www.lovehandlesall.com

Couarge

If you attended Tuesday night's Bariatric Seminar, congratulations. You began the first step towards recovery by accepting where you are today and knowing a better future exists for you. Losing weight is as individual as we are as people.

If you are eligible for bariatric surgery  remember this surgery is only the beginning. If you are ineligible for the surgery, do not despair. You possessed the inner fortitude to attend the meeting. Believe in yourself that you can find an alternative route to living your life and conquering weight.

However you decide to lose your weight remain diligent and selfish in your quest. Involve your friends and family but make your own decisions in concert with your doctor's advice. Be brave. Be resolved. Be human. Choose to live. Discover yourself. Most importantly, be kind to yourself.

MS

Treading water...

With the closing of my family business, and my dad's battle against cancer, I find myself struggling to maintain balance. Dad was diagnosed seven weeks ago today. We announced our closing shortly afterwards; I have exercised once during that time.

More often then not I feel as if I am treading water in a sea of compulsive behavior. Pausing before I act is my saving grace. My mother's a rock. She has remained by his side daily as a steadfast reminder that two people's love for each other can run deeper than the dark waters of the Pacific Ocean.

I long to sit in salt water forgetting the realities I face: a father who may or may not survive his second round of chemotherapy and unemployment. The job search will resolve itself. I feel powerless against dad's cancer. My inner strength needs tapping. Distressing moments are an opportunity to drill deeper into your personal reservoir. When I drill will I discover humility, humor, humanity, strength, serenity? Or, like the wildcatters from long ago, will I tap a dry hole?

Hitting Bottom: 2nd Anniversary

My last post was written six weeks weeks ago a couple of days prior to my thirtieth birthday. I am having a difficult time putting into the words the emotions I feel over the last six weeks; let alone the last two years. Emotions experienced:

Tremendous growth. Evolving. Evolved. Falling in love. Falling out of love. Learning to love myself for who I am all faults included. Shopping for clothes off the rack. (The May ad for Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center show me wearing a size 46 suit. This picture was taken November of 2006. Today, that suit is six sizes too large. Who can imagine that I wear a 40R Suit or jacket?) Truimph. Fear. Anger. Doubt. Inner strength.

My father is undergoing his second round of chemotherapy. He was diagnosed with a treatable form of cancer several weeks ago. All my personal success matters little to me in the face of my dad's battle. His strength dwarf's my own battle. The battle's fought daily by cancer patients, and the victories won by cancer survivors, are remarkable. They lie in a bed, or infusion chair, hooked to toxic chemicals that kill the fast growing cancer cells. I was obese. But I did not have cancer. I had a difficult road to recovery but nothing as difficult as those who undergo chemotherapy.

Obesity is the most pervasive preventable epidemic facing America today. Yet how can people receive treatment for their obesity when gastric bypass surgery is not covered by insurance. Chemotherapy is covered by insurance. This year's Kentucky Derby had a new primary sponsor. Yum Brands, based in Kentucky, ran a series of ads during today's coverage highlighting their growing global position. Yum brands is expanding faster than McDonald's in some countries. Taco Bell sells over 2 Billion burritos a year to over 1 Billion customers. They touted the success of KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut worldwide.

Fast food, in moderation, is tolerable. Companies like Yum Brands and McDonald's employ a great number of people. These corporations can help improve the decrease in obesity statistic through continued modifications in their menus. They have made some small changes but more needs to be done. If the fast food industry ignores their impact of the welfare of the world obesity will touch the lives of people living in countries never effected by obesity. The probability of developing cancer is seriously compounded with obesity. Eventually, insurance companies will need to cover the growing increase of cancer patients to combat the obese population unable to pay for their gastric bypass surgery.

Thirty...

My thirtieth birthday is here. The day has finally arrived.  To commemorate this moment in time I am doing volunteer work. Celebrate with me by donating thirty hours of your time. Volunteer work is a cornerstone of charity. Giving money is wonderful but giving time is giving of yourself. Have a safe and happy St. Patrick's Day!

MS

"Mark, our eleventh hour Scout"

Procrastination is a dangerous co-conspirator towards living an unproductive uninspired life. Inaction defined me for so long my eleventh hour efforts were normal. The first time I ever heard the term "eleventh hour" was twenty years ago from one of the leaders conducting a board of review with my Scout troop. Our December Court of Honor was approaching. I eked in the final requirements for advancement to the next rank at the last minute barely qualifying for that last review prior to the banquet. "Mark, our eleventh hour Scout," was the greeting I heard from one of the dads.

