Looking for answers

In this struggle of weight loss I was doing some research to , quite honestly, confirm what I already new. THIS IS HARD...... I have at least 30 years, if not a full 40 of eating habits to change. Ok so probably more like 20 but still a lifetime of weight challenges. The one thing that keeps coming up is something I already know. Eat less, move more. I have the eat less part going pretty good but the move more is what is keeping from long term success. Now I just need to figure out how I make this change in my life. I have written about this several times already in the past 100 posts but still do not have a personal answer. So What is your solution? I include this page I found on line that I thought made a pretty good amount of sense.

http://exercise.about.com/od/weightloss/a/10_weightloss.htm

Another Gain.

So I gained again...... what else is new

Banning Food Chocies?

I have to admit that my first reaction to the story the L.A. was banning fast food in poor neighborhoods was one of head shaking anger. OK anger may be a strong word but I did think "who are they to ban fast food?" We should be able to take care of ourselves, right?

Maybe Not?

I look at myself and my eating habits and see that I had plenty of healthy choices around. I just chose not to use them. I am not sure if it was convenience, taste or some other excuse I obviously chose to eat many of the wrong things and too much of them. After reading the article and found out that the ban was only for one year so that the community could try and attract healthier alternatives I thought that it may not be a bad idea. If someone, a long time ago, would have said hey try this for a 1 month or 1 year and see how it goes who knows were I would be today. Now I have a creature of habit and that habit is hard to break. My brain is wired for those types of foods, almost like an addict. I see that I am breaking the cycle and hope that I can keep it from beginning in my children. Do not get me wrong. I feel like we allow the government to get way to involved in our lives and are way too quick to give up some freedoms but I have to say that one year could make a difference. If it makes a difference for one person it is worth it in my book.

plan the work, work the plan

I had the majority of menu planned today (left dinner open so we could be flexible) and that seemed to work for me. I have the food listed and just check off the food. Well balanced. Plenty of veggies, not a lot of processed food. I am really looking forward to next week when all of the exercise excuses are gone. My new office is across the street from the YMCA that we belong to. So no excuses there....... Funny thing is the new office is 100 yards away from weight watchers ....

Back in the Saddle!

Well, I got to the weigh in on Saturday after two weeks of not being there due to the health issues etc and I considered it to be new starting point. My goal was to not have gained more than five pounds and I only gained 2.4 lbs. I feel pretty good about that..... So I am back in the saddle and have pre-planned the first tow days of meals so I know exactly what I am going to be eating. I am actually excited about the program again and looking forward to moving forward.

11 Days

It has been a while since my last post and there has not been a weigh in since. I have debated on if I wanted to post about this topic but when I set out to do this my commitment was to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth about my journey, good or bad. Well the last 8 to 9 days have been pretty bad.

Being over weight has many challenges. As I have gotten older my body shape has changed and I carry a lot of weight in the gut. This allows for my belly to hang over my waist line just a bit. This finally caused an issue last week when I got a scratch or sore of some kind that got infected and I had a huge abscess right under stomach in hip area. After prodding from wife and some consultation with my brother( he is a Doctor) I went to the emergency room and had it looked at. I knew they were going to say it needed to be lanced. However, I did not know how bad the infection was and how damn painful lancing an abscess could be. OMG it was the most miserable pain I have ever felt and to this point they were only numbing the area to actually lance the abscess. After a half hour of pressing and draining ( with pieces of infected tissue the size of my little finger coming out) I could not take any more and the doctor stopped. ( with much begging from me). They backed the open wound with sterile material and told me to see my doctor 48 hours later. Needless to say that did not go as well as expected either and the doctor debated on if he should send me to surgeon or not. The good news is that he did not and as of today I am feeling much better and the infection seems to be gone (heavy duty anti-biotics for the next 4 or 5 days )

The reason I am writing about this is that it was kind of a wake up call in a sense. There can be numerous health problems from being over weight but this is one I never imagined. It almost made me feel unclean. Granted, people get abscess's all the time but the severity of this one was due to the location and fold of fat that allowed it to fester. This could have been very serious. The doctor said if I would not have had it treated I was about 24 hours away from a hospital stay to get the infection under control. Talk about motivation..... So, I am back on plan. Spent tonight in the backyard playing with my daughter instead of on the couch or the bed and looking forward to a good week and weigh in on Saturday.

I just do not get it.

Here I am 3 days since my last post and fast approaching another weigh in where I know I have not done well. Do not get me wrong, I am not going on a binge or eating crazy stuff I am just not following plan like I know I should. I am not writing down my food, etc. I can not figure out for life of me why I can not seem to follow through on something I believe to be so important to me?????? I am really searching for some answers here???????

Happy Birthday to You

Today was my wife's birthday so.......... a little off on plan tonight. I did really well all day but had a little more treat of carrot cake ( her favorite!!!) than I should have. All in all still doing OK and excited about getting back on track. It was a great afternoon with my wife and the girls as we celebrated with her parents and her grandmother. Another reminder of why we are working on making healthier choices....

More of the same

Well, today was a day later weigh in and the results were nothing. I stayed the same. I guess some of it could be a little off plan on Friday the 4th but I am trying to look at it as starting over. The bottom line is that I am going no where fast so I need to change something. In looking back over the last 4 months I see that by weighing in on Friday morning I tend to go off track on Friday and Saturday try to get back on Sunday only staying strict on plan for 4 days a week.... part time healthy choices are not going to work!!!! One thing that does motivate me, even though it does not seem like it, is facing the scale. So, if I know I need to weigh in tomorrow I will stay good today. With that in mind I am going to start going to meetings on Saturday mornings. This will keep me more honest on Friday and more on track (at least 6 days a week!!!!!)

Going into the weekend

The 4th is upon us and it should be a great long weekend. I will not be weighing in until Saturday, a day later than normal. I would normally think this to be a good thing but with Friday being the 4th with cookouts etc.... could be interesting. I just have to stay focused on being "on plan". I will not write on Friday but will check in Saturday with the weigh in results......

Three days

3 days of renewed commitment and I am still following through. exercise, writing things down, making good selections and drinking my water. I know it sounds like no big deal but I feel really good about what I am doing. You see, in the past, with the set backs I have had the last few weeks I would have just given up the the notion of losing weight and gone back to my old ways. Not this time. I will not go backwards. I am trying to look at it as a learning experience and that it is not all about the scale and losing weight, although that is the ultimate goal. This all about health and a change in life style long term. I know there are a lot of people that have been where I have been and the kept going. I am looking to them for inspiration this time and not jealousy. Tomorrow is another day to help continue forming good habits for life.

Two in a Row

Well after two days of being refocused I am doing well. I wrote down all of my food for the day, made good selections and got some good moderate exercise by ACTIVELY playing with my daughter outside tonight. We had a blast!!!

Made the buy of the week with my favorite "True Lemon" packets. They usually are about 3 or 4 bucks at the grocery but I found them at Walgreen's for $1.50 a box. I bought 5 boxes. I just find it so much easier to drink my water with a bit of lemon flavor and of course the packets are so much more convenient than carrying a lemon around in your pocket..... especially after it has been cut.

Mission accomplished

Check
Check
Check

I had 3 goals today and I met them all. I wrote down all of my food choices ( good choices I beleive) and I am within my points range.
I got at least 15 minutes of walking in and I am writing on my blog. Sooooooo I consider that a big success. Now all I have to do is rinse and repeat. I can do this, I know I can...............

