4: Mind, Body, and Spirit

(C) YMCA

The old YMCA logo gets it. Each side of the mind-body-spirit triad supports and strengthens the other two. We can't separate who we are from what we do. So, when I ultimately decided that my next “Unreasonable Midlife Fitness Challenge” was to complete a marathon, I knew that there was more to it than just a lot of running. Fitness in general, and running in particular would become a spiritual sanctuary. I would study the act of running, trying to figure out what works best for me. And, ultimately, I would transform my body to endure distances and times (length of time, not speed, in my case) that I never dreamed it could do. Getting to the decision that I could do a marathon, though, was probably tougher than the actual race. Eventually, I would not merely transform what I could do physically, but I would embrace it wholeheartedly.

Finding a Frame of Mind to Mind My Frame

I knew I was overweight, and I had a pretty good idea as to how much. However, I tend to carry my weight throughout the whole body, and as a result, if the subject of weight came up in conversation, friends did not believe that I was as heavy as I had become. They just knew that I was big, but I knew that I was too big -- by far. Even so, I don't think it fully registered for me how far from fit I had fallen – until Memorial Day, 2009. We were boating with some friends and I was invited to don a set of skis. So, “Moby Jeff, the Great White Male” (see photo at left) got ready to suit up. I pulled out a men's extra large safety vest, let out the straps and put it on. Then, I actually tucked my sides into the apparatus. Ugh! I was able to get up on the skis, but the entire time, I was reliving the motion of how I had to get into the ski vest. I vowed that I would not repeat that motion the next year.

The Shape of Things to Come: My 1-2-3 Kick Start

My Memorial Day experience was the push that finally led me to the gym. It took me a few weeks, but I finally got there. Initially, I started with the simple goal of getting in shape. I would go to the gym at least 3 days a week with interspersed outings for a bicycle ride or (gasp!) a jog. I was  able to approach my new plan with what I decided was a good frame of mind. While I knew that weight is the easiest measure to track, it can be easily frustrating. So, as an asthmatic with a family history of heart disease, my principle goals focused on things like peak-flow breathing capacity, blood pressure, resting heart rate, and cholesterol. The weight, I determined, would take care of itself. Now, I just needed to get to the gym.

My second push came in much more pleasant fashion. As “Moby Jeff” finally started going to the gym, wisely, I determined that I would take it easy with the weights and just focus on the fact that I was there at all. (Injury, it turns out, I would save for later.) Even so, it was frustrating to recognize how little I could lift compared to what I used to be able to do. A few days into my new-found resolve, I was already losing my motivation, when I started talking with a friend who worked at the campus rec sports center. She said, “It takes six weeks to make it a habit.” Challenge accepted! Six weeks later, I was down almost 15 pounds, and already feeling much better. But I knew that I would need to add structure if I was going to push past feeling like exercise was a chore. And I would probably need to think about a better eating plan.

The final kick came from my brother. While visiting family, he and I talked about various fitness plans and I began to formulate what I thought could work for me. Ultimately, that would be based on the "Body for Life" plan. So I bought the book. Reading through, I decided that a bit of the book was a sales pitch for various supplements and meal replacements. But, ultimately, it was a plan that I could get into. With all due respect to the authors, here were my takeaways from the Body for Life book:

1. Think metabolism!Feed your metabolism, not your hunger.
2. Exercise doesn't have to be overwhelming to be effective. 20 to 30 minutes a day, alternating a cardio session with a weight session will do your body a great deal of good. The cardio sessions will build stamina, and the weight training will built strength and pump up the metabolism. For the first 12 weeks, I did the Body for Life workout plan described in the book. Then every 12 weeks, I would change it up with different exercises. With the genesis of the "Unreasonable Midlife Fitness Challenge," each change of workout plan was crafted to better prepare the body for the coming challenge.
3. Get your heart rate up. Maintain intensity throughout the workout, whether cardio or strength, and your metabolism will keep cooking even after you are finished.
4. Eat several small meals across the day: Breakfast, snack, lunch, snack, dinner, snack.
5. Proteins and carbohydrates work together to fuel the body and the metabolic process, so include a healthy mix of lean protein and complex carbohydrates with each meal.
6. Drink water! At least 8-10 cups per day. Have a full glass with each meal. (Ice water will actually stimulate the metabolism.) And ditch the soda -- diet or otherwise.
7. Avoid sugar and sugar substitutes as much as possible.
8. Set a menu! Now, I don't want to pretend to be a dietician, so I won't go into details. Everyone is different in what they like and what will be sustainable. For me, what I landed on was to try to keep the meals reasonably small (300-400 calories for breakfast and lunch; 500-700 for dinner) and the snacks around 200 or less. The food lists and structural diet recommendations in the Body for Life book were very helpful. The basic premise, as I understand it, is to keep the body in a processing mode rather than a storage mode (which can result from skipping meals). Sundays were a "free" day from both the gym and the diet, and in most cases, I was successful with moderation even then.

When I hit the gym in July 2009, I tipped the scales at 270 pounds. By Thanksgiving, I was 225. And, with my enthusiasm for my success, I was even invited to grace the pages of the faculty-staff  fitness calendar at the university (see mug shot, below). But, as I said earlier, weight was important, but not the primary focus. I was feeling good! Peak flow breathing capacity had steadily climbed, while my resting heart rate continually fell. And, when I later went to the doctor and had the routine blood work, my cholesterol levels, which had been bordering on problematic before, were noticeably improved. I knew that I was on the right track, but did not want to stop there. If I were to set a weight goal, I decided that if I could get to 208 using a healthy and sustainable change in lifestyle -- as opposed to "a diet" -- I would like to be less than "obese" on the BMI charts. (By the way, while I understand that BMI can be useful across a population, I have many concerns with BMI as and individual measure. There is just too much body-type variability.) And, finally, I can say that I have made it below the 208 mark. I refused to do anything drastic, because I wanted it to be sustainable, which would mean lowering my set point, not just hitting a mark. It took me 5 months to lose 45 pounds. The next 25 took almost 4 years.

Up Next: Just Breathe!