I remember that phrase often. It forces me to evaluate the effort I am putting forth. More importantly, I am forced to evaluate the quality of the effort. I was diagnosed with ADD six years ago explaining my tendency towards procrastination. That diagnosis explains but does not condone inaction. Since I am aware of this tendency I should be more motivated to conquer it. Conquering a pattern of behavior is one the toughest obstacles we face. I conquered many learned patterns of behavior with food. I get my work done and am usually satisfied. My next goal is to no longer allow my ADD to define my inability to complete tasks the way I want when I want. Situations demand eleventh hour effort some times but that should never be the norm for an Eagle Scout who lives under the code of: "Be prepared."

Action will define the next thirty plus years. Nine more days to go. I know I am counting.

MS

Most Eligible Bachelor: The Results

The results are in, I am now the second most eligible bachelor in central Texas. This is an incremental win but a huge turning point in my journey.

If you learned about LoveHandlesAll.com from seeing me in an ad for Weight loss Surgery at Hillcrest Baptist Medical Center or from the Waco Tribune Herald's Most Eligible Bachelor competition thank you for visiting.

Over three thousand people have visited this site the last few months. The bigger win for me is the hope that after visiting my site some of you will change your lives for the better after visiting. My life is dramatically different. And yet, I am still a flawed man living an imperfect life. My past informs my future decisions with 20/20 foresight.  Thank you.

MS

Free Will

Our daily battle of choices made or obligations neglected impact us for far longer than we realize positively or negatively. There is a famous proverb about a tidal wave crashing into a distant coastline obliterating everything all because a butterfly flapped its wings half way around the earth. 

I told some friends a story last night about my childhood babysitter, Mrs. Esther Reinke. She, Reinke, was our third grandmother. My memories of her are filled with laughter. She stayed with us when our parents went out for dinner or out of town and neither set of grandparents were available.  I loved spending time with her in the kitchen when she cooked. The smells still waft in my memories. I still crave her smashed potatoes. She was also a wonderful baker who often brought us homemade cookies. Chocolate chip for Scott, Oatmeal Raisin for Mom, Snicker doodles for Dad, and Sugar Cookies for me. I kept the sugar cookies in the freezer just like my grandmothers kept their Blonde Brownies and Hello Dollies. Those frozen cookies dunked in a glass of ice cold milk were heaven. The milk made the cookies dissolve in my mouth. I haven't thought about this in a long time.  Reinke loved my brother and I. Scott was a freshman in college when she died. I was in eighth grade. Mom and dad took me to visit Reinke at her nursing home the weekend before she passed. Reinke was lively, laughing, and happy to be alive. She had a heart of gold. I can't remember how old she was when she passed. Whatever her age, she died too young. 

I made a solemn promise to never to eat another Sugar Cookie at Reinke's funeral. This was an historic moment were I addressed life with 20/20 foresight. Looking back seventeen years later that promise should have been all encompassing: all cookies, sweets, and desserts. The implicit power of 20/20 hindsight teaches us from our past transgressions. These jewels of wisdom help us approach life with 20/20 foresight. One of my New Year's resolutions this was to identify and eliminate the gateway actions that lead me on self-destructive paths’. Foods high in sugar -- check! 

We are creatures imbrued with the divinity of free will. That decision then informed a path of action for me. I do not feel my choice to give up sugar cookies as anything more than sign of devotion to a special person in my life. Giving up all cookies and desserts would have been a healthier choice in the long run. Can you expect a thirteen year old kid to make that kind of sacrifice? Our actions, our choices (how we exercise this gift) will determine the ending we write for ourselves. I try to use the lessons learned in 20/20 hindsight to inform better decisions. Imagine a world where all decisions are made with 20/20 foresight. It is possible if you are willing to put the work toward the success. This is a theme we will explore at greater length in future essays.

30 Days until 30 (also, one day left to vote)

The world celebrated Valentine's Day yesterday. A friend of mine calls it Singles Awareness Day. But that was yesterday thirty-one days away from my birthday.

