Changes all around...

This past week has been an extremely busy one for me...there's been a whole bunch of changes happening personally and professionally.

On Tuesday, I aged.

I'm now 25 years old.

Woot to hitting the quarter-century mark.

Luckily, I didn't abuse any sugary treats so my birthday had no effect on my progress at Herbal One.

All this week I worked behind-the-scenes on a big change at the radio station. As of Monday, Energy 99.3 will be Energy 99.7. Nothing to worry about...we're simply moving a little to the right to be even more powerful. The website will now be www.energy997.ca

To celebrate our move, we're giving away a trip to New York City! Qualifying for that starts on Monday. All the details are on our website.

Today I made one more change...I got contact lenses. I've never worn contacts before so as you can imagine it was a bit of a challenge to get those little suckers in and out the first time. I'm also a big baby, so that didn't make it any easier.

I did it though! My face feels a lot lighter without the goggles on...although everyone at work tells me I look really weird. At this point with the new contacts and weight loss I'm sure my own parents can't recognize me!

Just so you know there is an update coming on Monday with the week 21 results. There wasn't really any change for me at Herbal One early in the week, however things are starting to change and we'll have some awesome numbers for you on Monday.

Have a wonderful weekend!

What Victory Feels Like....

Last night I completed my second attempt at the Ottawa 10K run. It's a special event for me because it's one that I get to do with my mother. She's been doing the 10K for quite a few years now. I think it was a real thrill for her to get to run it with me for the first time ever, considering how horribly out of shape I'd been my whole life prior. Running is one of the passions we both get to share.
Last year, I completed the run in just over 71 minutes, at a plump 265lbs. The difference between my time and my physical fitness from are year ago are both staggering.

My goal coming in to this year's event was to finish in 60 mins. Now I had been training, running about 5K in 31 mins, so I knew I could make a great time but not likely my goal time. Working on my side was the fact that coming in to the race weekend, I was down to 209lbs thanks to Herbal One. Being lighter would defiantly make a big difference.

More than 8400 runners were registered in this event. You couldn't believe the sea of people that took off from the starting line in downtown Ottawa. The entire race weekend is a phenomenal success every year. It's really quite something to be a part of.

What they do is the try to set the runners up based on the time they think it will take them to complete the race. The fastest, most elite runners start at the front of the pack. After that it's different groups ranging from 41-50 mins, 51 - 60 mins, 61 - 70 mins....etc. I was in the 61-70 min group. My mom was way in the back of the pack so I wouldn't be able to see her until the end of the race.

Standing in the pack at the starting line, that little voice in my head kicked in - "Whatever you do, don't stop" Last y ear I stopped and walked way too often. This year, I wanted to do the whole thing without stopping once.

When the starting gun went it was a MESS. All these people trying to get through at the same time down a very narrow street. Here's me, hyped up on caffeine and wayyyy too many Power Bars, trying to break my way past the slower runners without knocking anyone down.

Luckily I eventually made it through the crowd, after resorting to running on the sidewalks at some points. The first 5K, thanks to my training, were a breeze. The last 5K were a nightmare.

Around the 6K mark, I started feeling blisters beginning to develop on my feet. The little voice kicked in "Play through the pain"...this is the same voice that would kick in when I was playing hockey through injuries like cracked ribs, hip flexors and even concussions. "Play through the pain" I kept hearing the voice say.

Every kilometre began to feel like an eternity. I kept trying to find a runner and keep a comfortable pace with them. It kept me motivated to keep up with that person while I waited for my body to pick up the pace again. By the 8K mark, I was seriously contemplating stopping and walking. I was blowing by so many people who were doing just that. I knew if I stopped in my deteriorating condition, I may not be able to re-start again.

Somewhere between the 8K and 9K mark, I saw the most beautiful sight. Thankfully, it wasn't a bright light calling me up - because at that point I did feel like dying - instead it was a pace bunny! Now you're probably wondering what that is. A pace bunny is a volunteer who runs in the race, holding a sign that indicates what time they'll finish the race. That way, runners hoping to finish at the time need only keep pace with that person. There, before my eyes, was the 60 min pace bunny...if I could stay in front of him it'd be mission accomplished.

I dug deep and turned on the afterburners, blowing past the pace bunny. Problem was at the point I thought I was a within 500 metres of the finish line....turns out it was more like 1500...oops! With almost nothing left in the tank, I was going to be in for a very long, painful home stretch.

That final kilometre was sheer hell. I can't tell you how badly I wanted to quit right there and just walk the rest of the way. Little voice kicks in again - "Don't quit. You're so close. Play through the pain. It's going to be OK. You CAN do this!"

Somehow, I made it to the finish line. I must have looked half-dead when I got there because I sure felt like it. I could barely even stand on my own power. I had to lean on a pole just to stay up-right. The lineup for Gatorade seemed to be forever. I kept thinking, "Great, I'm going to die standing in line for Gatorade - what a legacy that will be". I made it though. As my body began to slowly heal I waited for my mother to cross the finish line. Once she crossed we made our way to the results tent. We both had high expectations. Turns out neither of us had stopped once during the run. We both pushed through and completed it even though we could have used a rest.

