180 Days and Counting

Interestingly, my day 180 update isn't going to have pictures showing me 6 months ago vs. how awesome I look now.  That last part is kind of tongue in cheek, but I am very proud of myself. There won't be weight & measurements showing how much progress I have made; instead, this is more of an introspective look at the REAL progress I've made in the last 180 days.

The most stressful period of time I can point to in my life was the fall of 2008 through spring of 2009.  I had just taken a week-long trip with my dad to Kentucky to visit his brothers and sisters. I'd fish in the early mornings and then hang out with dad and my family from Kentucky that I don't see often. 

About 2 weeks after we got home, I got a call.  "Dad had a stroke.  He's not going to make it long.  You need to come home today."

It was an absolute shock going from having Dad take turns driving with me from Ohio to Kentucky to not knowing if he even recognized me. Dad made an awesome recovery and is doing well now.  In the middle of it, though, it was amazingly tough.  It was difficult trying to balance being there to help my mom while trying to not let my business and wife sit neglected 5 hours away at home. 

At the same time, every channel on TV was covering the housing market crash. The stock market went insane and eventually dropped to around 6000.  My business in the financial services industry added another level of stress to the situation.  Every day I was getting calls from people asking if they should cash in their life savings and buy a bunker to avoid the coming riots.  I got some laughs out of frantic clients, but overall it was not fun.

When I line up the weigh in dates on my excel sheet with stressful situations in my life there's an obvious pattern.  When the stress level is high, my weight increases.  I gained about 40 lbs. in a matter of months during that 2008-2009 time frame. It was the second highest entry in my weight/measurement/photo history.

I am not ready to share details at this time, but I'd rank the past week next behind the experience above in terms of stress, but not by that much.  Something is very different this time though.  I'm in control of myself instead of allowing the circumstances around me to be in charge.  It may be cheesy, but I see parallels between myself and Neo from the movie "The Matrix." In the scene at the end, Neo finally realizes he can bend or break the rules at will.  The Matrix no longer controls him.  He watches curiously as the bullets fly toward him, but he simply stretches out his hand and stops them. His fingers close on a single bullet and he inspects it.  Then, upon examining it and deeming them no risk, he simply waves his hand and the bullets drop to the ground.  (Isaiah 54:17 – Seems a pretty clear Biblical parallel to me)

Instead of realizing I control everything like Neo, I now understand I control very little (Matthew 25:14-30 - I guess if I learn to take REALLY good care of the few things in my control, I'll be entrusted with more) 

Since the common theme of my blog is my success with DDP Yoga, I'll share the way the man himself says it, “You control how you breathe, how you react, how you adapt, and how you take action.”  There is another version that goes something like, stand up straight, take a deep breath, step up (take action)!  Popular author and speaker Tony Robbins talks about your physiology (how you use and move your body) and the effect this has on your psychology (emotional and mental state).  I’m obviously a little slow to get it, since I've "known" this info for a long time. I have heard it SO many different ways, but I am just starting to recognize the same information being taught by different people using a slightly different spin.

I wanted to include another variation a friend shared with me. 

I could relate to the need to practice letting go from . . . when I was preparing for natural/unmedicated childbirth! The Bradley method incorporates a number of exercises aimed at strengthening the muscles that are key for delivering a baby, but it really focuses on helping the expectant mother to prepare to purposefully, intentionally relax. It seems so silly/unnecessary on the surface, but you really need to practice and train in order to be able to relax your muscles and breathe in ways that will help (not hinder). You have to do it over and over in advance, so that during those moments/hours when you really need it, it will be almost second nature (well, probably with some timely prompting from your ‘coach’ [aka, my husband, in my case]). Without the preparation, there would be no way I could have relaxed through the moments when most of the muscles in my body wanted to clench against the pain! But when I intentionally let go and stayed relaxed, I could almost just ride through the waves, and they weren't amplified by tension that I added myself.

I control how I breathe; how I move by body; what I eat; as well as how I react, adapt, and what actions I take based upon situations that are presented to me.  Once I let go of trying to control the rest of the world, things seem infinitely simpler.  I think it's because my brain has much less to be concerned with, so it comes up with better solutions for the things upon which I can take action and have a positive effect.

