Breaking down the Wall, A fight to remember

8...9...10 ahhhhh, I grunted and dropped the 60lb dumbbell beside me on the floor. I just paused there for a second, bent over on the bench with sweat pouring off my head and splashing down in the floor. My breaths were deep and fast and I was exhausted from the intense workout I had just completed. Now upright and sitting on the bench I thought to myself, this is it, I have broken down the wall that has stopped me so many times before and I am now in control. The past month I have battled like I never had before in my life and now it is over. I am the winner, and I am again in control of my body and let me tell you its feels great.

A month earlier I stared up at the ceiling as the light reflected off the Puget sound and through my blinds that were open. It was 1:00 p.m. and I had been laying like this for over 2 hours. In that one fateful moment I had realized that my life was circling the drain.

The dream condo I had once bought with my lovely girlfriend was 2 months from foreclosure. The lovely girlfriend? she was gone too. The six figure bank account was now 2 digits oh and my income from real estate was non existent as well. The Excrement had hit the fan to say the least and to say I was down and out would be an understatement. At my heaviest weight of my life I was also in the most depressing part of my life. 331 lbs was what the scale read and I was shocked and embarrassed.

Sometimes you need a wake up call to pull you out of a rut that you are in. This was more than a wake up call, it was more like waking up to one of your frat buddies pouring ice cold water on your special place. As I layed there paralyzed by fear, resentment and anger I knew there were two options and two paths I could take. Give up and let go, or battle like hell back to the top. Luckily I choose the later.

This morning I stripped down took a few deep breaths and hopped on the scale for the moment of truth. I knew it's be close, maybe tomorrow I thought. 3 seconds later and unfamiliar number popped up starting with a 2. That 2 was all I needed to see, I let out a loud extravagant grunt, batted my chest and threw a fist pump of Tiger-Like proportions. I had lost 32 lbs and more importantly broke the 300 lb barrier that had been haunting me for over 2 years.



While this is only the start of my journey, this is what keeps me going. I seem to be finding "new-old" outfits everyday from my lighter days and this keeps me excited to keep hitting the gym on a daily basis. In celebration of this feat I'm taking a 2 day break and recuperation, even eating a little bad before getting back on the wagon so I can keep my sanity. I'm not there yet, but I know now that I will be. 299.7 lbs and its falling everyday. While the rest of my life is a work in progress I can tell it is all turning around. Bittersweet from anyone else's prospective yes, but it sure feels sweet from mine today.

More soon...

Down 25lbs in less than 2 months!

Well it's about that time for another progress update. First off I was going to write a conclusion to the My Life posts, but I just can't do it anymore to be honest. I thought some one was real who ended up being the exact opposite and that is that.

On to the good news!

Starting weight- 331 lbs Goal- to lose 91 lbs

Current- 306 lbs

Weight loss- 25 lbs

Still to go- 66 lbs

I'm over a quarter of the way there already and it is only getting easier. The most encouraging part is that my diet has been far from perfect with my personal life currently in shambles. When the diet is perfected this goal should be attainable very quickly. I initially alotted myself 7 months to complete this but I have a feeling that I can get it done sooner. I have all the motivation I'll ever need!!!

Cardio has been upped to at least 30 minutes or 45 minutes on non lift days. I can tell a huge difference from the cardio and it is starting to help me drop weight again. I have a feeling 300 will be broken by next wednesday for sure.

I've been lifting as well but am really just trying to get back in the flow and strengthen my stabilizing muscles while getting back to where I used to be. I got up to 50 lb dumbell curls for 8 reps which is a very promising sign. I can tell a huge difference in the way my clothes are fitting and the way my upper body is getting more sculpted.



In a month or so i will post before pictures and my progress pictures up on the blog. By then I'll be a bit more comfortable with my shirt off.

More soon...

An inspiration and a promise for 2010

So lets get the real news out of the way first. August 2010 I Rick Griffith will be competing in the 2010 INBF Washington State Natural Bodybuilding Contest. Yes we are a long way from there I know, and I have a whole lot of work to do, but I'm going to win it. Seriously.

