Determined To Succeed

Sometimes we all need a kick in the ass to remind us of the wonderful gifts we have been given in life. Sure, that kick could come when seeing someone who doesn’t have means standing on the street begging for money as we enter a Starbucks Coffee to order a $5 cup of coffee. However today, that kick means something different and something so fundamental that even that coffee buyer and the beggar have in common…the ability to walk.

Yesterday, I was doing research in the local Barnes & Noble Bookstore, looking up words and phrases and clauses (sorry, I couldn’t resist the “Conjunction Junction” Schoolhouse Rock reference). I was looking up editor  information in magazines and had completed my task. “A cup of coffee sounds good right about now,” I thought to myself and I packed up what little I had brought in with me and headed toward the door.

When I got to the door I was reminded of life’s gifts. It was instant, resonant and humbling and didn’t come in the form of words but in the form of another human being.

At the door there was a woman, maybe in her 30s, holding the door for another. This other woman was walking slowly because she could not walk at all without the help of the two canes she carried, one in each hand. And not just normal canes. These had the four-pronged bottoms that help steady a person as they walk and she had two of them because her legs, swollen and big as they were, looked weak.

I held open the other door and both ladies said “you don’t have to” in the sweetest voices imaginable, and I said “don’t you worry about it at all” as the second lady slowly made her way to the threshold. There, I noticed the rest of her body was suffering the same malady. She looked up at me and in the kindest, sweetest voice possible she said “thank you so much” and my heart melted. I asked how their day was going and they said “fine” with smiles. As the second lady was through I offered “now, you stay cool and out of all this heat we’ve been having.” The first lady said “oh we will. She even gets cold in here.” I said, “good. Better than outside in all that heat.” I told both ladies to have a great rest of their day and they offered the same, the second lady looking up at me smiling with the biggest eyes you can imagine on a person.

As I left the store I realized two things: one, that most of the second lady’s strength was not in her limbs but in her heart. Two, that all of us who can walk – not run, jump, skip, dance, or kick – have a gift. It was obvious that this woman had some type of degenerative condition from which she will not recover. Why is it then we sit on our asses, us healthy people, and bitch about how little energy we have especially when it comes time to work out?

Yesterday served as a reminder to me that if you are of able body, no matter what your size, it behooves you to get up and make every day count physically. Those of us who are larger have obligations to ourselves NOT to just sit there but to get up to try to prolong our lives. Losing weight and eating better and exercising are the keys to doing that, keys which most of us have right there in front of us. Hell, I did it and I was 400 pounds. I started by walking, the one thing I knew I could do. The one and only thing this second woman could do.

You have heard me say from time to time that larger people have a responsibility to themselves to get up, and that is true. We have that responsibility because no one is, or should, do it for us. There is no magic pill for weight loss therefore it will come from our own hard work and effort. But shame on us if we squander the days we have, bigger or not, if he delay that process simply because we don’t “feel” like going for a walk. That’s bullshit. I’m sure that second woman would love to go for a simple walk unencumbered by her two walking canes.

So get up and do an exercise today, any exercise. Tummy crunch, push-up, sit-up, arm curl or simply go for a walk. Do it because you CAN go for a walk. Do it because your legs DO work, no matter what size they are. And do it knowing you have a gift – the gift of ability – that others do not have.  It doesn’t matter what size you are, either. When you awoke today you got up knowing you could do these things. So get up and do them, especially if you want to lose weight.

After all, the journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step so don’t squander them. For many of us that single step, as simple as it is, is not as easy for others and could very well be the hardest thing they could possibly do.

O.K., I know I’ve been a bit of a movie geek with you guys lately (although I do not apologize for it at all – smiles), and I know I’ve mentioned it before, but you all remember the original “The Karate Kid,” right? In the film, Daniel-san (Ralph Macchio) finally gets fed up with Mr. Miyagi’s (the late, great Pat Morita) seemingly selfish and self-serving requests to “wax on, wax off,” “sand the floor” and “paint the fence.” Daniel-San asks “when am I gonna learn Karate?” Mr. Miyagi, in his infinite wisdom, grumbles a bit but acknowledges that it’s time for Daniel to learn what he has been really doing and shows him exactly how much karate he’s actually learned doing all those things. That’s when Daniel-san put it together, the meaning of it all. How doing one thing builds to other things and how, when all the pieces are put together, your mind has been opened to something new and something wonderful.

Or, as Hannibal says in “The A-Team,” “I love it when a plan comes together.”

Even though I am in no way, shape or form frustrated with my martial arts sensei, Doug Shaffer, yesterday’s instruction was that big “a-ha” moment for me. Noooooo, not the A-Ha who sang “Take On Me” in the 80s (although that is an awesome song and video). I mean it was the class that showed me the practical applications of all the moves I have been doing. For example, how rocking back and forth on my back, kind of like a turtle on its shell, keeping a target in sight actually is not only a great ab exercise but allows you to control how close an aggressor can get to you using your legs. Then, how these killer ab exercises we started yesterday actually help complete that control by allowing you to build muscle to use those legs to fight off said aggressor.

I’m not gonna be defending myself against “sweep the leg” or doing the crane move or anything from “The Karate Kid” but it shows that the things I’ve been learning all build, not just in increased health and strength but also in skill. In the five weeks I’ve been doing martial arts I am already seeing results both in health and in physicality. But now I get to add that “a-ha” moment to it all, that one more thing that can help me push through the sweat I am adding to the blood, sweat and tears story of that mat to get to my goal.

