The Big Day - Final Post

Waking up and knowing that my big birthday bash is only a few hours away had my nerves on edge.  I hurl myself out of bed at 7:30 am to get an early jump on the day.  I can't believe that it has been 60 plus days since I started this fitness adventure, furthermore I was amazed at the results.  Now I have not looked at my before pictures, and I had definitely not done a side by side comparison until yesterday.  Jen has this really cool app on her phone that takes two photos an puts them side by side.  It is pretty neat, and I was astonished at what I saw.

I have been watching the scale like a hawk, even know I've been told several times that it probably wasn't a good idea.  However, I am glad I did because I was working hard to get fit and I was seeing the pounds dropping off of me day after day.  To date, I have lost 21 pounds and over 6 inches of belly fat.

I can honestly say that this has been the best 60 days leading up to my party and it was the best birthday party ever!  Unfortunately this will be the last post of this blog.  It has been such an adventure and I was very happy to share and write about it.  Truthfully, this is the first time I've publicly written anything, so I hope you all have enjoyed reading and following along with my adventure.

Being Green Lantern was truly special.  As I've stated early on in my blog posts,  I have a strong connection to the character and that has helped me with my journey to fitness.  I went with the Ryan Reynolds version of the Green Lantern, and instead of making a costume I went with a full body painting.  I found this really awesome company that is here in San Diego called Mr. Body Paint,  and you can see his work at  http://www.mrbodypaint.com.  He showed up at my house at about 12:15, and we went over what I wanted.  My plan was to wear a compression runners shirt and compression shorts,  but he said that I should go bare skin on everything except the shorts,  so I took his advice.  Unfortunately for me,  I had to shave my entire upper body and my legs.  But I did it, and he was totally right it came out great!  It took nearly 3 hours to complete and I was proud to be The Green Lantern!

The party ended up being amazing.  At about 3:30 people started to show up to the party, and my house quickly became Super Hero Central.  We had great food,  a tun of laughs and lasting memories that will carry with me forever.  Here are some great characters from my party.

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Day 60 - The Birthday Boy

My eyes open,  I'm 40....Shit.   It all went by so fast,  only yesterday I was a punk kid clueless to the world.  I know my father probably looked at me and thought, how is this kid is going to make it through life.   For many years, I was just that, a kid with blinders on.  I would try, fail, pick my self up and try again.  I learned a thing or two over the years though,  and I know I've made my father proud to this day.  

Green Lantern is now a big part of me,  I didn't grow up with him,  and I discovered him by seeing the movie, but I do not discredit his importance to me.  He represents that try, fail, pick myself up and try again part of me.  The "Will" to go on even when you fail over and over again.  Today on my 40th birthday,  I am a reflection of Green Lantern and I am eager to see what the future holds.

So this is my 60th day of fitness,  we'll actually yesterday was and I choose to do CrossFit.  I look back and I can see all that I have accomplished this past 60 days.  I'm much thinner now,  I definitely do not feel fat anymore.  I am just estimating here because I measured my belly and waist kind of late,  but I've lost about 6 inches off my belly and I went from a size 38 pant, to a size 34.   I have not been this thin in 20 years.  I am feeling great,  I think I am near the best shape of my life and not only that, I have gained a lifestyle and a way to live life that is healthy.  Now I have a birthday party coming up,  and I'm almost all set for my big day.  I still have a week left of fitness to squeeze in, but today I'm relaxing since it's my Birthday and I've earned it.

Long gone are the days of struggle.  Sure each CrossFit is tough,  and running that last .5 miles of a 3 mile run is always brutal.  But it is not a struggle, I am physically fit,  I know my body can handle it and while that last .5 miles sucks real bad,  I push on through it because I can.  I remember the days where each pounding step struck my calves and legs like i was being bitten by snakes on the road.  I remember that Karen (150 wall balls) nearly gave me a heart attack.  I was so out of breath, I could literally have passed out.  I remember, wanting to give up day after day and I'm so glad that those days are behind me.  I'm 40 now,  and I can say with pride that I beat life's challenges.   Life, is just beginning, and I am fit with the tools to beat the next 40.

Today's Goal.

I'm relaxin' yo!  It's my birthday, and I'm going to spend some time having good laughs, and a nice dinner with my family.  No work out today.


Overall Progress.

So among the many inches off my belly and waist,  I've lost nearly 20 pounds, 19.4 to be exact.   I couldn't have imagined this result in 60 days,  but it's true, I did it!  I am super excited for my birthday party on the 7th.  I think i'm going to look pretty damn good as Green Lantern, and I will make him proud.  

So I have one more blog to write before I'm done.  I'm going to write the day after my party,  and I want to share with you all the before and after picture.  I wanted to wait until after my party,  so that you can see my Green Lantern costume and really see the difference between what I was then and what I am now.  So stay tuned,  March 8th, my final blog issue.