My story gets published..... This is just amazing!
You know when people tell you, if you work hard enough, fight strong enough, and push towards it, that anything and everything is possible? We see it everywhere... We read things on Facebook, inspirational quotes, motivational speeches, friends' support left and right... Yet, although we smile when we read or breath about it, we don't often reach Nirvana... Well, today I am here to tell you that you can. My humble story was published on the Huntington Post!
My grandpa may he rest in peace, who struggle with an illness all his life, said to me..."Papi, en el mundo hay mucho que hacer, por lo tanto mijo, estudia, encuentra tu talento, se el mejor que puedas acerca de tu talento, y luego regalalo, entregaselo a otros" Translation? Son, in this world there is so much to do, study hard, find your talent, master your talent by being the best you can, and simply give it away to others... Help others achieve what you have....
Till this day, as I think of him, and my grandma as she is still with me, I smile, because again I understand the colloquial or phrase.. "Work hard and you will reach success". This is a victory to YOU, feel inspire, fight for it, go for it, and give it all you got...
Sincerely,
Dr. Hiram S
Friday, October 7, 2011
Thursday, October 6, 2011
How change happenned... To me!
It was Sigmund Freud that said “When inspiration does not come to me, I go halfway to meet it.” ... In retrospect, how often are we inspire? What are the things that inspire us? In an era of uncertainty, struggles, and often disappointment, from where or what this attitude, power, and strength comes that inspire us to change the status quo...
I am not very certain how to answer that, but I can share how it happened to me. As you could tell already by looking at my photos, I was once 432 pounds, size 6xl, and pant size 58-60. Life was tough! Imagine being worried whether you will fit into their airplane seat, (do I need to buy another one), the looks people gave you as you walked by, or simply not being able to buy the t-shirt that actually goes with you. Let's take it another step, going to an amusement park, a place that supposed to be fun, and not being able to fit in the ride. I am not saying this to claim pity, just reflecting to give you a perspective of how it has been. Lastly, imagine not getting the job because of the way you look...
Well believe it or not, although it did affect me it was not enough for me to change. I was too focused on being a success in my professional life; whether as a consultant, life coach, and achieving my educational goal, aka the Doctorate. Well, I did all of that, and what now? I went to the doctor and he said... "Kiddo, if you don't change you are going to die", plain and simple... And guess what, that didn't do it either... I remember being at a park with my lovely wife, and I saw a gentlemen playing with his children. He was overweight, and he could barely keep up with his kids... A personal dream of mine has always been to be a father... For some strange reason, I had a flash of all my life, (vision of the doctors, my successes and my failures) and it all just hit home. I remember sitting down, closing my eyes and having a good cry...(and believe you me, when men cry, we do cry... it is worse that the most melodramatic romantic movie)....
A few years later, after eating right, doing Insanity , P90X, and in my opinion the best meal of the Day Shakeology, I was able to lose 234 pounds, and a lot of sizes... As I reflect, and now by dedicating part of my team to coach and motivate others how to do it, I realize that its not about the tool, or even the ways. It is about you and realizing something crucial.... As I smile by typing these few lines, I had the answer all along, I even wrote this on my Doctoral Dissertation; I wrote that when organizations reach a point of dying, then they realize its time for change. As a result I called it "Personal Internal Moment of Crisis"...
That's what happened to me.... It was that image of the father, that did it for me.... That moment of crisis, allowed me to say, enough was enough.... Thus I implore you, urge you, and beseech you that before you undertake any change in your life (education, weight loss), find, search to the deepest corner of your soul for that moment of crisis, because such moment will be the catalyst that will get you through and finally being able to reach your goals... To summarize I believe Johan Gottfied Von Herder said it best, "Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks."
Be inspire, to change...
Dr. Hiram S
Add me as a Friend on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter!
Visit my You Tube Channel...
I am not very certain how to answer that, but I can share how it happened to me. As you could tell already by looking at my photos, I was once 432 pounds, size 6xl, and pant size 58-60. Life was tough! Imagine being worried whether you will fit into their airplane seat, (do I need to buy another one), the looks people gave you as you walked by, or simply not being able to buy the t-shirt that actually goes with you. Let's take it another step, going to an amusement park, a place that supposed to be fun, and not being able to fit in the ride. I am not saying this to claim pity, just reflecting to give you a perspective of how it has been. Lastly, imagine not getting the job because of the way you look...
