Let's Get It ON!

I've been planning this blog for the past three weeks. And when I say "planning", I mean "procrastinating". See, a couple of weeks ago, I had a startling revelation. In exactly twenty weeks, I would turn thirty years old. That's three decades. That's the beginning of the end. That's game over, man.

For my over-thirty friends, that was just me building drama. No offense. For all the others, that was your future. Start dealing with it now. Seriously. As for me, I'm approaching that mark with some tongue-in-cheek, self-effacing humor (nope, no doom-and-gloom for me...) but I'm also seizing this opportunity to make an impact on my life.

The aforementioned past couple of weeks have really been a microcosm of the past couple of years.

"It'll happen."

"Starting on Monday."

"I should have said next Monday, since that's the first of the month."

"Doesn't someone have a birthday party coming up? Gosh it'd be a shame to be the only one there who doesn't eat. I mean, it'd be rude. I'll have to wait until the day after."

"Did you see that new thing Pizza Hut came out with? I'll never get to try it if I start today."

Hopefully, the point is clear. If the definition of insanity is doing something the same way and expecting different results, then lock me in a padded room and start up the meds, 'cause I'm Froot Loops.

In some ways, I'm a victim of past successes. I've lost, and gained, and lost and gained again - 30, 40 pounds or more - several times, intentionally, within short periods, going back about 15 years. I'm an armchair expert at weight loss. Maybe a little bit of overconfidence is to blame.

"No big deal. I'm getting a little heavy, but when has that ever been a problem?"

Well, until I grew up and became a real person, it wasn't. But a little denial on my part has gone a long way. And a couple years later, the cows have come home to roost. I mean, the chickens have made their bed and... whatever. It's time.

The purpose of this blog is to document my weight loss progress, to hold myself accountable by making it public, and to inform interested folks about recipes, workout habits, Jedi Mind Tricks - anything I've employed that might help them in their own lives.

This is where I provide my disclaimer, for legal purposes. There will be nothing professional at all about this weight loss "plan". No nutritionists, no personal trainers, no medical personnel whatsoever. So, no guarantees. Sorry. My refund policy is you can have all your money back any time, which is zero. You really do get what you pay for.

Because really, part of the challenge as a self-proclaimed armchair weight loss expert is to see if I still have "it". The willpower, the mental toughness, the patience, and the time management skills. Workouts will be a balance of calorie-burning and muscle-building. Diet will be a combination of calorie-counting and eating things that are healthy and fill you up. Water in abundance, and as much sleep as is practical with a wife, a preschooler, a crawler, a part-time job, grad school, and an internship. No big secrets here. This is common-sense weight loss. Hopefully after all these years I still have my common sense. My wife would argue I never had it.

The title of this blog refers to my immediate goal of losing 30 pounds by age 30. The deadline for this goal is January 31, 2011. This also happens to be my 30th birthday, for those of you who aren't paying much attention. It also happens to be the 30th birthday of my twin brother, who suffered the misfortune of being abducted at birth and carried 200 miles away to Memphis, where he was given a new, more pop-friendly name. When this goal was first conceived, I had exactly 20 weeks to accomplish it. That 20 weeks somehow turned into 17. I swear I only had pizza once. For supper. And the rest for lunch.

The above goal is only a short-term one. Ultimately, secretly, I'm thinking 100 pounds is not completely out of the question, if this lifestyle change has legs. If and when I accomplish my first goal, the title of the blog, 30 by 30, takes on a second meaning (I do love a good double meaning), which is my target pants size. But let's just see how the next 17 weeks goes, first. Let's not count the cart before it hatches.

Feel free to leave your comments. Encouragements, challenges (no duels, please), ideas, long stories, taunts, haiku tributes, and anonymous love letters are all welcomed. And buy all of our advertisers' stuff.

Now I'm going to go do the initial weigh-in for this journey, using Wii Fit. You (the public) don't need to know my actual weight. It's a little embarrassing, to be honest. But I will post my progress whenever it's practical to re-weigh (once a week maybe), and hopefully I'll be able to blog every day or two about what's going on. And with that said, let's go get this thing back on track.

Starting Monday.