Friday, May 24, 2013

I'm featured in the Huffington Post!

Good news everyone! Today I was featured in the Huffington Post on health and lifestyle changes that are success stories. I'm so thrilled that my story can be shared to many other people.

My hope?

That someone will read it and get inspired to change their life! IT doesn't matter if it's about your weight. Maybe it's a career change, a change in your mind.

Whatever it is, today is the day to do it. A mind strong enough to beleive in itself is strong enough to change the world.

Here is a snippet of the article. Click the link to read it (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/24/i-lost-weight-albert-rivera_n_3188599.html) and feel free to share this post, or the huffington post article to all parts of the online world. Near and far!

"....... I've had a fortunate career as a jazz musician, a good family, good friends yet I was so close to losing it all if I didn't get my health in order. I think the main problem was poor eating habits, like always going for the "bad" choice and never being happy with a decent-sized meal, but instead going for the second or even third serving. I think having an upbringing in a traditional Spanish household played a role. As long as I could remember, our meals were full of white rice, pasta, lots of meat and desserts. At the time, it never even crossed my mind that it was probably a little too much.
As a kid, I was always active: running around, playing sports, just generally being busy. But as I got older, home-cooked meals turned into fast food binges, with a limited amount of activity (other than performing at shows) and little or no time to consider my options. Pizza and Chinese food, my two favorite types of food at the time, were a normal occurrence.

Breaking Point: I could no longer deal with the shortness of breath, the pains throughout my body, the restless nights fighting sleep apnea, worrying about my blood pressure, wondering if I would make my 30th birthday. It was the thought of having a heart attack before I was 30 or getting diabetes that made me want to change. It was the moment of needing to catch my breath because I went up a flight of stairs or went on a nice walk. I decided it was up to me to change, I didn't want to be just another statistic." Click here to read entire article


Albert Rivera

www.facebook.com/journey2transform <--motivational page
www.facebook.com//albertriverajazz     <---personal page


Wednesday, May 1, 2013

I'm running the 2013 NYC Marathon!

Yup, as crazy as that would have sounded to me only a couple of years ago last week I applied for my guarantee entry since in 2012, I did 9 road races and volunteered. $227 later, and a big ass smile - I know this will be an amazing experience.

Last weekend I tried something. I wanted to see how far I could take my body in a run. It started with a 4 mile run for the NYRR "Run as One" I felt so good and had already planned to run home. I got to the bronx and still felt great. When it was all said and done, I did my first ever 20 Mile run.

I guess I'm ready for the marathon, though I do have 6 more months of getting more miles in. I'm shooting for a 3:30 marathon. It's my goal, and I never give up on a goal. Nor should you. Whether it's a physical goal or mental.

I guess the point of this post is to remind everyone out there that in the beginning of  2011 I couldn't run a single mile with out  feeling like I was going to pass out... I got my life back, running along with weight training gave me my life back.
Oh how beautiful it is....This so called life and all it has to offer. #stay-focused