The morning after

Made it through the day while staying basically on track!

I did miss a meal, but given everything that was going on, I'll take that vs. filling up with off limits foods any day!

This one will be short and sweet; here's everything that I ate yesterday.  I made it a point to have a bit more for breakfast than what is normal for me these days, which I try to do if I know that I'll be in an environment where I may encounter difficulty remaining on point.

I also went on an hour-long hike (through woods, fields, a valley, beside a creek and up a HUGE hill) between meals 2 and 3, which served to keep me in view of the big picture as folks were miserably full and struggling all around me.


Breakfast

2 eggs
1 1/2 cups spinach
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped bell pepper
1/2 whole wheat bagel
1 teaspoon 1/3 fat cream cheese
1/4 cup fat free cottage cheese
1 cup seedless watermelon


Meal 2

3 oz garlic roasted turkey
1 baked sweet potato, plain
3/4 cup steam green beans, plain


Meal 3

1/4 cup sunflower kernels
1 seed and nut crisp
1 green app


Meal 4

5 oz cajun roasted turkey
3/4 cup succotash (with lima beans, sweet corn)

Ain't no jive, turkey...

Today is day 60 of the weight loss journey that I began on September 25th.  As of this morning, I've lost a total of 59 lbs - just 1 lb from averaging a pound a day over an almost 2 month stretch.  To say that I'm pleased would be an understatement; to say that I'm satisfied...  Well, nothing could be further from the truth.

I can't claim to know how the next 60 days will go, or even the next 30 days, but I know that I have a plan that's been working, and that I possess the dietary knowledge and understanding of it's affect on my 39 year old body (a great contrast to my 19-25 year old body, let me tell ya) to tweak as is necessary.

With the continued increase to my aerobic and anaerobic capacity, I'm pushing my body much harder than I have been; the most obvious benefit to that is the intensity of both my cardio and weight training routines are steadily ramping up, and that I can feel and see the results. At this point, with my diet more or less dialed in, the ongoing evolution of my training routine will be ever more critical to my fitness gains in the days yet to come.

As the wife, kids and I travel first to my in-laws, then to my own family's gathering... When I'm presented with tempting platters of forbidden deliciousness... As I see everyone else's plate overloaded..

As I watch them gorge themselves on meats, pastas, potatoes, breads, casseroles, and desserts... I will reflect back on the number 271 - the beautiful number blinking up at me from the scale this morning - and I will make a modestly sized plate containing only the correct foods for my diet plan. I will balance my portion size and the ratios of macro-nutrients so as to meet my needs, and only for that purpose.

I will avoid the foods that I've been steadfastly avoiding for the past 2 months. I will deal with the questions, the bewilderment, the awkwardness. I will answer questions about my diet, my exercise routine, about how much I've lost, and wish to lose. I will reveal how there's no 'one weird trick' or 'magic routine'; that it's hard work, dedication, honesty, education, and consistency.

If pressed, I'll speak of refined sugars and carbs, of portion control, of empty belly cardio, of apple cider vinegar, of live cultures in yogurt, of drinking ridiculous amounts of water, of yoga, of free weights, of getting enough sleep.

I'll be ready for the quizzical looks and the doubtful retorts, and of the 'advice' that 'helped so-and-so' loose a ton of weight. I'll be ready for the attempts to persuade me to 'just try a little bit of that, I made it from scratch, just one bite won't hurt'. I'll be ready to politefully decline however often as the situation requires. I'll still have a travel bag packed with bottles of water, seeds, nuts, whole grains, and some protein; and I'll be ready for the reactions that will undoubtedly accompany me breaking it out, on schedule, to help me uphold what I hold to be true. The proof is the truth, and the truth is 271.

I will do what is needed to stay on the path, and I won't give it so much as a second thought.

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone. May this day be what you make of it.

Off days and temptation

Back when I first began serious weight training as a teenager, I was taught the importance of rest and recovery to realizing gains in the areas of strength, aesthetics, and endurance.  However, up until this Sunday I hadn't really allowed myself to have any real off days from my current training plan.

The issue hasn't been a physical one - my use of prioritization and employing a multi-faceted approach to exercise has helped greatly in my body remaining fresh and mostly injury-free, despite working out twice each day.  But this past Sunday I began to feel the mental pressure from the grind of such strict adherence to both my physical training and current dietary practices. So, as hard as it was for me to do, I allowed myself a complete and thorough day off from exercise.

