They ARE Trying To Kill Us
You may remember my post about Hardee’s a couple of years back. Hardees has come up with some great foods that are sure to kill. Now, I get a flyer filled with coupons in the mail today from our friends at Burger King. It was chock full of great savings on many of their best menu items. The front however was reserved for a new offering, the California Whopper. It has a 1/4 lb. burger, swiss cheese, bacon and GUACAMOLE!
Check out these reviews if you give a rip(here). AND here.
This bad boy has 820 calories, 56 grams of fat & 1400mg of sodium. There is nothing healthy about that.
Do It For Yourself – Part Two in a Series
Let’s get this out there from the very beginning. This series of blog posts are not intended to tell you how you should achieve your fitness goals. They are to share how I have made some significant strides in the right direction. Something clicked with me last year. I had gone to the doctor in December of 2009 and was literally in the worst shape of my life. My blood pressure was okay, because I took medication. My cholesterol was okay because it’s never been an issue. Both of these conditions are hereditary, one bad, one good. The one thing that was discovered was how close I was to becoming a diabetic. This set off some alarms in my head.
I was about to turn 51 at that time. My mother, who was a Type 2 diabetic, became very ill in May of 1981…she was 53. She died two and a half years later, when she was 55. My being borderline diabetic was not exactly an epiphany, because it took from late December to late March for me to start making changes. No one ever accused me of being the sharpest knife in the drawer, but finally it did click. Make sure you see your doctor before you GOYA(Get Off Your Apathy)(Click).
As I said yesterday, the first steps were literally baby steps. I went from a couch potato to a very consistent walker in a matter of a couple of weeks. I started very slowly because I didn’t want to do anything that would prevent my long term potential for success. Think tortoise and the hare and I was the tortoise. You should be the tortoise too. The problem is, we live in a society of hares.
Everyone wants it yesterday and they want it to be easy. Well, what I’ve done is simple, but it’s not easy. I have chosen to workout at home. I have some dumbells, some resistance bands and an adjustable bench. A couple of months ago, I did get a stability ball for certain exercises. I also do lots of push-ups. All in all, not very elaborate or super expensive. There came a point when my wife wanted to join a 24/7 gym. It was only $10/month for me so I joined. I never went. I had discovered something that worked for me and that’s very, very important. Find what works for you. I had been a member of World Gym in Marietta back in the late 90′s and loved it. This time however, it was not for me.
The combination of walking usually from 3-4 miles a day through September was sufficient. I lost 40 pounds by July but hit a snag because of my unstructured eating. More about that in my next post. In the fall, I discovered something very unexpected…YOGA.
I first discovered FitTV and the Yoga programs they offered. I also found something on Comcast cable. I never really used the On Demand feature until last fall and discovered the SPORTS AND FITNESS heading and EXERCISE TV, There are tons of free exercise videos including a Yoga/Pilates section. If you are a guy, don’t scoff. I am only talking about the physical nature of yoga, not spiritual. I have never been in the Lotus position doing the proverbial “ohmmmmmm”.
I’m talking about two different aspects of yoga that can’t be overlooked or denied. First, as a beginner, at the very least it helps your flexibility, which is crucial in whatever activities you engage in. If you choose to go further and do “Flow” or Vinyasa Yoga, it WILL kick your skeptical hind parts. It’s unbelievable. I maintained my 40 pound weight loss through the winter doing nothing but yoga, and no other aerobic exercise.
As the spring approached, I was talking on Twitter about my progress and some frustrations about my eating. A lady in South Carolina, we’ll call her Christy, suggested a book, THE FOUR HOUR BODY. Now Christy is a natural, female body builder and fitness competitor. That is a very unusual and extreme lifestyle for most people, but they do know what works in terms of weight loss and building muscle, so it got my attention. The book has some very unusual ideas in it, but the basic eating program makes sense. But that blog about how we eat is for next time.
Not The Biggest Loser, But…
Well, this past week marked the one year anniversary of my original proclamation of being sick and tired of being sick and tired. It was definitely TIME FOR A CHANGE, and I coined the term “GOYA”(Get Off Your Ass). It became my battle cry(click). For me it was just that simple. Of course, I also had to make some changes in my eating habits as well. As of this day, March 28, 2011, I have lost 62 pounds and still going. I wanted to take this opportunity to list some of the lessons I’ve learned so far, in what has truly been a lifestyle change, not just a diet. I will go in to more detail in the coming days. I’m actually looking for some before pictures and will be adding some after pictures also.
