Thoughts on our public debt, and our Country...

HT: Andrew Sullivan's Dish

This article from Rod Dreher outlines where some of my fear comes for our country, as evidenced by the recent absurd drama that took place regarding our public debt ceiling. I don't agree with the entirety of his article, especially the premise that it is our secular evolution that has led to this crisis, but on this particular point, I agree completely:

The world has just witnessed the appalling spectacle of the American government risk the full faith and credit of the United States in a high-stakes game of chicken over the debt ceiling. Though we appear to have swerved at the last second to avoid a cliff-plunge, everybody knows that the country's fiscal policy continues to be driven by bipartisan recklessness.

Given the staggering level of debt -- which must include massive entitlements obligations yet to be paid -- there appears to be no politically realistic way the American economy can do what it must to avoid a catastrophic smash-up right down the road.

This is not just an economic crisis. At bottom, it is a moral and spiritual crisis. We Americans have been living as if the historically extraordinary bounty of material wealth and personal freedom are the natural state of mankind.

We -- and in a democracy, the government is "we" -- have been living far beyond our fiscal means for far too long, and punishing any politician who failed to lie to us about the free lunch. But our disastrous failure of prudence is not only financial.

By extension of this, he includes our treatment of this nation's natural resources, in his example, topsoil. We treat these resources as though they are infinite, when world history clearly demonstrates to the contrary.

This is not a problem for government to solve, at least not entirely. Americans as a whole need to awaken from their blissful ignorance about the real problems this country faces and we need to make some hard choices. Some involve the moral question of guaranteeing every citizen in this country health care and retirement benefits. This is not to imply we cannot or should not do this, but merely to force people to look at the actual costs of these choices, and then decide if they are prudent long-term.

Our government has failed us, because job preservation and the thirst for power makes any consideration of these moral choices a persistent third rail of discourse at any level. If we fail to evaluate these choices responsibly, they eventually will be made for us, and some may argue that they already have. The price of failing to act on these choices will be the very liberty we celebrated a month ago.

Long time gone...but progress resumes

Yeah, my updates on this dropped off significantly. I didn't really have anything to add at the time and frankly I went off the reservation for a little over a month. The good news is I've gotten back on course and am now below my post-fast weight again. I feel great. No aches or pains to speak of at the moment.

One huge change I've made in the past two weeks has been in the realm of eating out. Simply, I haven't done it (with a HUGE amount of help from my awesome wife, Natalie) and it has been a significant reason why I'm able to maintain focus. Simplifying the choices to be made makes it much easier to avoid bad choices.

The other piece that has helped has been my focus on moments vs. destination. A journey begins (or in this case, resumes) with a single step, and I've been a lot more successful of late on just focusing on that step in the moment. One of the biggest challenges for me in weight loss is my tendency to look to the future or the enormity of the whole task of reshaping my body instead of just focusing on the choice I'm making in that moment. Hopefully that's going to be a more consistent pattern for me, as it is serving me very well right now, and not just in terms of my diet.

The last two weeks of my life have taught me a lot about who I am and, more importantly, who I want to be. There's no question I need to be mindful of what I'm creating with the choices I make, but looking long tends to distract me from the purpose behind the journey to begin with. (reading that sounds confusing but it made sense in my head, heh).

For my supportive friends on this journey, I also plan on expanding this to other topics soon as I love talking about many things. Thanks for all your help on this journey, your support has been invaluable to me!

Is Sitting Killing Us?

Pretty daunting stuff...

Via: Medical Billing And Coding

Ok, time for the next phase...

While I don't think I have the nutritional side of my transformation locked down, exactly, yesterday reminded me how much work I have to do in the next phase.

My physical conditioning, overall, is probably the worst its been in a few years. To be fair, it was a LOT worse prior to that point, especially before I met Natalie. That said, my core, in particular, needs probably more of an overhaul than my diet did. The good news is I'm not really discouraged by that, because I know I can get results in that area relatively quick. Unfortunately, yesterday slowed that down a bit.