Weight loss is the same thing. You eat less calories. Groovy. Then, you exercise. Groovier. Put those two together and you lose weight. That may be simplistic but that’s why both have to work in tandem. That’s the plan, and not doing them together means you will be frustrated. Believe me, I know as I tried both for years separately and that’s part of why I failed before 2005. Before I finally got it. Before I said “a-ha.”

When we put work aside and jump into the weekend we have to put the things we learn to use over the two days of being away from our routine. In other words it is the time to put that plan and those disciplines we learn into action in the real world. I know it’s hard to avoid the Auntie Anne’s pretzels in the mall, or the burger with fries on the run between running from the store to the dry cleaners, but it must be done. It’s time to set aside time for yourself to get in at least ten minutes of exercise, too.

When I left the class yesterday I was invigorated. Not just because I get to kick the bag or punch out my week’s frustrations, but because I “got it.” I got the “why” you do the exercises you do and for my inquisitive brain, it helps, as do seeing the results every week. And when you start seeing that first pound or two come off (or see more pounds come off) you will have those moments, too, of understanding. This is all a process and sometimes it’s a slow one, I know. But it all does mean something. It all does show results and it all does come together for your own plan.

In time you will see that, my friends. You will.

In the meantime, keep on keeping on, especially over the weekend. And remember to “wax on, wax off,” “sand the floor” and “paint the fence,” metaphorically speaking that is. Each little thing you do is helping. Trust me. You are building to something great and awesome…you.

That is what Apollo’s trainer, who then becomes Rocky’s trainer, says to the fighter to help keep them going. To focus. To get back up.

I know I mention a lot of movies in this blog and ask you guys if you’ve seen this or that, but yesterday the most appropriate movie was on Encore – “Rocky II.” I’ve written about the “Rocky” movies before but they now have a slightly different significance than they did before, especially “Rocky II.”

For starters, I have a much deeper appreciation for the strength, stamina and technique of anyone who stands in any ring. I now know what it’s like to work a heavy bag, throw a punch or kick  (great stress relievers) and dance around a bit (which, by itself, can make you sweat. Trust me). I see punches in the movies differently now. In some way I can feel them and that adds a slightly greater realism to them for me. It brings me that much closer to them in a tactile way. But that’s me waxin’ all poetic…

…Before I continue, just in case some of you haven’t seen this awesome set of movies (skip “Rocky V” however. It was just O.K.) I will warn you now I will give away some of what happens in the movie that you may or may not want to know if you haven’t seen it. O.k., let’s step into the ring…

In “Rocky II,” we have Rocky’s rematch against Apollo Creed. The first “Rocky” was amazing because it wasn’t a movie about fighting. It was a love story. At the end, Rocky Balboa didn’t win the title but he gained respect, a greater sense of self and love. He got in that ring and gave it his best shot and that’s all we can do sometimes in this crazy, mixed-up world. In “Rocky II,” Rocky and Apollo go toe-to-toe again (and thanks to my awesome instructor, Doug Shaffer, I now know what that means) for the championship. This time, though, Rocky wins, but not in the way you’ve come to expect the hero to win.

Rocky wins because he simply got up. He was beaten. He was beyond tired. He was bloodied. He was punchy. He had no strength left. However, when both fighters are on the mat after one last punch and shear exhaustion send both down, the count starts…1…2…3…

…and both fighters, both warriors are struggling to regain some footing…

…4…5…6…7…

…both fighters are clinging to the ropes for help…

…8…9…

…Apollo is too exhausted and falls but Rocky plants both feet on the mat and stands…

…10! And Rocky is the winner. He is the winner becuae he fought his way through that pain and exhaustion to simply stand up. He didn’t let the physical keep him down. He won because that is what was needed to win. That is the sign of a winner, someone who gets back up after being knocked around and down so many times and keeps getting up. Some people would say that’s crazy. Me, I say it means you are a champion.

That is how I feel when my class kicks my ass. Do I hurt today, f%$# yes I hurt. My knees hurt (we did some new exercises that used more of those), my legs and hips ache and I was exhausted but you bet your ass I will be back on that mat tomorrow afternoon. Why? Because I ain’t gonna quit.

“No ref. Don’t stop this fight!”

That is how weight loss feels sometimes, I know. It beats you up. It makes you want to quit. You see those numbers remain stagnant or, worse yet, creep back up and it makes you want to stop the fight. But don’t. Please don’t. You can and will win. I know I make weight loss sound like a fight and a battle in in many ways it is. You fight through food urges, and you fight the urges NOT to exercise. But that is when the champion in your needs to simply just get back up on your feet.  That is how you win.

My martial arts class is physically challenging but awesome. It is the awesome you should feel after a good workout. It doesn’t matter if you simply do a few stretches because it’s all you can do. Or a few sit-ups or jumping jacks. That is an accomplishment. If you do more stuff, like the elliptical or treadmill, or use the weights in a gym. That’s an accomplishment.  And when you work up a sweat that is the sweat equity you give yourself, that I give myself, to let your body know you are in this fight to win.

More than anyone I know sometimes the hardest thing to do is get back up. But it is that getting back up and in the ring, that sweat, those tears, that make you the winner. Not how hard you throw a punch. Not the number of push-ups you can do. Just the fact you are doing them and doing them again tomorrow and the next day.

That is what feels good. And that is what allows you to stand in the center of the ring to yell loud and proud…

“…yo, Adrian! We did it!”

