Day 365 - One Year!!! - 70 pounds, 10 inches, a college degree, and a new life!

A guitarists transformation, summed up over the course of one year. On August 28th, 2005 I had an epiphany. I realized that my life would go on no matter if I was in good or bad shape. I couldn't fit into any clothes at stores, I found myself with a nearly insatiable hunger. I realized my weight was out of control and that if I didn't change now, I may never have such an opportunity. My senior year in school was easy - I had plenty of time to work out. I knew i was on a financial budget so I could save money by packing my own meals. Plus, I couldn't bear with the fact that I might be heading down a similar road that my father did, which eventually led to him having a massive stroke nearly ten years ago on Sept 15, 1997. The time was right, I had regained my faith in the creator, and I knew I had to get to work.

So here it is - the statistics over the course of one year.

August 28, 2005: 295-300 pounds, 52" waist
August 28, 2006: 220-222 pounds, 42" waist

difference - 70-80 pounds and 10 inches around the waist GONE!!!

Here are my current goals:

August 28, 2006: 222 pounds
December 31, 2006: 200 pounds
May 5, 2007: 185 pounds, 34-36" waist, 8-12% BF

In my entry over a year ago i talked about many things i love and how i was interacting with them at the time:

My love for swimming: I continued to swim throughout the entire school year, eventually working my way up to a 2K daily in the pool. I took swimming as a class in the spring and I continue to swim every chance I get right now

My love for food: I totally changed my diet and eating habits. I cooked at home, packed my lunches for school (and now work) and have learned to remember what I have ate over the course of the whole day. I still love to eat large portions, fried foods, foods high in fat and drinks like soda. But now, i realize that those foods aren't helping me get to my goal weight. Plus I know I can eat those foods every now and then, but not as a regular part of my diet.

My love for "the ladies". Its almost overwhealming how differently people treat you when you've lost weight. For the first time in my life, I feel people are noticing me for the shape im in, and particularly, these ladies I was talking about. While Im still very much single, and happy in the interim that way, I feel Ive definetly made huge strides in this area - more to develop!

Im still a perfectionist, and now with school out of the way, Im able to include excersize and diet as a focal point of my musical life. Ill never make an excuse that I couldn't find time to work out - its always there for me because being healthy is very important to me.

My dad and I are very close and I now realize that m making better choices to help prevent myself from having a stroke like he did. Now, Im just trying to get him inspried to discover his health.

And then most of all, I do love life and I've re-discovered how great it can be when you feel better about yourself, younger, and feel more energized!

So cheers to one year and all this weight having been dispensed from me!!!! I know ill get to my next goal, and in the mean time ill keep adding more entries to my blog. My new goals are to add more music in this blog and talk about many things - not just weight loss and health in general.

Thanks for all your support, without my friends I would not have had nearly the momentum to continue, once the weight started coming off.