eurasiansurgeon’s BodyBlog

As I’m writing this, I reflect back upon my life & ponder…have I been living it to the fullest? Did I take time to smell the roses? Am I maximizing the moments of enjoyment w/my family & those who are dearest to me? All I know is that one needs to treasure each minute of every passing day as if it was your last breath, because that fleeting moment will pass you by & before you know it, it diffuses away into thin air not unlike a puff of smoke! So take some time & treasure those who you care for deeply, grab onto & hug them until it fulfills your heart; yet let them be free because your love does not constrain or restrain; it has no boundaries nor conditions; it just is…also try not to worry about things which you cannot change, but save your energy to adjust your attitude to conform to what will be-fate & destiny will prevail as long as you have hope/faith; just keep your head high & your chin up, make the best of any situation & allow things to happen as they may-try not to let it drag you down, for life is too brief/finite not to enjoy-just adapt & be happy (turn a scowl into a smile), embrace the change, do not take anything for granted, appreciate what you have especially "the little things" & cherish them to the max, hang on tight-for one never knows when it will be taken away from you…

I am now 7 weeks out from umbilical hernia repair surgery, been doing cardio 6 weeks, lifting 4 weeks & ab work only a few weeks. I have regained ~99% of my strength but endurance in terms of speed & agility has yet to come. I’ve always preached that detraining occurs without working out after just a couple of weeks & still find that to be so true…My doc told me to stop all abs exercises & heavy lifting a couple of weeks prior to my surgery so actually I was already decondiitoned by the time I had my operation. The road coming back to regain my previous fit shape has been rough but worthwhile. I’ve since then learned to lift smarter, isolate my muscles better, & gained an appreciation for cardio which I’ve been doing 1hr/day for the past month. Looking back, making a comeback after hernia surgery has also helped me to eat cleaner as well to drop unwanted bodyfat. Looking forward, with the Tri-Fitness World Challenge only 4 weeks away I’m going to pick up the pace as far as training goes to I can lean down further to walk that stage! Not only that, I will also attack the physical, athletic event, Fitness Skills including bench (have to defend my title/record), box, & shuttle…Regretably, however, I will have to bypass the Obstacle Course & Fitness Routine since my doc advised me against all extreme sports maneuvers (she doesn’t know about the Fit Skills so please don’t tell on me); well, I’ve never been one to stay down for very long so I’m proving to myself & others that besides time, healing requires a strong belief in one’s body’s ability to bounce back into true form if you pay attention to your nutrition & modify your training to protect the surgical site, yet at the same time maximize the return of muscle mass, power & strength; in other words, try not to allow surgery to slow you down too long, grab momentum by the horns & charge forward at stealth speed, keep your focus & concentrate on rebuilding & you, too shall conquer & be triumphant, knowing that this is only the beginning-when you’ve reached the end of the road to recovery because you have overcome all obstacles & surpass your inner fear, fighting with your heart & soul to regain that rip roaring spirit!

Almost ten days out from my umbilical hernia surgery & I’m just now beginning to feel half way human again. Looking down at my stomach scars I ponder whether I’ll be able to hide them when I finally regain my 6-pack? Just then I thought, hey I shouldn’t focus on what I look like on the outside, but need to concentrate on how I feel on the inside. Unfortunately America, although no doubt the best country in the world, our society tends to focus on outward appearance & materialism rather than inward beauty or intangible qualities. Of course naturally we all want to be accepted & well liked by others, so we try to improve our chances by maximizing on how attractive we look. So now I must again reach inside & seek deep to realize once more that it’s not what I possess but who I am that makes a difference. So as long as I try to be a decent person, treat others with respect & kindness, do the best that I can then I should feel good about myself no matter what I look like, scars or no marks. Everyone of us is unique in our own way & should be accepted as such. So, as the saying goes, don’t judge a book by its cover but open it up & discover…what treasures the pages have to offer-for true inner beauty shines through…but outer appearance will fade away with time!

