On December 21, 2011, I had a Umbilical Hernia operation,

However, as I’ve lost weight, the hernia was becoming more pronounced. So much so that I went to see doctors to get there opinion.

Bottom line, if I am to climb Mt Kilimanjaro in June of 2012, I needed to get this operation done and over with so I can REALLY train full out.

Which Brings Me To The Past 4 Weeks…
Part of the deal with hernia recovery is, NO Exercise or Lifting for 4-6 weeks. This was a little concerning to me before the operation.

Would I gain weight due to no exercise?
How Would I feel not exercising?

THE RESULTS ARE IN…
My Weight is:              Before = 292 Today = 298 lbs.
My Blood Pressure: Before = 124/84 = Today 144/94
My Blood Glucose:   Before = 98 Today = 111

My lowest weight this past year was 278 lbs and that was in October 2011. When I went in to have my operation I weighed 292 lbs. So between October 2011 and December 2011 I gained 14 pounds. In the last 4 weeks I’ve gained 4 lbs.

So my weight, blood pressure and Blood Glucose are all up. I can’t always actually feel the effects of those numbers.

The one definite thing I CAN FEEL by not exercising this past month is in my attitude. The first 2 weeks I was in so much pain, I did’nt want to move or exercise. However, going into week 3, I noticed myself getting more and more depressed. I fely emotionally like CRAP!

I started getting into arguments with Vickie, which we NEVER do.I also noticed the neuropathy in my feet getting worse again! This really sucks! I also started feeling that pain
in my left knee again. I also started over eating and eating some less than nutritional foods like, cookies, Pizza, Potatoe chips!

Bottom Line…
As I started working out again about a year and half years ago, I looked at exercise as my main way to lose weight and nothing more.

I NOW know from my own expeirence and statistics EXERCISE offers so many benifits to ones health. The big one I notice most is my ATTITUDE! Not exercising has significantly contributed to my feeling of depression, sadness and negativity. Not to mention all my other numbers have gone up.

Two years ago I NEVER would have though that exercise would actually help me to feel good on a daily basis, but it’s true!

I am grateful that Vickie put up with me because it hasn’t been a picnic! It takes a TEAM to get healthy and I’m also grateful my nutrionist Angie Lopez, my Podiatrist Dr Amir Shalev,  and my Trainer Nancy Dickinson kept checking in on me. 

So on that note, get your ASS of that couch and get moving! Do a few laps for me!!!
You’ll Feel Better!

No Chips – No Dip – No Cookies – No Cake!
Robby LeBlanc

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Nancy Dickinson has been my trainer for the past 5 months and she is AWESOME!

I just wanted to share something that Nancy shared with her Beginner and Veteran Marathoners. She is training a group of us to compete in the the upcoming Las Vegas Marathon December 4, 20-11. I did my first half marathon (13 miles) last December. It was such a thrill to just finish last year! Now, i’m really looking forward to doing it again!

In any case, below is an email Nancy sent to her group…
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Hey Dearest Flying Feet!

You guys are officially runners!  Numerous times you’ve put away MANY miles!  Tis the time in the season in which we start to ask ourselves a few questions:

-Can I make that whole distance?

-Is this knee pain serious?

-What do I eat and how do I schedule my day for a night run?

-I’m having a tough time getting in all my weekly runs….am I going to make it through the race?

Here’s the anwers (yes I’m 100% sure on these and don’t even think about doubting my expertise)

-Yes

-Talk to your coaches about any nagging, chronic ailments.  May be nothing at all, but let’s not risk it!  We have the resources to get it fixed!  And we are ALWAYS here to help!

-Start experimentin YESTERDAY.  Last thing you want is to go into race not knowing how your body’s going to react to your fuel and rest decisions!

-Remember you can break up your weekly runs into manageable chunks to work with your schedule.  Also, if you’re not feeling so hot to run, I can ALWAYS give you a great run specific strength/cardio routine that will work the same muscle groups you do while running plus give you a break from the pounding punishment of running.

