CastawayJP
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Aug 6, 2007
- Messages
- 700
Hello everyone,
I am starting this journal because I have heard what a wonderful supportive group this board has. I have been reading some of your journals but until now have not taken the next step to go for it on my own. I'll start with a little background.
I have had a very active lifestyle for as long as I can remember. Growing up I played many sports, but my passion was and still is tennis. My mother passed this love on to me and I have played my entire life. I competed regionally in the Mid-Atlantic with moderate success, but I knew that I would never be able to play on the professional tour, so I chose the next best thing for my career, teaching the sport I love. I was very fortunate that I found a small school in North Carolina that had a Professional Tennis Management program and I was on my way to Methodist College (now University). I played on the varsity team all four years and had my fun. As part of the degree requirements I did summer internships, the first two at a tennis academy, the last one at a country club in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia. I thought that being at home would be nice, but didn't see what it would do to my weight.
My father would make me lunches that would be at his house waiting for me. My Dad is a great cook, but low fat and healthy are not words you will find in his cookbooks. His lunches combined with the fact that I was not on court nearly as much at the club ballooned my weight up 15-20 pounds (to 185)over that summer. I didn't really recognize it, but when I returned to school for my senior season coaches from other teams started asking my coach if I had put on weight. I'm not a tall man (5' 9" on a tall day), but I do have a large frame (I was mistaken as the new running back during orientation at school). I laughed off the comments and said "who cares I just whipped that guys butt."
After graduation my activity level dropped. Not having practice everyday really made a difference. Being a tennis pro I am on court a lot, but I'm not running around hitting balls all day. I do a lot of walking, but mostly a lot of standing by the basket feeding balls. I have a couple of students I can hit with, but thet is only 2-3 hours a week. To make matters worse, my eating habits never changed. A lot of fast food, red meat, fried foods, and Coke, I Love Coke! I also have a big problem with portion control, and I love foods that are bad for me. Combine these things with being married with two kids (one on the way), workng a very full time job, and a very stressful 2007... And now I am up to 218 pounds.
My weight causes several problems for me...
1) First and foremost my self esteem is very low. I hate the way I look and what my body has become.
2) I have a bad back from all those years of tennis. When I get above the 210 pound mark, my back really starts to bother me. I also get knee problems, and these two things affect my job.
3) I work in a very phisically active industry, and as stereotypical as it sounds, appearance is a very important aspect of success in my field. I am around very fit people and how can they take me seriously if I look like a tub of lard. Combine that with the fact that I work with 4 other tall slender handsome guys (yeah I can admit they are handsome), and I come across looking like Chris Farley or as one of my student's mom lovingly calls me, Barney Rubble. Luckily I am able to get by with a lot of self-depricating humor!
In the past I have tried to go hardcore to cut calories. Before our last Disney Cruise in November, I went almost 60 days w/o Coke, and seriously cut down on the bad foods. Once I was on that ship though.. IT WAS ON! And it carried through the holidays until now. Knowing myself, that will power would be a serious problem, I knew that I would need some help, so I looked at some diet aids.
I decided on Alli, that is a fat blocker that has been in the press a lot recently. It is more than just a pill, it is a program, and it really gives you a good path to follow. It works with your diet, not as your diet. The program has me focusing on calories and total grams of fat. And let me tell you, if you go over your fat quota the "treatment effects" don't sound too great!
So here is what Alli has me on...
1800 calories and 60 g of fat a day. Plus exercise of course.
Three days in and I am feeling really good about the program. I can still have my Coke if I am willing to sacrifice the calories in other places, and it is really easy to understand and follow.
Here are my goals...
1) Get back down to 185.
-I would like to hit this weight about the time of the Podcast Cruise in May 09.
-I have gotten down to 200 a couple of years ago, so I would like to be around there by late March when it looks like we are going to WDW.
2) Get more exercise.
3) Start a more health eating habit.
I hope that this isn't too long of a read for you all. It just came pouring out! Thanks for your help and support!
