An Amazing Kid!

Meet Marshall This young man is a friend of the family. He realized that he was over weight. With out promting from his parents he decided to do something about it. Inspired by the movie "Supersize Me", he started his own program called "Portion Size Me", his very own weight loss plan. With help from his parents this young man has been loosing weight, improving his life, and helping others do the same! Check out this young man. It is inspiring!

Youtube Page of his Video Diary

Recently on CNN eatocracy.com

This is CRAZY!

The Start of a Bad Week
In 4 days it will be the 1 year anniversary of my car accident. Monday, I started to feel sick. Scratch throat, head ache, body aches, and a fever. I felt terrible! Monday night a friend (and first counselor) and his wife came by. He gave me a blessing. Tuesday came along, and now three daughters and my wife are sick. My wife takes the girls to the doctor and I go to my own. The girls test positive for strep. I take the same test, but I don't test positive for strep, the doctor decides that if it looks like strep and acts like strep then it is strep. Everyone gets some antibiotics and we take the rest of the day off.

My Sister-In-Law
My sister-in-law came up to visit with here son and twins. Well, the kids got strep too. So it is now 2 adults and 5 kids with strep. My oldest daughter and my sister-in-law become the care givers. I felt bad that we gave her kids strep.

Wednesday
Everyone seems to be getting better, except me. I feel worse. I stayed in bed most of the day. I even stayed home from church. Sorry I missed the Court of Honor Jesse! That night we all go to my mother-in-laws for dinner. I still feel really bad. I take some Motrin and try and relax. We had Tacos for dinner. I start feeling what seemed to be indigestion and take some Tums. We all play some games, and since the kids are now out of school, we stay up late. We finally go home around 12:30am. We put the kids to bed and my wife and I go right to sleep.

Then It Happened
About 1:00am I wake up and the feeling is back, this time it feels more like pressure than indigestion. I take my medication and go back to bed. Well, around 3:00am I wake up again and it is worse! Now it is more like a "Oh my gosh! I cracked my sternum" kind of pain! I lay there for about and hour and then I get my wife up and go to the ER.

I Had A Heart Attack
At the ER my EKG looked fine, but I responded to Nitroglycerin and my blood test say that I had a mild heart attack. Once I am stabilized, I get a room. My wife is freaking out. Not on the outside. She is a pillar of being calm and cool under pressure, but she is just tore up. She makes me promise to giver her at least a 45 year notice before I die. I make her that promise.

The Procedure And Tests
The next day I am transfer ed to another hospital that has a special Cardiology Lab and the to a Catheterization to see what they can find. Also, If they find anything, they can take care of it. They find nothing. They do a chest x-ray and find out I am recovering from pneumonia. What!? Pneumonia? They to a chest CT scan and it looks just fine. They do an ultrasound of my heart and It is just fine. They do an electrocardiogram and it is just fine. They did and other test (I can't remember what it is, I call it the bubble test, because they run small bubbles through the hear to test to see if there are any wholes in the walls of the heart or between chambers.) That test is just fine too.

The Risk Factors
I don't drink or smoke. My cholesterol was 200. It should be bellow that, but is not a big problem. I am a little over weight still, but I am loosing weight. I do exercise a little, but Ia m gradually increasing what I am able to do. I am only 42. There is nothing that a doctor would see and say, "Hey you need to change now or you will have a heart attack in the next few days." but that is what actually happened.

Home
I am now at home on bed rest. I feel tired and take twice as many pills. Now I carry Nitro pills, just in case of another heart attack. I will be setting an appointment with my Cardiologist tomorrow and see about getting into a recovery exercise program and now no fat or salt. An entire new diet.

Thank You!
Thank you to all my friends and family for all the support you have given me, my, wife and my family. Everyone stay in touch and post a comment. It looks like I now have more to blog about.

Best Advice Ever - Stop Whining and Do It

Top 10 Lists
It seems that every magazine has a top 10 list of what ever. I recently received an e-newsletter with a top 10 list of things to improve my running. Number 8 was the most intriguing. It was Stop Whining and Do it.

