New Placements (video link) and my RevAbs Jump-Start Week 1 Progress Report

One week ago today I started on a new path. There were times that I didn't know if I could make it or not but I'm happy to report that I stuck with the plan, both the diet and exercise, every single day. I'm excited to announce that so far I've lost 16.5 pounds!!!

Now I know there will be some out there who are concerned about the pace at which I've lost this weight. I appreciate your concerns, but let me reassure you that you need not worry. For the past week, I've had around 1200 calories per day by eating 5 meals per day (3 meals and 2 snacks, and that's it) that consisted of all natural and organic foods, nothing processed (except a couple tablespoons of A-1 Sauce!), gave up diet sodas and replaced them with at least 80oz of water a day, and exercised 30-45 minutes a day for 6 days. If I got hungry again later in the evening, instead of grabbing another snack, I drank a 20oz bottle of water.

I can honestly say that I feel great! I have not experienced a single headache during this entire process. And every time I start to feel hungry, it's usually time to eat again anyways. I'm a bit sore from the exercise, but that's because I've done more exercise in the past 6 days than I've probably done in the past 6 years combined! I've also eaten more broccoli and asparagus during the past week than I've eaten in my entire life! 

I'm changing my name...

Sort of... I'll get to that in a moment. But first I wanted to share that this particular entry is going to be a bit more on the personal side as I'm going to open up a little bit about a new adventure that I'm about to embark upon. And while I do have some new music news and updates, I'm going to save that for a post later in the week. But for now, let's get to the name change...

I'm going to be changing from Big Blue Barry to "Not Nearly As Big" Blue Barry or "Medium Blue Barry" or something along those lines... Yes, I'm making a lifestyle change to lose weight and drop at least 100 pounds.

The idea for this journey that I'm about to tell you about has been percolating for awhile but my recent trips to Kentucky helped bring the idea from a possibility into actuality. There were a couple of nights while I was there that I couldn't sleep so I had the TV on and caught a couple infomercials, one of which was for P90x. So after seeing a couple of those, and then feeling winded after my walk from the parking lot to the arena in Louisville (it was about 6 or 7 blocks away), the wheels were set in motion.

Then after getting back to Nashville, I spent some time researching some different programs, trying to figure out which one I could commit to and still see some results from. I knew that there was no way I could commit to the P90x program. It was going to take up more time than I could commit to. If I wanted to put music completely on hold for the duration of the program, then I could find time for it, but that's just not realistic.

As fate, luck, or as I like to think, Divine Intervention, would have it... A few months ago, I got back in touch with a dear friend from college that I had not seen in over 15 years. This friend just happened to be a certified trainer and Coach in the BeachBody system (aka P90x). So after a nice chat on the phone, we decided what program would be the best fit for me, not only from the standpoint of the amount of weight I want to lose, but also from the standpoint of how much time I could commit to putting into this. And in my case, that program is known as RevAbs.

The reason I'm posting about this is because I want to take that extra step in being held accountable to sticking with this. I know I've got the support of my coach and my "inner circle" of friends and family, but I wanted to get as much support with this as I could. My long term goal as of now is to lose between 100-120 pounds and I'm expecting it will take three rounds of this program to do so.

In all honesty, I'm actually EXCITED about this. I know there are going to be some drastic changes, in particular with my diet, and especially over the next two weeks as I do the 14-day kick start program. No carbs and no sugars for 2 weeks and a total of about 1200 calories per day... So if I'm a bit grumpy during the next two weeks, you'll know why :-)

By the time this entry posts online, I should have completed my first day's workout. Hopefully I will be alive to talk about it when I'm done :-)