Well, it's like this. Three weeks ago, I was getting ready for work and hurt my back. I don't know what happened, I reached down to pull up my fly, shifted my weight to my right leg and felt something grind in my lower back. A pain shot down my right leg and across my back and put me out of commission for a couple weeks. It hurt to walk, it hurt to sit, percocet was my best friend. I started feeling better last weekend, just in time for my staycation. Needless to say, I haven't done any exercise, except a little yard work. I let my diet slip a little too. I didn't start pigging out or anything, I just didn't log any of my food. This past week was a nice little break. The first 2 weeks sucked, but this last week was nice.
I plan on starting up again on Sunday, both the exercise and tracking my calories. I got a bunch of exercise equipment for my birthday and haven't used any of it!
The good thing, is I've still lost a little weight! Not a lot, but I didn't gain anything!
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 363.4
Today: 362.6
22.4 lbs in 12 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, June 1, 2012
Friday, May 11, 2012
Friday Weigh-in
I had a pretty good week. We didn't get to the store until Monday night so I had to buy breakfast and lunch. I spent Monday night chopping fruit (pineapple, mango, strawberries and kiwi) and vegetables (red pepper, yellow pepper, mushrooms). That made it easier to pack the rest of the week. Packing made it easy to stay within my calorie range for the week. Today I packed breakfast, and bought lunch. The cafeteria had a cook-out today with some really tasty and healthy choices. I had a chicken/veggie kabob, corn on the cob and grilled asparagus. The only other thing I would have liked was some fruit salad. They were also offering grilled salmon, bison burgers, some sort of cheesy potato dish, brown rice and potato chips. I'm pretty pleased with my choices, the lunch was under 400 calories and was very satisfying.
I'm still not exercising as much as I should. I think it is going to be a constant challenge for me. My birthday was a week or so ago and I used gift-cards to order the last few things I wanted for the home-gym. I'm all set, it just comes down to motivation now. I'm going to set a goal to exercise once this weekend (it'll have to be Sunday since I'll be fishing tomorrow) and 3x next week, 2 of those times will be strength training.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 366.6
Today: 363.4
21.6 lbs in 9 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
I'm still not exercising as much as I should. I think it is going to be a constant challenge for me. My birthday was a week or so ago and I used gift-cards to order the last few things I wanted for the home-gym. I'm all set, it just comes down to motivation now. I'm going to set a goal to exercise once this weekend (it'll have to be Sunday since I'll be fishing tomorrow) and 3x next week, 2 of those times will be strength training.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 366.6
Today: 363.4
21.6 lbs in 9 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Monday, May 7, 2012
Weekend recap and 300 calorie breakfast recipe!
I had a pretty good weekend. The weather here was great and I was able to get the grass cut and the deck cleaned off. It's all ready for sittin'! We also took seizure dog to the vet for a follow up appt. They need to do blood tests to make sure that the medication isn't damaging her liver.
We started going to this vet about a year ago, when our beagle was having neck issues. We thought she was getting a little arthritic, until one day my wife came home and the beagle wasn't able to sit or lie down. She just kept pacing and panting. Our regular vet was closed, and this one took emergency visits, so we went there, fully expecting the worst. The vets and techs were great and told us it was a bad disc in her neck and it could be managed with steroids. About 4 hours after her first steroid pill, she was back to her old self. My wife and I talked about it and since this vet was closer to home and all the employees were great, we decided to switch. The problem I now have is that this vet seems about twice as expensive as our old vet. Blood work, vaccinations and a nail trim was almost $300! I think it's time to go back to the old vet.
Other than that, the weekend was great. I stayed within my calorie range on Saturday and as Sunday was my blow-off day, I went over by about 500 (take-out chinese food, yum!)
Other than the english muffin with peanut butter and apple slices, my other favorite work breakfast is a 300 calorie breakfast burrito. It's really easy to make at work. First I do prep work at home, by chopping up a couple bell peppers (I like red and yellow), a couple onions and a bunch of mushrooms.
In a ziplock bag, I pack a couple tbsp of each of the chopped veggies and 2 slices of turkey bacon, also chopped. Because turkey bacon is precooked, you don't have to worry about mixing raw meat with veggies.
I sprinkle everything with a little salt and pepper and give it a spritz of either spray butter or cooking spray. I shove the bag, a slice of cheese, and an egg in a microwave safe container (a take out container from a small wonton soup works great!) and pack it in my cooler with an 80 calorie tortilla (Chi-chi's brand is good.)
The next morning, I dump the veggies and bacon in the container, cover it with a paper towel and nuke it for a minute. When it's done, I crack the egg into the mixture, mix it up and nuke it again for 45 seconds. Since the veggies were sprayed with the butter, the egg won't stick to the container. I put the cheese on the tortilla, dump on the scramble mixture, top it with a little salsa, wrap it up and enjoy.
The good thing about the container size is that it is the perfect size for an english muffin. Toast the muffin, pop the scramble out of the container and drop it on the muffin with a slice of cheese. Yummy!
All it takes is patience and work.
We started going to this vet about a year ago, when our beagle was having neck issues. We thought she was getting a little arthritic, until one day my wife came home and the beagle wasn't able to sit or lie down. She just kept pacing and panting. Our regular vet was closed, and this one took emergency visits, so we went there, fully expecting the worst. The vets and techs were great and told us it was a bad disc in her neck and it could be managed with steroids. About 4 hours after her first steroid pill, she was back to her old self. My wife and I talked about it and since this vet was closer to home and all the employees were great, we decided to switch. The problem I now have is that this vet seems about twice as expensive as our old vet. Blood work, vaccinations and a nail trim was almost $300! I think it's time to go back to the old vet.
Other than that, the weekend was great. I stayed within my calorie range on Saturday and as Sunday was my blow-off day, I went over by about 500 (take-out chinese food, yum!)
Other than the english muffin with peanut butter and apple slices, my other favorite work breakfast is a 300 calorie breakfast burrito. It's really easy to make at work. First I do prep work at home, by chopping up a couple bell peppers (I like red and yellow), a couple onions and a bunch of mushrooms.
In a ziplock bag, I pack a couple tbsp of each of the chopped veggies and 2 slices of turkey bacon, also chopped. Because turkey bacon is precooked, you don't have to worry about mixing raw meat with veggies.
I sprinkle everything with a little salt and pepper and give it a spritz of either spray butter or cooking spray. I shove the bag, a slice of cheese, and an egg in a microwave safe container (a take out container from a small wonton soup works great!) and pack it in my cooler with an 80 calorie tortilla (Chi-chi's brand is good.)
The next morning, I dump the veggies and bacon in the container, cover it with a paper towel and nuke it for a minute. When it's done, I crack the egg into the mixture, mix it up and nuke it again for 45 seconds. Since the veggies were sprayed with the butter, the egg won't stick to the container. I put the cheese on the tortilla, dump on the scramble mixture, top it with a little salsa, wrap it up and enjoy.
