90-Day Challenge: Day 8

One of Amy's Biggest Loser 'before' pictures

In today's challenge, Amy talks about how embarrassing it was to take their Biggest Loser "before" pictures when they arrived on the ranch. "It was an intimidating moment having to walk in front of a photographer and pose with all your fat hanging out everywhere. I was quite embarrassed, but knew it had to be done."

She went on to talk about how, even thought it was embarrassing and humbling for everyone to see how much she'd let herself go, it was important to take an inventory of where she was and HOW she got there. The same goes for all of us - even if it's not weight loss! If you're trying to change bad habits, they only gain more power the more you attempt to keep them hidden. Amy goes on to say, "I believe that showing the world my faults is what allowed me to recognize the poor health and more toward healing."

Therefore, the challenge for today focuses on getting a bearing of where you are currently. Before starting the challenge, I measured all my body stats to get an idea of where I'm at. The book goes one step further and encourages you to get a physical as well just to get a comprehensive picture of your health. Along with my measurements I also got some blood work done in September which also gave me a picture of my inner health. I still have yet to take my 'before' pictures...I'm nervous, I won't lie. I'll take those next week. *GULP*

Since I have them available, here are some of my "starting stats" as far as measurements go. I'll take these measurements again towards the middle of December to see my progress and every month from here on out. The blood work numbers will be up here soon too.

Shoulders: 24 inches     Chest: 47 inches      Waist: 45 inches     Hips: 48 inches     

Thighs: 28 inches     Biceps: 16.5 inches     Abdomen: 51.5 inches

90-Day Challenge - Day 7

Day 7 - the end of week one! For today's challenge, Phil & Amy title it "You Can Do It!" In this challenge, they tell the story of Esther, a girl who was 85 pounds overweight and was constantly finding herself in tears when seeing pictures of herself or being unable to play at the playground with her kids.

I don't know these people...I hope they don't read my blog...

After attending one of Phil & Amy's events, she did the 90-Day Challenge and learned how to face her habits head on and turn her life around. Since then, she's lost 40 pounds and is running many 5ks and 10ks today. Here's today's challenge:

Find a child to play with for thirty minutes. Run and jump with them, take them to a park and chase them around. If you can't find a child, borrow a pet and do the same thing.

Me and Jazz

Unfortunately (or fortunately, I guess) I don't have any kids of my own to play with at this time of my life. I also am without any sort of pet (thanks to the rules of my landlord), so I'm not sure I can fulfill today's challenge. I would maybe consider playing with the in-laws' beagle, but he's getting pretty old (and chubby) and isn't the real active type. It also makes me miss my old dog Jazz...it'd be nice to be able to play with her this weekend when I go up to my parents' house for Thanksgiving.

But if I ever get the opportunity to fulfill this challenge at any time in the next 90 days, I'll make sure to let you know about it! What child or pet are you going to spend some active time with?

90-Day Challenge - Days 4-6

So apparently I'm taking weekends off in documenting the 90-Day challenge. If you're new to the program, check out the Day 1 post to see where I'm coming from. Anywho, over the weekend I didn't really read the Days 4 & 5 challenges, so I'm taking them all on today! Let's join the action.

Day #4: "Dreams & Visions" - Take time to devise a plan for reaching your goal. What things do you plan to do daily to make that dream a reality? Write down five mini-goals you will achieve on your way to your overall goal.

1) I always found it intimidating to look at my goal as "losing 80 pounds." This time around, I plan to take it in 10 pound increments and climb this mountain with smaller steps. 2) I also plan to make changes in my diet - no more soda or fast food! Those were two of the culprits in my weight gain. 3) In order to achieve these goals I can't be idle - I need to be active everyday! 4) I want to learn about what I'm trying to achieve. Whether that means watching documentaries or reading magazines, I want to expand my knowledge in the realm of health and fitness. 5) I feel that documenting and keeping track of my accomplishments will keep my morale and motivation up. So I'm logging my weight every week so I can see my progress.

