Analysis of Failure

After the dismal failure that has been the past 6 days, I've decided to do something I've never done before: deeply analyze the cause (and effect) of said failure in the hopes of never repeating it again.

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2009 6:00PM

After working, training, and dieting consistently well for most of the month and, by-the-way, revisiting a prior best in weight loss (236.8 lbs), I somehow managed to wreck it all after a stressful day at work.

A hurried drive home and a minor "road rage" incident (indication of stress?), I got home on edge and bothered by a nagging pain in the neck and upper back that I've been dealing with since my last Chiropractic adjustment (cause for concern?).

I briefly stared at a small cookie jar on the kitchen counter with several Nature Valley Sweet & Salty Almond bars in it. After a few seconds, I decided I deserved a little treat as I have been good lately and needed a break from the constant dieting.

Well, needless to say, that one treat turned into three, three turned into five, and five turned into an all-out binge on peppermint candies in front of the TV for an hour!

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 26 - PRESENT

I've been binging on junk-food non-stop since last Friday.

I've ravaged everything from ice-cream to pizza, to burgers, fries, and shakes.

I put on 6 pounds over the weekend alone! I've since stopped weighing myself out of shear terror.

Strong pangs of guilt are quickly replaced by pangs of hunger.

While I concede that the past 3 months have been a challenge, I never quite regained the focus I had throughout most of the first 7 months of the year when I managed to lose nearly 65 pounds.

Since injuring my back, I've been training in "fits and starts" and, consequently, progress has stalled.

Though the emphasis has shifted to rehabilitating my back, the basic goals of optimal fat loss and improved fitness remain unchanged.

WHERE DID I GO WRONG?

Not scheduling/tracking my meals made it easy to "sneak" an unplanned treat.

Succumbing to an unplanned treat absolved me of any accountability, thus other treats became just as easily "welcomed."

The "snowball" effect spiralled out of control and my self-control "muscles" were too weak to put an end to it before the damage was already done.

Temptation is all around, and the pleasures afforded by sweets and snacks are too great to combat against when the will is compromised.

A daily, renewed focus and commitment to the final objective is necessary each and every day in order to "win the day." The "armor" must be donned each and every day to guard against temptation.

WHAT CAN I DO RIGHT?

3 months remain in the year.

Goals can still be achieved if I dedicate myself to strict discipline and focus.

WHAT ARE MY GOALS FOR THE NEXT 3 MONTHS?

To keep things as simple as possible, I've boiled-down my goals to the following:

1. Lose 30 pounds.

2. Do 1 perfect pull-up.

3. Do 50 push-ups.

4. Rehab my lower back.

HOW WILL I ACHIEVE MY GOALS?

I've learned of a great technique developed by (of all people) Jerry Seinfeld. It's called "The Chain of X's." It's a simple, yet effective way to help establish positive habits in one's life. According to Jerry, he credits his success as a comic to this method. In a nutshell, you mark your calendar with a big, red 'X' every day you successfully accomplish a given task. In his case, he'd give himself an 'X' every day he'd write material for at least an hour. In my case, I've determined to give myself an 'X' every day that I,

1. Write my goals.

2. Train twice daily with at least 30 minutes of rehab work in the morning and at least 1 hour of exercise in the evenings.

3. Stick to my diet by scheduling/tracking all of my meals.

The goal is simple: I will earn an 'X' each and every day for the next 3 months.