I don't know if that sounds weird, but it seems like an obvious truth when I really look at it.

"Let go and let God."  I've heard this cliché so many times, but it's so true.  The only thing I'd add is you need practice letting go. You have to train yourself to do that. I think part of that training means having a healthy body that you are in control of and the ability to control your breathing and heart rate in the face of "stressful" situations.  There's more than one way to accomplish that, but why try to reinvent the wheel.  I know DDP Yoga works.  It works for me; it can work for ANYONE.  I seriously don’t care how bad of shape you're in; you can get in amazing shape with some DVDs, a mat, and a heart rate monitor.  In your living room.  Any time of day.  

If DDP Yoga really isn’t your thing, go find yours. Swimming, running, climbing, biking, sports, lifting--you can make the ideal workout for your lifestyle and body.  You have to be willing to try some stuff out and research to get a well-rounded workout, though.  Hint: CrossFit isn't it.  Just.  No. (I'm a nobody at the moment, but if I get famous, come at me Reebok.)  I'll probably cover what I consider is necessary for a comprehensive fitness program at a later date.

To sum up, this day 180 update is not about how much weight I lost (I think I met my goal though, so I will update next week).  I don’t have pictures to compare 6 months of progress.  The change physically is nothing compared tithe change I feel internally.  I truly feel like a different person.

I'm not going to end this with a BANG!  This situation I'm dealing with at the moment is not done, and I'd appreciate continued prayers for me and my family.  I will say I'm confident that God's hand is on the situation, and I know I don't have to worry about it (Matthew 10:29-31).

-CJ

Jump the Gun

Have you ever watched an Olympic sprint distance race?  The commentators usually spend 5-10 minutes discussing their predictions for the race while the runners walk around, stretch, and get psyched for the event.  The judge finally calls for the runners get into the blocks, then set, then BANG! the starting gun fires.  For a 100m race, it's over in under 10 seconds.

When I look back through my log of body stats, an interesting pattern begins to emerge.  Over 10 plus years, I've started more than 20 diet and exercise plans.  I'd usually get serious, pick a day to start, log my measurements, and take my "before" pictures.  The times I was more serious, I'd weigh in and take measurements every week.   Other times, I'd make a single weight and measurement log entry and then there would be a huge gap in time until I started over again.  Those times I probably gave up and quit within the week.

Other than the first entry on Sunday, February 15, 2004, every starting weigh in was on a Monday.  "You can't start a diet in the middle of the week," I'd tell myself.  "I'll get ready and REALLY get started after the weekend.  My friends are probably going to want to have dinner Saturday, so I don't want to have to miss that."  I'm not sure why it never occurred to me that they'd want to go out the next weekend, and the next weekend after that! "Plus," I'd rationalize, "I want to start with a workout also, and I don't want to spend my weekend at the gym.

I don't remember much about February 25th, 2014.  I know it was a Tuesday, and we always play volleyball on Tuesdays, but that's about it.   The only other remarkable thing about that day was the fact that I logged in my measurements, weight, took some photos, and logged my first DDP Yoga workout since briefly giving it a 2-week try back in 2012.

Do I think starting on a Tuesday made the difference in my success when I failed so many times before?  No.  Then why was I finally able to break through after failing so many times before?  I had no idea whether or not this time would be any different than all the other times, but whatever triggered me to start was obviously bigger than waiting until Monday, March 3rd to get started.  I just couldn't wait another 6 days.

I only managed to complete 2 workouts in the first week, and 2 the second.  The beginner schedule suggests 3 workouts per week to start.  It wasn't exactly a record start.  Then, something weird happened.  I did 6 workouts in week 3.  The following week I did 4, and in the fifth week I did at least one 20 minute workout per day, every day.  The last rest day I took was July 2nd, and I guarantee that whatever caused me to skip a day was not worth it.