Why We Whine
First we have problem and sometimes these problems, though are actually small, at the time seem insurmountable and we need support. So we whine. Sometimes we whine out of frustration. Sometimes we loose our ability to see that everyone has problems and we whine about the grass being greener on the other side. It may be that we can't see the other persons perspective and can only see our own, so when things don't go our way, we whine. This list could go on and on.

Whining About Our Weight and Health
I hear a lot of people whine about their weight, their health, and their inability to do certain things because of their health. These people whine for many of the reasons I have listed above and it is always accompanied with a reason or frustration. "I just don't have time to exercise." "There is no way anyone could live off that little amount of food." "So and so looses weight so easily, why can't I?" All of these complaints focus on an external condition, and not on the whiner.

Be Proactive
Being proactive means to first recognize that we have more control over our situation than we dare admit, even to ourselves. Second, it means to recognize that our response to uncontrollable circumstances is just as important as the circumstance itself.

Where Is The Time
All of us have busy schedules. Work, kids, cleaning house, school, church, and the list can go on and on. The things we do take time for are the things we have decided are important. you may say "No, I go to work because I have to." That is not true, and to say that is to be reactive not proactive. What you should say is "I have a choice of weather or not I go to work. I have decided the rewards for going to work are worth more than the consequences of NOT going to work." It is the same with everything we do in life.

Make Time to Get Fit
When I look at my schedule, and then compare it with what I actually did, there is a lot of down time where I watch TV of spend too long on the computer. I have chosen to cut some of that time out and I walk and run. you don't have to do it all at once either. Do at least 30 minutes of a fitness activity a day and you will see the change.

Wanting To Look Good Is Not Enough
The hardest things to do are those we have very little motivation to do. For example, it would be very hard to go to work, if they quit paying you. Simply loosing weight so that you will look good is very hard for this reason. Unless your are a supermodel or a professional athlete, no one will pay you to loose weight or stop paying you if you don't. It has to be more than that.

Body Image Problems
People who loose weight to look better often don't keep the weight off. On reason is that don't end up with that perfect body when the weight is gone. People who are healthy and loose weight and keep it off, do not have body image problems. As soon as you are happy with yourself, regardless of what you look like (even if you are really over weight) the easier it will be to accomplish anything.

I Can Do It Now
Be proactive and start a fitness and nutrition program today. You will feel better and be healthier than you ever imagined.

Some New Ideas And Race Updates

A New Way To Refer To Walking And Jogging
Okay, I can not take credit for this. A friend of mine (Rinning Mooses) came up with a name for Walking and Jogging. It's Called "Wogging"! I love it. In my posts, I will use it. For those of you whop are "jogging" adverse and insist on using running and not jogging, well use woggin in reference to the comnination anyway.

The 5th Annual President's Day Freedom Run,
This has turned out o be a wonderful event. As a BSA Scout Master, I started this race as a fundraiser for the scout troop and to pay for Summer Camp. Since then the Cub Scout Pack has become involved, there is a new Scout Master, andthis event has really grown. We have been on TV every year and I love it. Please register for the race and join us! It is always the first Saturday before President's Day, that makes it February 14th. Registration starts at 8:00 am and the race starts at 10:00 am. Check it out at President's Day Freedom Run

Get Your Rear In Gear
I talked to theTeam leader ad so foar only 3 people have signed up for the race. Pleas sign up and support the team. This 5k is going to be March 7th. Check it out at get your rear in gear

Do You Have A Question?
If you have a question, feel free to email me at getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com and I will answer. If your question is a good one, I will post it to the blogg. Tell Me Your Story!
Many people have told me ho they have changed their activities, their diet, started a running program, started a weight loss program, lost weight, or have just plain were inspired. Please share your stories and email them to getmyfatbuttinshape@gmail.com

Thanks! Keep Walking, wogging, and running. Most importantly don't forget to do your 10,000 steps each day!

Next Post - The Winner of the Contest!

