My journey so far

So, a little bit about me. I'm 41 years old. I am the husband to my beautiful wife Lara, and the father to our 11 year old son Jake.

I grew up in a big Irish Catholic family as the 10th of 11 children. In my family, food was just one more way to celebrate and enjoy life. I remained skinny through constant activity, whether it was playing basketball in the driveway or kickball in the street. If it was summer we were swimming in the pool or jumping off cliffs into lakes. If it was winter we'd cross-country ski or play tackle football on snowy football fields. I never had to think about "staying active"; we just did. I also never had to think about limiting my food, because I could eat all I wanted, and never got heavy... until college.

Midway through college, a series of injuries over a two year period kept me on the sidelines, so to speak. It never occurred to me that I should start eating less. I started packing on the pounds. Once my injuries healed, I found that I wasn't able to stay as active as I used to be due to my weight and lack of fitness. I told myself I'd get back to being active as soon as I lost the weight, but the weight never really left.

Over the years since then, my weight went up and down. Periodically, I'd get motivated to lose some weight, usually through a combination of a diet I read about and some time at the gym. But then something would happen, I would fail a goal, and then I'd quit and gain back the weight I'd tried to keep off.

About two years ago, my sister joined WW. Without telling her story for her, she truly inspired me that WW could be something that would work for me. My sister Genn, her husband and daughter are all WW Lifers, and they not only look great, but they are healthy, active and happy!

My wife, Lara and I joined WW together and attended our first meeting on February 2, 2008. I weighed in a 221.2 pounds. It was just before the Super Bowl, and I remember our meeting leader suggesting a recipe for 2 point chili and 2 point cheese fries. At the time, I could eat 36 points a day. I quickly figured out that I could have 9 servings a day of chili and cheese fries. That sounded like a lifestyle I could live with!!

Seriously though, one of the keys for me has been finding lots of good food to eat that happens to be healthy. I remember when my wife and I made the Sheperd's Pie recipe. It tasted so wonderful, and we couldn't believe that something that tasted like a comfort food could be low points as well.

From Day 1, I took to heart the suggestion to "Move More". Mostly, I started walking on my lunch hour. At first, I walked for 20 minutes. Soon that went up to 30 minutes. Then it went to 40 minutes. I found that the more I walked, the more active I wanted to be.

Not long after joining, I discovered the message board for Guys on a Diet. I lurked for a while, and I really enjoyed seeing the camaraderie, support and ideas, and the FUN! I dabbled with posting a bit, and was really pleased with the warm welcome and encouragement. I don't recall when I drank the Kool-Aid, but I'm a true-believer in the Lifestyle now.

I've also branched out a bit, and am a regular poster on the Family Man board as well. I love having a group of guys who deal with so many of the same domestic issues as I do, and who are committed to living a healthy lifestyle.

I lost my first 25 pounds April 12, 2008. That also represented a loss of 10% of my starting body weight, and was the first time I'd been below 200 pounds in quite a while.

With the loss in weight, I found I had an increased desire for activity. While I'd never been much into jogging, I was inspired by the many folks on GoaD who took up challenges like the Couch to 5K training Program. On May 31, 2008, I began the Couch to 5K training program. I've had some obstacles along the way, but have been able to follow the program pretty well. As I write this, I can run two miles without stopping, and I don't feel like I'm going to vomit when I'm done. :)

As of the time I'm writing this, I've lost over 32 pounds, and I feel healthier than I have in years.

I'll need another chapter to talk about my wonderful wife and her part in my journey.