The good thing about the container size is that it is the perfect size for an english muffin. Toast the muffin, pop the scramble out of the container and drop it on the muffin with a slice of cheese. Yummy!
All it takes is patience and work.
Saturday, May 5, 2012
Week recap
I had a challenging week. I stayed under my calorie limit every day except one and even then, I only went over by about 125-150 calories. However, I didn't eat as healthy as I had been. I only packed my breakfast/lunch one day (Monday.) That means I got breakfast in the cafeteria 3 days (I took Wed off) and I either went to a restaurant or ate in the cafeteria. Also, there was left-over pie and ice cream all week.
Tuesday and Thursday, I got an egg-white omelet for breakfast. I bulk it up with peppers, onions, mushrooms and only get half the amount of cheese. With one piece of toast and a side of fruit, it comes in around 520 calories. Not too bad. However, when I pack, I can make a breakfast burrito, with all the same flavors for 300 calories. Friday, I ordered a bagel sandwich and that came in at just over 600 calories with a side of fruit. That means Sunday I will spend some time chopping up peppers, onions and mushrooms so I can easily pack them for breakfast.
Tuesday, I went to Boston Market for lunch. This is a good diet choice if you are careful about what you choose. The chicken isn't bad if you take off the skin, but really, the skin is the best part. I go with the roasted turkey. I choose the roasted dill potatoes and lemon garlic spinach as my sides. Some other good sides are the steamed vegetables or green beans. All the other sides come in over 200 calories. I stick to the lower calorie sides so I can enjoy a piece of corn bread with my meal. The entire meal was around 550 calories.
Wednesday, I met friends at Houlihan's for lunch. This was a little more of a challenge, but I studied their nutritional info online and ordered a half french-dip sandwich with fries and chicken tortilla soup. The entire meal came in at 770 calories, but it was a special occasion and I ate a light breakfast, so it wasn't bad.
When I'm dieting, I prefer going out to chain restaurants because they all have nutritional info online and it's easier to plan a meal. Our cafeteria posts some nutritional info, but it's pretty generic and isn't inclusive. They have a deli counter though and I can get a reasonable sandwich or go over to the grill and get a turkey burger. I'm never confident of my counts when I eat there though.
This week, I went down another notch in my belt, but I also gained a pound. I know the whole bit about muscle weighing more than fat, but I still don't like it!
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 367.0
Today: 366.6
18.4 lbs in 8 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Tuesday and Thursday, I got an egg-white omelet for breakfast. I bulk it up with peppers, onions, mushrooms and only get half the amount of cheese. With one piece of toast and a side of fruit, it comes in around 520 calories. Not too bad. However, when I pack, I can make a breakfast burrito, with all the same flavors for 300 calories. Friday, I ordered a bagel sandwich and that came in at just over 600 calories with a side of fruit. That means Sunday I will spend some time chopping up peppers, onions and mushrooms so I can easily pack them for breakfast.
Tuesday, I went to Boston Market for lunch. This is a good diet choice if you are careful about what you choose. The chicken isn't bad if you take off the skin, but really, the skin is the best part. I go with the roasted turkey. I choose the roasted dill potatoes and lemon garlic spinach as my sides. Some other good sides are the steamed vegetables or green beans. All the other sides come in over 200 calories. I stick to the lower calorie sides so I can enjoy a piece of corn bread with my meal. The entire meal was around 550 calories.
Wednesday, I met friends at Houlihan's for lunch. This was a little more of a challenge, but I studied their nutritional info online and ordered a half french-dip sandwich with fries and chicken tortilla soup. The entire meal came in at 770 calories, but it was a special occasion and I ate a light breakfast, so it wasn't bad.
When I'm dieting, I prefer going out to chain restaurants because they all have nutritional info online and it's easier to plan a meal. Our cafeteria posts some nutritional info, but it's pretty generic and isn't inclusive. They have a deli counter though and I can get a reasonable sandwich or go over to the grill and get a turkey burger. I'm never confident of my counts when I eat there though.
This week, I went down another notch in my belt, but I also gained a pound. I know the whole bit about muscle weighing more than fat, but I still don't like it!
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 367.0
Today: 366.6
18.4 lbs in 8 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Monday, April 30, 2012
Weekend Update
I had a great weekend. Saturday we had family over for a cook-out to celebrate my upcoming birthday, so Saturday was my blow-off day. I had a sensible breakfast and lunch and enjoyed my dinner! I had a hot dog, a cheeseburger, macaroni salad (my sister-in-law makes the best macaroni salad!), loaded baked potato salad, a slice of apple pie and a scoop of butter cream ice cream! Later in the evening I had a slice of peach-berry pie and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. I really like pie...
My sister made the loaded baked potato salad, but I forgot to tell her that I blow off one day a week. This salad is loaded with sour cream and she knows that I'm losing weight so she cut back on the sour cream and it was a little dry. It still tasted great though. It was even better the next day when I mixed a little light ranch dressing into it!
I got a couple attachments for the weight machine, specifically a tricep rope and a double D handle for low rows. I also got some cash which I'll use for a new lat bar and flat bench. These and a set of dumbells will allow me to rotate through 3 different strength routines. Three different sets of exercises that still allow me to work all the same muscle groups.
Sunday we finished off the left overs, but I cut back my serving size, added a big fresh salad and stayed in my calorie count.
All it takes is patience and work!
My sister made the loaded baked potato salad, but I forgot to tell her that I blow off one day a week. This salad is loaded with sour cream and she knows that I'm losing weight so she cut back on the sour cream and it was a little dry. It still tasted great though. It was even better the next day when I mixed a little light ranch dressing into it!
I got a couple attachments for the weight machine, specifically a tricep rope and a double D handle for low rows. I also got some cash which I'll use for a new lat bar and flat bench. These and a set of dumbells will allow me to rotate through 3 different strength routines. Three different sets of exercises that still allow me to work all the same muscle groups.
Sunday we finished off the left overs, but I cut back my serving size, added a big fresh salad and stayed in my calorie count.
All it takes is patience and work!
Saturday, April 28, 2012
Friday Weigh-in
I lost 1.4 pounds this week. I only exercised twice and that's the result.
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with that. Any loss is a loss. I just need to push myself a little more.
I can definitely do that.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 367.0
Today: 365.6
19.4 lbs in 7 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Don't get me wrong, I'm happy with that. Any loss is a loss. I just need to push myself a little more.