Day #5: "Faith Matters" - You may not know what your body will look like after dropping 30 or 50 pounds, but let faith fuel you to picture yourself a skinnier person or fitting into your old clothes. "Faith works by love, so if you have unforgiveness in your heart toward anyone, release that burden so God can work in your life.... Whether it's writing a letter/email or calling someone on the phone, the less emotional baggage you have, the easier it will be to focus on losing the physical weight."


Off the top of my head, I don't think I have anyone that I really need to forgive - I'm pretty solid in that department. My faith in myself, on the other hand, is what needs to be strengthened. After coming up short so many times, my confidence in my ability to finish this journey grows less and less...
Day #6: "New Thrills" - Write down on activity you have avoided because of your weight or other insecurities. Describe why you avoided it and how it made you feel. Now imagine how you would feel doing that activity as the new, thinner you - full of energy!

Despite LOVING sports, I've felt quite insecure and self-conscious participating in sports with friends. Whether it's a pick-up game of football or just going for a run, I think too much about how big I might look and sometimes shy away from joining in the fun. When I lose the weight, I can't WAIT to run circles around people and not have to worry about what's jiggling around! :)


Alright, I think we're all caught up! These are some pretty important things to think about while trying to lose weight. Forget about what other people may think of you - this is YOUR time to make these changes and get healthy! What are some of your responses to these challenges?

90-Day Fitness Challenge - Day 3

It's Day #3 and already I'm so excited to see the progress I can make over these three months! I've already achieved a milestone today - my wife and I went out for breakfast and I made a healthy choice! Even though Panera Bread lists the calories of each item on the wall (which is an amazing idea), I researched their breakfast options ahead of time online and already chose what I wanted before I got there! I wound up having a ham and egg sandwich on whole grain bread - only 340 calories. Yeah, I'm pretty proud of myself - didn't even look at the donuts and other pastries!

Anyway, in today's challenge, Phil & Amy stress the idea of making yourself a priority:

"As children we dream of what we're going to do or be when we grow up. As we get older we have so much to do that sometimes our dreams get lost in the shuffle. Don't let this happen to you. Realize that taking time for you is a good thing.... Block out at least three to four times a week for exercise. Put it in your calendar and organize your day around this time. You have to find the time to make working out a priority. It just might save your life."

I'll be honest, putting myself first is not part of my nature. I find it important to care for and love those around me before I think about what I want to do. Well, I may think about what I want to do, but I'll mostly just default to what they want to do or to their schedule. Probably not the best approach...

For that reason I've started getting up around 6:00am and heading into the gym before work. That way, I get my "me time" in bright and early and can still spend all night with my wife after getting home from work! So far it's been working out really well - especially since we're usually in bed and asleep between 10:30 and 11.

Three days down, 87 to go!

90-Day Fitness Challenge: Day 2

Many times I look back at the last 2.5 years of my weight loss journey and kick myself because I know that if I had just stuck with it, I'd be where I want to be! Imagine the damage and progress I could have made if I would have just kept my eyes on the prize - I'd look great!

But alas, that is not the case. Today I still find myself overweight and looking intently into the future dreaming about what I may or may not accomplish by next summer. But I'll never reach my goal if I don't focus on TODAY.

That's actually the point of Phil & Amy's Day 2 challenge. Here's what their book says:

"Often, we don't rise to meet challenges because of the time it will take to finish the task. Many things we want to do take a lot of work and usually more time than we anticipate. This can be very frustrating. Here's a little secret: time moves on with or without you.... Promise yourself to live one day at a time. (On some days it'll be one hour at a time.) If you do this, eventually you will reach your goals."

They also suggest maybe finding a positive Bible verse or quote that is inspiring and/or meaningful to you. Memorize it and repeat it to yourself whenever your day is getting tough and you're being tempted to stray from your goals. 

SIDE NOTE: In the introduction of the book, it encouraged the idea of taking "before stats": measurements, pictures, etc. So I busted out the measuring tape and recorded all my stats. After 30 days I will take my measurements again and let you know my progress!

