AT AGE 35, musician Amandi Brown weighed 400 pounds. He had sleep apnea, high blood pressure, and diabetes. After high school, as parenthood replaced sports and physical activity, “the simple routines of adult life turned into a spiral of bad habits that didn’t serve me. I was just living the poorest quality of life and it was taking more of a toll on me than I even knew,” he says. Each night, in bed, he was plagued by a pins-and-needles sensation in his legs and feet. Concerned, he visited the doctor. “It was a sobering moment when the doctor explained it was a consequence of my weight and unhealthy lifestyle choices.” Now 42, he’s cut his weight in half and no longer needs blood-pressure or diabetes meds. Here, in his own words, is how he got there.
Swap Out, Don’t Take Out
YOU DON’T NEED to give up everything you love, just find the compromise. I used to prioritize convenience over health, constantly eating on the fly and reaching for snacks to soothe the anxiety of perpetual deadlines. Then I flipped it and put health first. I started by picking better options wherever I was, like kale crunch salad and grilled nuggets at Chick-fil-A. Now I meal-prep so I never have to make an impulse decision. Starting the day with this win sets a positive tone, even if the remainder of the day doesn’t unfold as planned. I like to find success in the small victories of each day. Since I started this journey, my tastes have changed, and I feel amazing; I think a lot of us check out of the fight before that happens.
Go Beyond Food
I USED TO find solace in food, often turning to it for comfort during emotional moments. I couldn’t have made these changes without looking into the connection between food and my emotions. I went to therapy and dug into the mental side of where I was, asking myself questions like “Why do I continue to choose this if I know it’s not really serving me?” It’s important to give respect to the process of how you got where you are.
Work Hard and Restore Yourself
AT FIRST, I hit the gym every single day. It wasn’t solely about the physical necessity; it was crucial for me to grasp the importance of consistent attendance. Despite the myriad excuses tempting me to stay put, even a brief, 10-minute stint on the treadmill validated my commitment, igniting a shift in my mindset and spirit. My pursuit isn’t to outshine others but to surpass the limitations of my former self.
Now I train four to five days with weights, cardio, and yoga. But I also make sure to allocate the others for recovery. I think carefully about how I’m going to help my body recover—meditation, yoga, cold plunges—so I can keep up with my desire to be active all the time.
We don’t go to bed at night without plugging in our phones, and we don’t go to work without gassing the car up, but we seem to think that we can sustain ourselves on whatever low fuel that we put in our bodies and we never think to fully recharge. But if we do, we’ll probably get the best performances out of ourselves. For me, rest is non-negotiable. This way, the building’s not going to burn down, because I made sure I had enough rest to actually put the fire out.
Throughout this process, I have learned the value of not trying to make a perfect wall, but placing one brick every day. It’s perfectly fine to set ambitious goals, but it’s crucial to maintain a realistic approach. It’s essential to remain open to the idea of a new and improved version of yourself. Remember that today doesn’t have to be the same as yesterday.
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