Meet Caine. He’s a kid from California who one day decided to begin buidling his own arcade games out of cardboard at his dad’s used auto parts store. Caine built these elaborate games using nothing but cardboard, packing tape and other small items. He never had a customer until one day Nirvan stops by and is amazed at what Caine has built. He gets permission from Caine’s dad to put together a short film about Caine and organizes a flash mob that offers the biggest surprise that Caine would have never expected.

This short video brought tears to my eyes. It may not touch you the way it did me, but for me this was emotional because I love seeing kids do amazing things and when they are rewarded for it or they receive surprises like the one Nirvan provided, I can’t help but root for Caine. Through this video and the twitter, facebook, reddit, and other efforts spear headed by Nirvan, over $68,000 have already been raised for a Caine Scholarship Fund! This kid will have the money to one day go to college. These guys have helped change a kid’s life forever. That’s freakin amazing!

If you are touched and want to donate to Caine, you can do so by visiting http://cainesarcade.com/
Follow the Caine story on Twitter: https://twitter.com/#!/cainesarcade
Like CainesArcade on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/cainesarcade

If you’re not living under a rock and have some form of connection to the internet, then you’re no stranger to the Kony 2012 viral video that reached over 70 million viewers within 48 hours of its release.  Hell, you don’t even need an internet source to know about this since the media jumped on this quick, as well as many radio talk shows and news outlets.

As well as receiving tons of praise and accolades, this campaign has also received much criticism, and it didn’t help the cause any when the creator, Jason Russell, was recently video taped walking around naked and acting super bizaar on a street corner near his California home.  The video shows Russell, butt naked, pacing back and forth, talking to himself, rambling, clapping his hands, and doing aerobics.   Jason was obviously exhibiting characteristics of someone “under the influence” and almost looked like a sleep walker.  Any normal person watching the video would have to agree that this was not normal behavior and I’m sure Russell himself, after watching himself in the video, is saying “who the hell was that?!”

There aren’t a lot of answers right now, especially since the family is choosing to deal with this privately.  You can’t blame them though.  This is embarrassing and it’s no one else’s business.  But i want to touch on a side of this story that you aren’t hearing much, and that is “mental illness”.  We have no idea what Jason’s mental state has been for the past several years or is now.  For all we know he could have had a mental condition that was never going to surface unless he was put under the stress and demand that he received upon the launch of this Kony video.  People have nervous breakdowns everyday as well as panic attacks, bipolar episodes which include manic highs and lows, anxiety attacks, and more.

If you’ve ever witnessed someone having a seizure, it’s an obvious sign of distress and is clearly a mental issue that needs immediate attention.  No one sits there and watches a seizure victim and points at them and laughs.  Your friends would slap you, I hope.  Twice.  Most people don’t understand mental illness and because it doesn’t have a very clear “face”, society takes it lightly and it doesn’t get the attention that it deserves.  It also comes with a social stigma that causes people with any type of mental illness to keep it under wraps.  I’ve witnessed first hand what the brain can do and how it’s “malfunction” can cause behavior that catches you off guard and is hard to understand.  I’ve been there when for no apparent reason a friend goes from being happy, laughing, having drinks to throwing their phone out the car window on the freeway and attempting suicide, only to snap later and ask “did i just take all of those pills?!  why?”.

We all remember Charlie Sheen and his antics, which lasted quite a while, way longer than it should have.  This was clearly a man with a mental condition that wasn’t being treated, wasn’t taking the proper medication, and was left untreated for all the world to see.  The diagnosis was bipolar and all of the signs were there to support it.  What did we all do?  Yes, we laughed.  And yes, a lot of what he did was hilarious and off the wall, but that’s what a breakdown will do, it’ll make a person do “crazy” things.  No one is winning when it comes to mental illness.

With all this said, I ask you all to step back and give Jason Russell a break.  Take into consideration that this young man was not himself and i think it would be safe to say that this was not the result of some type of bad trip on drugs.  Shame on all of you who are posting videos ridiculing him or calling him names.  I hope that you never have a break down and that your mind is always healthy.  We don’t poke fun at an elderly person with Alzheimer’s who is wandering the streets, lost, having no idea where the hell they are.  Let’s give this same amount of respect and consideration to someone who was caught off guard by a similar fate.