I don’t know what it is these days. I just can’t seem to get out of bed. I fully admit there are times my sleep is thrown off because I am stupid (OK, maybe not stupid), like when I fall asleep for a couple of hours in front of the TV after eating. But mostly it’s because bed feels good and warm and I don’t wanna crawl out of it (wow, did that sound whiny or what?!). So, after convincing myself that the cinnamon and brown sugar oatmeal was a great reason to get out of bed, I finally did it and am now planted firmly in front my computer.

Yawn…

I can usually operate on a few hours sleep. Remember me telling you about my year of hell (working three jobs and getting four hours sleep a night for a year)? While those days are long gone I do find that getting good sleep does help. It doesn’t have to be 8-10 hours but it does. The interesting thing is that sleep is also important in losing weight…and lack of it might make you gain weight.

Think about it: If you’re feeling sleepy at work and are running on low energy, you may be tempted to reach for a cup of coffee (or several cups or really big ones like me – extra crunchy with sugar) and a doughnut (mmmmmmm, doughnuts)  for a quick shot of energy. Later you may skip the gym and pick up takeout on your way home because you are too tired and/or have no time to cook. When you finally find yourself back in your bed, you are too wound up to sleep.

What does this all mean? You may be able to fight off sleepiness, particularly at work, however the ultimate result is unwanted pounds from poor food choices coupled with lack of exercise. This sets the stage for obesity and further sleep loss. Think about it more: Sleep debt is like credit card debt. If you keep accumulating credit card debt, you will pay high interest rates or your account will be shut down until you pay it all off. If you accumulate too much sleep debt, your body will crash.

Exactly how lack of sleep affects our ability to lose weight has a lot to do with our nightly hormones.

The two hormones that are key in this process are ghrelin and leptin. Ghrelin is the “go” hormone that tells you when to eat. When you are sleep-deprived, you have more ghrelin. Leptin is the hormone that tells you to stop eating. So when you are sleep deprived, you have less leptin. In other words, more ghrelin plus less leptin equals weight gain. You are eating more, plus your metabolism is slower when you are sleep-deprived.

Yawn…stretch….

So what can you do about sleep deprivation?

For starters, avoid any caffeine in the afternoon because it will keep you in the lighter stages of sleep — which are associated with poor sleep — at night.  Exercise also helps improve sleep quality (which is awesome for me since today is martial arts training – yea!). Watch what you eat before bedtime and don’t eat a big meal too close to bed time. Heavy, rich meals before bed can also increase risk of heartburn (which will certainly keep you up all night – remember the “IN-DE-GESSSSSSSTION commercials).

Ah, now I am awake. I know I’m gonna have more cool stories about today’s martial arts lesson (and the soreness I will surely feel) but it’s all good. I have eaten my oatmeal to jumpstart my metabolism. I will be working out today. It’s a good day, indeed.

Now if only I could do all this waking up and being energized earlier…

Earth. Look at it. When we take a step back she is beautiful (that is when we aren’t completely killing her with oil spills, wars and deforestation – all blogs for another day). All of us have been taught how over 70% percent of the earth’s surface (71% to be more exact) is covered by water and how absolutely essential water is to maintain life on this fragile big blue marble spinning out in space.

Coming back a little closer to home today is Wednesday and you know what that means…mixed martial arts. As you know I’ve started taking mixed martial arts as a way to improve my overall fitness, tone up and hopefully lose the rest of the weight I need to get back to my original goal weight of 225 pounds. However, as I get my inner Daniel-san on, I am reminded of something extremely critical in any exercise regimen…the need for water. Today’s temperatures are going to exceed 95-degrees (yikes). With that in mind I thought it important to remind us all how important this amazing liquid is.

Even if today’s temps weren’t reaching surface-of-the-sun hot water is the most essential ingredient to a healthy life. Water has many important functions for the body including:

• Transportation of nutrients / elimination of waste products.
• Lubricating joints and tissues.
• Temperature regulation through sweating.
• Facilitating digestion.

Proper hydration is especially important during exercise and is essential to your comfort, performance and safety. The longer and more intensely you exercise, the more important it is to drink the right kind of fluids. Studies have found that a loss of two or more percent of one’s body weight due to sweating is linked to a drop in blood volume. When this occurs, the heart works harder to move blood through the bloodstream. This can also cause muscle cramps, dizziness and fatigue and even heat illnesses including heat exhaustion (the body’s response to dehydration and an excessive loss of water and salt through sweat which typically occurs after long periods of heat exposure) and heat stroke (a serious medical emergency in which the body’s cooling systems stop working and the core temperature can rise to dangerous levels. Symptoms of heat stroke include hot, dry skin, lack of sweating, a very fast pulse, confusion and perhaps seizures or coma. If untreated, heat stroke can be fatal).

There are several main causes of dehydration:

• Inadequate fluid intake
• Excessive sweating
• Failure to replace fluid losses during and after exercise
• Exercising in dry, hot weather
• Drinking only when thirsty

Because there is wide variability in the individual length and intensity of exercise, sweat rates, losses and hydration levels of individuals, it is nearly impossible to provide specific recommendations or guidelines about the type or amount of fluids people should consume while working out. There are, however, two simple methods of estimating adequate hydration:

1. Monitoring urine volume output and color. A large amount of light colored, diluted urine probably means you are hydrated; dark colored, concentrated urine probably means you are dehydrated.
2. Weighing yourself before and after exercise. Any weight lost is likely from fluid, so try to drink enough to replenish those losses. Any weight gain could mean you are drinking more than you need.

