Mike's Fitness Goal - Crunch Time!

Like many people, I set a goal back in January.

Unlike many people, I'm still actively striving toward that goal in November!

Like many people, I've had several slips and lapses in goal-tending.

Unlike many people, I've gotten back on track several times!

Like many people, I haven't stayed on track as much as I'd like.

Unlike many people, I am revising my goal slightly, so as to not get discouraged and give up on it altogether.

Many of you may remember, my goal was to hit my 40th birthday in better physical shape than I've been since my 20th birthday. Actually, the last time I know I was truly physically fit was when I was 17-18. So I made my new year's resolution to do something about it, because at the end of 2008 I'll be hitting that big Four-to-the-Oh.

Now that birthday is just over a month away, and I've made tremendous progress!!

Unfortunately, most of that progress took place between January and June, where it peaked and kinda slipped backward for the past five months.

So I have revised my goal. At my peak in June, my weight had dropped to 195 so I know I can do it. I'm back up in the 202-204 range (depending on daily food intake) right now. By December 15, my goal is 190. If I start 2009 under 200 pounds, that will be a huge victory and the rest of my ultimate goal will be reachable, probably in the first half of the year, since that seems to be when I do my best!

All year, I've gotten up ridiculously early on Tuesdays and Thursdays to play racketball with some friends. Last week I started getting up at the same time Mon, Wed and Fri and either playing r'ball with Kaylee, or doing a cardio & weights workout. This week continues that discipline.

And starting this week, I'm doing a Wii Fit fitness test each morning when I get home from the Y. This is a great tool to help stay on track! If you haven't seen or tried it, here's what it entails:

First a welcome... Along with a not-so-subtle reminder that I have been a complete Wii Fit slacker for the last three months!! But it was Summer, and I knew I wouldn't stay current with the Wii Fit program when I had all kinds of outdoors things to do.


Then it weighs you and shows your BMI and/or weight. As you can see, my BMI is a quarter-point higher than it was 67 days ago. Not a surprise to me, I knew I'd gained a bit...



Finally, a timeline. Kinda pointless when the most recent point is three months ago, so this will become more meaningful as November progresses.

This awareness, coupled with the discipline of getting to the Y every morning, coupled with my old favorite, PORTION CONTROL at dinnertime, will undoubtedly help me reach my goal.

And of course, the extra accountability of publicly displaying my progress can only help too...