A reason to be thankful...trust me

So today started out like any other Saturday for the last few weeks, I woke up both early and tired from working the long days in a row Thursday and Friday. I woke up a little after 5 AM in order to get my workout in, get in the shower, have breakfast, pack a lunch, and head off to class. On the way to class the skies opened up something kind of crazy and dumped all kinds of snow all over the place. TDOT was not ready for this to say the lease. It just about 20 minutes the highways were 100% covered in snow and iced over. Cars were sliding all over the place out of control, I was doing just find for a while but then just like everyone else I started to slide. When I first started to slide I missed a Nissan by about 4 inches before I was able to gain control of the car and get it stopped. When it stopped I was sideways pointing right at a the wall between the north and south bound lanes. I got the car pointed the right way and started to make my way down the highway again. At this point I decided that I was going to make it to the next exit and get off the highway and just wait until the sun came out and melted everything before heading home. Well that never happened. Another patch of ice on the highway on a bank caused what could only be called a car pile. If I could paint a picture for you it looked a lot like a giant had played match box cars and left them all in a giant pile on the side of the road. Once I got to that part of the highway I just threw in the towel, put the car in park and just watched as everyone tried to keep going. (Guess they had nothing better to do than to file an insurance claim). The one thing that really blew my mind was when the 18 wheeler tried to make it and slid down to make sure it pinned all the other cars down until someone could pull it out.

I tell you all this to let you know how fortunate I am. If you recall I did a post not to long about trusting God and knowing that he is in control. Each time I started to slide I didn't panic I just kept cool, tried to gain control of the car and say a little prayer that it would be OK. Don't get me wrong there were a few times where I thought for sure my Saturn would be spending some time in the body shop but that never happened and nobody hit me either. It seemed every time the car stopped sliding or the wheels gripped again it was right after I finished a little prayer to keep me safe. I was not concerned about damage to the car but concerned about staying safe and getting home to the family. Turns out in the end I was being watched the whole time and being protected.

Trust

Go figure

Great week but a rough start

This weekend I had one of the best weekends you could ask for. I took Friday off so that I could spend time with my beautiful wife on her birthday and do everything I could to make it a great day. The weekend just continued to be just as great and ended with a great small group and service at church. I want to start by talking about that, I posted about how I was doing with the coaching and how it all comes down to trust, in my LAST POST I talked about being worried about giving up my teaching job and using my current job and coaching as a way to provide for my family. When I was finished typing I said a prayer to be able to follow what I had just written. The next day I had a great day in coaching and think I inspired another person to get into it and to get fit. Then on Sunday we go to small group and guess what the study was about! Giving up control and trusting that god knows the way for you and that you can't do anything about your journey it is all up to him. Finally we get into the sermon......more about trusting God. Who knew that I would think it, write about it, then hear about it twice all in less than four days. That isn't just something that happens. If that isn't sign enough to trust in God I don't think there can be any more for you without him slapping you across the face.

Monday started the Beachbody Challenge voting for the quarterly winners. I am in it and am up against 11 other guys that have all had great results so it is going to be a hard win. I can say that if I don't move on it won't have anything to do with no support, all my Team Beachbody buddies have been voting for me and getting everyone they know to vote for me. Now my personal friends....no so much :-(. If you are reading this and feel compelled to vote please do I can use all the support. You can vote by going HERE if you don't have an account to the site you can sign up for a free account but clicking the not a member at the top of the page. All support is welcome, I really want to show people that a regular guy can do it and hope to inspire others to do the same.

Now the bad news, after about a week and a half of being out of the hospital after an almost 6 week stay my mother in law finds herself right back in the hospital but this time with heart problems. Things are getting serious and the family is very worried. Her name is Jan, I won't go into the details about what is going on but any prayers you could send her way are welcome, right now she could use every prayer that is coming her way. The positive out of the bad situation is that everyone is coming out to support and it is really bringing out the good in people and letting her know that she is loved by many. Please take a moment to say a small prayer for her. 

Have a great day all.

