A Day in the Life of My Successful 100-Pound Weight Loss Journey
What I Do: Food, Supplements, Exercises, & Habits!
By Coach Jimmy Hays Nelson
Often I get recognized as the guy in INSANITY DVDs that Shaun T says has ‘the good squats’. But not everyone knows that I grew up as a heavy kid. Back then childhood obesity didn’t run rampant like it does today. So being overweight growing up usually meant I was THE fat kid in class.
I will be forever grateful to those that supported and encouraged me along they way, even when I wasn’t ready to take any action steps to actually change. It literally came out of a very emotional break up in college with my first serious girlfriend. I was at my heaviest, with no real direction or confidence, looking at myself in the mirror asking “Who is going to Love this!?”
Have you ever had that moment, where you say “ENOUGH IS ENOUGH”? That was that moment for me. Something in my brain clicked. I knew I had to stop blaming others for my situation and I had to change. I started simple: riding my bike and running around my neighborhood. It wasn’t much, but by me taking an ACTION step I opened myself up to other possibilities that would present themselves in the near future.
I know without that decision to change, and the commitment to start moving I wouldn’t have been open to trying a beginner program like Power 90 when I had it referred to me by a friend.
During my 100-pound weight loss journey there were many ups and downs. I had days I didn’t want to workout. Days I fell off the wagon. And lots of mental hurdles to overcome. Thank God for the support community around me, or I never would have been able to stick it out and be where I am today.
Along the way there were lots of changes, but they didn’t all happen overnight at once. I still remember the first time I made conscious effort to make a ‘healthier’ food choice. I frequented many a fast-food drive thru because I THOUGHT I was saving time and money. (Boy was I wrong) But I remember one particular visit. Instead of ordering my regular #2 combo meal, I decided to get two chicken sandwiches, no mayo, no fries and a diet soda.
Now 10 years later, this isn’t a meal you would see me ordering. But at the time it was a HUGE step for me. The most powerful thing to come from that decision was the fact that I did notice some small changes in my body after a couple of weeks! So naturally I thought, “If that little change produced these results, what else can I change to get even more?” I was so excited to see progress that I was more than willing to reexamine my routine to see where else I could make improvements.
I tell you this story, because as I share with you my current routine I want you to understand that what you are about to see was a accumulation of a lot of little decisions that ultimately became ‘normal’ to me. So if you look at what I do now and think, “I could never do that”, I would have thought the same thing at the beginning of my weight loss journey! But I do want to share a sample day for me so you know what it is I do.
Right now I am prepping to go on a vacation to the Bahamas. It is the annual Beachbody Coach trip! So of course I want to look my best. This is what I call my GET RESULTS kind of day.
5 a.m – I am up with a little caffeine in my system (usually in the form of green tea). And doing some kind of low impact cardio for about 30 minutes to get my metabolism moving. (Walk, Jog, Jump Rope, Elliptical) This is also a great way to set my mindset and intention for the day. I choose to listen to some kind of positive personal development audio so I am feeding my brain and body 1st thing in the morning.
6 a.m. - My first meal of the day- EVERY DAY- is my Shakeology. I’m not a nutritionist, a personal trainer, or a doctor so I can’t give you all the technical details of what makes Shakeology so amazing. All I know is it replaced SEVEN different supplements I used to spend money on. It eliminated my craving for diet soda (I used to drink 7-8 a day!). I stopped losing my hair, and my ‘digestion’ issues have gone away. Not to mention my cousin lost 30 pounds. My Dad reduced his heart medication. My step Mom improved her energy. And my wife bounced back to her pre-pregnancy weight in record time. All from using Shakeology! It’s a non-negotiable supplement for me and my family!
7:30 a.m. – Breakfast usually consists of 2/3 cup of oatmeal, 1 cup of egg whites, and some kind of healthy fat: avocado, flax oil, or coconut oil
10:00 a.m. – Mid Morning Meal – is a lean protein, healthy starch, and good fat. Sample: 6-8oz of chicken breast, 6oz of steamed yams, 2oz of avocado slices with mustard. This is the meal, I also take my Slimming Formula, Core Cal-Mag, Omega 3’s. This is usually my meal before my main workout of the day!
11:30 a.m. – As I get ready for my noon workout, I take my pre-workout supplement. I just started using Beachbody’s Energy and Endurance pre-workout formula. I love it! Energy Boost with no jittery side effects!
Noon – I do my main workout of the day. Right now I am following the P90X2 routine!
1 p.m. – I make sure to make the most of my workout and push myself as hard as I can to earn my post workout Results and Recovery Formula. It tastes like an Orange Push Pop. I think I’m addicted to it!
2 p.m. – I have another lean protein, good carb, healthy fat meal similar to my 10 am meal.
4:30 p.m. - This is the point in the day where I start to taper my carbs because I am less active at night. So this is usually a lean protein over a bed of raw spinach with Olive Oil or Coconut Oil.
7 p.m. – Dinner is usually a white fish like tilapia and a green vegetable like green beans, asparagus, or broccoli.
9 p.m. – Right before bed I want some kind of protein in my system to help my muscles as I sleep. Lately this has been in the form of Egg Whites & Almond Butter. Actually pretty good!
As you can see, I go to bed pretty early! This wasn’t always the case. I used to be quite the night owl! But you CAN change your body clock IF it is important enough to you. So turn off the late night TV, grab a good book, or spend time with your family!
So there it is boys and girls. That is a basic day for me. And most days look exactly the same. I used to think I hated routine, and considered something like that very boring. Now I take comfort in my routine. It keeps me on track in all the other areas of my life as well! With Family, Business, Relationships, and Spiritually.
If you have additional questions I invite you to leave a comment here on the blog. I would be happy to help you on your weight loss journey!
In this together- Coach Jimmy
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