make sure its known that I am in no way making any money from this, getting a discount on any kind of fees associated with the gym, etc. I am just looking for accountability and to create a workout family I desperately miss. I am currently looking at holding these workouts Tuesday-Thursday 8:00PM.  If you are interested in finding out more information regarding this let me know.

Just some additional workout information regarding David’s gym. He will be instructing us using Caveman Training. It sounds a lot more intimidating than it actually is. The program is progressive and will start at a beginner level. And not to be intimidated by the name, it simply means going back to the basics. Basic movements structured properly to produce results. You can find more info about his gym here at http://www.austincaveman.com/ , or https://www.facebook.com/austincaveman .

This is My Confession

Sometimes in life you are given an opportunity of a lifetime and what you do with it will define your path in life. I was given this opportunity a little over four and a half years ago. Getting free workouts for a year allowed me to gain control of my weight, find a new passion for life, and it opened the door for me to meet the girl of my dreams.

Since that year a lot has changed, some things for the good and some for the bad. Now I realize, that when I stayed accountable I was at my healthiest and happiest. With that being said I have a confession to make that I hoped never to say.

I have gained a considerable amount of my weight back. To give perspective on the situation I was at 420 pounds at my heaviest. At my lightest I had gotten down to 220 pounds. The last time I had been at 220 pounds was in the 7th grade…Wow! That is hard to say. It’s even harder to admit that I have gained back almost 100 pounds and now hover somewhere around 310 pounds.

Man, the emotions behind that statement are hard to fathom. I worked so hard to get to 220. I remember the feeling I had when I hit that number. That’s an achievement I can hang my hat on. I cried knowing that I had accomplished something only a few people could understand. Losing 200 pounds is something most people can’t comprehend. Some people may never even weigh 200 pounds in their entire life.

The idea of gaining 100 pounds back is utterly shocking me. I have such confidence in how I carry myself that I lost track with how I really looked in the mirror. It wasn’t until I recently saw a picture of myself about 1-2 months ago at a birthday party that I thought, “Wow my shirts aren’t fitting nearly as well”. Maybe I should have noticed when I had to go up 2 sometimes 3 sizes in my shirts or 6-8 inches in my waist for my pants. Oh the things you don’t think about until its too late.
 

Alright its out! I feel better now…that I have shared this. But what good is sharing the problem unless you have a plan in place to take care of that problem.  Don’t worry guys I do have a plan and its called starting this blog again. I plan to be energized by the power and inspiration people give me by telling me their stories of triumph. I will rely on myself and my loved ones to keep me from falling off the wagon again, and remembering what got me here in the first place. My health is something that I am not willing to compromise...again!

So this is my shout out to everyone who wants to make a change in their life and needs a push in the right direction. Join me on this journey of self-improvement and I will continue to write my challenges and victories so that together we can find our passion to be the best we can be and live a life filled with joy and happiness, because we all deserve that.

- Ricky Lawson