How did I come up with this program?

In 2021 I was diagnosed with Colorectal Cancer, Stage 3A. After I completed surgery and two of four rounds of chemotherapy and gained thirty pounds, I had a question for myself: how can I lose weight and keep it off if I am not able to workout again?

I could not run, my favorite activity, and had weight restrictions on my resistance training. I did not know if I would ever get back to my baseline fitness ever again, but I knew that I could maintain minimal activity as I have a dog and walk them twice a day. I also do basic house and yard work. Completing minimal activity each day was the goal.

This was the impetus for the program.

First and foremost, it doesn’t matter what anyone thinks. The only opinion you should care about is that of your medical team which does not include “Dr. Google.” Everyone’s opinion outside of your medical team is projection. If there are no letters after their name and they cannot reference/cite peer-reviewed studies to back their theories and conclusions or have years of professional training, then they should be ignored. That said, no one has to listen to me. I’m just a guy with a lot of opinions.

The Step Down is not an elimination diet. It keeps all foods in, but reduces the quantities of all foods consumed. In other words, the goal is not to eliminate foods if you do not want to remove them. Rather, it is to reduce the amount of each food eaten.

Body fat percentage is more important than body weight. Most weight management media focuses on the aesthetics of the program participants. This program is about performance and health. It is more important that one can complete fitness activities than how one looks doing them.

Remember this equation: How you sleep = How you eat = How you move = How you sleep

Sleep is the foundation of the program with food choice and exercise building off of a minimal number of sleep hours. The focus should not be on the amount of sleep, but the quality of the sleep. In other words if you average six hours of sleep per night, anything less than seven hours is widely considered to be less than ideal. However, if that sleep is consistently sound and restful, then you should not consider the amount a failure.

While food choice is the majority of the plan, exercise is also part of the equation. The following measurables, based on gender assigned at birth and age, can be used to measure progress:

• Barbell Bench Press
• Barbell Squat
• Barbell Deadlift
• Push-ups
• Pull-ups/Chin-ups
• Air Squats
• 100m, 200m, or 400m Sprint
• Mile run
• 5k, 10k, or Half-Marathon
• Vertical Jump (a vertical of jump of at least 30 inches is required to dunk a basketball on a regulation hoop.)

This program requires the aforementioned medical team to help you on your path to health:

• Primary Care Physician (PCP)
• Physical Therapist (PT)
• (Optional) Orthopedist
• Registered Dietician
• Licensed Therapist, Clergy, or Personal/Professional Mentor

Each of the above topics will be covered in greater detail on additional pages.