BecomingANew.Me

What iconic movie is that from? It's from one of my favorite movies A Knight's Tale , and as I was pondering its meaning I thought it pretty well sums up most past of my weight loss attempts. Even recently if I were to take a critical look at my recent efforts it would still be quite fitting.  I'm done making excuses, at this point I could dwell on the things that have not wound up quite as I'd liked them to have; or focus on what I can do to change things for the better, just like you can. I was going through my list of bloggers I follow and as expected there were probably over half of them that were no longer active or updated, just as my site had not been updated for so long. The pessimist in me  can only assume the people probably got tired/failed and moved on. However I'm going to choose to highlight those who are either continuing the battle to regain their health or to maintain their successful weight loss. Bloggers like Stephen Vinson whose blog WhoAteMyBl...

Well as promised I went and weighed in last Friday, and am proud to say that despite me avoiding the scales for the past six weeks managed to lose 6 pounds, which is quite remarkable since food logging ( or any conscience healthy food choices for that matter) was the the furthest from my mind! The biggest difference i've noticed since embarking on this journey again, is that I will go basically all day without eating, then go on a drive thru binge at (enter fast food restaurant name here) That is going to be one of the first things I change, because i've got to stop putting garbage in and expecting good results. Which brings me to a victory of sorts, that is overcoming my fear of what others think of me. This past year has been rough going through the divorce but this was the first time for me to have the kids for an extended period, 11 days straight. I know my ex was concerned but I wanted to do my best to enjoy my time with them.  One of the things they really wanted to do w...

Okay well it's been a while since i've been around, and I could make a thousand excuses, but since we've heard them all i'll skip that for now.   I'm going to weigh in today, for the first time in a month, i've been a member at Weight Watchers but haven't had any desire to see how i'm doing. I know i've been in a bit of a funk lately and probably just need to go get some happy pills from the dr. but I haven't been able to muster the motivation. I've been looking for resources on improving my feelings of self worth, and how to overcome the negative self talk, so any resources you might have seen would be appreciated!   It is so frustrating to know what I need to/should be doing but be overcome with apathy, and lack of desire, that has to change for my sake and my kids.  My ex gave up on me and after almost two years since the separation i've finally accepted it is what it was and moved on. I know I have a ton to offer to my companion,...

I'm really glad I came across this challenge  (link here) , and it couldn't have come at a better time for me.  I've never been a big believer in New Year's resolutions, not to say I don't believe in goals; quite the opposite I'm a huge believer in goals, just not the short fading "resolutions"so many people make at the beginning of the year. One of the cool reminders I found while surfing around the Fitblogger site were setting SMART goals, that is goals that are S pecific, M easurable, A ction Oriented, R ealistic, and lastly  T imely. I had heard this acronym in a kinesiology class I had taken, but it was a great reminder. One of the goals of the challenge is to set goals and blog at least once a week preferably on Monday about how we did. So here are my goals: There are to rewards I'm working towards, the first is the Fitbloggin Conference May 17-20th in Baltimore  (link to conference info)  It is as the title suggests a conference for health...

It's not a secret one of the most documented characteristics of a successful weight loss is having a great support network.  I am fortunate to have a family that supports me in this, but often find myself being able to tell my deepest thoughts to cyberspace easier than my own family, guess its kinda like therapy.  One of my favorite pastimes is reading success stories of individuals that have conquered their food demons and lost weight; it is also somewhat of a double edge sword. I was reminded that recently when I read a blog post by someone who had lost a significant amount of weight, and almost appreared pompous and kinda fired me up a little.  He had read an article on MSNBC (located here) about how a woman had lost 170 pounds and nothing had really changed about her life other than the size of her a$#, and had been sold a bill of goods about how her life would change when she lost the weight. The bloggers contention was that she was accurate and quote: "I have the same ...

