For the First Time in Forever

Despite a rocky weekend where I caved and consumed quite a bit of junk (the egg rolls were worth it, though), when I weighed in this morning, I weighed less than I have since I started using Wii Fit back in January of 2011. That's a long time in weight-loss years!

I weighed in at 276.9.

My goal, as I stated earlier, is to get down to 270 by June 1st.  It's only February. I'm on my way, but the benefits are already coming.

Several people say they can see it in my face. I can see it in my waistband (I need to punch another hole in the belt). Amy says I don't breathe as hard walking up stairs. That, my friends, is progress.

Weight Loss Is in the House!

So what if I haven't written anything on this blog in almost a year? Life was stressful, and we all know that I eat when I'm stressed.

Despite the stress, Amy and I have rededicated ourselves to overcome the craziness of life and become healthier. You ask how? I'll tell you: portion control.

I never thought that I ate poorly. I just ate way too much. So since January, we have used the Lose It! app on our phones to log how many calories we consume each day. It just made more more aware how much junk I shoveled into my gullet every day. Now, I still enjoy great foods--even bacon, sausage, burgers, and other traditional tantalizing treats (including ice cream). I just eat less of them. You know, two scoops instead of four, and so on.

Oh, yes...we exercise a bit, too.

As of this writing, I am down 16.6 pounds, sitting at 278.4. I haven't been this low since the beginning of 2012.

If you want to know how high I was, do the math yourself.

P.S. If you have any good recipes that won't entice me to regress, please forward them on. I'll share some with you if you want, too. Maybe I'll just post some.

P.P.S. The goal is to be down to 270 by the beginning of June.

Simply...

I lost four pounds over the Thanksgiving holiday weekend!
I'm down to 284.4 pounds.
Think I can keep it up over Christmas?

Wellness Challenge Update

So, it's been ten weeks since Amy and I started our wellness challenge.  That's quite a while for me to consistently be working toward something health-wise.  All you lifetime exercisers can leave now.  For me, this is quite the accomplishment.  We met our goals for being healthier, and I think it's paid dividends beyond the weight loss.  That said, I have lost and kept off ten pounds.  Weighing in this morning, I sat at 288.1 pounds, but have been as low as 286.  What makes me the happiest is that the weight seems to be staying off; it's not dropping and picking up.

Now the next chapter begins.  I feel better, with the exception that I ate too much sugar (as a small reward) last night, and now I feel sluggish.  If anyone says dares mutter "I told you so," they will be horsewhipped immediately.

We've redesigned our challenges for the next several weeks until we pass through the holiday season.  One of my goals is to maintain what I've done and not regress.  Also, this time we're including points for having a decent bedtime, which will be hard for me, but I'm willing to give it a shot.

P.S.  Even if I might not look any smaller, I hitch up my pants more than I used to, even with the belt cinched tighter.

...And I Thought I Blew It

After a weekend of heavy eating lots of pasta (and I mean LOTSA pasta) and sitting around (four sessions of Stake Conference), as well as committing a few late-night candy binges, I thought all my hard work had been shot.  However, after stepping on the scales (after a quick workout) this morning, I was still hanging in there at 286.4 pounds.  I can hardly believe it.  Not too bad.  I'm just trying not to imagine where I would be with a little more self control.

P.S.  I did resist the candy bowl at grandma's house last night, though.  Heh heh.

P.P.S.  Every day I am also throwing away some of the less desirable sweets from the kids' stash.  Not the good stuff, mind you.  Just the stuff that would still be there at Christmas.

Post-Halloween Assessment

Despite the inundation of sugar and the invasion of pumpkin chocolate chip cookies, I am still maintaining.  This morning I was holding steady at 286.8.  Not bad.  Although I have to brag that I have only eaten three pieces of Halloween emptiness so far.  I think what did for me were the cookies and the most exquisite Kouign Amann from Les Madeleines (featured on The Food Network).  Wow!  I thought I was back in Europe.

So good. If you have never tried one, put it on your bucket list.

The junk on top of the fridge, though, isn't even tempting right now.  Hopefully, I can eliminate (dispose of not consume) most of it without the kids knowing much.  I'll have to be sneaky.

Small Breakthrough

So I've been hovering around 290 lbs. since the last time I posted.  I guess the weight doesn't really fit with the word "hovering," but it'll do for now.  Regardless, it was somewhat discouraging.  I've been working fairly hard: exercising, eating less, but it didn't really seem to make a difference, but this morning, after a somewhat crappy walk, the scale dipped down to 286.4!  It's going down, baby.  Even if it's incremental, it is going down like a bucket of chicken wings--one bite at a time.

A Little Easier

So yesterday I weighed in at 288.1 lbs.  That's the lowest poundage since April of this year.  Days where I feel like I'm starving are a little more bearable, though.  I find that I'm not craving chocolate (as much) or empty sugar calories either.  It's a little easier to walk by the free chips and salsa without gorging myself just because they're free and in my face.  It's a little easier to get up and exercise, although I still don't like the getting-up part.  I guess that's progress.  And for the math geeks out there that must have quantifiable data...since Amy and I have started our wellness challenge, I have lost (and kept off) 10 pounds.  That's 3.3% or 1/29.8 of my total body weight.  Not bad for a fat guy.

