Thursday, April 30, 2009

Dr. Ellington Darden

So, in reading the "New Bodybuilding for Old School Results", I was intrigued. Work out harder, work out briefer, and work out less... to someone who used to work out two hours in the morning before classes in college, and two hours after class, but now has a busy business and is a devoted family man, this sounded like a Godsend.

THEN, lo and behold, I found out that the author, Dr. Ellington Darden (shown in the video above), lives a few mere miles from my house!

Plus, he offered personal training. I hemmed and hawed a few months, and kept putting it off. Finally, I figured my way of working out hadn't really well, "worked out" that well for me, so I'd give Dr. Darden a call (plus my wife finally said it was okay!).

More to come...

Monday, April 20, 2009

The Biggest Loser!

After I turned 40, even though I was back in the gym and working out regularly, it just seemed that things got harder. I put back on some fat under the muscle I'd newly re-acquired, and couldn't seem to lose it. The same diet ( Low carb, high protein), the same workouts, just didn't seem to work the same way anymore. I was definitely in better shape than a lot of people, but I wasn't where I wanted to be. Then something weird happened... my cousin, Phillip Parham, and his wife, Amy, found out they were going to be on TV's "The Biggest Loser" ( a "reality" type weight loss show). I hadn't spoken to either of them in a few years (just too busy in our lives, I guess), but our family watched the show religiously because of them. I was soooo blown away over their dedication and the amazing results they had.

We watch a lot of reality shows in the Parham household, so we thought it would be cool, with the family connection especially, to go to the season finale of "The Biggest Loser" this time. (I'm holding the "I", my oldest daughter, Brady, is holding the "L", and my beautiful wife, Barbie, is holding the "&" in the photo here).

Phil and Amy didn't win the show (because of some gameplay), but they broke weight loss records on the show, and were extremely popular with viewers. They've gone on and have a successful business as personal trainers and motivational speakers now.
We got back from the show, and I knew I wanted to do something... something to take my training to the next level and get over the plateau I was stuck on. So I pulled a book from my shelf I'd recently bought.....

To be continued....

Just in Time....

Ya know, I never thought I'd look like this. I was quite the gymrat in my college days, modeled in major fashion mags in my midtwenties, and was in great shape. Somewhere along the line, though, working out became less of a priority.
I never got TOO far out of shape, I guess, but when I saw these photos from a family beach trip, I was horrified. One of my best buds, Tom Richmond (www.tomrichmond.com), the famous cartoonist, had gotten himself back into shape recently, and I was truly inspired by the changes he'd made in his physique (he's a BEAST!). So, with help and advice from him (it's important to have someone to bounce ideas off of... even if they live across the country), I decided to get back into shape. Vanity didn't hurt either... my 20 year high school reunion was about a year away at the time, and I wanted to look good for it . I got back into the gym, and it was really tough for awhile. I had to MAKE myself go.
But what do ya know? I eventually started LIKING the feeling of working out again. I got addicted to it, which is what I needed. And I did it JUST IN TIME for the reunion. I hit my weight goal (and got into the pants I wanted to wear) about two weeks before it. THIS photo is the same beach, about two years later (I was 40). I had made big changes already, but there was still more to come. (Notice the strategically placed baby! Ha! Right where abs SHOULD be! )

Saturday, April 18, 2009

Weclome!


This is it! The first post. I know I'm supposed to say something witty here, but I really haven't come up with anything that fits the bill. Quite simply, this blog is about something that's become a big part of my life again, something that I missed for many years but didn't realize it - staying in shape. This blog is going to be about my quest for that- spirit, soul, and body.

The above photo is of my gym here at home that I've put together over the past couple of years. It's a work in progress. I affectionately call it my "Body Shop", hence the title of the blog. My Dad, you see, had a actual automotive body shop where he repaired and painted cars up until a few years ago ( "Marion's Body Shop ", in Greenville, SC), and the name of my gym is an homage to him and it. I was always too "artsy" (I'm a professional cartoonist by trade now) to be very interested in following in his footsteps in THAT kind of body shop. But, you see, I've now created my own version.

Hopefully you'll enjoy my musings and ramblings here, and maybe even get something out of it in the process.

Welcome to "Keelan's Body Shop"! Come on in!