REBUILDING: BECOME ARROGANT

As I discussed in my last 'Rebuilding' post, most people get very easily discouraged when starting a new healthy lifestyle journey.  They go into that first workout with guns blazing, believing in their heads that they are physically stronger than they really are.  They spend only a fraction of the time working out on day one that they had intended to because their body was not prepared, they start feeling that burn right away and wake up the next morning feeling in more pain than they were in when they went to bed the previous night.  And that is just half of the lifestyle.  There is also the part about eating healthier.  And with being in that much pain, the last thing we want to do is scarf down a bowl of salad and some fruit.  Junk food, afterall, is called 'comfort food' for a reason.  because it knocks you out.

Physical pain after a workout can have the same effects as emotional pain.  A lot of us will just want to eat it away with junk.  We do that and then for most of us, there is no day two of working out.  No day three, four and so on.

It was taking shape rather nicely!

So how do we stay motivated to continue?

I was in crazy pain when I woke up on day two.  The ten minutes of extremely basic yoga the day before took its toll.  I didn't feel like doing it again, but I did.  This time, I lasted a little less than ten minutes, but I told myself that less than ten minutes is better than no minutes at all.  Within a week of doing ten minutes of yoga a day, I was quickly feeling less and less pain as my body was waking up.  The first stage of rebuilding is basically a lengthy warm up.  Much like we do before a workout, if your body had been inactive for so many years, as mine was, I needed to spend a few weeks warming up and getting my body prepared for what was to come down the line.

The early stages are when the weight comes off at a quick pace, I found.  I had a lot of fat to lose and it was coming off rapidly.  My clothes were getting looser to the point where I had to manually put new holes in my belt.  The new holes were a confidence booster as they were proof that what I was doing was working.  And it was just over one month into my rebuilding process when I started doing the inevitable.  I started taking selfies and posting them online.

Day 100 of rebuilding.  They poked fun at my selfie lifestyle but now I have archival content.  Bwahahah!

Shedding pounds meant buying new clothes.  New clothes meant more selfies.  I posted a new selfie three or four times a week to not only show people my progress, but to get that positive feedback that would encourage me to keep going, and honestly, to boost my ego!

The more selfies I posted, the more positive feedback I got, the harder I worked and the more inflated my ego became.  When I would go on "Beastwalks" to my local mall and wander around for an hour or so like retired people do, I kept my head up and didn't quickly look away when my eyes caught somebody else’s.  I started a new little game against people on the street where the first one to break eye contact loses, and I won every time.  I was the MAN!

Day 188

After 100 days of sticking to the new lifestyle, I started taking post-workout selfies and posting them online.  Wearing a sweaty t-shirt, looking in my bathroom mirror, and posted them online with whatever day it was of my rebuilding phase and an inspirational or motivational quote I found or came up with.  And I did this pretty much every day!

It didn't matter to me that there really was no noticeable difference in the pictures from one day to the next, I just did it anyway.  I felt that I had every right to.  There is nothing wrong with showing off your accomplishments, especially when it comes to getting in shape.  You not only prove your doubters wrong, but you show others that it is possible and in my case, simple.

You can’t be worried about what strangers might think if you check yourself out in every reflection you come across.  Who cares if it comes off as arrogant and egotistical?  It is also motivation and a reminder of how far you have come and how much further you can go.  So don’t be afraid to not only check yourself out as often as you can or want, but throw yourself a little wink and maybe even a thumbs up!

When I do my UFC cardio, I do five minute rounds with a one minute rest period in between each round.  During the rest periods, I take a drink of water, walk over to my full length mirror and admire the awesomeness!  Flex a little.  Sometimes give myself a thumbs up and a, “yeah, baby!”  I’ve earned it.  I have not only proven doubters wrong but myself as well.

When I do my weights workouts, I take a one minutes rest in between sets, walk over to that full length mirror and pose a little.  Maybe a bicep flex and some pectoral flexes, too!  I have every right to.  There is nothing wrong with it.  You hear people say all the time, “you should be proud!”  I am.  Don’t tell me that I should be proud of myself and then cop an attitude when I get a little full of myself.  I have every right to be and so do you.

January 18, 2016.  Day 747!

Don’t tell ME that YOU can’t do it!

Chef Nairby

REBUILDING: BECOME HARDCORE

A common mistake that people make when starting a workout routine is that they go in unprepared.  Most of us want to believe that we are physically stronger than we really are.

I have always been tall, big boned and looked like someone with brute strength.  And I believed it despite getting constant back and leg pain from just walking.  Walking up two flights of stairs would leave me heavily winded, but I still believed I had super human strength because I looked like I did.  I fit the big & tall label perfectly.

June, 2010.  Flirting with that 300 pound mark.

I was physically strong, but only in short bursts, and despite that, I was still convinced that after years of inactivity, I could walk into any gym tomorrow and go hardcore for at least an hour.

