Maybe I'm just supposed to be fat?

     Maybe I'm just supposed to be fat? That is what was running through my mind over a year ago after my last failed diet. I had tried just about every diet out there. Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, South Beach, Fat Smash, Slim-fast, Special-K, and even one where you just drank juice. For me I never felt good or ever saw progress (personally) with any of these diets. Sure I would have a friend or two where it worked for them, but for the money I was spending it was just a gut wrenching feeling to get on that scale after a month's worth of work and see a big fat zero. Two of those diets I actually gained 5 pounds resulting in a 10 pound gain instead of a much needed loss! Yes, that is the epitome of frustration.

     Any one who has known me since childhood knows that I have always been overweight compared to others in my age group. The biggest I ever got was 420 pounds following college. At this point (in my mind) the options for me to lose weight were scarce. I was looking into getting gastric surgery, man oh man I did not want surgery! Some of the physical challenges I was having started pushing me to that option though. I started getting a pain in my hip that shot down my leg to my foot. This was a constant pain that wouldn't go away. I had also slipped and tweaked my back, I was ok at first but later that day I went to stand and my legs just gave out and I fell to the floor. I remember some one had come to the house to pick up my daughter for the day to watch her and I had to crawl on my hands and knees to get to the door and she then had to help me into a chair. That's right all 420 pounds of me. It was rather humiliating. Later that year my wife got me a chair for my home office. I didn't even have the chair for 2 days and I broke it. My weight was just too much for it. What was I going to do? I could not go on living like this! My daughters need to have their daddy around and I was determined to do what ever it takes. Then I got a call that planted a seed.

     My sister Cindy called me informing me that my mom was in the hospital and things were not looking good. At the time all I knew was that my mom had a stroke and that her lungs were filling up with fluid. After a few days I was able to talk to my mom and found out that her kidneys were also failing. Her Doctor had made it very clear that she needed to do something about her weight and because of her condition along with her diabetes surgery was not an option for her. If she did not do something to get her weight down she would not be here. Woah. That is some heavy stuff, but that seed got a plant growing. He talked to my mom about a program with Take Shape For Life that uses Medifast meals to help people lose weight. Like any diet there is no guarantee and results vary person to person, but my mom gave it a shot. I took note and watched her progress. Before I stepped into the ring I wanted to see if it really worked.

     To my surprise it was working for my mom. 33 years of my life I watched my mom try every diet under the sun and finally one is working! Later that summer local morning radio personality Mike Alley announced that he to was going to give Medifast a try. That was it, that was the push I needed to call my mom's Health Coach and say, "Sign me up!" My mind set was right and I told my new Health Coach that I was ready to rock this joint! So here I am today. So far I have lost 105 pounds with the Take Shape For Life program and I just have 65 pounds to go till I reach my goal. Did I mention that they have asked me to join their team of Health Coaches? If you have found yourself asking the same question I asked, "Maybe I'm just supposed to be fat?" Then now is the time to do something about it! The link I have provided below has a contact form. If you fill it out with your contact information and hit submit I will personally call you and tell you how excited I am for this program and that you are not alone in this journey! I will be there every step of the way helping you on your path to Optimal Health!

http://myroadtoweightloss.tsfl.com/explore

Here is a current before and after picture of me with my girls! On the left I am currently at 255lbs. On the right is me at over 360lbs.

All the best,

     Mike

The mighty 100lbs has fallen!

     I know, it has been a few months since my last post. I have been trying to find different ways to stay on task I kind of forgot about this blog. It has been in the back of my mind, I was sure I was going to hit the 100lbs lost mark sooner but my body had other ideas! But yes as of this past Monday I have officially lost 101 pounds on the Medifast Program! Exciting as that is I still need to keep in mind the fact that I still need to lose another 69lbs to get to my goal weight of 190lbs.

     Now I have already had a few people come up to me and say, "Well you have lost 100 pounds so you can stop now." You want to talk about a struggle to keep your composure! Stop now?! I'm not even there yet! I mean who makes plans to drive to Disney World from New Hampshire, stops in Washington DC and says, "Well that's close enough." I am pretty sure there would be some kids in the back seat protesting! My goal is 190 pounds and I fully plan on meeting that goal!

     A few weeks back I had gotten some disappointing news in regards to my health coach Arnold with Take Shape For Life. I was informed that him and his wife elected to no longer be coaches with TSFL. I was really bummed. I liked Arnold, and I think him leaving kind of threw me off. I was not being very careful when it came to paying attention to what and when I was eating. When you are on Medifast you eat 5 Medifast meals a day plus a lean protein with vegetables and a healthy fat. Well I would lose track of when I was eating my Medifast meals and some days I would miss one......or two. Not even realizing it till I got home. Steph would always point it out to me though.

