Back in February, I made a decision to change my life. My weight was up to 199.5 pounds and I wasn’t happy. I had never tipped the scales at over 200 and didn’t plan on seeing if I could do it. I started exercising on a regular basis and eating completely different.

In a little over 3 months I lost 20 pounds. I continued to my routines and eventually my weight dropped as low as 173 pounds. Around the end of July and through August I was golfing more than ever, so my exercise routine fell off, but my weight stayed around 175 the whole time.

When September rolled around I was able to get back into a regular exercise routine. At the end of September my friend Tom bought a weight bench and a bunch of free weights, so I’ve been lifting for almost 3 weeks now. I’ve already put on 5 pounds of muscle and now weigh around 180.

At SVSU, where I work, they started a voluntary wellness program and have had free screenings. This past Thursday was our 6-month check-up and I was extremely satisfied with my progress. I improved my numbers on all 5 tests and hit target ranges on 4 of them. My BMI is down to 24.5 from 26. Total cholesterol is at 183 compared to the old 191. I’ve increased my HDL (good cholesterol) went up to 51 from 39. Body fat has dropped from 18% down to 15.5%. The only thing I didn’t hit in the target range was my blood pressure, which I think is a fluke. It was taken at 126/88. Every time I go to the doctor or have the school nurse check my BP it’s perfectly fine, but when these nursing students check it, somehow it’s high.

So how did I accomplish all of this?

The biggest way is through a steady dose of dedication. You can’t be successful with any type of diet and exercise program without dedication. In order to be dedication though, you need to make up your mind to do it and stick with it. Many people make excuses that they don’t have the time, but I believe you can be successful with as little as 30 minutes a few times a week for exercise. Eating right doesn’t really take any extra time, so all you’re really looking at is 90 minutes a week. If you can’t find time I don’t know what to tell you.

During the summer I like to ride my bike a lot (usually about 15 miles or so in an hour) and last month I even went for a few 2 miles runs to spice things up a bit. Now that Michigan weather is changing for the worse I’ve made the change to using my elliptical. I do 25 minutes of intervals three times a week. Each time I start with a slow 5 minute warm-up and same for a cool down. The middle 15 minutes are used for intervals. My first workout of the week uses 30 second intervals with 60 seconds of slow down time between. The second workout is 60 second intervals with 2 minutes of slow down, and finally the last workout is 90 second intervals with 3 minutes of slower activity. Intervals really help to give your metabolism a boost.

For the past few weeks I’ve been lifting weights and doing abs three times a week when I’m not doing cardio. Weight lifting usually consists of a combination of bench press, inclined bench press, skulls, curls, shoulder shrugs, upright rows, dips, and pull-ups. The Abs Diet is a great book to give you different ab exercises to do and I try to switch up the ab routine every week, making sure to work the upper abs, lower abs, and obliques.

I believe that exercise really comes down to finding what you enjoy. It could be as simple as walking, but it needs to be something that you like doing or else it’s really hard to stick with. The first couple of weeks are the toughest to get through because you’ll be sore, tired, and wondering where results are. But once you get past that wall and make it habit, it really does become easy.

When it comes to diet, The Abs Diet book has really helped me out. Instead of eating 2 large meals a day and then snacking on junk in between I now try to get in 5 or 6 smaller meals throughout the day. I was never one to eat breakfast, but I’ve been doing it for months now and it really does help. I like to switch it up with oatmeal, cereal (Honey Bunches of Oats or Frosted Mini Wheats), waffles, or bagels.

My first snack of the day comes around 9:30 or 10 on days I work and it usually consists of a banana, oranges, cantaloupe, or pineapple. Lunch is normally a sandwich on wheat bread or pita or leftovers from dinner the night before. After work I tend to have a protein smoothie. Dinner is usually a salad, something with seafood or chicken, and a vegetable. A final snack usually around 8 or 9 at night and might consist of Triscuits with peanut butter, trail mix, granola, or pudding with protein powder in it.

I try to buy almost everything with reduced fat or none at all. Most of the time I can’t even taste the difference. Changing your diet is really something you just need to make a conscience effort to change. Learn to look at the labels when you go grocery shopping. Another thing I’ve cut out is processed foods. I do a lot more cooking now then I ever did before. I don’t make anything extravagant or time consuming, but it really adds up. You’d be surprised how much fat, sodium, and junk is in the frozen or packaged foods that we buy.

What it all really comes down to is making a choice and staying dedicated to your choice. You can make a difference in your life.