Hello all,
I am a 31 year old male residing in the Hudson Valley of NY. I was searching for a forum of users that has a good community sharing quality information (and is free). I am currently at a crossroads where my life has been filled with many stress factors. Certainly I do not wallow in self pity, I am blessed with a loving family and a good home. However, I realized that much of my self image, both internal and external, had degraded severely in the last ten years. With my current job coming to a close next month I find myself in a position where I have many choices to make. Thanks to the support of my family I have enrolled in school seeking a teaching degree and am staying positive in the face of unemployment. The hardest challenge I am left with then is my physical state. I find myself nearing 280lbs on a modest 5’9” frame and am in no denial about my obesity. Certainly I do not consider myself inactive; my job is quite strenuous (operator at a power plant), I ride my mountain bike, and enjoy hiking. However, my diet is, or at least was, absolute crap and despite my activities I haven’t focused on physical training since leaving the ARMY in ’01.
Changes have been made. My diet is being rapidly changed for the better. This for me has been surprisingly easy while the bigger challenge has been quitting smoking. I have not failed in that totally, although I still “bum one” on occasion. For a pack a day smoker to go to one every few days or so is nothing to smirk at, yet I have since picked up some gum as I wish no longer to be slave to a bit of dried weed and paper. I have been walking regularly; my knees just can deal with running under my weight yet. My doctor has cleared me for essentially any exercise routine that as he said “Does not include marathon training”. I have purchased a Bowflex to use at home and have access to free weights, dumbbells, and a smith machine at a close friend who lives just down the street. He has been pestering me for years to lift with him and I just blew it off. But I now look forward to mixing some free weights into my Bowflex and light cardio routine.
A long hard road lies ahead of me. There is a huge division from my lean body of my military days and the sedentary body of a 30 something father who has lived poorly (at least in the fitness sense). Always have I been loath to shy from a challenge and this is no different. I will change, and I will be in better shape than I was at twenty. It always amazed me to look at the before and after pictures on places like equipment sites or EAS’ body for Life site. Certainly those examples are extreme and required massive changes non-typical effort, yet they demonstrate the ability of the body to change. I look forward to sharing this sojourn not only with my family and friends but with this community as well. I look forward to gleaning good information and some semblance of friendship with the members of this community.
Sincerely,
PJ
I am a 31 year old male residing in the Hudson Valley of NY. I was searching for a forum of users that has a good community sharing quality information (and is free). I am currently at a crossroads where my life has been filled with many stress factors. Certainly I do not wallow in self pity, I am blessed with a loving family and a good home. However, I realized that much of my self image, both internal and external, had degraded severely in the last ten years. With my current job coming to a close next month I find myself in a position where I have many choices to make. Thanks to the support of my family I have enrolled in school seeking a teaching degree and am staying positive in the face of unemployment. The hardest challenge I am left with then is my physical state. I find myself nearing 280lbs on a modest 5’9” frame and am in no denial about my obesity. Certainly I do not consider myself inactive; my job is quite strenuous (operator at a power plant), I ride my mountain bike, and enjoy hiking. However, my diet is, or at least was, absolute crap and despite my activities I haven’t focused on physical training since leaving the ARMY in ’01.
Changes have been made. My diet is being rapidly changed for the better. This for me has been surprisingly easy while the bigger challenge has been quitting smoking. I have not failed in that totally, although I still “bum one” on occasion. For a pack a day smoker to go to one every few days or so is nothing to smirk at, yet I have since picked up some gum as I wish no longer to be slave to a bit of dried weed and paper. I have been walking regularly; my knees just can deal with running under my weight yet. My doctor has cleared me for essentially any exercise routine that as he said “Does not include marathon training”. I have purchased a Bowflex to use at home and have access to free weights, dumbbells, and a smith machine at a close friend who lives just down the street. He has been pestering me for years to lift with him and I just blew it off. But I now look forward to mixing some free weights into my Bowflex and light cardio routine.
A long hard road lies ahead of me. There is a huge division from my lean body of my military days and the sedentary body of a 30 something father who has lived poorly (at least in the fitness sense). Always have I been loath to shy from a challenge and this is no different. I will change, and I will be in better shape than I was at twenty. It always amazed me to look at the before and after pictures on places like equipment sites or EAS’ body for Life site. Certainly those examples are extreme and required massive changes non-typical effort, yet they demonstrate the ability of the body to change. I look forward to sharing this sojourn not only with my family and friends but with this community as well. I look forward to gleaning good information and some semblance of friendship with the members of this community.
Sincerely,
PJ
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