Jason will recover and should be fine.  He will have to live with this for the rest of his life.  If you pray, then pray for him and his family.  If you don’t, then maybe write to him and show him your support and wish him well.  And if you’re a perfect human being who never makes mistakes or falls, call me, I’d like to know your secret.

Wish you and your family well Jason.

-Hector Garcia

This week the internet galaxy woke up to the “campaign” of Mr. Joseph Kony, guerilla leader of the Ugandan LRA (Lord’s Resistance Army).  This campaign was cleverly created by a non-profit called Invisible Children, who has been doing some great work in Africa, working to rescue children who are kidnapped by the LRA and turned into child soldiers.  Over the past two decades, the LRA has made it common practice to enter towns and kill the adults, take the male children as soldiers, and sexually abuse the female children.

As a designer and owner of a creative agency, one of the first things that stood out to me was the genius behind this campaign.  It is branded very well and just look at the momentum and attention that it’s received.  One would think that Kony was running for President of not only Africa or the U.S., but the freakin world.  The only other time that I’ve seen such a powerfully branded and well designed campaign was during Obama’s run for President.  Kony is receiving exactly what Invisible Children sought after . . . Attention.

The second thing that came to mind, after watching the very well produced Kony 2012 video, and after seeing so many people talk about giving to this cause on Facebook, Twitter, and other social media outlets, was how trendy it will become to latch on to this campaign.  People are spreading the Kony video like wild fire and boasting of their support for this movement.  This campaign is only about 3 days old and the video has received over 16million hits on youtube.  I’m seeing people on Facebook refer to the attachment to the campaign as “trendy” and many will say that this will be short lived until the next big trend pops up in about 2 weeks.

I myself feel the same, but isn’t this what the campaign is designed to do?  To bring attention to this “evil” leader for one year, or even less if he gets arrested before the end of 2012?  Inivisible Children is now receiving some criticism for the campaign and there are even videos popping up that attack their integrity and financial transparency.  This is part of the game when an organization does something ground breaking and becomes an overnight “celebrity”.  Regardless, I have to say that the organization is doing what they felt would be the most effective for their cause and in the end if it works, then more power to these guys.

Whether you decide to support this campaign or not, I hope that it brings awareness to what is going on in Uganda and drives people to do their research and find out about even more atrocities taking place around the world.  If this Kony campaign moved you to give or step out and do something that you’ve never done before, then it’s doing exactly what it was supposed to do.  We should all have a giving heart and be a regular supporter of anyone or anything that is doing good and changing lives.  If you could care less about Kony, that’s fine, but find something to care about and give to it, whether it’s your time or money.  You have the power to change the world, even if it’s the small little world around you.  Make a Shift.  Change the freakin world.

- Hector Garcia

I was fresh out of high school, maybe 18 or 19 and I remember her passing by my house in her little red Hyundai Scoupe, honking and waving.  This happened regularly and I would do the same if I passed by her house.  We lived down the street from each other, for years, yet we never talked to one another.  We knew of each other, went to the same high school, and our little brothers were good friends, yet we never talked or hung out.  We may have had secret crushes on each other and we were both just too shy to talk to one another.  Who knows, we’re still trying to figure that one out.

Well, she did get enough balls one day to stop by and ask me out.  I was either outside cutting the grass or working on my car and to my surprise she showed up and asked me out to a local club.  Red Square to be exact.  Back then it was the place to be, and it’s where Christine would go practice all of her new wave dance moves.  You should see her new wave moves by the way, they’re awesome.  Anyway, what’s crazy is that neither one of us remember anything after her picking me up that night.  Not because we were drunk, because neither one of us drank, we simply can’t remember the night.  Only little bits and pieces.  We do remember her dropping me off after the club and that was the last time we talked, until years later.

This is just one part of our story.  There’s a lot more, which I may detail in a small book one day.  I believe there’s a great love story here at work and after being with each other for the past 1.5 or 1.8 years, we are always amazed at how connected we are.  I’m not sure why things happen the way they do, but like I said in my blog post yesterday, “Life’s all about moments of impact and how they changed our lives forever”.  (Read yesterday’s blog post) Both of our lives have gone through major changes over the past few years.  Neither one of us expected to be where we are today and who would have ever predicted that two people who lived down the street from on another would come together one day and have a second chance at love.

