"Eating Healthy Costs Too Much"

Okay...here's one that I used myself for YEARS. For some reason I thought that a $3 Tombstone pizza and a bag of potato chips was a "cheap" dinner. I figured that a box of Wheat Thins or some 100 calorie packets were a "cheap" snack. I even went so far as to believe that a box of cereal was a cheap breakfast option for my kiddos. WRONG! WRONG! WRONG!

You know what I figured out? Eating healthy is NOT expensive! Never mind the costs associated with long-term health issues and problems caused by a poor diet. I don't have any mad math skills like that but I can use a simple calculator and look at my grocery receipts and KNOW that I'm spending much less on groceries now with SIX people in the household, than I was back in 2003 with just two of us! Crazy, right?

Here's what I know:

*If you come up with a weekly meal plan BEFORE your week begins and then go to the grocery store and get only what you NEED, you spend a whole lot LESS and you are stocked with healthy options for the week!

*If you buy produce in-season or during a sale, you spend a whole lot LESS! I was so stupid....for years, if I had grapes on the list, I'd buy em'. I never paid attention to the price per pound. They were on the list so I bought them. I won't buy grapes now if they are not $.99/lb. or less. Did you know that apples were on sale for $.39/lb. last week? Guess what? That's a great time to stock up! DO NOT buy them if they are $1.79/lb....unless you are made of money. And if you are, I'd like to talk!

*Coupons are time-consuming and I'm not going to say it's fun to spend time clipping but if you've got a little spare time, they can save you LOTS of money. Check out this blog post I wrote last year: I bought $263.49 worth of grocery items and after coupons only spent $61.60 out of pocket! (Please note that we DO NOT buy Cheetos and fruit snacks any longer - even if they are free!)

*Stop buying pre-packaged crap. You buy those 100 calorie packs that have six ittty-bitty little bags of cookies for $2.50. Try making your own "healthy" desserts from scratch. You'll get about 3 dozen home-made, good-for-you sweet treats for the same price. How about fruit snacks? Like that tiny little bag of sugar is enough to tide over my kids until dinner time? Please. My kids get an apple ($.09) or an orange ($.10) or maybe a whole wheat banana muffin ($.20). It is filling, nutritious and very inexpensive!

*My final tip is to pack your kids a lunch from home. I know that this doesn't work for everyone but just consider it. I'm not placing the blame on the schools for what they serve - I know that it is not always in their control but what they serve is less than impressive in my book. Here's a sample week from a school lunch menu:

Monday: Corn dog, chips, green beans, cherry cheesecake
Tuesday: Turkey&Cheese on Bun, Tater Tots, Corn, Mixed Fruit
Wednesday: Taco in a bag, Pineapple, Cookie, Peanut Butter Sandwich
Thursday: Pork Shape, mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, orange slices and hot rolls
Friday: Chicken teriyaki, garlic noodles, broccoli and cauliflower, peaches

Sure, there are a few fruits and veggies in there - mostly canned and high in sodium. Sure, there are some okay sounding main dishes, but I have no idea what the nutritional value is for those foods or for that matter - what a PORK SHAPE is made from? Ugh....I'd hate to guess!


Take a look at what my 5 year old daughter packed for lunch one day last week:

She packed a clementine, a handful of almonds, a hard boiled egg, and some mini caramel rice cakes. Not only did she have a healthy, nutritious, filling lunch for school but at just $.56 cents for EVERYTHING, it blew the $2.10 school lunch out of the water!

Eating healthy does NOT cost too much. It is NOT impossible. If you want to make healthy changes in your diet, in your family's diet, then just DO it! Get rid of the junk and offer healthy options. Buy in-season and on-sale. Be purposeful about what you are putting into your body and what you are putting into your family's body and reserve those special snacks and desserts for birthdays and celebrations, NOT for everyday consumption. God Bless.....

Lindsey

Michael's 100 pound weight loss journey

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aImXwljUYWA

Proud Mama Moment

It amazes me each and every day how much our life has changed in the past two years. My husband has lost 100 pounds, I'm in the best shape I've ever been in and our kids are watching every step that we make.

Macy started kindergarten this year and I made her (kicking and screaming for a while) take her own lunch to school. I felt that the school lunch menu was lacking nutritious options and if we were going to change our lifestyle at home, then why would I send her off to school where the rules didn't apply? This is a lifestyle change that our ENTIRE family is making and we are purposeful about what we put into our bodies now.

I'm not going to say it was easy....the first several weeks she only wanted peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, fruit snacks, granola bars, 100 calorie packs, etc. I don't typically keep those things in the house so she was left with PB&J and the occasional granola bar. I would beg her take an apple, an orange, some carrots. My sweet little strong-willed child would never oblige.