I am starting this journal because I have heard what a wonderful supportive group this board has. I have been reading some of your journals but until now have not taken the next step to go for it on my own. I'll start with a little background.
I have had a very active lifestyle for as long as I can remember. Growing up I played many sports, but my passion was and still is tennis. My mother passed this love on to me and I have played my entire life. I competed regionally in the Mid-Atlantic with moderate success, but I knew that I would never be able to play on the professional tour, so I chose the next best thing for my career, teaching the sport I love. I was very fortunate that I found a small school in North Carolina that had a Professional Tennis Management program and I was on my way to Methodist College (now University). I played on the varsity team all four years and had my fun. As part of the degree requirements I did summer internships, the first two at a tennis academy, the last one at a country club in my hometown of Richmond, Virginia. I thought that being at home would be nice, but didn't see what it would do to my weight.
My father would make me lunches that would be at his house waiting for me. My Dad is a great cook, but low fat and healthy are not words you will find in his cookbooks. His lunches combined with the fact that I was not on court nearly as much at the club ballooned my weight up 15-20 pounds (to 185)over that summer. I didn't really recognize it, but when I returned to school for my senior season coaches from other teams started asking my coach if I had put on weight. I'm not a tall man (5' 9" on a tall day), but I do have a large frame (I was mistaken as the new running back during orientation at school). I laughed off the comments and said "who cares I just whipped that guys butt."
After graduation my activity level dropped. Not having practice everyday really made a difference. Being a tennis pro I am on court a lot, but I'm not running around hitting balls all day. I do a lot of walking, but mostly a lot of standing by the basket feeding balls. I have a couple of students I can hit with, but thet is only 2-3 hours a week. To make matters worse, my eating habits never changed. A lot of fast food, red meat, fried foods, and Coke, I Love Coke! I also have a big problem with portion control, and I love foods that are bad for me. Combine these things with being married with two kids (one on the way), workng a very full time job, and a very stressful 2007... And now I am up to 218 pounds.
My weight causes several problems for me...
1) First and foremost my self esteem is very low. I hate the way I look and what my body has become.
2) I have a bad back from all those years of tennis. When I get above the 210 pound mark, my back really starts to bother me. I also get knee problems, and these two things affect my job.
3) I work in a very phisically active industry, and as stereotypical as it sounds, appearance is a very important aspect of success in my field. I am around very fit people and how can they take me seriously if I look like a tub of lard. Combine that with the fact that I work with 4 other tall slender handsome guys (yeah I can admit they are handsome), and I come across looking like Chris Farley or as one of my student's mom lovingly calls me, Barney Rubble. Luckily I am able to get by with a lot of self-depricating humor!
In the past I have tried to go hardcore to cut calories. Before our last Disney Cruise in November, I went almost 60 days w/o Coke, and seriously cut down on the bad foods. Once I was on that ship though.. IT WAS ON! And it carried through the holidays until now. Knowing myself, that will power would be a serious problem, I knew that I would need some help, so I looked at some diet aids.
I decided on Alli, that is a fat blocker that has been in the press a lot recently. It is more than just a pill, it is a program, and it really gives you a good path to follow. It works with your diet, not as your diet. The program has me focusing on calories and total grams of fat. And let me tell you, if you go over your fat quota the "treatment effects" don't sound too great!
So here is what Alli has me on...
1800 calories and 60 g of fat a day. Plus exercise of course.
Three days in and I am feeling really good about the program. I can still have my Coke if I am willing to sacrifice the calories in other places, and it is really easy to understand and follow.
Here are my goals...
1) Get back down to 185.
-I would like to hit this weight about the time of the Podcast Cruise in May 09.
-I have gotten down to 200 a couple of years ago, so I would like to be around there by late March when it looks like we are going to WDW.
2) Get more exercise.
3) Start a more health eating habit.
I hope that this isn't too long of a read for you all. It just came pouring out! Thanks for your help and support!
I'm looking forward to hearing how Alli works for you.
Keep up the good work!