It’s happening right before us, and though we’ve been through our own challenges, we learn to love every day.  We learn something new about one another every week and it only pulls us closer and closer.  I love her smile in the mornings and how her hair looks all crazy sometimes, like an 80′s rock star.  I love her style and wouldn’t change it or ask her to ever be something that she’s not.  Her laugh is awesome and it’s music to my ears.  She’s feisty and I sometimes want to give her shaking baby syndrome, but I love her for being her.  That same feisty passion translates into the love that she has to give and it’s wonderful.  The way we end up sitting in the truck for half an hour in the driveway when we get home from somewhere is just one way that illustrates how much fun we have together.  And though she hates the freckles on her face, it’s those same freckles that caused me to fall in love with her.

So yeah, life is crazy.  We’ll never understand how we end up where we are or with whom, but that’s life, right?  I love where I’m at now and though “it took twenty years for us to find each other”, in Christine’s words, it was worth it.  Love you Christine.  Happy Valentines Day.

- Hector Garcia

The first time I saw the trailer for the movie The Vow, my first thought was that this would be another Notebook movie attempt.  Of course many think the same thing once they see Rachel McAdams, the lead actress from the infamous Notebook movie.  And even though I took a few jabs at the movie I of course planned on seeing it, mainly because I’m a sucker for a good chic flick.  haha.

Yeah, you heard me.  I have no shame in admitting that I love a good love story / movie and won’t even hide the fact that these stinkin movies have the power to pull a few tears from me.  I know i look all big and tough and buffed, but deep down inside is a very tender heart with lots of love to give. 

So this was the case with The Vow, which my beautiful girlfriend suggested we see last night.  She felt it was slow while I was sitting there relating to Channing Tatum’s character and loved the passion and love that he felt for his wife.  Yes, I know that it was a movie but I really do believe that two people can love this way.  It doesn’t have to be a fairy tail or a big screen love story.  It’s available for everyone and it’s real.

“Life’s all about moments of impact and how they changed our lives forever”.  This is the main theme throughout the movie and Leo’s (Channing’s character) anthem.  This statement probably sums up all of our lives.  I know it does mine and I’m in the middle of an impact right now.  Actually several impacts, all that have led me to be with the beautiful and loving person that I’m sharing my life with.

In the movie, Leo finds himself fighting for his wife’s love, who lost the last 5 years of her memory in a car accident.  Because these two were so in love and so perfect for each other, you can only imagine how painful something like that could be for a guy like Leo, a man who obviously loves with all of his heart.  He’s very patient and he works hard and fights with everything that he has, only to find himself questioning whether he should give up.

I don’t know what i would do if I found myself in this situation.  I would have to fight like Leo.  I couldn’t give up.  I know how i am, and when i love I love with everything that i have.  I don’t know how to love half-ass.  I’ve seen that in myself these past couple of years with the person I’m with now.  We’ve been through a lot together and there were many times where I could have thrown in the towel, but because I believed in our love and continue to, I stand strong and I love her with all my heart.

You see, my girlfriend has suffered from bipolar the last few years.  Bipolar exposed itself during a few moments of impact that she experienced herself several years ago and since then it’s been a daily battle for her.  Through our time together I’ve had to experience her “go away” many times and each time that happens it’s like Paige losing her memory in a car accident.  She always comes back and because I always knew the deep love that was in there, I always waited.  These episodes were extreme a while back, but happen less and less now, and I want to believe that love is what is conquering.  Love and faith is what has kept us going and I’m confident that it’ll only make us stronger.

We found ourselves sitting in the theater last night after the movie was over with tears in our eyes.  All we could do is hold each other, finding words unnecessary.  We’re thankful for one another and she always thanks me for not giving up on her. I never will.

