On 4/20/15, I walked into DC Fitness for the first time in my workout gear.  Ready to have my newly acquired trainer put me through my first workout.  One of the exercises that day was push-ups.  I was able to do 4 standard pushups, a weak 5th one, then dropped to my knees to finish the set of ten. I was able to do even fewer “real” pushups on the next 2 sets. (More on this later.) I was fat, out of shape and looking to improve those conditions.

Today is the 3-month anniversary of that fateful day.  I checked in on Facebook, one month into my journey, and have not updated since.  I had such a huge outpouring of support and kind comments of encouragement that I thought I should check in.  Besides all the kind words, I had several people that told me they were inspired by me.  THAT, is truly humbling.  If I can encourage only one person to make a healthy change, I will have successfully paid it forward.

While it’s not Biggest Loser material.  Here’s me 30lbs lighter:

I put together some of my thoughts 90-days into this journey.

Forget the scale, it’s just a number.

We seem to measure every successful diet by the pounds lost.  I’m not here to throw stones at anyone who does this. Hell, I do it.  However, I have found that I’m finding much more joy in the “little things”.  Like:

• cinching up your belt until you are out of holes (maybe you should buy a new belt or add more holes)
• wearing shirts that used to look like a sausage casing on you, now hang loose (see above photo)
• not getting winded walking up a flight of stairs
• walking the same route, but cutting 5 minutes off your time (because you were able to run some of it)
• buying jeans in April, because none of yours fit, but now you can’t wear them because they are too big
• getting compliments from random people about your weight loss
• being assigned 3 sets of 15 pushups and being able to do all 45 with perfect form 3 months later when you could barely do 4 on that first day
• THAT’S the fun stuff.  You get enough of these “small things”, you end up realizing the big number on the scale.

Log it, log it, log it.

I had a compliance person once tell me, “If you didn’t document it, it didn’t happen.”  I carried that into my exercise life.  I log everything that I consume.  I log every exercise I do.  I use the MyFitnessPal (MFP) app on my iPhone.  I use a heart rate monitor that syncs back to MFP so I don’t have to enter all my exercises.  (If you are interested in the details of what tech I stuff I use, see the bottom of this.)

Get Started

My advice to anyone looking to get healthy;  get started.  You don’t have to set a grand master plan, tell everyone to stay away from you while you diet, just make some changes to start.  Eat more fruit, drink more water, take the stairs, park at the end of the parking lot so you walk further, get a FitBit, log your food (paper & pencil is cool if you don’t want to be a geek like me).

The best advice my trainer has given me: “Don’t ever be hungry, don’t ever be full.”  If you eat out of boredom, like I always did, stop before you go into the kitchen to graze.  Get a glass of water instead and after drinking it, wait 15 minutes and see if you feel the same cravings.

Folks, I’m not where I want to be, but you know what I am?  Happier and more energetic.  I look for ways to be more active because I know it will pay off more than the Lay’s potato chips will.  If you have any questions, please feel free to ask.  I’m not an expert, just a dude on a healthier lifestyle journey.

Tech Stuff I use  (You can skip this if you are not interested in geeky stuff.)

MyFitnessPal (click for link to the site, it’s free)

Since MFP is one of the most popular sites for food tracking, almost every food is already there for you to add to your list.  They also have a bar code scanner that you can scan something you just ate, enter the quantity and its added.  Very cool, if you are so technically inclined.  

Scosche Armband heart rate monitor.  I have never been a fan of chest strap monitors.  This fits nice and from my tests gives an accurate reading.

The fitness tracking app I use is Endomondo  Although, there are several.  (MapMyRun, RunKeeper, Nike Running) Endomondo links with MFP, so my exercises show automatically.

My newest addition is my Apple Watch.  I have become absolutely obsessed with getting all three of the daily activity rings. Move – calories burned, exercise & stand.  (I was shocked to find how many times in a day I have not stood up for over an hour.  The Apple Watch reminds you to stand at the 50 minute mark of the hour if you have not stood for over a minute.)  Here’s what my streak since getting my watch look like:

The post 3-Month Check In first appeared on Keith Souza.com.

Last last summer after John Jansky completed my “Playoff Beard Art“, I asked him about doing something with my Souza Financial Group logo.  John delivered the finished product to my office today.  It is awesome!

Besides the great colors, John was able to incorporate my passions.

First and foremost in the center of it all is my family.  Next up is the Blackhawks behind the “SFG”.  Next is the Cleveland Indians.  The maroon represents my schools; DHS & SIU. The outermost ring is of course my business.

John absolutely nailed it.  The gallery below has all photos.   I will be hanging this in my office this week,  if you would like to stop by and see it.

To see more of John’s art, check out his Facebook page and website.

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Saturday, April 27th, the Blackhawks played their last regular season game.  That was the beginning of my playoff beard.  The playoff beard is a tool that fans use to cheer their team on in the playoffs.  The basic premise is that you stop shaving when the playoffs start, and you don’t shave again until your team is eliminated, or you win the Stanley Cup.  Because the Hawks won the Stanley Cup, that meant I went 60 days without shaving.  I have never had facial hair in my adult life (early playoff exits in the last two seasons meant the beard never really took hold).

I carried the beard on vacation to Disney & the Bahamas, dripping sweat down my neck the summer through.  The longer the hair got, the prouder I was as that meant the Hawks were still winning.  I hatched the idea of doing something with the beard if we won the Cup.  That’s where my friend John Jansky came in.