Also, while specific fluid recommendations aren’t possible due to each individual’s variability, most people can use the following guidelines as a starting point, and modify their fluid needs accordingly.

Hydration Before Exercise

• Drink about 15-20 fl oz, 2-3 hours before exercise
• Drink 8-10 fl oz 10-15 min before exercise

Hydration During Exercise

• Drink 8-10 fl oz every 10-15 min during exercise
• If exercising longer than 90 minutes, drink 8-10 fl oz of a sports drink (with no more than 8 percent carbohydrate) every 15 – 30 minutes.

Hydration After Exercise

• Weigh yourself before and after exercise and replace fluid losses.
• Drink 20-24 fl oz water for every 1 lb lost.
• Consume a 4:1 ratio of carbohydrates to protein within 2 hours after exercise to replenish glycogen stores.

And class, just so we have it all straight and know what to look for, here is a list of the early symptoms and most common signs of heat exhaustion:

• nausea
• dizziness
• weakness
• headache
• pale, cool and moist skin
• fast and weak pulse
• disorientation.
• paleness
• muscle cramps
• tiredness
• fainting

If heat exhaustion is left untreated, it may lead to heat stroke. The key difference between heat stroke and heat exhaustion is the presence of confusion and other mental status changes during heat stroke. During heat stroke, the neurological system is affected and can cause odd behavior, delusions, hallucinations, and eventually seizures or a coma.

IMPORTANT:  At the first signs of heat exhaustion, you should stop activity and cool the body by seeking shade, shelter or a cool room, and drinking cold fluids.

MOST IMPORTANT: Seek medical attention immediately if symptoms are severe.

Ok, my friends, there you have today’s lesson on the importance of water. As we all get ready for an incredibly hot day, no matter whether exercising or not, make sure you get plenty of water. Not only is it the best way to keep your body healthy, it’s also nature’s original soft drink.

Last night I had the hell scared out of me.

I had the occasion to do some catch-up with a friend of mine over dinner last night. It was a cool and casual dinner, and a few delicious happy hour pineapple martinis and mini-burger and egg roll appetizers were consumed. It was great, that is until my friend told me about a friend of theirs who had recently had a stroke, two of them, in fact…

…and he is only 38.

That news hit me like a ton of bricks. A guy who is ONE YEAR YOUNGER THAN I AM has had two strokes and is now dealing with the realities of recuperation and recovery from them, and he’s only 38.

“A year younger than me,” I thought to myself, ““My God, that guy could have easily been me by now.”

While the evening continued on for at least an hour past that piece of news it never left me. It sat next to me the rest of the night. It made me put down the appetizers and the martinis. It sobered me up and followed me home when the catch-up was over. As I lay in bed I thanked God, my lucky stars, guardian angel, mom, fate, destiny, karma and everyone and everything else I could that I was alive and well enough to be able to do the things I do these days. It is not news to you guys that I firmly believe my quality of life would have suffered severely if I didn’t lose weight and had remained 400 pounds. I had high blood pressure that would have kept going. I had arthritis that would have gotten worse with age. I had sleep apnea causing me to stop breathing during sleep. I might even be dead.

When I got up this morning I was still very troubled by the news I’d heard. I was also curious about obesity and the roll it plays in strokes.

For those of you lucky enough to never have known what a stroke is, a stroke occurs when there’s a problem with the amount of blood in your brain. The cause of the main type of stroke — ischemic stroke — is too little blood in the brain. The cause of the other type of stroke — hemorrhagic stroke — is too much blood within the skull.

About 80 percent of strokes are ischemic strokes. They occur when the arteries to your brain are narrowed or blocked, causing severely reduced blood flow (ischemia). This deprives your brain cells of oxygen and nutrients, and cells may begin to die within minutes. The most common ischemic strokes are:

• Thrombotic stroke. This type of stroke occurs when a blood clot (thrombus) forms in one of the arteries that supply blood to your brain. A clot usually forms in areas damaged by atherosclerosis — a disease in which the arteries are clogged by fatty deposits (plaques).
• Embolic stroke. An embolic stroke occurs when a blood clot or other particle forms in a blood vessel away from your brain — commonly in your heart — and is swept through your bloodstream to lodge in narrower brain arteries. This type of blood clot is called an embolus. It’s often caused by irregular beating in the heart’s two upper chambers (atrial fibrillation). This abnormal heart rhythm can lead to poor blood flow and the formation of a blood clot.

“Hemorrhage” is the medical word for bleeding. Hemorrhagic stroke occurs when a blood vessel in your brain leaks or ruptures. Hemorrhages can result from a number of conditions that affect your blood vessels, including uncontrolled high blood pressure (hypertension) and weak spots in your blood vessel walls (aneurysms). A less common cause of hemorrhage is the rupture of an arteriovenous malformation (AVM) — an abnormal tangle of thin-walled blood vessels, present at birth. There are two types of hemorrhagic stroke:

• Intracerebral hemorrhage. In this type of stroke, a blood vessel in the brain bursts and spills into the surrounding brain tissue, damaging cells. Brain cells beyond the leak are deprived of blood and are also damaged. High blood pressure is the most common cause of this type of hemorrhagic stroke. Over time, high blood pressure can cause small arteries inside your brain to become brittle and susceptible to cracking and rupture.
• Subarachnoid hemorrhage. In this type of stroke, bleeding starts in a large artery on or near the surface of the brain and spills into the space between the surfaces of your brain and your skull. This type of hemorrhage is often signaled by a sudden, severe “thunderclap” headache. This type of stroke is commonly caused by the rupture of an aneurysm, which can develop with age or be genetically inherited. After the hemorrhage, the blood vessels in your brain may widen and narrow erratically (vasospasm), causing brain cell damage by further limiting blood flow to parts of your brain.

