The John P. Health Challenge Update #1

For those of you who are keeping up with my Health Challenge, here’s my first update. I’ll try and give these updates weekly about how it’s going for me personally as well as some tips and things that might help you guys along.

Some of you know may know that I personally started the Health Challenge a few weeks before challenging the rest of you. My rationale was simple. I wanted to be able to set a good example. I wasn’t going to ask you to do anything that I wouldn’t or couldn’t do first.

Well, those of you who know me remember that I used to drink about 6 Cokes per day. And that doesn’t include all of the other candy I would eat. I was literally consuming almost a pound of sugar a day! Plus, I was eating whatever else I felt like, whenever I felt like it.

I am very, very fortunate to have the metabolism that I have, because I should weigh 400 pounds the way I was eating. I should also mention that I was doing no physical exercise whatsoever. I’ve been working 7 days a week, as many as 20 hours per day. Finally I got to the point where I was sick of feeling tired and unhealthy, and I decided to draw the line. So I quit all that.

I have had only 2 Cokes in nearly a month, plus one Long Island Ice Tea at a party. Other than that, the only thing I’ve had to drink is water. At first it was a little tough, but now that I’m doing it I realize how much more water that I drink than I was drinking Coke. This tells me that in addition to the Coke making me fat, I was also dehydrated a lot without knowing it!

I also cut out almost all of the candy. I might have just a little piece every day or two, but definitely less than the one candy bar per week limit I placed on myself. Instead, I shifted my snacking to healthy items like fruits and nuts and yogurt with fruit in it. You know what? They actually taste good! Surprise, surprise!

Now, back when I was consuming all that sugar, my body seemed to really crave it. I would have real highs and terrible lows in my energy levels. But since I cut it all out, I’ve stopped experiencing that! It turns out that the sugar was not helping me be energetic… it was sapping me of my energy!

Now, a few weeks ago I weighed 195 pounds (88.5 kgs), which is acceptable I guess for someone 6’1″ (1.85 meters). But ideally I wanted to be closer to 175 pounds. I’m happy to report that when I last stepped on the scale yesterday, I weighed 183 pounds. And since I’ve been working out daily in addition to my dietary changes, the people who know me have started to comment that I’m actually looking better. Now, my goal is to look at least as good as Hugh Jackman (the wife adores him). And believe me folks, I will! I don’t do anything half-assed!

So, I’d like to leave you with a few tips as we go into this next week together:

• Feel free to eat Yogurt when you feel snacky. The only restriction is… NO HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP! But the kind with fruit in them is actually quite good for a sweet tooth.
• In general, stay away from HFCS! I’m convinced that stuff is the nectar of the Devil. NOTHING good can come of it.
• Keep an eye on the ingredient and nutrition labels on the food you’re buying. Choose organic when not cost prohibitive, avoid sugars, and look for foods that are low in Saturated Fats, and high in Fiber. Fiber helps you feel full by the way…
• At least 3 people have asked me if Sex counts for exercise on the Health Challenge. The answer is Yes! Read about why.
• Finally, for those of you who smoke. No lecture here. But will you please just consider quitting one more time in earnest? It’s good for you, and everyone around you.