While attempting to mount Freckles for a ride yesterday, her saddle slipped. This was likely due to her being poorly cinched, but regardless I think it torqued my back pretty good. Naturally, I didn't feel it much yesterday at all. This morning was another story. Long story short, both sides of my lower back feel like I've been punched in the kidneys.

So now I have a few days of required R&R to articulate what my physical transformation phase will be like. Its not very complex, and for good reason: it doesn't have to be. So here's my prescription for transformation in the physical conditioning realm:

• Approx 4 hours of yoga per week (broken down into hopefully 2 - 1 hour classes and then a few additional sessions of 30-45 minutes at home). This may increase. Why yoga? Quite simply, gaining muscle has never been a challenge. Loosening muscles has been a lifetime challenge for me. My hips in particular, as it is for a lot of men, are as tight as a vice and have a very hard time maintaining any elasticity. This has a huge impact on my riding. Yoga has the added benefit of being a great source of renewal for my spirit.

• Target of 4-5 days a week of high intensity interval training or HIIT(some call it surge training). Most sessions won't go over 15 minutes, but right now they wouldn't have to. The goal here is twofold. One is to improve my cardio capacity without having to do an hour on a treadmill or eliptical trainer. The other is to target full body exercises that will help strengthen my core. If anyone in interested in what this entails, I can provide a few sample workouts. They are very simple, but very intense, as the name implies.

 Typing this and actually doing it are obviously two different things. If I'm on target, it means I'll be doing 4-6 hours of exercise a week, not counting riding or hiking with the dogs. I'll be honest, I've never exercised at this level before, short of when I was in high school playing football, and that didn't get past my frosh year. But, once my back is healed, that will be the target. I'm hoping I can do some yoga later in the week, but the HIIT will likely be integrated the following week when I know my back is stable.

Once that begins, I may journal my progress a little here, but I hope not to bore people too much.

iLance update...

2.0 is still going well, but my body is still recovering from the fast, it seems. In spite of eating incredibly well, I've actually gained a little bit back. Part of that was expected, as I think my muscles lacked water and glycogen. But I figured over 4 days I might be over it a bit.

I know things will improve some once I get my fitness routine back in gear. I'll share some details on that once I have a few days of it under my belt. Basically it will be a combination of HIIT (high intensity interval training) and yoga (though not at the same time ;) ).

Ultimately I need to pay less attention to the scale and enjoy my new focus. I've conquered some great temptations this week and more importantly, I'm just treating my body right from a nutrition perspective. The weight will follow in due time.

Fast done...solid food slowly comes back

Today is Nat's birthday and also our 5th wedding anniversary, so it was a special day on many fronts. I officially broke the fast today with a very nice meal including scrambled eggs with mushrooms, some fresh strawberries and half a grapefruit. I also had a few juices during the day, including a large one following a great anniversary trail ride at Latta Plantation.

The evening saw a little temptation with us attending a Knights game. I was by no means a saint, but 1 16oz beer and half a pretzel qualifies as the epitome of restraint for me given that I had just come off a fast of nothing but juice. The rest of the day was great, diet wise, so I'm not going to fret my modified dinner.

Final tally for the fast was 13 pounds over 10 days. I think it actually could have been more if I had juiced a little more and maybe prevented my body from slowing down so much. But I'm definitely not going to complain. Its a great start to my reboot of iLance and I feel great about the results and how I feel. And frankly, that's all that matters.

The resolve I showed during that time gives me a huge boost to my confidence about being able to stay on track and achieve the results I want. It wasn't easy, but I was very surprised at how much by body seemed to support (as opposed to fight) some of the changes. My hunger levels have been great and I'm already feeling some of my stamina coming back. Though, to be clear, my energy levels were great during the fast, my gas tank was just low if I wanted to do any kind of exercise.

Now its time for the next gear, where my eating continues the groove it was in before the fast, and 2.0 continues to build.

Thanks to everyone for their support. I will continue posting, if you're interested, but it likely won't be daily, unless I have something substantive to offer. You guys are more of a source of strength than you'll ever know. Of course, Nat knows, because she is my "Why" for all of this.

