Every year I go through these fitness spurts that never last.  I hope things are different this time around. 

I have been down this road before.  I get to a point where I’m consistent with exercising, I develop a workout schedule and once I get into a rhythm I’m off and running.  Then life happens and before you know it several months have passed and I’m back to square one. The pounds I worked so hard to keep off resurface and here I am again, starting off slow.

For me, it always starts in the kitchen.  Once I feel like I have a grip on my eating habits the urge to exercise kicks in.  I typically start out slow doing simple calisthenics with my wife, but after a few weeks, I get the urge to kick my workouts into the high gear.  I’m not a gym rat and I’m not looking to get super buff but I do like strength training. Playing basketball in high school and in college, my body was accustomed to moderate strength training and a ton of cardio.  I’m all in favor of gaining some muscle but I’m more concerned about my eating habits, staying lean and increasing my flexibility.

“Living in a “health-conscious” society, most people are either dedicated to the gym or have some kind of fitness goals in their life.”

Living in Southern California its hard not to constantly be reminded of fitness and healthy living.  I have to be honest, it’s hard not to get down on myself at times.  Social Media does a good job of reminding me to work harder.  I follow a diverse group mixed of family, friends, professional athletes, celebrities and entertainers that all are into health and fitness (in some way shape or form).  In the end, regardless of the influence or impact of Social Media, I know its all about my drive and consistency.  Plus, I know I have a lot of bad habits I need to break.

Towards the latter half of 2017, I felt like I found my niche.  I came to an understanding that despite what I see everyone else doing, I needed to find a routine that fit my personality and lifestyle.  I went strong for two and a half months before falling back into some old habits. 

Prior to my start last year I was 235 pounds; which was the heaviest I’ve ever been.  To my family and friends, it might be hard to tell because I’m tall and my body fat is proportioned throughout my long frame.  But if you ask me, I’m what they call “skinny fat” it the fitness world.  I know deep down I have a good frame and foundation, which I owe partially to genetics and playing ball my whole life…too bad it’s buried under this tolerable Dad bod.  So here I am, again, ready to get back on track.

It was reading and research that contributed to my progress before; not to mention becoming a Dad kept me highly motivated.  Currently, I’m about 228 pounds but my ideal weight would be somewhere around 205 pounds.  I hope to tone up, decrease my body fat % while increasing my strength and flexibility.  Right now I have my mind set on challenging myself to lose 2 pounds a week.  With that goal in mind, I should reach my ideal weight in a few months, but the key is not stopping there.

Last year I did a MyFitnessPal Pushup, Lunge, Squat Challenge and by printing out the calendar it gave me a visual and surprisingly helped me stay on track.  Since it worked then I figured I’d try the same approach with this goal.  So I printed out a two calendars and marked off my weekly goals.  The picture below was actually from my first attempt at this, but you get the idea.

Through some of the reading, I’ve learned not to be overly crazed about weighing myself so I broke it down to just weighing my self once a week.  However, at times I do plan to weigh myself midweek to make sure I stay on track or give me an idea if I need to work harder. I haven’t decided on the specifics of my workouts yet, but I do know what I like at this point so I’m going to incorporate High-Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) with strength training and cardio.  I maybe even throw in some yoga on my off days. 

I believe the body and mind are one so these are things that I’ve learned through trial and error work best for me.  No one wants their workouts to be boring or too hard that you end up quitting.  I know it’s going to be a challenge but I feel like I’m ready and need this kind of structure in my life right now.