70 - 40 Touchdown !

[TotallyOz]

In December of last year I took at look at my life. I have lived an incredibly amazing adventure from day to day for many years. I have also been lucky as hell when it came to health issues. I knew that I was going to turn 40 in a few months and I have never had any health issues. Luckily, I have never contracted any STD or HIV. That is quite fortunate I guess as counting the number of guys I have been with over the years, even Heidi Fleiss would blush. I have also not had any other major issues other than one heart attack scare. The doctors told me bluntly: loose the weight, lower your blood pressure and lower your cholesterol or you will die earlier than you should. That was about 2 years ago and I did not heed their advice.

When I sat down in December with my family I told them I was going on a juice diet and would try to get off 70 pounds this way. I had decided that I needed a life change. I needed to reevaluate my friends, my work, my body and my life. I am not sure why I choose some of the friends I have over the years. Or, why I drank 20 diet cokes every day for years and could easily sit at Come In Bar and eat a whole pizza from the little Italian place on the same Soi. Or why I retired, got bored and then started working again. All in all, there were many things in my life that needed changing and I had a long haul ahead of me not just with the weight but also with other things in life.

So I set 3 stages that I needed for the change. I only talk about Stage 1 in this post but I have been busy on the other stages as well.

Stage 1: Body and Health

Stage 2: Business

Stage 3: Personal Relationships

I did my research, ordered my juicer and books to learn and started my plan. On a Thursday, I was talking to a doctor friend who suggested that there were other ways than juice that may be healthier to loose weight. I agreed with him and I started looking over the Internet. My goal was to loose 70 pounds before my 40th Birthday. It was really a goal that I did not believe I could accomplish in 3 months but I think I wanted to set myself up for failure.

I found the place that made the most sense to me. www.camptechnique.com This was not a spa but a full fledge boot camp for overweight. It prides itself on shocking the body of those who attend and getting them into shape fast. I knew I wanted to loose a lot and I called them up on a Thursday. I enrolled for the following Monday and booked my tickets to Marina Del Rey, California.

When I got there, it was more than I expected. A chauffeur who took me to my fully furnished apartment where the director was waiting for me greeted me. He gave me a little tour and chatted and then he was ready to take me to the gym. The gym was small and quaint. There are never more than 10 people there and they have 4 personal trainers and a massage therapist and a nutritionist on staff.

The owner took my measurements and weight totals and we talked about goals and plans. Then off to the gym we went. My first day I didn’t get in until after 1PM and we finished the day. The next 2 days were grueling and tough. I did not think I would make it. After day 3, I thought I had died. Here is the letter I wrote to my family after week 1.

It has been a very hard and arduous week for me. I started the weight loss program on Monday last week. They threw me right into the swing of things with cardio, weights and sit-ups.

They mix and match things into each day and often they have us go swimming, on bike rides along the beach, military style boot camp on the beach, yoga and a ton of other things.

A typical day for me is:

7:30 Eat

8:00 Partner Training with Personal Trainer in weight room

9:00 Cardio for one hour

12:00 Nutrition Class and eat

1:00 Personal Training session

2:00 Massage

4:00 eat

5:00 Partner Training Session in gym

6:00 Cardio for one hour

8:00 eat

They have us normally about 5-7 hours a day of work. They have us eat every four hours. My diet is limited to 1600 calories per day. I have not been hungry at all. We drink tons of water and they say we can’t drink enough.

On Wednesday of last week, rickamortis set in. I could not get out of bed. I don’t think my body had felt that much pain in 30 years. I was in misery. I got out of bed anyway and made the slow walk to the gym. They were very sympathetic and the trainer stretched me out for 20 min and then said, “OK, lets work out.” LOL I tried to play the sympathy card but it did not work.

My body had ached and pained more than ever. The first day I did over 300 sit-ups. I haven’t done that in 20 years. At the end of the week, a day is not a full day without 500 crunches and sit-ups.