As with most of the insights and advice I'm giving, this applies to every area of life.  It's not just about losing weight.  I used to spend days getting ready for the starting gun that would fire on Monday.  My advice to you is jump that gun.  There are no penalties for early starts.  This is not a sprint, it's not even a race.  It's you saying, "I'm tired of where I am.  It's time to go somewhere better."  You may not even know where you want to go at this point, but I promise to get into that later.  

Unfortunately, there's no bus, taxi, or flight to take you to where we're headed.  You are going to have to walk.  The good news is there are people who know how to help you along your journey.  There's no reason to struggle with trying to cut a new path when there are maps, trails, and guides available to get you going in the right direction.  

What's the takeaway for now?  Stop getting ready to get ready and just GO!  

If you're still waiting for the starting gun, here it is... 

BANG!  
CJ



 

Rebuilding from the ground up

This post is based upon my own research into my own health issues.  I'm not an expert.  I'm not a doctor.  I never went to medical school.  I may or may not be right in my understanding of the issues discussed, so please take some time to do your own research.

Did you know each of your feet contain 26 bones?  There are 206 bones in the body, 1/4 of which are in your feet.  There are 33 joints, and over 100 muscles, tendons and ligaments.  That's a lot of stuff packed into a part of your body that you don't think about often.

As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have anatomical issues that I'm working to correct.  I damaged my body through years of being obese, and have scar tissue from acute injuries and chronic inflammation.  Some of the issues I'm now working to correct I never even noticed because it wasn't causing me "direct" pain.  It may have been an aggravating factor in other pain I was experiencing, but I never made that connection for some reason.  I can tell you that all my "issues" are interlinked.  Here are some of the connections I see in my own body.

Would it surprise you to know that your feet might be a factor in the pain you experience in your knees, hips, back, shoulders, or neck?

The arches in your feet are made up of muscles, tendons, and ligaments holding bones in a way that acts as a shock absorber.  Years of poor footwear, being overweight, and muscle imbalances in my legs caused my the muscles in my ankles and feet to weaken, which put more pressure on the arches of my feet causing them to flatten.  That, in combination with weak/imbalanced leg muscles caused my knees to angle in and touch.  This is called a genu valgum, or knock knee.  I didn't even realize I had this issue until Miki mentioned it in passing a few months ago.  That got me researching (something I tend to do).  I will discuss my knee issues in a later post.

Besides affecting my knees, fallen arches are also an aggravating factor in low back pain I've been having on and off since 2010.  There are other things I can now link together, but I think you get the point for right now.  If you have foot problems, it might be causing other pain you're not even considering.

So, what am I doing about it?  First, weighing less helps tremendously.  The muscles in my feet and ankles are under less stress since there's less weight pressing down from above.  I considered whether I should make strengthening the foot a priority, or if I should fix the issues with my knees first.  I decided to focus on the knees first since they are actually causing pain.

Am I ignoring my feet then?  No.  For now, I'm using custom made orthotics molded by a podiatrist to help support my feet.  They force my feet into a more correct position which changes the angle of my ankle.  This makes walking more comfortable.  Walking correctly causes less stress in my knees, and helps prevent the hip and back pain I was dealing with previously.  ALL these issues are being treated simultaneously when I do DDP Yoga workouts daily.  Once some of the other issues subside, I will probably lose the orthotics and work on further strengthening the arch.

So how does DDP Yoga help my feet?  Let's start with ignition...  Remember when DDP says pick up your toes and curl them into the mat?  You're trying to engage the muscles in your feet.  If you notice you have fallen arches, you may want even try pulling your big toes up while curling the other 4 toes on each foot into the mat.  Then, slowly curl your big toe without disengaging the foot muscles.  When I do this, I can feel the correct arch, and focus on strengthening it.  Try to focus on this every time you're in a standing position during your workouts.

You're also working the feet when you're in lunge, and every warrior position.  Ever wonder why you're supposed to keep a flat, flexed foot when you're doing standing split, broken table, or other positions?  Yes, it's to engage your knee muscles and calf, but it's also working the foot.

