Last year some of you know that I was in a documentary about training in mixed martial arts from scratch and in the end getting into the cage for the first time. We called the series Fighting Ambition. 
It was an awesome experience and a real eye opener. All of that wouldn’t have been possible without the great people at West Coast BJJ, Battlefield Fight League, Reign Full Contact, Klench Mouthguards, DominantGround.com and of course the fine people at VanWest Film.
For those of you who want to know, that project is currently in post production and could be done sometime in February of this year. I will definitely let you know where you can go and watch it once it’s done.
Now I’m on to a new challenge, and no it won’t be fighting again. I have to admit there was a day or two where I wanted to get back at it. I get asked a lot if I ever plan on doing that again, and although It’s hard to say No, that is the answer I’m going to stick with for now.
The new challenge is Tough Mudder. If you haven’t heard about it have a look at this promo video. There is more videos and information on their website toughmudder.com.
I’ll be on a team and competing at the Vancouver/Whistler Tough Mudder event on June 23rd and 24th. Me and Jeremy Brand (the head honcho of this site and good friend) are in the process of gathering a few “Merry Men and Women” to form a MMASucka Team. You can go to the Tough Mudder website and see if they are coming to your town. They will be touring major cities throughout North America. Get involved and form a team. It will be a great experience. It’s not for everyone, but it sure beats killing yourself in a boring marathon. For me, I need another slap in the face of motivation. For the last few months I have fallen back into old habits.
Last year I was 200lbs (I’m currently only 5’7) and I was able to get myself down to about 145lbs for fight day. However, a comfortable weight for me and a weight that I thought would be sustainable was 165lbs. Unfortunately, unexpected life changes and most of all a lack of discipline put me on the course to failure. I have no problems in admitting that. I have gotten past the feeling sorry for myself phase. I’m back to square one and ready to keep battling.
So I called upon one of the best nutritionists and strength and conditioning coaches in North America in Mike Dolce. If you have never heard of him, check out his site. Mike has been doing wonders for MMA athletes like Rampage Jackson, Johny Hendricks, Thiago Alves, Vitor Belfort the list goes on. Most importantly he has done wonders for thousands of average Joes like you and me. Mike was nice enough to throw me his book “Living Lean” which I consumed in a day.
Not only is it a great book full of motivation and insight, he also gives you a meal plan, some recipes, and exercises that you can incorporate into your life to help get you to your desired fitness goals. I figured if I was going to take on a huge challenge in Tough Mudder, why not have the best in the business help me prepare for it.
I purposely started this training at the beginning of January. Yes, I know it’s one of those New Year’s Resolution thingys. But I thought it was fitting considering that there are millions of people who are in the same boat. I hope that I can be a motivating factor to get you off the couch and we can make these life changes together.
When I did the MMA training last year it really helped me deal with some personal demons. When it was all done I felt a new appreciation for the sport as well as for myself. It was a major life changing event. This new challenge is for motivation to get back to a healthy lifestyle. There will be no camera people following me. I’m doing this for me.
Yes I failed in keeping the weight off, but I’m not going to let that bring me down. That is part of the war. I’m a 33 year old guy who is wrestling with changing 33 years of bad eating. I will admit, I love food, but if I don’t change my ways my life expectancy is going to be short. I have a daughter that I want to enjoy watching grow up into a beautiful woman and I have a wife that I want to grow old with. I think that is all the motivation one needs.
For the next few months I will be writing about my progress. The key in all of this is finding a way to sustain and maintain a healthy weight and fitness level. Diets don’t work. Counting Calories doesn’t work. There is a reason that it’s a billion dollar industry, because of “Suckas” like us who become Yo-Yo Dieters. Let’s start making radical changes. Real change. I highly recommend grabbing Mike Dolce’s book Living Lean. You can purchase it at Amazon, Barnes and Noble or just go to thedolcediet.com. He is very simplistic in the things you can do and how to fill up your fridge and pantry space with the real SOUL food.
Major thanks go to the organizers of Tough Mudder, Mike Dolce and MMASucka.com. More news and updates are coming. In the mean time below are my before pictures and some Dolce knowledge for your minds…BOOM! Enjoy and have a laugh at the fat man. I know I do. Please twitter me or Facebook me your story and let’s motivate each other. Now go and make a change. We only live once, how about we do that for as long as we can? You in?
I want to thank Tough Mudder, Nutrabolics, MMASucka.com and everyone who will help in keeping me on the right path, LOVE THE SUPPORT! Thank you.