The Aneurysm

Questions From My Friends
Okay, people have been asking about my aneurysm. Technically, in my case, it is called a dissection. The aorta has several layers of walls to protect it from damage and to contain the blood when blood pressure levels change. There are two holes in the inner wall of my aorta. Blood is running into one hole and has formed a channel inside the wall of the aorta, then running out the other.

Danger!
My dissection measures about 3.75 cm. The danger zone is anything over 5 cm. After it reaches 5 cm, the aorta has a high probability of blowing within 6 months.

Now Or Later?
When first discovered during my accident, the doctors decided to wait and watch. Now after a few months they want to operate. They tell me I could wait, keep monitoring it as I have been, but the doctors want to take care of it now. What was the change? I am not completely sure. It has been determined that the blood is flowing into the bottom of the wall and flowing in backwards up the aorta then out the second whole. At the time the doctors told me they wanted to operate, we decided to ask around, think about the situation, and then make a decision. I have not made one yet.

To Run or Not To Run, That Is The Question
Well, I am on heart medication to keep my blood pressure down. Not that it was high, the doctors just want it low. The problem is the medication makes me super tired and I sleep all the time. So, even though I am walking, I don't get enough exercises so I am gaining mega weight. With additional weight, my blood pressure is getting higher. It all seems quite counter productive. I also want to get back to running, but my right ankle is just not there yet. I still need more mobility before I will be able to run on it. The doctor says running will be no problem. Though your heart rate increases a lot during exercise, your blood pressure has a very small increase as long as you are not over exerting yourself. So first chance I get, I will run!

Question Of The Day
Do I operate now or Later? Stay tuned and find out what I decide!

How Far I Walk

I need to get my fat butt in shape, but I do not feel like I am making Progress. The Appointment I had my Vascular (having to do with my Aneurysm) appointment this past Tuesday. Well, in spite of Medication my blood pressure is not where they want it 131/60. The top number needs to be bellow 130. In spite of increased walking, I now way 200.0 lbs. New Information My aneurysm hasn't changed in size or length, but I had a CT scan with a special dye called contrast. What they saw were two holes in the wall of the Aorta wall. One at the bottom of the aneurysm and one at the top. As they watched the dye they saw it enter the bottom hole and move up to the top hole and out. That is right, the blood was flowing the wrong way through the wall of my Aorta. Now they want to do surgery to fix it. We decided to talk about it (We as in my wife and I, and talk to other medical professionals who are our friends.) My biggest concern is that surgery was originally ruled out because in 25 years the hardware would go bad and need to be replaced. That would make me 66. Not a good age for surgery. Doctors said it would be better to wait a few years because medicine was advancing and new technology may be available. Well, now they want me to have surgery, which mean I am looking at surgery again at about 66. One thing is for sure though, it is not getting better and it is not changing fast. But it ca only get worse. Once it gets a centimeter bigger, the odds are 90% chance of this thing blowing with in six months of that change. My Weight Well, the medication I am on to keep my blood pressure down make me tired. So tired that as soon as I finish walking I need to take a nap. The problem is I am gaining weight fast, because I really am quite inactive. I might be up to 3 miles a week, but that isn't crap. And then I get tired and can't do anymore. So I am gaining weight and it is causing my blood presure to go up! We are trying to find a new medication. I will keep you posted.

My Vital Data, Measurements, and Weight

All right here they are. All the vital health data that I can think of. If I need another, please let me know and I will se what I can do.

1. Weight = 199.2 lbs
2. BFP = 23%
3. BP = 120/60
4. RHR = 70 bps
5. SHR = 81 bps

Measurements

1. Neck = 17.5 in
2. Chest (relaxed) = 43 in
3. Chest Expanded = 46.5 in
4. Expansion = 3.5 in
5. Waist = 44 in
6. Bicept = 13 in
7. Forearm = 11 in
8. Hips = 40 in
9. Thigh = 22 in
10. Calves = 14

Damaged Joints vs. Okay Joints Right Wrist = 7.5 in and Left Wrist = 7 (.5 inches in swelling) Right Ankle = 10 and Left Ankle = 9 (1 inch in swelling) I so need to get my fat butt in shape.