by Mike Vifquain on August 22, 2011
I’m Married! I’m happy to report that I have married Juliette, the special girl who originally inspired me to create this blog.
As of today, I am 286lbs. I’m not quite sure why I can’t seem to dedicate myself to weight loss as I once did. Perhaps its because I am happy with my life as is. I am eating better, and much less than before, which has resulted in some weight loss. However I am still not hitting the gym steadily. Tomorrow I will get back into the gym, and slowly work my way back to getting fit. Wish me luck!
by Mike Vifquain on October 31, 2010
I didn’t make the gym early Friday, however I did make it later in the day. This weekend is filled with kids activities, fortunately I’m not big fan of Candy!
Are you?
I’m already looking forward to tomorrows workout. I’m noticeably more tired during the day when I don’t start with cardio!
Happy Halloween!
by Mike Vifquain on October 28, 2010
The Nuts. The best hand. Unbeatable.
Thats my week. My attitude is kicking ass and taking names. When an excuse has opportunity, my Will shows the better hand.
My goal for this week is simple: Cardio every day after dropping the kids at school. Today is Thursday and I’m right on track. Not without an obstacle though.
This morning I was tempted to skip and “delay” my workout at my son’s request. It was picture day, and his class was first in line. I stayed to watch him, and after he wanted me to volunteer to do flash cards with his class. He pulled out all the stops: puppy-dog eyes, hugs, kisses and even said “I Love You” in front of his friends. It was a hard decision to make, but with todays work schedule, I had to choose only one — Volunteer or Cardio. Today cardio won, but only because I already volunteered Monday.
Cardio this week is a simple 30 minutes on the elliptical per day. Next week I will kick it up to 45 minutes, and rotate in the 100 Pushups and 200 situps programs.
Todays workout:
30 mins, 465 cals, 2.57 mi.
Time: 30 mins
Distance: 2.57 mi.
Calories: 465 cals
As you can tell, I burned less calories in this session. Rather than pushing myself, I decided to try and keep my heart-rate on target for “fat-loss” according to the computer. My heart rate averaged 135, instead of the usual 150-160.
How are your weekly workouts progressing?
by Mike Vifquain on October 26, 2010
I did it. I am breaking the mold.
My mold.
I will no longer succumb to my own excuses. In the coming days, I will tackle each of my recurring excuses to prevent myself from getting into the gym. By facing my own demons, publicly, I hope to prevent them from happening in the future. Maybe some of you face the same demons and can offer commentary on what has worked for you.
When I think of excuses, many come to mind. I’ve got a million and one for just about any occasion, but there is one that stands out far more than the others. It affects all aspects of my life, personal motivation, work productivity and more importantly the time I spend with my kids. I’m tired.
Excuse #1: I’m too tired.
Why the hell am I so tired?
Obviously I’m fat. Thats why I’m in this situation, right? Am I fat because of some medical condition? Do I have diabetes or a thyroid disorder? Nope. Do I have High Blood Pressure? Nope. Are my knees so shot I can barely walk? Nope. In all honesty I am a perfectly healthy guy, other than being a fat ass. I had blood work done a few weeks ago and everything came back perfect.
So what is causing me to be so tired?
- Because my body is used to being a lazy ass. It’s in a constant state of rest. I work at a desk and sit on my ass all day.
- Because I am self employed, I work from home and set my own hours. There is no structure. My hobby is my work. If I am bored at night, I get online and work.
- Because I don’t sleep enough at night (see previous reason)
I’m sure I could come up with even more reasons, but they are all related to those above. So lets examine some of the affects this has on my life.
- My house is a mess. I’m either too busy or too tried to really clean. So I solve that problem by hiring someone to clean my house once a week. That still leaves 6 days of me not doing even the simplest amount of cleaning.
- My business is unorganized, which affects my productivity. If I would exert a little more time and energy, I could be organized and stay on task. This is something that has affected me my whole life, regardless of my weight, which makes this an even tougher mountain to climb. If I can accomplish more in a shorter period of time, I can work less and focus on improving other parts of my life.
- Quality time with my children. As a single dad, who recently has the kiddos full-time, I get to juggle homework, sports and after school events in addition to all my other responsibilities. By not having the energy to stay organized and on top of things, it affects my children. My laziness rubs off on them. This is probably the most motivating issue of them all. I’ve noticed that if I wait and have to rush them, they push back and respond less positive to whatever the issue is. By giving them the time attention they need, there is less hassle and they are much happier.
So there you have it… Excuse and motivating factor #1.
My solution is to get to wake up 30 minutes earlier, thus getting the kids to school earlier and creating an additional 30 minutes of gym-time. I plan do do this 5 days a week. I don’t think it’s too much to ask of myself.
*Side note: Today I did 30 minutes on the elliptical.
Distance: 2.59 mi
Calories: 534
by Mike Vifquain on October 25, 2010
After months and months of excuses, I am back. I am re-committing myself to self accountability and overall health.
What seemed like such an easy move about 1 year ago, has turned into a year of naught. While my fellow Weight-Loss Bloggers have lost 50-100lbs, I have lost a whopping total of 7lbs as of today.
Thats right, todays weigh-in: 298lbs.
I am meal away from 300lbs. AGAIN!
Not anymore. I will not be that fat-ass again. Today I hit the gym for the start of my every-morning cardio commitment.
30 minutes: 507 Calories
Thats an OK start.
30 min. 507 cal.
I appreciate all the emails and words of encouragement over the last year. I let myself down, however it’s never too late to get back on the wagon. I’m doing it. I hope you’ll join me for the ride!
by Mike Vifquain on June 9, 2010
Yep, I admit it. I’m a bad blogger.
Life has gotten in the way of my blog posts, once again. Here I am almost 90 days later, a few lbs heavier and finally posting about it.
First – The Good news:
- I have still been working out. (Weight training 3-5 days a week)
- I have increased my strength, BIG TIME!
- I have added 8-10lbs muscle mass
- I haven’t been traveling.
Now – The Bad News:
- My diet sucks. I’m not eating often enough or well enough.
- I am not doing enough cardio, in addition to my weight training.
- I have gained a few lbs. (287lbs as of this morning)
One could argue that the bad really isn’t that bad; I’ve added muscle and maintained fat %, while really not pushing cardio and a proper diet. I don’t see it that way. My initial goal was to lose 100lbs by today. I have lost only 20.
Lets cut to the chase here and let you be the judge.
Now, if we compare to the pics in my last post you will see a few things:
- I am MUCH more tan. Its summer and I am out on the boat a lot!
- I am definitely “larger”. But is this muscle growth or fat?
- I clearly have no fear of posting embarrassing “fat” pics of me online.
I know what I need to do. I know I need to get more serious, but didn’t I say this before?
I’m searching for some encouragement by way of true criticism with this post.
What do you think of my status here? What is your take on my status pic? Better/worse?
