Sorry Everyone

Hi Everyone,

So sorry for having such a gap between posts. I had computer problems, followed by bouts of sheer exhaustion. This week has been both the best and worst week of my life. The best in the sense that I have began a journey down the healthy road, and have already begun to accomplish goals that I thought would be impossible. The worst in the sense that I have never been so sore or tired in my life. This program is a complete assault on your body.

I'll try to give you a quick recap of some of the highlights of my days, and let you know how it has gone for me so far. Let me start by saying that both the staff and other attendees have been great to be around, and the program is ran great.

Tuesday - Arrival Day. I arrived at my new home at around 9:45 am and was met in the lobby by one of the assistants and helped to my new room. I have a roommate named Adam, he has been here 5 months and lost 135 lbs. After getting settled into my room I was picked up and brought the 1 mile to the gym. At that point I went through all the initial testing, which of course determined me to be in poor health, no surprise. My stats are that I weigh 304lbs, have 37% body fat, and 188lbs of lean muscle. After the orientation I met with the nutritionist for 30 minutes. We went over my meal plan which includes 4 meals a day plus a protein shake. It equals roughly 1700 calories a day. Since I will be burning 3500 calories a day, it is not such a big deal. After that I had 1 on 1 training for an hour. He took it kind of easy on me since it was my first day, ya right. He worked me out like I was training for a marathon. After that I went right into spin class with a trainer who might just be the fittest woman I have ever met. Lets just say my butt and everything else was killing me by the time that was done. Next I walked back to the apartment and the day was done.

The following days I have done things like completed a 3.5 mile hike up a mountain. At least the first half was all up hill. I also completed a 2.5 mile walk in the sand at the beach. Killer on the calfs. I've done a lot of cardio, and cardio boxing. Building up my stamina, and burning calories. Today was my first real day of rest, I only had about 30 minutes of cardio today, so my body got a chance to recover. I've been having foot blister problems so the day off was needed. My wife also came up to see me today, so it was a nice day. Tomorrow starts my first full week, and I'll do my best to update you nightly going forward. Once again sorry about disappearing for so long.

Thanks for reading this. Talk to you all soon.

Computer Died

Hi Everyone,

Just wanted to let you know my computer died on me Tuesday, and I finally got the replacement today. I will be giving an in depth blog tonight about my experiences so far at LIFE.

Getting Nervous

Well I am less than 2 days from going to the LIFE program and I am officially getting nervous. I'm worried that I am so out of shape that I will have a tough time getting started. I hope that there are more people there that are as out of shape as me, I don't want to feel like I'm the only one. I am going into this in the worst shape of my life, and I hope that I am able to turn everything around in 8 weeks. I don't know how realistic that is, but I am really hoping that it will at least get me started.

Everything else is going ok. I have everything that I need to leave on Tuesday. I picked up the last few things that I needed, so tomorrow night will be the packing night. I hope that I don't forget anything, but I can't pack everything I own either.

My wife is starting to feel the looming deadline as well. She's happy that I am going to be taking such a big step in getting healthy, but she is not going to like being alone for 2 months either. I would like her mom to come visit for a couple of weeks to keep her company, but I'm not sure she will be able to. My wife is going to be concentrating a lot more on her Mary Kay business well I am gone as well. Plus, for those of you who don't know my wife has started a blog telling our story from her perspective. You can find her blog at rebeccaconlon.blogspot.com. Please follow and support her as well.

I was excited today, the NFL really kicked off today. Tomorrow night my team plays, the New England Patriots. I can't wait till kick off. I hope I'll be able to watch some of the games on Sunday's as I'm working out.

Well I am going to get going, I'll talk to all of you tomorrow. Please keep the comments coming. Thanks everyone.

Busy Weekend Ahead

Well I start out this weekend already knowing how busy it is going to be. I have a lot to get done in order to be ready for Tuesday. I am not looking forward to having to pack two months worth of clothes. I just got finished moving, and its going to feel like that all over again.

Yesterday was a busy day as well. I had to take my wife to work, then drop off the car to be serviced. I also had a doctors appointment that I had to go to. On a positive note, I received my regular flu shot, so I just need the H1N1 when that becomes available.

I am going to keep this blog short today, I will have a much more detailed one tomorrow. Talk to you all soon.

One Day Closer

Well I am one more day closer to beginning LIFE and heading towards my goal. Yesterday ended up being a hectic day. I sold my car, and had to deliver it to the new owner in preparation for leaving. I won't be needing one for the next couple of months, and I hope to be ok with just my bike when I am finished. The weather in Southern California is pretty spectacular year round, so I want to start riding everywhere.