I promise it will be short, to the point, and be a nice break from your asphault marriage.  Still, please don’t sacrifice your long runs for an alternative just yet.  They are hugely important especially for the beginner and you guys are doing an incredible job of getting them all in!

I know at times it’s tough to visualize yourself completing this race.  It’s almost as though you’ve dabbled in chunks of the distance, but don’t feel ready for the whole thing, right?  WRONG!  YOU WILL BE READY!  Do NOT forget all the long runs and hard work you’ve put away.  Like I’ve mentioned before it’s almost as though nature makes us ‘forget’ about the training once it’s over perhaps to ensure that we go out and do it again.  My silly theory, yes, but I’m sticking with it.  So don’t go out and try to cram in miles….you’ve been doing them!

Sigh…our race is at night!  I still don’t know myself how I’m going to deal with that for this race, but I know one thing….I’m going to figure my nutrition and rest for that day and days before NOW!  This race starts nearly in the middle of the night for me so I will obviously need to make some adjustments.  You may start thinking of your own adjustments if you’re an early person like myself.

Fortunately for us, we have an early bird special run group within our run group!  Margaret has been kind enough to lead a group in the evening each week!  TUESDAY EVENINGS AT 530 FROM OUR OFFICE LOCATION will be the way that everyone can get in on a little late day exercising to prep ourselves for D Day.  I’m going to do my best to make it and I suggest you all try as well!  I will be giving different course suggestions each time.
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Well that’s my coach! Everybody needs a coach! She’s an Expert at what she does. She CARES about he peeps! Sh’e inspiring and motivational!

Here are Nancy Dickinson’s  websites.
http://corehore.com/
http://www.corehore.blogspot.com/

Until next time…

No Chips -No Dip – No Candy – No Soda,
Robby

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Exciting NEWS! I will be speaking at the Lifestyle Intervention Conference September 28-30, 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

I will be sharing the stage with Michael Cartwright, Brad Lamm from the Dr. Oz Show, Fitness Guru Billy Blanks, Joy Bauer from ABC, Tennie Mcarty from Shades of Hope and others…
The Title of my presentation is “I’m Not Addicted To Broccoli”.

For more information about the conference go to: LifestyleInterventionConference.org.
Call: 1-888-231-0911

Keep Being Brilliant,
Robby

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In October of 2010 a great friend, Stu Mclaren called me from his home in Canada and said he was running the Las Vegas Marathon December 5, 2010

I asked him how far a marathon was, because I had no idea. Stu replied, “This one is 26 miles” . I said, “Are you nuts? I’d have a heart attach!” He then said, “I bet you could do the half marathon.” I asked how far a half marathon is ? Stu repsonded, “13 miles.” He said,  ”Come on Robby, you could do 13 miles. Just try.”

There you have it! That was the beginning of my training to participate in the Las Vegas Marathon on the Las Vegas Strip! 

I’ll be posting more about the marathon and how I trained for it. The photo at the beginning of this post is from the day I registered for the marathon and got my number.

Keep Being Brilliant,
Robby LeBlanc

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About 2 months ago I decided to try exercising on the stairmaster.

Fast forward to yesterday, July 11, 2011. I hoped on that thing like it was my horse! Over the last 2 months I’ve slowly increased my time on a regular basis. I went NON-Stop for 60 minutes on this bad boy! I just wanted to see if I could keep going for 60 minutes, and I did! Hip-Hip hurray!

A few weeks ago while on the stairmaster I saw this guy next to me start running full speed on this monster! It blew me away. I later found out he is a nationally ranked stair climbing champion. In any case, we got to talking and he offered to train me on stairclimbing. He does most of his training in Las Vegas, at 5:30 in the morning, which is a bit early for me. I told him, God doesn’t even get up until 6 AM!

Anyway, I just wanted to share my 60 minute stairmaster success!

Keeping It Fit and Fun!
Robby LeBlanc

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It was on this cruise where I met Werner Berger.

His website is: Meet Me At The Top.com…

The second night on the cruise, we were invited to listen to this man by the name of Werner Berger talk about Health, Goals, and Leadership. I thought maybe it would be fun. I had no idea the impact this night would have on me.

