This is a personal blog. I’m sharing this because maybe someone out there can pick up a technique, a little motivation, or simply a different way of approaching a goal.
Last May 2026, after the very stressful PCCP Post Graduate Course in Baguio, I made a promise to myself:
After this, I’m going to lose weight.
As PCCP President, the pressure of organizing the event took a toll on me. I was already overweight, and stress made it worse.
I was also beginning to feel it physically.
I would wake up with my throat and palate sore, as if I had spent the whole night talking instead of sleeping. I was snoring heavily, and I knew my weight could be contributing to it.
So I gave myself a deadline:
I need to do this before PAHA 2026.
Back to Cohen
I enrolled again in the Cohen’s Lifestyle Program. The last time I did Cohen was way back in 2017.
Honestly, I wasn’t sure if I could do it again.
Cohen uses blood-test results and personal information to create an individualized eating plan with specific foods and portions. The program describes this as being related to a person’s individual biochemistry and hormonal balance, although the specific hormone-based mechanism should be regarded as the program’s methodology rather than established independent scientific consensus.
What Cohen gave me, more than anything else, was structure.
On June 1, 2026, I started at:
201.5 pounds.
Then the struggle began.
My food became extremely simple. Cabbage, shrimp, beef, chicken, and other prescribed foods in specific portions.
No rice. No bread. No spontaneous eating.
And that’s when I realized something:
Losing weight wasn’t the hardest part. Changing my life around food was.
Advertisements & Promos
I hardly traveled because my meals had to be prepared. At events, everyone would be eating while I couldn’t touch most of what was being served.
Dining out became difficult. Even spending long hours at the mall became tiring.
The first three weeks were especially tough. Headaches, irritability, cravings.
There were moments when I seriously questioned whether I could continue.
But eventually, my body adjusted.
More importantly, my mind adjusted.
I stopped negotiating with myself.
201.5 to 176
Today, I weigh around 176 pounds.
That’s roughly 25.5 pounds lost, and I’m now in the refeeding stage.
I’m not saying everyone should do what I did. Weight-loss programs aren’t one-size-fits-all, and anyone considering a restrictive diet, especially those with medical conditions or medications, should consult an appropriate healthcare professional.
But the biggest thing I learned from this experience actually has very little to do with dieting.
It has everything to do with control and deadlines.
Advertisements & Promos
I once told Doc Herold Hernando:
If you have a goal, give it a starting date and a deadline.
Otherwise, it’s very easy to keep saying, “Someday.”
My starting date was June 1.
My deadline was PAHA 2026.
That gave me something measurable.
Every craving, every meal I had to prepare, every dinner I had to skip, and every temptation I had to resist had a finish line.
Put a Date on It
This applies to more than losing weight.
You want to start a business? Put a date on it.
You want to save money? Put a date on it.
You want to write a book? Put a date on it.
You want to change something about yourself?
Put a date on it.
Advertisements & Promos
Because motivation comes and goes.
Deadlines force you to measure whether you’re actually moving.
Last May, I told myself I would lose weight before PAHA.
June 1: 201.5 lbs.
Today: 176 lbs.
Just in time.
The Lesson
Maybe that’s the lesson:
If a goal really matters to you, don’t leave it at “someday.”
Give it a start.
Give it a deadline.
Then give it everything you’ve got in between.