Here we are just five months later. I am grateful to say that my little Macy has changed her ways! I no longer have to supervise while she packs her lunches. I know that she is going to choose healthy foods from a variety of food groups. Check out the lunch that she packed herself Monday morning (before I was even out of bed!):

She packed a clementine, almonds, a hard boiled egg and mini rice cakes! Guess what the school option was? A corndog, chips, green beans and cherry cheescake! I'm pretty sure that Macy was the winner, winner chicken dinner when it came to having the healthier lunch option, don't you think? I am one PROUD Mama!

-Lindsey

What happened after your A-Ha Moment?

So that was it, right?  You had your A-Ha moment and started your journey toward losing weight and living a healthier lifestyle the next day?

Man, I wish.  Unfortunately, after the night that would eventually change my family's path and future, there was a whole lot of nothing.  The night that the light-bulb went off was in June of 2009, so one would think that my journey started right away.  That was not the case.

In fact, life happened.  Our weekend in Des Moines with the college friends came to a close.  All the inspiration and guidance on how to get in shape and lose the weight that I so desperately needed to lose was put on hold.  I drove the family back to Reinbeck.  We unpacked, got the kids ready for bed, cleaned the house and then crashed.  The next morning it was off to work and back to the grind.

Work, family, chores, bills to pay, work, play with the kids, work, work, work.  You get the idea.  Life happens.  Soon, our new baby Tade was born.  Then it was off to Okoboji for vacation, then I had another birthday, then before you knew it Fall had arrived, and I still did absolutely nothing with the vision that I had created back in June.  The vision for the path out.  The plan that would help me finally lose weight and get in shape.

I didn't protect it.  I didn't guard my dream.  Instead, I let life happen and knock my vision to the ground, at least temporarily.

Okoboji July 2009

My 33rd Birthday - August 2009

UNI Football Game - September 2009

Looking back, I can't help but get angry.  Angry at myself for not stepping up and getting after it.  How could I find the answer that I had seeked for years, and then let it fade into the darkness like it never happened.  I kick myself now.  I can't help but wonder what would have been if I'd have only started this journey sooner.

You see, what I know now is that my journey to losing weight and living a healthy lifestyle would influence others into doing the same thing.

"If we start working on ourselves, not only do we change, we can affect other people and help them change as well" - This is one of my favorite quotes.  It is from Charlie Ragus, founder of Advocare.

I didn't get it back then.  I understand it now.  And now that I understand it, I am more upset than ever that I didn't start this journey sooner.  All I can think about are the people that I may have impacted had I started a few months sooner... what if I missed an opportunity?  What if there is someone out there that I missed the chance to influence because I sat on my dream for 4 months?  I will never know.

BUT, what I do know is this.  I will not settle anymore.  My life is changed.  I understand the power of getting after it.  I made a vow to myself, that when I have an A-Ha moment, that I will act, and I will act quickly.  The only thing keeping me from my destiny was fear and excuses.  Fear and excuses would have left me trapped in the body that I once inhabited.  Fear and excuses would have kept me from influencing and helping to change other people's lives. 

So here is what I ask of you.  Act on your vision.  Protect your dream.  If you have an A-Ha moment, do something about it.  Write it down and stick it to your fridge.  Tape it to your mirror in the bathroom.  Don't lose focus.  Find a way or make a way!  And try to understand that it isn't only about you.  If you read this and are inspired to do something about your own fitness goals, then do it!  You never know how many other lives your decision will affect!


Michael
www.teamliveitout.com

The "A-Ha" Moment

I had someone ask me the other day, "When was your 'A-Ha' Moment?  When did you realize that you were going to start your journey to getting fit and healthy?"

What a great question.  And the answer is probably not what you would expect.  There was not a light bulb that suddenly lit up above my head.  There was not a lightning flash or a choir of voices telling me that I needed to change.  Thank God, it was not a Doctor telling me to change my ways or I would suffer a heart attack or stroke at an early age. I avoided the Doctor, or I probably would have heard this last one.  God works in mysterious ways.  And truth be told my A-Ha moment came during an extremely unhealthy weekend of eating junk food and drinking too much alcohol.

It all started during a weekend in June 2009. The family and I were in Des Moines to see some old college friends.  As I have talked about in previous posts, my friend Don really caught my attention.  He had lost 50 pounds since the previous time I had seen him.  He looked great.  He was so excited about his new healthy lifestyle and the running that he had been doing.  We spent the day catching up with some other old college buddies and their families that day.  We ate too much party food, dips, chips, burgers and brats, and drank a whole bunch of cold ones.  It is always great to get together with the guys and catch up on everyone's busy lives with their wife and kids.  And as always, we sat around the campfire and told stories from the old days.  The glory days when we were all back in college and having way too much fun.  After a few hours of sitting around the fire, embarrassing each other with old stories that we had all but forgotten about, the wives started giving us "that look".  While we were drinking beer and reminiscing our wives had been chasing after the kids.  It was starting to get late, the kids were getting tired and grumpy, and it was time to head back to the hotel.