Just wanted to drop a quick post updating what's happened since my last post.  I met with my doctor as well as a dietitian, and at first was pretty frustrated at their lack or a sense of urgency for me and my need to lose weight.  I'm not sure how much of it is related to political correctness, but I know for me if I'd gotten a stern warning in the past it might have saved me from where I wound up at.  Note to medical professionals I'm morbidly obese and if I don't do something drastically to my current weight I will leave the unpleasant task of burying me to my father (since my recent separation/divorce). My father has been responsible for burying both his parents and two spouses (my biological mom, and his second wife my subsequent 2nd mom of almost 25 years), it's very selfish and not right for me to pass along that burden from something that I can change and have ultimate control over. However here's what i've done : I went to the hospital and weigh...

and so are you! Quite a harsh intro but everyday I am subjecting my body to the excess weight I am hearkening a premature exit, and my days of going quietly are OVER!   This past year was hard, but too bad life's not fair, and excuses will no longer be tolerated! Sorry if I'm abusing the exclamation marks but I went to the doctor today and am extremely frustrated; I am morbidly obese, and there is no sense of urgency from my primary care physician.  Everyday I am subjecting my heart to excess stress due to my weight and in today's day of political correctness sometimes the truth hurts but the alternative would hurts those I love much more. I will no longer go quietly! I am taking on the mantra of the "Militant Fat Man!" because regardless of what society thinks I am worth as much as the next person regardless of my size.  I am no longer going to tolerate the under the breath jabs from youth or others, and if they are going to laugh then that's fine I'm n...

I guess that is the million dollar question, if there were a simple answer everyone would be doing it. 2010 was definitely a very rough year for me on multiple fronts. I got divorced, moved in with my father, lost my business, was hospitalized multiple times, went on disability, suffered a very bad case of depression and came very close to losing the desire to live. I also faced the thought of finding a new church home since I had become ostracized at my church home of 15 years due to the divorce, I also half-joked that my wife got all our friends in the divorce since 95% of our friends were from church. Although I never had any thoughts of suicide, it was like a perfect storm of negative life changes. I reached my highest weight EVER of 667 pounds. I went on a weight loss program with my father and was able to lose approximately 70 pounds to get me to my current weight. During the hospital admission process at the particular hospital I was at they ask a list of questions that might ...

Well as I sit down to write this I look back at the past posts and wonder what happened or what did I do wrong? So much has changed, yet so much remains the same.  I was at my all time highest weight and without much effort have lost 62 pounds.  While that is an accomplishment with so much to lose, it's hardly a drop in the bucket.  When I started this blog it was January 2006,  Now four years later I weigh more than I do now than then, but have recently discovered just how much of this is mental and think that's huge. So we'll see, I weighed in last night and am ready to start the journey, There is no quick fixes I know this and want to spread that message.  It's not rocket science we all know that, what I want to figure out is what makes those succesful with the battle different than those who throw in the towel.  I hope you get something from this. If you have questions ask I have a network of bariatric experts that i'm goin...

More to come soon!

I know it’s cliche but it’s what I have to tell myself this so I won’t get frustrated and want to give up. This blog is going to chronicle my journey to live life again! I’m not a professional writer by any stretch as you will come to learn if you spend any time reading my blog. As millions of other people have probably struggled with I lost a significant amount of weight only to eventually gain it back. I’ve felt sorry for myself long enough and am now ready to make the necessary changes, I got my drs. ok so here we go!! As the name of this blog states i’m trying to lose fat and become more fit. I thought I needed to get on the show "The Biggest Loser", but after trying out three times there’s no more waiting on them. I actually had one of the staffers tell me at one of the casting calls I was “too fat” of course that wasn’t on record but it makes sense. The weight loss target is 150-200 pounds for men and 100-125 for woman based on past seasons. My last weight was 620 po...

It hasn't been that long since my last post, yet so much has happened. On November 3rd my mother passed away. She had a terminal lung condition that eventually led to her heart failure. During events like the passing of loved ones it can easily lead to depression and loss of momentum with weight loss programs. Barbara (mom) had been a staunch motivator and had helped keep my dad and myself on track, and for so many other reasons I will definately miss her, however instead of stepping back or failing I'm going to use this loss to propel me to do what I should have been doing for quite some time, lose weight!! After visiting her in the hospital just prior to her passing I pinned the following note: It's in times like today we often call on prayer to help with a situation we're facing. This morning as I was in my car I was flooded with emotions and memories of my mom and growing up. I say mom even though she is not my biological mom, my biological mom passed away from ...