I can definitely do that.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 367.0
Today: 365.6
19.4 lbs in 7 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, April 27, 2012
Wednesday and Thursday recap
Tuesday's walk really did a number on me! My legs were sore Wednesday and Thursday.! Unfortunately, it kept me from exercising. I stayed within my calories those days so I should be o.k. My wife had to get ready earlier than normal today, so it through me off my game and I forgot to weigh myself. I'll update that tomorrow.
I was looking at my stats for the week and I am a little high on my fat intake and I'm curious to see if it had an impact on my weight.
Yesterday I went out for lunch with friends instead of packing. We went to Buffalo Wild Wings and I was able to do some research. I had to have potato wedges, because they are great and I really like their Asian zing sauce, so instead of boneless wings, I ordered naked tenders. It was a good lunch and only about 500 calories, which is around my average lunch total.
Saturday will be my blow off day. We're having a small cookout for my birthday and I plan on having all the good cookout foods and pie (I like pie better than birthday cake!) and ice cream and yum!
I'll check in tomorrow with a weight update!
All it takes is patience and work!
I was looking at my stats for the week and I am a little high on my fat intake and I'm curious to see if it had an impact on my weight.
Yesterday I went out for lunch with friends instead of packing. We went to Buffalo Wild Wings and I was able to do some research. I had to have potato wedges, because they are great and I really like their Asian zing sauce, so instead of boneless wings, I ordered naked tenders. It was a good lunch and only about 500 calories, which is around my average lunch total.
Saturday will be my blow off day. We're having a small cookout for my birthday and I plan on having all the good cookout foods and pie (I like pie better than birthday cake!) and ice cream and yum!
I'll check in tomorrow with a weight update!
All it takes is patience and work!
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Monday and Tuesday Recap
Nothing much happened on Monday. We forgot to take meat out of the freezer to thaw, so there wasn't anything to make for dinner. I went up and exercised while my wife ordered us salads and pizza. Exciting, huh?
I mentioned earlier that we had a sick dog last week, so we've been monitoring her. We noticed that she hadn't done anything more than pee since Sunday morning. We figured if nothing happened by Wednesday, we'd take her back to the vet. I thought a good walk might help her, so I plotted a 2 mile trek using i-fit.com and used that for my exercise last night. I'd like to get an i-fit module for my treadmill, it lets you plot a route based on the terrain from any location. It will adjust the incline of the treadmill to match.
Anyway, I plotted a 2 mile trek and off we went. I noticed a big difference. When I walk on the treadmill, I set the speed, and I go. I work up a sweat and my heart rate is up and all is good. When I was walking last night, I could feel the difference in my legs. I was walking slower than the treadmill, which I expected, but I think I got a better work out. I'll have to try and do that once or twice a week. I hate walking outside, so it'll be tough to get the motivation. The dogs will appreciate the effort though.
All it takes is patience and work.
I mentioned earlier that we had a sick dog last week, so we've been monitoring her. We noticed that she hadn't done anything more than pee since Sunday morning. We figured if nothing happened by Wednesday, we'd take her back to the vet. I thought a good walk might help her, so I plotted a 2 mile trek using i-fit.com and used that for my exercise last night. I'd like to get an i-fit module for my treadmill, it lets you plot a route based on the terrain from any location. It will adjust the incline of the treadmill to match.
Anyway, I plotted a 2 mile trek and off we went. I noticed a big difference. When I walk on the treadmill, I set the speed, and I go. I work up a sweat and my heart rate is up and all is good. When I was walking last night, I could feel the difference in my legs. I was walking slower than the treadmill, which I expected, but I think I got a better work out. I'll have to try and do that once or twice a week. I hate walking outside, so it'll be tough to get the motivation. The dogs will appreciate the effort though.
All it takes is patience and work.
Monday, April 23, 2012
Weekend update
Friday was a pretty good day. I stayed home from work in case I needed to deal with something at the vets. All was quite on that front - the dog is home and doing much better - so I exercised and then went out and cut the lawn. After finishing and cleaning up, it was late afternoon and I hadn't eaten lunch. This is where I get in trouble. Do I eat something small to carry me over until dinner, or do I eat a full meal, call it an early dinner and then have something light later in the evening. Either way, I end up hungry at some point and have to fight blowing my calorie limit.
Anyway, I decided on a grilled chicken salad from the local pizza place. Whenever I order a grilled chicken salad, I always want to order bread-sticks, and end up eating the full order which is probably about 1200 calories in bread. That kind of defeats the purpose of the salad. I really wanted the bread-sticks. I thought about asking them to make a half order, but I'm not a special request person. It bugs me when people start ordering like that. One time we were having a casual family get together, and were ordering pizzas. My sister told me to order her pizza and this is how the order started. "Order a large, with extra sauce on half. On the half with extra sauce, order 2 pieces with pepperoni, 3 pieces with green pepper, mushrooms..." I stopped her at that point and told her to place her own order. Same thing with drive-thrus. When you pull up to a drive thru, there should be no special orders. It shouldn't be more than "Gimme a number one with a coke, a number 3 with a diet coke...." If you want a big mac with no special sauce, or are ordering for 5 people and they all need to be separate bills, park the car and walk your ass inside! Sorry... getting off track.
I ended up ordering the bread-sticks but as soon as I got home, before eating my salad, I pulled two bread-sticks, and then wrapped up the balance of the order into two packs and put them in the freezer. Then I ate my salad with the two bread-sticks and didn't blow my limit for the day. I did have the munchies later, but a bowl of cereal carried me through.
Saturday was normal and Sunday was my day off. I didn't eat anything special, but I still went over my limit by about 700 calories. I just ended up munching all day and it added up.
All it takes is patience and work.
Anyway, I decided on a grilled chicken salad from the local pizza place. Whenever I order a grilled chicken salad, I always want to order bread-sticks, and end up eating the full order which is probably about 1200 calories in bread. That kind of defeats the purpose of the salad. I really wanted the bread-sticks. I thought about asking them to make a half order, but I'm not a special request person. It bugs me when people start ordering like that. One time we were having a casual family get together, and were ordering pizzas. My sister told me to order her pizza and this is how the order started. "Order a large, with extra sauce on half. On the half with extra sauce, order 2 pieces with pepperoni, 3 pieces with green pepper, mushrooms..." I stopped her at that point and told her to place her own order. Same thing with drive-thrus. When you pull up to a drive thru, there should be no special orders. It shouldn't be more than "Gimme a number one with a coke, a number 3 with a diet coke...." If you want a big mac with no special sauce, or are ordering for 5 people and they all need to be separate bills, park the car and walk your ass inside! Sorry... getting off track.
I ended up ordering the bread-sticks but as soon as I got home, before eating my salad, I pulled two bread-sticks, and then wrapped up the balance of the order into two packs and put them in the freezer. Then I ate my salad with the two bread-sticks and didn't blow my limit for the day. I did have the munchies later, but a bowl of cereal carried me through.
