Posted by: Patrick Blackford BS, CSCS

The Carly’s Club Trainer Challenge was an awesome experience.  It allowed me to become more mentally and emotionally familiar with a specific weight loss goal, like the majority of my clients.  I made it a point to wrap my mind around two constants: charity, and the 31 day time constraint. Using the kids in Carly’s Club as motivation was extremely helpful for me, every time I thought about eating a bagel, grabbing a handful of chips or sipping on a glass of whiskey I would think about the kids battling for their lives in the hospital.  Additionally, the 31 day time constraint made the challenge seem attainable, anyone can make a commitment for 31 days as long as you don’t create excuses.

I started at 196.8 pounds with my goal weight set at 175 pounds.  My plan in terms of diet was to stick to eating 95% lean protein, vegetables and meal replacement shakes.  I attribute my successful weight loss to five factors: monitoring calories, natural food choices, high protein, low carbs, and plenty of water.  Since I wasn’t eating fruit I substituted DotFit Active Multivitamins and drank their Lean Meal Replacement shakes.

The hardest part was eating out.  Over the course of the month my wife and I went to Globe Market, The Lodge, Cafe Espresso, Cheesecake Factory, Wasabi and a few others restaurants.  I felt confident that as long as I stuck to my plan of eating protein and vegetables that eating out would not sabotage my weight loss.  At the Cheesecake Factory I ordered their southwest chicken sandwich but without the bread and without the mayo and a side salad without the dressing and oil on the side.  Did I want cheesecake? Hell yeah. Did I want a Jameson on the rocks? You know it, but sticking to the regiment and keeping momentum was my main priority.

By the end of the challenge I lost 19.6 pounds and 4.1% body fat. Since then, I have slowly been reintroducing fruits, grains, and alcohol back into my diet and as long as I moderate consumption of those three things I will be able to maintain my current weight.

My top 10 go to food options while dieting are:

• Chicken
• Turkey (breast, ground, sausage)
• Fish (tuna, salmon, shrimp)
• Egg whites
• Beef jerky
• Avocado
• Mixed greens with tomatoes and cucumbers
• Green vegetables
• Coffee or tea
• DotFit Lean Meal Replacement Shakes with skim milk