John Jansky is friend of mine from Danville High School.  He does some amazing speed paintings, but also does work with household kitchen items like; salt, sugar, chocolate sauce, ketchup, etc.  I didn’t contact John until after the Hawks had won. (I didn’t want to jinx us winning.)  I then called and the conversation went like this;

Keith, “John, have you ever worked with hair.”
John, “No, but I want to.”
Keith, “Well, here’s my idea.  You know if I have this playoff beard and now that the Hawks have won, I..
John, (interrupting)”…you want me to do something with your beard?, Yes, yes I will.”

I asked John for something Blackhawks so we could share with Hawks nation.  He posted today an amazing Hawks logo.  He also took a photo of me from vacation and made something from that.

John is an amazing, talented artist.  I’m proud to call him my friend and thankful for the ability to let the 2013 playoff beard live on.  Thanks, John & Go Hawks!

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Unknown ~ Unknown

Don’t let someone who is living their nightmare tell you that you can’t live your dream!

The post See it everyday… first appeared on Keith Souza.com.

Quick name a website that has been around longer than Twitter, Facebook or The Chive?  I know it’s easy, but hey 10 years is nothing to sneeze at. What started as a site for my constituents to contact me turned into my personal blog.  Anything amazing on here? Not really, but hey, half of life is just showing up and that’s what KeithSouza.com had done for 10 years, show up.

Here’s what the old version looked like back then.

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There was once a time when the Cleveland Indians were a publicly traded company.

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I tend to live on the edge of technology.  I’m a tech geek.  From time to time I see a new app that does something cool.  I might event find a new gadget that is actually useful.  So, when that happens, I thought I would share with the group.

So, let’s start this new tech section out with something simple.  I mean, c’mon we don’t want to pull a hammy here or anything.  My first bit of tech is a little app that is currently free (but only for this weekend, so jump on it). I like to get apps when the company gives it away as part of special.  Lots of companies give their app away on the apps anniversary or because a site is offering a one day special.  I subscribe to several blogs that keep track of these kinds of deals, so I usually download them, even if I don’t think I will use it, but you never know.

Well, the story with this app is that I saw they were giving away 3 free apps (from AppyFriday).  I looked at what this does, which is simply to let you type to your phone using your computers keyboard.  After I downloaded it and hooked it up to my iPhone, I tried it and realized that this may be the most worthless app ever.  So, I closed it out and then proceeded upon my day.

About 10 minutes later, I got a text from my beautiful wife.  (Let me pause there to share how I have my office work set up.  I have an iMac that is my primary work computer and on that same desk, I have a JBL OnBeat Dock that I keep my phone on at work.  Its a good little speaker and I am usually listening to Slacker Radio or Pandora, all the while keeping my phone charging.) Well, I always jump to answer any text from my wife and when I do, I have to take the phone off the dock which stops the music.  Then, after I send my text, I have to scroll back to Slacker or Pandora and fire it back up to resume my music.  Then usually the conversation is not over and I have to repeat the process once again.  (By the way, typing this story, I keep saying “First World problem”, but I digress.)

I said, “Wait a minute here” and fired back up the Type2Phone app I was so quick to dismiss.  I touched the text area on my phone WITHOUT interrupting my music and typed my message using my iMac’s keyboard.  The big difference between your phone and a full keyboard is speed.  So, I whip off my message to Mrs. Souza and hit send.  Genius.

I have had a computer work weekend and so I have had my phone by my side for most of the weekend and have replied to a dozen or so texts using my new free app.  Pretty cool solution to a problem that I didn’t even know I had.

The post New technology section first appeared on Keith Souza.com.

You guys should know the story by now. Every year I reset the song count on my iTunes, and share with you the top 25 songs that I listened to last year.

I almost cut and pasted 2011’s list and write up.  Rather than just Guster & Dispatch making the list, I added a little Jason Mraz and Mac Miller.  Wait, who? Mac Miller?

I told you my Guster & Dispatch stories last year, so let’s give you some insight to the others on the list: Jason Mraz, Mac Miller & Christina Perri.  I was also very pleased to find that Guster and Jason Mraz appeared on “Live at Daryl’s House” with Daryl Hall.

Jason Mraz

Jason is one of the most talented artists that I know.  For me, he’s got one of the best outlooks on life and that’s reflected in his songs.  He made the comment one time that he writes songs about people in his life that he loves and are special to him.  That way when he’s performing those songs, he gets to have those people with him when he’s on the road.  I went to see him again this year in Indy.  (Christina Perri made the list as she was the opening act in Indy.)  If you doubt that he’s got some powerful songs, check out his appearance on VH1’s Storytellers.

Mac Miller
How did this song get on the list.  Well, let me tell you.  Last year the HBO had the 24/7 Show “Road to the Winter Classic” featuring the Washington Capitals & the Philadelphia Flyers.  This song was the Flyers victory song and they played it on a few episodes and it stuck in my head. So, I bought it and somewhere along the way it became a song for Truce & I.  It fell to #16 by year end, but it was number 1 for most of the year.

See you next year.

The post Top 25 for 2012 first appeared on Keith Souza.com.

This won the internet for me today.

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I have always loved the Twilight Zone.  Rod Serling is a television writing icon.  This morning, I read this article from Brain Pickings.  I love new ideas.  Be it in television, books, marketing campaigns, whatever.  I like the fact that he says it all in 1:05.  Great inspiration for the day.

“Ideas come from the Earth. They come from every human experience that you’ve either witnessed or have heard about, translated into your brain in your own sense of dialogue, in your own language form. Ideas are born from what is smelled, heard, seen, experienced, felt, emotionalized. Ideas are probably in the air, like little tiny items of ozone. That’s the easiest thing on earth, to come up with an idea.  The second thing is, the harding thing on earth is to put it down.”

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