Fat Man Unleashed - Interview Part 3

As I said in Part 1 of this interview with healthy weight loss blogger Israel Lagares, in his best shape, a few years ago, standing 6 feet tall and weighing a muscular 235 pounds, Israel enjoyed living the fit life, working out and turning food into muscle. A few years later, having fallen off the fitness wagon and tending to not so healthy foods, he put on some weight and ballooned up to 348 pounds.

It happens to the best of us, something happens, life gets in the way, and for whatever reason, the guru of health or fitness gains some weight back.

Part 1 of this interview discussed his fitness routine, while part 2 was about his diet. We conclude this week with part 3, the Mental Game of getting back in shape.

The Mental Game of Getting Back Into Shape

How important is the mental aspect to your training and nutritional program?



Crucial. Your head has to be in the game. You need to be mentally prepared to undertake the ups and downs that a diet or training program can have on you. There are going to be days when you just want to give it all up, but you need to dig down deep and stick with it.



Do you have any favorite sayings? Quotes? Anything that inspires you to be better, train harder or be more diligent with your eating?





My favorite saying is "Just Do It." I think it explains itself.



What happens when things don't go your way?



I cry like a baby. LOL. Seriously though, I just look at the positives and try to build on them.



How do you deal with boredom in your program?



I tweak it. I tweak out the boredom every so often. Tweaking can be anything from adding/replacing a specific exercise to changing the location of your workouts to alternating a workout altogether (incorporating boxing instead of running).



How does missing a workout affect you?



It really brings me down. I feel guilty and then want to make up for it by over training, so it behoove me to not miss a workout.



What do you do about it?



It rarely happens, but if I do I have a super intense workout the next day. This usually leads to some sort of strain, but i fight through it.

I try to plan ahead of time so that I don't miss any workouts.



How important is a reward meal or a cheat meal from a mental perspective?



It depends on the person. I can go a few weeks without a cheat meal and be fine, but some folks may need one cheat meal a week to stay sane. If that's what works for you, then go for it. When the time comes for a cheat meal you usually won't really overeat if you have been committing to your workouts and dieting. But, like I said, it depends on the individual. The best thing to do is find what works for you and stick to it.


I want to thank Israel for taking the time out of his busy schedule to participate in this interview series. Read about his fitness routine, his weight loss program in parts one and two and more about him on his weight loss blog.

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[Source: Former Fat Guy - Weight Loss Blog]