I know its been said a thousand times before "I am going to lose weight this next year" or "My New Years resolution is to lose weight." I am a person that is guilty of having this inner conversation. I have been an overweight person for the great majority of my life. I consider myself lucky that I have never been bothered by my weight, in any real way. I am lucky to have a high self confidence, and mentally I don't see my self as overweight. But bottom line no one likes to be "fat".
My story is interesting to say the least, and the battle I have taken to be healthy is lengthy. All the way through elementary school I was a very healthy kid. I still brag that I was the "dodge ball champion of the world in 5th grade". I was skinny as a stick. I could eat tons of food. I was always outside and playing and getting plenty of exercise. Ultimately I was your typical kid.
The weight gain started the summer between my 5th and 6th grade year. As I look at this time in my life, I think I can identify what caused the decline in my health, and the weight gain began. We moved that summer, and I also started puberty. We moved to a new house, in a new neighborhood. As a result, I really didn't have any friends to play with, so I became more sedentary. Then reason number two, puberty. Once puberty hit, I think my metabolism slowed down. So not going outside and playing with friends, and still eating like I had a hollow leg I gained a fair amount of weight.
The biggest weight gain that I experienced, which has had an effect on the rest of my life to this point , is blowing my knee out my sophomore year. I wish I could say that it was because of an awesome sport injury or something awesome like that, but its not. Its actually a stupid injury. I was on a scout trip in the middle of the woods. We had found a long vine attached to a very tall tree. Now this tree was rooted in the middle of a small hill. So the tree was on an incline. So that meant that as you went out on the vine you were off the ground by about 20 to 30 feet. So everyone had gone on this vine 2 or 3 times, as had I. This time though the vine had had enough, and it broke, while I was extended fully. Needless to say everything happened pretty fast, and I was down and on the ground in a second or two, but in the process of landing I completely felt my left knee blow out on me. Ouch... To make a long story short.. I had 2 surgeries, and a ton of physical therapy.
Now as I was recuperating, and rebuilding my knee, I didn't do a good job of watching what I ate. So I was eating the same as if I was very active, and the pounds came on. In high school at my biggest I was 305 lbs. So being big like that meant that I did get picked on. It wasn't a big deal to me, but it wasn't cool having a bully as a senior in high school. I was able most of the time to deflect most of the things said to me, by laughing at myself. But such is life when your a funny fat kid in high school.
I am 33 now, I have the most amazing family with the most amazing wife, and 4 of the most beautiful boys in the world. I have gone up and down with my weight as bad as Oprah. I am currently hovering around 320 lbs. YIKES!! My greatest fear is not being around to spend time with my family, and watch them grow up. I fear diabetes, and other weight related problems that run in my family. So I am making the changes today!! I WILL, I WILL!
I was once told if you don't manifest your goals to the world you won't accomplish them. So that is partly why I have created this site. It is to track my progress, and to hopefully inspire others along the way. I am going to keep very strict notes on progress what eaten, as well as knowledge I gain about weight loss, and any inspirational thought that tickles my fancy. I am excited about the possibilities.
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