FRESHWATER
12 June 9 - 23 , 2017 VOL . 36 • ISS . 13
HOW TO By Cal Kellogg continued from page 11
loss seeking advice on how they can do the same and I expect that there are a lot of folks out there that I ’ ve never spoken with face to face that see what I ’ ve done and would like to do something similar .
I ’ m going to tell you how I did it and how you can do the same , but let me make clear I ’ m not a trainer or a doctor . Before you embark on any sort of fitness regime you should visit your doctor to make sure it ’ s the right thing for you to do . Here ’ s how I attacked the problem .
Admit Where You Are , Acknowledge Where You ’ d Like To Be
The first thing I did was admit to myself that I was grossly overweight . Next I admitted why . It wasn ’ t my genetics or glands or big bones or the fact that my 3rd grade teacher didn ’ t like me . I admitted to myself that I was fat because I ate like a pig . I put the food in my mouth in huge quantities and that ’ s how I came to wear size 58 pants !
My long-term goal was to get down to 260 pounds and size 44 pants . My medium-term goal was to get down below 300 pounds within a year and my shortterm goal was to get below 350 pounds as soon as possible .
HOW ?
After a lot of online reading I put together a very basic program for myself . First I went to one of the many sites that featured a Basal Metabolic Rate calculator . A BMR calculator takes your age , height , sex and weight and comes up with a caloric baseline . It ’ s the number of calories you ’ d burn if you just stayed in bed all day without any exercise . My number was 3,200 calories at that time .
Based on that number , I decided to put myself at a 500 calorie per day deficit . That would allow me to lose about a pound per week without exercise , but I planned to work out too for even more fat loss .
In terms of my diet I did two things . First I cut out fast food . Second because I ’ m a fisherman and hunter I always have lots of low fat high quality protein on hand in the form of venison and fish fillets . I started hitting fruit stands and the organic veggie section of my supermarket . My meals consisted of meat and veggies and I pretty much cut out processed carbs .
I tend toward binge eating , so I made sure that I always had strawberries , celery and carrots on hand for times when I wanted to binge .
Finally , I consistently drank and continue to drink 1 gallon of water per day . I drink diet soda and coffee too , but to this day I make sure to polish off my gallon of water . It acts almost like a solvent and helps you to process body fat and eliminate toxins from your body .
The Workouts These days I feel great so I lift weights , hike with heavy packs , chop wood and do a lot of other extreme stuff , but early on I did nothing but walk . If you ’ re moving , you ’ re burning calories . I started out walking around my neighborhood briskly for 30 minutes per day . Soon I expanded to 45 minutes and then an hour . After that I started taking on more challenging up and down ground . These days my typical hike is about 5 miles in the American River Canyon which takes me about 90 minutes .
Supplements
Initially I didn ’ t utilize any supplements but as time went by and I started losing fat , I integrated whey protein powder into my diet as well as creatine for faster recovery after challenging workouts .
Over the past two years , I ’ ve been taking products from Plexus . My wife introduced me to Plexus . I watched her lose 80 pounds using the products WITHOUT working out .
She explained that Plexus is all natural and GMO free and can help tune up your metabolism and gut health . I was 265 pounds when I started Plexus and it has helped me drop right at 40 pounds of body fat to date … The “ Pink Drink ” works , I only wish I ’ d discovered it at the beginning of my journey . It would have helped me achieve my goals faster .
Visiting with My Doctor
I love my doctor , but there is no denying that we are the odd couple . She is a soft-spoken 40 something lady from India that stands about 5 feet tall . And of course , I ’ m a 6 ’ 3 ” inch ‘ Merican from Redneck USA .
Yet we see eye to eye on the subject of health . She is a big fan of diet and exercise and doesn ’ t really like passing out pills . She often asks me in-depth questions about the weight loss path I ’ ve travelled . Apparently , it is exceptionally rare for men over 40 to take off substantial amounts of weight and maintain the loss .
I have a family history that features some heart issues . When I visited her in 2011 I had high blood pressure and was taking medication for it . She ordered a stress test . It showed that one section of my heart was enlarged by 1mm .
“ You really started this program at the right time ,” she told me reading my tests . “ When you hear that high blood pressure is a silent killer , one of the things we are referring to is the way it can enlarge the heart . Your heart is just starting to show effects right now . You have nothing to worry about if you lose weight , but if you were to continue down the same path , you ’ d like develop serious problems in the not too distant future .”
These days having just turned 50 I ’ ve been off high blood pressure meds for several years and have a pretty clean bill of health save for some regular middle age aches and pains .
In a couple months , I ’ ll be back in her office again . I ’ ve got the curse of all 50 year old men staring me down … The dreaded colon ostomy … Sounds like a good time for all … Yikes !
I ’ m Here To Encourage …
Of course , there is more to my overall weight loss programs than the basics outlined above . If you ’ d like more information on my program or on Plexus , inspiration or feedback about weight loss , don ’ t hesitate to reach out to me . I ’ d love to hear your story , offer my support and encourage you to make real and lasting change in your overall health . If you ’ re interested shoot me an email at calkellogg @ fishsniffer . com .