This is just the mindset that I as a physically strong looking person had, and it is the same with a lot of people of all body types.  One of the most common New Years resolutions people make is that on January 1st or 2nd, they are going to go to their local gym or health club, get a membership and make new health changes for their life.  That, "New year, new me" meme that millions of people post on their Facebook and Twitter timelines on December 31st.

For a lot of people, the "New year, new me" deal ends up being nothing more than a spur of the moment thing.  They see others talking about it, it gives them a sudden burst of inspiration and they hop on the bandwagon.  And that's where it ends.  A post or a Tweet, followed by a few 'like' clicks and comments of encouragement from friends of family.  The end.

Screencap from a 2011 Facebook video.  Size 3XL shirt.  Close to being at my physical worst.

For those who actually stick to their word and do go seeking out a gym membership, they go in ready to go, all guns blazing.  Ready to tear it up.  They do some pre-workout stretches as their favorite pulse-pounding songs play on their iPods.  They grab a 30 pound dumb bell and do 10 reps.

Whoa!

"Let me sit here for an extended rest period, and when it looks like nobody is looking, I'll just casually walk over to that rowing machine over there."

Position yourself on the rowing machine.  Set a moderate difficulty level and a time of 30 minutes.  Countdown.....3-2-1, GO!

What the f***?!

"Let me rest for a second, and when it looks like nobody is looking, I'll just casually walk over to one of the available treadmills over there."

Get on the treadmill.  Set a moderate difficulty level and a time of 30 minutes.  Countdown......3-2-1, GO!  Your arms are still a bit sore from 10 reps on 30 pound dumb bells.  Your back feels a little stiff from the rowing machine.  And now your legs are starting to feel sore.  You look at your watch.  You are barely 15 minutes into your workout!

You lower the difficulty level on the treadmill.  Go for another 5 minutes.  Step off the treadmill.  Walk back the the change room in pain.  Too sore to shower, so you change back into your regular clothes, go home and collapse on the couch.  Then what happens?  The next morning, you wake up in more pain than you went to bed with.  As a result, you don't go back to the gym again.  Luckily it was just a 30-day free trial membership with no commitment.

Congratulations!  You've been brought back down to Earth!

February 20, 2014.  Day 50 of rebuilding.

You went in completely full of yourself and you gave up.  You went in trying to run when you didn't even know how to walk.

NEWSFLASH!  Michael Jordan did not come out of the womb with the ability to dunk a basketball.  Wayne Gretzky did not come out of the womb already knowing how to skate.  They became great by starting with nothing but a will to succeed.  And they started with the very basics.  They had to learn to crawl before they walked.  And it is the same with starting a new workout and diet plan.

If you want to be successful at making positive healthy changes in your life but have no prior experience, odds are you will NOT be able to go an hour at the gym, and you will NOT stick to a strict diet by practically starving yourself on day one.  Your head might be ready, but your body isn't.

You need to start from scratch.  And that means doing what you thought would be too easy and beneath you.  It means not seeing quick results.  The beginning stages of a new workout and diet routine is a lengthy warm up process, much like how we stretch before starting a workout.

October 7, 2014.  Day 279 of rebuilding.

The beginning stage is not about SEEING results quick, it's about FEELING them.  I started my rebuilding process with nothing more than 10 minutes of very basic yoga poses a day and eating more fruits and vegetables and less junk.  I still ate some junk in the beginning but less of it.  After day one, I was in pain.  The next day, I woke up in more pain.  My body had been inactive for so long that it was in a state of shock.  But as time went on, my body quickly got used to the activity.  My 10 minutes of basic yoga a day turned into 20.  My intake of junk became less and less.  As I felt my body waking up, my energy started going up.  I traded sitting on my couch watching movies and playing video games for going out and walking.

After three months, my basic yoga had gone from 10 minutes a day to 30 as I was able to hold poses longer and would add new ones.  I was feeling and seeing results and working out was quickly becoming something I felt like I HAD to do, to something I WANTED to do.  Eventually, I went out and bought two 25 pound dumbbells and started a weight training routine.  Shortly after that, I added a cardio routine by doing Tae-Bo style punch and kick workouts while I put a UFC DVD on.

I now alternate cardio and weights.  Cardio one day, weights the next.  And while I do have a gym membership, I do most of my "beasting" in my living room.  My gym equipment consists simply of a yoga mat, two 25 pound dumb bells and a pair of MMA gloves.  Everything else comes from inside which was locked away for many years and had to be woken up and charged.

Home "home gym".  Simple as this.  Yoga mat, two 25lb dumbbells and MMA gloves.
(The gloves are for when I get energized and bang my fists together.  It happens.)

You need to crawl before you walk.  Walk before you run, and run before you sprint.  You don't start hardcore, you BECOME hardcore.  You ARE as strong as you think you are, but you need to give your body a chance to catch up with your thoughts.  And every minute counts.  If you are only able to go a few minutes during the beginning stages, a few minutes is better than no minutes as you are at least keeping your body active.  BECOME HARDCORE!

December 18, 2015.  Day 716 of rebuilding and still going strong.

Don't tell ME that YOU can't do it!

Chef Nairby