Fatman to Fitman update: The Relapse

Fatman to Fitman

I was talking to my Mom the other day and she mentioned that she hadn’t seen an update on the Fatman to Fitman subject in a while. Not sure if that was her subtle way to say that my selfies are looking a little puffy lately or not but I told her she was absolutely correct and made the excuse that I was busy with my new podcast and my YouTube channel. But that wasn’t the complete truth and I have been nothing if not honest with all of you so I figure I will put it out there.

I relapsed. But not entirely.

The Fatman

I definitely relapsed in this regard. I have gained some weight back. There has been some stressful stuff going on and I have reverted back to some stress eating habits. Not that stress eating is a bad thing but when it is mixed with smoky skies and a rainier season than usual, it meant that I didn’t make as many miles on the trails as last year.

Another thing I have been doing is exploring further from my comfort zone. I have taken some longer trips and seen some better sights. I visited the Grand Canyon and the Utah National Parks. While these trips are great and I saw some amazing things, I typically hiked shorter trails due to time constraints.

So I learned that if you take shorter hikes and eat a bit more the pounds creep up like a lion on a pork chop.

The Fitman

While I might not look quite as good in skinny jeans I did notice something else that is important. I did the same hike that I did last year and improved my time by 15 seconds a mile. So while my body has transformed slowly to that of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man my physical conditioning continued to improve.

As the furthest thing from a scientist as their is I decided this simple fact that would have helped me ten years ago. Fat can be a shape…err in shape. While I admit if I was 10 pounds lighter I probably would have increased my times by 30 seconds a mile, the fact that I am heavier than I was last year and still increased my time tells me something.

Only Acceptable Conclusion

It tells me not to give up. In the past I have stuggled because I would miss one workout and decide that I was instantly out of shape and it was time for sweatpants, recliners and all the chili dogs that I could find. I gave up after seeing the slightest negative result. This time I am not phased by seeing my dreams of being an underwear model slowly slip to dreams of modeling parkas. This time I have learned that a fitness journey doesn’t have to end if the belt extends a notch.

The heftier version of myself still completed two 13ers, which is twice as many as I did last year. Blubber boy over here still has hiked 353 miles, 65,000 feet of elevation gain, and hiked for 159 hours this year.

While the added weight sucks and I’m not happy about it, I’m not going to let it slow me down. My swollen ankles will keep marching along and I’ll turn that corner soon. The pounds that would have locked me up in a prison of depression and low confidence two years ago are just another factor motivating my next trip up to some where amazing. Now pass the ice cream…I mean frozen yogurt.

More from the Fatman

If you enjoyed this post you may enjoy more of the posts on my Fatman’s Rambling page. Blogs such as “Hiking Alone not Lonely Hiking“, “To Pee or Not to Pee” and “Screw it, I’m Trying” as well as many others may interest you there. If you have any comments or topics you would like me to cover, feel free to email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com. Or you can keep the conversation going by following me on any of the below social media platforms.