Great Weekend

It was cold here, but I have to say I had a great weekend... Saturday, we went to a power lifting tournament...now ain't that butch..... It was sooo neat....I like the smaller weight groups....the big guys are strong, but they are unhealthy... But then I got in a good work out....Kelly spent the weekend drawing... Today was cold but clear....I got in a fantastic work out....30 on the bike, 1 1/2 hour on the weights, and 35 on the eliptical....I was soo invigerated...and seeing the weight lifting kids yesterday...I was inspired.... Just really nice to see kids who enjoy exercise and being healthy.... Then this afternoon....went to Sams and got provision for the week... And then was able to take a couple of the young kids from the gym, to dinner, we went to OUTBACK...Y'all know when you are 18 and working part time...you never get to go splurge....We went to  protein up...and we did,,,,Chicken wings, ahi tuna, and t-bones....even the 2 kids....the carbs were left on the plate....(except for kelly's...of course) It would really be nice to have the money to do this all the time...to kinda reward kids and show that they are appreciated....(the girlfriends were invited too...funny we know the girl friends...one, maryann,...she is a tennis player....and to be a little girl....she eats like a jock....) She sent me a nice note, that she had to babysit her sister, and had to bail out at the last minuet...but to please send her some ribs..and bread...That's my girl.... The other you lady, is a vollyball girl...man she was specific with her diet....salad with chicken..lite on the oil with  the grilling, and steamed veggies.... the guys just ravaged the meat....and a little shocking whenthe Ahi Tuna came out...they had never tried it...you know those little delicate cuts of fish....they each skewered three peices and put it in their mouth at one tiem...cheeks puffing..and still talking...this is good! It wsa nice to see young people, not making the mistakes that I made...kinda gave me hope for the future...and these kids are smart too...today is a holiday, and they were talking about getting caught up on school projects... We talked about the exercise they are doing, and you could see the different ranges...the vollyball vs the power lifting...and they wer courious as to my diet...and they got to see first hand, how I had to eat slow....and chew chew chew...and they even commented, on how I didn;t drink any tea,,,, It was nice to have fellowship with health conscious people, that were not formally obese....does that make any sense...no talk of dumping or extra skin... but plenty of protein, and low fat talk...they even talked about team mates that were getting chunky, and how the team was being supportive... We are goona try to expand this, the gym owner wants to come next time....the fathers are gonna come....they are exercise people too... I was just really inspired... thanks for letting me share Russ

That sounds like a marvelouslly wonderful thing to do and way to invest your time in helping others, especially youth.  All while branching away from WLS post-op care and into mainstream health consicousness.  That was great Russ.  An excellent exapmpe of where our new lives can take us and inspiring on top of that.  Thanks for sharing that.  Now thats applying our new-found knowledge beyond our own realms. FART!!!

Hey Russ, This is a great post..........very inspiring and uplifting.  I needed to hear a lot of what you were talking about here.  Thanks again for posting.

Hey Russ, I could feel your excitement coming through the post.  Great Post!!  I have a 12 year old son and a 7 year old daughter.  My son now works out at my gym 2X a week in group sessions with my trainer.  he also plays tennis, Lacrosse, and soccer (not necessarily the best athlete but enjoys the games and being a part of the practices, etc).  My daughter plays soccer and tennis. Every chance I get I try to get them involved in their own exercise and eating choices.   Hopefully, when they get older, they will be more like the kids you were with this weekend instead of the kind of kid I was growing up.  Making better more informed choices and taking care of themselves properly. Thanks for the post. Brian

Russ, Great post.  It is nice to see people be active after WLS and pass good eating habits along to others.  This is one thing my wife and I have talked about.  I am in the process of being approved and although she is not morbidly obese she has some weight she wants to loss also.  We have one child at home that we both worry about the eating habits we have let him develop.  With all that being said we are changing the eating habits in our house as a family and look forward to having a heatheir lifestyle. Seeing what people like you have done is a true inspersation to me.  Keep up the great work and keep posting these great stories.

Great - how inspiring! This weekend my family celebrated three birthdays - my gransdaughter and son and daughter in law.  Virtually everyone was more health conscious since my surgery.  One son is moved hard into power lifting, two daughters working on their weight (one going to OA with me) and everyone watching what they eat.  There was tons of ice cream and cake left over - threw it out 'cause nobody wanted to take it home!  That my decisions have so much influence on my family makes me want to work that much harder! Thanks for the inspiration, Russ! CB

way to go. you know those powerlifters are actually super fast people and can concentrate more than the rest of us! powerlifting is just a mind game and speed game. a very interesting sport. that's why you can see these little women lifting such huge weights. they have the fast twitch fibers and total mind control to out think the actual weight going overhead. it's a total science game. it's really something what happens the second your hands feel the weight of the bar lifting off the ground. i think there was a program on cable that was showing the science of super human strength. catch it if you can. it shows how the olympic lifters train and all the science behind it.

i agree, it's great to see kids eating healthy and being concerned about health instead of sitting around smoking and eating bad. that takes dedication and an ability to reject peer pressure to do otherwise. they know where they're going......carbonblob

Hi Russ, I concur with the other guys, this is a great story. I don't know about you, but I would have been hesitant to "let myself" enjoy myself and be that enthusiastic when I was at my fattest. Partly because I just wasn't always as positive as I wanted to be, partly because I didn't have the energy I do now, and partly because I often settled for being a spectator. This kind of post ought be required reading for all of us, from wannabes to newbies to posties. There's a lot more to wls than just losing weight. There's LIFE! Thanks, friend, for sharing your happy weekend.

Russ, Sounds like a fun time had by all. Youth is inspiring isn’t it? Here at a University setting I’m swamped with "Potential." Some many young kids With a Life ahead To succeed with or squander as they see fit. Keeps me young….. What a Great way to Celebrate MLK! Have an even better rest of the month! Best Wishes- Dx