So yesterday was a big day for me. I faced one of my biggest obsticles and conquered it! Nov 1,2007 I lost a dear friend and mentor/work out partner, John. John was a great rolemodel in almost all facets of his Christian life, he was a great father, wise counsel, great husband, and listener. What made it even more difficult was the fact he was one of my biggest supporters and workout accountability partner. To top that he died of a massive heart attack after doing our normal swim routine in the shower at the pool we swam at. I wasn't there that day, but had spoken to him previously that week. He was the chaplain for the Dallas Cowboys and Texas Rangers, and had acheived great success in his career. You'd never know that talking with him though, he was like a father figure, and would often recount how he'd counseled various players (always keeping their anonymity) and how they'd made it through whatever was challenging them. Not making excuses but with John's...

As a weight loss yo-yoer, i've said it before, but this time I'm determined to make the changes, expect it to not be an overnight process, and stick to it. It's been a long journey up to this point, but the lessons learned are invaluable and make us who we are. I hope this can be an encouragement to others as well as an accountability tool for myself. In the past I have asked those who have been successful in losing large amounts of weight for advice or their opinion, well after receiving my last note from someone I considered to be a huge motivator, no more. They seemed dismayed that tens possibly hundreds of obese individuals would come to them for advice. My thoughts to them are if you didn't want or seek the attention of desperate people why do you seem to blog your story and trumpet every time a media outlet asks you for your story. If you don't want to carry that banner and help I gladly will, i'm not after fame or fortune, but dang it there are peopl...

I had lunch with a good friend today and looked back on my past experiences and its always amazing things look so differently after the fact. There has been so much thats happened since I launched this site, and i'll never be able to capture the roller coaster it's been. There is one key difference this time around, my wife is finally on board and ready to make the necessary changes which is huge! In our 9 years of marriage this is the first time she has said and shown she is ready to make the changes needed. Its very different having a common front and goal, and a very exciting change. It was good hearing from a outsiders point of view that when we sell ourselves short there are so many small victories that often get overlooked, which is a good point to remember on those days we feel like giving up.

Reasons I want to lose weight. 1. For me. 2. For my wife, so she doesn’t become a widow. 3. For my kids, so they don’t lose a father. 4. So I can go to the mall and buy clothes. 5. So I don’t hear little kids say under their breath to friends or family (he’s fat, gigantic, huge etc. you get the picture) 6. So I can get my private pilots license. 7. So I can walk Maggie down the aisle. (Currently 8) 8. So I can watch Drew’s high school football games. (He is currently 6) 9. So I can walk Katie down the aisle. 10.So I am not dreaded and feared walking down the airplane aisle as they (skinny people) gasp when I say I’m sitting next to them. 11.So I can sit in a resteraunt booth. 12. So I don’t worry about if the chairs in the restaurant has arms. 13. So I can go to a Mavericks game. 14. So I can go to a Cowboys game. 15.So I can go to a Rangers game. 16.So I can go to Reunion arena or the American Airlines center and not fear the width of the chairs. 17.So I can break the cycle and have m...

Sent this out today! Bedford Man Dedicated To Extreme Weight Loss To Help Local Animal Rescue In Need Bedford, Texas - April 26, 2007 - A local Bedford man has committed himself to extreme weight loss in order to help a local animal rescue organization in dire financial need. Stephen West, owner and subject of the website LessFatMorefit.com, has teamed up with the Weimaraner Rescue of North Texas (WRNT) to launch Project WE, which is designed to raise money for the WRNT in order to help the shelter pay off more than $10,000 in unexpected debt. WRNT is a not-for-profit rescue organization dedicated to helping save unwanted and mistreated Weimaraners. West is one of millions of Americans who has been categorized as morbidly obese. Weighing more than 568 pounds at his heaviest, West received a wake-up call last late last year when his obesity contributed to a blood infection that required a prolonged hospital stay followed by weeks of in-home treatment. That was just the drast...

Well its pretty rough, but I'm finally committed to throwing it out there. I hope you'll join me on this journey! Check out the player to the left :) Steve

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