Stage 1 - Cook More

Losing weight and endurance training are actually very similar.  If you try to do too much too fast, you will fail.  It takes 5 months of training to run a marathon.  It will also take us time to adjust our eating habit.  For marathon training, you start by running 30 minutes few days a week.  And if you can't run 30 minutes, you walk and run.  It doesn't matter how fast you run, you just need to get out there.  I am going with the same approach on my diet.  I am going to cook more at home.  It doesn't matter what I eat, I just need to prepare more food at home.  Once I get into a habit, then I can worry about eating better.  Remember, baby steps.

The Truth about Losing Weight

bike picture at Vineman

(some people ask me when I did my ironman.  I did the Vineman on Aug 1, 2009... so it's not like I did an ironman 10 years ago and then I got fat LOL)

Hi, my name is Louis. I am a hiker, backpacker, marathoner, and triathlete. I ran a few marathons (26.2 mi), completed the Wildflower Long Course (1.2 mi swim, 56 mi bike, 13.1 mi run) and even finished Vineman Full Distance (2.4 mi swim, 112 mi bike, and 26.2 mi run) with the Team In Training Ironteam.

However I do not feel accomplish because I am fat to some people. Doesn't matter how far I run or how high of a mountain I climb, someone always find a way to ignore what I accomplished and say wow you need to lose some weight. The sad thing is most of these people never run a 10K, let alone a marathon.

It's a typical reaction to a lot of people because overweight people tend to be not on the healthy side. However I am one of the few exception because I carry a lot extra fat yet I completed an Ironman. I actually do not fit the profile of an overweight person being unhealthy. Do you know anyone that completed an Ironman? I don't before I joined the Team In Training Ironteam. I am actually very happy to prove that you can be a little chubby and finish an Ironman.

Because of my active background, I know there is no miracle way to lose weight. I know excise a lot will not make you lose weight. I have training where I bike 100 miles on sat and run 22 mi on sunday. On the day of my Ironman I swim, bike, and run for 16 hours. Yet I did not lose weight. Why? Because I don't eat healthy. I love food and unfortunately I love unhealthy food.

What now? Well I am going to start making better eating choice and I am going to document my journey in this blog. We can always read a lose weight book, get an exercise machine, or see a nutritionist to lose weight. But when is the last time they work? You don't need the ultimate exercise machine. You don't need to follow a straight diet. All you have to do is use your common sense and make small changes. Save your money and don't try to find any shortcut. There is no shortcut to train for an Ironman. There is no shortcut to lose weight.

Please use common sense and talk to a professional about losing weight (Professional means your doctor, not people you see on TV!!!). This is a blog about my journey only. I do not have any qualification to teach people how to lose weight.