Hey. Remember me? Yeah. I’m that guy.

I’m not dead. Heaven forbid I should become one of those teeny-bopper rumors we all heard in high school (I think the big one that really impacted me was that Mark-Paul Gosselaar had died…if you know me at all, you probably know that I’m a huge Saved by the Bell fan. Go ahead and make fun of me, but there’s no way you’ll EVER beat me at SBTB trivia).

So, it’s been a while. A LONG while. And, frankly, I don’t have much to account for my absence other than the semester from hell. I’d tell you about it, but it would only throw me into a foaming-at-the-mouth rage witnessed by few, and only comparable in nature to the time Sarah Palin mocked community organizers at the Republic National Convention. Well, either that, or the time FOX cancelled Arrested Development.

I have, no doubt, lost readers, but I want to thank those of you who’ve kept up with me from time to time. Your support has not gone unnoticed!

However, I am back to regain my journey. I made a significant dent by losing 30 pounds. I haven’t stepped on a scale lately, but the fact that I don’t want to should tell you something. The time has come to re-engage my goals and get serious about them.

When I started this, I realized that I might fall a couple of times. In fact, of the stories I had read of really successful weightloss, many had to lose and regain several time before the true success took place. If this is one of those times, so be it. I’m ready to get back to it, and I’m ready to share my endeavors with you again.

I went for a run last week and it felt really great. I need to remember the fact that I can do it. That the despite the fact I weigh…what I do…I AM A RUNNER. I need to be grateful that I can use my legs to carry my corpulent body a few miles in under an hour…and I need to use that to get me back on track.

Who’s with me?

The Bottom Line

About four years ago, I went to see a new doctor on the referral of a friend. “He can help you, I know he can,” was her earnest testimony of a man who evidently had a knack for curtailing obesity. Reluctant as I was, I was unsatisfied with my doctor at the time who was much more keen on flirting with the geriatric girls than helping an overweight kid salvage some of his life.

This new doctor – we’ll call him Dr. Genius – seemed to be nice, but was relatively quiet and didn’t talk a whole lot. After the usual BP, pulse, temperature, deep breaths, etc. he took a seat opposite me, paused a second and said very convincingly,

“You’re overweight.”

Now, while I tend to be quite the smart alec around those with whom I’m very comfortable, I could not help but to blurt out, “Uh, did you go to Harvard for that?” The look on his face didn’t change, and I apologized quickly and went into a five minute diatribe about how my weight problem was evident and that the stress I’d been dealing with at the time had more or less pushed me over the edge. He was gracious and understanding and after the appointment, I determined that Dr. Genius was not the one for me.

His statement, though true and completely obvious, was also a wake-up call (one of many). Was this something I had actually accepted? Did I look in the mirror and see something other than the reality of a pudgy body that only fit into 52″ jeans and 3XL shirts? Was I in denial?

It would probably be easiest to answer ‘yes’ to all of these questions despite the fact that I really don’t know. What I do know is that Dr. Genius was right. I am overweight. I am fat. And as much as I absolutely loathe this word, I am obese.

More than anything, I am using this blog as a tool to hold me accountable. There is a lot to establish in terms of my past health history. I can only assume that after reading this introductory post (if, in fact, it will be read), that some will form various assumptions. That’s fine by me. My only request is that you continue to read what I have to say and get to know me, my body, and what “we’ve” been through over the past several years. If I can use this as a way to get myself healthy, then I’ll have been grateful for doing it.