Independence day

With this being 4th of July week I HAVE TO take advantage of the time to get my train back on the track. I need to declare my independence and get things back in line. I gained 1.6 lbs this week and I knew I would so there is nothing that I can be upset about except that I have not lived up to my personal commitment to get my body into shape. This is one of those benchmark moments that I have to stop the trend of going backwards and start moving forward again. My goals are simple:

Exercise 15 minutes a day this week
write down everything I eat good or bad
drink all of my water every day.
Blog everyday

Motivation

Oh where, Oh were have you gone....... I have been talking a good game but I just can not seem to get motivated. I am not really falling off the wagon ( although I bet if I was writing stuff down I would be over my points). I lost .8 pounds this week and I just feel like I am stuck in a rut. My weight loss amount is without a doubt due to my selections etc. I am just kind of going through the motions and I am having trouble figuring out how to break out. I definitely do not want to go backwards........... searching for answers?????????

Perspective

Today was a great day. regardless of whether I gain or lose this week I won. I played golf with my Dad today as a belated fathers day , early birthday gift to him. I was the one who received the gift. I never thought I would get to play with him again. He suffers from COPD and it has really gotten bad in the last six months.

Stepping onto the first tee today we did not even know if he could play. It was the most enjoyable round of golf of my life, and I did not play that well!!!!!!

My biggest gain yet!!

1.6 lbs I gained last Friday.. I knew I had not done well. I had not only a bad week with food selection ( we have already talked about that) but I ended up being a bit under the weather which made my body act a little different. I am good with it though. I almost think I needed it to get the train moving in the right direction with all the wheels on the track. I had a great couple of days and am re energized and moving forward.

Got my blood work back from the doc. All is great expect my triglycerides are a high. about 207. Should be 150 or less. Only advice was to keep doing what I am doing and it will all work out. So, there I have it. Once again dodging the bullet. I am a picture of health except for my weight. Can I get it off before I do any long term damage? God is giving me another chance here (same doc told me to get rid of the weight, quit smoking and get a cpap machine 3 years ago. I did two of the three, now the weight is going to come off)........... No more gambling... I am all in

Journey interupted?

Some 90 odd days ago I set out to change my life style and lose a lot of weight. This week I have been way off track. Again, not through binge eating, but making bad choices. I am not sure if I have gained weight. Not really as concerned about that as I was 90 days ago. What I do not is that I feel bad. Not mentally per se, but physically my gut just hurts. My system is staging a revolution to the pollution I am putting into my body.... I thought I would share why I believe I got off track and how I will look at the positives to motivate me to get back in the saddle...

First , I think my stray was due to boredom. Not boredom with the program because you can eat anything. I went through two weeks here recently where I was constantly busy. 24/7 with work and projects around the house so we could get ready for my daughters grad party. during that time we tried to find simple, fast solutions to eating. We did but they became boring to me and when we did have the chance to relax a bit no one wanted to cook so we took the easy way out with pizza, Chinese,etc. I could have made better choices at those times even with eating pizza and Chinese I just chose to be lazy. I also did not write a thing down basically since last Saturday. What I have learned is that while not tough, it does take some planning to eat healthy. While I am the one that is ultimately responsible for my actions it amazes me how much society enables us to be unhealthy.

My goal in this some odd 90 days was to lose 30 pounds, about 10 pounds a month. I am about 8 pound short of that goal. I have been warned that setting goals having to do with time frames and scales is a bad idea ( on a side note I have always found great support in the WW forums, especially on Guys on a Diet. Recently it has been more ridicule that support and needless to say I am a bit disappointed - does not include the readers of this blog that comment and also participate on WW boards) While I understand the advice of not setting time goals so you do not lose motivation I find that I need to set these goals to learn, push and stretch myself. Just like in my career I set lofty goals. I may fall a bit short sometimes but that does not bother me. You know what they say about small goals....

In this 90 days I am more comfortable in my clothes. I do not have heart burn ( except for this week). I do not feel bloated ( except for this week). I drink tons of water now instead of tons of pop. I eat more veggies. I think about what I am eating, even it is bad. and I am closer to my goal than I was 90 days ago. So as I get back on the horse I am not riding off into the sunset but getting ready to ride the range again. With all the peaks and valleys that go with it the ride and view is pretty good.........

She's breaking up, She's Breaking up!!!!

Remember at the beginning of the six million dollar man. When he starts to crash and tells them the ship is breaking up.. that is what I feel like right now. I am way off course. I have not written anything down since Saturday, I have eaten crap, no big binge eating just crap. I feel like crap because of it. I need to get back on track. Now that the house work is done and the party is over I have to get back on track. I will write more tomorrow during the day instead of waiting till the dark of night when I am so tired.........

the .4 pound guy

That is what people call me. It seems that is a magic number for me. I lost .4 pounds this week and I have to say that I found it funny. I have had that .4 pounds thing like 5 times. Up or down in the last 15 weeks. At least I am at the point where I am not focusing on the scale as much. As much exercise as I am getting by all the house and yard projects I know I have to be headed in the right direction. I feel good and that is what matters.

Another long night at party central

Still getting ready for the big graduation party. Who knew that getting ready for 80 people could be so much work. Good news is the forcast is for no rain. Bad news is it going to be 95 degrees....

I have the typical weigh in eve jitters. I hope the downward trend continues.........

I will let you know

What came first?

The chicken or the egg is the old standby. My question is being a couch potato or over eating come first? I really do not remember. I know that being as active as I have been in the last few weeks, in the evening, I have not had time to eat. So what did I do first? I do not know. Understand that I am not necessarily talking about exercise. I am talking activity. Projects around the house. Playing with the kids. You know the normal stuff. ..... Things are going well this week again and a few days away from weigh in . I have a lot to talk about but not enough time. expect some long posts here soon.

Its been a great day

Can not say much more than that.. It is late. It has been a full day and I was successful in eating for a better life style......

Has it really been since Tuesday?

I just noticed that I have not posted since Tuesday. Way off of my posting goal of every day. No I did not give up and go on a binge nor did I fall into a hole. I have just been really busy. The good news is that my daughter graduated from High School this weekend and with the all the activities I just have not had time to post. Most of the activities have been getting the house and yard in order in time for the big party next Sunday. With not having time to post, I have not had time to eat much either. My wife was really smart. She new that our schedules would be hectic and that is when we get off track. So, she picked up healthy, fast items that we could eat on the go instead of Mcdonalds. Yeah, I know some processed foods, blah, blah , blah. But with some fruit and water thrown in it beats the alternative of junk food. A few extra lean pockets are not going to kill anyone, especially me........ Only one more major house project to get done and that is painting a stair well. No big deal. The big deal has been the activity points. I forgot how good it feels to sweat. Also, makes me less hungry to be more active....... looking for a good week.. I can feel the 340s going bye, bye. I lost 2. 8 pounds this week so hopefully I am over my hump. Thanks for all the encouragement. A total of 21. 6 now and off we go. Took me 6 weeks to lose 5 pounds. But I lost them.........

PS Went to the Doctor on Thursday for a physical... He was very happy with my using my cpap and quiting smoking ( have not seen him in almost three years!!) and knows that I am doing the right thing. Just keep it up. He is convinced it will change my whole life.. The good news is that I am convinced too.