- J

90 Day Fitness Challenge - Day 1

I've started and re-started this book many times, but I've decided to give it a go once again. Now I understand that it may not be the best idea to start some sort of health and fitness challenge right before Thanksgiving and Christmas, but maybe some challenges are what I need to keep my mindset and self-control in line with all that holiday food staring me in the face!

So for the next 90 days I will be attempting the "90 Day Fitness Challenge." It's created by Phil & Amy Parham - two former contestants on the popular reality show, "The Biggest Loser." They begin the book by telling their journey and telling you tips on what helped them not only while on the BL ranch, but also once they got home and didn't have the help of Bob & Jillian.

Each day I will try to post the day's challenge, and if I forget, I'll catch up with my next post. Some of them will be easy or be something I've already accomplished in my weight loss journey, and others will be quite difficult or impossible to do. Other daily challenges may deal with mindset, relationships or faith. 

If you're interested in learning more about Phil & Amy or the challenge you can visit their website. 

Challenge #1:

Before embarking on any journey, it's important to plan it out. Losing weight is no different. The first challenge is to write out your goals on a Post It Note or sheet of paper and post it somewhere you'll see it everyday. I'll probably put one on my computer at home and one at work. For starters, I listed my overall goal of losing 80 pounds. I also want to be strong over the holidays! Eliminating soda and fast food are also goals that I need to accomplish if I want to reach my goal.

What are some of your goals?

*REBOOT*

After a weekend filled with pizza and soda, I think it's time to take a step back and gather myself (since I put on a few pounds, especially) and just write a little post about where I am and where I am aiming to be by next summer. Now I know some of you are probably thinking "okay, here goes Jordan once again 'recommitting' to this - I bet he'll forget all about this in a couple of weeks."

Not my feet, I promise

Now I don't blame the nay-sayers since I've really never given anyone any reason to believe that I'm actually going to go through with this at any point, but I do thank those of you who still believe that I'm capable of finishing what I keep starting! But anywhere, where do I begin?

Monday morning I weighed in back up at 272 pounds again - right up there with my heaviest I've ever been. I wasn't happy to see that number creep back onto my scale, but I wasn't completely surprised since I've been around there for the last couple of months, unfortunately. But I also made a decision that I can't let that number get any higher. So here's my tentative schedule/game plan.

Over the years I've tried too hard to lose the weight. I'd try to work out everyday and eat perfectly only to burn out after a couple weeks. So I'm trying to take it a little slower this time. I'm aiming to lose an average of 10 pounds a month. Doing so would put me at goal in June or July (goal being 190 lbs). But I don't want to get too ahead of myself. Gotta take things one day at a time!

On a daily basis, I'm aiming to get to the gym nice and early in the morning (6am), eat less than 2,000 calories a day and drink TONS of water. I'll have to say 'no' to soda for a while too...bummer. Along with these things, I hope that healthy choices make all the difference as I attempt to do this. It's usually the saying-no-to-food part that trips me up every time!

So here goes! Feel free to stay up-to-date with my progress on the Weight Loss page where I update my weight and graph a few times a week. Also feel free to visit my YouTube channel where I'll be making weigh in videos every Monday.

Couch to 5k

Since it's been a little rough getting my running legs back, I thought I'd check out the ever-popular "Couch to 5k" program. Sure, I've run a handful of races in the past, but it's amazing how quickly your endurance and stamina can take a nose dive after even a month or two of not running!

This program advertises that it can "transform couch potatoes into runners" who are capable of running a non-stop three miles "on a regular basis" in nine weeks. It has you running three times a week for 20-30 minutes at a time. While mostly walking at first, it slowly incorporates running more and more each week until the participant reaches the three mile mark in Week 9.

Now I don't doubt that this program could get Joe Schmoe running a 5k in a couple months, but with how much I want to be on the treadmill and burning calories, it's just not quite enough for me. The site that I found has you logging 60-90 minutes a WEEK at the gym. My goal is to be at the gym five times a week for an hour at a time. I'm looking to burn some calories! And to be honest, I'm pretty sure I could be back in 5k shape in half the time. (Do I smell a challenge?)