Anybody have any favorite snacks they could recommend?  I getting a little tired with what I'm doing.

Still Losing Weight...

despite eating grilled sausages, steak, chicken, (bacon and jalapeno) pizza, and a strawberry milkshake this weekend.  Down to 293.4, baby!  I just didn't gorge myself this time.

Almost from Scratch

So I wrote about my abysmal eating over the summer.  Amy and I have now decided how we're going to be come healthier--together.  It's going to be so much more interesting and motivating to have someone else helping me along.

The initial push starting tomorrow (Monday, September 9, 2013) will include exercising for 30 minutes at least 4 times per week, drinking enough water, eating enough fruits and veggies, not having any carbonation, limiting sugar and extra junk, avoiding eating after 8:00 p.m., daily reading, and more regular writing.  That means I'll probably end up with a few more posts on this blog, as well as my Joe Average Writer blog.

This past week was a practice run as we decided our categories for our wellness challenge and established some incentives.

So, tomorrow I'll try to get in an official weigh-in in the morning after I go for a nice half-hour walk.  The most recent revelation (Saturday) showed that I had lost 1.9 pounds since Monday (That's 296.9 for those that don't pay attention or refuse to do the math).  Not bad.  Since I started writing this blog I have had ups and downs, and I'm just about back to square one; it's almost like I've called the last two years a do-over for my health, but now I'm playing for keeps.  (Cue Rocky theme music.)

I know the results won't be instantaneous, the work will be slow, but I'm good for it.  There isn't any busy work getting in the way.  Just this little thing called a dissertation.

By the way, on Friday I turned down donuts and chocolate milk.

Here We Go Again, Y'all

So it's a brand new school year, a brand new month, and a brand new chance for me to start over with my health.  The vacation that wasn't quite as epic as Odysseus's return home has left me  little worse for the wear around the waist.  I didn't think that I was doing too badly, but apparently I was delusional.  Sitting in a car for muchas hours every day doesn't leave much room for exercise.  Even all the walking around the National Mall and the rest of D.C. plus the early morning jaunts in the humidity didn't combat the fast food and Southern hospitality.

That said, I weighed in this morning.  So, here it is: 297.8 lbs.  Wow!  Not good.  Close to the all-time high.  And since I've even been walking with Amy 3 times a week since we've returned, I can neither confirm nor deny that it was higher than that at any given point during this summer season.  So it's time to take more drastic measures.

I've already cut my portions (Today I only had one pork and slaw sandwich and one hot dog for the Labor Day get-together.) and stopped the carbonation since school began back on the 22nd.  Amy and I are going to try something a little different.  I'm not exactly sure yet, but I'll let you know.  Grrrr!!!

I'm not quite this big, even though my students might see me as such.  Kind of intimidating, huh?

P.S.  I know it's been somewhat disappointing over the past few months, but I'm going to try to get back over one hundred views in one month on this blog again.

Neglect

It doesn't seem like the blog has suffered too badly from the neglect imposed somewhat by the tangential divergence of Joe Average Writer to delve into food issues.  Just so you know, I did not eat everything I posted about.  I have no real idea how much weight I gained from my holiday binge.  However, it wasn't as bad as I predicted.

After not getting on Wii Fit for 77 days, my weight as of December 31st was 290.6 pounds.The new fitness goal through work is to lose five pounds during the month of January.  I think the best way for me to accomplish this is three-fold: 1) Don't stress as much.  We all know that when I am stressed, I eat way too much of what's not good for me.  When I'm not stressed, I can keep the hunger monster at bay.  2) I need my sleep.  I feel better and I exercise more when I'm not trying to catch up on sleep.  So, I've got to find more creative times to read and finish all the house projects (painting, furnace stuff, floors both wood and carpet).  Don't worry; I'm not doing them all myself. Finally, 3) Play more.  'Nuff said.

Kobiyashi should not be my role model.

I still need people to cheer me on, though.

Baby Steps

Despite the Cafe Rio-style pork and rice bowl yesterday evening (which had nothing to do with the Super Bowl, by the way), I am back down to 280.9 lbs. This is also in deference to a mostly exercise-free week thanks to Sam, who has decided that around 12:30 he needs to spend the rest of the night in our bed. I have been better (a little) in regard to portion size. And I've also been restricting my late night intake as well. That doesn't count the cookies that the kids made with Grandma after dinner. Burp. I'm still going to do it no matter the stresses or tempting cheesecakes that stand in my path. Just gotta take baby steps...or maybe crawl along...as that seems to be my progression speed right now.

P.S. The guacamole last night and at lunch today isn't going to help matters any. Doh!

Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!

Okay. I'm mad about my weight loss or lack thereof. In fact, I would like to kick my eating habits in the teeth. I weighed in this morning at 285.7. What the crap is that? I haven't been that heavy in ages...or at least months. I am resolute in getting down to 270 by the end of the year and keeping it off. Earlier would be better.

So, stay tuned for more updates as I devise a plan. While I am pondering, I'll accept any feedback or suggestions.