A more typical day

Caught some flack for yesterdays food selections. Again, I wanted to clarify that it was not a typical day. Today was more typical. I still have 8 points left but am not really hungry. I may eat a plum.

Today's menu:

Breakfast:

1/2 cup egg beaters with 1/2 cup of peppers, fat free cheese omelet Granola 5 points



Lunch:

southwest chicken and rice with fat free sour cream, mixed veggies and 1/2 cup of yogurt

11 points

Evening:

2 soft tacos on fat free shells with fat free beans and lettuce 9 points

1 cup fat free yogurt with fresh berries 3 points


Anytime:

Melba toast with laughing cow cheese 3 points

pickle 0 points

1 ounce fat free pretzel 2 points

rice cake with 1 tbsp of peanut butter 3 points

Total points : 36 points

Total Water: 7 - 8 ounce servings

Activity points : 1 point for 15 minutes of low intensity yoga and walking

Here we go

Okay, this is the perfect day to start this experiment because as of this time (9:00 pm) I am within my points and I know I made terrible selections. The holiday had a bit to do with that but I could have made better choices. Lets see if a trend continues:

Today's Menu

Breakfast:

1 slice of cold LaRosa's Pizza* 7.5 points


Midday:

1/2 of Sierra Turkey Sandwich* 11 points
cup of cream of broccoli * 5 points
1 baguette 3 points


Evening:

1 baked chicken breast 3 points
1 cup potato's 2 points
1 cup fruit salad 2 points

Snacks:

100 calorie hostess pack 1 point
Melba toast and laughing cow 3 points
reduced fat cheese crackers 4 points


Total points 41.5 ( I get 44)

Water: 7 - 8 ounce servings

There you have it I will check in tomorrow with better selections........All comments welcome

Time to Punt

I have been busting my butt trying to get the yard in shape for my daughters High School Grad party so I have not posted in a few days. I have also not written a thing down that I have eaten. Although , it has not been much. No TIME!!!

I lost .4 pounds this week and have decided that I need some direction so for the next seven days, starting tomorrow, I am going to post my dietary intake on the blog each day and in the Guys on a diet section of the WW message boards so I can see if any one has any insight as to what is going on. No lies, No omissions. I need answers. I just want to make sure that I am not looking at something wrong. See you tomorrow and thanks for the support

weigh in eve of week 12

twelve weeks and only 18.4 pounds. I expect big success this week..... I need to get back on a roll

short

can't type much. Been painting woodwork (white) all night. My arm hurts and my hand is cramping up from holding a paint brush. The good news is I can not lift food to my mouth........

That is all I have to say about that

It has been a good week so far. I feel like I am getting more activity in and learning a bit more about my body. I sat in a conference room tonight with a client and did not notice till I glanced over that they were going to install a new mirror in the room. It was leaning against the wall and gave me a perfect full length side view of my body sitting down..... OH MY GOSH..... that is about a years worth of motivation...........

One of my good friends and co workers is trying to follow along with WW with me. He joined on line and follows the plan (most of the time) I witnessed an emotional eating today that really put a vivid picture in my mind. I know I am an emotional eater but saw it in someone else and think that I might be able to recognize that in myself a bit more. He was having a conversation that had some controversy. He walked away with his cell phone in hand, came back 3 minutes later with food in hand. All this less than an hour after lunch. It was nothing more than an emotional outlet because he was pissed off and he dealt with it by eating...... I point this out and he agreed........ I hope I can learn......

another productive day

Did a ton of work around the house today. Thought I went overboard because we had Arbys for lunch. Did not know it was coming but ate what was brought. ALL 21 points for a roast beef and a few curly fries. Not at all worth it..... but because I was so busy I did not have time eat all day and go over on points. That is the good news......... Super big on plan this week with lots of activity. That is my goal and I am sticking to it........

Support CF

I really did not know much about cystic Fibrosis until my wife became the team leader for a walk to raise money for treatment. There is no cure. So today my family and I walked a 5k. The longest walk I have taken in about a year.... great day, great weather, great cause. I found out that the average life expectancy of someone with CF is 37 1/2 years old........ WOW, I have nothing to bitch about.... Connect with CF at www.cff.org and make a donation!!!!!!

Go Figure?????

So anyway. I spent most of the week pissed off that I gained a pound when I was really on plan. I was really discouraged, did not write much down went over on points a few days. Just could not find a good persepective. I came home from work last night and my wife was cleaning out our closet..... Not something that sounded like fun to me after a long day.

The day started good with an NSV. My favoriate company logo golf shirt has had a stain on it since like Christmas time and we tried one more time to get it out. Well I checked and it came out so I put the shirt on for the first time in months. Oh my, what a difference. I did not even have to do the Hercules shirt stretch ( if you are overweight you know what that it is, if you are not you would laugh you butt off if you saw it). I had some hope.

Back to getting home.

So she is cleaning out the closet and out comes pants I have not seen since I do not know when. Including my favorite blue jeans... Guess what ...... They fit.... and fit pretty well.. I really could not believe it. I know it is only 18 pounds ( I should not say only) but obviously my body is changing in some other ways for these clothes to fit like the did..... talk about a big NSV when you need it!!!!!

Go figure......

PS.. You know how I said I was not so good this week? Well, I lost that pound that I gained last week.............

Go figure..............

Have I got a story

but you will have to wait until tomorrow cuz I am tired.......... No matter what happens on the scale tomorrow I will be ok because I have a great story.....

Turning a corner

First of all I have to say thanks to all who have been sending words of encouragement. It is amazing to me how one little pound can have such a dramatic effect. In the beginning a put that pound into perspective ( when I lost it ) as 4 sticks of butter. Now I can not seem to put it in perspective going the other way. I really have not done that great this week and am afraid that last weeks 1 pound may be another one this week for a total of two and going in the wrong direction. I have not gone completely off kilter. I have missed writing some stuff down. I have used some flex points but I have not gone on a complete binge or anything. Still drinking plenty of water, etc. My biggest issue is my mind set. I am 70 some odd days into this and searching a bit. I know I have victories that do not involve the scale I just need to find a way to move beyond this. Now is the time to do so.........I have to keep my favorite quote in mind"

"A setback is a set up of a come back."

Here I come..............

Catchen up

no post last night because I fell asleep at 8:30...... short post tonight because I have other things to catch up on. Not doing too good since the weigh in. I will give more details tomorrow.......... very frustrated

Happy Mothers Day

not a bad day. I am going to go spend some quality time with the wife instead of staring at the computer..... see you tomorrow.

What do you do?

I really did well on plan this week. At least I thought I did. I gained a pound and I dumb founded as to why. I was more active. I only used 4 flex points all week.(although they were the night before weigh in.) I increase water to about 72 ounces a day. Pretty much cut out pop and kept carbs low ( ate more fruits and veggies) I just really do not know why I seem to be losing weight slower than I did in the past. Maybe it is the over 40 thing. I do not know. I have to admit I am a little more down about it this time than I was when I gained my measly .4 pounds two weeks ago. I am going to work hard this week and see what happens. I need some NSV's right now that is for sure...........

one of those days

I am grumpy, tired, busy, tired of sneezing and could eat the ass end of a rhino right now. Weigh in is tomorrow and I am tired of having to type the letters in the captcha for google and blogspot 2 and 3 times........ Pretty much sums up my day

Like a good neighbor

I love our neighborhood... I turned the corner tonight on my home from work and my yard was cut...... not all of it just most of it ( left enough for some good exercise tomorrow). The neighbor just got riding her mower and decided it would look nice if her yard and mine had the same pattern. She was right. We invited her over for a beer and some dinner. We had salads with baked chicken on top.......The point is (besides I have the greatest neighbors in the world) is that again a social situation that did involve food but it did not have to be fat food. Healthy sit and BS time..... I really enjoyed it..........