It's now Monday - I'm back in the routine full-swing.  And, as if to highlight the fact that I did indeed make the best decision for my continued success, there is a company sponsored hamburger lunch today.  Had I not hit the pressure release valve yesterday, it's possible that I'd be elbow-deep in fried burger patty grease right now.  In fact, the 'old' me would easily be 2-3 sandwiches in at this point, as the providers of the feast made WAY more than enough (as per usual).

So - as I sit here, with the smell wafting from all the cubicles and desks around me, eating my Chicken Veggie Southwest-style soup...  Here's a recipe.  Writing it down helps me focus my goals - hope it helps someone else out there with theirs, too.

8 oz roasted chicken, chopped

1 cup diced onion

1/2 cup diced carrot

1/2 cup diced bell pepper

2 cups chopped tomato

1 cup RoTel (medium spice)

3 cloves garlic

1 diced jalapeno

4 cups veggie stock

1 medium zucchini (split in half lengthwise, then sliced into 1/4 inch half-rounds)

1 medium yellow squash (same prep as zucchini)

1/2 cup chopped cilantro

1 bay leaf

1 teaspoon cumin

1 teaspoon paprika

1/8 cup lime juice

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Heat the cooking vessel of your choice over medium high heat; add 1 tablespoon olive oil.  Add onion, carrot and bell pepper with a dash of salt - cook until onions are translucent, stirring frequently.  Add garlic and spices, cook until fragrant.  Add jalapeno, tomatoes. RoTel and bay leaf - cook for about 4 minutes, then stir in stock and lime juice.  Bring mixture up to low boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer for at least 20 minutes to allow flavors to meld.  Add chicken, zucchini and squash - continue cooking another 10 minutes.

I wasn't too worried about the macros for this one.  If I could change one thing, I'd have added less acid, as the tomatoes and RoTel proved to be pretty acidic themselves.

In the face of adversity

Fifty four days into this journey; 54 lbs lost.

Realistically, I know that stats tell me that the weight loss will begin to slow, and that I'll have to work harder and smarter to continue making what I deem to be acceptable progress towards my goal. But I can't  help but to be encouraged by the progress that I've made thus far.

This week has been a challenging one, for a number of reasons. One of the biggest potential stumbling blocks has been staying true to my clean eating plan.  From the Thanksgiving luncheon at work, to preparing meals for the rest of my family long after I've begun my evening/nighttime fast, I've seen my willpower and resolve tested like at no other point over the past 2 months.  But I've held up - as of this morning I weighed in at 276.

Initially I was discouraged, but it didn't take me long to shake that off.  Number one - progress is progress.  Number 2 - I've seen added muscle gains, which will offset to some degree a large drop in the numbers on the scale.

And Number 3 - I had to punch a new hole in my belt loop to get my pants to stay up!  I have to give credit to the wife for that one, actually...  I'm notorious for sagging, but I don't think that she's a fan of it at all. Were it left solely up to me, I'd have likely tolerated the situation until left with the choice of either getting a new belt or walking around with my trousers around my ankles...

I'm a firm believer that your life is what you make of it, by and large.  I'm rediscovering much in the way of my own personal philosophy that I hadn't connected with in a long time.  The physical challenges haven't been nearly as daunting as the mental ones.

I've still so very far to go, but the future is looking bright.  I feel dialed in right now - there is no limit that I can see on the horizon to how far I can take this.

51 Down, 100+ To Go

This week I've managed to cross one of my big goals off - as of yesterday morning I've lost 51 lbs.

One of the most interesting things that I can say about this point in my journey is that while my body has undergone a significant change both externally and internally, my mind's eye cannot perceive the change to be as profound as those in my daily life observed.  I attribute this largely to a type of body dysmorphism that I've always had to a certain degree.

I have to make a calculated effort to remain diligent over the course of the next few weeks - stumbling blocks will undoubtedly be strewn all across my path, as work, social, and family functions will provide temptation to both cheat on my diet and blow off workouts.  I've been pretty good about abstaining from non-diet fare thus far; my hope is that I'll continue to be strong.

I have made it a point to modify my evening workouts a bit - I'm doing more body part isolation: 3-4 exercises, with each movement comprised of 3-4 sets. The first set of each exercise is typically a high-rep warm-up set, while I move on to a heavier weight for all subsequent sets.  It's a stark contrast to the circuit-style body-weight routine that I perform each morning after my walks; while those are mainly to tone and to carry forward the fat-burning benefit of my cardio routine, my evening workouts have introduced legit muscle soreness and the 'pump' that I recall so fondly from my heavy weight training days.

