About Us

Welcome to Our Fitness and Diet Blog.

We hope that this Blog will provide a wide variety of Diet, Exercise, and Fitness information, encouragement, and help for you.

This Blog also serves to share with you the progress I (Matthew) make towards a healthy weight and lifestyle. I have included a short history of why it is important for me to become fit and healthy below.

History

My brother and I were raised by a single Mother. As a result of her work schedule we “had to fend for ourselves” when it came to cooking. I didn’t like cooking… so I grew up on a daily diet of TV dinners and other easily prepared foods. I developed a taste for anything salty, and a dislike of “healthy” foods like salad, fruits, etc. Physically I was in pretty good shape (3 paper routes kept me busy).

Once I graduated from High School I entered the Army one week later. I quickly developed/progressed into the best physical shape of my life. I generally averaged about 165 lbs while in the Military (I’m 6 feet tall). I worked in a Military Hospital and generally ate fairly healthy.

After leaving the Military at age 22 I moved to California to continue working towards my College degree. Once out of the Military I tended to eat more fast food, and get less exercise. I met my future wife while going to school during this time period. This led to even more eating out at fast food restraunts. During this time, I still had a high metabolism and only gained a little weight.

At age 25 it seemed like someone “turned off” my metabolism and I started to gain weight. I was working on my M.A. degree and spent little time exercising. My wife also fed me well… and slowly over the next few years I put on weight.

When I was 32 years old I had gone from 165 lbs in the Military to about 255 lbs. Since my family history has a very significant amount of heart disease, I decided to lose some weight. Within a 4 1/2 month period I went from 255 lbs down to 223 lbs. It was then that I made the fatal mistake of starting to miss my daily gym visits. (As long as I go to the gym… I also watch my eating habits better). Once I missed a day here and there, I skipped more and more. 6 months after I had started trying to lose weight and get in shape I stopped going to the gym. Without really noticing it (weight gain can creep up on you slowly) I had by a year later put all the weight back on.

At age 35 I reached 262 lbs and decided once again that I really needed to lose the weight I had gained back. I was determined to get to 190 lbs as my goal. Over a 5 month period I went from 262 lbs to 216 lbs with healthy eating and lots of exercise. After reading several books on exercise and good dieting habits, I even considered becoming a Certified Personal Trainer.

During this time I was working on another Masters degree, and began slipping (you know… the excuses come easy). I once again slipped out of the habit of regular gym workouts… and then my eating slipped.

Now, 3 1/2 years later I’m determined that this time I WILL lose the weight, eat healthy, and develop a high level of physical fitness. A little over 2 weeks ago I went to the Doctors for Bronchitus, and discovered that I now weighed 268 lbs… the heaviest weight of my life. My blood pressure also has been up, and a long with a few other physical issues, I truly believe that if I do not get into physcial shape I won’t be around many years into the future.

I hope to encourage others (and hopefully you will encourage me too) in our effort to live a healthy and fit lifestyle. If you would like to have your story posted please feel free to email me.

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