Well believe it or not, although it did affect me it was not enough for me to change. I was too focused on being a success in my professional life; whether as a consultant, life coach, and achieving my educational goal, aka the Doctorate. Well, I did all of that, and what now? I went to the doctor and he said... "Kiddo, if you don't change you are going to die", plain and simple... And guess what, that didn't do it either... I remember being at a park with my lovely wife, and I saw a gentlemen playing with his children. He was overweight, and he could barely keep up with his kids... A personal dream of mine has always been to be a father... For some strange reason, I had a flash of all my life, (vision of the doctors, my successes and my failures) and it all just hit home. I remember sitting down, closing my eyes and having a good cry...(and believe you me, when men cry, we do cry... it is worse that the most melodramatic romantic movie)....
A few years later, after eating right, doing Insanity , P90X, and in my opinion the best meal of the Day Shakeology, I was able to lose 234 pounds, and a lot of sizes... As I reflect, and now by dedicating part of my team to coach and motivate others how to do it, I realize that its not about the tool, or even the ways. It is about you and realizing something crucial.... As I smile by typing these few lines, I had the answer all along, I even wrote this on my Doctoral Dissertation; I wrote that when organizations reach a point of dying, then they realize its time for change. As a result I called it "Personal Internal Moment of Crisis"...
That's what happened to me.... It was that image of the father, that did it for me.... That moment of crisis, allowed me to say, enough was enough.... Thus I implore you, urge you, and beseech you that before you undertake any change in your life (education, weight loss), find, search to the deepest corner of your soul for that moment of crisis, because such moment will be the catalyst that will get you through and finally being able to reach your goals... To summarize I believe Johan Gottfied Von Herder said it best, "Without inspiration the best powers of the mind remain dormant. There is a fuel in us which needs to be ignited with sparks."
Dr. Hiram S
Add me as a Friend on Facebook
Follow me on Twitter!
Visit my You Tube Channel...
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Weight Loss... Is it a Conspiracy?
The other day I was traveling through a community labeled “up and coming”… This means in a nutshell the community was considered not ideal to live nor a safe area, yet it has gone through a transitional period where the elements that were deemed negative are slowly moving away. Thus, a new era with economical promise is moving in. I noticed how each and every corner there was either a “liquor/deli store, fast food restaurant with bulletproof windows, and the usual mom & pop small restaurant” I wondered, where is the supermarket? Where is the access to vegetables? Local produce?
As it were, all that I was able to find were overpriced frozen meals and an abundance of processed foods.
The researcher in me, then started also asking, who lives in the neighborhood… Why do people live this in neighborhood? As it turns out, the economics are also working against them. The minimum wage in California is close to $9.00. A vast number of people make the minimum wage if not less, due to citizenship status. According to the Labor Department Statistics & Housing Authority, for you to live in this area comfortably for a family of three people (mom, dad, and son), the sole provider must make at least $16.00 per hour, and rent cannot surpass 29% of their monthly salary. How is this possible? Specially, when unemployment in California is over 10%, most people spent over 35% (average) on rent, and the cost of food goes up every year by almost 4.5% according to the USDA & ERS; yet the minimum wage does not seems to go up.
Third, I also asked how many of these people actually have healthcare, access to education, and access to a nutritionist. The answer, you guessed it, plenty of them don’t have access to it. Usually, they wait until they are very ill to take an average trip to the emergency room (public hospital) for treatment (according to the State Report on Health & Emergency & Census).
Fourth, I made a phone call to the local school district to find out about the meals being served to the local kids. According to the National Lunch Program;
School lunches must meet the applicable recommendations of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, which recommend that no more than 30 percent of an individual's calories come from fat, and less than 10 percent from saturated fat. Regulations also establish a standard for school lunches to provide one‐third of the Recommended Dietary Allowances of protein, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, iron, calcium, and calories. School lunches must meet Federal nutrition requirements, but decisions about what specific foods to serve and how they are prepared are made by local school food authorities. (Excerpt from the National Food Program Document)
Now, what scares me a little is that “local school food and specific food and how they are prepared are made by local authority”. That’s means, that if a processed cheeseburger where I have no idea where the meat came from (it was probably processed by Ammonia) as long that it is under 30% of a child calorie of fat, then it is ok for them to eat ( see this).
