Project Transformation: Day 119 – Year-End Review

It’s been a while since I last gave an update. For that matter, it has been a while since I’ve posted anything to my blog period! Even so, it’s time to give out some numbers and talk about plans for the future. I feel that I’m halfway to most of my goals. It’s been exciting to make the progress that I’ve made. Even more, it’s been gratifying to hear people say, “Wow! You look good! You’ve lost weight!” Obviously, if I never posted pictures for their viewing, they’ve already put the “Before” and “After” images together in their heads. OK, with all that said, let’s look at a few pictures and talk about results and future plans.

Starting the Project

This is a picture of me at day 20 of Project Transformation. This was taken right after completing some set of exercises. Thus, I had the whole “muscle pump” thing going. I apologize for the quality of the image, but what do you expect from a typical camera phone? Anyway, the quality of the image is sufficient enough for me to point out a few things.

Take a look at my arms. Keep in mind that you are look at a mirror image. My right arm is the one you see unobstructed. Look at the size and definition. Granted, my arm may appear to be big, but a lot of the size came from fat. There’s not a whole lot of definition / tone on my arm.

Also, note the gut. Though my arm is covering my stomach, you can see that it is quite round and it is poking out prominently. Seriously, I looked like I was six months into a pregnancy. Obviously, the shirt is not laying flat against my body.

Of course, progress doesn’t come in just a few days. You have to keep at it.

100 Days: A Change Is Going to Come

Now here is a picture from day 100. Again, let me apologize for the quality from my camera phone; I wasn’t still enough when taking the picture. In the future, I will give more thought to the photos I take. Even so, I think the detail is adequate to point out some changes.

Now check out those arms, baby! My arms are certainly leaner and stronger, with better tone. Consequently, my shoulders have much more definition to them.

The following is real hard to tell, due to the fact that I’m wearing black. However, the t-shirt I’m wearing is laying much flatter against my body. Even more, my face is a lot thinner.

Even though the pictures are crappy, it should be evident that changes have occurred. In the next phase, again, I will be more mindful of the photo-taking, wearing better-contrasting colors and using a real camera.

While pictures are nice, numbers can give even more details. Let’s go through a few of those now.

The Numbers Game: Measuring Change

Concerning my weight, I started the project at about 257 lbs. I now weigh 227 lbs. When starting, my waist was about 43 inches. I now measure about 39 inches in the waist. Though I’m nowhere near my goal of benching at least 200 lbs, I can crank out reps in the 150 lb – 160 lb range. Whereas I was fearful of doing chin-ups for fear of embarrassment (I was lucky if I could do two, let alone one), I can do at least 8 now.

Where Next?

While the changes are significant, I still have a ways to go. Among many others, I have the following goals:

• To weigh between 195 and 200 lbs
• To run three (3) miles in 20 minutes
• To bench press at least 200 lbs
• To measure 32 to 34 inches in the waist

My plan is to challenge myself to reach these goals by March 31st, 2008. Along the way, I plan to do the following:

• The Men’s Health Challenge
• P90X

The Men’s Health Challenge consists of five tests to measure your overall fitness level. The tests consist of the following exercises: push-ups, chin-ups, single-leg squats, a mile run, and vertical jump. My goal is to become “Men’s Health Fit.” This means doing the following:

• At least 10 chin-ups
• At least 50 push-ups
• Vertical jump of at least 24 inches
• A mile run under 6:30
• At least five single-leg squats

Moreover, I will be changing up my routine to incorporate P90X. I am very intrigued about the promise that lies in P90X. It appears to have just the sort of challenge my body needs to achieve some intense and immediate results. What will be interesting is how I can adapt this for usage within the gym I attend. I’ve already downloaded the P90X fitness test, and I will take it some time in the first week of January 2008. I will start P90X the following week. I will try to keep an online journal of my experiences with P90X. Oh one more thing: I’ll have better photos for you.