I keep promising to post some pics and I will. I do most of my posting from my work laptop ( since all i seem to do is work) and I try to keep as much non-work stuff off of it. I saw a pic of myself from the weekend and I can tell I have lost weight. Not a big difference but I do not look so bloated..... I will get to those pics this weekend I promise.........

I don't like Mondays

I remember that Elvis Costello song( Actually, it may have been the Boomtown Rats, or both)....... and I do not like Mondays. They seem to be toughest day......I seem to more hungry, less motivated to exercise and a little grumpy. I am not sure why. It is not like Mondays are anything real bad for work, etc. I guess my big issue is why I am more hungry? I used 3 flex points today. I usually do not use 3 flex points in a week. I had plenty of water, plenty of veggies but lots of points and no exercise what so ever.......
Oh, tell me why,

I don't like Mondays.................

What a weekend!!!!!!

Ran our butts off..... Had Birthday palooza for our daughter. The only birthday that I know that lasted a full week????? The kid party was Saturday and we thought the rain was going to wash us out but we were able to fish after all and we had a great time. Today was a "day at the farm day". We were able to hold baby goats see some cows, pigs and have just a good ole time thanks to my friend and co-worker Sherry..... what a great place. After we went to the farm we had to do some fishing ( did not catch a fish yesterday and needed to catch one today) so we went to the office and fished in the retention pond in the back. Caught a blue gill in about 5 minutes and everyone was happy..

As you may have noticed I have said nothing about food to this point and the reason is that I have finally realized that when we stay active do not have to really worry about the food issue, you have to plan, but you do not have to worry. I guess I never realized how much I eat out of boredom. Seriously, I have always been pretty happy guy and felt like I was participating in life pretty well but really realize how much of that time was being a couch potato..... just amazes me....

I promised some numbers:

Chest size down 2.5 inches
Waist size down 3.75 inches
neck size down .75 inches

Smile size up 2 inches ( should have seen my little girl when we caught a fish)

120 lbs away from jumping out of a plane....................

Oops!! I did it again.

I was so busy yesterday with family activity that I did not have time to post. That is twice in two weeks. On one hand I feel a little guilty because I missed a day. On the other, I never dreamed that as I started to change my life style that I would become active enough on some days not to have time to post..... yeah, I was that big of a couch potato. On the down side. I ate way too much for dinner last night having about 25 points worth of chips and salsa and chicken fajitas....... I paid for it too. My system has not had that much for about 2 months and it reminded me it did not like it........ I will post again today... with more details

I might be all wet but I am down 3.6 more lbs.!!!!!

Ok so the swimming thing did not go too well. Need some better planning and a healthier daughter, not to mention an updated pool schedule :-) ( the good news is that Friday morning will still work for swimming before weigh in just a little earlier. The better news is that I am down 3.6 lbs this week!!!!!! That is a lot for me and maybe a record weekly loss. Although, I was suspect of the .4 gain last week it may be a cumulative weigh in..... who cares. I have lost 18.4 pounds in 9 weeks. I feel good about were I am heading and to date have lost 5% of my body weight........I am in mental celebration mode.... I need to capture that feeling and recall it when I am feeling like going off track. Like I said yesterday this is a journey on the path to a better life style and longer life...... I'll post some measurements and pics tomorrow....

I still have that pre weigh in jittery feeling

going into week nine i guess I thought I would be less anxious than I am. Anxious may be the wrong word but I really feel different on weigh in eve. I think I am starting to get past the how much did I lose.(although that is like, really important). I feel better than I have in a long time. No heart burn. Not completely out of breath ( the fact that I quit smoking 6 months ago...will be seven in 8 days !!!!) with everything I do. My clothes fit better. I wear clothes that I have not worn in months really is motivating but I want to see these pounds come off. I know they did come on overnight so they will not be lost that way either. I need to remember that I am not dieting I am changing my "eating Lifestyle" as well as my activity level. If I keep those in mind the scale will follow........ Be swimming in the am and hopefully soon I will be swimming in my clothes.....

Tiny Bubbles....

Come on sing along you know the words........ One of my biggest challenges has been finding time to exercise. Truth be told I probably have just not made it as important to myself as it should be. I promised this week to get at least 3 15 minute sessions in by weigh in on Friday. So far so good. Someone on the WW boards gave me an idea to find a time to exercise and then slowly find another time to do so and before i know it I would be exercising on a regular basis. With the arrival of Spring I have found my Wednesday (or Thursday) grass cutting to be a good hour to hour and half moderate walk so I have one day down. I have been trying to find time to walk around my building at work a little each day and that seems ok. I think my next real addition is going to be my Friday morning swim. My WW meeting is 3 blocks from the YMCA I belong to (and rarely use) The pool is open for open swim on Friday mornings and I usually hang around a little extra time with my daughter so I do not have to drive twice. So this week I will leave a little earlier and swim before weigh in. Not sure if it will effect weigh in numbers but not really concerned. So sing along and I will keep you informed ...... Tiny Bubbles........ ( not sure I want to know where those bubbles are coming from!!!!!!!!!)

1 flex point

Today was a great day..... It was my daughters birthday and we had a very good time. My solution to taking her to breakfast was doing extra circles and letting her play some pegal this morning before we were off to school (daycare). Circles? I am very fortunate that my work schedule is very flexible. I can get up in the morning do some work on the computer and hang out with her until 9 or 9 30 before I head to the office most mornings. My wife think day care is great for her. Her school teaches her so much, especially social skills. Anyway, she like to go around the culdesacs in the neighborhood before school and we have kind of made a game of it. Well this morning we did extra circles and even went past school ( she thinks that is funny). she even made drawings for her friends. She wanted to give them gifts on her birthday ( talk about being a proud papa). Anyway, I did great on water today, again exceeding my goal and did great on veggies. As I totaled up dinner from my daughters favorite pizza place I found that I actually needed to use one flex point...... guess I better get some exercise in to get an activity point!!!!!!!! Strong week continues to go well........ I will keep you posted

14 1/2 hour day but on plan

Talk about a long day. I started at 7:00 a.m. and it is now 10:20 p.m. I have been home since about 8:30 but I knew today would be tough. I planned ahead and packed all i would need I exceeded my water goal. Probably a little short on activity and did well with veggies. Tomorrow will be a good day cause it is my baby girls 4th birthday and it does not get much better than that. I thought about taking her to breakfast but want to find a better way to celebrate with her in the morning that does not revolve around food.. Maybe we will do extra circles ( I'll explain some other time).. 4 days left till weigh in and the start of the strong week is going well.......

A lump of butter

That is what I feel like today.... I did absolutely nothing all day. I just needed a non-active veg out day but it went a little further than even I had planned. No projects around the house, no work, nothing. The bad part is NO ACTIVITY. I literally did nothing. I mean nothing. I did climb the stairs a few times and grilled out some chicken but that was the extent of my day. This is the plan....... Strong on plan this week with most points going to veggies and fruit. The only exception will be some pizza on Tuesday night for my daughters birthday dinner ( her choice of restaurant and I will order a salad to cut down on the pizza consumption) Lots of water and at least 15 minutes a day of exercise ( One day will include cutting the grass so we will exceed 15 minutes)...... I will keep you posted on how my goal is going

Thought I missed another day?

