People have lots of different reasons for making changes in their lives. Sometimes we make changes just because we want to, other times we make changes because we’re forced to. And sometimes we need to make changes, but because change is often difficult, we don’t.
In my case, I needed to change the way I was treating my body. While I wasn’t terribly overweight (although I wasn’t exactly a lean, mean machine), my world view changed with the blood test taken as part of a routine physical last year: my cholesterol was over 300 (shouldn’t be over 200), with a triglyceride level that was just over 1200 (which shouldn’t be over 150!). That’s bad. Very bad.
I had always had marginal cholesterol, but that took the cake. I think it scared my doctor more than me. I had tried some medications before, but they didn’t seem to work very well. But that was because I couldn’t be bothered with changing other aspects of my life.
So, I was a heart attack waiting to happen. Not good. It was time to do something about this.I had already decided that 2008 was going to be my year to accomplish things. I had written and published my first novel, which for me was a life achievement, and now it was time to get my body sorted out.
I happen to be an infomercial nut, and one morning I saw the infomercial for P90X. After doing some research on BeachBody.com, my wife, Jan, and I decided to get the P90 program to help guide us toward getting into shape. But since nutrition is such a HUGE part of your body’s health, we also looked into how we should eat, and picked up a copy of Tosca Reno’s Eat Clean book.
Then we got to it. Jan and I started the P90 (not P90X – that would’ve been way too much for us to start with!) fitness program and cleaned out the kitchen and the pantry to get rid of the junk: everything that was processed food, had a bunch of processed sugar or high-fructose corn syrup, etc. got tossed out. Then we stocked up on whole grain and low fat foods (plus we went organic after getting scared at the ingredients that go into “regular” food!). We aren’t totally strict – we usually have pizza once a week and go out to dinner a couple times a month – but we got rid of the major sources of junk and fat (and no fast food!) and eat much healthier than we ever did before.
We started working out, started eating clean, and managed to make the transition to a much healthier lifestyle without too many problems; even the boys (10 and 12 years old) didn’t complain too much. We went through P90 (ninety days), then did the P90 Master series.
A bit over six months after we started, I had lost about 35 pounds, and had another blood test. My cholesterol had dropped from 300 to 178, and my triglycerides had dropped from over 1200 to 109. Wow! I was shocked, and so was my doctor. No medication, no nuthin’ but exercise and eating well.
Now we’re into Chalene Johnson’s ChaLEAN Extreme series, and I have to say that this is the best exercise routine I’ve ever done so far. She really kicks things into high gear, has lots of energy, and makes a challenging workout fun. If you do one of these workouts, it doesn’t matter what else you’ve done during your day: you’ll know that you really accomplished something, and that’s a good feeling.
So, if you need to make some positive changes in your life, don’t put it off like I did until you’re teetering on the edge of the abyss. I told myself that 2008 was going to be my year, and I made it so. My goals for this year are to run/walk a half-marathon and do the P90X program; I also want to finish the rough draft of my second novel.
2009 can be your year, too! All you have to do is take the very first step and set a couple of achievable goals for yourself, then start working on them – don’t wait!
If you’re interested in more information on ChaLEAN Extreme, P90, or other Beachbody products, check out FitClubToday.com!
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#1 by Taryn on February 16th, 2009 - 1:39 pm
This is a great article and your results are incredible! Just goes to show how by just cleaning up your eating habits can make a huge difference in your health, alone. Great job on the workouts! I’m a HUGE ChaLEAN fan, P90X, P90 and all the Beachbody programs. So much so, I had to becoming a Coach with them. I just love everything about their mission and message.
#2 by Robert on April 7th, 2009 - 11:31 am
Congrats on your 2008 success! I hope you will continue on to P90X in 2009 and make this a great year as well. I have also had great results with P90, followed by P90X. When Chalean was released, I had to try it because I’m such a Beachbody fan. Every single program has been beneficial to my health and fitness. I’m currently doing my 9th round of P90X and love every single round. You article is inspiring, and I hope others will follow your lead. Good luck!!