A transient ischemic attack (TIA, or ministroke) is a brief episode of symptoms similar to those you’d have in a stroke. The cause of a transient ischemic attack is a temporary decrease in blood supply to part of your brain. Most attacks last just a few minutes. However, in contrast to a stroke which involves a more prolonged lack of blood supply and causes some permanent damage to your brain tissue, a TIA doesn’t leave lasting effects to your brain. Still, if you’ve had a TIA, it means there’s likely a blocked or narrowed artery leading to your brain, putting you at a greater risk of a full-blown stroke that could cause more permanent damage. If you’re having a TIA, get emergency medical treatment and make sure your regular physician knows about it.

Why am I telling you guys this heavy stuff today? Because I want to scare the hell out of you, too. Why? The higher a person’s degree of obesity, the higher their risk of stroke — regardless of race, gender and how obesity is measured, according to a recent study published in Stroke: Journal of the American Heart Association who said the higher a person’s degree of obesity, the higher their risk of stroke – regardless of sex or race.

However, stroke is more likely among obese blacks than obese whites. Hiroshi Yatsuya, M.D., Ph.D., study lead author and visiting associate professor at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis and colleagues followed 13,549 middle-aged black and white men and women in four U.S. communities from 1987 through 2005. Participants started the study free of cancer and cardiovascular disease.

During the follow-up period of about 19 years, 598 ischemic strokes occurred. The researchers calculated incidence rate — the number of new cases per 1,000 people per year — according to groups representing different degrees of obesity, using each obesity measure.

They found that incidence rates differed substantially between whites and blacks. For example, the stroke rate in the lowest BMI category was 1.2 per 1,000 person-years for white women and 4.3 per 1,000 person-years for black women. The rate in the highest BMI category was 2.2 for white men and 8.0 for black men.

“Black women had about three times higher incidence of stroke than white women in the lowest as well as in the highest BMI categories,” Yatsuya said. “But the correlation between increasing stroke incidence and increasing degree of obesity was apparent in both races and genders.”
“Since individuals with higher degrees of obesity tended to have higher blood pressure levels or higher diabetes prevalence, we further examined the relationship between the degree of obesity and ischemic stroke incidence by statistically adjusting for difference in blood pressure of diabetes status attributed to the degree of obesity,” Yatsuya said. “That significantly weakened the associations, suggesting these major risk factors explain much of the obesity-stroke association.”

My friends, strokes remain among the top five leading causes of death. The Archives of Internal Medicine published a study showing that people who are overweight by 20% or less carry a 50% increased probability of suffering a stroke. The study also explained that being more than 20 percent overweight carried a risk that was twice as high. Because of these statistics, it’s important to know how weight and strokes are related. The tell-tale effect is that extra weight affects arteries by narrowing them. With narrowed arteries, it becomes easier for blood clots to form, which could cause a stroke later on. The narrowing of the arteries can be compounded by hypertension, low exercise level and a diet that contains a lot of cholesterol. Unfortunately, some (but certainly not all) overweight people don’t exercise regularly and eat high-cholesterol diets, which increases their stroke risk dramatically. On the flip side, healthy eating habits and exercise can decrease your risk of a stroke later on.

As I sit here and type I am looking out of the stop sign-shaped window next to my desk. I am looking at the blue sky above (which has, at most, a very few whispy clouds floating through it) and I feel as though I’ve woken up from a nightmare. Losing weight has had a dramatic effect on my life to say the least. However, I realize I have been concentrating on the effects you mostly see and feel, not necessarily on the effects you DON’T see: like how much I’ve prolonged my life and like how much I’ve dramatically reduced the chances of strokes, heart attacks and diabetes all by losing the weight I did. Sometimes good can happen when you cannot see it and these positive effects are there the more you see your numbers come down on the scale.

Having the hell scared out of you may add grey hairs to your head, but sometimes being scared is a good way to avoid being scared to death. Know what I mean?

Did you guys happen to see last night’s Stanley Cup game? Damn, I think my nerves are still shot (no pun intended) and my blood pressure is still through the roof. But what a series it was and what a final game. I am still jumping up and down for my Chicago Blackhawks! Woohoo! That was awesome! Congratulations, fellas! Well done and well-played. But also my hat’s off totally to the Philadelphia Flyers. They played great hockey (and were a far more aggressive team, especially in the third period) and I can see why they deserved to be in the Stanley Cup finals.

All that being said I am a tired wreck today. What am I, getting old? Used to be I’d get four hours of sleep a night (10:00 p.m. – 2:00 a.m.) then get up to go to work at one of the three jobs I used to have – my “day job” of producer/board operator at WLS-AM Radio from 4:00 a.m. (or 3:30 a.m. depending on how much I had to do before the show I worked on started), my internship at 20th Century Fox from noon until 5:00 p.m., followed by my market research job from 5:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. I kept that insane schedule five days a week for a year. It was so horrendous that I, during that time, would only have one 24-hour period in my week where I didn’t have to wake up to go to work. I called it my “year of hell,” and thank God I was 22 when I did it. I’d fall over today, wave a white flag and surrender if I had to keep that schedule now.