The first thing I did was walk out the front door. That first night I bet I only walked a 1/4 mile when my calves cramped up. As I limped home, I thought holy crap, how did I get here!? The answer? Years of apathy. One huge lesson from this past year is that APATHY is as significant a problem as any fast food establishment you might want to point a finger towards. In fact, as time has gone on, GET OFF YOUR APATHY has become interchangeable as a more G-Rated battle cry.
Getting back to walking. Within a couple of weeks I was walking a 2.5 mile loop near my neighborhood. That coupled with cutting back on portions was working like a champ. At the six week mark, I posted this update(click). Going in to the summer, I had hit a few plateaus, and wrote this update in early June. This basic approach was actually working but I had a few plateaus and challenges at this point.
I was feeling great, and looking better(not difficult), and another lesson hit me one day while walking. I was very tempted to jog a little ways. As a former “athlete”, I felt like I could do more and could reach my goals faster if I was jogging. Then it hit me. Hey, I’m 51. I have chronic injuries that feel better because of less weight to carry and the relatively low impact of walking. It made no sense to “push it”, because then the risk of injury goes way up. Just stay the course!
That’s when I coined the phrase “Extreme Moderation”.
Extreme moderation is a complete focus on doing the right things every day. It could be the exercise or what you eat. I believe one huge obstacle to a person’s ULTIMATE success in their fitness is the focus on results that are fast, not results that last.
Results that last, are never fast.
I see all the infomercials that claim fast weight loss and/or the programs that reshape your body in 90 days. Things like P90X work, but is it something that you do long term? I have done a very modified version I like to call P90Rex. The old P90Rex was more of a jaw workout as I ate my way through life. The NEW P90Rex is a program I could do until I’m 90, if it’s God’s will.
That’s a huge distinction. When you rely on pills, extreme diets or workout programs, there is no ultimate success. The ultimate success comes from good decisions made day by day by day. And when you do have that “off day”, don’t freak out, just get back on track. Even when you eat out, there are always better choices to be made, we just don’t always make them. The word apathy always creeps back in. The fact is , most of us know the right things to do, we just “don’t care” enough to do them. Get Off Your Apathy, and make some simple changes.
This week I will fill in the blanks of what has helped me get this far in my recovery. My fitness recovery. Many of you have encouraged me along the way. I thank you from the the bottom of my somewhat healthier heart.
Coach Richt, RTK and Down 34
I had a great time at the Georgia Kicking Camp last week. I saw Dax Langley and Billy Bennett as well as many young kickers I have met over the last few years. I am hopeful I will be able to be involved in the camp more in the future. One of the interesting developments of the day was seeing Coach Mark Richt for the first time since I started this blog.
As you may or may not know, as last season wore on, I had posted some controversial comments that got me in hot water with some fans. I wanted to make sure CMR knew where I was coming from. When I asked him about it, he said he had heard a little about it. We were interrupted before we could get too deep, but we talked about meeting down the road to finish the conversation. He certainly does not owe me anything, but it’s important to me have the discussion.
I saw several players while in Athens. Drew Butler looks like a decathlete. He spoke to the campers about the process he has a gone through as a player and young man. He did a great job. I met Richard Samuel for the first time. He is more beastly than ever before. He is up to 233 lbs. Brandon Boykin, Baccari Rambo and A.J. all look great. I met and spent a good bit of time talking to Coach Van Halanger. He was effusive in his praise of the work the guys have done this off-season.
Last and least is my continued effort to get back in shape. I had plateau’d between 25-30 lbs for several weeks. A trip to Jacksonville and the lure of great seafood did not help. I am happy to report that I now have broken through to a new and seemingly legit loss of 34 lbs.
My workouts have been slowed a bit the last week because of a strained flabdominal, but my daily walk is up to 3.5 miles and I’m just being consistent with moving forward, even when making eating mistakes. You can’t let a mistake derail you. Just keep going!
Have a great week folks!
Bulldog Clubs and Down 25
The next couple of weeks should be a lot of fun. I just participated in my first FBU Camp and worked with some great young kickers and punters. I will do a separate blog post to discuss these young men. For now, I wanted to mention some upcoming events where I would love to see you.
This Thursday, May 6th, I will be visiting the Rockdale County Bulldog Club to discuss the 1980 National Championship among other things. Try and come by. On May 17th, I will be down in Jacksonville to play in the 18th Annual Vince Dooley Scholarship Golf Tournament sponsored by the Jacksonville Bulldog Club(click here). I can’t wait!
Chris Troxel of RACC and I will be there to show off his great new product(click here).
For those that care not named Tarpley, I have now lost 25 lbs. since March 22nd. That’s a little over 4 lbs. a week for six weeks.
I feel good…but then….I knew that I would.
Tell me what you really think!