I'm not sure which division I will be in at the time of the competition but I'm sure I can be close to the heavyweight/light heavyweight cut off and decide which division I have the best shot in. Possibly the novice men's division would be a good starting point, however I really want to win the men's heavy weight and think I have a shot. Starting German Volume Training again this week so that should kick my ass pretty good.

If you read this blog and enjoy it by the way please leave me a comment at the bottom of the post. I have heard some good things from friends and it is nice to have the support.

Here are last years winners...

Last years winner heavyweight

Light Heavyweight

Novice Men's Heavyweight


Amazing transformation

Before

After
I recently ran across this link and thought I'd share it with you. This guy is a real inspiration and his progress is remarkable. Losing 210 lbs is absolutely amazing, see his story for yourself.
http://www.bodybuilding.com/fun/bradley_davis.htm

More on this next week...

One Week in, I need to network!!!

Well I am a week into my 2 year plan and feeling pretty damn good to tell the truth. Down 7lbs this last week and falling by the day. Just got out of the gym hit my chest hard and got some cardio in so I'm feeling great. For all my future workout updates visit my Bodyspace blog at http://blog.bodybuilding.com/RickAGriffith, I'll be updating this 2 times a week at least and letting you know how my progress is going.

It hasn't been an easy week in alot of aspects of my life but things are looking good, they really are. I have a job opportunity at Edward Jones Investments that looks really good to me. They have a great company set up and I think i could be immensly succesful there so keep your fingers crossed for me.

So I'm not going to lie I've been blowing off networking events on a weekly basis and coming up with excuses to why I can't go like,"well it is a 1/2 mile walk". Bottom line is I gotta get out there and meet some new friends and business people. I dont do nearly enough of this and this is how connections are made and things are accomplished.

Heres the breakdown of what I did to move toward my 7 months goals this week

1. Lose 91 lbs- Worked out 5 of 7 days and pushed myself very hard while eating pretty well. Down 7lbs this week, 72 to go.
2. Run a 5K- Lost some weight and started increasing cariovascular health should be running by late april.
3. Grow my business to a $2,000.00 mo profit margin- Got some great ideas and designs for our own brand of jeans custom made for each customer.
4. Read the bible study it and go to church- Whoops, I gotta do this next week better
5. Learn to speak spanish fluently- I went to El Pariso does this count? I gotta get rosetta stone.
6. Make a lifelong friend- Met a very nice guy named Onur who is helping me make my business ideas come to life.
7. Donate or Raise $500.00 for charity- Raised around $900.00 over the phone cold calling for Breast Cancer Prevention.

So far so good...

7 months to a new me

Well as you know if you've been following my blog, I am on a mission over the next 2 years of my life to complete 25 life changing tasks. I have broken them into 4 terms to simplify them and ensure that I actually complete them.

For next 7 months, I have broken down my list to 7 main goals. They are as follows:

1. Lose 90 lbs and get into excellent shape.
2. Complete a 5 k Run with a respectable time.
3. Build my website to a $2,000.00 a month profit margin
4. Study the Bible, go to church every Sunday and learn about my religion.
5. Learn to speak Spanish fluently, or enough to hold conversations.
6. Make 1 lifelong friend.
7. Donate or raise $500.00 for charity

My future blog posts will cover my progress as well as other adventures and fun facts I'm sure.

So how is the first week going? Well it's only been 3 full days since I turned 23, but I have made some major steps in the right direction. I have started on my new workout regimen which is going very well, as well as a strict diet and no alcohol policy.


I really don't want to look at all like this.

Here's an example of my workouts so far:

Monday- Chest & Back with 15 min cardio warm up before hand. Cardio is 15 minutes of walking on the treadmill anywhere from 3.2 to 3.8 MPH with an incline of 0-7 to maximize fat loss and minimize muscle loss. I will progress to higher intensity cardio after i lose a bit more weight and start preparing for the 5K.

Dumbbell Bench press- 3 Sets descending reps 55X15, 60X12, 60X8

Dumbbell Incline flyes- 3 sets descending reps 30X15, 35X12, 35X8

Lat-Pull downs (wide grip)- 3 sets descending reps 130X15, 130X12, 140X8

Dumbbell Rows- 3 sets descending reps 60X15, 60X12, 65X8

Tuesday- Shoulders & Cardio. 20 min Cardio, walking on treadmill

Overhead dumbbell shoulder press-3 sets 35X15, 40X12, 45X8

Machine military overhead press (finishing exercise) 1 set 120X13

Wednesday- Bi's, Tri's and cardio- 20 min cardio on treadmill.