This life's journey is always full of surprises. I used to hate the unknown. We fear what we do not know when we should embrace the ambiguity the unknown presents. I would have never expected twenty months and three days ago, the date of my surgery, that my neck size would be too small for to find shirts that fit my neck and arms. Twenty months ago, my neck was nine inches larger. Who knew then that I would be able to burn 700 calories five times this week doing aerobic workouts? Definitely not me. I could barely walk upstairs to my bedroom without experiencing pain in my legs or back. I ate so much food twenty months ago that my bowels began moving the moment my car pulled into the garage. I had to race to reach the bathroom. I ate so much food incontinence was my constant companion. Twenty months ago, the good folks at Southwest Airlines humiliated me by making me buy an extra seat due to my size. It did not matter that the flights were not full. According to Oscar, at the Austin Airport, this was for my "safety and comfort." My humiliation on those two flights began my downward spiral to bottom. That humiliation cost Southwest Airlines over 200 legs flown on their competition. I am grateful to Oscar. He was doing his job and remained empathetic. Although, it was a horrible thing to do a person. How much business has that cost Southwest. This was part of my journey twenty months ago that helped me get to bottom.

Today, marks thirty days from my thirtieth birthday. Makes sense today is a Thursday. I was born on a Thursday minutes after midnight. What is different today than two years ago? A million and one better choices. I went to sleep and woke up at normal times. Went to a sensible lunch with a friend. Worked hard at work. Reconnected with an old friend, John at Running Fit in Ann Arbor (www.runningfit.com). Sweated and worked my tail off this evening at RPM class. I want to get a shirt made that says RPM Masochist. The instructors can wear shirts that RPM Sadists. We are willing participants. This was my third workout of the week with three more scheduled. I exercised more this week than I did all year two years ago or three years ago. More than in the five years prior to my surgery. Reaching thirty is a milestone I was not sure I'd reach two years ago. According to realage.com my physiological age equals 19 years; ten years younger than I actually am. When I first took their test years ago, my physiological age was seven years older than my biological age. A million small decisions equal big results. Imagine what we could do if we all work together to achieve big results.

Help me celebrate my thirty day countdown by joining me in an RPM class sometime at Golds. Or go for a walk with your family. Start the Body for Life Challenge. Eat a piece of fruit instead pie. Eat something broiled instead fried. Make the first choice toward your one million better choices. They add up.

Friday is the final day to vote for the Most Eligible Bachelor in Central Texas.  Voting is your sovereign franchise to exercise. Thank for you for voting.

http://www.wacotrib.com/featr/content/features/bachelorvote.html

MS

Waco Tribune Herald: 10 Most Eligible Bachelors

Thank you to the panel of women at the Waco Tribune Herald for selecting me as one Waco's Most Eligible Bachelors. I am honored. This is just another funny new turn on my journey. Why at twenty-nine am I still single? (Incidentally, my 30th birthday is next month on St. Patrick's Day.)

I believe in the possibility of great love. Each first date, each first kiss, has the potential to become that last first date or first kiss. I am a romantic to the core. My maternal grandparent's always held hands. Everywhere they went they held hands. The family joke was they fell asleep each night holding hands. They were engaged on their third date. They were a part of unique generation. Engaged on their second or third date, during the middle of WWII, who married, raised a family, and were together over fifty years.

My parents are an amazing couple. They compliment each other so well. Alone, they seem incomplete. Most of my friends are married and having kids. The daughter of two of my closest friends turned one yesterday. Happy Birthday, Maggie! A close college friend feels he and his wife were married from the moment they first met. They are expecting their first child in May.

Love is a precious commodity. One that is bandied about too often with cavalier zeal. Until such time, I will continue to live my life optimistic that I will share a great love with someone else. I am a great believer. If you are married, or with someone, cherish your time together. Sharing your heart with another embraces a generosity of spirit. Would that humankind embraced that same generosity of spirit daily with each other. Again, thank you for the honor.

MS

http://www.wacotrib.com/featr/content/features/bachelorvote.html

Las Vegas

Vegas is a special city for me. I care little about gambling. Work has me here for a trade show. Vegas was the city I hit bottom, refer to the post Love Handles All, and I am back again. I could barley walk the block two years ago. Now, I walk Vegas Blvd. as if it were nothing.

Puts things into perspective. More on this later.

Mark