Initial Appointments

Counselor - I met with the counselor/psychologist to discuss goals and how I'm feeling. Lots of questions. I will be meeting with her in a couple weeks as well as a support group once a week.

Physical assessment - I met with a guy who had a "Personal Trainer" shirt on. I'm can't remember his name, but he had me do quite a few different tests-
1. Blood Pressure
2. Electrostatic body fat % test
3. Strength test (basically an arm curl attached to a machine)
4. Heart Rate test (Get on a treadmill with increasing workload until your heart rate reaches 160 BPM, then rest of a minute and take recovery heart rate)
5. A whole slew of body measurements (chest, arm, waist, and thigh circumference)

Doctor - I met with the 20/20 program Doctor (not my personal Doc) to discuss the results of my physical assessment. There were no surprises: I have moderate blood pressure, hypertension, and high cholesterol. They game me a lot of reading material on all my risk areas.

I meet with my Dietician and Personal Trainer in a week when I start my week 1 workout.

Introduction

This blog outlines my progress and experiences in the 20/20 Lifestyles program at the Pro Club, in Bellevue, WA, USA. This program is a weight management program that focuses on lifestyle modification, exercise, proper nutrition, and general wellness to achieve dramatic and lasting results. The program includes a customized exercise program and regular meetings with a dietitian, doctor, counselor, and support group.

I have spoken to numerous people that have participated in the program and each had a remarkably positive experience, lost a lot of weight, and have kept it off. The secret to the program is no secret at all: the key is lifestyle modification, not just diet and exercise. This program seems to be a good fit for me. I have been very mindful in recent years of my health but managing it on my own simply did not work: I have steadily gained weight while my cholesterol has steadily increased and my energy levels have decreased.

My family history is such that if I don't get my health and cholesterol under control, I may end up like my Grandfathers, who both suffered multiple heart attacks and multiple bypass surgeries before the age of 50.

My goals include-

1. Weight Loss: My ideal weight is 240-250, approximately 60 pounds lighter than my current weight.
2. Increase Conditioning: I want to be able walk up a flight of stairs without breathing hard.
3. Increase Muscle Tone: My muscles haven't been this flabby, ever. I don't want to get big, just tone what I have.
4. Strengthen Certain Muscle Groups: A few of my muscle groups are actually quite weak: mid/lower back, arms, and abdominals. These weaknesses are only exacerbated by poor posture while setting at a computer all day. The resulting problems are back, neck, and headaches.

We'll see how this goes!