Before and After

FINAL RESULTS

It's Official...Michael has done it! He has now lost 101 lbs. in 5
months!!! The weight has been lifted, both figuratively and literally, and
I know Michael feels great about it, and all of us here at Fitness Together
Delafield are extremely proud of him. It is truly an amazing
accomplishment, regardless of the time frame, and the great part about all
of it, is that Michael is not losing his motivation to continue towards his
ultimate goal.

Well, if any of you out there are dying to see the results from our most
recent assessment as much as I was, here ya go.
Now, again, this was done in 5 months. Our first assessment was on March
11, 2009, and this final assessment for the competition was done on August
5th, 2009. So, without further ado, here are the "numbers."

Starting weight: 393 lbs. Finishing Weight: 292 lbs. (101 lb. decrease)
Starting Body Fat%: 43.3% Finishing Body Fat%: 34% (An almost 10% decrease)
Starting Resting Heart Rate: 97 beats per minute Finishing Resting HR: 58 bpm.
(39 bpm decrease)
Starting 3 min. Step Test HR: 158 bpm (only completed 2 min.) Finishing HR:
96 bpm -all 3 minutes! (62 bpm decrease)
Starting Max Bench: 150 lbs. Finishing Max Bench: 204 lbs. (54 lb.
increase)
Starting Max Leg Press: 583.4 Finishing Max Leg Press: 1,008.4 (425 lb.
increase)
Starting Sit Reach Test: 3.8 inches Finishing Sit Reach Test: 10.5
inches (6.7 inch increase in flexibility)

Starting Resting Blood Pressure: 140/90 Finishing Resting BP: 119/76
Starting Exercise BP: 180/90 Finishing Exercise BP: 150/74
Starting Chest Measurement: 57.5 inches Finishing Chest Measurement: 50
inches
Starting Waist Measurement: 64 inches Finishing Waist Measurement: 47.25
Starting Hip Measurement: 68 inches Finishing Hip Measurement: 51.5
Starting Thigh Measurement: 28 inches Finishing Thigh Measurement: 24
inches
Starting Calf Measurement: 19.5 inches Finishing Calf Measurement: 17.75
inches
Starting Upper Arm Measurement: 18.13 inches Finishing Upper Arm
Measurement: 15.5 inches
Starting Forearm Measurement: 12.5 inches Finishing Forearm Measurement:
11.5 inches
Starting Neck Measurement: 18.5 inches Finishing Neck Measurement: 16.25
inches
Starting Shoulder Measurement: 58.5 inches Finishing Shoulder
Measurement: 52.5 inches

Alright, I already did the math for the measurements, and it comes to a
total of 61.38 inches lost! The other highlights, again, are 101 lbs., 10%
body fat loss, dramatic decreases in heart rates and blood pressure, and
dramatic increases in strength and flexibility. Overall, we couldn't be
happier or more proud of Michael. Thank you to everyone who supported and
followed Michael through this journey. Also, as Michael will be continuing
on his journey to losing even more weight, keep an eye out, as we will try
to post at least 1 more blog with some information on how to continue
following his progress.

Reflections

Trainer Notes

Just a couple days left and we are almost there with our "stretch goal." Final results are due to report on August 5th, so we will be doing our final re-assessment this Wednesday. So, again, not only will we be able to report our final tally of weight loss, but we will be able to report all of our final numbers, including inches lost, body fat percentage, heart rates, blood pressure, etc. The end of month two was the last time we did the complete assessment for all areas, so we are very excited to see the cumulative results and improvements.

As mentioned previously, this week brings a nice, and needed, break in Michael's workouts. We are still maintaining our workout schedule, as it is important to stay in the routine and rhythm of working out, but the volume and intensity will be lower for a couple of weeks. This means less overall sets, as well as selecting exercises and a format that will keep the intensity of the workout quite a bit lighter. These "transition," or "unloading" periods, while sometimes difficult to make ourselves do, are truly an important part of a well rounded fitness program. They give our bodies and minds an opportunity to regenerate and refresh. In fact, it's not uncommon to see noticeable strength and endurance improvements shortly after.

