New Year Resolutions - How to achieve Part I

What is a New Years Resolution? It’s a goal that we try to achieve and usually fall short. How come so many people fall short of obtaining what they passionately want for themselves? Before I give you the answer let me tell you a story about myself.

I have a beautiful wife and have been blessed with 3 wonderful children. After every pregnancy she lost most all of her weight. But me, lets just say those sympathy pounds did not come off as easy. 3 kids cost me about 50 lbs. I couldn’t run because of an ankle injury and did not spend any quality time at the gym.

I have a friend that was diagnosed with MS and I wished there was more I could do for her. I heard of a bike ride every April from Houston to Austin called the MS 150. So how hard could it be? In 2005 I bought a bike and started training. From February to April I logged about 600 miles of leisurely training. I started this crusade not thinking that this fat boy could finish. Well I did and it was a great accomplishment for me but a miserable experience. I had great intentions to continue my training but my bike went back into the garage until January of 2006. Any weight that I did loose was put right back on and maybe then some. 2006 MS 150 was not much different for me than the prior year. Again, I planned on continue my training but my bike went back into the garage

December of 2006, I made a New Year Resolution to be in tip top shape before the MS 150 in April of 07. I made a goal weight of 165 lbs before the mid April ride. My past experience taught me that “leisurely training” would not help me accomplish my objective. The first thing I did was to tell friends and family to help hold me accountable. Then I researched how many calories are in a pound (3500 calories = 1 lbs). I needed to know about how many calories I burned each day without working out, my “Basal Metabolic Rate” which was 1972 calories. I also knew that I am not changing what I eat. I am a meat and potatoes kind of guy. Now I was half way to achieving my goal. I created a spread sheet, and broke my goal down to weekly goals. I tracked calorie intake and outtake. I ate what I wanted but knew I would pay the price at the gym. I would get to the gym some mornings at 3 AM and burn a minimum of 2000 calories each trip. Sometimes I would hit the gym twice a day. No more leisurely riding. Every time I mounted my bike it was for a purpose. I would track average time, speed and cadence. By breaking my goal down to monthly and weekly goals I was able to make adjustments as needed. I hit my goal weight of 165 lbs the week before the MS 150, almost 50 lbs in 3 ½ months! After completing the 2007 MS 150 I was ready to ride my bike home from Austin. I was in the best shape I think I have ever been in.