I am learning a great deal about how to eat, how to exercise and how to get my body healthy. It is not easy but it is tolerable.

Today was one full week here. I did a weigh in. I lost 9 pounds total. I lost one inch around my neck, one inch around my waist and one inch around my stomach. I lost a total of 14 pounds of fat according to the body fat percentages.

I have a long way to go but week one is finished. It was probably the hardest thing I have done in my life but also very fulfilling for me. If I am not online as much, that means I an tired. I have been told after this week my body will adjust more to the workouts and the change in lifestyle. I am now Diet Coke free. We are not allowed any sugar, sweets or caffeine. The food is very good and they do keep our minds busy. I had planned to keep a daily journal but often each day I could not type and just sat and watched TV until bed.

I am happy with the first 9 pounds. There are about 80 more to go and each week will not be 9 as I will plateau but this is a long-term thing and not just 2 months. I do hope the 2 months will put me on the right track and from what I see, it has.

Well, that was week one. I stayed for a total of 2 months. It was an amazing adventure. In 2 months, I lost 40 pounds. That was about 5 pounds a week average. Some weeks were zero and some were 9 and 10 pounds. After week one, things got easier as my body had adjusted to the program. The mountain climbs seemed to get easier and more enjoyable. The 20-mile bike rides were not painful in the end but a breeze. The long hours at the gym were no longer miserable but pleasurable. Each week, they push you to do a bit more than the previous week, to work a bit harder than the week before and to do a bit more on each stage of the program. It was a mammoth task but I was able to do it each week.

I learned many things during my 2 months there. Water is the real source of cleansing and nutrition for your body. It is not easy to ever have too much. It gives the muscles the hydration they need and helps cleanse the body. Eating one or two or even 3 meals a day is not the way to loose weight. The best way is to eat many smaller means. They had us eating every 3 ½ to 4 hours and smaller portions. That keeps the blood sugar level and Insulin levels consistent. You need both proteins and carbs and a good balance of both is needed consistently throughout the day. Walking is great but running really throws off the weight. Getting healthier was not only good for me but also very enjoyable. Now, if I got a few days without it, I miss it. Not the same as when I am away from my Thai boyfriend for so long but my body tells me that I need the exercise.

The people I met at the Camp were amazing. It was everything from socialites from NYC and San Francisco to professional basketball players a mom going through a divorce to just everyday average Joes. It was nice to have them as friends and as encouragement through the program. When I went there I was the only gay man. Soon, we have a few others and we had so much fun together. I also learned that I could spend 2 months with straight people and be OK. We had a very religious guy from the deep south that let it be known from Day 1 he did not approve of me but as the weeks wore by, he changed his mind and we became friends as he said he never knew a gay man before. I almost told him I didn’t know any straight ones either but then I had to remember the BF’s back in Thailand and I could not say that with a straight face.

When I left the program, I knew I had to keep working on the body. I started a gym and hired a personal trainer. I currently do about 15 aerobics classes per week and 4-5 weight training classes per week.

My body is in great shape. I do not now, nor will I ever, have the body of Brad Pitt with those hot abs. It is not my goal. My goal was to loose 70 pounds before my 40th Birthday. Well, after 3 ½ months, I have accomplished my goal. It is not the end of the road for me as I still have about 20 pounds to loose. The last 20 are the toughest as it is usually less than a pound or two a week and that is with many hours of exercise each day. But, I have met my first goal and enjoyed it. It has not been an easy journey as I had to learn a new way to eat, exercise and live life. I also had to be willing to work the training into my schedule. It was not easy and I am sure that let some things slide in other areas of my life. However, I did get to where I wanted to be.

If you need a hand to loose weight and have 2 weeks or 2 months to set aside to learn a new way to live, I highly recommend Camp Technique www.camptechnique.com They are amazing and wonderful and I did learn a great deal from them. They set me on the right path to a road where even more amazing adventures will occur!

