Man in the mirror.

3/5/2014

Well, here we go! Today is day one of my Yoli Better Body System makeover! I finally got tired of living the same sluggish life, trapped in the muck without any hope of escape. My Doctor friend suggested this diet system as a way to transform my life physically and financially.
First a little information about me and I'm holding nothing back. I am 40 years old and unemployed as a male Nurse. I suffer from post traumatic stress disorder and depression due to a heart condition called cardiac branching of the LAD better known as the "widow maker".
You see somewhere along the way I forgot to take care of myself. I remembered what one of my nursing instructors once told our class in nursing school, this was when they use to literally have a weigh in for students. The class of student nurses was told, " if you can't take care of yourself then how do you expect to take care of your patients?" I think about the morbidly obese students in our class and the difficulty they went through trying to keep up emotionally and physically.
My heart just bleeds for those who did not make it due to their weight. I now find myself in the same position bordering morbid obesity, depressed and ready to throw in the towel literally. You see for the past year I have been working closely with Doctor's and therapists from the V. A. Hospital. Last year I was hospitalized for my depression after having reconstructive foot surgery and acute myocardial infarction, a.k.a. "heart attack". The Doctor told me I would be on blood thinners and cholesterol medication for the rest of my life. Let me tell you it's a horrid existence on all these pills!
It has been a long hard row to hoe as they say and I am no where near being out of the woods. The good news is that my heart condition is stable aside from my blood pressure which can be a major issue. I am on three different blood pressure pills now along with everything else in the cabinet. I take a hand full of pills in the morning and a handful at night and this is no way to live life.
You see, my Doctor friend told me, "I am a Doctor and have to prescribe medications for patients but as my family we do not take pills." She has opened my eyes to the overuse of prescription medications and the under use of natural herbal remedies our ancestors depended upon daily.
My hopes of starting this new life changing transformation is to 1. stay alive long enough to enjoy seeing my children grow as young adults and 2. Live life to the fullest without my weight or anything to stop me!
My current stats:

40 yo. Male
277 lbs. (obese)
ideal weight: 150-185 .lbs.
chest measure: 50 in.
hips measure: 50 in.
waist measure 46 in.
thighs 29 in.
arms 16 in.
BMI 38.85
2 week goal: loose 14 lbs.


I'm all about results and this is the reason that I started this blog in order to hold myself responsible for my own health! Plus, I am a bit anal retentive with statistics being a nurse and all. :) I want to understand everything about my health and this includes what I am putting in my body. I feel as if this is my way out of the muck! You see something that no one knows, even my close family members is that my depression got so bad that I had to write a daily schedule and post it on the fridge just to remind me to get up, brush my teeth, take a shower, eat, etc. I don't want to get back to that!
Because someone reached out to me I am reaching out to you who reads this. I want to "pay it forward" as they say! I want to give more than I have received and if this helps me then my goal is to help those who are struggling with their weight and other issues like me.
As we speak the left side of my heart is aching and my legs are cold. I know that I need to get up and allow the blood to circulate a bit so I will be back. Oh, it's time for a mid-noon snack anyhow.
Lord help me! I can't find my wife's food scale. Well, I should have prepared a little better. I am eating two turkey hotdogs plain for lunch. I think it's key to keep the fat burning going so I am not eating any carbs today. I think I need to prevent that hungry feeling so that I don't get hypoglycemic and start a ravenous feasting session. So far so good and I don't mind missing the hotdog bun. Condiments seem to be a must so a little ketchup and mustard.
According to the reading materials that came with my kit, day one of the fat burning cycle consists of just setting around! Ha! I actually thought of walking a bit but thank goodness I decided to go over the trifold brochure again. According to the reading it's common to experience slight fatigue due to reduced caloric intake and I should avoid working out on days 1 &2.
Well, lunch was 2 turkey hot dogs so I will make tuna in water my mid-late-afternoon snack to cover my 2-4 ounces of protein. No rice to eat with it. Let me say that again, no rice. Ah! It looks like a shake for dinner. Well, if this is going to be successful it has to be a gradual lifestyle change of choosing healthy living foods and this is going to be tough because my wife is a Baker! I want to be able to get in my jeans again and not hate myself in the mirror! Most of all I want to put on my suit and tie again. Look at this Midwesterners!