I also made a slight tweak to my eating schedule - I believe that 6 meals 2 hours apart might have been a bit more than I needed, so I've reduced that to 5. It seems to have been a smart move so far - I'll just continue to listen to my body, and try to maintain this until I enter the next phase (further carb reduction/liver detox), which I anticipate will be in another few weeks.

I also anticipate sharing a few meal outlines, recipes and workout routines in the near future.  Thanks to anyone that's viewed this, and please feel free to share any feedback in the comments section.

The Weight of Forever

On September 25th I embarked on a weight loss journey that was far too long overdue. Today, I begin publicly documenting this journey - an endeavor that is also long overdue, but, as was the case with my weight loss efforts, never too late to undertake.

The impetus for the desire to make changes were plentiful, but included a marked loss in my physical ability, as well as and a fear that continuing along my previous path would result in my death sooner rather than later. I've no idea if the last several years of letting myself go have resulted in any sort of irreversible, permanent damage, or if the losses in physical ability and vitality (not to mention the weight gain) can be corrected.

On the day that I decided that changes were needed, I weighed 330 lbs. I'm 5'9"- at my healthiest (some 17 years ago) I weighed 185 lbs as a non-competitive power-lifter, so that was with me carrying a considerable amount of muscle with a very low body fat percentage. Due to what I've only recently grown to understand were exertion headaches, I quit power-lifting in the year 1999. Also around that time I got my first desk job, which added to the considerable decrease to my overall level of physical activity.

A few years after I stopped heavy weight training I managed to get my body-weight down to as low as 160 lbs by following the principles of low-carb routines such as Atkins and the South Beach Diet. During that time I also had a short-lived career change to a job that kept me very active (think eight plus hours of constant walking, lifting, bending over and squatting). Unfortunately, that path was altered by an auto accident that left me unable to work for several months; I would never again achieve that level of sustained fitness.

In the years following my recovery from the accident I remained active, and still exercised somewhat regularly. However, a cerain spark had been lost, which I struggled mightily to reclaim. I thought that I'd accomplished as much through a found love for the sport of tennis; and while I was able to achieve an impressive level of endurance, my appearance and body-fat would never approach the levels I'd achieved in years past. My body-weight would hover in the 190-205 lb region, though, and I felt in no way physically limited or worried about my overall health.

Everything changed in 2009 - that was the year that the wonderful girl who is now my wife and I began dating. At that time I'd advanced enough as a tennis player to begin playing in local USTA tournaments but, given the time investment involved with practicing and playing tournament tennis and my future wife's lack of interest in the sport, my participation in it began to wane. Within a year I'd stopped playing altogether, begun working yet another desk job, and the rest as they say is history. We got married, had kids, bought a home, and my weight - much like my personal life - achieved heights that I'd never before known.

I've no designs to try and bench 400 lbs ever again; additionally, my primary motivations are not akin to those of the young, single, free-spirited guy that I was all those years ago. However, I do wish to reclaim one big thing that I was in possession of back then, and that's my health.

As of right now - 42 days into my current efforts, to be exact - I'm down to 288 lbs (down 42 lbs total). I'm doing cardio and working out twice daily (early mornings on an empty stomach and evenings after work). I've cut out refined carbs and sugars - no white bread, white rice, very little white sugar. I've drastically reduced the amount of meat that I consume to no more than 2 3-4 oz portions daily.  I eat between 4-6 mini-meals, and I do my best to avoid eating at night (5 is what I prefer, but 7 is my hard cut-off). And I consume, on average, around 128 oz of water daily.

This is, without question, one of the most challenging things that I've ever done, and I've so very far to go to achieve my long-term goal of 170 lbs. My body responds to everything very, very differently than it ever has in the past. My metabolism is slower, my joints achier, and my willpower is diminished. However, I've been consistent during this current trek, and my dedication has not wavered.

I plan on using this blog as a means of keeping myself honest, as the fitness gains have slowed. I attribute a lot of the initial weight loss to the re-programming of my digestive system, which seems to have benefited my liver function and expelled a lot of intestinal bloat and extra water.

If you happen to read this and wouldn't mind taking a few moments to share your own thoughts, experiences, etc., please don't hesitate to leave a comment. And if you yourself are thinking about beginning your own journey (maybe you've taken the first steps, too), then please - walk with me on mine for a bit.

If one of us gets tired, maybe we can lean on one another : )