My Kind Of Math!!!

I don't think that I weighed myself when I was at my heaviest, maybe I did but just didn't realize it but the highest number I can remember when got on my scale was 249 lbs.....yep, I was fat. I can remember eating as much as I wanted and I would burn it off with no problem, I was very active being involved in wrestling and track. I have to say that one of my favorite things about wrestling was conditioning, because I was pretty good at it. The only reason I went out for track is Coach Long caught me in the hall the week that track season started and asked me what I was running, I probably had the deer in the headlights look and responded...uh, nothing. He said I should be doing long distance so I said....uh, okay. Wow was I surprised to be a 4 year Varsity runner. I was lucky back then to train with Matt Akers, man did he know how to suffer (this is a concept I didn't fully realize until I started getting serious about cycling). My Senior year in track was tough for me because I was catching up as far as growing, I got taller, my shoulders got broader and I got heavier (not fat but just was filling out). I went from a 5' 9" 135 lb 2 mile runner to a nearly 6' 165-170 lb 2 mile finisher, let's just say my times got a bit slower.

When I got into college I continued to run but not very often, usually when I couldn't sleep (I always loved to run at night). I remember one night in Maryville I went to run at the track about midnight and ended up running 10 miles, that was a boring 40 laps. After college I got married and my somewhat active life got not so active, I'm not blaming marriage for that because it was my choice to not be active. I always had the thought of I will get back in shape but never really did anything about it.

I could always look in the mirror and see my chubby face and my big belly but I saw it everyday and it didn't have the same impact as looking at a picture and thinking "Oh my god, who is that fatty?" that will give you some real perspective. I got active to lose weight and dropped from my 249 down to 206 and felt great but would creep back up to 235-240. When I moved back to Chillicothe I bought a bike, not to lose weight but to get fit enough to do a triathlon, I figured I would lose some weight but that was not my main goal.

Low and behold I got involved with the Green Hills gang and my first Monday night ride I thought I was going to die, I was actually looking forward to it. Even though it was painful it was just natural for weight to start coming off after I started riding, I got down to 210 and did my first duathlon at Clinton Lake (after I got the 4 ribs put back in place I could breath much better). My second year of riding I finally got down to 195 and stayed there for awhile. The next year I got to 185 and stayed there for a very long time, I thought I might be there forever. I still eat way too much too often but I make an effort to do better, I do my best when I have a race coming up. I decided to weigh this morning (I don't like to weigh very often) and I was 167.0 that is 82 lbs less than the heaviest that I saw on a scale, bring on the hills!!!