Saturday was normal and Sunday was my day off. I didn't eat anything special, but I still went over my limit by about 700 calories. I just ended up munching all day and it added up.
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, April 20, 2012
Thursday recap and Friday weigh-in
This has been a rough week for exercising. I wasn't able to exercise last night either. One of our dogs is sick. My wife took her to the vet yesterday afternoon and after some tests, they recommended we take her to a vet hospital with an overnight staff. I left work early, picked up my wife at home, we went and picked up the dog at the vet and drove across town in rush hour to the vet hospital. After waiting for a couple hours, we were told that it wasn't as bad as we feared, but she would have to spend a couple days there. All for the low low cost of a Myrtle Beach ocean front vacation! It's worth it though, anything to keep my doggies healthy. By the time we got home and ate dinner, it was too late.
Even though I stuck to my calories all week, I only exercised once so far and my loss was a little lower than average. I'm thinking about starting to exercise before dinner. I'm less likely to blow it off if I do it before I sit down. Come home, change clothes, exercise and then eat, at least on the days I do strength training. I'll have to think about that.
This week I lost 2.6 lbs this week. That's almost a pound less than last week. Regular exercise definitely makes a difference. (Shocking, I know!)
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 369.6
Today: 367.0
18 lbs in 6 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Even though I stuck to my calories all week, I only exercised once so far and my loss was a little lower than average. I'm thinking about starting to exercise before dinner. I'm less likely to blow it off if I do it before I sit down. Come home, change clothes, exercise and then eat, at least on the days I do strength training. I'll have to think about that.
This week I lost 2.6 lbs this week. That's almost a pound less than last week. Regular exercise definitely makes a difference. (Shocking, I know!)
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 369.6
Today: 367.0
18 lbs in 6 weeks
All it takes is patience and work.
Thursday, April 19, 2012
Tuesday and Wednesday recap
I'm still staying on track with my calories and I exercised on Tuesday, but blew it off again last night. Last night wasn't intentional, I just lost track of time. After dinner, a neighbor knocked on our door and we spent a half hour or so chatting, and one thing led to another and it was too late to go up. I should explain that. My wife gets up really early (around 3:00) so she goes to bed early. They 'gym' is right next to our bedroom and I don't like to go up too late because I don't want to keep her up.
I noticed something the other day when I was logging my Tuesday exercise in my food journal. Most journals break up the speed on a treadmill by .5 mph, so it's either 2.5 or 3.0. When I'm walking at speeds between halves, I record it at the lower speed. So Tuesday night, I walked 45 minutes at 2.6 mph. I recorded it at 2.5 and noticed that they have 2.5 listed as "leisurely-pace". Let me tell you something, when you weigh over 300 lbs, 2.5 mph ain't leisurely! Although I won't be able to go at a less leisurely pace until I figure out how to tighten the belt on my treadmill. It's starting to slip a little at faster speeds.
Tuesday night, I caught the end of the Biggest Loser. I watched the show for a couple seasons early on and thought it was good. Now I think it's about how much they can demean the contestants. I don't want to take anything away from the contestants that are on the show and do the work and lose weight. They bust their butts and do great. It's the show concept that on the first show of the season, the trainers have to push the contestants until they make them barf. Really? That's the only way to exercise? I wonder how many fat people think that the only way they can lose weight is to go to camp and exercise for 12 hours a day, every day, and eat in a controlled environment. Also how many people watch the show, see contestants lose 10 or 15 pounds in a week and then go on a diet and are upset because they "only" lost 1 or 2 lbs. I guess reality tv can't get too real...
All it takes is patience and work.
I noticed something the other day when I was logging my Tuesday exercise in my food journal. Most journals break up the speed on a treadmill by .5 mph, so it's either 2.5 or 3.0. When I'm walking at speeds between halves, I record it at the lower speed. So Tuesday night, I walked 45 minutes at 2.6 mph. I recorded it at 2.5 and noticed that they have 2.5 listed as "leisurely-pace". Let me tell you something, when you weigh over 300 lbs, 2.5 mph ain't leisurely! Although I won't be able to go at a less leisurely pace until I figure out how to tighten the belt on my treadmill. It's starting to slip a little at faster speeds.
Tuesday night, I caught the end of the Biggest Loser. I watched the show for a couple seasons early on and thought it was good. Now I think it's about how much they can demean the contestants. I don't want to take anything away from the contestants that are on the show and do the work and lose weight. They bust their butts and do great. It's the show concept that on the first show of the season, the trainers have to push the contestants until they make them barf. Really? That's the only way to exercise? I wonder how many fat people think that the only way they can lose weight is to go to camp and exercise for 12 hours a day, every day, and eat in a controlled environment. Also how many people watch the show, see contestants lose 10 or 15 pounds in a week and then go on a diet and are upset because they "only" lost 1 or 2 lbs. I guess reality tv can't get too real...
All it takes is patience and work.
Tuesday, April 17, 2012
Monday recap
I almost blew my calorie limit yesterday. After lunch, I had a bad craving for a chocolate bar. My boss is selling Andy's candies, but as near as I could tell, they are all over 300 calories. I decided to check the vending machine and saw there were Three Musketeer bars, I know they are around 200 calories. However I hit the wrong button and ended up with a Milky Way for 270 calories. Doh!
Instead of cereal, I had a bowl of cantelope and strawberries after dinner and stayed under my total by about 20 calories.
I blew off exercising last night. I'm feeling a little guilty about it now.. I need to cut grass tonight, so that should cover my treadmill work. I don't think I'll have the time to do both tonight. I really need to start training myself to get up at 5 AM and exercise in the mornings. It was always easier. I got it out of the way, and it gave me a good boost of energy for the day.. The funny thing is, I normally wake up every day at 5. I just look at the clock and think "Good! Another hour!".
All it takes is patience and work!
Instead of cereal, I had a bowl of cantelope and strawberries after dinner and stayed under my total by about 20 calories.
I blew off exercising last night. I'm feeling a little guilty about it now.. I need to cut grass tonight, so that should cover my treadmill work. I don't think I'll have the time to do both tonight. I really need to start training myself to get up at 5 AM and exercise in the mornings. It was always easier. I got it out of the way, and it gave me a good boost of energy for the day.. The funny thing is, I normally wake up every day at 5. I just look at the clock and think "Good! Another hour!".
All it takes is patience and work!
Sunday, April 15, 2012
Weekend update
I've come to the conclusion that a daily rehash of what I eat is boring. Go figure. You've seen a weeks worth of meals and can see that I'm eating regular food and staying within my calories. From this point on, I'm only going to post the exceptions. If I can figure out a way to link my "myfitnesspal" profile, I'll do that.
