I woke up one morning to find myself more than 30 pounds
overweight. Imagine how it feels to suddenly realize the
athletic, muscular body that you had in college is now
soft, pale, droopy and flaccid. It was a nightmare that
snuck up on me in just a few years of trying to climb
the corporate ladder.I dragged my low energy blobness to the local karate dojo
about 3 months ago. I had found their website on Google
and it was a full featured gym that taught boxing, muay
thai kickboxing, wrestling, jujitsu, and a whole bunch
of cardio and conditioning classes. I had bookmarked the
site and stared at it on my computer for weeks, lacking the
energy or determination to finally decide to lose weight.About 2 months before I joined the gym I bought a cheap
kickboxing dvd online. My computer in my home office has
a dvd player, and when the UPS man dropped it off to me 3
days later, I ripped open the envelope and put it on.This kickboxing dvd was a training program for beginners. I
was so out of shape I'm sure I was even worse than the
newest beginner, but I took a crack at it. I put on an
old pair of sweats, a Metallica tshirt and started working
out to the video.I wish I had taped that first workout, I would win the ten
grand on America's Funniest Home Videos for sure. There's
me jiggling and bouncing in my office, knocking stuff of
the shelves and bumping into my desk. My cat took off like
it had been struck by lightening. My kicks literally were
no higher than knee high. I think I lasted 15 minutes
and was sucking wind like a 1972 Datsun B210.The next day my knees hurt, my back hurt, the inside of my
thighs were aching, my shoulders and triceps were sore and
its the first time in years that I had felt that way. So
I did the kickboxing workout dvd again. And again. My
brain somehow realized that the pain meant I needed to do
the exercises. I worked out roughly 4-5 times a week for
almost 2 months and lost 7 pounds. This gave me so much
more confidence that I finally joined my gym. It's been
the best decision of my life.In total my weightloss is approaching 25 pounds. I look
completely different. All my clothes are brand new and
are much smaller. I lost 4 inches off my gut. I can see
abs hinting about coming out, perhaps next summer!My energy levels are incredible. I don't need an afternoon
nap or my 3 o'clock coffee. I make better choices now
when I go out to eat. I feel like a new man!
