Saturday, June 11, 2016

June 11th, 2016 To Prove Otherwise

June 11th, 2016 To Prove Otherwise

I first met Bill at one of my book signings in 2012. He lives in my hometown. I consider him a friend. We certainly don't get together as much as we'd like, but still, we've kept in contact, enjoyed coffee and we've shared in deep intellectual and philosophical conversations about the various elements of transformation. He's one of the most intelligent people I know. He's an attorney and for many years lectured at Oxford University. It is truly an honor to call him a friend. Bill is also someone who has studied this blog closely over the years. His support, wisdom and insights are always appreciated. He also, as you might imagine, has a fascinating transformation all his own.

After my maintenance weigh-day post, I received a wonderful email from him, containing some very interesting information. With his permission, I'm sharing it with you:    

 Dear Sean,

 I read your blog every day, watching with interest your evolution.

 The main thing now is that you are getting a grip on your rest and sleep.  That is so important, noting that there are two variables which you cannot control, which are work related commitments combined with the unpredictability of the weather, and then the family obligations.  Consequently, it requires some flexibility, an approach you are more than able to handle at this point.  Well done.

 As you progress with things, the surprise and mystery of how you can eat a higher portion of daily calories and still lose a bit of weight has been on your mind.  

 Some months back, while reading my usual international papers, noting the health sections in particular, there was one which crossed my path that was of  interest.  Unfortunately, I cannot remember the paper, and did not bookmark it at the time.  I have been unable to locate it.

 However, I do remember the main point.  The breakthrough study found that in the study of weight loss, there came the usual point when people "reached their goal".  What surprised them was the fact that it took 12 full months after the goal was reached for the metabolism to return to normal!

 What this means is quite significant.  Essentially, there is a two phase process, with the first being the initial weight loss, and the second being the metabolism recovery.  To return to normal eating of caloric intake prior to the 12 month period of readjustment could very well cause a relapse in itself.  

 Interestingly, this reset is something that you are experiencing, which is fascinating because of the precision of your tracking, and it seems to run true to the study I mentioned.

 So rather than digging back through your archives, it might be easier if you could look back and determine at what point you reached the goal and went to the 2300 calories.  Has it been a year?  If so, then it would perhaps answer why the loss is occurring now.

 If you get a moment, out of curiosity, let me know that date or mention it in your blog, as it will be interesting to see if you are close to the 12 month window.  

 More on me later.  Lots to tell, but all well, in a nutshell. 

 Cheers,
Bill

 I went back into the records and discovered I officially dropped below my initial goal of 230 on June 24th, 2015. That was the day I could say I lost all of the relapse/regain weight-plus two pounds. I weighed 228 that day, just a couple weeks shy of one year ago. I started adding calories slowly at first, then a little more, and a little more, before finally arriving at a maintenance budget of 2300 calories. Throughout this process, it's brought me to where I am today: 203.8

It's all wonderful news, really. I spent many years believing there was nothing I could do about my sloth-like metabolism. I've shattered that old story. It just wasn't true. I never remained consistent enough to prove otherwise, that is, until this transformation started seven and a half years ago. I'm grateful for the changes and absolutely blessed by what's revealed in the study of it all.

Once again, thank you, Bill!

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I posted yesterday's blog and rushed off to the rodeo grounds for night two of three, broadcasting from the big PRCA Pro Rodeo. My activity level at these annual broadcasts is completely different than it was for several years. At my heaviest, I hid in the station broadcast vehicle. The lights were on, the station was blasting--but I was hidden inside, only heard on the air. Now, I'm all over the arena--with a spring in my step and a smile on my face. The perspective has shifted. And this is a perfect example of how my physical/mental/emotional transformation has positively transformed my work performance. Now, the perspective isn't, how can I get this over quickly without too much effort? It's, how can I make this a great broadcast?

 I had a couple more location broadcasts today--one from a grocery store and then my final rodeo broadcast of the year. My activity level the past two days has been more than sufficient to be considered workouts. I no longer wear a fitbit--and haven't since mine stopped working, but I'm sure if I still had it, the numbers would back up that conclusion. I may get another one soon, I'm still on the fence. I don't necessarily need to see the stats, I just need to get the movement--you know? The activity monitor on my phone works a little--but I don't think it catches everything.

 Tonight's broadcast brought to a close one of the busiest two week periods of my entire year.

 I'm very proud to be able to say: Through it all, I've embraced the fundamental elements of my plan. I've maintained the integrity of my maintenance calorie budget, I've remained abstinent from refined sugar, I've reached or exceeded my daily water goal and I've stayed connected with exceptional support contacts.   

 Tomorrow is a special Noah day. I'm picking up the little guy about 11:30am and we're spending some super-quality time together. I can't wait! We're going to have an absolute blast.

Continuous Live-Tweet Stream:














































Thank you for reading and your continued support,
Strength,
Sean
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2 comments:

  1. VickieJune 12, 2016 at 8:41 AM

    A Fitbit does a GREAT JOB OF TRACKING SLEEP.

    My daughter wears one mostly to track sleep. Not exercise, sleep. She has a crazy schedule and has to make sleep a priority. It has to be a conscious effort. She uses the daily and weekly data to see how she is really doing.

    I do not think this applies to you now, but it might to one of your readers - I know several bloggers who discovered sleep issues by wearing one. In other words, extremely restless sleep and breathing issues. They thought they were sleeping, but they were not.

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  2. KarenJune 12, 2016 at 10:14 AM

    I second Vickie on the Fitbit and sleep. It's very helpful to look at sleep and stress. Being able to say NO to friends and family is key. You look at those bars & stars on Fitbit and that will help you set limits on ANYONE who tries to get you to over extend.

    Not sleeping is a cardio vascular risk that none of us - obese, morbidly obese, or normal weight can afford physically or financially to ignore. It lead me to work on getting professional promotions throughout my hospital based career so that I could transition onto day time and carpool so the company could not complain about me working a straight 8 hrs, most days. Otherwise it was overtime (mandatory), working holidays, nights, weekends- not able to spend time with my daughter as a single parent. Eh. Not good.

    Otherwise, I'm working for free if I'm salaried. No, wait, it's not free, it has huge risks. So does sleep apnea, sleep disorders, snoring a lot, etc. Stress reduction.

    In a way, weight loss is a phase = completed, weight maintenance years 1-2 is a phase = completed, still in progress for you? Long term life management is very deep and always will stand for improvement in certain ways. Welcome to the next phase. There's always deep work to be done. I applaud you for whatever self improvement steps you take next.

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I sincerely appreciate you taking the time to leave a comment. Thank you for your support!