Friday and Saturday I stayed within my range, as a matter of fact, I was under by 128 on Friday and under by 201 on Saturday. Saturday's total is impressive because we had take-out chinese food for dinner. It took me a little research to figure out what to order. Our usual place has a steamed diet menu, with sauce on the side which isn't bad, but I wanted something different. The problem is that when you google healthy chinese food, you get a bunch of websites that say order from the steamed menu and stay away from General Tso's. They also mention to stick with foods that aren't fried or come with a heavy sauce. The problem is that I don't know how many of the dishes on the menu are prepared... I eventually found a site that listed dishes and calorie counts. And I forgot to bookmark it. Anyway, I settled on shrimp with chinese vegetables and a small wonton soup. It was about 500 calories total.
Sunday was my blow-off day, and I came in at just under 3000 calories for the day. I did o.k. with breakfast and lunch (cereal and subway). However we ordered ribs for dinner, with fries and macaroni and cheese. It was really good and that meal was over 1400 calories! Well worth it! The strawberry cheesequake blizzard from dairy queen was an extra treat!
All in all, a good weekend! Plus, the Bucs finally won on the west coast! The Pens shit the bed, but I'm not much of a hockey fan, so I don't really care about that!
All it takes is patience and work! (and the occassional dairy queen blizzard!)
Friday and Saturday I stayed within my range, as a matter of fact, I was under by 128 on Friday and under by 201 on Saturday. Saturday's total is impressive because we had take-out chinese food for dinner. It took me a little research to figure out what to order. Our usual place has a steamed diet menu, with sauce on the side which isn't bad, but I wanted something different. The problem is that when you google healthy chinese food, you get a bunch of websites that say order from the steamed menu and stay away from General Tso's. They also mention to stick with foods that aren't fried or come with a heavy sauce. The problem is that I don't know how many of the dishes on the menu are prepared... I eventually found a site that listed dishes and calorie counts. And I forgot to bookmark it. Anyway, I settled on shrimp with chinese vegetables and a small wonton soup. It was about 500 calories total.
Sunday was my blow-off day, and I came in at just under 3000 calories for the day. I did o.k. with breakfast and lunch (cereal and subway). However we ordered ribs for dinner, with fries and macaroni and cheese. It was really good and that meal was over 1400 calories! Well worth it! The strawberry cheesequake blizzard from dairy queen was an extra treat!
All in all, a good weekend! Plus, the Bucs finally won on the west coast! The Pens shit the bed, but I'm not much of a hockey fan, so I don't really care about that!
All it takes is patience and work! (and the occassional dairy queen blizzard!)
Friday, April 13, 2012
Thursday Recap and Friday Weigh-in
I was able to stick to my plan yesterday and it worked out well with only one minor glitch. I emailed my wife yesterday and told her to go ahead and eat dinner whenever she wanted to since I was going to exercise first. She thought I meant don't cook dinner and didn't. It wasn't a big deal though. I pulled out a couple salmon fillets to thaw and hit the treadmill. I did 45 minutes, which is the amount of time I should do when I'm not doing any strength training. I guess it's the amount I should do period, but I shave off 15 minutes when I lift weights.
After the treadmill, I took a quick shower and went and got my hair cut. When I got home, I made my dinner. Two 4oz pieces of salmon with an apricot/soy sauce glaze - 240 kcal. Some steamed mixed vegetables - 30 kcal and 3 small baked yukon gold potatoes - 330 kcal, with butter and low fat sour cream - 134 kcal..
For breakfast, I had the usual peanut butter, apple and English muffin - 420 kcal.
For lunch, I also had the usual sandwich, pretzels and string cheese - 510 kcal. I added on a small salad with lite Italian dressing for - 70 kcal.
I actually just remembered the salad this minute and it wasn't logged last night when I fixed myself a bowl of cereal. I had a double serving of cinnamon Chex with skim milk - 320 kcal. The cereal put me over my quota by about 50 calories. Had I remembered to log the salad, I would have had a normal portion of cereal. Not a big deal though.
For me, this isn't an exact science. I don't weigh my food and I make honest estimates on portion size. Like I said, I used to measure things out and have a good idea on portion sizes. I'm only hurting myself if I call a heaping bowl of cereal one serving or take a 10oz steak and call it one serving and I won't do that. I know that I'll always have to think about my food choices, and that's fine, I can do that. I don't want to have to go through life with a scale and measuring cups in my pockets. I want to apply basic knowledge and common sense and live a healthier life.
I weighed in this morning, first with the original batteries and then with new batteries and the weight was the same. I lost 3.4 lbs this week.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 373.0
Today: 369.6
15.4 lbs in 5 weeks
Just for shits-n-giggles, I counted out that there are 37 weeks left in the year. If I keep averaging 3lbs per week, I'll lose another 111 lbs by the end of the year. That would put me around 258 lbs. I haven't weighed that in about 15 years. I know that's putting the cart before the horse, but still...
All it takes is patience and work.
After the treadmill, I took a quick shower and went and got my hair cut. When I got home, I made my dinner. Two 4oz pieces of salmon with an apricot/soy sauce glaze - 240 kcal. Some steamed mixed vegetables - 30 kcal and 3 small baked yukon gold potatoes - 330 kcal, with butter and low fat sour cream - 134 kcal..
For breakfast, I had the usual peanut butter, apple and English muffin - 420 kcal.
For lunch, I also had the usual sandwich, pretzels and string cheese - 510 kcal. I added on a small salad with lite Italian dressing for - 70 kcal.
I actually just remembered the salad this minute and it wasn't logged last night when I fixed myself a bowl of cereal. I had a double serving of cinnamon Chex with skim milk - 320 kcal. The cereal put me over my quota by about 50 calories. Had I remembered to log the salad, I would have had a normal portion of cereal. Not a big deal though.
For me, this isn't an exact science. I don't weigh my food and I make honest estimates on portion size. Like I said, I used to measure things out and have a good idea on portion sizes. I'm only hurting myself if I call a heaping bowl of cereal one serving or take a 10oz steak and call it one serving and I won't do that. I know that I'll always have to think about my food choices, and that's fine, I can do that. I don't want to have to go through life with a scale and measuring cups in my pockets. I want to apply basic knowledge and common sense and live a healthier life.
I weighed in this morning, first with the original batteries and then with new batteries and the weight was the same. I lost 3.4 lbs this week.
Starting weight: 385.0 lbs
Last week: 373.0
Today: 369.6
15.4 lbs in 5 weeks
Just for shits-n-giggles, I counted out that there are 37 weeks left in the year. If I keep averaging 3lbs per week, I'll lose another 111 lbs by the end of the year. That would put me around 258 lbs. I haven't weighed that in about 15 years. I know that's putting the cart before the horse, but still...
All it takes is patience and work.
