seanwillson.com

no, this isn’t another posting about fitness. well, not unless you consider being active and having hobbies a part of fitness. in that case, i guess it is then.


after countless games, tournaments, years of inactivity, and then a resurgence of interest; i have officially retired my old golf clubs. i know, it’s a sad day but their time has come. not only are they ancient technology fit for a museum, but the company that makes them exited the golf club business all together a number of years ago.


my old clubs were purchased around the summer of 1991 and were made by head. notice a distinct lack of golf links on their site. they make great tennis rackets and skis but couldn’t hack it in the golf market. i always did love the name of the clubs though and continue to use the word to this day, premise. it’s a fitting word and was in fact the username for my first unix account at school. it’s a sad day, but time and technology has evolved and it’s time for me to do the same.


enter my new found favorite local golf store, ejl custom golf in suburban chicago. it’s only 15 minutes from my house and has a number of friendly helpful people working there. their site is sparse at the moment (under renovation as we speak) but they offer custom fitting using launch monitors and other cool technology. i had my appointment 3 weeks ago and picked up my clubs last weekend. i was planning on posting about them sooner but there was this little back problem i wrote about earlier (nothing to do with golf mind you).


anyhow, after 2.5 hours of testing out a number of different brands, heads, shafts, lofts, lies, etc. here is what i ended up going with:

• cleveland hi-bore 10.5° driver with aldila nv 65 45” shaft and d2 swing weight
• cleveland steel 15° fairway wood with aldila nv 75 43” shaft
• cleveland halo 22° hybrid utility wook with rifle 5.5 39.5” shaft
• mizuno mp-60 3 - pw irons with rifle 5.5 shafts, d3 swing weight, and 62.5° lie
• cleveland cg10 black pearl wedges
  • 52° loft, 10° bounce (2 dot), 35.50”, d4 swing weight
  • 56° loft, 16° bounce (2 dot), 35.25”, d6 swing weight
  • 60° loft, 8° bounce (1 dot), 35.25”, d6 swing weight
• bettinardi hogan baby ben center shafted bhb-9 33” putter

i know a lot of it’s gibberish to most of you but for you golf geeks out there, you know exactly what it means. custom fitted happiness!!!


i actually picked up the wedges and putter during last season but figured i would add them to make the list complete. needless to say, i have a completely new set of clubs. out with the old and in with the new. though i have to say that my old putter might make a reappearance from time to time.


i haven’t played yet with the woods or irons but i have used the wedges and putter at the range and in a few rounds. i love the feel of the black pearl wedges, the level of control i have with them is amazing. i feel like i can drop the ball anywhere i want on the green. my only complaint about them is that they show wear pretty quickly on the face. i don’t mind it too much as it shows a bit of history but if your someone who wants that pristine look for a long time these are not the clubs for you. the putter is quite a change from my old titleist bullseye blade but it’s a welcome addition. i love the feel of the center shaft and the alignment with the sight is precise and easy to look at.


i’ll try to put together a better writeup later in the season as i get more use out of all the clubs. until then feel free to shoot me any questions. wish me luck at the range this weekend on their maiden voyage.

after taking it easy in the gym the past 2 weeks my back feels better. i’ve held back a bit in my weights (wanted to raise them some) but i haven’t stopped working out. in order to reduce the stress on my back i did a few things differently:

• during upper body weights instead of doing back exercises i did some of the stretches that i learned in the spin class. yes, the same one that threw my back out. that which hurts you can also make you stronger.
• on running days instead of doing intervals of walking a lap and running a lap, i instead modified it to run every 2nd lap instead. during the running laps i focused on steady strides and less of a bouncy motion that might put stress on my back. during the walking laps i walk very fast to keep my heart rate as high as possible.
• when doing all other exercises i focused more on keeping more core stable and my back well positioned. i know i should do this all the time, and i do often, but this time i really tried to stay aware of my form throughout all of the reps and sets. form over reps at all cost.

i’m hoping to see some good losses this week and if all goes well i’m planning on hitting the range this weekend. i’ve been dying to get out there and play some golf. rather than push it though i decided to give my back a rest. besides, it gives me time to review dave pelz’s short game bible and the plane truth for golfers. i’m planning on starting the season with a new one plane swing and continuing to refine short game under 100 yards.