Some of you out there may have very inflexible toes.  Mine aren't bad, but I am working to correct some neuromuscular issues in the toes of my left foot due to another injury I'll discuss later.  I also injured the joints between my metatarsals and phalanges in my right foot in April of 2014.  I was running around the yard barefoot with my nephews when I stepped on a rock at full speed (right on the ball of my foot).  It mostly healed, but it gets irritated once in a while.  I really never expected a "minor" injury like that to still be bothering me 4 months later (even if it is very minor).

Buy high quality footwear.  Use orthotics if recommended by a medical professional.  Work on your toe/foot strength and flexibility. Take your foot health seriously.  It's an important part of your overall health.  If your feet are in really bad shape, you might consider doing some foot specific exercises or rehab.  Here's one I learned through rehab that I'm using again to strengthen my feet and make other corrections.

This is a really long post about feet, but I thought it was a good place to start.  We all have our own issues with injuries, pain, and mobility. A lot of pain you're dealing with is probably caused by one of more of these reasons:  being overweight, weak muscles, imbalanced muscles, inflexible muscles/tendons/ligaments, scar tissue, and inflammation.  Here's the good news... you can fix it.

You can lose the weight, strengthen the muscles, get balanced, get flexible, break up the scar tissue, and reduce the inflammation.  It really takes only takes an average of about 30 minutes a day to get all that done.  Since I know how much I'm benefiting, do you think I see this as a chore?  No.  That's why I don't have to struggle to get myself to do a 60 minute workout some days.  I think it's a wise use of my time.

TLDR:  Do DDP Yoga daily, you'll fix stuff.



Until next time...

BANG!
-CJ

FAQ's #1: Getting Started

Today's installment will cover some of the most frequently asked questions I get from people who have decided they are ready to get started.  These are MY opinions/advice.  If you disagree with advice I'm giving, feel free to let me know in the comments below.  I'm not a doctor or fitness pro.  I'm just giving the info I used to make my own progress.  I've been reading & studying about these topics for about 11 years now.  Do you own research, and consult with your own trusted sources. 


Q:  How do I get started?

A:  Go to www.ddpyoga.com and purchase one of the DVD packs.

Q:  What can I do while I wait for my DVDs in the mail?

A:  Head over to www.teamddpyoga.com and register.  You'll find awesome forums, tips, recipes, and all KINDS of other stuff to help you get started, and keep progressing.  If you have questions, chances are it's already been answered there.  You'll meet great people all trying to help each other.  There are also some great Facebook groups to get motivated, and help keep accountable.  Links below...

DDPYOGA Facebook Group http://goo.gl/Ir0mrC
DDPYOGA MEMBERS ONLY Facebook Group http://goo.gl/AA2X0J


Q:  Do I need any additional equipment?

A:  Yes, you will definitely need a heart rate monitor & a yoga mat.

HRM: I've been recommending this HRM by Polar - http://goo.gl/74hhuR - It does exactly what you need it to do, doesn't have a bunch of features that you don't need, and it's only $40.

Yoga Mat:  I bought mats at TJ Maxx for my nephews for $12.  The quality was surprisingly good for such a low price.  Don't get one of those stretchy/spongy pilates mats.  It's not the same.  When I started, my knees hurt too bad to even kneel on a yoga mat, so I bought this - http://goo.gl/b3ypVF - If you go this route, you'll want a towel (maybe even a yoga towel) to keep from slipping.  It doesn't absorb sweat well.

Optional Equipment:  Along the way I started some additional stuff, but none of it is required.  Yoga blocks are nice, but you can just use a chair or something to help yourself balance.  Having a nice mat towel keeps me from slipping when I'm drenched in sweat toward the end of a session.  Mat spray helps keep your mat from stinking and getting grungy, but you can probably use Febreze for the same effect.

Q:  Do I really need a heart rate monitor?

A:  Yes.  Yes, you do.  That is the only way you'll know if you're getting the maximum payback from the effort you're putting in to your workouts.  If your heart rate is too low, you'll know you need to work a little harder.  If your heart rate is too high, you'll want to ease up a little to stay in that optimal fat burning zone.

Q:  I got my DVDs today!  What do I do first?

A:  Read the guide that comes with your package.  That guide contains all the info you need.  Topics covered include:  Workout schedule, Nutrition guide, List of the workouts, ideas to keep you motivated, and much more.

