How Losing 40 Pounds Might Have Saved My Life
It all started the day after I returned from Peru. I was so sick that I couldn’t get out of bed. My head was spinning and I couldn’t keep any food or water in my body.
Over the next 24 hours, things continued to get worse. Finally, things got so bad that I went to employee health (I work in a local hospital), where they examined me took samples of every bodily fluid that you can think of.
“You are going to the ER”, the Nurse Practitioner said to me. “I am not sure what is wrong with you but this is serious!” A wheelchair materialized out of thin air, and I was whisked away to the ER. I was immediately placed on a bed, connected to an IV, and poked and prodded for what seemed like forever. Have you ever gotten to the point where you just wanted to be put out of your misery? That is how I was feeling at that moment.
After about 6 hours and a couple of IV’s, I was allowed to go home. Over the next couple of weeks I began to heal from my illness, and after about a month I was able to eat real food again.
At my follow-up visit, my doctor gave me some shocking news. I was 40 pounds overweight, my body fat was 32%, my cholesterol was 203, and my glucose was 109. I needed to make some lifestyle changes quickly or I would not live very long.
After my follow-up visit, I decided to make some drastic lifestyle changes. I started to walk 10,000 steps a day.
Every day.
I would not go to bed until I completed my steps. I started to research healthy living and found NerdFitness. That is where I learned that getting in shape is 80% diet and 20% exercise, so I decided to start eating better. My daughter Sarah and I planned meals together and we started to eat a more healthy diet.
Eventually, I got down from 242 to 220 and joined Planet Fitness.
Eventually, I got down from 242 to 220 and joined Planet Fitness. I worked with a trainer and started doing their 30 Minute Circuit Workout 3 times a week and a Cardio Workout 2 or 3 times a week.
My health wasn’t transformed, but things were better. I was still eating Whoppers and fries, mashed potatoes at Outback, and drinking large caffeinated beverages. I wasn’t making much progress, and I was struggling to achieve my goals.
I was making a lot of mistakes…
I decided that a more restrictive diet was required. I had noticed several social media posts about something called the Whole30 Diet. In case you haven’t heard, the Whole30 Diet is based on a bestselling book by Melissa and Dallas Hartwig. They recommend that you give up dairy, sugar, and gluten for 30-days to allow your body to heal itself. I decided to try the Whole30 as an experiment during the month of July 2017 and actually lost 12 pounds during the month.
Today I do the 30 Minute Circuit and cardio workouts at Planet Fitness and I focus the rest of my attention on what I eat. Getting lean is simple math eat less than you burn and you will lose weight. Eat your fruits and vegetables, stay away from Whoppers and Fries, and you will get healthy. I roughly count the calories that I burn during my workouts and estimate my calories from food to keep me on the right track.
Over the last year, I have lost a total of 40 pounds. My body fat is down to 23%, my cholesterol is down to 170 and my glucose is down to 82. I even had to buy new pants because I lost 4” around my waist.
Maybe you are like me.
You are in your 50’s.You are overweight.
You have high cholesterol.
You have high blood sugar.
When are you going to start improving your health so that you can dance at your granddaughter’s wedding?
When are you going to make the decision to make a change your diet and start exercising?
Take the first step.
Make one small change and keep moving forward at a comfortable pace.
Take action.
Experiment.
Find something that works for you.
If I can do it so can you!
Want a little extra help improving your health and transforming your body? I have a free 7-day email course called “Transform Your Health” that will teach you the exact steps that I used to lose 40 pounds in my 50’s and transform my health! Sign up for it right here.
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Originally published at GoodMenProject.com on September 2, 2017.