back … yea, that’s what i’m feeling right now. i pulled a muscle in my lower back on friday after a “core spin” class at the gym. actually that’s not entirely correct, i made it to the next afternoon at which time my back gave out while raking leaves. the spin class went well but we did a ton of core exercises i hadn’t ever attempted before. i didn’t think at the time that i was pushing anything but the next day my body told me otherwise. i’m feeling a bit better though and hope to be back in service later in the week.


things are going really well in the land of lincoln. amy and i are working out regularly (about 5 days per week) and have been doing so since the jan 1. i’m now down 40 pounds and she’s down 20 pounds. we’re as focused and determined as ever to make this an ongoing lifestyle change and not temporary. we’re following the body for life program that’s worked so well for us in the past. 6 days or workouts and eating 6 small well balanced meals with a free day on the 7th day. typical to bfl we feel like crap after the freeday but it’s nice to enjoy the things you’ve craved all week. our meals have been fantastic and we actually find that by cooking and making all of our meals each week we’re saving a lot more money, funny how that works out. eating right == saving money … crazy talk i tell ya.


we’ve had some ongoing motivation as a result of our lifestyle as well … in the second week of january our gym sponsored a attendance contest that gave members who consistently worked out entries into a drawing. the more you went the more you were entered and the larger the prizes you could win. since we were going 5 days a week we were able to enter for the top prize of 5 months free dues. after a perfect 3 months not only were we down 60 pounds total but i won the drawing for the free dues and to top it off the newsletter at the gym wants to interview us … and … the fitness person asked us if we’d be interested in talking to the newspaper. pretty cool ahe? another motivational thing was that amy was able to lower her total cholesterol, lowered her ldl cholesterol, and raised her hdl cholesterol during our 3+ months of working out.


if i can offer a small piece of advice for anyone who’s starting or thinking about starting a lifestyle change … do it!!! you won’t regret it, i guarantee it. whether your just trying to change your eating habits, lose weight, obtain more energy, take control of cholesterol, or anything … you can and will do it. it takes time, nothing happens overnight. you didn’t convert your body into what it is today overnight, nor will you make your changes overnight. we’ve hit plateaus along the way every 2-3 weeks where we just stop changing. but as we persist, we continue to see progress. you too will make the changes you desire if you really put your mind to it. no excuse is big enough as there’s a solution to every problem. whether it’s time for workouts or eating the right food you can find a creative solution to your situation. the workouts you can do with a dumbbell, exercise ball, and some elastic bands are amazing. yea, a gym would be nice but not everyone has that luxury. the short time you have in the morning or the time you spend vegetating on the couch at night can be used to transform your body. if you really want to watch that tv show, you can do it at the same time.


i know some people are going to look at me and say:


“sean you made excuses for years, give me a break. i have a busy life and don’t have time”


<blunt remark> bullshit!!! remove all the crap you just said and just insert “lame ass excuse” in it’s place.</blunt remark> you could do one or many things to improve your life at any point in time. you are the only person who controls your time and effort. sure, not every single day is going to be exactly as you planned, we’re only human and none of us are superheros (or are you). even if you do it 50% of the time that’s 50% less lazy than you were before, 50% more active than you were before, 50% closer to being a healthier person. even if you only start eating right today, that’s a change … a huge positive change toward a healthier body and fitter life. those excuses to changing are self created obstacles that are preventing you from being the person you can and should be. a healthier, fitter, and happier you!!! so what’s your excuse?


i can predict your next thought, call me sean the psychic.


“sean, why is it that people who start working out get all high an mighty about working out and eating right. it’s crap i tell ya, crap.”


the easiest reply to this question is honestly an exercise for you the reader. do this for me, grab your camera and take a picture of yourself in a mirror wearing only your underwear. better yet have your loved one take a picture of you and get it developed or throw it up on your computer. got it? ok, now ask yourself this … what’s wrong with this picture? i challenge you to come up with the answer of nothing. if somehow you do, go grab a photo from high school, maybe your spring break, or honeymoon photos … put them side by side and ask yourself what’s different? yea yea, time has passed and your wiser, and all that crap. but what has really changed physically and maybe even mentally between picture 1 and picture 2. that’s why we can say the things we say … that’s why we seem all high and mighty. you see, we’ve had that aha moment … that epiphany where we realized what has changed and what has to change. it seems so obvious to us that we want to share it with everyone and don’t understand why they don’t see it themselves. it’s not our fault, we just want everyone to see it and sometimes our message comes across wrong when in fact we just want to help everyone see it and change it.