Q:  Wait, you just said nutrition guide.  I thought this was a workout.  Do I have to diet too?

A:  First, you're not going to "diet".  In my opinion, that word has been ruined by the fitness/weight loss industry.  The word diet now refers to something people do for a short period of time, usually restricting certain food group (low carb, or low fat), or ONLY eating one type of food (juice cleanse, etc).  "Dieting" will leave you in worse shape than you were before you started.  Because of how they work, you will lose some lbs if follow them, but the day you go back to eating "normally" (the way you did BEFORE the diet), you'll start to gain that weight back along with more.  They are not sustainable, and they don't work.

When the guide, or I, say diet, I'm referring to original meaning.  Perhaps better referred to as changing the way you eat.  It's sort of cliche, but getting fit/healthy/losing weight really is 20% exercise 80% how you eat.

Q:  If weight loss really is 80/20 diet/exercise, why do I even need to exercise?

A:  Believe it or not, you don't want to lose weight (you may, but stay with me a second).  You want to lose FAT.

You can make progress by only changing how you eat.  If you're only dieting, you are likely losing muscle mass in addition to fat in the process.  If you fall off the wagon and go back to your old eating habits, you'll be weaker, and the fat will come back even quicker.

You can also make progress by eating the way you have been, and adding exercise to the mix.  If you only exercise and keep your diet EXACTLY the same as you had been, you will start to gain muscle, and lose fat (provided that the way you were previously eating was a maintenance amount, and you weren't gaining fat).  Part of the problem is people (speaking from experience here...) tend to say, "Wow!  I worked out really hard!  The treadmill said I burned 650 calories walking 60 minutes.  I guess I can get a jumbo order of fries instead of large since I burned more calories than the difference between the 2."  Stated this way, it seems funny, but lots of people, myself included, have used this faulty logic.

If you add exercise AND change your eating habits, you turbocharge the process. You'll be losing fat at the same time you're gaining muscle.  The more muscle you gain, the better you start feeling, and the more active you get.  You'll start to feel good, and you might decide to park in that spot that's 50 feet away from the front door at Walmart instead of driving in circles for 30 minutes looking for that #1 spot.

Q:  Did you follow the diet guide provided?

A:  Yes, and No.  I did read it, and most of it was the same information I already knew from years of reading about this topic.  Without getting into it too much in this short Q & A, I knew the approximate amount of calories (and macro splits) I needed to progress at a rate I'm comfortable with.  For me, that was 1400-1600 calories/day in the beginning.  (I didn't eat dessert back then).  Since I don't have any food allergies or other health issues that may affected weight loss, I didn't choose to do gmo/gluten/dairy free.  I did start to lower the amount of sugar and processed foods I was eating daily, but I still eat dessert every day.  That may not be good advice for you though, so talk to your doctor if you need more help.

I also never liked vegetables (potatoes and corn were my favorite veggies), so I started to make myself eat a SMALL amount once a day.  It doesn't take long until it started to be tolerable.  Now, I can taste the difference between the really processed garbage and fresh ingredients.  I actually enjoy fresh fruits and some veggies.

I highly recommend keeping some kind of food journal.  There are awesome apps out there like myfitnesspal and others that track your calories, macro nutrients, and more.  I don't advise using their workout tracking though.  If you set a goal for yourself of 1800 calories for example, then you enter 1 hour of yoga, it will calculate the number of calories it thinks you burned during your workout.  Let's say it says 450 calories.  Now, it will add a NEGATIVE 450 calories, leaving you to eat 2250 calories.  I personally just set a calorie IN goal, and worry about my own workouts.  As long as I'm doing my DDP Yoga every day, and keeping my heart rate in MY zone, I'll know I will progress.

Q:  The guide says I should take photos of myself with my shirt off (or bathing suit/whatever).  Is that really necessary?

A:  Yes!  You don't need to share them with anyone, but you'll be so glad in a few months when you go back and compare how much progress you've made.  Numbers on the scale are one thing, but when you can actually SEE for yourself how different you look... it's just an awesome feeling.  If you're shy, take a set like that for yourself, but also take a set with normal fitting clothes so you have something you can share more publicly.

