Make a Plan – Stick to It – Lose Weight


As many of you know, my wife’s Uncle Allen (Ralph’s Brother-in-law) passed away unexpectedly on the job last year. That spooked her, as she discovered she shared bad habits with Allen, and it motivated her to examine her own lifestyle.

The focus on my health started by supporting her.

Since then, the motivating factors have transformed from fears to goals.

When people ask about my target (or goal) weight I answer 175, but that is not my real goal. When I achieve my goals, my weight may be higher or even lower than the 175, but when I get there, I will know it.

My goals relate to my family and my kids.

We are nearing our one-year anniversary from when we started 280 pounds ago (combined weight loss).
To answer a common question, we did not have surgery!

Our achievement was accomplished by eating less (counting calories) and increasing our level of activity through exercise. We started simply and evolved our plans as we progressed. The plan remains simple. We count calories and exercise.

There were some rough times and it would have been easy to give up when the number on the scale went the wrong direction, especially during the holidays, but we helped each other maintain discipline and stay with the plan.

Eleven months in we have more energy and increased endurance evidenced by the fastest mile (9:47) I’ve ever run. We expected to need new clothes along the way, but what we did not expect was to need wedding bands. Once they began slipping off our fingers, we put them away for safe keeping until we have them resized after reaching our goals. But for now, we purchased inexpensive wedding bands through Amazon. We’ve done it a couple of times, already.

We were never ashamed of who we were, nor are we now, but losing weight provides us more options and gives us more ways we can interact and play with our children. Derek and Olivia absolutely love the park. When we drive past one, two-year old Olivia says, “I want a slide!”

The ability to ride the slide with her creates an irreplaceable memory that wasn’t previously possible.
Our family loves and adores Uncle Allen and he is missed.

TRACKING #1-978426