That got this 39-year-old thinking lots about metabolism and how jealous I am of people who seem to have one. Why is it that I feel slower now at almost 40? Why am I so damned tired after just watching a game on TV (albeit an exciting-as-hell one)? And what the hell is metabolism, anyway?

Most of us think of metabolism as the rate at which we burn calories, but that only part of it. According to Christopher Newgard, director of the Sarah W. Stedman Nutrition and Metabolism Center at Duke University Medical School, “Metabolism is the breakdown of metabolic fuels we have in the diet. The primary nutrients in foods can be classified as fats, proteins or carbohydrates. Metabolism is the way the cells, organs and tissues in our bodies handle those kinds of fuels. In other words, it’s not just about burning up the food we eat, but about how the various nutrients from that food help us maintain a healthy body.”

OK, so then why do I just feel like I have to work so hard at losing and maintaining weight while some can eat whatever, whenever, and not have it affect them at all?  Bastards. So I wondered out loud – does metabolism really slow down as we get older (er, sorry – better) or do we?

Both (dammit). The slowing of metabolism is a real thing. Mitochondria, the little energy factories that convert nutrients to power in cells, slow down with age. And that’s not all. Barry Stein of Wake Forest University School of Medicine explains, “As we age, we are subject to sarcopenia—muscle wasting. Since muscle burns more energy than fat, this means the metabolic load goes down and metabolism reflects that.” That is, if you do nothing about your loss of muscle with age, it will take you longer to burn off a candy bar at age 60 than at 20.

I’d better start watching those good-tasting plain Hershey candy bars then, eh?

Also (and I knew this one), our bodies are built to store fat. When our bodies sense food is becoming nonexistent or scarce we have pathways that allow us to store what we need to be ready for those times. But, the more we eat, our bodies can’t burn that overload of calories and our bodies burn fat even less efficiently. Therefore, all the calories that aren’t used get converted to fat for storage—all in preparation for the famine that never comes because we keep consuming.

Then add to this the fact we tend to become less active as years go by (like not being able to function as we once did when we were, say, 22 and working three jobs), and we can see why the inches start to gather around your (and my) waist. So how does a well-meaning, late-thirty-something slow the slowing? Well, there are things we can do to keep our metabolisms efficient.

Start with Exercise.

“Exercise actually increases the number of mitochondria. And also increases their metabolic activity,” explains Newgard. Exercise also burns calories, especially cardio mixed with weight training. Cardio activity burns calories while you do it but tends to stop when you stop. Strength and weight training is great because it keeps burning long after you’ve put down the barbells because muscle burns more calories than fat while you’re at rest.

Eat balanced meals

It may sound simple and boring, but there’s good reason that balanced diets are what the nutrition experts always recommend. “Each of the primary food fuels has important individual contributions to make to the whole metabolic scheme,” Newgard says. Fatty acids are important in the synthesis of cell membranes. Carbs are a quick energy source and used for a whole plethora of biochemical reactions, including building DNA. Amino acids build protein—the structural basis of our cells. Again, all of this is part of metabolism—converting and using nutrients to maintain healthy cells, organs and tissues. Diets that eliminate an entire food group will take a toll on the body in the long run.

Don’t skip meals

When you skip meals your body gets smart and starts to conserve fat. Also, skipping meals can lead to overeating because you’re hungry and you binge. And the calories you do take in are extra calories when your body is starting to conserve and store.

Drink water and green tea

Drinking water helps with digestion and metabolism efficiency. Plus, when you are dehydrated, you feel lethargic and you move less. Water is also healthier than other drinks, like sodas.When it comes to green tea, on the other hand, drink up. Studies have indicated that drinking about five cups of green tea a day may increase metabolism slightly. Plus it’s a great source of antioxidants.

So you see? We can fight off the effects of aging, at least some of them. The wrinkles, bags, sags and other stuff may not go away but we can help ourselves ward off being overweight and boost these things we call metabolism. It’s like one of my old employers once told me when I was that young, energetic and cocky 22-year-old, “you get out of the job what you put into the job.”

And my friends,that is so true.  If we do take the time to work hard at it, knowing we are worth that hard work and energy, we, too, will win our weight loss battles and hoist a really cool, big and heavy cup over our heads in victory (figuratively speaking, of course)…

…unless you are one of the 2009/2010 Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks, that is.They got to do that for real. And I’m sure they burned a helluva lot of calories last night just partying afterward.

Say, do you think they might read this blog? Hmmmmmm….

Well, this is it. No, it’s neither the biopic released last year showing and detailing (at least in part) the planned series of fifty concerts by Michael Jackson to be held at The O2 arena in London, nor is it the 80s song by Kenny Loggins. It is, in fact, the day before the auditions for Oprah’s “win your OWN show” contest here in the good ol’ Garden State.

I am not really nervous at all about standing in front of a series of strangers telling them about my ideas for my own OWN show. I am, however, nervous and anxious about the actual process which begins for yours truly at around midnight tonight. That’s when I will be getting up and prepping to drive to the Kohl’s Store in Linden to try to secure my place in line since only the first 500 or so people are guaranteed to be seen by the casting directors for the show.

How does all this relate to weight loss you ask? Simple. Today and tomorrow are taking me out of my normal weight loss and maintenance routines just at the  time I have re-engaged my better exercise and eating routines to shed this last two or so pounds before June 9, the anniversary of my mom’s death. Also, not knowing exactly how this process will work I am not sure about food choices tomorrow.  I think I will be OK, though. I am going to pack drinks, healthy snacks and a sandwich in a cooler to bring with me (this way I am not tempted by the Dark Side of the food Force).

