My name is Tom, and I'm 39 years old. And I'm fat. Not fat in the sense of a Discovery Health special, but way heavier than I would like to be, and finally, after all these years, I've come to the conclusion that it's time to do something about it.
I've always struggled with my weight, from childhood on up. I can remember going to Sears for "husky" clothing, and being teased mercilessly throughout grade school and junior high. Things seemed to improve a bit after a growth spurt in high school, I shot up a bit in height and seemed to thin out, but then as the years went by, I gradually packed on the pounds, going from an XL to 2x and now hovering in the 2x-3x range as far as clothing sizes go.
How did I get here? Simple - the same way that a lot of people probably wind up in this place. Not a lot of exercise, poor diet, emotional eating, you name the health-related vice, I've probably had it or done it. The only two real positives in my lifestyle from a health standpoint is that I've never smoked (save for occasional cigarettes in college) and I am a VERY light drinker.
From a family history/genetics standpoint, I fear that I'm a walking cardiovascular time bomb. Serious heart disease on BOTH sides of the family, Diabetes on my mother's side, and my mother passed away at an early age due to cancer. So the cards are likely stacked against me on that score. Also, a lot of my early family life (and still today, to a lesser extent) revolved around food - family gatherings, etc. Growing up in Berks County, PA in a family of women blessed with extraordinary cooking and baking abilities surely didn't help either - PA Dutch cooking is well known to for its lack of "healthy" qualities, but "it tastes wonderful good!"
I mention this stuff not to spread blame, because the failure to practice moderation with all this was/is mine and mine alone. It's simply my attempt to think about the factors that have played a part in my life to this point as it pertains to health, and specifically eating. And the things that finally made me realize that it's time to stop procrastinating and do something about it.
The funny thing is, I work for a health insurance company. And I've spent the past several years talking to people and employers about the benefits of helping their employees get healthy, increase their activity levels, lose weight, and so on, and yet I'm seriously overweight. Looking at it objectively, this situation makes me wonder if I have any credibility on the topic - if my clients take me seriously when I'm delivering this message. I also worry that it's hindering my career progression. While I doubt that anyone would say this openly, it's an oft-discussed topic that weight is the last acceptable prejudice, so I have to wonder.
But all of this pales in comparison to something that happened a couple weeks ago that really got me thinking about all of this. As most are aware, February brought a lot of snow to the Eastern Seaboard. One Saturday as I was out clearing the driveway and sidewalks with the snowblower, I came in to find out that my son had called home from college, and in hearing from my wife that I was outside shoveling, he wanted to know whether "I was okay." Which I took to mean that he was concerned that I was laying face-down in a drift on the front lawn after suffering a heart attack or something. Wow. While it may have been an innocent question, it hit me like a ton of bricks, that my son would be concerned about my health.
I really can't explain why, but it had a profound impact on me, and in thinking about it over the next few days, I realized that I simply can't go on like this. As I'm approaching 40 (the age at which my grandfather died from a massive coronary), I've GOT to do something. I want to see my kids graduate from college, start their lives, get married and have grandchildren. I want to live to retire and grow old with my wonderful wife Deb. And if I keep going like this, I don't think that's going to happen. I'm a rational guy - the medical evidence and the facts are out there in black and white, I deal with them every day in my work.
Time to act. "Come health or high water," I need to lose this weight. 100 pounds would be nice. I realize nothing is going to happen overnight - I didn't gain all this weight in a week, I'm not going to lose it all in a week, or a month, or maybe even a year. But I need to start somewhere. Small steps at first, easy does it, one day at a time, and so on.
So what have I done so far? Well, I've started small. Since February 25th, I've cut my soda intake to 1 a day. This has been by FAR my biggest vice over the years. I honestly don't see myself ever cutting it out entirely, but it's been a week and a half, and so far I've been doing OK with one a day - usually later in the morning. Maybe at some point I'll make an effort to cut it out all the way, but right now I'm content with this drastic cutback. Also, I've made a conscious effort to eat better - eating more fruit throughout the day (instead of snacking on junk) and drinking a lot more water. And maybe it's psychological, but I find myself feeling better, sleeping better, and overall having somewhat more energy.
The next step I took is somewhat bigger - I signed up for wellness coaching and a weight management program through the health benefits offered by my employer. My first call is next Wednesday (3/10). I figure that since it's my job to demonstrate the value of these programs to my clients, what better way than to (hopefully) create a personal success story? I'm looking forward to it - we'll see how it goes. My next step should probably be to go out and buy a decent scale, so I can track my progress. I've avoided stepping on one outside of doctor visits for fear of seeing the number in black and white, but I guess if I'm really serious about this, I have to.
Wow - looking back, this has been a LOOOONG introduction. I'm excited and anxious all at once about this "project." I hope you'll follow along as I set out to give myself a health makeover!
Tom
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