Weight Goal Achieved!
What started as nothing more than watching a documentary that was recommended to me has turned into an amazing transformation on the road to health. Along the way I have tossed out conventional thinking as it relates to nutrition, the way I was taught growing up. Instead I opted to further research the claims made and the results that were achieved. Today I can sit here healthier than I was this time last year, I am down 42 pounds and now exceeded my goal of a weight of 175 pounds.
It’s been 8 months and 3 days (227 days) since I took responsibility for my own health and decided I had to make changes. Extreme as some may think those changes are, including my doctor (who isn’t out for my best interest) it was the correct decision for me. Now at my intended goal of 175 pounds I feel great! The results from previous lipid panels (blood tests) don’t lie, as my total cholesterol and associated numbers continue to improve. A few weeks ago I had one of the best set of blood pressure numbers I have recorded in many years.
Based on the 1940s Rice Diet Program by Walter Kempner, M.D. a chart was published that reflected height vs. weight (click for chart). These figures were “what Kempner considered to be reasonable adult weight in proportion to height.” By today’s standard many would look at these relationships and think it would be too skinny. Yet today’s perception of a “healthy weight” has changed in the last 10 to 20 years. People are getting fatter an obesity is a problem. The chart is used now by Dr. McDougall to reassure people they are “not becoming too thin on the McDougall Diet.”
Using my height of 72″ as an example, the chart says a healthy weight is 160 pounds. By today’s standard many would think I was sick, possibly even anorexic. The quicker test is stand naked in front of a mirror and ask yourself, “Do you like what you see?” If the answer is no, then you should consider changes in your diet. It’s all about individual perception. I feel and look better today than I did this time last year. I reiterate that I am healthier now that I was and continue to improve on my health simply because of my diet.
So what’s next? Improving my physique by working out at the gym. I have a coworker I lift weights with and while our goals are different, he is invaluable when it comes to teaching me the proper technique and how to fill out the new body I have. In just 30 days I have seen some minor changes. My arms look a bit bigger and I can now flex some muscles in my chest. My wife comments on my shoulders be larger as well.
Yet the key to a healthy lifestyle is diet. This time around I have been successful in combining diet and exercise to get me where I am today. I won’t have any problem maintaining this weight. Looking over the past 4 months, as I have been tracking my food it’s interesting to see the slow weight decrease in 30 day increments. Over the last 30 days my weight has varied by only 3 pounds. It’s difficult to lose those last few pounds, something I can now attest to but I am happy I have finally got them off.