Since a few people have asked, the following sources, while no means exhaustive, served as my inspiration for this project:

Join the Reboot
Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead (don't wait for the DVD if you're wanting to watch this, its available instantly)

Day 10...I did it!

"A gem cannot be polished without friction, nor a man perfected without trials." ~ Seneca

 (hat tip to my friend Howard French for that quote)

Day 10 is here! My last day of fasting. I don't know if it was the prep work in the days prior or what, but this wasn't nearly as hard on me physically as I thought it might be. I thought hunger would have been a lot more of an issue, but it really wasn't at all. No bad headaches or nausea, either. My stomach did talk to me on occasion, but it was very mild.

The challenges were definitely more mental, especially yesterday at lunch. I got in my truck, just to get out of the office for a few minutes, and was so ready to just find a place to eat some solid food. What kept me from straying? I couldn't really think of anything in the area that I would have considered "worth" going off course (pardon the pun). I wasn't craving anything specific, which was probably a good thing.  So I plugged in my iPhone and cranked up Solsbury Hill, by Peter Gabriel, as loud as I could. That song really helps keep me inspired about accepting change in my life and forging my own path.

My final tally won't be til tomorrow, but right now I'm at 12.5 pounds. Now I get to start planning to add solid food back in tomorrow, which is also my 5 year anniversary of being married to the most incredible support system (and Wife) in the world.

This is just the reboot phase of the iLance project. There will be a lot more (or less!) to come. Thanks to all of my friends for their support. You guys have helped keep me focused, inspired, and accountable during this stretch.

Day 7 - Thoughts on Exercise

One thing I don't think I appreciated regarding the juice fast is the impact of exercise on my body. In general, I feel like I've tolerated the fast very well, physically. This weekend, though, I discovered one of the under-appreciated facts of this dietary change, my energy tank ain't what it used to be.

On Saturday and Sunday, we went trail riding & hiking at Latta Plantation. For the first half of the time spent, I was fine. But then I noticed my stamina starting to fade a bit. My guess is that what little glycogen my body had in it was pretty much spent at that point, and fat just doesn't metabolize like sugar does. At least I'm hoping it was grabbing fat and not catabolizing muscle.

Of course, both events occurred on days when I likely wasn't drinking as much juice as I should, and I have little doubt that played a role in my fatigue. It also affected my hydration levels, adding another drag on my energy levels.

All in all, pretty easy lessons to learn, though. And being down 11 pounds after 6 days definitely makes the down sides a little easier to take. I just need to take better care of my hydration levels, juice more to account for any additional exercise, and I think I'll be fine.

Day 5, Rough Start, Lotsa Temptation, Great Day...

This morning started with some first time nausea for me, which made contemplating any kind of breakfast very hard to do. I didn't wind up drinking my first juice until much later in the day, which is a big no-no while fasting. Such is life.

Later I had the pleasure of entertaining some company in which I was responsible (by my choice) for grilling some of Nat's home made hamburgers (grass fed, GREAT beef). Talk about temptation! My will was steadfast though and I got through with flying colors, partly in the form of 3 noodles from the pasta salad that was also part of dinner. Yeah, it was a break into solid food for the first time, but I'm not gonna beat myself up for it. I've been fantastic for 5 days now and 3 noodles ain't takin me off course.

The best part of all this was that it was proof that I could still be social and stay on course. Next week at work will be another challenge in that area, but I'm up for it.

Half way there!

Day 4...ok, getting a little monotonous

I still feel good, and having lost 6 lbs in 3 days, I can't argue with the results. But I think I'm going to need to focus on some actual recipes vs. just grabbing 'whatever' in the fridge. Luckily, there are quite a bit out there, I just need add some variety. When juicing is just 1-2 servings a day, its no big deal because your other meals provide some variety.

Other than that, I feel great. Energy levels are very even and the hunger has stayed at manageable levels. Almost half way there!

