Throughout the past years I have worked to develop my writing style, and I have come to understand that my style is one that includes a lot of honesty and a fair amount of transparency. Two weeks before Christmas, I was faced with being totally honest with myself.
I was at a Christmas gathering at a co-workers house when I had to visit the facilities, and decided to step on his scale, to my shock the scale read 320 pounds. I chuckled and said “this thing is way off.’ So I asked Don if it was properly calibrated, and told me yes, they had tested it against a couple of others. Suffice it to say that was quite a shock.
I was always an athlete; in high school I was a linebacker and a catcher. In college, as a starting catcher I weighed 225 with 52-inch chest and a 32-inch waist, now I had been slapped in the face with the reality that I had let myself go.
As a competitive angler I had noticed that things had begun to change over the last three seasons. I was always the guy who would stand on the front deck, bucking the waves in a 15 to 20 mile per hour wind fishing main lake points. I fished without a casting seat, and it didn't matter where I had to go, I went.
Over the past few seasons, I have found myself having to make changes to my game plan. I couldn't ride those waves as I used to, I would still go there, but I wouldn't be able to stay all day, it wouldn't be long before my back would hurt, and I was making a run to calmer waters.
Another place I really started to notice the change was at weigh-ins. As the Weighmaster for Future Pro Tour, I am handling a lot of fish each event, and with the amount of competitors we draw, I was feeling almost crippled by the time the last boat came to the scales. These situations disturbed me, and while the thought of getting into shape crossed my mind a few times, it did not become a priority until this holiday season.
Along with the "scale incident" I had taken control of two new accounts at work. I am an account representative for ABM Janitorial Services, and if anyone knows the janitorial business, they would know that it is an exception based proposition; management by complaint, and now I had 5 large accounts that I was responsible for. The week after Christmas was scary, four of the accounts had come to a frustration level with the service, and I was definitely feeling the pressure, as a result, my body reacted by making my chest an middle back tighten to the point where I felt like I was having a heart attack.
It was time to make a change, so I talked to Christina, and knowing that I wanted to be around to see my three little girls grow to be the women they will be, we joined a club.
We joined California Family Fitness near our home in Rocklin for various reasons. I could go before work, because between trying to balance time as a husband and father, writing, Lim-it Lures I could work out and not affect the family so much. Also, they have a great childcare program where we can drop the kids off, and work out together for two hours, Christina can even do that mid day if she needs a break.
I am happy to report that after two weeks of Monday, Wednesday, Friday workouts and by changing the deplorable diet I had resorted to as a result of life on the fly, I am down 11 pounds, not much, but definitely a start. The other positive things are that by back has not hurt as much since I started. Meaning the brief stomach routine I incorporated has already relieved a little tension from my spine. I also feel more energetic each day at work; I haven't felt the need for a mid afternoon snack of caffeine boost to get me through the last two hours of the day. Also, I have not felt the stress reactions over the past two weeks that I was feeling before Christmas.
What does all of this have to do with fishing? Truly, not much unless you consider the fact that my physical condition had started to make competing more difficult. I don't like not doing well, I have always wanted to win, at everything I do, and my body had become a competitive disadvantage, mentally and physically. There are no guarantees in life, but at least now I realize that I should make deposits in the longevity department if I ever want to be successful as a writer, angler, employee, and most importantly as a husband and father.
My goal is to be down to 250 pounds by next Christmas, and periodically I will write an update to how the program is going, and how it is affecting my fishing. As I have come to realize that my writing style is one of transparency, I decided to use you as my accountability partners, and after all, a goal is only a dream until it is written down for others to see; now, about the Classic...
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