Don’t wait for a day like Valentine’s day to remind you to love.  Love everyday like it’s your last and love with everything you’ve got.  Many people find themselves in a rut or in a relationship / marriage that has been tested and the challenges of life put distance between them.  Close that gap by choosing to love with all of your heart.  Men, I challenge you to love your woman like no other.  Serve her.  Cherish her.  Honor her.  Fight for her.  Make a vow to never get too comfortable and to love the woman in your life as if it’s your last day on earth.

Tomorrow I will share more of our story.  Till then, Happy Valentines Day and take it easy on the chocolate.

- Hector Garcia

Facebook has been crazy today with all the posts by people upset with the recent news regarding the Komen Foundations withdrawal of support for Planned Parenthood.  Reportedly they pulled funding because of pressure from the pro-life side as well as stating that they have new guidelines to abide by in regards to who they support.  Whatever the case, everyone is talking about this and I could see this breaking the Komen foundation at some point.  Maybe.

I’m no expert, but I’m certain that the reasons for this move by Komen that we’re hearing reported by news outlets all over the world are not the whole story.  More will come out soon and yes, there’s always a bigger story waiting to be told.

From the minute I heard this air, several thoughts came to mind, which I share below.  Included with these will be a little advice to anyone jumping on the band wagon and hating on Komen.

KOMEN CAN DO WHAT THEY WANT WITH THEIR MONEY

The Komen Foundation has been a strong leader in the fight against breast cancer and has helped hundreds of thousands of women around the world in their effort.  They have had a long standing relationship with Planned Parenthood and until today, I bet many people didn’t even know that they were a big donor to Planned Parenthood.  I didn’t.

In the end, Komen has the right to pick and choose who they want to support.  It’s their money and their cause and even if some may not like the reason for this decision, it is what it is, and it’s their choice.  If you were a regular giver to the foundation and you gave because you knew they were helping Planned Parenthood, then yes, you have reason to be upset.  But if you never gave a cent to either the foundation or Planned Parenthood, what should it matter to you.  Planned Parenthood is well funded and they will find a replacement donor.  Someone will step up and fill this gap for them.

So rather than complain and hate on Komen, just write a check to Planned Parenthood.  If not, then just go back to updating your facebook status and twitter accounts with pictures of puppies and youtube videos of drunk mexicans dancing at Quinceaneras.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD, THE ABORTION KINGS

If you hear the name “Planned Parenthood” the first thing that comes to mind is abortions.  While I’m not an advocate of murdering unborn babies, it’s sad that this is all that they are known for.  Yes, they offer a lot of great services for women but unless you actually take advantage of those services, you would only know them as the “abortion clinic”.

A story like this brings lots of attention to Planned Parenthood and almost makes them out to be the “good guys” while Komen is the evil right wing christian strong arm.  While PP still offers great services to women, a large number of people around the world can’t support them because of the abortion factor, including myself.  They will always be known as the “abortion clinic” and it’ll always overshadow anything “good” that they offer to women.

KEEP ON GIVING

I don’t know anyone personally that donates to Komen or PP on a regular basis.  I know a few that run the marathons or participate in charity events, but that’s about it.  Because of this it’s hilarious to read posts from people bashing Komen and giving praise and showing support to little ole helpless Planned Parenthood. People who i know never give to either one of these organizations don’t realize how foolish they sound when they say they’re never going to give to Komen or they’re going to “take their money elsewhere”.  Cracks me up.

If you give to any organization because you believe in what they do and what they stand for, keep giving.  Don’t let something like this discourage you or lose hope in the “good work” that you’ve chosen to give to.  Not every organization is perfect and for the most part even charities and non-profits have to operate like businesses.  Just do what you can and give what you can to causes that you believe in.

I don’t give to Komen and I’ve already explained why I can’t support PP.  However, I give to causes when i can and i give in different ways and it’s not always in the form of money.  So keep doing what you’re doing and if you’re not doing anything, get off your butt and make a difference.

I leave you with the words to a new song I found today:  “tonight, we are young . . . so let’s set the world on fire, we can burn brighter than the sun”.  Go burn bright my friends.  Set something on fire, as long as it’s not your hair or your friend’s car.

- Hector

New Years eve is tomorrow.  Yeah, I forgot about that until this morning on my Chickfila coffee run.

Everyone is already preparing for their resolutions and most of those have to do with either eating better or losing weight.  Well, I want to encourage you all to do things different this year.  Make some resolutions that will actually matter and make a difference in your life.  Here are a few suggestions or tips.  Do these for at least two weeks straight and they’ll become habit.

1.  GIVE MORE HUGS

People love hugs.  I remember a friend of mine several years ago introducing me and all of his friends to the 2 or 3 minute hug.  It was very very uncomfortable and to this day if anyone tries to give me a hug like that other than my mom or girfriend, they will get punched.  ha.  However, the moral of this story is to hug and show more love.  A hug is powerful.  Much better than a hand shake.  And it will always make someone’s day a little brighter and make a person feel loved.  Do more hugging and spread the love.

2.  TALK LESS, LISTEN MORE

Become a better listener this year.  Apply this to your relationships and you’ll see a big difference in the way you communicate with others, especially your spouse or significant other.  I’m learning to be a better listener and learning that I don’t always have to have the last word.  Sometimes your friends or family just need you to listen and not say anything or offer any advice.  We have all been in a position where all we needed was to be heard.  Become a better listener.  Talk less.  A good listener will understand better and with better understanding comes better relationships.

3.  RIDE YOUR BIKE

There’s something about being on a bicycle and just cruising around the neighborhood or further.  Yes, it’s a form of excercise but don’t do it just for that.  Do it to get out of the house and simply do it for fun.  Kids love their bikes and if you watch kids riding their bikes you’ll see how much fun they’re having.  There’s something very freeing about being behind the power of your bicycle.  Adults, ride your bikes more and allow yourself to be a kid on a regular basis.  Ride with your kids and family but also take some time to get out and ride with just your partner.  Ride to a restaurant or bar for a drink.  Get out.  Have fun.  Live on the edge.  haha.  ok, maybe not on the edge, but you get the picture.

4.  DO SOMETHING YOU’VE ALWAYS WANTED TO DO

I’m realizing that I do have a bucket list and I’m taking note of it.  One of the things that I’ve been wanting to do for a while is to get involved with theater or community acting.  Since being involved with drama in high school I’ve always had an interest in acting or at least giving my acting chops a try.  And it’s all just for fun, not to pursue a career  or anything.  So this year I will check that off my list as I pursue this and get plugged into a community theater or some type of acting class.  I may do great or I may get kicked out, who knows.  I can still recite Hamlet’s “to be or not to be” soliloquy so that’s a start.

There has to be at least one thing you’ve always wanted to do.  Step out this year and give it a try.  Start a new business.  Build something.  Learn a new trade or skill.  Go somewhere.  Visit that city or country that you’ve always wanted to visit.  Whatever it is, make plans to do it and stick to it.  Don’t let another year go by without doing that one thing or two or three.

5.  GIVE MORE

There’s a blog post somewhere in here that I posted about Christmas and how difficult it is for me to get into the “spirit”.  It has to do with feeling forced to buy gifts for people because a holiday says I should.  I love giving gifts, but I like doing it for no reason and for people that deserve it.  The best gift you could ever receive from anyone is a gift that you don’t deserve or expect.

This year, start giving more and taking less.  Start practicing with putting others first and thinking about yourself less.  A good way to start is to put some money aside every week or month and begin looking for needs to fulfill.  You may here of a family that’s struggling and all they could use help with one week is groceries.  Since you have that cash put aside you put yourself in a position to help immediately.  Your help doesn’t always have to involve money either.  Give your time.  Your love.  Your good looks.

6.  PANDAS

This last one is free.  Simply fall in love with pandas and look at their pictures everyday in a google search.  Will always, always brighten your day and make you feel awesome.

Have a great New Year everyone.  Do great things and live like this could be your last year on earth.  The world needs you.  Find out how and then do life with everything you’ve got. Happy New Year!

- Hector Garcia

Today’s post is probably the most serious post I’ve ever written, so please take your time to read.  It’s about an addiction that I have and I’m not sure what to do about it.  I’m not sure when or how it started but I’m currently looking into counseling for this obsession.  I’m sure many of you will be able to relate, and if so, more power to you.

I’ve always thought that panda bears were cute, but after seeing the commercial below, their cuteness level became coupled with what I can only describe as “awesome”.  In these commercials you have a very innocent looking panda causing hell because no one wants to eat his branded milk product.  “Ok, you’re not going to eat my panda cheese?  Well how about I disconnect your IV?”  Yeah, you don’t want to mess with the panda.  He’ll mess your world up.

The image that we receive from pandas for the most part is one of peace, chillin, eating bamboo all day long and playing on little green kids horses. Every photo or video you see of a panda they’re playing or sliding, or sitting like a drunk human with a stick of bamboo in their hand. They know that eating bamboo from the side of their mouth is more cute than eating it with the front teeth. They’re much cuter rocking on a green horse with ice cream in their hand than any baby could ever be. They don’t appear threatening at all but from what I’ve read, they can be the most aggressive bears out there.

Anyway, if I could go to china and buy one, I would. I would bring him home, have lots of toys for him to play with in the back yard, build him a huge swing set, and teach him how to cut my grass and make breakfast tacos. This is my confession and I’m not ashamed.  So if you want to get me anything for Christmas, make it visa gift cards, which I will use to go to China this coming year and pick up a panda.  Only costs about $2 million a year to rent one.  Power to your people . . . I mean, the panda!

- Hector Garcia

It was still morning, probably around 10am, and we were headed outside for our daily dose of exercise, also known as gym class.  The sun was out, the weather was cool, and as usual, I was in my favorite class of the day.  Most people hated gym class because of having to dress in uniform, but I loved it.  As we walked out that morning, my friends and I were goofing off like we normally do as well as trying to impress the girls.  Lots of laughing, jumping around, and big smiles.  Well, all of that came to a halt after I did something that sucked not only for me but for the person I did it to.  As “innocent” and playful as it may have seemed at the time, it served as a wake up call to my little 12 year old self.

You see, I had been bullying this little white kid for most of the semester.  Not sure how it all started, but everyday or at least every other day I was picking on this kid by intimidating him with “toughness” and making him give me his lunch money.  Yes, just like in the movies, I was getting lunch money from this kid and it was easy.  I never got violent with him or hit him, but there was enough intimidation there to get him to comply.

So there I was, walking out to the field during gym glass, and in front of me was this little blond headed kid.  Remember, I was hooked on impressing my friends, so a perfect opportunity was right there.  I remember coming up from behind him and in an instant, I had pulled his shorts down to his ankles.  He was totally caught off guard, but more than that, I embarrassed the hell out of him. All red faced and in shock, he quickly pulled his shorts back up.  As quickly as my friends started laughing and making fun of him, it all came to an end by the grip of my gym teacher’s hand on my shoulder.  It wasn’t funny to him of course, and a few minutes later, I found myself sitting in the principal’s office.

I was a “good” kid overall and to be sitting in the principal’s office, waiting to receive a good paddling, was not consistent with who I was.  I felt bad for what I did to that kid and I remember realizing how much of an a-hole I was to him.  The paddling didn’t hurt that much, but what did hurt was the guilt that I felt for being a bully to this kid.  I didn’t immediately apologize for being a jerk to him, but I think he was very relieved that the bullying had stopped and we actually became friends at some point.

I’m not proud of this, but I definitely learned a lot from it.  There’s been a lot of talk about bullying lately on television and online.  Not sure why, but either there is an increase in bullying or it’s just receiving more attention.  Whatever the case, bullying is bullying and it shouldn’t happen.  If I could take back what I did to that kid I would, as well as push myself in a corner and beat the crap out of myself.

Kids get bullied all the time, and if you have a son or daughter, they could be a victim without you ever knowing.  It’s not something your kids will gladly share with you, so you would have to be proactive and look for signs.  I’m sure this kid that I was picking on never wanted to come out and share this with his parents or friends and was toughing it out as much as he could.

Next week I will share a few tips that could help your kid combat bullying.  I will also share some signs that your parents can look for in your child if they are being bullied. Later in the week I will share some thoughts that could benefit any young people that are bully’s themselves.  Till then, give your kids a big fat hug when you see them later today.  And if you’re a bully, punch yourself in the face.  At least 15 times.

