Overeaters Anonymous (OA) Meetings - An Inside Look28 lbs LOSTso farJuly 19, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 6 comments
Editor’s note: This is a guest post from Jenny Clark. She primarily blogs about teaching and education related issues. She teaches 2nd grade in an urban Midwest school. You can see her blog at http://doinitjensway.blogspot.com.
First I’d like to say that I’m no expert on this. Please see the Overeaters Anonymous (OA) website www.OA.org for official information. Okay, now that that’s out of the way, I’d like to share my story. I’ve struggled with my weight, and had body issues for as long as I can remember. I remember thinking that I was fat as early as 1st grade. I went on the grapefruit diet when I was in third grade. I’ve since tried: the egg-banana-hotdog diet, anything a magazine told me to do, bulimia, Atkins, South Beach, medical research programs, poopy pills (they blocked the fat, but gave you the poops), and almost any other diet program you can think of. Regardless, my weight just kept increasing. I’ve had a few short lived periods of success, but in general, I’ve always failed. It didn’t make sense. I’m an over-achiever. I’m successful, why is it I couldn’t manage this?
Several years ago, I heard about Overeaters Anonymous meetings. I attended a couple of meetings… cried, listened, read, and decided that it wasn’t for me. I wasn’t ready yet. Finally, this summer, I’d had enough. My doctor had started mentioning my weight at every visit. I was constantly worrying that I would have a heart attack, and felt terrible. I decided that things had to change. I decided to approach this from all my angles. I went to my doctor and got some blood work done. I started seeing a therapist, I’ve met a couple of times with a nutritionist, I started reading, exercising, and I began attending OA
meetings.
It started out rather uncomfortable. Overeaters Anonymous was definitely the hardest. It was hard just to get to the meeting. At the meeting it was hard to speak. It was hard to believe that I was in the right spot. I spent a lot of my time at those initial meetings judging the other people. I sort of knew I was in the right place, but I didn’t want to admit that I was the same as the people I was judging. Then, at about my 5th meeting, a person made a comment about stealing food from the families they were babysitting for. I flashed back to my babysitting years. I totally did that. I would eat little bits of lots of their food and try to put it back in just the same spot so it wouldn’t be noticed. Other people in the room also admitted to doing the same thing. It was then that it clicked. I was among people who, for whatever reason, shared my story. We don’t, and probably never have responded to food like most people. Many of them have overcome their weight problems by working the OA program (not just short term- these folks have been successful for years, and they keep coming back to sustain their success, and to help us newcomers).
After that I got “abstinent.” In Overeaters Anonymous (OA), abstinent, means that you pick a food/life plan, and stick to it. They don’t tell you what to pick, you know your trigger foods better than anyone else. Just like in AA, you keep track of your abstinence. I’ve now been abstinent for 26 days. I thought it would be terrible. I thought I’d constantly be feeling sorry for myself. Honestly, there have been hard parts, but overall, it’s been the most freeing thing of my life. I’m not constantly thinking about food. I’m finally free to be me. I’ve spent my whole life eating to deal with a painful experiences, now, I’m finally dealing with life without eating. I’m finally finding my spiritual path. I’m finally finding my voice, and letting it shine. After a year of abstinence, a person celebrates their “birthday,” now I understand why.
The things I hear in OA, the people I meet, the literature I’ve read, has all been amazing (once I got over the initial discomfort). I feel like a new person. I know that I’ll always have people right there to support me when things are tough. There are no fees, there’s nothing commercial, just people in all different stages of recovery to support each other.
*Image Courtesy OA.org
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This Weigh-in is a Huge Disappointment28 lbs LOSTso farJuly 16, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 52 comments
Last week I confessed about not having been eating properly. I haven’t weighed myself in a very long time. I finally weighed myself today, it was not a pretty sight. I’m extremely disappointed with the number I saw on the scale. I clocked in at 320 lbs.
That sucks! Big time. I gained back over 16 lbs. I’ve been hammering out some killer workouts, but I guess my eating poorly has caused me to put the weight back on. I have gone ahead and added the weight lost back to “Lbs Lost So Far” area above. I have also updated my weight chart, something I hadn’t done since December 2007.
I am committing to weighing myself once a week from this point on until I reach my first goal. What is that goal? To lose the weight I put back on. How am I going to achieve that? Working out and controlling my eating. When I ate healthily, in moderation, and frequently I lost weight. That’s the piece of the puzzle that I need to add. I lost track for a while, but now my eye is on the prize again.
Now everyone knows how big of a disappointment this weigh-in was. Next week won’t be so bad because I am going to crank it up a notch!
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Fasting Diet: No Food, All Water28 lbs LOSTso farApril 1, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 40 comments
I have decided to test my inner strength by undergoing a grueling fasting diet. I won’t be eating anything and will only be drinking water and possibly green tea. I will however take a multi vitamin each morning. This isn’t something I am used to so it should prove to be a challenge.