Trainer Notes

Goodbye 300's! HELLO 297!!! We are extremely happy today to report that Michael has officially broken the 300 mark. At weigh-in today, we thought we would have a chance...maybe 299...but as usual, Michael exceeded the expectation. So, now just 4 pounds and 9 days to go to hit the 100 lb. weight loss mark - all in 5 months!

This week we will be finishing up Michael's last workout program for this competition. Next week we'll transition out with a few workouts at a lower intensity and volume, while also focusing on Michael's plan moving forward. While Michael will still be in a fat loss mode past this competition to continue towards his ultimate goal weight, some of the focus and pressure of the contest will be off of his shoulders. The basic structure to his workouts of 3 days resistance training followed by short duration cardio, and 2 other days of just cardiovascular exercise will remain the same, as will his focus on the basic concepts of good nutrition. These are now lifestyle patterns for him, and this competition provided him with an opportunity and positive pressure to develop those habits. However, I do think there will be a positive aspect of this contest coming to an end for Michael. Now, his focus can shift to him doing this mainly for himself, and some of the more challenging pressures of being in a "contest", with the spotlight always on you will dim.

There will still be the basic challenge of keeping the same level of focus and effort through internal motivation, but the support system Michael has around him now is extensive, and should help keep him on track. I know that we are always here for him, and will do whatever we can to help him continue toward his ultimate goal. Stay tuned, as there's a good chance that our next post could be to report the "Big Number."

Micheal's Blog Update

Trainer Notes: July 20

2 Weeks to go - 87 lbs. down so far! Wow, it's coming down to the wire now and Michael is so close to achieving our first "lofty" goal of getting under 300 lbs. That also means that our 100 lb. goal is still within reach. At first, just getting under 300 lbs. was enough of a reach in the time frame we have had, but as the fat started to melt away more and more, we decided to take it a step further and go for the whole 100. Why not? Our fascination with round numbers and the fact that it was only 6 more lbs. just made us decide to go for it. I have to admit, setting a goal to lose 100 lbs. in 5 months seemed like a pretty big reach, maybe like trying to run a marathon uphill in high altitude (alright, that might be a stretch, but you get the point). Even with confidence in our abilites and Michael's dedication, I wondered if we could really attain that level of results that quickly. In realistic terms, that meant that he would have to lose 20 lbs. per month, or about 5 lbs. per week on average. For the obese population, that is the upper limit for what is considered reasonable and safe (3-5 lbs. per week).

So, the margin for error was very small from the beginning. He would have to be spot on with his nutrition, with barely any cheating or slip-ups at all, and he probably couldn't afford to miss more than 1 or 2 workouts in the entire 5 months. Was this realistic? Well, I guess I believed it was, and I believed in him, at least, and even if Micheal didn't in the beginning, I know he does now. Because with all of those challenges to meet or overcome, Michael has followed and stayed consistent with all of our nutritional recommendations, and has never missed a single one of his workouts in the last 4 and a half months. In fact, he even shortened his recent travel plans so that he wouldn't miss any workouts so close to the end of the competition. To me, that's just a testament to Michael's character and commitment. He has never shown anything but a complete appreciation for being given this opportunity. It's even more than that, like he bears it as a responsibility to prove to us, himself, family, friends, and those following and supporting him that he doesn't take a second of this experience for granted. Also, that he is a fighter who can rise to the challenge and has the dedication and will to compete and win. I've never seen Michael give anything less than 100%. I'm quite sure that he has often given us more than he even thought he could at the time.

That's the amazing thing about the human body and the human spirit, though. It's ability to adapt and improve based on the challenges we are presented is truly remarkable. Alone, we rarely reach our true potential. We often need to be pushed, challenged, and encouraged to reach new levels. Hopefully we've done that for Michael, as we try to do for all of our clients, and hopefully that opens his eyes so he can see and unlock his own potential in the future. I have no doubts that Michael and his wife have truly established new habits and have greatly improved their lifestyle. I have complete confidence that he will never see a "3" as the first number on the scale again. More than just the weight, his entire life has transformed, and I'd say in the end, that means more than any number ever could. So, while the "big number" definitely indicates we've achieved something special and hopefully gives him a better chance at winning this competition, his overall transformation shows that he has already won in one of the toughest challenges of all - living a full, fit and healthy life.