Well guess what, the meals for this week are chicken nuggets, cheeseburger, hot dogs, and sugary milk. Then I asked, is it the cost? If the cost of food why this school district has leaned towards processed food as it is more cost effective than nutritious food? As it turns out, it is not the case; there are 100s of best practices and cases, such as San Francisco Unified School District. The Director of Operations Nancy Waymack, took a stand by simply saying, “No one gets a cinnamon roll for breakfast”. Another program like Farm To School.org that creates linkages and access to local foods to schools.
Then, my question is, why this is not happening? Why we are not having a discussion? Why are we overweight? Is it the economy? The System? Today, even obesity is now considered a disease, therefore there are 100+ of drugs to cure it. According to the Online Dieter Research Report, the United States Industry for weight loss is over $60 Billion Dollars. Then what’s missing?
I don’t have all the answers to the question above as they are wicked problems whereas only perhaps tame solutions would alleviate the situation… All that I know is that the city which will rename nameless for now, will see my involvement at a bigger scale… It’s time to take a stand… and seek the answers to my questions… The question to you is… Can you identify? Is this happening in your neighborhood?
Some thoughts,
Dr. Hiram S
Follow me on Facebook , Twitter, YouTube Channel
A little bit about me...
Hello all! Welcome...
Let's begin shall we... I was born and raised in the beautiful island of Puerto Rico. At the age of 17 I decided to come to the USA in the search of the American Dream. The only issue was that I was unable to write nor speak English... Thus, I taught myself in around 10 months. I spent a few years in New York City without family, just focused on my education. Right after, in 2002, I decided to move to Southern California. This is where I have seen a lot of my growth and challenges. I earned a Bachelors in Public Service (2004), a Masters in Public Administration (2006), a Certificate in Project Management, a Doctorate in Public Administration (2010) and a 2nd Masters in Urban & Regional Planning (2011). You can say, education is my passion. I am more of a Renaissance man. I read just because I want to (3,000 books and counting).
I been told all my life that I would never amount to anything... by mother, father, and many others. I been at the mercy of domestic violence (physical and mental), drugs (never used them, but they were around all the time). I been homeless, discriminated, based on race/color and appearance. All my life I have been told how I'M NOT GOOD ENOUGH, YOU CAN'T OR WON'T"... Interestingly enough, I have managed to prove them wrong. I dont believe in excuses as they are monuments of nothingness that will always build a bridge that leads to nowhere. I don't believe in problems as they are a mere deviation from your idealize state. Who is responsible for our outcomes? We are! Who is responsible as to how we decide how situations affects us? We are!
Simple enough, I was raised by a very poor and amazing grandmother, who taught me the value of education, love, care, and simply give it all you got to your fellow man. It was my grandfather who taught me that our purpose in life, is simply to learn your talents, master them, and then simply give them away. My talents thus far, has been to teach, empower, educate, mentor, and overall help people. I am a life coach (many friends claimed I am), a health coach, an educator, teacher, and also a learner. I have one simple philosophy, I would never comment or give an advice on anything that I have no idea... Which is why I am a researcher....Also I would never offer a suggestion that I am not willing to implement myself....
Passions? I have many, education of any kind, specially and lately fitness. You see I used to weight 432 pounds. I was a size 58-60 waist, and 6xl t-shirt.
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| Not too happy! |
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| Not too happy here either! |
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| 432 pounds! |
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| My old pants, 58-60, now I am 32 |
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| Recent photo! |
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| Size 6xl (old shirt), now Small... |
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| Another view |
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| Sorry for the graphic... |
Today, I am a size 32 waist, and size small t-shirt.Above its the evidence.... How did I do it? There are so many ways... Send me a comment, would be happy to help... I even created a you tube channel because many people have asked for my help! You Tube Channel (videos about my progress and education). Here its my favorite video.... Simple, like just anything life the process of change must begin by identifying your moment of crisis... I will speak more in later post...
Thus, if you have any questions, add me as a friend on Add me as a friend on Facebook or Twitter. If you want immediate free coaching, click here and join my team, I would love to help. I am doing this for free. Why? Because many doors have opened for me that allow to me to reach my success. I want to do the same for all.
Either way, I am here to help... whether its education, healthcare, and weight loss, feel free... This will be a site to inform all... Therefore, you may not like what I have to say, but understand that it is based on research... data, and a sound opinion. This is all I have to say for now, welcome and let's get show started!
Sincerely,
Dr. Hiram S
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