Well, technically I did. Technically is the key word here. I went the entire day yesterday without looking at, touching or turning on a computer. And I thought WW was hard. Yesterday was the celebration day for my daughters 4th birthday and I swore I would not spend any of it using a computer. I did good. Had some cake, was social but did not snack really at all. well within points... So I will post again today for today. I am still at peace with the small weight gain and I am sure come Friday when I weigh in again that all will be right with the world.......

My first GAIN!!!!!!

I have to say that I am not as disappointed as I thought I would be. I gained .4 pounds. I looked back at my tracker and I did not go over on points.( I used 2.5 flex points) and I had 8 activity points for the week. The big difference in comparison is that I did not do too well on water, I drank far more diet pop instead and my food selections were more carb rich instead of leaning towards more fruits and veggies. I am hoping that this is the reason for the gain. Working for a better week this week.

worn OUT

and allergies are killing me... going to bed early..... weigh in tomorrow a.m. I will let you know....

I broke my belt today....

Yeah on the surface that would seem like a bad thing. It is one of those reversible belts. You know black on one side brown on the other. You just twist the buckle and presto you have a different color belt. Well I broke the metal, not the leather and it was not from putting too much fat stress on it ( i guess not anyway). When I began to examine the belt I noticed that I had a new pattern that had been worn down and IT WAS 3 NOTCHES DOWN FROM WHERE I HAVE BEEN WEARING MY BELT. One of those days that was tough and seeing that just made me say OK this is working. There is more to this than a number on a scale.......Tomorrow is weigh in eve... always a tough day for me for some reason. The good news is that end of the month stress at work is minimal this month since everything is getting done early..... Anybody know where I can buy a new belt?????????

Exercise,Exercise, come on everybody do your exercise

Was that from Saturday morning "school house rock"? I do not think so but it was from somewhere in my child hood. Today was a great day for NSV for me ( Non-scale victory). First of all I passed a big social food test. The "guys" wanted to go to the "Chinese buffet" for lunch. I did not want to be the social party pooper but buffets are what helped me get like this in the first place. I did some quick research and found that if I stuck to the steamed dumplings and hot and sour soup (which i love) i could survive this and still not feel like I was deprived.... All went well and I am very proud.

Came home and cut the grass. No blisters this week (read post from about 10 days ago about assistant greens keeper and you will know what I mean. A good solid 75 minutes of moderate walking and I feel like a million bucks.........

Miss a Day , Miss alot

WOW. It looks like I did not post yesterday. I was shocked to hear this because I was convinced that I did. It looks like, in my mind, that I thought Saturdays post was what I did Sunday. I swear I am not delusional from lack of food or anything ( I could live off the fat of the land for months to come) I really thought that I had posted. We had a long and prosperous weekend completely redoing the bathroom with new floor, new paint, new lighting, etc..... So I guess it could have been the paint fumes. The bottom line is that I was active. My wife and I are both finding it easier to get motivated to do things and have the energy to do them. I think I have said it before but it is amazing how little you think of food when you are keeping busy. I wonder how much I have eaten over the years out of shear boredom? You know, not actually hungry but since I was not doing anything else that I would eat something and as I gained weight what I vicious cycles that became......... just a thought

Moving Forward

Last night I left off with talking about moving forward. This was because my wife and I had just gotten done watching "Balboa" . I know it another Rocky movie ( still love the song) , I think it is like Rocky 72........ Whatever you think of the Rocky franchise you have to admit that each movie usually has a great message embedded somewhere. Well Stalone gave us a great one this time..... at least I think so....... Basically he said " It is not how hard you can hit. It is how hard of a hit you can take and still get up and keep moving forward" I have to admit it was like a light bulb going off for me. Truer words have never been spoken .. Life is full of all kind of challenges. Moving forward may be the biggest............

Goodbye 350's

Today it became official. I lost 1.8 pounds to hit 349. No more 360's, no more 350's EVER...... I have lost 15.2 pounds in 7 weeks ( ahead of my expected pace). I have to say I feel great about what I have accomplished. I feel tons better and know that it will only get better as I move forward. And that is the key moving forward............

Post 48 is almost late!!!

I got so into working tonight on a project that I almost forgot to make my daily post. The good news is that I was not sitting around thinking about what I am going to eat. Weigh in is in the morning and here is hoping that we are done with the 350's. I will let you know....... time for bed now ( Dan I know you are still up!!!!!!!!)

High Water

I said hell or high water i would exercise 15 minutes today and based on my walk at lunch today I would say I pretty much qualified. It was a beautiful day and it did me good both physically and mentally to get out and get some fresh air. The one thing I need to remember in sub conscious mind is that feeling that exercise gives of reducing hunger. Lets face it, you just are not as hungry after you exercise ( I know walking a few minutes at lunch is not much of a workout but you need to start somewhere) Lets get one more in before Friday weigh in.

Tax day was taxing

Ok so I had to pay taxes. The good news is that it was not as bad as I thought. I have to say that today was tough on the food front. Here it is about 830 and I only have 3 points left. That is unusual for me. No doubt about it I am a stress eater. I also did not eat very healthy today. Lots of carbs little veggies and fruit. I will have to do something about that. I know the answer is to replace the stress relief of eating with exercise but once again I am having trouble with motiviation on the exercise front. Believe it or not I am still trying to heal my blisters from grass cutting.. 15 minutes tomorrow come hell or high water I will exercise

If only......

It were as easy to lose weight as it is to lose not only the computer file of last years taxes but the printed version too!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

No Grand Slam

Tiger will not win the grand slam this year..... The Reds were swept by the Pirates........ but you know what. I had a good day. It was Daddy daughter day and we had a blast at the Depot and painting together. She did water colors I did the door ( she is 3)........ I end the day with points left but very satisfied and without the need to get them all in today......... Let us see what this week will bring. I hope to be done with the 350s!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Support

I posted yesterdays blog on the WW site and while not surprised by the level of support I was pretty stoked by the great advice in putting the loss of 1 pound into perspective. This is not a one week plan. this is a new way of eating healthy. My body will follow. We had dinner with a friend tonight and while it was healthy food it was prepared with a little more fat, etc than I have been used to in the last 6 weeks. I have a little heart burn. Kind of funny that I used to eat like that and more all the time.......... Even passed on the 200 calorie 11 gram of fat cookie... Ok I had half for 2 points but in the past I would have had at least 1 if not 2 or more........ So slow and steady is the race.

Slow and steady wins the race

But it ticks me off. I only lost one pound today. Now grant it I lost so i should be happy but I really wanted to be done with the 350's.. I am not at 350.8.... I just can not seem to get a good steady, higher weight loss like I have done in the past. I always stay within my points. I rarely use flex points and if I do I limit them to the first part of my week. I guess my lack of exercise is the issue it is all I can say it could be.... I am doing everything else right. I guess I could be wrong about being upset of 13.4 pounds in six weeks but come one guys we are supposed to lose weight faster.............