Day 3...still good

Day 2 was uneventful. I'm still not drinking enough juice, in my opinion. I think when I make my evening juice I need to add enough that I have something easily accessible for later in the evening. Hunger pangs are very mild and pretty tolerable. Energy level is good, though getting up this morning was a little tougher. Hopefully coming off of one of the AED's they prescribed last week will help with that.

30% there, and I feel good!

Day 1 in the books...

Didn't juice enough, I don't think, only 4 drinks of probably 44oz total. I added some hot tea and water but I think I came up a little short of what I should be taking in. I'll bump that total tomorrow to at least 5 drinks.

The Fast Begins...

So today begins a 10 day program of juice fasting. What does that entail? Mainly just fresh, organic veggies and a fruit here and there for flavor. I've already had two full glasses of juice, comprised (in summary) of:

Carrots
Celery
Swiss chard
Spinach
Cucumber
Apple

I'm pretty excited about doing this, but that's easy to do when embarking on a journey. I have a pretty good idea of what to expect so I'm hopeful that may avoid some of the valleys that many experience while attempting this type of endeavor.

I took some before pictures and will share those when I'm ready to reveal some after (during) results. I'll also post weight loss results as they come available.

Major thanks to my incredible wife, Natalie, who is my biggest cheerleader on this journey. Having that kind of support is what makes such a significant change possible.

Cheers.

Final day of prep...I'm ready!

I had a bit of pause this morning thinking about the impact that the fast may have on the seizure medication that I take. Using the trusty internet as my research source, I naturally found out that a) I should NEVER juice fast with a seizure disorder, b) juice fasting can CURE my seizure disorder, c) I should just talk to my doctor, d) juice fasting will increase the size of my...mind. You get the idea.

Needless to say, its a notable point, but I since I plan on seeing my neurologist Thursday, I'm proceeding as planned and will talk to him about the approach then.

Prep-wise, I'm pretty much set. We have a decent amount of veggies and fruits on hand and we're due for shipments from Backyard Produce and Absolute Organics on Wednesday. If you haven't tried either of those companies, I highly recommend both. Getting your produce delivered to your doorstop saves a ton of time and is healthy to boot!

I appreciate everyone's support so far, and look forward to leaning on it as I enter this exciting stage of my journey.

Day 2 prep, a very good day...

One of the upsides of my approach now is that my Wife is already about 10 laps ahead of me. She's not juice fasting, but she's embracing the rest of the lifestyle full guns. So today was a very good day, diet wise:

• 10 oz of juice (apple, carrot, kale, cucumber, celery, maybe a few more things)
• Eggs with chard (I think) and mushrooms. 1/2 banana with almond butter. 1/2 grapefruit.
• Split pea soup with carrots, purple sweet potatoes, black beans & not sure what else. Cucumber slices & 1 kiwi
• Another 10 oz of juice, similar combo, but without the apple (I think)
• 1 pear

So, adding it up (roughly), I had 10-12 servings of fruits and vegetables today. I wasn't hungry one bit and the food was awesome.

Ordinarily, the reboot cycle has you prep for 5 full days, but I'm going a little short and starting the juice fast on Tuesday. I'm ready for this, and I feel great!

Day 1, Prep Begins...

If you looked at the trailer of the documentary I linked, you'll know that my goal is to start juice fasting in intervals while I simplify my diet a great deal. Between now and Tuesday morning, I'll be prepping my body to juice fast by doing the following:

• No refined or processed foods of any kind.
• Adding whole grains, nuts, nut butters (almond and peanut, without added sugar). Almond butter has been a big part of our household for a few years now, so that won't be a huge change.
• Transitioning off meats of any kind - this one will be hard for me, and will be interesting to see how I take to being a vegan for a period of time.
• Transitioning dairy intake to almost none.
• Replacing meat proteins with bean and soy sources.

The good news is that a lot of this I've done in some fashion over the past 6 months. What I've lacked is consistency and some measure of discipline to the program. That ends now.

Tuesday will begin the juice fast, where I'll consume nothing but fruit and veggie drinks for 5 days. At that point I'll assess where I'm at and either continue fasting or I may go back for 5 days of my new way of eating.

