Jimmy and the Power Challenge. How'd He Do?

Back in September, I told you all that Jimmy was starting a grueling, life changing diet called The Power Challenge. If you don't recall that post, just click here and I'll refresh your memory. If, in fact, you're a lazy-butt and don't want to read that post, I'll reiterate some of it for you here.

Jimmy's company is doing their best to be cutting-edge in their corporate thinking, and one of those thoughts is that a healthy associate is a happy associate. I don't know about all that. I think they're saying that, but thinking, a healthy associate will use his insurance less often and take less sick days. But I digress. The fact of the matter is, if you work there and want in on this program the company pays the entire fee, which I believe is somewhere in the neighborhood of $2,000, and the employee (in this case, Jimmy) works out like an animal with a personal trainer, and eats a very restricted diet for an entire three months. No beef, no pork, no salt, no fat, no refined sugar, no dairy, no alcohol. Here's a quick blurb from their website:

The Power Challenge is a comprehensive, 12-week, intensive and competitive health and fitness program designed to lower corporate health care costs by helping CEOs, key executives and their employees achieve maximum health and wellness. The program has also proven a fun vehicle to teach those involved that there is nothing more important than your health.

Jimmy went into this program with a really positive attitude. Me, not so much. How was I going to cook for two picky kids, plus a man that can only eat rabbit food? But, he quickly took that weight off my shoulders by cooking most of his own meals. I secretly think it's because he thought I would throw some salt or dairy products into his meal and then watch him eat it with an evil glimmer in my eyes. I would never do such a thing! Well, probably not.

I also had a bit of a freak-out moment when he came home from food shopping at Costco one day, and bought so much stuff he had to make about 5 trips from car to house. I even wrote about that here. Go look, because even I don't believe the amount of stuff he bought until I go back and look at those pictures.

Was Jimmy fat before this challenge? No, but I guess you'd call him a bit puffy.

Before they begin the diet from hell, they do a full work-up of blood tests and make you pose in your shorts for a really humiliating picture. In Jimmy's case, the former may have saved his life. His triglycerides were 990! Yes, you read that right! And here, with his permission, is his puffy before shot at 209 pounds.



To me, the next three months seemed like a grueling undertaking, but Jimmy embraced it all and seemed to enjoy every minute of it. He found that he liked the taste of food without salt, he loved working out with his personal trainer, Carl, and his arthritic back and neck actually improved as he gained muscle-tone.

The day it was over, it was time to take another picture, but let me explain the extremely goofy look on his face, then you can laugh your ass off anyway. The photographer chick was cracking jokes at him and making him turn this way and that like something you'd see on a weight lifting competition. Well, he was in the middle of cracking up and tensing his muscles at the same time when she took this...

Jimmy at his final weight of 173 pounds and a triglyceride count of 74!!!

Yes, they requested that he shave his chest, but he drew the line at their suggestion of 8 sessions of tanning. After all he's vain, but not gay.

Now that the Power Challenge is officially over, Jimmy can eat more normally, but he's still sticking to the basic principles of the diet, and he's doing great with maintaining his weight. He's still working out with Carl a couple times a week, and doing his own workouts in between.

Just the other night he was playing around with the girls and I snapped these pictures of him from behind so he could see what his back development is looking like.

Must. Lift. Her. Up.

A 74- pound human press!

So wow, did I actually write an entire post about Jimmy and not make one snarky comment? I should win a prize for that!

Question: If you were offered a chance to partake in the Power Challenge, would you do it?