I want to hike the highest mountains. I want my body not to lumber along, but to move through the world with grace. I want to ride my bike great distances without tiring. I want to swim oceans and rivers and not be taken by the currents. I want to climb great rocks. I want to camp on mountaintops.
I want my body to create energy, not only consume it. I want to be fit enough that I may help others in case of emergency. I want to be able to run if I must run. I want to be able to carry those who cannot run to safety on my shoulders. I want my body to be strong well into old age.
I want my feet, my knees, my back and my joints to be happy. I want my cells to be friendly, not fight me. I want not to be a slave to pills and medical procedures. I want health to radiate from within. And most of all, I want my parents to know I value the life I've been given.
Thanks for reading MyFitLife2Day. For more about what I am doing NOW to overcome obesity once and for all, check out this post. The orginal post - My weight loss motivation - was written in January 2010 when my weight topped 400 pounds.
I relocated a little more than a month ago from Albuquerque, NM, to Philadelphia, PA. With the move came a dramatic shift in lifestyle. I traded in my truck for a sturdy pair of shoes, a mountain bike and a transpass. I'm finally living the pedestrian life, and I couldn't be happier! I mean, what's not to be happy about? By changing from a motorized to a pedestrian lifestyle I've already lost nearly 15 pounds!
I get tons of exercise just maneuvering through my day-to-day life. I ride my bike to work at least twice a week and other days I take the subway - which means taking several brisk walks and at least six flights of stairs.
Getting around on foot - walking, taking stairs and biking - is fit fun!
Living in a city like Philadelphia, you get a lot of exercise on stairs. For example, I live on the third floor of a row-home; the kitchen is on the first floor and the laundry room is in the basement. On a regular morning I take about 8 flights of stairs (up and down) before I even get out the front door. If I do laundry before work, that adds another 9 flights. Also, I take the stairs at work and anywhere else I go - no elevators or escalators for me!
I get a lot of exercise biking, too. On my Tuesday commute, I ride seven miles round trip to one of my teaching gigs and four miles round trip to another gig. I also ride my bike to go to the grocery store - Trader Joe's is another four-mile trip. Plus, I'm riding more and more on the weekends. I started with 10-mile rides for fun, then upped that to 15. Last weekend I did a 20-mile bike ride, and this weekend I'm planning to do between 25 and 35 miles. I'm posting about my bike rides on my blog Man of Merit and plan to begin posting more about bike commuting at MyLifeInMegalopolis.
Scene from my morning bike commute - South Philly to North Philly
On top of all this "lifestyle" fitness, I go to the gym a couple of days a week for strength training. I had not lifted weights for several months and was shocked at how weak I felt on my first few workouts. But I'm getting stronger with every workout, so I'm sure I'll be back up to where I was a year ago within the next month or so.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention - I'm still hiking! This is by far my favorite activity, and I try to get out to the Wissahickon Gorge at least once every week for a hike of at least five miles. This weekend I'm planning on doing the 8.5-mile Yellow Trail. And once a month my goal is to get to a regional state parks to enjoy longer, more strenuous hikes with some moderately significant elevation gain. (I record my adventures on these and other hikes on my blog, HikeyHikey!)
Well, there you have it: I'm more active than ever before, and for the first time in my life the majority of my exercise comes from changes in my lifestyle. I love being a pedestrian in Philadelphia, and look forward to reporting to you soon about further weight loss success. Thanks as always for reading! Staying accountable to my #fitfam helps keep me in line and on track with my goals.
Check out my progress as a Philadelphia pedestrian here.
Brian Schwarz is an award-winning journalist whose career was derailed by super obesity. He fought his way back to health - losing 165 pounds in the process of his "fit-life journey". A professional communicator by trade and activator by nature, Brian's personal mission is to inspire others live their fullest lives. Follow Brian on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
This blog post is not pretty. In fact, it’s pretty blunt. As a disclaimer, you may not want to continue reading if you can’t handle the truth. I’m writing this primarily for me – to remember - because “those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” But I’m also writing it for anyone out there right now, reading this, who may be struggling with super obesity, so you can know that you CAN do it. You CAN overcome super obesity and live the life you deserve!
So without further ado, here they are: The 10 Things I Don’t Miss About Being Super Obese:
Before "Life Guy Brian", at 420 lbs
Skin tags on my neck and underarms
Having a successful job interview on the phone turn into a nightmare when interviewed face-to-face
Not being able to walk more than a quarter mile without having to sit down
Being afraid to fly because I barely fit, needed a seat belt extension and was concerned I was squishing other passengers
Having to use baby wipes instead of toilet paper
Having to use special tools and maneuvers in the shower to ensure my cleanliness
Not being able to pick things up off the floor and feeling compelled to ask people to get things for me because the effort to do even little tasks was taxing
Spending most of my spending money on cheap, fatty foods and sugary beverages
Having to shop for clothes in specialty stores; Not being able to shop for bargains or at thrift stores
Being sought after by “chubby chasers” instead of being pursued by someone who loves me for me
I could go on, but this is all the remembering I can handle right now. It’s tough looking back! But what’s tougher is thinking about all the people out there right now still in it, facing the same struggles I once did. I want to reach out to each and every one of you, give you a big hug and tell you that it can get better. You can lose weight and start living a healthy life.