As I’m sitting here contemplating my abdominal procedure/surgery coming up & not being able to workout afterward for at least several weeks, I think about all other previous times that I’ve had similar setbacks. Let’s see, oh throwing my back out (6 months); complications with my pregnancies (almost a year twice); being in Iraq during Desert Storm (several months); & most recently dislocating my shoulder (a few months twice). I’ve always bounced back, working out harder & eventually ending up stronger than ever before. So it has always been my will to recover what I’ve lost then exceeding my own personal goals. Sure it has & is affecting me more emotionally, I’m psyching myself up to view this temporary "gym holiday" as an opportunity to allow my body the appropriate rest so I can come back full force after healing from my operations. Every single obstacle I’ve encountered in the past has made me prevail in the end by sheer determination to overcome any difficulties presented. Persistence & perseverance have helped me to succeed in attaining my goals, ultimately making me a more learned person. It’s only on how I look at it, is the glass half empty or full? The only thing I can do is maximize my chances of returning, try not to let things get to me & make the best of it. There are always others who have it much worse. So what’s one more delay in my quest for fitness freedom? Hey if everything comes easy then it doesn’t mean as much. So instead of being bitter, I aim at becoming better by using my mind over matter!

People often approach me on special sports supplements to enhance their weight loss or help them train. I tell them I’ve gotten to this fit stage completely additive-free without resorting to any foreign chemical intake. The only substance besides healthy food groups that I ingest is added protein in the form of MRB’s or powder as a shake. I may on occasion eat other protein products for variety but try to stay pretty pure in terms of what I consume. What I don’t like about supplementation is that they’re not FDA regulated, plus the majority simply just do not work as promised! What this means is that the label cannot be trusted since most of the time no well researched studies can back it up. Plus many of these over the counter substances can contain potentially harmful additives. Besides that, they may shut down your body’s normal production & cause health problems or they can react w/other medications causing harmful reactions. In addition, just because it’s labeled as "natural" that doesn’t mean it’s good for you…The only pill that’s been proven to work well for gaining muscle mass is "iron", pumping iron that is! What this translates to is blood, sweat, & tears, pounding those weights until you drop…Just make sure you eat frequent, nutritious meals to fuel those muscles & get plenty of rest to help make them grow & oh don’t forget to hit the cardio because after all, this will aid in added endurance to lift & we have to keep our heart muscle strong so it can pump blood & nutrients to the rest of our body to workout some more of course…So remember not to waste your hard earned money on any "magic pills", be sensible, patient, & persistent w/your diet/training, live well & you’ll feel/look better in the end!

People also approach me about the amount of cardio that they should do & how often they need to do it. Well, I say it matters not so much how long they go, but how hard they go at it. Simply put, in basic math, the more intense your cardio session, the shorter the duration to achieve the same effect of burning calories. In fact, interval training using short, intense burst of exercising keeping the heart rate up is more effective than lower intensity longer duration. These bouts of cardio activity are also additive. So if you can’t get it all done in one session, then separate them out into a few or several sessions. It also doesn’t matter what machine you use or type of activity you do as long as you keep moving. In the end, just do something to stay active. Also remember that it’s the quality & not necessarily the quantity of cardio that really counts…Actually, your metabolic rate stays high for ~12hrs post workout so go put those running shoes on & GO! GO! GO as hard as you can!!!

People often approach me & ask how to lose a certain amount of weight over a span of time for some reason whether it’s for a wedding, beach vacation, school reunion, etc. Well, I always tell them it’s not how much weight they lose but how they feel once they switch over to a healthy lifestyle in terms of diet & training. In other words, how long are they willing to stick it out beyond their short term goal? I also say don’t step on that scale after they first weigh themselves but see how their clothing fits over time. Go buy some clothes that’s a couple of sizes smaller to give them more motivation to transform their body. Remember that up to 3-5lbs can be just water weight so don’t freak out. Your bodyweight will fluctuate daily & even throughout the day. Wait at least a few months before weighing again that way they will keep on going with their program. Choose a weight that’s attainable i.e by losing a few pounds a week because beyond that it’s not good for their health. Finally, they should make a pact with themselves to do this for the rest of their lives once they’ve reached their goal weight. In other words they need to stay on a maintenance regimen in order not to regain the weight lost. All in all in the end, it’s really not the amount of weight you lose but the length of time you keep training & staying strict with your diet that really counts. So put desire into decision & lastly duration, duration, duration…don’t ever quit, just keep at it & as you lose & lose & lose, you’ll win in the end!