Justin

It all comes down to trust

So the last few days have not been all that great for me, I have been pretty frustrated with a lot of things and to be honest with you something that is coming up in the next few weeks has me really.....really nervous. The change isn't something that I can really go into right now but it is going to make things much better for me in the way of time and stress but I have money concerns about the change. I think this impending change is what has me a little stressed. I am making the change to make a better home life for me and add a lot of free time to spend with my family. The reason I am making this change is because I am putting a lot of trust in my ability to coach people successfully and motivate others to make a change. That is the scary part, as of now I don't know that I am doing the best job at that. I seem to be able to get people fired up about fitness and changing but have a track record of keeping about 10% of those people committed to the change. I know that some of this is my own fault for not being committed to the coaching while going after some certifications so I can't blame anyone but myself.

This is where the trust comes in. Someone once told me that in the bible Jesus says "Don't Worry" and I have to keep telling myself that. By nature I worry about money and if I am able to provide for the family so making a change that is going to take money away does not help with the not worrying. I keep telling myself to trust and in trust I mean trust in the Lord to take care of us. We all know HE will not put more on our shoulders than we can carry. We will face challenges but he gives us those challenges because he knows we can handle it and it will make us stronger. As a matter of fact, I got up early to workout and when I was done everyone was still asleep. I didn't want to wake up my wife so I stayed in the kitchen did my bible reading and devotional and prayed. As part of my prayer I admitted that I am making the change to trust HIM and to know that he will take care of us (he always has) I also prayed for my coaching I was about to lose my status as a coach and be downgraded to a coach, and I was going to go inactive which means I was not going make money. This really made me worry more, I prayed that he help me there, I told him I trusted in him and that he would see me through this. Next thing I know I get a new coach number me (lets me keep my rank), get a sale (keeps me active), AND hit something called Success Club (every coaches monthly goal). Needless to say a total 180 degree turn around all from one prayer and falling into trusting HIM. Give it a try you will be surprised at the results.

Something to fill you APPetite

So today I thought I would spend this post telling everyone about some of the apps I am using on my phone that have helped on on my weight loss journey. Some of these app are new and some of them I have been using for a long time and don't know if I would have been able to do what I have done so far without them. These are in no particular order I am just putting each one out there for each of you to see. If you have an app that you love to use as part of you fitness and nutrition please comment below and I will check them out.

My Fitness Pal

I know I have mentioned this one before but I am going to mention it again. I have used several app over the last two years that are supposed to help track your food and calorie intake and by far this is the best one. Why do I like this app more than the others? Well here is a few reasons. 1. It is FREE you just sign up for an account and off you go. 2. You can use it on the web or your phone. 3. It is customizable to any nutrition plan you are on at the moment and can be programmed to keep track of the protein, carbs, and fat you are taking in each day. 4. The phone app has a bar code scanner that uses the camera on the phone, you just put the phone up to the bar code, it scans it and enters it into your diary. Great tool for tracking what you are eating.

 Run Keeper

I used to use this app all the time (when AT&T GPS could find me) when I was running a lot more. This is a great little app, it uses your phone's GPS to keep track of where you are and your runs. It will tell you the number of miles you ran, your current pace, average pace, calories burned, elevation change, you name it. This is a great way to set a goal such as I am going to run 25 miles this month...it will do that too! It keeps a running tally of all your runs that can be broken down by the day, week, month, or year. If you are thinking about getting into running this is a must have, you would be surprised how far you are actually running when you are tracking it. Plus watching those miles begin to add up really keeps you going.

Fooducate

This one really goes hand in hand with My Fitness Pal. This app does not track food, progress, or anything like that, this app is totally informational. This is a great guy to have with you when you are at the store getting your shopping done. What this app does is let you scan a products bar code (much like My Fitness Pal) and will give you a grade on how healthy the product is. It grades on a letter grade scale just like when you were in school so the higher the grade the better the food. You can even add the option to have it warn you when the food you are eating contains GMOs or not. It is another great free app, give it a shot, you will be surprised where some of your "healthy" staples land.

Max Capacity Training

Here is a workout program that has you working out a few days a week for only 15 minutes a day. Trust me this is no small task. The workouts are intense and so are the moves. To give an example the first workout you do will have you doing 50 seconds of pushups followed by 10 seconds of rest four times. This will continue into squats, planks, and other moves. The point of this is to get you working hard right off the bat and keeping you there to see just how far you will go. The app is 100% free as well and gives pictures and instructions on how to do each of the moves and the timing for each exercise before you go and do them so take a minute to read what you are going to be doing fully before you go out and do it. Don't have a lot of time and want a good workout? This one is for you.