So after checking this program out, I think I'm going to take a pass. But don't get me wrong, I think this is a GREAT program for someone looking to get off of their couch and into their running shoes. I've included the link to the program for anyone interested in giving it a try. You can also download the iPhone app of this program that can talk you through your workouts while at the gym or on the pavement.

Do I Smell a Podcast?

So I'm not exactly sure why this idea crept into my head today, but I just wanted to gauge people's reactions before I move forward with it. Now that I've really kicked things into gear with this whole weight loss and get healthy thing, I've toyed with the idea of starting a podcast.

My initial thought is to kind of break it up into two segments - the first of which I just shoot the breeze, talk about recent happenings and just random stuff. In the second segment I'd talk health and fitness - pull articles and topics to discuss and give my two sense on them. I'd also talk about my progress in my weight loss journey - what's worked/not worked for me. And who knows, maybe even have a guest or two!

I've dabbled in the world of podcasting before, but really didn't have a plan going into it. I just clicked "REC" and jabbered about virtually nothing. I'm hoping that by focusing this podcast a little more one one topic, I can gear it towards a specific audience who will keep coming back each episode, participating and even giving feedback!

I don't know, what do you guys think? Think this is something I should try to pursue, or should I give it a while and wait to do it? 

Lunchtime Walking

So yesterday I decided that I better take advantage of the remaining warm weather and head outside to take a lunchtime stroll on the bike patch behind City Hall. It was about 65 degrees and sunny, so I grabbed my iPhone, cranked up some Dave Matthews Band (since I didn't have my headphones, I just let it play) and grabbed my phone to use as a stopwatch.

However, I didn't find a stopwatch function on my phone. Instead I found this program/application called "Eco Walk" which counted the number of steps I took as well as the amount of CO2 emissions I saved by walking instead of driving. Pretty cool! It also keeps a history of your walks so you can try to beat your previous "high score" each time you go for a walk! Here's just a little video from my walk yesterday:

Today I plan to get out and do some more walking for sure! Not only do I get to leave my desk/computer and stretch my legs, but I also get to enjoy the fresh, autumn air and hear the sounds of nature. Unfortunately, there's a hospital construction project going on nearby, so that sometimes drowns out the birds... What are some little ways that you burn calories throughout the day?

No-Nonsense November!

I've been pretty good lately about getting up early during the week to head over to the gym. Notice I said that I'm good at the 'getting up' part...not necessarily the 'going to the gym' part. I don't know why, but it takes me at least a half hour to muster up the energy and willpower to get my butt down the stairs, into my car, and to the gym - if I make it at all!

I blame the internet. Don't point fingers at my lack of self-discipline or my laziness - I blame the interwebs! Ok, so maybe I'm a tad slow in the morning, but who isn't?!? I always like to have a nice time waking up before bolting off to the day's first appointment. I want to be awake so I don't trip over my feet and eat the treadmill belt. Not the breakfast of champions...

6:00am is early for a gym visit, but I gotta make it happen!

But in all honesty, it's going to come down to me being able to say 'No!' to Facebook and YouTube at 6:00am and "Yes!" to lacing up my running shoes and making my way to the gym. My fantasy football rosters can wait a couple of hours; those pictures on Facebook will still be there when I get home; and my body could sure use the extra 25 minutes of calorie burning!

November and December are going to be make-or-break months for me, I can smell it already. October? Forget about October - I've already left it in the past! I only managed to lose a measly four net pounds over the last 31 days (it was an up-and-down month) . I could lose that in two day if I actually tried! But looking forward over the next 60 days I see Thanksgiving and Christmas staring me in the face - along with all of the delicious food that comes along with them. Over the next 3 weeks, I've made it my goal to lose 15-20 pounds before the dreaded Thanksgiving feast rears its ugly head. And don't worry, I haven't made it my goal to put those 15-20 pounds back on with turkey, stuffing and cider!

So here's to a solid month of hard work, no cheating and losing weight! Who's with me? What are your goals from now until Thanksgiving? What are you going to do to stick to them?