My mother's results were quite impressive. She completed the run in 1 hour, 14 minutes, 35 seconds. She beat her result last year by over 10 minutes!

My results just about knocked me over. I finished in 57 minutes, 8 seconds...well under my goal which I never thought I'd be able to accomplish. I beat last year's time by over 14 minutes!

A day after the run, I'm still very sore and very tired. The results have been truly unbelievable. Even though the first words I could form after I crossed the finish line were "I'm never running again!"....I know for sure I'll be back next year, in better shape and with a better time.

WEEK 19 RESULTS!!!

It was totally worth waiting an extra couple of days to get my results!

I'm on the home streach now! Down 61lbs to 209!!!

ONLY 9 MORE TO GO!!!

For me now, my goal is to lose the last 9 in 3-4 weeks.

That's going to be a little tricky, especially with my birthday coming up on Tuesday...I wonder if I can find a Herbal One-approved cake???

I'm still weighing (no pun intended) the option of continuing to lose more once I hit the 200 mark. I'll have to consult with the staff at Herbal One first to make sure it's safe for me and that I'll be hitting a proper Body Mass Index.

I discovered two things this morning....one...I can see my ribs for the first time in my life...and two...I have a freakishly large rib cage! Seriously...I think scientists may want to study me because I have the chest size of an ape. I'd post pictures, however I also have the hair issues that most apes have, much like Robin Williams. You don't need to see that....unless you pay admission first.

As always, you can contact Herbal One at 748-9999 to get more details on how you can get signed up or simply get some great products that will help you lose or maintain weight.

Week 19 Update On The Way....

You know a lot of people read your blog when you start getting e-mails and even your co-workers are like "Dude, where's the update?"


The update is coming tomorrow, I promise. I got a little side-tracked with the holiday weekend.


But just to give you something new for showing up, let's look at some pictures!


I was going through my old collection this morning and stumbled upon this gem from almost exactly three years ago....


Yep, believe it or not that's me, participating in McHappy Day for Q92 Timmins back in 2005. That's about as big as I can remember being in my life...335lbs....YIKES!!!

Now let's compare that with a shot taken just this week at Herbal One:

Did you say "Holy Crap!"?...Cause I sure did!

The difference, weight wise, between those two pictures is a whopping 125lbs.

If you're like I was three years ago thinking it's impossible to lose that much, well, seeing is believing isn't it?

Just check out how baggy my clothes from only 4 months ago are today:

Week 19 results will be up tomorrow afternoon, in the meantime call Herbal One at 748-9999 to get a free consulation and start losing the extra weight NOW!

WEEK 18 RESULTS!!!

Any fears I had of plateauing are starting to fade away.

It seemed like I'd be hovering around 216lbs forever....that's changed dramatically this week.

The scale at Herbal One read 212lbs today. Another 4lbs down this week and only 12 to go.

I'm also down another 5 inches to 64.5 total inches lost.

When this whole thing started I said, "let's go for 200lbs"...in the back of my mind I thought, "like I'll ever make it past 220!"

When I think about my goal now, it's more like "Holy crap, I'm actually going to do this!"

In fact, now I'm beginning to think once I get to my goal (it's only a matter of time now), why stop? I might just keep going. We'll have to assess that when I get there with the help of the staff at Herbal One. At this point 180 or 190 doesn't seem nearly as impossible as it did 4 months ago when 200 seemed out of the question.

I still can't wrap my head around the fact that only two years ago I was 335lbs...today I'm 123lbs lighter. Amazing what happens when you stop making excuses and start sticking to a plan, isn't it?

Herbal One will be open holiday Monday from 12pm - 4pm. You can go in this week and get set for the long weekend by picking up a bottle of Carb Block and 7 Protein Bars or Shakes (your choice) for only $52...you don't even have to be a member to buy them. I've already got mine!

Give Herbal One a call for more details at 748-9999.

WEEK 17 RESULTS!!!

So it's been almost 5 months to the day since I started on this program. I'm so close to my goal that it's just starting to sink in - "I'm going to make it".

That's what I keep telling myself.

Only a few more weeks and it'll all be gone.

As of today, 54lbs down.....16lbs to go.

I've never been anywhere near as close to my goal as I am now.

I said last week I was hoping to be at 215 by today. I may not have made that goal today, but I'll likely be there by Wednesday, so that's close enough for me.

I'm hoping to be at 210 in two weeks. It will most likely take me three weeks to accomplish this, but making these small goals is what keeps me motivated for my big goal.

I'll be due for new measurement numbers again next week, I'm still sitting at just about 60-total-inches lost.

This week Jan from Herbal One is offering a Mother's Day special. You can get a gift certificate for $50 or $100 that can be used from anything from products or programs. Mom's can also sign up for a special 8-week program for only $189.00!

Give Herbal One a call at 748-9999 for details!