Thursday, April 12, 2012
Wednesday Recap
Yeah, I totally blew off exercising last night. My elbow hurt and after I finished my blog post, I just didn't feel like it. That means I can't blow off tonight and I have a hair cut appointment, so I'll need to change things up a little. I'll have to exercise and then shower as soon as I get home. Then I'll be able to eat dinner and walk up to the barber. Unfortunately, the walk to the barber isn't enough to count as exercise, so it will just be bonus walking.
Actually, the reason I use the treadmill and don't just walk outside is that I don't push myself enough when I'm walking outside. I tend to stroll. I remember years ago, when I was still in highschool, I was walking back to a buddy's house when another friend (RIP Tony) caught up to me. He was out for a run and said that he knew it was me from 3 blocks away just from my walk. Apparently I have the most laid-back walk he had ever seen! With the treadmill, I set a speed and have to walk that speed. I'm planning on getting an i-fit module for my treadmill that will allow me to program street walks and the treadmill will adjust the incline based upon the actual terrain.
With the exception of Easter Sunday, I've been doing really well with caloric intake. I've only exceeded 2000 calories a couple times and each time it hasn't been more than 100 calories.
Yesterday I had an egg white omelet with 2 slices of bacon, peppers, onions and a little bit of cheddar - 250 kcal, a piece of whole wheat toast with a little margarine spread - 150 kcal and a side of fruit salad - 84 kcal.
Lunch was leftovers from Tuesday's dinner - 295 kcal, a side of cantelope - 100 kcal and two Aldi's fruit snack gummy candy things - 90 kcal.
For dinner my wife made baked chicken with a French's Fried Onion coating - 360 kcal for one boneless breast, Stove top stuffing - 150 kcal and steamed broccoli - 57 kcal (with a pat of butter) and more cantelope - 80 kcal.
I had a bowl of cereal for a snack - 300 kcal and a cheese stick before bed - 80 kcal. This put me right at 1994 calories for the day.
You may notice that we eat a lot of packaged side dishes. Yes, I know all about whole foods and how they are so much healthier for you. However, my wife and I both work and on weeknights we want dinner to be quick and easy. Eventually I would like to start eliminating processed foods from my diet, but that is not a change that I'm worried about right now. When I'm under 200 pounds I'll start thinking about changing things up but until then, I'm eating my potatoes au gratin with real imitation cheese powder. Deal with it.
All it takes is patience and work.
Actually, the reason I use the treadmill and don't just walk outside is that I don't push myself enough when I'm walking outside. I tend to stroll. I remember years ago, when I was still in highschool, I was walking back to a buddy's house when another friend (RIP Tony) caught up to me. He was out for a run and said that he knew it was me from 3 blocks away just from my walk. Apparently I have the most laid-back walk he had ever seen! With the treadmill, I set a speed and have to walk that speed. I'm planning on getting an i-fit module for my treadmill that will allow me to program street walks and the treadmill will adjust the incline based upon the actual terrain.
With the exception of Easter Sunday, I've been doing really well with caloric intake. I've only exceeded 2000 calories a couple times and each time it hasn't been more than 100 calories.
Yesterday I had an egg white omelet with 2 slices of bacon, peppers, onions and a little bit of cheddar - 250 kcal, a piece of whole wheat toast with a little margarine spread - 150 kcal and a side of fruit salad - 84 kcal.
Lunch was leftovers from Tuesday's dinner - 295 kcal, a side of cantelope - 100 kcal and two Aldi's fruit snack gummy candy things - 90 kcal.
For dinner my wife made baked chicken with a French's Fried Onion coating - 360 kcal for one boneless breast, Stove top stuffing - 150 kcal and steamed broccoli - 57 kcal (with a pat of butter) and more cantelope - 80 kcal.
I had a bowl of cereal for a snack - 300 kcal and a cheese stick before bed - 80 kcal. This put me right at 1994 calories for the day.
You may notice that we eat a lot of packaged side dishes. Yes, I know all about whole foods and how they are so much healthier for you. However, my wife and I both work and on weeknights we want dinner to be quick and easy. Eventually I would like to start eliminating processed foods from my diet, but that is not a change that I'm worried about right now. When I'm under 200 pounds I'll start thinking about changing things up but until then, I'm eating my potatoes au gratin with real imitation cheese powder. Deal with it.
All it takes is patience and work.
Wednesday, April 11, 2012
Tuesday Recap
I had a pretty good day yesterday. Breakfast was my normal English muffin, apple and peanut butter - 420 kcal.
Lunch was almost the same as Monday. A turkey sandwich for - 270 kcal. There's a difference in the calories from Monday because of a different type of bread. A bag of pretzels - 160 kcal, a string cheese - 80 kcal and a pudding cup - 80 kcal.
Dinner was supposed to be a rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. Unfortunately Wal-mart was out of rotisserie chickens, those rotten bastages... Instead my wife picked up one of those Hormel heat and eat roast beef packs. Other than high sodium, they aren't bad and a serving is 110 kcal. The mashed potatoes were 140 kcal and the green beans were 72 kcal including a pat of butter.
This was a pretty low calorie day. I had plenty of calories left over. Even with a hard boiled egg - 78 kcal, for a mid-afternoon snack and a double serving of Lucky Charms in the evening - 300 kcal, I still had about 190 calories left over.
My wife had taken her mother shopping and was late getting home and I realized that if I waited to exercise until she got home and we ate, I probably wouldn't exercise at all. Instead, I walked on the treadmill while I was waiting for her to get home. By the time I was done, I was able to start cooking the side dishes, we were able to eat soon after she got home and I could relax the rest of the evening.
As I sit her writing this, I realized my elbow hurts. I think I might have to skip my strength training and just do cardio. Although it would be nice to just stay here on the couch for the rest of the evening. I better not though. All day I've felt pretty good, like I'm going to have a good number on the scale on Friday. I hope to lose a pound a week. So far I've been averaging 3 pounds per week and I'm very happy with that.
All it takes is patience and work.
Lunch was almost the same as Monday. A turkey sandwich for - 270 kcal. There's a difference in the calories from Monday because of a different type of bread. A bag of pretzels - 160 kcal, a string cheese - 80 kcal and a pudding cup - 80 kcal.
Dinner was supposed to be a rotisserie chicken, mashed potatoes and green beans. Unfortunately Wal-mart was out of rotisserie chickens, those rotten bastages... Instead my wife picked up one of those Hormel heat and eat roast beef packs. Other than high sodium, they aren't bad and a serving is 110 kcal. The mashed potatoes were 140 kcal and the green beans were 72 kcal including a pat of butter.
This was a pretty low calorie day. I had plenty of calories left over. Even with a hard boiled egg - 78 kcal, for a mid-afternoon snack and a double serving of Lucky Charms in the evening - 300 kcal, I still had about 190 calories left over.
