I stood on the scale while exhaling as hard as I could. I was hoping to end this week around 210lbs. I had not even smelled a carb all week, and enjoyed a solid return to my eating strategy. Looking down, I cannot say I was disappointed. Just the opposite, I was shocked. I was at 208 lbs, and not seen the “single digit” side of 200 since my weight marched upwards over two years ago.
I popped into the kitchen and grabbed the dreaded BP cup, and yep, in the 130’s over mid 90’s! this is the most key indicators in my quest to regain a healthy lifestyle.
This past weekend was our annual Thibodaux Volunteer Fireman’s Fair. When I tell you the food was amazing, it was amazing. I packed my… protein shots and walnuts but did have a few world famous fire grilled hamburgers.
Walking the massive fair grounds each evening for hours I did what Chiefs of Police do. In addition to shaking hands and thanking people for the wonderful comments about our police officers, I was burning calories.
TVFD Fire Chief and fellow dieter, Chad Mire and I spied on each other during the weekend and encouraged each other to stick with it. He did catch me with a giant cup of hot chocolate during an seasonable cold Friday night.
GREAT NEWS! The awesome pool at our university opens Monday and I plan on being in it regularly.
Week 10
Here’s to holding each other accountable when the couch looks inviting and the snacks endless.
Weight
– 208.2 lbs (I’ve stuck to my guns, and enjoying the benefits)
Exercise
– I rocked the gym, the cardio and the track all week. After 10 weeks of mostly consistent exercising, my body nows looks forward to the training challenges.
Eating
– Lt. Lane still has me on a high protein diet. After my nutritional “indiscretion” 2 weeks ago, I was happy to avoid the junk foods.
UNO Ring & BP
– BP stayed in the 130s range. Consistency.
– The UNO ring slips on and off without hanging up on swollen knuckles or fat fingers.
Monday – Sunday Goals:
Heading to Boston this week. No fretting because this is a “walking town.”
– Exercise daily. Preferably outside, but hotel gym closet will do.
– Weight at 208 lbs
– Walk Boston’s Freedom trail but DO NOT get lost like last time.
How are your efforts going? Don’t just read this and dismiss it. Make a commitment today. You have peer support, CopsAlive.com expertise, and a champion fitness advisor all ready to help.
Last week we talked about perseverance and this week we are talking about success. It is quite common for those to qualities to follow one another and success is often the reward for perseverance.
Often times when attempting to do something that challenges us we confront fatigue, failure and frustration. It is difficult to persevere and many people drop out of the process. But success is available only for those who find the strength, muster the courage and find a way to overcome the obstacles. Thomas Edison once said: “I failed my way to success”.
Our CopsAlive Fitness recommendation is to find your personal way to continue when your challenges seem insurmountable. Each of us has to discover for ourselves the resource that we all possess that gives us the courage and fortitude to defeat our inner demons and accomplish whatever it is that we need to accomplish. This advice could fit just as well to surviving a gun battle as it does to finding the strength to do your workout when you don’t want to do it.
Over these last several weeks we have talked about the power of backup, a mentor, willpower, commitment and perseverance. You must discover for yourself what these words mean to you. You must find the right formula that works for you. At CopsAlive we have lots of other cops with ideas to share that are willing to help you succeed. The question is can you shine that bright spotlight of self-examination on yourself and discover what you need to succeed?
Three keys to mastering your willpower:
1.) Always ensure that you are thinking positive thoughts about your success. Don’t let your mental self talk start to work against you.
2.) Set realistic goals, even small ones that are easy to accomplish so that you are always moving toward your success.
3.) Celebrate even the smallest of successes and don’t let minor set backs challenge your positive attitude.
How few there are who have courage enough to own their faults, or resolution enough to mend them. – Benjamin Franklin
Our final thought for you today is that once you reach this pinnacle of first success, remember that there are many more mountain peaks to climb and many more obstacles to overcome. Celebrate your successes and then get back to work because the journey is a long one. Law enforcement is not an easy profession and staying fit and ready for the job is not easy. But if it were easy you probably wouldn’t want to do it and if you didn’t want to get better you probably wouldn’t be reading this.
