Nine Years!

Ironically I was watching the most recent episode of Bigge$t L0ser and it turns out the football player had the band and I thought wait a second it's nine years TODAY for me. The player said it was one of the worst things he could have done because it didn't work and for him it was all about his mental state. B0b followed that up by saying that the band doesn't work in the long run because it doesn't address where the weight came from and you can't put a band on your brain.

While I don't think the band is the worst thing I have done, for me, this perspective is completely true. It wasn't the band that led to my long-term success, it was working on my own personal issues through counseling, etc. that I believe is the true foundation. And sure, I lost weight with the band, but I didn't achieve what I call my real results until I started working on me.

I think probably the most shocking thing for people to know about my journey at this point is I am eating more food on a daily basis then I ever had. My target calorie level on workout days is 2000! And, part of the goal is to ensure that I get all my calories in for the day within a targeted macro breakdown. Macros can roll people's eyes into the back of their head, but turns out that my diet with a few minor tweaks was naturally hitting the macros, but not high enough in calories. Imagine the shock of being told to eat MORE calories! I saw some pretty shocking results with these changes. My body fat dropped from 19 to 15 - measured in a dunk tank (hydro static). Pretty amazing stuff!

What bugs me - and quite often - is my port. It's visible and I think it looks like a tumor - so I'm self conscious about it. I can't remember how many years it's been at this point since I've had any fluid in my band, but it's been a lot. Lately I've been thinking more and more about having the port removed and might consider having the band removed entirely. I think having the port removed would be pretty minor, so we'll see....Until next year!

Testing? Testing? Is this thing on?

Just a quick check in. I continue not to weigh on a scale, but I think I am the fittest I've been since I was in college. For grins, I might get my body fat tested before my official 9 year milestone to see where it is now vs. 2012. Plus I think knowing my R.M.R is important. It allows me to ensure that I am eating enough to maintain lean body mass. Somewhere I posted about being skinny fat and this is related to that. In a nutshell - lean body mass = good (needs and eats calories) and fat = bad.

Anyway, in case there's anyone following, wondering, or should anyone stumble across this blog that is somewhere in their journey or struggling, I wanted to confirm that after 9 years, I continue to maintain. You really can do it! YOU, not just me. Yes, it's hard and yes, it takes effort, because there is no magic pill. Believe and make it happen.

I'll post more details in November and if anyone is wondering anything, please let me know.

In the meantime, be well and try out what I've been using as a mantra lately:

• Wake up and be awesome!
• Smile. Choose to be happy!
• When it seems like nothing goes right, go left!