In the words of the incredible, inspirational Tony Robbins, “It’s your decisions, not the conditions of your life that determine your destiny.” Think of it this way: The list above is nothing but conditions. But it was my decisions – to begin eating clean and getting progressively intensive regular exercise – that ultimately changed my life and led me to lose 165 pounds.
If that sounds simplistic, it’s because it really is that simple.
Contact me in the comment section below if you'd like to talk, or follow me, Life Guy Brian, on Twitter @MyFitLife2Day for daily motivation and inspiration. I look forward to hearing from you!
Last week, I gave a motivation talk at the Desert Sunrise Speakers Toastmasters Club in Palm Desert, CA. In the speech, I come clean about experiencing hopelessness over a terrible addiction to sugary and fatty foods. I have learned to control this addiction through positive psychology, but every now and then, I must admit, the addiction rears its ugly head. I have decided today that I want to share a bit more of my story of addiction and ongoing recovery here on my blog, because I know that if I keep this very intimate struggle a secret and continue to play the role of the infinitely strong, optimistic and powerful one who rides life's ups while being unphased by life's downs, I am doing a disservice not only to myself but ultimately to my readers.
This summer, the addiction hit me full force as I was contemplating my recent career move to Southern California, which I realized then would ultimately have me leaving my partner behind for a time in Albuquerque as he completes his nutrition degree there. I've been doing great since the move, having lost 17 pounds in just one month through mindful eating and engaging in regular aerobic exercise and strength training. But tonight, it happened again, and I just ate more than 700 calories after dinner as my emotions caught up with me.
I have been feeling emotionally week for the past couple of days, as I am coping with news that my mother has just begun battling lung cancer all while I'm experiencing the ongoing difficulty of maintaining a long-distance relationship and seeking more fulfilling and financially stable employment. So tonight, even after eating a home-cooked dinner of hardy and delicious squash and eggplant stew over quinoa, I felt my emotional hunger kick in. I scavenged the house for sweets and took two heaping scoops of leftover cake frosting my housemate had left in the fridge. Then I set out for some frozen yogurt. And after that I ate two Reese's cups and some Starburst candies.
It is absolutely horrifying for me to be telling you this. But I am coming clean. This is something I do. I do it when I am feeling weak. And I do it out of view of anyone who knows me. In fact, I do it in stages so even strangers only see me enjoying a small sweet treat. No one sees the binge that takes place over the course of an hour or so and at several different stops along the way.
Okay, so there it is. I'm absolutely sweating as I sit here in my room, alone, in front of my computer about to hit the "publish" button on this post. But here goes nothing! And just so you know...I'm okay. This actually feels good to be putting it out there. I will follow up tomorrow with another post on my progress, and I will talk more about dealing with my addiction to sugary and fatty foods over the course of the coming months as I continue to battle obesity.
Well, I'm heading out to swim some laps right now. It's been about an hour since eating and I think my stomach is settled enough for me to get some exercise in the pool. I know it won't take away what I just did, but it will certainly make me sleep better. And it will re-set my mind so I can wake up tomorrow morning refreshed, not feeling guilty about the binge but ready to start anew as I continue on with my fit life journey.
As always, thanks for reading! If you don't already, follow me on Twitter @myfitlife2day. Also, check out my YouTube videos, starting with this one of my recent speech to local Toastmasters called "Hike Your Way to Health!"
Every now and then I post progress pics, and the time has come again. On the day this pic was taken (two days ago to be exact) I weighed in at 269 pounds.
This is me at 269 pounds working out at the gym in the complex where I live
One month ago, I weighed 286. Those who follow my blog may remember that I reached 255 pounds in July of 2011 after having lost 165 pounds in just a year and a half. I took a year off from mindful eating to let my body adjust to the rapid weight loss. I was still exercising and eating healthy, but I often splurged on desserts of frozen yogurt, cake, cookies and the occasional candy bar. As a result, I gained 31 pounds.
I'm back on track now, and I've lost 17 pounds by focusing once again on mindful eating. I still have 42 pounds to go to beat obesity by being under 30 BMI. Currently, I'm just at about 35 BMI. When I started I was at 56 BMI.
To find out what I'm doing to lose the weight, you can check out previous posts here on my blog. In short, I'm eating healthy and getting lots of exercise - hiking, swimming, medicine ball and resistance training at the gym.
Thanks as always for reading. Please follow me on Twitter @MyFitLife2Day. Also, check out my hiking blog HikeyHikey and my goals blog Man of Merit.
The past couple weeks I haven't been blogging as much as I like to. Instead, I've been focusing on micro blogging, having just recently discovered the joy of Twitter!
I'm mostly Tweeting with the following hash tags: #fitspo, #fitness, #inspiration, #overcomingobesity, #healthydecisions, and #itsyourdecisions. And in just 19 days I've amassed more than 500 followers - many of whom re-Tweet my original quotes.
Two of my most famous mentions were from two men that I admire and attempt to model as I build my career in online publishing and as a fit-life promoter.
The first was a re-Tweet by life coach, author and motivational speaker Anthony Robbins.
Tony Robbins re-Tweets @myfitlife2day to more than two million followers
The second was a mention by celebrity blogger and fit-life promoter Perez Hilton in reply to a mention I made of him. With nearly 5 million followers, this guy is truly a Twitter rock star!
Fit-life inspiration Perez Hilton gives @myfitlife2day a shout out!