So that's the approach. Not sure what I'll say between now and Tuesday but I'm committed to doing this. My body is ready for it and I know I'll love the person I meet at the end of this stage of the journey.

iLance 2.0, the reboot, begins tomorrow...

Prior to this adventure, Natalie & I had already started juicing in some respects. I viewed it as a way of getting my veggies in an easy to consume fashion since I was so horrible about eating them. In general it has been a positive experience. Unfortunately, outside of juicing, my diet was incomplete and counter-productive at times.

Enter two related sources of inspiration and support: Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead & jointhereboot.com.

I'll go into more details about what I'm doing soon. For now, I'll just say this...incremental it ain't...

Ok, so iLance 1.0 was kind of a misfire...

2.0 will be starting soon. I'll reveal more details later, but some things need to happen first. I'm very excited about what is to come, though...

Remember, we only truly fail when we stop trying...

What is the goal, and how am I getting there?

As noted in my first post, I started at 275. My end goal ultimately is to get to around 200, ideally a little lower.

How I'm getting there involves 5 activities:

• Diet & supplementation
• Detox
• Surge training
• Yoga
• Sleep (yes, sleep)

I'll break down each activity in subsequent posts, but those are the pillars I believe critical to success in terms of what I do.

While my ideal goal involves a target weight, how I feel and function are going to play a much larger factor in picking a true target state for me to maintain.

3 days into it, I feel pretty darn good.

Diet log
Wednesday
Bk - Juice (3 fruit/veggie servings), eggs, almond butter, apple
Sn - Cashews
Ln - Chicken noodle soup, blackberries, pinto beans, lemon tea
Sn - Juice (3 servings of fruit/veggies)
Dn - Ok, a little explanation is needed here. This isn't an excuse, it was a decision.

At 4pm I found out that I passed my CISSP exam that I took a few weeks ago. Its a big accomplishment for me and so naturally I wanted to celebrate. So we went to Savor Cafe and I had arguably the best seafood pasta dishes I've ever had in my life. It was totally worth going off the diet for 1 meal. I still got all my required dietary elements in, so overall it was a fair day. Tomorrow, back to *normal. I've been a little light on water/fluids though, so that will need some improved focus.

* while some of my diet choices are a little more austere in hopes of triggering a detox process, this is largely how I plan to eat for the rest of my hopefully long life.

The iLance Project

Yeah, its a cheeky name, but the project was conceived the same day as the iPad 2 launch, so I went with it.

The 'i' in this case stands for improvement. As in Life improvement. The first phase of this is multi-faceted, but ultimately surrounds my health, and more specifically, my weight.

I'm blogging this project partly as a means of accountability, but also as a way of sharing my thoughts and approaches to this endeavor. Nothing I'm planning on doing is new or radical. Quite the opposite.

This is hardly the first time I've tried to lose weight, far from it. But my hope is that by holding myself more accountable and sharing this enterprise with select others, my success will be greater than in previous attempts.

Why now? What's different? I won't pretend I had some grand epiphany that will grant me super-powered will and discipline to overcome the inevitable temptations that lay in my path to success. Frankly, its just time. The number of reasons for doing this are so long they wouldn't be worth reading. However I will share some of them down the road. The biggest one, simply put, is I want to be around as long as possible to enjoy this amazing life I have with my wife. And I want to enjoy it better.

I'll talk through approach tomorrow but below I'll log my eating for the day so feel free to stop reading if you get bored with that level of detail.

Monday (start)
275 lbs
Bk - Apple, oatmeal, eggs
Ln - Blueberries, HT Salad
Sn - Almonds, cashews, lemon tea
Dinner - Beans from Earth Fare, grilled chicken, cauliflower

Tuesday
Bk - slept in due to horrible headache
Ln - apple, string cheese (still not hungry from headache)
Sn - Almonds, cashews
Dinner - sweet potato, pinto beans, apple, almond butter, cauliflower, rooibos tea