I talked to my mom this morning and she wanted to know how I was feeling about going in less than a week. She asked if I was nervous, and I told her that my nerves have turned more into anxiousness and a feeling of relief that I don't have much longer to wait. This next 5 days or so will fly right by, and it will be Tuesday before I know it.

Today I am going to take my 2 dogs, Bella (toy poodle) and Abby (maltese), on a nice long walk. All three of us could use the exercise, plus I need to stretch out after that spin class Tuesday. I am still sore from that class. I think I will go for 2 miles, if we all can make it that is, because I'm not carrying the maltese the last mile.

Tomorrow I have an appointment with my Neurologist to go over the findings of my sleep study. I already know the results because my apnea was severe enough that they couldn't delay telling me. The reason I am going to a Neurologist is because I had a concussion back in January and suffered through terrible post concussion syndrome and migraines for months. He is one of the nicest most personable doctors I have ever seen, so I go to him for just about any issue I have.

On top of everything else, I have to pick up a rent a car tonight because our car needs to be in the shop tomorrow morning for some problems it is having. I am renting an SUV so I can move my bike and bar stools to my new apartment. Busy weekend coming up.

Well I'm going to run. Keep those comments coming. Thanks Everyone.

Spin Class Hurts

So my wife and I decided to be brave and try out the spin class offered at our gym last night. Neither of us has ever participated in a spin class so we thought it would be a nice experience for the both of us. Well let me tell you it was not what I expected. I thought I was going to drop dead right there on the bike numerous times, and every time I managed to look up all I could see is this peppy instructor pedaling like she was in a race. I managed to last the whole class, but I am paying for it today. Lets just say the seat on the bike was not made for comfort and I now know that for a fact.

Today is going to be about making a list for odds and ends I still need to get for next week. I know I need simple things like new underwear, and prescriptions filled, but I also need things like a bike lock. So I really have to take an inventory of everything I have and make a list of what I need to get.

I'm also going to hit the gym this afternoon and get a good workout in. I think I will stick to the treadmill, the thought of sitting on a bike just isn't doing it for me right now.

I have come up with a goal for the next 6 days. I currently weigh in at 306 lbs on my home scale. My goal will be to weigh in at LIFE on Tuesday at under 300 lbs. I'm really going to concentrate on what I'm eating, and make sure I get some exercise in each day, as well as drink nothing but water. I want to be heading in the right direction going to the program.

I started yesterday by having a plain bagel for breakfast, peanut butter on whole wheat for lunch, plain chicken with asparagus for dinner, and sugar free jello for dessert. Overall I think it was probably 800-1000 calories. I felt good, not to low on energy from not eating as much as I am used to.

Well I am going to get going for the day. I really enjoyed everyones comments on yesterdays post. Please continue to comment if you can, it really is a big morale booster. Also, if you have any advice on spin class I'm all ears. Thanks for following my blog.

Feeling Nervous

Well I am officially one week away from entering LIFE and have begun to get nervous. Not so much about the program, because I was in the Marine Corps, and nothing can compete with that boot camp. I more nervous about the program not working, and the weight not coming off as much as I would like. I'm also real nervous about when I am done in such a structured atmosphere how will I react back home.

If I manage to lose all the weight that I am going to push for, the last thing I want to do is end up in the same place that I am now a year down the road. The LIFE program offers once a week counseling, but I think I'm going to need more. I need to understand better what makes me eat the way that I do. It is a question that I have not truly been able to answer, and one that I have had enormous struggles with for almost my whole life.

I cannot afford to fail this time around, I am running out of options. I am looking at a major heart attack probably by 50 if I don't turn things around soon. I just hope it is not to late to get my life on track and turn around the damage I've done to my body already.

Now back to reality. My wife and I went on a bike ride yesterday afternoon, it was good for me, not so good for her. She was not prepared for the hills and it took a lot out of her, it was the same reaction I had the first time I did that ride to. She was not feeling to well by the end. I, on the other hand was feeling great, I could have gone again, which is a great sign for me.

I am going to try to lose 10 pounds in this next week to try to get my body moving in the right direction entering the program. I am also going to push my cardio to hopefully get better prepared for next week also. I'll ride the bike at the gym tonight and also do a little treadmill work.

It is coming down to crunch time, the program was fully paid for this morning so no turning back now. I just need to book a ride there, I need a big SUV with all that I'm going to be taking. I'll have my bike, my rowing machine, and tons of clothes because I'll be changing 3-4 times a day. Should be fun.

Well I am going to run for now. I appreciate you all taking the time to read my blog, and sending in comments. Talk to you tomorrow.