Tell us how we can help you and leave us your comments in the boxes below.
As we have mentioned, in addition to Scott and Kim, we are also following Rae Timme and the CNN Fit Nation promotion. Rae is a 57 year-old mother of three and a 25 year corrections officer who now serves as the warden of a medium custody men’s prison for the Colorado Department of Corrections. Every year CNN selects iReporters to race in a triathlon with Dr. Sanjay Gupta and the Fit Nation team. This year we’re giving six lucky readers a road bike (with all the necessary accessories), a wet suit and a gym membership to help them prepare for the Nautica Malibu Triathlon on September 8.
Rae said on the CNN site that she has read all the scary statistics about the mortality rates of people who work in corrections and found that they have the second highest mortality rate of any job; on average, a corrections officer’s 58th birthday will be their last. That motivated her to apply for the CNN Fit Nation team.
Rae and the other Fit Nation team members spent the week training at their National Training Center in Clermont, Florida! https://www.facebook.com/CNNFitNation
Keep up the good work Rae we are rooting for you!
EDITORS NOTE: Our Fitness Monday articles are an ongoing feature as CopsAlive.com follows Police Chief Scott Silverii, Ph.D. on his quest to lose weight and get into better shape, and Lt. Kim Lane as she prepares for the NPC Masters Nationals in Pittsburgh, PA. We are also keeping track of Warden Rae Timme with the Colorado Department of Corrections, a member of the CNN Fit Nation Team, as she prepares for the Nautica Malibu Triathlon on September 8. We all know that fitness is critical in law enforcement, but we don’t always do what we know is right. Over the next couple of months you can follow Scott, a Police Chief; Kim a Patrol Shift Commander; and Rae a Department of Corrections Warden, as they open up their lives to you. We invite you to also participate in any way that you choose to improve, your fitness and, your ability to survive a career in law enforcement. We also encourage you to support Scott and Rae with your comments, emails, Tweets and Facebook entries.
Follow Rae on Twitter at: @TriHardRae
Follow Scott on Twitter at: @ThibodauxChief
Please encourage them and let us know about your efforts at improving your fitness in the comment boxes below
CopsAlive is written to prompt discussions within our profession about the issues of law enforcement career survival. We invite you to share your opinions, ask questions and suggest topics for us in the Comment Box that is at the bottom of this article.
At The Law Enforcement Survival Institute (LESI) we train law enforcement officers to cope with stress and manage all the toxic effects and hidden dangers of a career in law enforcement.
Our “Armor Your Self™: How to Survive a Career in Law Enforcement” on-site training program is an eight hour, hands-on, “How to” seminar that helps police officers and other law enforcement professionals armor themselves physically, mentally, emotionally and spiritually to survive their careers in police work. To learn more CLICK HERE
The concept of “True Blue Valor™” is where one law enforcement officer has to muster the courage to confront a peer who is slipping both professionally and personally and endangering themselves, their peers and the public. It takes a system of organizational support and professional leadership to support and foster the concept of courage and intervention. We will train your trainers to deliver this program to your agency.
To learn more CLICK HERE
Our “Armor Your Agency™: How to Create a Healthy and Supportive Law Enforcement Agency” Program includes critical strategies that you will need to build a system of support and encouragement for a healthy and productive agency. To learn more CLICK HERE
CLICK HERE to read more about The Law Enforcement Survival Institute.
CLICK HERE if you would like to contact us to learn more about training for your organization.
John Marx is the Founder of The Law Enforcement Survival Institute and the Editor of CopsAlive.com. Connect with him on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
CopsAlive.com was founded to provide information and strategies to help police officers successfully survive their careers. We help law enforcement officers and their agencies prepare for the risks that threaten their existence. Thank you for reading!