[Lucky]

Congratulations, OZ. Thanks for sharing your wonderful experience.

[Guest Conway]

Congrats, Oz. I went through the same revalation in December 2005. I stepped into my doctors office and hopped in the scale at 328 lbs. That's pretty damn heavy for a guy 5'9" . The news was not good. He told me to lose weight or die. That simple.

I decided to go the weight loss surgery route. I have a pretty hectic professional life that, largely, contributed to me gaining the weight that I had put on over the last 10 years. Rather than a full blown gastric bypass in which I could have lost my whole target of 130 lbs in six months, I opted for a lap band which causes a slow and more gradual weight loss.

The lap band restricts your stomach size by creating a really small pouch, then tightening it to create the feeling of fullness with just a little food. many of the lessons that youm learned about water intake and small meals is the same philosophy that I have been taught.

To date I have lost seventy pounds. It's been somewhat slow as I have had some infections resulting from my body rejecting the device itself. Those all seem to be cleared up now and I'm active again for the first time in years doing heavy duty aerobic and anaerobic workouts that make me feel like I'm 15 years younger than my present age of 43.

It was quite mindblowing to me last night to be hit on by twentysomething cuties in a bar here in Chicago. Needless to say, I like it.

www.lapband.com

[TotallyOz]

Thanks Lucky!

Congrats Conway. Wow. I guess you do know how it feels. I have not felt this young in years. I have not been hit on by a gaggle of boys but I do get some women that hit on me. Not sure if I need the extra 20 for the boys to start or I am just hanging out in the wrong places.

[Guest Funseeker22]

Congrats Oz, That`s a great accomplishment to date. Now if you feel like a little break come join some of the LA Group on Wed 3/21 at L`Etoile Restuarant in WeHo at around 7pm to eat before we head over to Mickey`s to join Brandon Baker and the boys for a Rentboy event. We`ll make sure there`s plenty of water available.

Hope you can make it.

[Guest eastburbguy]

Oz, that's just awesome!

I have a few years on you x( and I'm just now thinking through my own overdue health "program." Your tale is indeed an inspiration. :7

[KYTOP]

AWESOME BABBBEEEE

keep up the great work, I'm really impressed

[Guest comment]

Thank you for sharing your remarkable journey with us. You have every right to be very proud of yourself. As you near the completion of your first phase I wish you much success as you tackle your other two goals.

[Guest Stephan]

I am really proud of you OZ. I can't believe you did it so fast. I knew you were going to get it done but in so little time ? Amazing keep up the great work.

Stef

http://www.steflacoste.com

+33 870 449 763 ~ France

+1 310 933 6213 ~ Usa

[Guest RR]

amazing story. If we were all so dedicated! Your da man!

[marcanthony]

Of course, I knew privately that you had done this and succeeded... but now want to tell you publicly how happy I am that you did.

You are a contribute so much fun, energy, and spirit to this planet, we need you around for a long time!

[Guest Barry]

I echo what Marc said. When you first sent me your itinerary privately, I was so exhausted I had to rest for days. You already know how proud of you I am but once again, YES!

And your new wardrobe has put you back how much?

[Guest PWIT]

http://www.dfapam.com/applause.gif

congrats Oz! But I didn't see any sex in that daily schedule. Are you making up for it now? :+

[Guest Funseeker22]

Hey Oz.

If you think you can make it on 3/21 please reply to this post.

We have a lot of young attendees I htink you would enjoy meeting. :)

[TotallyOz]

Thanks for the Invite but I am not on the West Coast any longer. I packed up from LA about 6 weeks ago. I hope to come back this summer for a bit.

[TotallyOz]

Thanks guys. I really appreciate it very much.

I have not bought any wardrobe yet Barry. I am waiting a bit before I take that plunge.

I also have also been pretty quiet sexually. My time has been spent mostly with family, old friends and working out. I hope to catch up on more a bit later. I think I hear Brazil calling my name.