Since I have to be up at the crack of, well, er…since I have to get up in the dead of night (insert cheesy, spooky muah ah ah ah-kind of laugh here) I will not be writing a blog post for tomorrow, Saturday, morning. But you can bet your healthy fruit, egg and coffee breakfast on Sunday I will be telling you all about Bill’s Excellent Adventure including what I ate.

Speaking of which, I did really well yesterday, or at least I thought I did. I had a chicken salad sandwich from Chick-Fil-A yesterday. I usually go for their less than 300-calorie Chargrilled Chicken Sandwich (which only has approximately 3.5 grams of fat) but I wanted something different and, since it was hot outside, the coolness of chicken salad peaked my interest.

Sheesh! What a mistake I made! O.K. I know I’m not new and that chicken salad has mayo in it but I didn’t expect a healthy “looking” sandwich to have 500 CALORIES and 20 GRAMS OF FAT!!! Again, as Stewie Griffin from “Family Guy” would say, “What The Deuce?!” Here I thought I’d be having a light sandwich made with the chicken I think is actually seasoned with crack it’s so good and I ended up eating a sandwich that is worse (WORSE) than their own new (AND FRIED) Spicy Chicken Sandwich!

Let’s compare more apples to apples.

In addition to the 500 calories (180 of which are calories from fat) and 20 grams of fat (3.5 of which saturated), my chicken salad sandwich contained 4 grams of fiber, 12 grams of sugar (!), 52 grams of carbs, 80 grams of cholesterol and 29 grams of protein.

Compare that to their new (and again FRIED) Spicy Chicken Sandwich which has 490 calories (180 of which are calories from fat – same as the chicken salad) and 20 grams of fat (4.0 of which saturated, only 0.5 more), contains 4 grams of fiber, 8 grams of sugar (4 grams less)), 46 grams of carbs (6 grams less), 60 grams of cholesterol (a whole 20 grams less) and 31 grams of protein (2 grams more than the chicken salad).

The only significant way I found my “healthier” chicken salad to win was in the sodium department. The chicken salad has 1240 mg of sodium while the new Spicy Chicken Sandwich has 1730 mg.

Now that I think about it, maybe I am new. Damn! What a difference. Here I thought I healthy-looking sandwich on toasted wheat bread would be better for me than a fried chicken sandwich. HA, I tell you! HA! And even though I only bought the sandwich can you imagine if I had their (delicious) Waffle Fries with that? Without a drink that’s close to 1,000 calories!

(Also, did I mention the chicken sald laid a little heavy in my tummy afterward?)

Damn! Maybe I am new after all. See what extra ingredients, processing and mayo do to ya? Well, consider me “edumacated” (and yes, I did purposely misspell that) and know I will be going back to my grilled chicken sandwich if and when I do eat there again.

In the meantime I will continue getting ready for what will hopefully be a “first step into a larger world,” as Obi-Wan Kenobi says in “Star Wars.” And while I am doing that and prepping for the Oprah thing I will be packin’ a 310-calorie cold Italian Hoagie from Wawa. Not only is it a helluva lot healthier (no mayo, build your own with fresh veggies, etc.) but I know it’s 310 calories before I even order it! Wawa has this cool “Meal Builder” way to calculate calories in your food before you get there! It’s awesome! I love Wawa!

Have a great start to your weekend, my friends and check back in on Sunday morning for all the juicy details of how one man (O.K. probably thousands) is trying to live his dream waiting in a long-ass line dragging his cooler along for the ride. If anything it also makes a great stool on which to sit.

Ugh. This Stanley Cup series is wearing me out. Have you guys been watching? It is an awesome series being played by two very good teams (go Hawks!), but the back and forth drama is enough to make me nervously eat for a month. Don’t worry I didn’t, even though I so wanted to drown my sorrows last night (the Blackhawks lost in OT by a score of 4-3) in the nearest pint of strawberry ice-cream. So today my “days without incident” now stand at three.  I actually ended up having steamed chicken and broccoli and brown rice from my fave Chinese food restaurant and – wait for it – a glass of ice water! Two points for me! Er, wait. Is that how you score points in hockey, with a field goal or home run or something? And when does the penalty kick come in?

Well, anyway, staying up late last night to watch the game made me tired as hell this morning. That, in turn, made me far less motivated to get up and join the world today. I know I have stuff to do but I am so waiting for the day we can mentally project what we want to do and have it be done (oh, well. Not in this lifetime anyway). So I lay in bed on mornings like this making my mental list of how cool it is to get out of bed. I know it sounds cheesy but you guys know I am Captain Cheese, Mr. Velveeta…if life were a Philly cheesesteak I’d be the “extra wiz” poured on top.

Chief on my list to accomplish today is more exercise. Yep, getting my ass up, throwing on sweats and gym shoes is top of my list to accomplish today. I am this/close to losing the first of the two pounds I re-gained recently by stress eating and I want those off me like a bad, cheap or ill-fitting suit. I don’t know about you guys but when you get to a certain point you just “know” when your body has gained even a pound or two. Well, I feel as though I’ve gained a whole freaking turkey recently and I want that sluggish, bloated ill-fitting suit feeling gone and done.

