For those of you who know me you may know the story, for those who don't...I'm a former Fat Boy. Now not to be confused with the 80's rap band, although they were a favorite...brr stickem ha ha ha stickem, but a legit fat ass. I try not to use the term "fat" much, it's too often a word that is demeaning, degrading, belittling, you get the point. At my heaviest weight I tipped the scales at nearly 275 pounds.
Growing up I always played sports, generally ate whatever I wanted and whenever I wanted, and I was always relatively thin. After graduating from high school I quickly found out that that I had a hidden talent, beer drinking. So I regressed quickly from the guy who was playing countless games of pickup basketball to the guy who would consume beer whenever I had a chance and seemingly always had a steak and cheese in my hand. I was the guy who would get drunk and plop my big ass belly on a table at a party just to get a laugh, sleep off a hangover, and then find some fried food to start the cycle all over.
And then I had one of those "ah ha" moments which may be similar to a "come to Jesus" event. I stepped on the scale one day and had never weighed that much in my life, just under 275 pounds. It was a day that I will never forget. I remember feeling disgusted with myself and knowing that I needed a change. I left the house and tried to run a mile, it turns out that it was probably less, and felt like I would die. I soon joined the gym and changed my diet. I started to write down what I was eating bad, I did a lot of writing. I eliminated all fried foods, red meat, sodas, and ice cream. Before I knew the weight dropped quickly and I was back to normal or as normal could be at the time.
So nearly 17 years later as I am 5 months out from my first 100 miler I could have never imagined I would be where I am today. My experiences in life so far have helped shaped who I am and as much as I love food today I will never forget that overweight out of shape person. I've been able to live on both sides of the fence and I know that with hard work and determination the human body and mind can do almost anything. It's all about balance.
My final thought and what I find unsettling is that as a nation we penalize and persecute justly those who abuse drugs and alcohol but not much is done against gluttony, and is there anything that can be done??
***Seneca Creek 50k is in 2 weeks, can 't wait for my first of the year.