A for Effort

Hey! I believe I need a reward. Exactly what kind of reward is my conundrum. When I looked and saw that I have exercised 6 days in a row (not counting weekends) this morning, I thought, "Man, I need to celebrate!" I have--disgustingly--not done that since June. And what's worse, is that so far in January, I have matched my total number of exercise days for December and November combined. Those months I'll just consider epically failed, and I'll start over. It's a new semester, right?

The better news is that since last Monday, I've already lost. Today's weigh-in was 281.8 lbs!

So...my idea to celebrate with donuts was probably not the smartest. I probably shouldn't bring chips to my party either. Does anybody out there have a suggestion for a reward? All I can think about right now seems to involve brownies or bacon or ice cream.

P.S. It was a good thing someone ate all the seven-layer dip before I got to lunch.

I'm Baaaaaaaack!!

So, for all those suckers who thought I was done, sorry to disappoint. You also should have taken me up on my bet back before Thanksgiving. Heh-heh.

Supposedly, January was National Weigh-in Day. And guess what? I weighed-in. Before I found out it was a "national" thingy. Otherwise I would have waited until the next day. That's just the way I am. Some of you know that already, though.

On Monday, I reappeared on the scale at 285.5 lbs. Not too bad considering all the crap I threw down the pie hole: fast food, liquid poison (as Leah calls it), chocolate, dark chocolate, white chocolate, more chocolate, hot chocolate, even more chocolate, homemade chocolate, and then a little more chocolate.

But now, I am repentant. I have exercised three days in a row (as opposed to the entire two in the month of December). I am off the juice (carbonation). And I don't eat after 8 p.m. And boy, am I hungry. That's okay. It's better to do it cold turkey (Mmmm...turkey!) than to try and wean myself. And I've already lost half a pound! The goal this year is to drop another 10 or 15 and keep it off. More good news: despite my gain, I'm still riding a minus ten from when I started exercising on a somewhat regular basis last February.

So, there. Any naysayers out there? Speak up and/or I'll sit on you.

Encouragement? It's always welcome. Happy New Year! Let's make it a little happier.

Just in Case You Were Interested

Despite my consumption of a stereotypical American meal (Big Mac, large fries, and a large Coca-Cola) yesterday, I did throw away or give away several treats that my students brought to me. No, I didn't ask them to do it, and believe it or not, none of them were trying to bribe me.

The latest weigh-in was 280.9, so all hope is not lost. If I can make it through the stress of this week, all should be well again.

Yeah...Yeah...I Know

I haven't posted on this blog for quite a while...not quite as bad as my absence from JoeAverageWriter, but still pretty horrible. To keep up the shocking news, I hadn't exercised in over two weeks--16 days to be precise. And still, I had lost 1.1 lbs since my last measurement. In short, despite my horrendous eating habits and lack of dieting focus, I'm down to 279.5. It's not as low as I should be, but it's not too bad considering what an awful person I am.

Here come the holidays! And just so you know, I have not gained serious weight over birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, or New Year's in several years. Anybody wanna bet against me this year? Anybody wanna make a wager?

Quickie!

I know it's been a while, and I keep falling behind, but I thought I'd include my latest weigh-in, especially since I haven't done so in a week. Oh, I exercised this past week-just not in the mornings. Landscaping and fixing the kids' bikes and actually having time to be outside might have had something to do with it. I love Fall Break, even if I'm still not caught up and the stress is raining down.

278.7 lbs.

"It's Not My Fault...

being the biggest and the strongest. I don't even exercise." This statement made by Andre the Giant in The Princess Bride still makes me laugh. And it has been kind of a running joke in my family as I have been the biggest and strongest for quite a while. Just a couple years ago while playing in the backyard at my parents', both my younger brothers, my sister, and my dad attempted to throw me into the pool. My siblings ended up wet, but all four of them couldn't manage to soak me. Ha!

But back to my supposed weight loss. I confess that I haven't been exercising much. I hurt my knee and back playing softball a few weeks back, and it's still lingering. Plus, I like my bed. I did weigh in on Monday at 278.7, but I didn't post. Life has been a little hectic. Not bad. However, I have also eaten the equivalent of a small pick-up truck over the past few days.

On Thursday my professor was actually visiting our site so we took her to dinner at Mimi's. Friday night Amy and I went to Winger's. I also had a leftover steak for lunch. I ordered more steak for dinner. And when I couldn't finish it off, I began to feel old and weak. So I killed it for breakfast alongside a three-egg omelet. Then I had to graze in the football snack pasture on Saturday. That night we took our scouts for a reward pizza dinner as well. Then today I couldn't leave the pork loin alone. Then we went to Mom and Dad's for ice cream and cookies. While we were visiting, one of the neighbors brought over part of a pig he had smoked this afternoon. The homemade BBQ sauce is still tingling the back of my throat.

Honestly, I'm a little scared for tomorrow. I hope I an exercise without puking or pausing for oxygen.

On a brighter note, I still haven't broken my carbonation drought since the beginning of the school year. Only five weeks to go! Time for a TUMS!