Why am I doing this? I want to test my will power and test my body. I read and hear of countless people fasting for days on end and they live to tell about it. I plan on doing it for a few days at most. I have read of 2 week fasts. But that’s not something I am interested in doing. I will continue to exercise and go throughout the day as I normally would. That won’t change. I hope.
Now usually I would not do something like this, but I think it’s a welcomed shock to my system. I will make an update the minute I start eating again, which I hope isn’t until Saturday at the earliest. Wow, just thinking about the possibility of fasting for so long amazes me.
I guess we will see if I can last being stranded on a deserted island.
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A Benefit of Losing Weight: Fitting Into an Airplane Seat28 lbs LOSTso farMarch 4, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 11 comments
I generally dislike traveling via airplane. Sitting in the same position for too long isn’t something I enjoy. I also don’t like uncomfortably sitting in a seat that’s made for someone half my size. I don’t know if it’s me, but are airplane seats shrinking? It seems like every time I take a new flight the seats and aisles are smaller and narrower.
I recently took a few flights and am happy to say that I actually fit comfortably into the seat of the airplanes I took. That was a major relief for me because I dread not fitting into airplane seats. I also dread sitting in the middle of a row, in between two people that can’t stand the “fat guy.” That always happens to me, it’s just my luck. Having lost some significant weight since my last plane ride has paid off big time. I can now fit into a seat, buckle my seat belt with out using an extender or pretend to have the seat belt buckled because I’m too embarrassed to ask for an extender.
This may or may not be true, but I have heard of obese people having to pay for two seats since they take up a lot of extra space. The airline companies would lose a customer if they allowed a fat person to only pay for one seat, but take up two. It has to be true since it makes sense. Also, airline companies have started to charge for EVERYTHING. I booked a flight and was charged a fee for selecting my own seat!!!! Then on the flight, they tried selling me $2 cheap earphones. They were also selling $8 ham and cheese sandwiches. It’s pretty ridiculous.
Don’t get me wrong, I may fit into a seat now but my shoulders and arms are still too wide for the narrow spacing of the seats. I still overflow into the other seats due to my abundance of width, but I don’t care that much about that. I’m just glad my butt doesn’t get numb anymore from being stuffed into a tiny space.
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Do Weight Loss Competitions Really Work?28 lbs LOSTso farFebruary 13, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 19 comments
More often than not, weight loss competitions are successful. When ever I have participated in a weight loss challenge I have lost weight. This may not apply to everyone though. It takes determination and a desire to compete.
A great thing about weight loss competitions is that every one wins. There may be one overall biggest loser, but every participant usually loses some weight. If you follow the rules of the competition correctly and lose only one pound, then you are a winner in my book. So what makes weight loss competitions so successful? I think it has to do with the team/community and the competitive aspect that is fostered.
Having played sports I am accustomed to exercising with my fellow teammates. It took me years to break the habit of needing to work out alongside someone. After I stopped playing team sports I joined a gym so that I could workout with other people in the room. I have since then gotten used to working out alone, but it was very hard for me to build a consistent routine. It also helped that I got so fat and uncomfortable with my looks, that I did not want to workout in front of other people. I had to make a choice: either workout alone at home or go to a public gym and feel embarrassed. I chose to exercise at home and it has worked.
I am a big fan of having support in everything that you do in life. I wouldn’t have been able to lose the weight I have so far without this weight loss blog. This blog has helped me build a virtual support group. A community of individuals that are helping me along my weight loss journey. That’s why I think competitions are successful. They bring together a group of people with the same goal in mind. What better solution is there then to team up and tackle ones problems?
I was recently contacted by Tristan over at the Angie’s List to give some feedback on how communities can help with weight loss. We spoke for a bit and he added me to their List-en up! podcast. I think it covers a good topic and is worth a listen . Head on over and listen to it. There is also a transcript of the entire podcast for those that don’t/can’t tune into it or for the hearing impaired.
To listen to the podcast visit this page and use one of the options made available. To read the transcript visit this page.
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Early Morning Workouts: 6 AM Lifting28 lbs LOSTso farJanuary 14, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 8 comments
Today I finally performed an early morning workout. Not my typical morning cardio only session, but instead a strength training session. I was up at 6 AM and it was still dark outside. Not only was it dark but it was pretty damn cold too. My initial reaction was to go back to bed, especially since The Shack is in the backyard, but I resisted the temptation.
There was no way I would be able to get up in the early morning without the proper rest. So I made sure to get at least 6.5 hours of sleep (still working on that ever elusive 8 hours). Sleep and rest are an important part of this journey that I am undergoing. Without them I will burn out. Burning out is not an option. Not for me at least.