Luckily, Lindsey and Don's wife had not enjoyed nearly as many cold beers as we had, so they were able to safely navigate our families to the hotel.  (Side note, if staying in Ankeny, avoid the Super 8, it may have been the worst hotel I have ever seen!)  As the wives unloaded the kids and shuffled toward our rooms, Don and I gave each other the "wink" and he told me to meet him in the parking lot for one last beer.  Let's just say, that didn't go over too well with my wife.  Not sure why, but my wife (8 months pregnant at the time) didn't see the humor in me staying up to drink even more with my buddy while she tucked in our 3 little children.

Don and I fought through the odds and met at the back of his trailblazer for "one" last night cap.  That was at 11 pm.  During the next 3 hours, and many "last" beers, Don and I really got deep.  He shared his story of becoming motivated to get moving and get into shape.  He explained in detail about his new eating habits, exercise routine, and his plans to run in a marathon someday.  I shared how Lindsey and I had just completed Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University at our Church.  I told him about how we had paid of over $10,000 in debt in only 13 weeks.  We discussed at length our plans to become debt free and live life on our terms someday. It was about 2:30 in the morning when our cooler ran out.  We knew it was time to face the music and sneak back to our rooms with our tail between our legs hoping to not wake the wives up.  No luck.  In fact, I'm pretty sure I not only woke up my pregnant wife, but our little one year old as well.

After 4 hours of tossing & turning on the most uncomfortable bed in the world, the alarm went off and it was time to get the kids ready to go to the zoo.  Ouch.  My head was really throbbing.  I knew I had to hold it together.  Lindsey was upset enough for coming in late and waking up the baby.  If I let on how hung-over I was, I would really get an ear full!  So I tried my best to help out, but I soon found myself lying on the bed with my arm over my forehead.  Lindsey got out of the shower, came out, glared at me, got the kids dressed, glared at me, packed up the bags and the pack-and-play, glared at me, took the bags out to the car, checked out, and came back to glare at me.  But this time, she had to open the door to the bathroom.  If looks could kill, it would have been over for me!  There I was on my knees in front of the toilet, looking up at my pregnant wife and 3 little kids who were wide eyed and excited to get to the zoo.

I manned up and helped get the kids to the car.  I could tell from the look on Don's wife's face that he was in a similar predicament. I held it together, avoided any more illness, and got my family to the zoo.  It was a quiet drive. 

We made it to the zoo.  Our kids had a wonderful time.  My wife was still upset, but luckily I was able to help out and got feeling a little better as the day went on.  I think I drank a gallon of water that day!  Here is a picture of me with my boys at the zoo.

June 2009 - Des Moines Zoo

So the moral of the story is this... you never know when or where your "A-Ha" moment will come.  Sometimes it comes during the most unlikely of circumstances, so keep your eyes open, you don't want to miss it!

God works in mysterious ways.  I am not trying to say that my old college buddy and I drinking all night was God's will, but just listen to what has happened since that night...

Don went on to run in his first marathon as he told me he would.  He began studying the Dave Ramsey principles of being Gazelle Intense about getting out of debt.  He and his wife were able to pay off enough debt and put a budget together that now allows her to work part-time from home!  No longer is daycare raising their children!

And as for Lindsey and I?  Well, I began my journey to a healthy lifestyle!  I followed in Don's footsteps and began running!  Lindsey was so inspired by my running that she began running with me.  We are both now in the best shape of our lives!  I am 100 pounds lighter, and have become a better role model for my kids, a better husband to my wife, and we are now helping others achieve their fitness goals!

Many lives have been changed because of that drunken night with my college buddy.  I thank God for putting Don and I together that night.  I think Lindsey has even come around and now understands the importance of that night and what it has done for our family!  In fact, I might just have to give Don a call... we should probably get together and do some more "brainstorming"!


Michael
www.teamliveitout.com

My Story

As we embark on a new year filled with endless possibilities and great hope, I think this is a good time to share my story of weight loss and working toward a healthier lifestyle.  Or at least the short version of it...

June 2009

November 2010

It all started in June 2009.  That was when Lindsey and I packed up and headed to Des Moines to visit some college friends.  I will come back and share some of the highlights in later blog posts, but what first got me thinking was when I saw my friend Don in Des Moines that weekend.  He had lost about 50 pounds and had started running.

I was certain that I wouldn't have the time or energy to do what Don had done.  After all, I worked 60 hours per week, and had a wife, 3 little kids and one on the way.  Where would I find time to exercise?

