This may sound odd coming from a coach that has spent much of his career helping people to drop and lose body-fat, but I’m going to take the next five months and concentrate on dropping body-fat. Allow me to provide context. One of my first athletic loves was wrestling. At fifteen, I was coming to grips that they did not bless me with height (I’m 5’ 9”) and enormous size (my current weight is 205lbs). I started lifting weights at an early age, so by the time I was sixteen, I could display above average strength. Wrestling is a sport that awards you if you possess above average strength without the size. It’s also a sport that requires discipline. The only negative that I can share that has been associated with the sport is that it has weight classes. Unhealthy eating habits and starvation followed by binge eating, has been associated with the sport. The sport has done their best to nullify this, but some of these practices still exist. I’m happy that this did not affect my relationship with food. I wrestled in the era that you lost fifteen to twenty pounds days prior to a match. Losing weight during years that you are physically growing is challenging, but I would have to go through this grueling task every fall, immediately after I spent three months of gorging myself with calories to gain weight for football. Remember, I was not blessed with the gift of size.
I stopped wrestling once I graduated high school, vowing never to take part in a sport that required me to lose weight. That lasted two years. At that point, I decided I wanted to compete in bodybuilding. Similar to wrestling, I had the stature and genetics that would help win accolades in that sport. Nonetheless, I participated in a sport that would have me go through the annual task of putting on as much weight as possible each year, followed by a cut phase, where you drop as much body fat as possible to display the muscle underneath. In 1998 I won the Junior Nationals, culminating nine exceptional years of competitions. I stopped body-building and discontinued the extremes of dieting and decided to undertake a life of eating within moderation. That included desserts on weekends, sweets, and the occasional alcohol cocktail (mainly wine).
Each year, I take a specific area within my health and take it through a process of self-reflection and evaluation. In 2020, it was mindfulness which started my journey in meditation. 2021 my attention was on sleep and its effect on my recovery. This past year it was mobility, which was kick started during a weekend certification (Functional Range Conditioning) in the fall of 2021 with Dr. Andreo Spina, considered the leader in mobility training. I always start with a goal. You need to have a destination. Where are you going? This summer, my family and I plan to travel to Greece for a vacation. This trip will include beach time at some of the most breath-taking beaches in the world, partnered with a few high calorie meals. A reduction in body-fat is the goal for 2023.
My goal is to take five months and consistently lose 1 percent of body-fat each month. This allows me to maintain my philosophy of a gradual approach. Five percent over five months. My body-fat has increased by a few percentage points over the years, so I have it to lose. The challenge for me is that I wish to do it by manipulating my nutrition and dietary intake. Nothing extreme. My workouts will stay the same. I plan on weighing, tracking, and manipulating my daily protein intake. I will include a fast for thirty-six hours once a month. I will also limit my alcohol intake. This will start on January 2nd and end on Sunday, May 28th. I will undergo a DEXA scan test to get the most accurate reading of my body-fat and will perform this test again in May. They typically agree the DEXA scan to be the most accurate body fat percentage reading. Since it measures all the fat within your body. The only thing that could be more accurate is a water displacement measure. I wish I had one of these at the studio. Along the way, I share and provide updates on my status. This experience will check the box for me in multiple ways. It will provide a goal to focus on my daily protein intake, something I believe is important and valuable in longevity. It will satisfy my vanity side. I haven’t walked around on the beach with a six-pack in a while. Finally, I believe you should be able to practice what you believe in.
I’ll see you at the studio.