Asst. Greens Keeper needs Ibubrofen

Remember Bill Murray in "Caddy Shack"? I thought about him today as the 2008 Masters started and decided I needed to do a little greens keeping in the yard before our beautiful 70 degree weather turned to 40 and rain........ :-( Our lot is a little less than an acre and I decided that a good activity would be to push mow the yard after work..... I also had thrown away my "outside tennis shoes" at the end of last year and decided to wear my golf shoes instead (kind of where the "Caddy Shack" reference comes in) Good News is that I had about 2 hours of moderate activity, the most I have done in MONTHS. The bad news is that I can barely move, I have blisters on my feet from my golf shoes and I have some kind of rash they have not identified ( another stupid movie reference from "City Slickers").. I feel good about my activity and looking forward to weigh in.................

God Bless You

God made the trees bloom overnight............and allergy season has officialy arrived in our home.... AAAAAAAAA CCCCCCCHHHHHHOOOOOOOOO See you in the a.m.

all quite on the home front

You know I took a mental health day today and did some work around the house. It was a good day. No real food challenges ..... so I will leave it at that for today.......

H2O

Yesterday when I said I did not get enough water in. Boy, did I mean it. My body is craving it today. No I did not eat anything salty but I am working on ounce 72 today.... yeah I said 72. Another good day and feeling pretty strong. Still have not done a damn thing about exercise. I can not for the life of me figure out why I do not want to get motivated enough to do so. One real motivation for losing weight slapped me in the face again today. Diabetes! No I do not have it nor do I ever want to get it . A very dear friend of mine, who had diabetes since he was a kid, died today after a long battle with complications from the disease. I will miss you Steve and my only regret is that I wish I could have been a better friend to you. You were truly one of the good guys.........

The good, the bad, and the loss of the ugly

The good is that it was almost 70 today and was great day to be out in the yard working, playing and just getting some fresh air. My wife and I had a great day getting lots of early spring cleaning done outside and capped off the day with grilling turkey burgers on the grill... Her own special mixture of turkey and seasoning and it was GREAT...... real great family time also.

The bad is that I did not write anything down that I ate until 9:00 pm tonight!!!!! That is a first in 37 days. I just was not near a computer today. Now i see why the paper method may have some benefits. Sitting down and recreating was difficult but I do not believe that I missed anything and am still within my points range except I did not get enough water in.

The loss of the ugly is that I measured again today and I have lost the following.

3 inches off of my chest!!!!!!!
2.75 inches off of my waist!!!!
.75 off of my arm!!!!!

That is a huge NSV for me

10%

10% of our time is up already? This is day 36. I can not believe that time is flying like it is. In 36 days I have learned a lot. I have learned how I eat, why I eat and how, over time, I will take this weight off. I am reminded every day my motiviation is counting on me, my family. I have lost 12.4 pounds. I will never see the 360s again and soon I will never see the 350s again. I have lost inches. I feel more comfortable in my clothes. I have to get exercise to be my way of life. That is the goal going into 20 %

1.4 MORE

1.4 more pounds are gone. May not sound like a lot. We have all been spoiled by the Biggest Loser Show. I, unfortunately, do not have the ability to work out 8 hours a day. Hell I can not seem to work out 10 minutes a day. I am going to change that this week... 1.4 pounds more that I will never see again....... Tomorrow is a mile stone Day 36..... 10% of the way through my journey.................

Weigh in Eve and I am not being creative

Ok so I have been writing a lot of stuff just to say i wrote on the blog today. I am going to do it again tonight. Tomorrow is a big weigh in. Trying for 2 losses in a row. Actually, I have lossed every week I just do not count the .2 lbs week........ This weekend we will get pictures and new measurments and a more fun blog to read.....

Work or Eat?

The amount of planning that it takes when I know I am going to have a long day at work is amazing. I hope that as I get use to my new life style that I am able to find a way to make better choices. The nice thing about WW is you can eat anything as long as you control portion and make good choices. Again, my problem is getting home at 8 or 9 at night and having 25 points left. So here again I hope I am not sabotaging myself by not getting all my food in........ weigh in in 2 days

Have to eat.

I know I have said this over and over but it amazes me how much you have to eat. What I mean is that here I am again at 9:30 with lots of points left. I came home starving and had 29 points left!!!!! Way to many. Means I did not eat enough this morning or at lunch. I have to find a solution to this problem.

Opening Day

Well it is opening day in baseball ( unfortunately, the Reds lost :-( ) and I thought it was great time to look at month two as a new beginning. I started the day out with my 3 year old telling me she wanted breakfast and then stopped and said we should exercise first!!!!!! We stretched and touched our toes and reached for the stars. Needless to say it was the most exercise I did over the weekend, Hell, OK the week. So begins opening day of month two my three old reminding me of why I am on this journey is a bottom of the ninth walk off home run for me..........

30 days into the Journey

Here we are 30 days into our 365 day journey and I have learned a lot. First I think I have learned that while in the past I ate a lot of food in individual sittings I also made just terrible choices. Once I started making good choices and trying eat every two hours I learned how hard it was to eat all of that food. I have learned to crave water. I rarely drink pop anymore. I have lost 11 pounds or 44 sticks of butter. I have been warned not to set weight loss goals that involve time restrictions but at this time I still feel that is in my best interest. I have lost inches as well as pounds and will report those actual numbers tomorrow as well as sharing a 30 day picture. I do not expect many changes in the picture but I can tell a big difference in the way some of my clothes fit. My big goal for April is to get the exercise in. I have not done to well with that as of yet. The good news is that I have my wife on the journey with me and now a good friend has decided that Atkins was not for him and WW was the way to go. Support all around. Thirty days in I need to remind all, but myself, that this is about life and death. I have a wife and two daughters that are counting on me

30 day eve

Well tomorrow will be 30 days, 1 month, a little less than 10% of the time on my new journey to learn how to eat again. Eleven pounds in the first month is 1 lbs over my goal of 10 pounds per month. I see the following being my issues in the first 30 days:

1. I still have not found the motivation to consistently exercise.

2. I have found it too easy to weigh in and not stay for my WW meeting. Work is the biggest excuse because I found that psychologically the Friday morning meeting is when I need to go.

3. I am not as detailed in writing stuff down. I write it all down ( well I enter it all in the computer) but find myself using the "Know the points" feature of the website and sometimes even guesstimating..........

How best to deal with these issues?

From Bowling to Bowling ball

Well after todays weigh in I have lost about a bowling ball ( at least the one I threw in the third game after I was so tired last week). Thank you all for your support last week. I was down 3 lbs. this week for a total of 11 lbs my first month. I am very happy with that and was concerned after last weeks disappointment. Moving in the right direction......

Awaiting the weigh in.

After last week who knows what to expect in the am.... I will let you know

Spring is in the Air

The family was able to come out of hibernation tonight. What a nice evening in the low 60's, lite breeze. The neighbor had a little fire going and the kids roasted marshmallows and made smores. I had none and opted to save points for my little 2 point ice cream... I had a good day today making good choices at a business lunch. I have hesitated to go out to lunch too much so i do not make bad decisions. Problem is that in sales lunch meetings tend to be pretty important. I made it easy by taking control and picking the restaurant where I know I could control my points ( went to Applebees). Stress level was a bit lower today also even though I am still trying to solve some work issue problems. I have to get use to it though . The end of the month in my business is always like this and I am just going to have to find ways to deal with it. 2 days till weigh in... I feel like I am doing well but have no idea what to expect.

