In 1993 I was working as a "Tape Ape" in a data center tape library for General Electric in Brookpark, Ohio. Even though I was working for GE, I really didn't make a lot of money in that position (Benefits were good though). To supplement my income however, I'd leave my second shift position at GE and work for a cleaning company cleaning office buildings. When I got out of there I would go deliver newspapers ( I had two different stints doing this. One was WSJ home delivery and the other was restocking USA Today boxes downtown). I'd be able to get to sleep by between 08:00 & 09:00 to get up at 15:00 and make it to work again by 16:00. This was nothing new to me. My father worked two jobs as long as I can remember. I've had literally dozens and dozens of jobs since I’d graduated from high school. From my generally blue collar background, working two and three jobs in order to make ends meet were pretty much the norm. Out of all the jobs I've had, I'd managed to be pretty good at most of them. I can't remember ever being fired from a job. I can remember however, one that I screwed up so bad, that I left at the end of the day. I didn't even give them a chance to fire me! (I never even went back to collect my paycheck!). But that was a rare experience with something that I was obviously not suited for.
It was right around this time that my Son, who was about to enter first grade, was diagnosed with ADHD. The Internet was pretty much a new thing but I was successful in finding some information regarding ADD & ADHD in the alt.support branch of usenet newsgroups. Something that became a huge surprise for me was how much regarding the symptoms of this affliction was applicable to ME!? At 45 years of age, I decided to see a psychologist and was diagnosed with severe ADD. Life was about to change drastically for me.
We immediately started experimenting with medications and it didn’t take log to discover that “Dexedrine” (a rather powerful amphetamine often prescribed for weight loss) was a perfect fit for me.
The biggest difference I’d noticed while taking my medication was in my ability to learn. While working in an IT environment at GE, I had soon discovered that I had an affinity with the Unix operating system. Everything involving Unix suddenly made sense. I was now able to easily read and digest computer manuals and books and digest I did! It was not unusual to hear my peers comment on my insatiable appetite to learn and stay current amid this seemingly endless stream of information technology. I was indeed very proud of the fact that some called me the “Human Man Page” ( a man page is the integrated Manual Pages that document each of the commands associated with the Unix operating system) and I very much enjoyed being a key go to person when it came to my job.
Needless to say, my income quickly doubled, tripled and eventually quadrupled from the days when I had to work two and three jobs to eke out a reasonable living. I’d found my niche’. I finally found something in which I had a natural talent to build upon. I really tried to make the most of it. My wife, at one point, rightly appeared concerned that I had been reading NOTHING but computer manuals for years on end.
All went well until the end of 2004. I’d gained considerable weight and my blood pressure was at dangerous levels. I had had an episode with chest pain that resulted in at trip to the ER and two coronary stents implanted in my heart. My doctor could no longer prescribe the Dexedrine. My new goal was to lose the weight ASAP and get back on the medication, also ASAP. At this point, I could maintain my job at a reasonable level for some time, as long as things didn’t change too drastically.
In the process of losing the weight, I discovered an amazing phenomenon; A combination of a lean body, a regimen of hard cardio for about 1.5 to 2 hrs. per day, and a diet of properly timed 5 or 6 small balanced meals a day would perfectly mimic the effects of Dexedrine without the side affects. This discovery was made at the end of 2005 and it managed to work perfectly until I ran into problems with my knee in the spring of 2009.
My usual routine was to get up before 4am to get into the pool by 4:30. I would then move onto about 40 to 50 minutes of cardio with another 30 to 40 minutes of cardio at lunch. The swimming was something I felt I needed to learn and was not really considered part of the hard cardio I was trying to perform. The daily cardio consisted of biking, running, stairmaster and running regular stairs. The years of this grueling schedule were made possible by the thought of returning to near minimum wage jobs and the changes that such a change would make for my family.
When my knee developed problems, I was reduced to trying to use the little swimming I had learned, rowing and this “UBE” hand crank machine to try and reach an 85%+ heart rate for prolonged periods of time. While the rowing proved to be a valuable tool, it wasn’t enough and I started to fall behind in my job. A perfect storm was starting to brew. I was unable to continue the high level of performance I’d grown to expect from myself and at the same time, the environment I was working in started changing drastically to where I needed to learn the new technologies.
I’d managed to get back to running and biking but the handwriting was on the wall. With a recent injury limiting my continued “cardio therapy”, I’d determined that I have some choices to make.
Through all the jobs I've had, I've always been inclined to give my all to quality work. With every job, I'd always been surprised at the skill & "tricks of the trade" that could be utilized to perform a level of quality the uninitiated could never attain. Whether it was washing dishes, floor maintenance, laundry, stock room work or food preparation, there were skills and tricks that were often a challenge for me to perfect but I usually got it and I usually learned to excel. To this day, I often walk into a buildings lobby and can recognize a superior wax job on the floor and I'll stop and appreciate the skill and pride that must have gone into producing a quality piece of work. Martin Luther King Jr. once said "If a man is called to be a street sweeper, he should sweep streets even as Michelangelo painted, or Beethoven composed music or Shakespeare wrote poetry. He should sweep streets so well that all the hosts of heaven and earth will pause to say, here lived a great street sweeper who did his job well.”
I’ve come to grips with the prospect of returning to having to work multiple lower paying jobs and to change my standard of living accordingly. I’m still not about to “quit my day job’ as it were, but I need to prepare for a new phase in my life. I refuse to be continually mediocre in my job and my body is simply unable to take the continued stress of extended periods of hard cardio. I have a newly developed passion for diet and fitness and believe I’m uniquely gifted in encouraging others. I intend to talk to the Weight Watchers organization to see what it takes to become a leader since it was with WW that I lost over 90lbs. I’m 100% in favor of their methodologies ( I KNOW that it pays almost nothing, but it’s a start). I’ll probably try for some type of NSCA certification and see if I can find a fit somewhere coaching older adults. If none of this works, I can return to physical jobs that I know I can be good at even if I have to work 80 or 90 hours a week. I intend to continue to make myself valuable to my current employer in any way possible and intend to try my new endeavors on a part time basis until I’m ready to switch.
I’d recently had a dialogue with a friend regarding the meaning of professionalism. It is my contention that a professional is one who “professes to be” a certain individual whose life embodies a particular skill set. A doctor is a doctor at work or at home, (if he is a professional) he’s a doctor if he’s alone or with a group. His entire life reflects that of a doctor. I was once an IT professional and IT is now just a job for me. I intend to rectify this status and hopefully I’ll soon be able to return to the realm of professionalism. If not, I can always return to waxing and buffing floors. It may not be a profession, but at least I’ll be damn good at it.
What I’ve done this week:
*** Hip problem made swimming & biking the main stay… running turned out good as well.
Versa 1 Mile *** First time in almost 2 years… sub 30 minute… 29:30…
Swimming 5,800 Meters
Running 14 Miles
Rowing 0 – Still too painful on the hip.
Bike 130 min.
Stairclimbing 0
No official Crossfit… Although I did put together a crossfit type WOD
5 rounds of:
10 Pull Ups
30 Push Ups
21 minutes.
My Current Weight is 161lbs.
22,828 kcal Consumed
6,704 kcal Burned During Exercise
16,124 kcal Net (Consumed - Burned)
Daily Goal 2,088 (maintenance)
Weekly Goal 14,616
Surplus of 1,588 kcal ( 1/2 lb gained)
Details can be perused at:
