Coach Check In: 9 weeks of 12

Pictured: 9 weeks in. 198 pounds.

Coach Check In: 9 weeks of 12

Welp. Here we are. 9 weeks later out of this 12 week journey with coach Josh and Stronger U.

I weighed in at 198 pounds yesterday. That means I’m 27 pounds down since starting 9 weeks ago. It also means this is the first time I’ve been below 200 pounds since high school.

That 200 pound mark was a pretty weird number for me to approach during this whole thing. I’ve talked before about me never wanting to be “skinny” ever again after some nasty stuff in my younger days, and the 200 pound mark always seemed to be this gold standard of “no longer skinny” … at least for me anyway.

Day by day I was creeping closer and closer to it. 225, then 220, then 215, then 210… then things got real weird at 205. Clothes started to fit weird. I was having to tie my shorts tighter than usual… and the inevitable happened…

“Hey Clark! Dang bro. Lookin’ pretty skinny, dude.”

I wasn’t exactly sure how I would handle that the first time it happened. Normally when I would be called skinny, I would do an emergency bulking session (Papa Johns is on speed dial) followed by copious amounts of ice cream pints juuuuuust to make sure I wasn’t skinny. Self sabotage, thy name is Blue Bell.

But that didn’t happen. Instead, I smiled, said, “Yeah man. I’ve been working really hard” and went about my day. I stayed in my calorie deficit, nailed my macros, and woke up a pound lighter. BOOM.

Truth is, I’m really loving the way I look right now, and I’m REALLY loving the way I FEEL right now. I haven’t been this active in years. I’m making it a point to run about 6-8 miles a week (it’s not a big number, but it’s better than 0), I’m not pushing off my workouts like I usually do, I’m EXCITED about training, and I can almost sort of kind of keep up with my wife in certain workouts.

I’ve learned so much over the past 9 weeks. I’ve learned that this whole thing is a mindset, not necessarily a lifestyle. If you keep your mindset zeroed in on your goals, you don’t have to worry about changing your entire lifestyle. Nothing is drastically different than what I did before… it’s just taking a bit more time to prepare, flexing your discipline, and having the ability to say “no.” We all have enough time to measure our foods and make sure we are taking in the appropriate amounts. It doesn’t take that long. We also all have the ability to say “no” to that glass of wine, pint of beer, or extra dessert. I’m a beer LOVER… but cutting back the beer consumption from 2 a day to 1 a week has been a huge factor in getting me closer to my goals.

I’ve learned that it is 100% OK to weigh yourself everyday. The scale is a valuable tool in how you can track your progress. While it shouldn’t be your only tool, there is absolutely nothing wrong with weighing yourself daily (just don’t get obsessive about it…).

I’ve learned that when you flex your discipline, you get to flex your abs later.

But the coolest thing I’ve learned? I’ve learned that I thrive when I have coaching. I’ve learned that I’m not as good going at this on my own… and that’s ok. I’ve got a coach who I can trust, and someone who is going to make sure things are staying on track. There’s a huge accountability factor there, and it’s working really well for me.

9 weeks down, 3 to go… then we start the next 12.

If there’s anyway I can help you, please let me know!

-Clark Hibbs
#YouCanDoThis

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