A Question of Sanity...

I assure you, that as I write this blog, I am of sound mind and body. The body part needs some work, but that is why I am here. To push myself to achieve something that I would have never thought to attempt in my lifetime. It would be wrong to say that competing in an Ironman Triathlon in 2011 is my intent. My plan is to be physically, fiscally and mentally fit in 2011 (and for the rest of my life). These are all disciplines that are sorely lacking in my life.
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Physically I am a mess. Well I used to be a lot worse. I know some of you are saying "Your 307 pounds man! What do you mean you used to be?!" but believe me, it was much worse. In September of 2009, I tipped the scales at a whopping 352 pounds. I was diagnosed with Sleep Apnea, High Blood Pressure, Edema, High Cholesterol and of course, what would the party be like without, our fabulous friend Diabetes. Although I was told I was borderline Diabetic, I might as well have been. I was a big fat mess.

It seems that after twenty years of steady abuse to my body using food, drugs and alcohol, as well as leading the most sedentary lifestyle possible, I had hit my limit. I assure you my brain wanted to continue down that road, but my body couldn't take it anymore. I had to start listening to my biology for once. Sure...I had lost weight before. Twice to be exact! Both times the weight loss was significant. But as anybody that has done this before can tell you, it is easier to lose it than to keep it off. I am no exception.

There were lots of things that contributed to my weight gain in the first place. There were lots of things that attributed my weight regain too. The difference between now and then, is the fact that I have begun the process this time around from the inside out. In the past I would get caught up in the desideratum of vanity. I just wanted to look good. Sadly, health really had nothing to do with it. By digging through my internal closets and unearthing the skeletons, I knew things were gonna get ugly. This time around I would need a lot more support.

Based on a recommendation from a friend, KIMATTC, I joined an online weight loss community called SparkPeople.com, and began to do something I had never done before. Blog. Sure the website has all the bells and whistles you need to lose the weight, like a food and fitness tracker, as well as several eating plans and loads of informational articles. But the thing that really made it for me was the blogging.

For the first time in my adult life, I actually sat and pondered the reasons why I have never been able to get a handle on my weight. Got it out in the ether as it were. I explored my past, pondered the present and accessed the future i would have if I didn't get it right this time around. What followed was a series of blogs that have helped me to get it all out, and in the process maybe help a few other.

Of course I gained a lot of insight from those that have become my friends on the site. They are actually the reason this particular blog has come to be. It was through their comments and encouragement, that I began to understand what I needed for me to get to where I needed to go with my health.

I know what your thinking. "So why an Ironman Triathlon? Why not a marathon or big long bike race? Maybe swim a bunch of laps in a pool? Why aspire to complete such a blistering feat? You are nowhere near doing something like that. Hell, a marathon is gonna kick your ass for sure! You must be mental!" Trust me, if you aren't saying it, I already have. In all honesty, I am only familiar with the bragging rights that come with completing an Ironman. What I know about it could fit on the back of a postage stamp. I am familiar with it's history, and the required events you need to complete in order to be worthy of the aforementioned bragging. But I know nothing about training for or competing in such a grueling test of human endurance. This will be from the ground up.

You gotta know that I am scared to death of what lies ahead of me. I am painfully aware that I might not complete such loftiness. But for me it's more about the things I am going to discover about myself along the way. That was based on some advice I got from another SparkPeople Friend (SPF) of mine ADAMM9. He said that sometimes it's more about the journey than the destination. Enjoying the stops along the way is an important part of the trip.

So this will be a sightseeing vacation on steroids then I suppose. Well maybe not steroids. I am pretty sure they frown on that kind of thing in most competitions. No matter what the trip, I Just know that for me, I gotta go big and try to surpass my true destination (losing 100 pounds and getting in shape). Push it beyond, to reach my intended end. Another one of my regular readers, KRISLEWIS48 helped me to see that, with a blog she had written on the subject of goal setting.

In it she talked about a phenomenon in political science called the "J Curve." If you look at a J-curve graph, the “J” is actually upside down and curves to the right. From the lower left-hand starting point, heads upward toward its goal in the upper right-hand corner of the chart. The graph line begins to peter out somewhere in the upper one third of the chart and, as gravity takes its toll and the line loses momentum, it curves off and ends up short of the actual goal. This model means that our progress toward our goals will naturally lose some of its momentum and urgency as time goes by and we will almost always fall short of reaching 100% accomplishment. I am paraphrasing but you get the point. If you want to read the whole blog, here is a link.

This line of thinking may not gel with the opinions of others, but I really don't care. The philosophy works with my personality type. It seems to make a lot of sense for me. So based on that, I set this very "Go Big or Go Home" type of aspiration. I gotta shoot for Mars to make it to the moon.

So here I am. This will be a journal of sorts about my trials and tribulations on this road to insanity. My triumphs and my defeats. I will talk about every aspect of this very long road to becoming a Triathlete. It will speak a lot to what I am learning in this process and will hopefully produce some practical advice. I also hope that it will serve as straight up inspiration for someone that may still be working on the ass-groove in their couch.

I will post as often as possible about all this Triathlon nonsense and I will also continue with my regular blog on SparkPeople (SP). While my blogs on SP are more observational, these will be more informational. Both will hopefully be worth the time you take to read them. Please feel free to comment on anything I write. All views are welcome and advice is surely appreciated. If I say something that you feel is incorrect and need to correct me, please email me and help me to understand the error. I will make sure to fix it immediately.

At this point I need to make Tipper proud and slap a big 'ol Parental Advisory warning on this thing as well. The way my mind thinks sometimes is pretty gritty and a little rough with the language. I am not able to write that way on SP and so this offers a bit more freedom. I promise it won't get "Andrew Dice Clay" on ya, but it may get a little colorful from time to time.

Thanks for reading my drivel. I look forward to putting my life on display in the name of health.