Welcome to Get Fit Slowly! My name is Mac and I want to help you get fit the right way! If you like what you read, please consider subcribing to my RSS feed. Or receive my blog in your email.
The date was November, 2005 and I was fat. I don’t know how much I weighed at that point–I had long since stopped weighing myself to avoid the problem. My daughter was 9 months old and my “sympathy weight” hadn’t gone anywhere yet. Pam on the other hand was BELOW her pre-pregnancy weight.
The Trigger
We were attending the wedding of one of my best friends. He’s a really close friend and I had spent a lot of time at his parent’s house in Vegas while on breaks during college. As a result, I had a pretty good relationship with his dad. We were comfortable enough to joke around, make fun of each other, and generally give each other a hard time.
But college had been over for almost 9 years and I hadn’t seen him in a while. I didn’t realize it at the time, but that dad said something to me on that day that stuck with me for a long time: “Well Mac, you sure haven’t gotten any skinnier since I last saw you!”
That was it. That was my “trigger.” That was the key event that made me realize just how fat I gotten and that I had to change my life.
The Epiphany
At the time, I was pissed off. I couldn’t believe that he would say something like that to me. Not only was it rude, it was the pot calling the kettle black. He was way fatter than me. But for some reason it was OK for him and not for me.
But today, I look back on that day as the day that turned my life around. I had been contemplating losing weight for a while. I had been whining about being fat; I had been dieting on and off–losing weight and putting it back on.
It still took me a while to get in the game and figure things out. But that was the defining moment that made me realize that I had to get something done about my weight.
There’s something wrong in our society when obese people have to be told they are obese by the people they love. We spend an ungodly amount of money battling obesity related illnesses in this country. The last time I went to the doctor for a physical, my doctor told me that my BMI was “a little high.” I was 5’10” and weighed in at 221 pounds. My BMI was 31.7 and I was firmly entrenched in the “obese” category.
If I was a smoker, he would have definitely told me that I needed to stop and he probably would have gotten me the help I needed. My doctor could have told me that I was obese. He could have put me on a diet. He could have referred me to a medical weight loss program. He could have scared me straight. But instead, he chose the easy route: “Your BMI is a little high.” He did enough to set his conscience at ease, but he didn’t do enough to actually help me.
It took someone close to me to tell it like it was. My buddy’s dad wasn’t the only one who told me I was fat. But he’s the one who said it the most bluntly. He’s the one who pissed me off and fired up my emotions about being fat. I wouldn’t have made the change if the people in my life hadn’t triggered the change in my head.
The Keystone
There’s a term that architects use called a “keystone.” The keystone is the center stone at the top of an arch that provides the most support for that arch. Without it, the arch would come tumbling down. My friend’s dad ripped down the keystone that was supporting the arch of my obesity. A few years later, my friends, family and the readers of Get Fit Slowly have given me a new one. Thanks to the people in my life, and the changes that I’ve been able to make inside my head, the keystone that supports my new lifestyle of fitness is very strong.
I think there comes a time in every ex-obese person’s life where they realize it’s time to make a change. If you haven’t had yours yet, I hope it comes soon. If you have, I’d love to hear about it.
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