Werner gave a life changing and  inspiring presentation to about 100 people onboard.He talked about his goals to climb the 7 Summits which includes, Kilmanjaro and Mt Everest. Werner is on a mission to save the world  by helping others get their health in order. As of this writing he has successfully climbed all 7 Summits including the bigg daddy, Mt. Everest! As a matter of fact, they did a documentary film about his Everest climb. He is the oldest man in North America to climb Mt Everest. He was 71 at the time.

The morning after his presentation, I saw Werner sitting on the upper deck. ( See The photo) I told him I was totally inspired by his presentation the previous night.

I asked him, “Where is Mt Kilimanjaro?” ( Because I had no idea at the time) Werner responded, “It’s in Tanzania Africa”
Then I asked, “How high is Mt Kilimanjaro?” He responded, ” Kili is 19, 340 ft.”.
“How long would it take to climb Mt Kilimanjaro?” Werner said, “Between 5-8 days depending on how fast one climbs.”

I started thinking maybe this would be a great goal for me to accomplish. Then finally I asked the question I really wanted to know…

“If I loose 100 pounds could I climb Mt Kilimanjaro?”Werner looked at me and said, ” If you loose 100 pounds I’ll go with you young man”. That was 2005.

I got started working out again and then ran into health problems. My blood pressure exploded to 200/140! Then I strained a ankle. Then banged my knee. I now know I was self sabotaging myself. When ever I’d start working out, I’d injure myself.

Werner called me every year for 5 years, asking if I had lost the 100 hundred pounds in order to climb Kilimanjaro, as Werner calls it. Year after year, I’d say, sorry, not this year.

Werner Berger, Mark Victor Hansen, Robby LeBlanc on Cruise in Tahit 2005

Fast forward to April 2011.
Werner called me and said he heard I had done 13 miles in a half marathon. I said, “Yes I DId!”
Werner then asked, “When are we going to Mt Kilimanjaro?”

I said let’s check out our schedules over the next few months and we’ll come up with a date. We talked on Augsut 1, 2011 and agreed to to go to Africa and climb Kilimanjaro together in June of 2012.

See You At The Top!
Robby LeBlanc

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Diabetes

It was September 16, 2009. I got up in the middle of the night 5-6 times to urinate. I thought it was a bit strange, but thought it was a temporary thing. Then the following night, September 17 I got up 7-8 times to go urinate. When I got up that morning I knew I had a problem. Something in my body wasn’t right. I started doing some research on google.

 
My Symptoms Included:
* Excessive night sweats
* Drenching my pillows with sweat
* Urinating several times a night
* Some numbness and tingling in my feet
* Extemely Tired
* Migrain headaches

I put that into google and 2 options came up.
1. Prostrate problem or
2. Diabetes

I called my father because I knew he had prostate cancer and wanted to find out if I too had cancer. He suggested getting a PSA test done to see if it was a prostate problem. As I was on the phone with him I saw on TV a public service announcement fromn the local hospital that September 18 was Prostate Cancer awareness day and they had a huge discount for PSA tests that day.

So I went to the hospital and got my test. Three days later they called me back for a follow up appointment. They told me PSA was fine. I asked what I should do next. They suggested I go to the Blood Preassure and Diabetes Fair at Desert Springs Hospital the following week in order to get some further testing. I really did not think I had diabetes. I firmaly believed I had some other medical problem.

The following week I attened the Diabetes Fair at Desert Springs Hospital in Las Vegas Nevada. There were hundreds of vendors. I came across Lab Express. They provided blood test for people that didn’t have insurance. This is perfect for me. They offered about $1000 dollars worth of test for $98 dollars, including the Diabetes A1C test.

Two days later they called me with the results. They told me…
My Diabetic A1c was 10.3

I asked, “what does that mean? ” They told me, I’m sorry sir, you have Type 2 Diabetes.
I called my friend Dr. Dickson and he said I needed to start taking Metformine and Glyburide ASAP to manage my disease.