My wife had taken her mother shopping and was late getting home and I realized that if I waited to exercise until she got home and we ate, I probably wouldn't exercise at all. Instead, I walked on the treadmill while I was waiting for her to get home. By the time I was done, I was able to start cooking the side dishes, we were able to eat soon after she got home and I could relax the rest of the evening.
As I sit her writing this, I realized my elbow hurts. I think I might have to skip my strength training and just do cardio. Although it would be nice to just stay here on the couch for the rest of the evening. I better not though. All day I've felt pretty good, like I'm going to have a good number on the scale on Friday. I hope to lose a pound a week. So far I've been averaging 3 pounds per week and I'm very happy with that.
All it takes is patience and work.
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Monday recap
I expect most of these posts are boring to anyone that might be reading this blog. Let's face it, a guy telling you what he ate the day before isn't all that exciting. My goal is to use this as a means of peer pressure. I'd like to have enough people checking in and willing to beat me up if I start slacking! Also, I'd like to show that you can lose weight eating regular food.
Yesterday, I had my normal breakfast; english muffin, apple, peanut butter - 420 kcal.
For lunch, I had a turkey sandwich - 380 kcal, a cup of home-made beef vegetable soup - 106 kcal, pretzels - 160 kcal, and string cheese - 80 kcal.
For dinner, my wife made chicken enchiladas. It's a recipe she got from a Kraft foods mailer or something and it's pretty simple and really good. The only problem is that we had the wrong tortilla shells. The shells we had are 210 kcal each. Added to the filling, each enchilada was 650 kcal. However the enchilada was very large and one was more than enough. It made me realize that I still have a mental hurdle to get over. I ate the one enchilada and was satisfied. However I wanted a second. I wasn't hungry, I enjoyed the taste and wanted more. I need to start eating slower and paying attention to what my stomach is telling me, not what my eyes are telling me. Instead of seconds, I wrapped up the leftovers and put them in the freezer and had some cantelope - 80 kcal. Oh, I had some lite sour cream with the enchilada - 35 kcal.
After exercising, I was a little hungry and had a bowl of cinnamon chex with skim milk - 160kcal. This put my total at 1991 for the day.
Monday, Wednesday and Saturdays I do strength training and cardio. I stretched out for about 5 minutes, then I did 10 minutes on the treadmill at 2.0 mph to loosen up. After that, I did my strength routine. Currently I do one set of 25 reps of the following exercises: Chest press, seated row, bicep curl, lat pull down, tricep pull down, seated crunches, leg curl, leg extension, leg press and calf press. After that, I did 30 minutes on the treadmill at 2.7 mph. I know this may seem slow to some of you, but it is a workout for me. I started out at 2.3 mph and have been increasing it weekly. Once I get the speed up to 3.0 mph, I plan on adding an incline, a percent at a time.
A couple years ago, when I lost 90+ pounds, I did it by joining a gym. The trainer there, who had also set me up with the strength routine mentioned above, used to do his cardio the same time I was there working out. He would do 30 minutes on the treadmill at 4.0 mph at the steepest incline possible on the treadmill. He would do this while reading the newspaper. It amazed me that he never held on or slipped. I know if I had tried it, I would have slipped and the treadmill would have shot me across the gym!
Anyway, I've been doing the strength exercises for about 4 weeks now and in another 4 weeks, I'll switch routines. I used a website called Beeble's fitness to come up with alternate routines. The site has a large exercise library. I would search for one of the exercises in my routine and the website would show the muscle groups that were worked by the exercise. I searched for other exercises that worked the same muscle groups and was able to come up with 2 additional routines. I will have to buy a set of dumbbells and a flat bench for some of these exercises though. I can get both for around $40 each. I've also added them to my Amazon wish list if there are any people wondering what to get me for my birthday!
All it takes is patience and work
Yesterday, I had my normal breakfast; english muffin, apple, peanut butter - 420 kcal.
For lunch, I had a turkey sandwich - 380 kcal, a cup of home-made beef vegetable soup - 106 kcal, pretzels - 160 kcal, and string cheese - 80 kcal.
For dinner, my wife made chicken enchiladas. It's a recipe she got from a Kraft foods mailer or something and it's pretty simple and really good. The only problem is that we had the wrong tortilla shells. The shells we had are 210 kcal each. Added to the filling, each enchilada was 650 kcal. However the enchilada was very large and one was more than enough. It made me realize that I still have a mental hurdle to get over. I ate the one enchilada and was satisfied. However I wanted a second. I wasn't hungry, I enjoyed the taste and wanted more. I need to start eating slower and paying attention to what my stomach is telling me, not what my eyes are telling me. Instead of seconds, I wrapped up the leftovers and put them in the freezer and had some cantelope - 80 kcal. Oh, I had some lite sour cream with the enchilada - 35 kcal.
After exercising, I was a little hungry and had a bowl of cinnamon chex with skim milk - 160kcal. This put my total at 1991 for the day.
Monday, Wednesday and Saturdays I do strength training and cardio. I stretched out for about 5 minutes, then I did 10 minutes on the treadmill at 2.0 mph to loosen up. After that, I did my strength routine. Currently I do one set of 25 reps of the following exercises: Chest press, seated row, bicep curl, lat pull down, tricep pull down, seated crunches, leg curl, leg extension, leg press and calf press. After that, I did 30 minutes on the treadmill at 2.7 mph. I know this may seem slow to some of you, but it is a workout for me. I started out at 2.3 mph and have been increasing it weekly. Once I get the speed up to 3.0 mph, I plan on adding an incline, a percent at a time.
A couple years ago, when I lost 90+ pounds, I did it by joining a gym. The trainer there, who had also set me up with the strength routine mentioned above, used to do his cardio the same time I was there working out. He would do 30 minutes on the treadmill at 4.0 mph at the steepest incline possible on the treadmill. He would do this while reading the newspaper. It amazed me that he never held on or slipped. I know if I had tried it, I would have slipped and the treadmill would have shot me across the gym!
Anyway, I've been doing the strength exercises for about 4 weeks now and in another 4 weeks, I'll switch routines. I used a website called Beeble's fitness to come up with alternate routines. The site has a large exercise library. I would search for one of the exercises in my routine and the website would show the muscle groups that were worked by the exercise. I searched for other exercises that worked the same muscle groups and was able to come up with 2 additional routines. I will have to buy a set of dumbbells and a flat bench for some of these exercises though. I can get both for around $40 each. I've also added them to my Amazon wish list if there are any people wondering what to get me for my birthday!
All it takes is patience and work
Monday, April 9, 2012
Weekend update
My weekend went pretty much as planned with only a few exceptions.
