Tag: Biggest Loser

The end of the beginning…

What started twelve weeks ago came to an end this past Saturday! What an amazing ride it has been! I am humbled, honored and blessed to have had the opportunity to be one of Rob’s Big Losers. It has been a journey unlike any other for me, as far as my health is concerned. I have met some amazing people! I have thoroughly enjoyed following the journeys of my fellow RBLs… Gus Edmundson, Jason Day, Tim Bryant, Andrea Huntley, Krisina Satterfield, and Rob Clayborn to name a few. The interesting thing is that I first met Gus, Jason and Tim this past Saturday at the RBL 5K Race.  We had been following each other’s journeys through the blogs and although we had never met face to face, there was instant camaraderie. Even though we were “competitors”, we were also brothers and sisters who had journeyed together over the past 12 weeks. We each arrived at Saturday’s finale having achieved different goals and yet, we were all winners! I love what Rob Dempsey said as he was recognizing those who had the highest % of weight loss. He stated, “Remember, everybody here is a winner! This is not a competition, this is an accomplishment.” Great job to all who started and finished RBL2017! Whether you sprinted, ran, walked or hobbled across the finish line Saturday, you finished! You did it! For that you should be extremely proud!  Congrats to Tim Bryant for being the overall winner! You earned it!

As for me, I am thankful for the journey I have been on over the past twelve weeks, but I am even more thankful for the beautiful partner that I have had journey with me! Jennifer Farr, you are amazing! I am so proud to be your husband. You encouraged and supported me so faithfully through it all, while at the same time, you were hustling and working hard to complete your own journey to health! Way to go babe! I am so proud of how far you’ve come. I am looking forward to continuing our journey together!

Twelve weeks ago it was hard for me to get up and move because of my weight; I basically had no stamina at all! I would breath heavy with every step I took and I was very limited in what I could do.

Today, I am a new person! I can walk without getting winded. I don’t come home from work and collapse in the recliner! I have more energy! I’m sleeping better and I need a wardrobe! How’s that for a twelve week metamorphosis?! I still have a long way to go but I am over halfway to my first milestone of losing 100 pounds (only 37 more to go!) It’s not a matter of “if”, but “when”! That’s the beauty of this competition! If you commit to it and consistently do what the trainers and coaches tell you to do, you will see results, and you will have a change in attitude, heart and body!

I am so thankful for all who have joined with me on this journey.  Through it all I have felt God’s presence and the love & support from countless family and friends. For that I am eternally thankful! This is not the end for me, it is only the beginning!!!

“Look at the nations and watch – and be utterly amazed. For I am going to do something in your days that you would not believe, even if you were told.” – Habakkuk 1:5

#LosingIsWinning

It’s been an amazing ride!

What an amazing time getting to see everyone at the 5K.  You all did an incredible job and you should feel proud of your weight loss. What an honor it was to have this amazing opportunity with everyone. I want to thank His Radio, Rob Dempsey and the Greenville County YMCA for providing this journey for us.  I also want to thank my trainer Misty Beacham and Tamika Pollard for your encouragement to keep pressing on.  To all my Eastside RBL family, let’s keep it going and finished what we started. I am still working towards my goal to lose 40 more pounds.  I just want to encourage each of you to keep going and let’s help each other.  This is not the end, it’s just the beginning of a new healthy life.  We must make a constant effort every day to keep using the tools we have learned during this 12-week challenge.  When I started twelve weeks ago, I had trouble breathing, I had trouble sleeping, I didn’t have any energy and all my clothes felt uncomfortable.  Since losing the weight I cannot tell you how much better I feel.  I am sore from workouts and I have trouble with my knee but it’s a good feeling to breathe better, to sleep better and to feel comfortable in my own skin. Let’s keep it going!GroupChange

I can’t believe I did it!

Well, it’s almost the end. I can’t believe it’s been 12 weeks since I started this journey. Three things come to mind as I look back at the last 12 weeks: pain, frustration, and accomplishment. Pain: I remember the first day that I worked out. I barely made it a mile and was so out of breath, I thought I was going to pass out. The pain I felt the next day was horrible. I could barely make it out of bed. I have been through a lot of pain over the last 12 weeks. Frustration: This competition was not easy. It took a lot of time and effort to work out every day and that feeling you get when you thought you should have lost more weight for the effort you put in that week. There was also the frustration of injuries. Each week I pushed myself a little more. I had multiple issues with my feet, legs and worst of all my knee, which I am still dealing with. Accomplishment: I had a few goals when I started this competition, one was I was going to work out every single day, no exceptions and that I wanted to lose at least 50lbs. Finding time to work out every single day was rough but I did it, even when I went on vacation. I well surpassed my goal of 50Ibs. I honestly didn’t know if I could do it. When I started, I had so much doubt, heck every week that went by I doubted that I could make it another week. At times, even though I losing weight on a consistent basis, I wanted to quit because I didn’t think I could make it to the end. I can’t believe I make it and lost weight too. 

The person that started this competition is not the same person that is ending the competition. I’ll see you at the 5k this Saturday. I will be the one limping across the finish line. 

I’m still here

I’m back, it’s been a little while since my last blog. Life has seemed to smack me right in the face. Between longer work hours and a lot more pain, it’s been tough. On my last blog I said I was working through the pain, well the pain increased a whole lot more from the rigorous exercise routine that I had been doing. With a strained lower back and a leg muscle on the verge of ripping, I had to scale down my exercise, which has been frustrating. The good news is that over the last two days, I have increased the intensity of my workouts again and hope I can go full force on Monday.    I decided when I started this journey that I would exercise everyday no matter what and I have kept that promise to myself.  It’s nice to see all your hard work and effect show results.  My clothes are loose; I have dropped one pant size; and I can sleep better at night.  The best part is other people are starting to notice my weight loss.  My wife and I have started new recipes to eat healthier and reduce our bread intake and to give me more options besides grilled chicken.  She made spaghetti squash with turkey meatballs in a spicy sauce and it was amazing.  She also made a healthier version of chili with lean ground beef, squash, green beans, carrots. It’s been awesome.