25 days

This is the 25th day of my blog and for the first time ( ok mabye the second) I really do not feel like writing tonight. I guess I never really knew how much I used food to cope. Work was about a stressful as it gets today and again gave my argument that my industry is changing so rapidly that my job will obsolete in 5 years or less... The good news is that even though I went on a tiny binge the choices of food for that binge were good choices. My new favorite snack of melba , pickles and laughing cow cheese and hostess 100 calorie pack ( I had two of them!!!!) and dinner. Out of points but time for bed so I guess I made it through a tough day.

Me Hungry

Wow what I day.... I was actually very hungry today. I can honestly say that this is first time since I started that hunger was an issue. It is hard to say why. I was prepared and it seemed like all I did was eat but here it is almost bed time and I still have 4 points left. I also had a nicotine craving today. That is the first time that has happened in months. I have to think that something triggered both of them. A thought, a taste, a smell, a situation. I am not really sure what it may have been but I am going to give it some thought. On the plus side I did not cave either craving.. I had a mint when I had the nicotine craving and it went away. I also called my wife to talk about it, that seemed to help also. I even took a walk around the building... Not enough walking for an activity point though..... maybe tomorrow...........................

Easter Blessings

Well Easter has come and gone and things went well in the house. The Easter bunny was good to the kids and brought toys, money and limited candy instead of tons of candy...... life changes for all. We did really well in planning the day and as i write this I still have a few points left for the day. I can not believe how sore I am from bowling.... that right I said bowling. Two things I am committed to this week is at least 6 more activity points which is only 1 hour of exercise this week and getting all of my water in everyday............

Perspective

After having a great week I weighed in yesterday and only lost 0.2 lbs!!! I have to admit, I was pretty upset about it. In fact I did not even write anything down n my tracker yesterday. I did not go on a binge, but felt really bad because I was sure I had a good week. I wrote everything down and really did well staying on plan. After crying over my spilled milk I tried to find something positive and decided to measure myself. I measured my chest, waist, arms, wrist and thighs when I started. I found that in three weeks I have lost about 2 inches off of my waist, an inch and a half off of my chest and half inch off of my arms. I guess that is an NSV(non scale victory). I posted some thoughts and questions on the WW site and was happy to find some really good support. I really need to get the exercise going. I am committed to making that happen.......if I can move. My wife and I went bowling for our date ( got to be worth some activity points?). I have not bowled in 20 years and I used muscles I have not used in 20 years ( at least it feels that way)..... Not going on the pro bowling tour any time soon.... best score........ 123!!!!!!!!!!

0.2 lbs lost

Can we just talk about it tomorrow

I feel it

It is weigh in eve again and I feel good. My clothes seem to be fitting a little better, my attitude is good and I had a real good week.......so far so good. I am looking forward to the morning weigh in. I have to get the activity going... number 1 priority next week.

Olive who

So they brought in olive garden today for lunch. First big social test............. I passed. Thanks to my boss for getting some plain chicken to go on my salad and I brought my own dressing. Nothing else was less than 20 points a serving except for the bread sticks. I had two for a total of 6 points............ Live a little... I feel good

I need a boat

I wonder how many activity points I would get rowing to work..... If it keeps raining I might have too!!!!! 3.5 inches of rain in less than 12 hours and it is still coming down.... Speaking of water I had forgotten how much I like it. I drink it almost exclusively, an occasional diet pop or a mix with my water but mostly water with lemon. My body actually craves it. Tomorrow is the first test of a work function with food. I tried to control the situation making sure they ordered some appropriate good choice foods so we will see... Rain is making me very tired. it is 9:30 and i am going to bed. I do feel than I had a little shift in body shape based on some pants I had on today. I will let you know when I measure on Friday......

NSV for ME

I have always subscribed to the theory that people as a whole are good but hold prejudice regardless of intention. I have always felt that my weight was an speed bump to my complete success in business. Being in sales first impressions do mean a lot. I know that my ability and skill take over once someone has the chance to talk with me for a few minutes but even the best intentioned people when the see someone over weight think lazy. Hell, I do it and I am over weight. In my business, especially now, my expertise really makes a difference in my clients life and how they live. My point during this post is that since I have decided to take control of my life with getting my sleep apnea under control, quiting smoking and now weight loss I go about my day with a different attitude, one of more confidence that will only grow as my success in my weight loss grows. Today I had two clients successfully complete transactions that changed their lives. Both worked very hard and over came many obstacles to achieve their dream. Both knew and acknowledged my part in their achievement and were very grateful. I was very grateful for the recognition of a job well done. After 20 years in the business, it is still nice to hear.....

PS A NSV is a non scale victory

Reflection

No I am not going to go deep on you and give some meaningful thought .I am talking about your reflection in a mirror. When I look in a mirror I do not always see the fat guy. I always see it in a photo though....... today I ate dinner at a table that was facing a full size mirror. WOW that could make you stop eating all together. I am proud that I was able to be social and stay away from the snacks and not overeat and still have fun..... Used all my points but still had fun.

How Many Points in a fortune Cookie?

51 points!!! OK, not in a fortune cookie but that is how many I thought I had consumed today. I thought I was keeping good track knowing my wife and I were going out for dinner tonight. We had Chinese at our favorite Chinese restaurant next to our old home. We planned and did very well splitting a a non-fried chicken dish. My indulgence was steamed vegetable dumplings hers was crab rangoon. Well when getting home I tallied up my points and up to 51. I am only suppose to have 44 points a day. I get flex points but really try not to use them. The good thing about this is that it really made me look at what I ate today and where I may have gone off course. First notice is that I charged myself 4 points too many for lunch so I was really only at 47 and used only 3 flex points..... sounds like an excuse to me. Activity points are on the horizon..................

By the way, 2 points in a fortune cookie.

3.2 1 On a Roll!!!

That is 3.2 pounds lost and the countdown begins to my first 10 pounds lost. So far 7.8 lbs to date. I guess that would be about 31 sticks of butter. I am very happy with the result and really do not expect such large results each week but we will see.......

Weigh in Eve Jitters!!

I have to admit that I am a little apprehensive this evening. I know I have done well all week, although I could have had more activity. I just have anticipation on my weigh in tomorrow. I do not expect the same results as last week my goal is 2 pounds a week ..... we will see.

GAS MAN!!!!

Ok not going to get gross but the ole body is going through some changes. My wife says yeah right... you were gassy before you started to eat better...... She may be right but a human can only eat so much roughage. If we could bottle this I could end $3.45 gasoline The good news is that I have not had heart burn in 10 days and I still eat spicy food. I have to say my biggest challenge is eating all the food I am supposed to. I guess I am really learning about how bad my past choices have been.

I posted on the WW site to get some ideas for exercise since I am finding it hard to fit in, especially with work being so busy right now. Today I was in at 9 am and got home at 8 pm.... So this is the suggestion from the WW family. Make small changes during the week like park further away. get up every hour and walk down the hall or up and down the stairs and commit to exercise on the weekends. That way there should be not guilt during the week...... I ll let you know how it goes. do you have any ideas

Yeah..... Whatever

I am exhausted. I had without a doubt the most stressful day at work that I have had in the first part of this journey. In the past I would turn to food or smoke. Now I do not smoke but I do eat. I have not turned tofood yet. Thanks to Pita Pizza taking some of that away. Although I do have no points left for the day. I should just go to bed but I have more work to do. Hopefully I can get throught the rest of the evening without making a big dent in flex points. I need to find some 0 point options

I did not exercise today either. I commited to three other activity points prior to Friday ( Not counting the snow shoveling earlier this week) I need to kick it into high gear by friday with the exercise........ Till then I hope my head does not explode

Who needs flex points!!