Although I often thought about my friend, and what he had been able to accomplish, it took me until October to decide that if Don can do it, doggone it, I can too!   That was my turning point.  That was the moment that my life changed forever.  The date was October 21st, 2009.  I was a 33 year old man that had lived far too many years overweight and unhealthy.  I was sick and tired of being the "big guy".  No longer was I going to accept my own excuses of why I couldn't get in shape.  I drew the line in the sand, and in all honesty, that was the hardest part of my journey.

It had taken years of disgust with my physical shape and appearance to finally get me to the breaking point.  I had had enough.  No more!  And so my journey began.  I called my friend to seek advice on how to follow in his footsteps.  I studied up on what he had done, and set the plans for my own destiny.  Like Don had done before me, I signed up for weight watchers online and began to eat better.  I started working out.  I ran on our elliptical machine (in short increments at first) and with time and effort I slowly started to lose weight.

In the spring of 2010, I tried to start running.  The only problem was, I couldn't get very far!  After only a couple of blocks, I wanted to curl up and die!  I called my friend again, and he told me to stick with it.  So I did.  He signed me up for my 1st 5k in March.  There was no way that I was ready for that, but he coached me through.  I had never experienced a rush of emotions like I felt when I ran through the finish line that day!  I was hooked.  Running became a big part of my life, and Lindsey's too!  We ran together, it was our time away from the kids and we really enjoyed it!

The problem I had was that even though we were running 3 or 4 days per week, after losing about 55 pounds, I hit a weight loss plateau in late May.  I couldn't understand it, I was still counting points (even though I was often hungry and lacking energy), eating healthy, and exercising more.  For over 2 months I battled that plateau.  I was stuck.  Even after running our first ever 1/2 marathon in June, I didn't lose a single pound!  I was getting frustrated, and on the verge of giving up.

That is when Advocare entered our lives!  How it all came to be is quite a story that I will come back to another day, but for now lets just say that God introduced us to Advocare at just the right time.  Like I said, I was on the verge of giving up.  I was frustrated.  It didn't make sense that we could work so hard, but that I couldn't lose any more weight.  Lindsey and I were skeptical at first, but decided to give the Advocare 24 Day Challenge a try.  We were blown away!  I lost 24 pounds and 16 inches in just 24 days!  I had more energy than ever in my life!  Running became easier and even more enjoyable!  So I continued on products and ended up losing 45 pounds in 2 months!  I was able to get to a weight that I hadn't seen since grade school!

All together I lost a total of 101 pounds!  I dropped from jean size 42 to 33!  My shirt size is now L.  It had been XXL or even 3XL.  No longer am I the "big guy".  I am in the best shape of my life, and I continue to improve.  I have been working out and lifting weights, and in doing so I have gained a few pounds.  But these pounds are muscle!

As you can see, I am extremely excited about the goals I have been able to accomplish.  I am thrilled that I was able to achieve results that I never thought were possible.  I am humbled that many friends and family have followed in my footsteps of eating better, moving more, and getting in shape.  This has become my purpose in life, my mission.  To help others achieve goals that they never thought were possible.  To change lives.  Because after all... If I can do it, anybody can do it!


Michael
www.teamliveitout.com

Goals for the New Year!

On the first day of 2011 I look back at this blog with such fond memories!  So many firsts were accomplished while sharing our story via the blog.  2011 promises to bring with it a whole new set of "firsts" for my family!  Lindsey and I are working out the details for the blog this year, but know this... it will be back and better then ever!

At first glance, I can see we need to update many of the pictures on here!  We have continued to work toward our fitness goals, the kids have grown, and the family picture on the "About Us" page needs updated! 

What hasn't changed is our desire to change lives.  This journey all started because I needed a change.  What has happened since taking that first step is nothing short of a miracle.  Not only did I find the change that I was looking for, but along the way Lindsey and I have helped dozens of others find the change they were seeking as well.

I don't believe in coincidence.  I know that I was set on this journey for a reason.  I have found that helping others on their journey is my passion in life. There is no doubt in my mind that this is what God has in store for me, so I am going to give it everything that I've got.  Look out 2011 because we are going to change lives like never before!  We are going to make Iowa one of the healthiest and happiest states in the country! 

I'm not really one for New Year's Resolutions.  I am more of a believer in healthy lifestyle choices, however in the spirit of the new year I've decided to jot down a list of goals for the coming year.  

5)  Be a positive role model for my children

4)  Be a great husband to my wife

3)  Help change lives financially

2)  Help change lives physically

1)  Encourage others to grow Spiritually

All of these goals and more will be addressed in more detail in coming posts.  It all comes down to changed lives.  I am asked all the time about how I was able to change.  I have many tips on that to be discussed in future blogs, but here is the short and sweet version...

1)   I eat better     2)   I move more     3)   I pray     4)   I use Advocare

I look forward to continuing this journey with all of you.  If I can do it, so can you.

Michael
www.teamliveitout.com