Not one of my better days

So as you no doubt read from my Monday post it was a great day and that day carried into Tuesday as well. I went to bed totally excited about winning the December Beachbody Challenge. I followed up that day by waking up nice and early on Tuesday and did some P90X One on One Yoga and in case you were wondering I am a huge fan of Yoga and it always puts me in a good head space. I know everyone reading most likely knows what yoga is but here is a picture to help you visualize why it puts me in such a great mood. In case you are wondering, I can't do that nor would I ever give it a shot I just did a search for crazy yoga poses and that is what came up. The yoga that I do is pretty hard but nothing like that. I do Bob Harper Yoga Warriors and P90X Yoga X. Both great yoga workouts and both will totally change your mind about yoga in general, they did me. I never thought I would be one for yoga but it is a great addition to any workout plan. Anyway, I digress...again.

Yesterday I don't know what was going on but by the middle of the day (closer to 10 AM really) I was just in a bad mood, and I was not doing well to keep in until it passed. The reason why I share this is two fold. 1. It shows that everyone is human and we all have days like this. I know I am writing this blog to share my thoughts as I try to become a better person, a journey that should never end in my opinion, but everyone has bad days. It is how we deal with those bad days and how we project those bad days onto others that makes the big difference. Rather than let it pass or find the root of the problem I decided to lash out a little and let the mood affect most of my day. Let me tell you that is not the correct way to deal with being in a bad mood. 2. To let everyone know that this is normal, don't let a bad mood, day, or workout ruin things for you I have plenty to be happy about and most of it came this week. Have there been some down things and am I on a epic streak of not doing well with my Beachbody coaching...yes! Am I going to let that bother me and fester or am I going to see what I can do to fix it and get things going in the right direction. I know the answer for me personally, the trick is to look inside yourself to find what your answer is....be honest.

One last thing and I will be on my way, these have been getting long the last few times! I have been trying to help out a guy I came across on the teambeachbody.com forums. He was complaining that he was not getting the results he wanted doing INSANITY. He is very confused and does not know what how much or what to eat. He is not following the nutrition guide and doing what he wants, so guess what is problem is. I tried giving him advice but his response every time is negative and he does not want to hear it. I don't know what he has going on in his life and it really isn't my business but it is important to note that his attitude is going to be his downfall. I told him that every interaction he has had with me has been negative and if he goes into his day like that it is what he is going to get out of his day as well. Or in this case his workouts. I wish him the best and hope that he finds his results but some people just don't want to be helped. By the way this little story will most likely be part of a future post soon.

Justin

An amazing thing happened!

Hope this inspires others

Yesterday I was at a work dinner that was given to all of us that got promoted this last year. Yep, I was announced as someone with a promotion at the end of the year. What made this promotion so special? Let me tell you. You know you are valued as an employee of a company that you have been working for almost 5 years when the sign they put on your door spells your name wrong. Yep that is right, they did not spell my name correctly. Now this is not a new thing to me people spell my name wrong all the time but it is normally my last name. I totally get that, Bumpus is not the most common name around and I don't speak up all that much on the phone so I can give people that one a lot of the times. What made this one different was they spelled my first name wrong, yep, the first name Justin, J-U-S-T-I-N pretty hard I know. I can cut them a little bit of slack since it has ONLY been 4.5 years I have been here. Anyways, I digress, that is not the reason for the post I just wanted to get it off my chest.

Here is what you should read

While at the promotion dinner I got an email from Beachbody (the people I always talk about), makers of INSANITY, P90X, and all kinds of other great workout programs. The reason for the email, every time you finish a workout program you can send them before and after pictures so that you can get a free T-Shirt. Well the last program I did (you can find it by clicking the fitness programs tab) was Tai Cheng, I used it to let my body recover and work on balance and body control. Which on a side not saved my bottom from eating it yesterday when I slid on a bad patch of ice in the parking lot, but that is another story. They were so impressed by my results (I sent them my total transformation) that they named me the December Beachbody Challenge winner for my age group. What does this mean? It means that I get a check for $1000 dollars for being the winner (I got the email just a few minutes ago that it will be coming) and will be putting me in the quarterly voting for a trip to LA, $5000, and a chance to win the $100,000 dollar grand prize, can't ask for too much more than that. I will post the link here so you can go and vote for me!!