     To make a long story short I was connected with my new health coach Robin and boy has she done an awesome job getting that fire lit under my seat! I'm back to logging my meals, logging my exercises, and reading my Habits of Health book. I was stuck at 95lbs for a few weeks but Robin really helped me push through and man was it worth it! She has been so pleased with my progress that she encouraged me to become a coach as well. This was something I really had to think about. After talking with the wife and really putting some thought into it I went for it and signed up to be a health coach! That is why Arnold and I connected so well at first. Like me he was a big guy who had struggled with weight, and was able to lose it on the Medifast Program.

     If any of you would like to join me on the Road to Weight Loss please feel free to check out my website or share it with some one you know who has shared the same struggles as I have. myroadtoweightloss.tsfl.com/explore  

**Results vary. Typical weight loss on the Medifast 5 & 1 Plan® is 2-5 lbs per week for the

first 2 weeks and 1-2 lbs per week thereafter. 


Peace & Good Vibes,

Mike

Conditioning for Outdoor Sports

     Well it has been a few weeks since my last post. I have been super busy with work and being healthy! Any one who does not really know about my childhood and teenage years also does not know of my love for outdoor sports. Well sure bike riding and tennis I like well enough, but I am mostly talking about hiking, hunting, and fishing. Since moving to the Baltimore / Washington DC area I have not been able to do a whole lot of that. Mainly because there are so few forests left in Maryland.

     As kids my dad taught us to not just be good hunters or fishermen, but he taught us the importance of wildlife conservation and that it is ok to just go out in the woods some times and enjoy nature. I have to tell you, that at 360lbs+ it was tough trying to walk in the woods. Heck it was a chore walking up the stairs to the fridge! So far I have shed 84lbs and moving is a breeze these days! I have been doing a few different exercises to strengthen my legs and core. I have been giving the treadmill a break for a little bit but am planning to get back on that horse this week. I have been doing a modification to a workout Bob Harper had me doing where I go into a squat and then with 60lbs or more on a barbell do some reps. The squatting not only gives my legs a good workout but it also gives my core a run for its money!

     I know hunting is not for every one. I strongly encourage you to find something you like doing outside. Even if you are just starting out on your own weight loss journey you may find that your state is more beautiful than you realize! If weight is something you have struggled with and you need some one to talk to, I strongly urge you to give my health coaches Claire and Arnold a call or an email. Be sure to let them know Mike Case sent you!  They are very friendly and have been through the weight loss journey them selves.

All the best,

Mike

Sad to see you go 290's!

     Is it just me or does it seem like I just got to the 290's? I was exspecting to be there for another week but holy cow! I have been losing about 2lbs a week and really was not even dreaming of more, so to see -5lbs in one week is huge! One thing I am learning with Medifast is that they are trying to teach your body who to burn fat instead of store it. Which means exersise but not going all Rocky Balboa on the workout's!

     I have a gym membership and I go once a day and I take Saturday and Sunday off from that routine.  Last week I did things a little differently. Instead of walking and running on the treadmill for 45mins and then doing my upper body on the machines, I switched to doing the bike for 25mins, and then free weights for as long as I could bear! I backed my workout down a bit though because I found myself running out of gas. One of the other things I am learning about Medifast is that you are not really supposed to go full bore on the workout's! So a few weeks back I was working really hard but it seemed like I had stalled at the 300's. What I forgot was that I was building muscle and muscle weighs more than fat!

     For the next few months I am going to try maximizing my ability to get those bigger loss numbers, but if I manage a steady pace of just -2lbs a week I will still be ok with that. Because it sure beats a plus any day of the week!

-Mike

Woah wait.....Size 44 belt?!?!

     So last night was the Super Bowl. I have to admit I was a little naughty in regards to the food that was there. Now compare what I ate last to me in the past, last night looks more like I was eating twigs and nuts compared to the way I used to eat. The past me would have eaten an entire bag of chips, had 4th's on dinner, polished off half the tray of cookies, add all that up with no exercise and no wonder I was at 420lbs at one point!

     Today was my weigh-in. I was a little nervous because of my "splurge" last night. I really didn't want it to be a 0 or a + number. Needless to say when the scale said 295lbs this guy was stoked! Sure I was a little naughty last night but I did not allow myself to go overboard! Let me tell you there was plenty of food there for me to be naughty with! The key is I was able to keep myself under control and limit what I consumed, being sure to keep what my coaches have been teaching me in mind. STICK WITH THE PLAN!

     The next task was getting ready for the day. When I got around to getting a belt it seemed like the one I have been using was just a touch too loose. So I grabbed one I purchased after Christmas with "future use" in mind. Back in September I believe I was at a 52 waist. Well the belt I had been saving is a size 44 and it fits!!! All of or at least most of high school I wore size 46! Size 44 is crazy talk!!! But man oh man it is awesome! Progress folks! September Size 52 and in February Size 44!!! That's a big deal for any body!

Cheers,

     Mike