What did I do this morning? I squatted, benched, and did incline dumbbell presses. It was a quick hitting, multi-joint, heavy lifting session. It only took about 40 minutes or less, I lost track. But it was great. The one thing I didn’t like was that I barely broke a sweat. I like sweating when I workout because it gives me a sense of accomplishment. I then hopped on my recumbent bike for a quick morning cardio workout. The bike made me sweat. It was a good morning.
I like the whole morning workout idea because it makes my entire day better. I get the training part of my day over with and can focus on other stuff without having to worry about training. It also gives me a shot of adrenaline that propels my days.
I have this competition all but wrapped up. Those other guys ain’t got nothing on the Fat Man.
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Weight Loss Challenge: Consider it Brung28 lbs LOSTso farJanuary 7, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 11 comments
Unlike the last weight loss challenge in which I blew my competition away, this one is between a group of us. A few days ago John from Total Transformation put out a challenge. I don’t back down easily so I accepted. The objective is pretty simple: lose the most body fat. As of this post I have the most to lose, so that gives me an advantage.
What’s my plan of attack you ask? Lift heavy, run & bike hard, and eat right. That’s as simple as it gets my friends. I am going to continue to follow my current workout routine, but with a bit more intensity. I also plan on pushing some cars around (got that idea from John). Ironically, this past weekend I was watching the World’s Strongest Man Competition. Those men are amazingly strong. Dominic Filiou from Canada managed to drop 40 lbs and now looks like a comic book super hero. You gotta see this guy. He looks like X-Men’s Juggernaut, but in real life.
Along with my physical training and dieting, I plan on consuming some supplements. These supplements have helped me to get to where I am now. They include daily whey protein shakes, glutamine, creatine, amino acids and a multi vitamin. I will most likely be taking these with green tea. Gotta have my green tea!
Here are the details of the Weight Loss Challenge:
How it Works: On January 7th, 2008 you take your “before” photos and record your stats (weight, body fat percentage, and waist measurements). Follow whatever weight loss/fitness program you like and work hard for two months. On March 2nd, 2008, take your “after” photos and retake all the above measurements.
Whatever method you choose to use to measure body fat (caliper, fancy scale, or website) be sure to use the same method and/or device consistently throughout the two month period.
Who Wins: The person who shows the greatest overall decrease in body fat percentage wins.
The Stakes: Each loser will pay $10 to the winners PayPal account. Each contestant is personally responsible to follow through on their word in the event that they lose. Remember, this is a friendly wager, so while the winner might not break your legs to obtain payment, you will probably lose some respect if you fail to pay up.
Dates: Begins 1/7/2008, Ends 3/2/2008.
How to Sign-up: Either send an email to John at his site or leave a comment at the bottom of this post. Either way, be sure to leave a brief comment on the bottom of this post should you choose to participate. It would also help if you recruited more folks by blogging about the challenge.
Just so you all know, I plan on winning. I am a fierce competitor…
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Lifting Weights After Surgery28 lbs LOSTso farJanuary 2, 2008 by Israel Lagares | 6 comments
I am so glad that I can workout again. I haven’t been able to lift any weights since my appendix surgery in December. I wanted to and felt I could, but my doctor told me to lay off until January. Well, it’s January dammit and I’m back with a vengeance! There is nothing like lifting weights. Pushing, pulling, and balancing heavy weight is such a rush for me. Not only that, but it also helps with my morale and weight loss goals. Now, I must admit that I haven’t taken any official fat loss measurements. I have not had a doctor or medical professional, or even a fitness professional measure my body fat or any sort of measurements. I have done all of that myself. I plan on having my doctor do that in the coming weeks and I also plan on checking for diabetes. That’s a bit scary. More on that some other time.
Anyway, back to lifting weights after surgery. I have been looking forward to this day for a few weeks. It sucked pretty bad to go down when I did because I was in a good rhythm with my current work out routine. That one is an intense, short, fat burning, multi-joint exercise routine. I happen to like it a lot. It gets me going pretty quickly. I plan on continuing that for the next 3 to 4 weeks with one change to it. I will be adding squats 3 times a week to it.
Why more squatting? For starters, Mehdi from Strong Lifts just randomly contacted me introducing himself and recommending that I make that light tweak to my workout. I had never been to his site, but it is a good one. He has tons of fat loss and muscle building info, plus his ebook is off the hizzy! It has a great workout that he has put together, which I plan on undertaking after my current workout. Another reason I want to squat more is because I how great I feel when I squat. Squatting makes me stronger. Period. I used to squat 3 times a week when I played high school football. That was all year round. I didn’t always like it, but when I was done I felt great.