Dumbbell Bicep curls- 3 sets 30X15, 35X12, 40X10

Preacher curls machine- 3sets 90X15, 110X12, 120X10

Tricep Push outs(standing overhead)- 3 sets 90X15, 90X12, 100X9

Machine tricep push downs- 3 sets 90X15, 110X12, 130X8

Thursday Leg Day- No cardio

One legged leg press- 3 sets 90X15, 180X12, 230 X 10

Quad extensions- 3 sets 90X15, 110X12, 120 X10

Hamstring Curls- 3 sets 90X15, 120X10, 140X8

Calf Raises- 3 sets 150X15, 170X12, 190X9

So as you can see nothing too fancy here, I'm trying to ease myself back in and avoid injury set backs. The final sets many times I will work to failure, this is why the rep counts change.

If you would like to follow my workout progress or track your own also be sure to visit www.Bodyspace.com lots of cool gadgets to track your progress. I personally like the weight loss graph, at least I do when it is going down.

Now this next part I wasn't going to include for the public to see but I decided to anyway because I'm shameless. It is always embarrassing for a big guy to share his weight especially for me. But in order to complete my challenge I figure it will give me a little motivation. So here it goes...

My highest point (aka wanting to kill myself)- 331lbs

Currently- 313lbs

Goal- 240lbs

Total lost- 18lbs Still to go 73lbs

So there it is. If I wasn't 100% confident I will complete this challenge I wouldn't have written that believe me.

As far as the other goals go?

Well I worked at a call center Monday for 7 hours and raised about $900.00 for breast cancer prevention cold calling. I guess I can cross off Number 7 on the list. The website is coming along, albeit very slowly with way too many dumb issues. And I'm looking for that new lifelong friend(no homo) so holler at a player if you see him in the streets.

More updates soon...

Day of Reckoning

A thunderous moan came roaring from my stomach we were an hour into this battle of wills and while hell bent on the completion of our challenge, doubt was creeping into the back of our minds. As I chewed the now room temperature beef brisket I had a feeling that the next few hours would not be comfortable. I was right...

Today is a day that I will remember for the rest of my life. Now this isn't because I had some epiphany, accomplished some great feat or got married. No my friends today was the day that I knew was coming and I knew I would face one of the biggest challenges of my life.

The challenge?

The All American Feast from Famous Dave's BBQ

You can barely even see the 22oz of ribs stacked like mountains in the background

This signature platter was made to serve 4 to 5 hearty individuals and send them home with a doggy bag. But today wasn't a day for leftovers. Fellow warrior Ryan Mizer and I set out to take down this colossal plate all by ourselves, leaving nothing but a graveyard of bones and corn Cobb's.

The first 20 minutes flew by, it was like mowing down an appetizer before the main course. We threw the corn Cobb's aside and moved onto bigger things. After 25 minutes we realized we hadn't made much headway. Stacked two rows high were an abundance of Ribs next to pretty much every other meat available.

Mizer joked that they should have a guy in a pig costume cheering us on getting a continuos clap going as we neared the finish. I told him that would probably happen not in real life, but in a hallucination as all the blood that was in our heads was currently in our stomach's working on digestion.

It was around this time when the waitress politely asked if we'd like boxes which we chuckled and declined with a cocky look on our faces, we knew what we were here to do.

An hour in and a bathroom break each later, we had accomplished what few men could possibly aspire too. It was gone, all of it except the bones, Cobb's and a bit of the baked beans which were basically non edible by the time we finished.

The total count?

22 oz of Ribs, a solid 1 to 2 lbs of potato wedge fries, beef brisket and pulled pork over 2 pieces of toast. 4 corn Cobb's, 3 large chicken legs and thighs, 4 corn bread muffins and 2 large sides of coleslaw and baked beans and a sampling of 8 sifferent BBQ sauces that covered basically everything.

Hours later as I reflected on this gluttonous day, I thought, what a prefect day to have before starting a strict diet. I may not eat meat for an entire week, then again I may eat some tomorrow.

Not a bad Sunday, not at all.