Besides pictures, I recommend you track your weight (once a week at most).  If your scale tracks body fat/muscle percentage, that's good too.  (I got this one for $40 on Amazon.  It works nice, and you can track with an app on your smartphone - http://goo.gl/4HXqVq )  I don't think the percentages are accurate, but I like to use it to see the trend.  There are times I don't lose any weight, but the fat % drops, while the muscle % increases.  When you "plateau", this is likely why.  I'll cover this more in depth during a longer post.

Take measurements, the day you start and every 30 days after.  I track neck, chest, stomach, thigh, calf, bicep, forearm, wrist.  Again, you may have times when you lose nothing, but your belt suddenly needs to go in a notch.

Track as many things as you can.  It will keep you motivated when you notice progress in one thing you're measuring even though other things seem to have stalled.  You just have to keep pushing...

Q:  I'm concerned that yoga doesn't mesh with my faith (I get this a lot from friends at church).  Is there anything that I should be concerned about as a Christian?

A:  Well, it ain't YOGA.  This is DDP Yoga.  All the spiritual, new age mumbo jumbo garbage is out.  There's no meditating like a happy tree pose here.  All the yoga poses have their names changed.  You're not worshiping the sun here, you're doing lunges and burning fat.  The only things that I could see ANYBODY having a problem with are these... in a couple workouts you're doing a row or similar exercise, and DDP says something like "push all the negative energy or emotions out".   Then when you're pulling, he says "pull all the positive energy or emotions in.".  Other than that, he says butt a few times.  On the extreme workouts (the ones created later on a separate disc), he says ass a few times.  As in, kick ass, or something like that. You say worse words when you stub your toe in the middle of the night.

If you're offended by either of those things, you blow other things out of proportion too.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hope this helps!  If you have questions, feel free to comment here, or contact me via private message.

One last Q & A...

Q:  I'm already in good shape and my diet is really good.  I run/lift/play sports/etc.  Is there any reason I should consider adding DDP Yoga to my regimen?

A:   Oh.  Yes.  Here's why...

The rest of that answer, coming soon....


You can do this.  You can OWN YOUR LIFE!

Hit the share button if there's something that helped you, or you think may help someone else.

BANG!
-CJ

The Six Hundred Dollar Man

CJ Warren.  A man barely alive.

Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology.  We have the capability to make the world's first bionic man. CJ Warren will be that man. Better than he was before. Better...stronger...faster.

OK.  So, I'm not the world's first bionic man, but the rest of it is true.  Instead of replacing parts of my body with superior mechanical tech, I'm working to repair damage I did to my own body through years of neglect.  No magic pills.  No crazy diets.  Just proper nutrition and a comprehensive fitness system.  

The idea behind the name of this first post is this... I've spent thousands, and (*crowd chants back) THOUSANDS of dollars trying to lose weight, get in shape, or trying to be happy with myself along the way.  Once I really figured out the HOW to do it, it cost less that 600 dollars.  Way less.  Bare minimum, it will cost you about $140 (including tax & shipping) to do the same thing I did.  At this time I'm not getting paid or referral fees for anything I recommend.  If, at some point, that changes, I will let you know.  

My goal for this blog is to share the things I've learned and where I've come from over the course of my life so far.  I'll share how I went from around 330 lbs in 2003, to 247 lbs in Feb 2014 (with lots of ups and downs along the way).  Then, from 247 to under 200 in less than 6 months.  I've been tracking my weight & fitness for more than 10 years now, so I have plenty of "before pics", measurements, and notes through the years.

I know some of you reading this are working to making progress of your own, so I'll share some tips of things that worked for me, including the science behind why it works (with sources) whenever possible.  I'll share reviews of things/products I've tried over the years.  What I eat, and why I do so (it's not a crazy diet, and there are no pills, etc).  If you have questions or feedback about something, let me know.  

Hit the share button if there's something that helped you, or you think may help someone else.

Thanks for checking this out!  

BANG!
-CJ