- Hector

I’m 5’8″ and weigh anywhere from 195 – 199lbs.  Most of my weight is pure muscle, but that’s another topic for another day.    Sounds like a lot of weight but if you see me regularly, I think it’s safe to say that I’m not over weight and in fairly good health.  Yeah, my ideal weight should be about 180lbs, but I’m working on it.  I was a super fat baby with a body type similar to the michelen man, but at 39 years old the only baby fat left is in my cheeks and belly.

The subject of weight is a very sensitive one and I know that many people play it safe when discussing this topic.  No one wants to offend anyone and we all know at least one person who struggles with their weight on a daily basis.  Of course there are many who are clearly overweight but they’re happy with the way they are.  That’s awesome, and this blog post is not for them.  This post is for those that don’t like the extra pounds they carry around and want to lose weight but haven’t been able to or don’t know how.

I’m not a weight loss or health expert.  I’m just a regular guy who loves food, loves life, and loves to play.  By playing, I mean that I love to be active. I ride my bikes, I run, I workout, I build stuff, and I cut my own grass.  All of this has helped keep me from pushing over 200lbs and I will continue to be this active until I can’t walk anymore.  But I do have some tips for anyone wanting to shed some weight and these tips are very basic and very blunt.  Unless you have a medical condition like a hyper thyroid or disability, I feel like there is no reason for anyone to be over weight.  Yes, I’m being very transparent about this subject, but you’ll appreciate it.  I think.

BE ACTIVE

Yes, it’s no secret that one of the main things that needs to take place in weight loss is exercise.  But exercise doesn’t always have to include a gym membership or lifting weights.  I believe that exercise should be fun and there are many ways to get some exercise in while doing something else at the same time.  I’ve been riding bmx and bicycles since middle school and it has been my number one hobby/sport since then.  Riding keeps me active and the style of riding that I do has also helped keep me toned to some extent.  I’m having fun while getting in some exercise.  In addition I run, walk regularly, and when i can I hit the gym.

If you’re a stay at home mom and you have kids, take those kids for walks everyday.  Take the baby out in a stroller to the park every single day or go for a three mile walk with them.  The weather is nice right now so there’s no reason why you can’t get out and get some walking in.  Make time to have fun and play regularly.  Getting in some exercise doesn’t have to kill you.  It can actually be a lot of fun.

STOP EATING SO MUCH AND SO FREQUENTLY

I love food!  I really do and I am not a person that can eat “healthy” or count calories.  What I have learned however is that eating in moderation and not over eating is a huge plus when trying to maintain or lose weight.  I’ve learned that I don’t need to order the huge burger and fries and eat the whole thing all by myself.  When my girl friend and I go out and eat, we now order one meal and we share it.  It’s more than enough for us and we’re saving money at the same time.

It’s all about self control and discipline.  Many people eat out of boredom and find themselves snacking all day long.  Before they know it they’ve eaten so much junk throughout the day, including their lunch and dinner.  Start training yourself to eat 3 good meals a day, and if you want to snack, do it moderately and replace those cookies, candybars, and chips with fruit or nuts.

NO MORE COKES

One thing that i know i’ve had to do recently that I know will help with some weight loss is to cut soda out of my diet.  All of that sugar and syrup is no good and I’m sure I could easily lose about 5 – 8 pounds simply by removing that from my diet.  If this is you as well, replace that soda with water, not another sugar filled drink.

IT’S A LIFESTYLE

Being fit or maintaining a decent weight is a lifestyle.  Again, i feel that it should be fun and not a chore.  Yes, it’s hard work and takes sacrifice, but that’s usually the case with anything.  So if you’re struggling with this, don’t be discouraged.  Do what you can but do something.  We all have the time to make changes in our life and in our body.  Some of us have plenty of time, while some have to schedule it in like a doctor’s appointment.  But there should be no excuse to be overweight, unless you like that body type of course.  Like i said, some do, and that’s great.  Flaunt it and maintain that confidence.  For everyone else, start small and work your way up.  Make changes in your lifestyle everyday and before you know it, you’ll start seeing a difference.

As for me, I’ll most likely have a good lunch today and stop eating when i’m full.  I see the gym in my future for tonight as well.  And maybe a little debbie snack cake.  hahah.  Enjoy your day.

- Hector