Next, I have errands to run in preparation for Friday/Saturday. I think it just hit me today as I lay in bed not moving how screwed up my body is going to feel tomorrow, Friday, because I have to sleep in the afternoon then get up at midnight to drive to this Oprah “win your OWN show” audition Saturday then sort of camp out in my car until the times comes to wait in line for a few more hours. Sigh. Thank God they make extra-large cups of coffee at Dunkin’ Donuts.

Finally, I have to plan out what I’m gonna eat during Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals. I have always said eating should be very much like scuba diving – you plan your dive and you dive your plan.  A weight loss journey and eating healthy don’t go on hold just because it is time to play for the Cup, but eating while watching the game doesn’t have to be unhealthy. Some great food options (done in moderation not in mass quantities) to help everyone watching the game (or any game) keep their eating on track are:

Salsa

Salsa is made up of fruits and vegetables and contains no fat. Traditionally made with tomatoes, onions, cilantro, and spices, salsa provides antioxidants and vitamins prevalent in those specific fruits and vegetables. Salsa variations can include beans and corn for additional fiber and nutrients. Salsa also is low in cholesterol. You can eat salsa with unsalted, baked, whole wheat chips for added nutritional and health value. Pita chips also are a healthy alternative. And remember, HERE is a kick-ass Slightly Spicy Black Bean Salsa recipe perfect for rooting for the Hawks (er, I mean your favorite team).

Roasted chicken or turkey sandwiches

Served on whole wheat buns or bread thins, either are a great option to add some protein to any game watching you might do. Chicken is a lean meat, and if served moist enough, requires very little in terms of fatty condiments. Skip the cheese and mayonnaise, perhaps add some mustard, and relax in front of the game knowing that the lean meat will provide necessary proteins without the fat of red or deep-fried meats.

Chili

Not big on sandwiches? Try some low-fat chili. Made with ground turkey, black beans, tomatoes, peppers, and onions, the warm goodness will provide a meal in itself with protein, fiber, fruits, and vegetables. Protein helps build muscle, while fiber stabilizes blood sugar by slowing the rate that sugar enters the bloodstream. And again, fruits and vegetables provide invaluable vitamins and nutrients. Skip the Fritos, cheese and sour cream to keep fat-content low.

See, my day is now all on track. I am wide awake and raring to get started – at least I will be after some extra light, extra crunchy coffee which I am off to go get…

…now.

P.S. – Yes, I just read what I wrote and I do not know if I can stay up to watch the game tomorrow! Like Stewie Griffin from “Family Guy” would say (in a British accent) “Blast! What the deuce? How dare they hold the game and not accommodate my schedule!” I will have to find at least one way before tomorrow to have the game mentally projected into my brain as I lay there sleeping. Hmmmmmm…

Did you guys see the Edward Norton movie version of “The Incredible Hulk?” In it we see how long Norton’s Dr. Bruce Banner has gone without turning into The Hulk by displaying on-screen an electronic tally sheet that lists “days without incident.” Of course you wouldn’t have much of a movie if Banner’s “days without incident” kept going. It would be like watching paint dry or watching a pot of water and waiting for it to boil.

Boring.

Well, I sort of feel like that crossed with the commercial where the cell phone coverage area pops up above someone’s head. It is Day Two of my re-engaging my routine to lose weight and shed these two additional pounds before June 9.  Day Two – That’s what my electronic “days without incident” meter is displaying. I did well yesterday. I exercised and ate really well. I had a chicken breast for lunch with water (yep, no Coca-Cola) and I had a protein-filled steak for dinner with green beans. Totally tasty.

Now before you start saying to me “Bill, you really should lay off red meat,” I know that. I do, and I have been eating more chicken these days. But I am a Chicago boy, born and raised, and I like me my steak. I have also been eating more veggies, too. Green beans, tomatoes, asparagus and salads.  And now that I am trying to re-engage I am realizing how badly I had been stress eating lately.

My newly re-found routine also helps me with this coming weekend, too, and vice-versa. I found out yesterday by taking my long-ass drive to Linden, New Jersey (for the Oprah “win your OWN show” audition) that they will not be allowing camping out overnight and that the line starts at 6:00 a.m. Saturday. Yeah, right. I know I need to get there a few hours before that but at least I will not be homeless for a day or two wondering if/how I will get to continue eating healthily while waiting in line. I get to keep my routine going.

It also answers the question of how I will be able to exercise. I was thinking I would borrow one of my gym’s padded mats and actually do sit-ups, crunches and push-ups in front of the other peeps like me in line. At least I would have been illustrating my show idea in a way.

Today is June 2. This day last year was the last full day my mom, JoAnn, spent in the hospital before being transferred to hospice care. I try not to let sad thoughts enter my brain and I try to concentrate instead on a few other things – the beauty of the blue sky, birds singing and the goal I have set for myself, not to stress eat anymore and lose this two pounds by June 9.

The last thing I want to do is turn into my own food version of “The Incredible Hulk” and yell out “food good” instead of “Hulk smash.” It really is easy to just walk into a store and order up anything. The people behind the counter don’t know you from Adam and don’t know you are trying your best to stay on a weight loss journey. They just do their job and punch in the amount for whatever badness you’re going to consume and call it a day.

That’s why I have to remember my own “days without incident” / phone coverage map above my own head. Others may not be able to see it but I sure know it’s there and I do want its number to increase more and more so I know I’ve learned how to control the raging beast that dwells within me (and yes, that was a nod to the old Hulk TV show of the 70s).

Have a great day.