I do, I do..... Tried something different today in trying not to have too many points left at the end of the day. When you get home at seven or eight it is hard when you have 15 or 20 points left so I tried to bring more snacky food to work with me........well.. for the first time in 10 days I had to dip into my flex point reserve.. granted it was only .5 points but still. I guess the idea of snacky stuff at work was a good idea but I was really busy with stress filled activities trying to take care of fires that need to be put out quickly. I learned that i was using the snacking as a stress outlet so I chalk up my flex point or .5 point to experience and now have some sugar-free mints to help me through the day... Lets see what tomorrow brings.

I forgot about those Muscles!!

Typing hard..... muscles hurt...... shoveled snow....... :-) Ok it is not that bad, yet.... after about 90 minutes , 60 of which I actually shoveled the driveway is clear of the 12 plus inches of snow that came down. The sad part is that this is the most physical activity I have had in months. I have to admit it felt pretty good. The best news is that my oldest daughter did about half of it last night.

I can not think of a better topic to start this week off as this is the week we try and get a little more physical. I am committing to 3 sessions of physical activity this week. I may do croga ( my version of yoga) and/or stand up and walk in place during commercials ( not during American Idol though, I would be walking for hours, LOL) I will keep you informed. Assuming I can get out of bed in the morning..............

Cabin Fever

Well we got the 15 inches of snow they called for and we have been couped up in the house for about 28 hours. I did get to go out with my daughter and play in the snow and shovel for about 15 minutes. Trust me .... Snow was heavy at least one activity point for that. Thinking on what I am going to commit to this week for activity. I will post that in tomorrow. It has been tough today but losing track of food could have been easy and I had to really think about what I ate this evening as I kind of went on a snack frenzy. The good news is that I made good choices and still have a few points left for the day. The best news of the day is my wife weighed in and lost 3.1 pounds..... we are so competitive..... I am really proud of her and love her for all of the support she gives me, even when I am at my worst.

Butter

18 sticks of butter!!!!! That is what I lost in my first week...... 4.6 lbs. I remember a weight watchers leader from years ago ( when i did not give it my all) that equated everthing to sticks of butter or bowling balls. It really made a agreat ( or not so great visual) I am pleased for the first week..... I am more pleased that I did not celebrate with food.... Bought MLB 08 for my PSP instead....... The test will be this weekend... Blizzard here in cinci so we will be stuck inside all weekend...... I'll keep you posted...........

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow ( but after 11:00am)

Today was a good day I have lots of anticipation for my first weekly weigh in on Friday morning. The forecast is for a huge snow storm ( more than 10 inches of snow for Cinci is a lot of snow) I will crawl to weight watchers to weigh in if I have to. I feel like tomorrow is the beginning even though I started a week ago. It is the realization that what I am doing is the right thing and that progress is being made. The pounds I lose will be pounds I will never see again.....

Pink Eye and the day from Hell!!!

I think I have pink eye!! Never had in my life. Thought my three year old had it last week and now my 18 year old and I got goop coming out or our eyes. It is pretty uncomfortable. Oh well, keep using the drops and washing hands( at least my wife tells me I should). Really rough day at work... You know one of those days that everything you touch turns to Sh*t. Spen most of the day putting out fires. I wonder if I felt better if I would have tried to turn to food for comfort.... I did not but the 100 calorie pack mini cupcakes did help :-)

A family memeber yesterday could not understand why I would write about something so personal as my weight. I do not see how it is personal. Anyone can see I am overweight. My goal is to give my self leverage by sharing honestly and not hiding my thoughts about food. Liek I said in my first post. I do not want to die. Hoensty is the best policy and I think the blog will aslo help me think through a healthier relationship with food. Well, gunk in my eyes is making it harder to see . Off too bed early tonight. till next time..........


PS Weigh in is FRIDAY

The Jaws of Life!!

Being overweight is pretty funny sometimes if you think about it. I am not saying that I completely enjoy it. I am also not laughing ( well maybe a little at myself)..... Most people think that heavy people are lazy when in 99% of the cases that just is not true. Don't get me wrong, I am not running a marathon anytime soon ( although I did commit to walk in a 5k for charity in May. I have not walked 5K this month!!!) but I work hard and have no problem working around the house etc. Food is just a drug and so far being 4 days into this journey I am doing pretty well. No slip ups or cheats as of yet. The proof will be on Friday when the weigh in comes....... The Jaws of life.... So anyway, the most running I have gotten in the last few years is running to be the first one in the restaurant. Not so I could eat. So I could make sure we got a table and not a booth.. Admit it, fit or fat, booths in restaurants are way too small. Chances are when you sit in the booth and more of you is resting on the table than in the bench you probably need to work on your waist line!!! And who thought of bolting the table down? That makes it even worse. If I do get in a booth I may need the Jaws of Life to get me out......

My Space

My Space, which can be a pretty large area, is going pretty well today :-). Again, I find it amazing how hard it is to eat all of the food you are supposed to eat or allowed to to eat when you are making good choices. Do not get me wrong. Three days does not make a life change but it is a start. Understand that food has been a drug for me. I eat when I am happy, I eat when I am sad. I eat to celebrate. Today was a pretty stress free day at work so I was not tested as I could be. One day at a time and one pound at a time. I did not put the pounds on overnight I can not take them off overnight

Five Feet!!!!!

No I am not Five foot tall but my chest is 61 inches!!!!! That is over 5 feet........ I feel like Anna Nicole :-) I was talking with my wife today and remembering some of the funny things that did happen on the way to 364 pounds. One is about a year ago I asked her if she was doing something different with the laundry. She asked why. I told her my clothes are shrinking. Talk about denial........... I'm serious I actually thought that she was doing something different with the laundry... Oh well... Second day went well. The weather broke and we all got out of the house for a bit. Obviously, it is much easier to keep from eating if you are not sitting in front of the TV or lying around the house. I have done weight watchers in the past, and was successful until I stopped using all the good habits I learned... I had forgotten how hard it is to eat as much food as you get when you are making good choices. Tomorrow should be interesting as it is the first day on the program with work stress thrown into the equation....... Stay Tuned...

I do not want to die!!!!

Based on the title of my blog you can probably figure out that I have a slight weight problem. I have decided that for the next 365 days in my journey to lose weight and get my body in shape I will also commit to write about my experience. I am 41 years old and weigh a whopping 364 lbs!!!!! The heaviest I have ever been. I sat in the doctors office two years ago overweight, a smoker and dog tired from real bad sleep apnea. My doctor pretty much confirmed what I already new. I better get in shape before I could not physically do it any more or I died, whichever came first. I have controlled the sleep apnea with a CPAP machine, one of the best things I ever did....... and I have quit smoking, the best thing I ever did for myself.. Now it is on to the weight loss. I am doing weight watchers because I know it will work. I considered surgery but would prefer to keep that option as a last resort, although I am getting close to that time. So, I will write everyday for the next year. No pulling punches, complete honesty and full disclosure. Good or Bad....... Come along for the ride. It should be fun