One of the good things about having had my appendix removal surgery is that it heals relatively quickly. That allows for lifting weights after surgery a lot sooner than a typical surgery. That may not seem like a benefit, but I suppose I am looking at the glass half full on this one. I will post an update on the success, or failure, of my new workouts.
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Christmas and Exercise Don’t Mix28 lbs LOSTso farDecember 25, 2007 by Israel Lagares | 5 comments
First off, Merry Christmas to all those who celebrate it. I know I do. We opened presents this morning and I am the lucky recipient of an autographed Chad Pennington, New York Jets football jersey. Here’s to hoping he remains on the Jets next year. The only time I can recall exercising during Christmas is back in high school, during my football playing days. That’s when I craved exercise like a fat kid craving a double fudge chocolate cake.
That fire I once possessed has died done a bit, but not completely. It has slowly been rekindling over the past few months. All of which still doesn’t help me with wanting to workout today. I think I’m going to just take the day off and relax. Although, I’m heading over to a barbecue and may partake in some backyard ball games. Barbecue you ask? In Winter? Well, it’s about 75 degrees outside and it’s Florida. So that explains it. That will be the only exercise I do today, if at all.
I don’t think any public gyms, i.e. Bally’s Total Fitness, Equinox, Crunch, 24 Hour Fitness, are open today. Most folks just take the day to spend it with their families and friends. I suggest you do the same and enjoy it. Today is the third of the 4 Big Holidays, but it’s turning out to be a manageable one. No major eating binges!
Once again, Merry Christmas and be safe!
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Started Out Good, but Ended with a Bad Cheat Meal28 lbs LOSTso farDecember 17, 2007 by Israel Lagares | 12 comments
I woke up this morning with an sense of urgency. A sense of urgency to get up and get some cardio in before I started my day. I accomplished that mini goal by hopping on my recumbent bike for an hour. I was proud of myself for managing to get another cardio session in first thing in the morning. It’s becoming a comfortable habit. That’s a good thing. Now enter the culprit / cheat meal enabler: Outback Steakhouse!
So for a majority of the day I was ecstatic. Things were going smooth. Then I get home and it’s time for dinner. Gulp! My wife didn’t know what to prepare, and I wasn’t much help. She mentioned that she received a couple of gift cards to Outback Steakhouse and that one of them was a year old. My immediate thought was to use them as soon as possible, and that’s what we did. I guess this can qualify as my cheat meal?
I booted up my trusty lap top and scanned through their online menu. We chose to have baby back ribs for out cheat meal… They were slamming! Finger licking good. That’s where the day turned out bad. I ate the whole thing with no remorse. None what so ever. The ribs, the fries, even the apple side dish thingy they give you. I don’t feel guilty and I don’t want to kill myself, but I suppose I feel I need to work a bit harder to work it off. That’s all though.
Should I care more about what my cheat meal consists of? I see it as a pebble in the road that made me trip. All I need to do is get back up and keep walking.
Is that a good thing?
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Hi, My Name is Amy and I’m a Fatty28 lbs LOSTso farDecember 11, 2007 by Amy | 8 comments
I am sure I wasn’t always like this. It’s weird because now that I look back, I don’t really know when I let myself go. It was probably back in middle school or the beginning of high school. I didn’t really care about what I ate or what I drank. Chips, soda, candy… I didn’t work out. I didn’t play sports. I had a job, but I didn’t really move around at my job.
It wasn’t until just a few months ago that I started realizing that my weight was a problem. I had to buy clothes in sizes I never thought I would need, I started hating the way I looked in the mirror. My mom nags me all the time about how I am fat. She will tell me to my face. At first it hurt. But then I thought of what she was saying and I AM fat! I am a fatty! I know she was probably saying it for my health. I am not the healthiest person in the world and I noticed that as I thought about it.
At 23 and five feet I am what people would call a bit chunky. I am not ugly and I can usually hide the weight under my clothes, but it still gets to me. I KNOW how I look in the mirror. I see how the clothes hug to my body… to my fat. Sometimes I don’t even know why I have a boyfriend, or what he sees in me. While he is in shape and he has the ideal body for his height, I don’t. Boys have never called me hot or sexy, I have always been cute. I have never been slim or sporty, just chunky.
I hate these words. I have to do something about the fat that has made itself so comfortable on my body. I thought about it and decided to go on a diet. Mind you, I have been on several diets before and failed, because I gave in. I always give in. For some reason the cause was never as great or as severe back then. But now its big, now I HAVE to do something about it. I am going to diet, and I am going to stick to it, and I will eat healthy, and I will work out.
I have to do these things for myself. To see a smaller, better me. I have been on my diet since Monday December 3, 2007. I lost 3 pounds last week and I am sticking to this diet, it is the last thing I do. Maybe one day when I work up the courage to put up my before pictures like Fat Man I will be able to look back at the old me.
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