What to take from this

I am just a normal guy, nothing special or spectacular about me. I made a decision that I needed to make a change in my life for my family so that I could be around for a while and not on my way to the grave like I had been the way I was living. I stuck with my determination and 18 months later I was down over 120 lbs and 16 inches off my waist line. I think that most people to don't reach their goals because they have not found the real reason they want to lose. I should know I had tried several times before to lose the weight I had but had failed each time. What was the difference between this time and all the times before? I didn't just wake up and decide to get fit. I really thought about it, decided why I wanted to do it kept that thought in my mind when things got hard or when I didn't want to get up in the morning and workout. That thought, the thought of growing old with my family is what kept me going. I know the thought is going to be different for everyone I just want to make sure everyone knows to go ahead and find that reason make it a good one and hold on to it, before you know it you will reach your goal.

One last thing

You heard me say wake up early...that is right I choose to get up in the mornings and workout before I do anything else. I know it is hard for some people to comprehend because everyone loves their sleep but for me I know that if I had a crappy day at work or if something happens where I can't be home on time I know that I will skip workouts. I guess you have to ask yourself, what is more important another 30 to 60 minutes of sleep each morning or more years on this earth to enjoy the time with your loved ones.....just something to think about!

What I did changed my life!

Ok, here we are 10 days into the new year, I know this is going to sound weird but it already seems like it is going by so fast. I can't speak for everyone but I can say that it feels like it has flown because I spent so much time reading and studying that I didn't get to spend the time I wanted to with the family around the holidays. I know, sob, but just like I said in my last post time is gone, and it is time to move forward which is what brings me to my topic today.

As many people know, and most that have been reading this blog or my last blog I started on a difficult journey two years ago. This isn't a new journey it is a journey millions of Americans start on each year and millions of others should but don't. What is the journey you ask, most of you know what is coming.......getting fit. Yep that is right, I am going to bring up the fitness I have found yet again. I am not doing it as a plug or a go and get it, I am doing it to prove a point on how it has changed my life. It does go without saying that losing 125 lbs and 16 inches from you waist does change your life in very obvious ways, I feel better, I sleep better, I have more energy, I look forward to going outside with the family, the list goes on and on. This is not the change that I want to talk about today, the change I want to talk about is how this fitness change changed me on the inside.

When I first decided to get fit, I was not doing it for me, I was doing it for the people around my, most importantly my wife and my daughter. I wanted to make sure I was going to be around for them and at the rate I was going that was not going to happen. I had not been to a doctor in over 10 years because I know what I was going to be told and I did want to hear it. The changes that have made the biggest impact on my life are the changes that have happened to me in the inside. These changes came from making the changes on the outside. No I am not talking about blood pressure and things like that, I am talking about the drive getting fit put in me. What do you mean you ask, let me tell you.

When getting fit and working out you know, or at least you better know, that it is going to be hard and there are going to be set backs. This does not hold true for just working out it hold true in life. Working out gave me a goal and I worked to that goal until I got it. I went after it with a passion. Did I have set backs, yes. Did I get discouraged, yes. Did I have days that I just wanted to quit because the voice in my head told me I couldn't do it, yes. There were even days where I would let that stop me and skip a workout or end early but I would get upset with myself and get right back on the horse. What is the point here,  the point is I set a goal and I went after that goal with all that I had and I got there. Yes I am using my fitness as an example but the can be applied to anything, I decided I was finally going to buckle down and get my CISSP, I made that a goal and trust me I went after that harder than I had gone after anything and guess what, I did that.

I am not trying to puff out my chest and tell everyone how great I am. (I have never felt that way trust me) I am telling you all this to show you that no matter what your goal is, no matter how big that goal is and how far away it may seem you can do it. Let me put some stress on the important part on that and say it again YOU can do it. Yes you, what I am saying here is that setting a goal isn't enough, you can't say this is the year I am going to get in shape or this is the year I am going to get a better job, or this is the year that I am going to get out of debt, and then keep doing things the way you have been for years. Don't think for a minute that doing what you have been doing for years without making changes is going to get you to that goal. You have to get out of your comfort zone, you have to do things that you don't want to do, and get this you have to give up some things and make some real change. It will be hard at first (trust me I know), there will be days that you don't want to do it or that you want to fall back to your old ways but don't let that happen.

Set your goals, go after your goals, make the hard changes, and reap the rewards. Focus on the small victories to keep you going and before you know it you will see your goals get done and you will be amazed at how great it will make you feel.

Hope this helps all of you that made commitments this year...just a little food for thought