Fitness/Nutrition Adventure

I am thinking of doing a little experiment. Well, hopefully it won't be an experiment. I am hoping it will be a life changing decision followed by a few life changes. If you know me or read this blog much you probably know that I, for the most part, enjoy exercise. I try to exercise several times per week. I enjoy running, biking, swimming, as well as working out in the gym. While much of this takes discipline, I don't really claim to have much in that category.

What I don't really enjoy is disciplined nutrition. I will admit, I am horrible on this end of fitness. In fact, you can just call me the cookie monster. I like them in all types--chocolate chip, white chocolate macadamia, sugar, frosted...you get the point. While I am fairly fit, I know that if I can get my eating and nutrition under control I can be much more so.

The main reason I want this is for Allison and Cooper. Now I'm not going to sit here and tell you that I won't enjoy looking and feeling better, because I will. But there are some startling facts about the men in my relatively immediate family. The most glaring is they don't live very long. And by not very long, I mean, most of them haven't reached age 65. 

When I am 65 Allison and I will have been married for 43 years. That's hard to believe even as I type it. If the first 10 1/2 are any indication, however, I want much more than 43. I mean, seriously. I love being married to her. And I can't imagine cutting our marriage short simply because I wasn't disciplined in what I ate and didn't control things that I had complete control over.

When I am 65 Cooper will be 37. At the current trend of when people have kids he will probably have a child that is 7ish. Now that's not a very long time to spend with a grandchild. And from what I understand, having grandchildren around is awesome! I mean what's not to love about taking a kid fun places, giving them treats, and the sending them home to their parents!

So here is my plan. I am changing the way I eat. I will continue to exercise the way I have been for a few years, but the nutrition side is getting a make over. I am not completely sure what this makeover will look like, but I know it will look a lot less sugary. Below are two figures (no pun intended) that I am going to monitor. I know these aren't the only things that determine healthiness, but these are the most visible and probably the easiest to measure at any given moment. As time progresses I will post about how this is going as well as any progress (one way or the other) that I make.


weight - 197 lbs (my scales at home)
body fat - 21.2% (as of 10/20/11; I assume it is a little higher right now, but I don't know for sure)


This, by coincidence, happens to be the first of a new year. It is not a resolution, but one of my goals for 2012 is to maintain a healthier weight. I am hoping that it is a start to a healthier me.


Are there fitness/nutritional changes you need to make? Did you make any in 2011 that made a difference in your life?