Not my story but my husbands...

AngelStage

THIS IS MY HUSBAND'S STORY. HE POSTED THIS ON FACEBOOK THE OTHER DAY AND TOLD ME I COULD SHARE IT IN CASE IT HELPED ANYONE. SO I RE-POSTED IT ON FACEBOOK AND NOW I'M POSTING IT ON HERE.

"I am NOT writing this because I like talking about myself. I don’t, really. Some of this is a tad embarrassing. What I DO like doing is helping people and motivating others. A little voice told me I need to put this out there. If reading this will help someone in any way, that’s all that matters. So if a little embarrassment on my part helps, so be it.
I don’t care if you “Like” this or comment or not. Just read it and find motivation. This isn't about popularity. What follows is a bit lengthy and may take time. So does getting in shape and working out.

It’s about Making A Difference In Your Life That Will Last The Rest Of Your Life. Read on...

Ok, normally people who post on Facebook will say “Starting next month…”, or “Starting tomorrow…” Even outside of FB people say that. How many of you actually start the crap you say you will? Well, this morning I was going to say on FB, “Starting on April first…”, but then I realized something that everyone does. I was going to put if off. WHY?

This is why you shouldn't put things off. Especially about your health.

I earnestly started working out in August last year. And because of that I have lost 35 lbs with more to follow. How much of that would I have lost if I had said “Starting Tomorrow…” I woke up that morning, looked in the mirror, and said, “Hell no.” to what I saw. I didn't like it. It was embarrassing. I felt bad for my wife, because I sure didn't look like that when we started dating. I used to be 185 lbs. I went up to 230. Fun. I was sick of it. The fast food. The telling myself I will eat better Starting Tomorrow. I was especially sick of getting winded going up a frickin’ flight of stairs. Screwed up and let go of myself.

Like I said, I woke up and looked in the mirror. I hated what I saw. Yes, hate is a strong word. But seriously, 230!

About 4 years ago, my brother and I went in together and bought the P90X program. I used it for a few months and loved it. It is a Hard workout. Good results, though.

Also in 2012 I started the program Weight Watchers(WW). A great program. There is one very important thing to all of this. You HAVE to have a plan. IT WILL NOT WORK WITHOUT A PLAN. I DON’T CARE WHO YOU ARE. I tried a lot of things. All self-implemented. Failed one after the other. I started WW and had a plan. And it worked. Added in exercise and it worked even better. I did stop WW, but I kept what I learned and have let it change my life. You can’t go back to the way things were or it all goes back to pot.

Now back to last August. Let me back-peddle a bit. I had looked in the mirror several times, thinking “Hell No” but what sold it was one day at work. I was at lunch and was cruising the web, when I saw an ad for an event called Tough Mudder(if you hang out regularly with me you've heard me rant about this ad nausea). I watched the video. Out of nowhere, Something in my brain clicked. I looked at that, then looked at myself. That was what I wanted to do. I was tired of never having a feeling of accomplishment.

So, I dug out the P90X dvds. I need to say thank you to one very particular person who made a lot of this possible and that much easier – my Wife. If Angel(and she lives up to her name) hadn't helped push my fat *kitten* out of bed on more than one occasion, this would have a much harder road. She got up at 0500 every morning with me for a month. I love her so much for that. We both wanted the same thing: a less fatty version of Eddie.

To this day, I’m still not sure who wanted it more.

We did P90X for about a month and a half. She bowed out because she realized it wasn't for her. A smart idea. Don’t hurt yourself. Find what works. She went on to find workout routines that work great for her. I did fall off P90X around that same time, as well. But I didn't change my eating. And at that time, something else swooped in to replace it.

Running.

My coworker, Jim, had started working out a couple of months before me, for much the same reasons. He asked if I wanted to do a 1 mile run that benefited a certain cause. Why not? It was fun but it was rough. We finished that mile in 16 minutes 30 something seconds. Running was something else. Every month, Jim and I will do a run, and train weekly, or daily, for a run. With that hard work, very hard work, we are up to 13.1 miles. That’s a half marathon. Now, do you think if I put off to tomorrow getting up and working out or eating right that this would have happened? Probably not.

I also joined a gym. I use it about 4-6 times a week. Don’t let joining a gym make you think you now have Carte Blanche to eat whatever you want. Eat right and moderate.

Now, because of that hard work, we are signed up for Go! St. Louis Half Marathon. We will be signing up for both Tough Mudder and MO’ Cowbell Full Marathon this year. That doesn't happen when you say “You know what, tomorrow I will…..”

The road I hope someone who reads this will take will be hard. I won’t even BS about it. It will suck at times. But here is your really, really big Silver Lining. Actually a few silver linings. You will look better. You will feel better. You will have more energy. You will want to do everything. And the biggest thing of all things that could happen is you could change the life of someone or more that one person. Here is an example.

I didn't even realize this. Honest. Because of the fact that I stuck through all of this and persevered to this point and beyond, the things I have done have changed the life of my wife, Angel. I didn't notice it because I didn't have anyone I was using as an example of how to be healthy and active. I didn't know what it looked like to be watched. I had to do it on my own. Yea, I had my parents, friends, and wife. But none were actively active. So I didn't see her looking at me as an example until she told me how proud she was about my results and how it had inspired her to start earnestly shaping her life for the better and for the future. She saw that there are no quick fixes( I tried one and it was semi-bullcrap) and that the only way to succeed was to do it. she told me one day recently that when she saw that results didn't happen overnight for me and that I didn't get discouraged and took the little successes as a positive(like maybe only losing .1 lbs that day), that it really helped her see that it was possible to do the things she wanted to do and live healthy.

That is humbling to think that something you have done could change a life in such a way. I never saw it that way. I was just losing weight because I wanted to feel better, be more active and be the man my wife had started dating. I never thought my actions in this endeavor would help anyone but myself. Guess what? People watch.

Let’s add one more thing to the mix. The cliché “No Pain No Gain.” A true statement but you also need common sense.

For the last year, I've had trouble with my heels. Both the doctor and my parents believe its Plantar Fasciitis. It’s inflammation of the muscles on the bottom of the foot. I didn't let that stop me. Yea, my heels hurt badly sometimes. One morning, I almost fell to my knees in pain getting out of bed. The pressure and pain of standing surprised me. Sucked a little. Some will say I should have stopped and let my heels heal(ha). Advil and I became close friends. In hindsight, I’m glad I didn't. The pain has all but disappeared and that time would have been wasted. Now, not all pain can be fought through. Don’t be stupid about it. But on the other side of that coin, don’t use it as an excuse, “I slammed my finger in the silverware drawer this morning. I should take it easy today.” If that’s your excuse, you may need to shift your perspective on things.

Now, tell me again how you want to “Start Tomorrow” or find that magic pill or solution.. Because that way works so much better. START TODAY. Don’t eat that cheeseburger today. Go for a walk. Get your bicycle out. Say no to the chili fries. Eat one less piece of pizza. Just do it today and not tomorrow.

Here’s something funny. I told myself I was going to put this up tomorrow morning. HA. It goes out now and then once more in the morning. DO TODAY!"

naseak

thanks for sharing...SO many of the thought patterns I've been dealing with