Then and Now

As I get set to start my physical transformation, I thought it might be interesting to show some pics of me back when I was in shape, and some pics of me in my current state.

My "now" pics are actually roughly one to two years old. You see, I've stopped allowing pictures of me to be taken because I'm too ashamed of how I look. I don't mean to be too melodramatic, but I just can't stand to be photographed. It makes me sick to my stomach.

I've had a few taken since the arrival of my daughters, but they are few and far between. Look at these "current" pics of me, and add about 30 pounds. That's the real me.

Let's hope that changes, soon.

The first three pics in this series are of me from roughly September of 2001 through about July of 2002.

In the top one, there isn't a thing hanging over the waist band. I'm so slim, I almost vanish when I turn to the side. Today, you could hide a small family of illegal immigrants behind me. It's not pretty.

Pic #2 is from the shores of Lake Michigan, about three months after I was married - Summer of '02. It was around the middle of 2002 that I stopped caring. My mom was getting worse, I lost a great job, and I started to eat my way into a comfort level I could live with.

Pic #3 is me proudly displaying my Red Wings love as the playoffs started in 2001. Flat stomach, broad chest and shoulders - only one chin. Those were the days.

The bottom two pics, as I already touched on, are actually two years old. In the pic at the Mackinac Bridge, I'm actually using my daughter as a shield. Like her 20-pound frame would hide my extra 75 pounds.

The other "now" pic is actually a good year older. The extra chins are marching in, the cheeks are fatting up and puffing out, and I was probably getting winded from sitting for so long.

That pic was probably about the time it started getting REALLY bad. I lost yet another job, had no friends to be active with, and, in truth, I didn't care. Video games and digital cable were my new workout routine, and it showed.

As I look at these "now" pics, it kind of sickens me that I'd be ecstatcic if I woke up tomorrow and looked in my current life like I did then. And even then, I was morbidly obese.

Tomorrow starts my re-shaping. I'll either be up at 6 to workout before Becky leaves for work, or I'll be heading over once she gets home. I'll be doing one hour, five days each week. Cardio for 30 minutes, weights for 30 minutes. My diet won't be doing a 180, but I will be cutting back in some very key areas. Fruits and veggies will get more playing time in my eating habits, and my junk intake will be sliced to a fraction of what it is right now.

Again, just a reminder, I WILL NOT be hiring a trainer. I WILL NOT be going on any special diets. Everything I'll do to get back into shape will be things that anybody could do. My workouts will come from old issues of Men's Health. My diet will consist of this crazy method: eating less crap.

Please, pimp this on your blog (if you have one), tell a friend, post the link on a weight-loss forum. The more people reading this, the more people I'm accountable to.

Thanks, and wish me luck.