This is the beginning of my Diabetes journey. I will share more post in the future about how my battle with Diabetes is going…

Never Give UP Hope,
Robby

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I’m going to be Featured on the Oprah Winfrey Network, also known as OWN. Yes, this is the new TV Network that Oprah Winfrey launched on January 1, 2011.

The name of the show is called “ADDICTED TO FOOD”. This is a 8 part mini documentary series about eating disorders. This program follows 8 people as they go through their own personal eating disorder journey.

I have been struggling with my weight for years. The past 20 years my weight has just inched it’s way up, pound by pound. I’d start a diet and a few days or weeks later I’d be off of it. I’d loose 20 pounds then gain 30. Then I’d try another diet and loose 40 pounds, only to regain 50 pounds a short time later.

It has been a never ending roller coaster ride, not only physically but emotioanlly as well. I tipped the scales this past year at 360 lbs!

YES, “360″ freakin’ pounds! It would be one thing if I was 7ft. 2inches. But the fact is, I’m 5ft. 6 inches.

Bottom line, I became OBESE. There, I said it.
The past 10 years I’ve had many people offer to help me with my health and my weight. However, I always responded,”I’ve got it handled”. I now know that was a crock of crap and I have been in denial. I’ve been in denial for over 20 years and the fact is, some of my family and most of my freinds knew it.

Yes, I became OBESE. The past 15 years I got to be known as the fat funny guy. Well this past year I realized it was NO LONGER funny! I wasn’t laughing any more.

In mid July of 2010 I received a unique phone call from a friend and guitar fan. His name is Scott Lamm. We met while I was performing at a Robert Allen/Mark Victor Hansen event in LA in 2004. He knew I had been struggling with my weight for years. He was truly one of my number 1 guitar fans.

Anyway, Scott Lamm called me in late July 2010 and said, “Robby, I want to save your Life”. I asked, “Is this another multi level marketing product?” He assured me, it was not.

On that phone call, Scott asked me one question, “Robby would you be willing to share your eating and weight problems on film and in exchange, you will get treatment at one of the top eating disorder clinics in the world. I asked, “Do you really think it could help me?” He said, “Robby, I think it will save your life”. He told me to apply for the show, I trusted him and I applied.

Bottom Line…Two weeks after that phone call I found myself in Buffalo Gap, Texas at one of the leading eating disorder clinics in the world, called “Shades of Hope”. I was there for over 6 weeks.

I shared this experience with 7 other unique and courageous people. Cameras were rolling every waking hour. This was NOT a vacation. This was INTENSE REHAB! I have come to learn that food can be as addictive and dangerous as any other drug. Funny thing is, I haven’t done any drugs in years and rarely even drink. My drug of choice has been food. Massive amounts of food.

The Good News…I’ve got my life back. Six months ago I was a Heart Attack waiting to happen. Now my health and weight are on track. Over the coming months I will be sharing more about my experience at Shades of Hope and about my progress.

If you decide to watch this program, BE WARNED…
This is raw, explicit and full of emotion. You will get a glimpse into the world of eating disorders and the horrific damage it can cause.

For those of you that know me, you are going to see me at my worst. It’s not pretty.
But…This experience SAVED MY LIFE!

Stay tuned…

Have a Blessed Day,
Robby LeBlanc

PS – Please feel free to leave a comment…To leave a comment click
on the comment button at the top of this post. Then scroll down.

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Yes, I am part of this project and it saved my life! If you or someone you know has issues with weight or food, they need to see this show. It starts airing April 5, 2011, on the OWN Network at 10 pm CT.

No Chips – No Dip!
Robby

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In short I have not been exercising at all.

Three weeks ago…
I had some other medical symptoms that lead me to go a get
prostate exam and then some other tests…

I got all the results back on Friday from all the tests I took.
Additionally, I got some news from those test I wasn’t expecting.

I’ll post early next week about my results but I need a couple days
to rap my head around it…

Bottom line…Life is taking a new direction.

See you in a couple days…
Robby

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