Friday, we decided to order pizza instead of fish. Like I said, I planned on a high calorie dinner, so I was prepared. When we are watching what we eat, and order pizza, we only order a small pizza and we load it up with vegetables. We'll typically get pepperoni on it too, but the bulk will be veggies. In addition to the small pizza, we'll each get a side salad. This is plenty for a meal and it keeps me from over eating. If we order a medium or large, I'll end up eating 3/4 of the pizza throughout the night. Every time I go into the kitchen, I'll grab a piece. There's a local place that has a thick crust sicilian style pie that is really good, but only comes in a 16 slice square. The nights we order that, I end up eating 2000 calories worth of pizza! (This would be clue #1 as to why I'm fat...)
Anyway, a side salad with dressing is around 70 calories and 3 slices from a small pie are around 660 calories. My breakfast and lunch totaled 680 calories, dinner was 728 calories which means I had enough calories left for a small oreo cheesequake blizzard! BONUS! Add those 580 calories to my total and I came in at 1988 for the day.
Saturday, I went fishing, so I was eating fast food all day, but I still stayed within my quota. My buddy and I stopped at Sheetz on the way to the lake and I got a ham, egg and cheese shmuffin for breakfast - 410 calories. I also ordered a 6" roastbeef sandwich for lunch, all the veggies, provolone and ff italian dressing - 415 calories - and a bag of baked chips, which I only ate 3/4 of - 120 calories. I bought a bag of sunflower seeds to chew on while fishing -180 calories.
As a sidebar - it was a cold windy day on the lake, and I only caught one perch, but it was a great day! My boat is my happy place and I love being on the water in it.
On the way home, we stopped at Wendy's, 3 minutes after a little league team walked in... It was the longest I've ever waited for fast food. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich, lettuce and tomato only with bbq sauce on the side - 350 calories because I didn't get my bbq sauce. At that point, I was just happy for food and didn't go back for the sauce. I also ordered a small fry - 320 calories and a Ceaser side salad without croutons - 170 calories. That put me at 1965 calories for the day.
Yesterday, I overindulged and had pastry, bacon, fresh kielbasa, ham, potatoes au-gratin, pasta, nut-roll and more. I didn't keep track of it, enjoyed the day with family and I am back on track today.
I firmly believe that when dieting, you should have one day a week off. I don't mean that it should always be a day of excess, but one day that you should allow yourself to indulge in any cravings. Say I get a craving for pancakes, I can tell myself that I'll have them Sunday and I'm not depriving myself of anything. If I'm still craving them on Sunday, I have pancakes and eat sensibly the rest of the day. The trainer at the gym I used to belong to loved BK whoppers. About once a month, he would go to Burger King and get 2 Whoppers a large fry and a milkshake. If you eat sensibly 99% of the time, you can indulge cravings 1% of the time. My problem is that I want to do the reverse!
I hope you all had a good weekend/holiday!
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, we decided to order pizza instead of fish. Like I said, I planned on a high calorie dinner, so I was prepared. When we are watching what we eat, and order pizza, we only order a small pizza and we load it up with vegetables. We'll typically get pepperoni on it too, but the bulk will be veggies. In addition to the small pizza, we'll each get a side salad. This is plenty for a meal and it keeps me from over eating. If we order a medium or large, I'll end up eating 3/4 of the pizza throughout the night. Every time I go into the kitchen, I'll grab a piece. There's a local place that has a thick crust sicilian style pie that is really good, but only comes in a 16 slice square. The nights we order that, I end up eating 2000 calories worth of pizza! (This would be clue #1 as to why I'm fat...)
Anyway, a side salad with dressing is around 70 calories and 3 slices from a small pie are around 660 calories. My breakfast and lunch totaled 680 calories, dinner was 728 calories which means I had enough calories left for a small oreo cheesequake blizzard! BONUS! Add those 580 calories to my total and I came in at 1988 for the day.
Saturday, I went fishing, so I was eating fast food all day, but I still stayed within my quota. My buddy and I stopped at Sheetz on the way to the lake and I got a ham, egg and cheese shmuffin for breakfast - 410 calories. I also ordered a 6" roastbeef sandwich for lunch, all the veggies, provolone and ff italian dressing - 415 calories - and a bag of baked chips, which I only ate 3/4 of - 120 calories. I bought a bag of sunflower seeds to chew on while fishing -180 calories.
As a sidebar - it was a cold windy day on the lake, and I only caught one perch, but it was a great day! My boat is my happy place and I love being on the water in it.
On the way home, we stopped at Wendy's, 3 minutes after a little league team walked in... It was the longest I've ever waited for fast food. I ordered a grilled chicken sandwich, lettuce and tomato only with bbq sauce on the side - 350 calories because I didn't get my bbq sauce. At that point, I was just happy for food and didn't go back for the sauce. I also ordered a small fry - 320 calories and a Ceaser side salad without croutons - 170 calories. That put me at 1965 calories for the day.
Yesterday, I overindulged and had pastry, bacon, fresh kielbasa, ham, potatoes au-gratin, pasta, nut-roll and more. I didn't keep track of it, enjoyed the day with family and I am back on track today.
I firmly believe that when dieting, you should have one day a week off. I don't mean that it should always be a day of excess, but one day that you should allow yourself to indulge in any cravings. Say I get a craving for pancakes, I can tell myself that I'll have them Sunday and I'm not depriving myself of anything. If I'm still craving them on Sunday, I have pancakes and eat sensibly the rest of the day. The trainer at the gym I used to belong to loved BK whoppers. About once a month, he would go to Burger King and get 2 Whoppers a large fry and a milkshake. If you eat sensibly 99% of the time, you can indulge cravings 1% of the time. My problem is that I want to do the reverse!
I hope you all had a good weekend/holiday!
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, April 6, 2012
Week 4 cont...
I forgot to get new batteries yesterday, but I weighed myself and I got a different weight, 373.0. I still need to replace the batteries, but I feel better about the accuracy of my numbers so far.
At first I was expecting a challenging weekend in regards to sticking to my calorie limits, but as I thought about it, I realized that I'll be fine. I'm off today and I shouldn't have a problem. First, I'll have one of my favorite breakfasts: a toasted english muffin with peanut butter and apple slices. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is so good. An english muffin is around 110 calories, depending upon the brand, 2 tbsp peanut butter is 180 calories and an apple is around 80 to 100, depending upon the size. It's important to use the right kind of apple. I like either Honeycrisp or Fuji. They both have a sweet spice background flavor that goes great with the peanut butter.
I've pulled out a couple tilapia fillets for lunch, I'll probably brush them with a little italian dressing and grill them. They'll go well with a salad. The fish fillets are around 100 calories each and the salad with a little balsamic vinagrette is about 150 calories (35 for the salad and 120 for 2 tbsp of dressing).
That'll put me at around 800 calories with 1200 left. That's good, because it is fish fry Friday! A 4oz serving of fried cod is around 200 calories and a typical piece from a church is around 8 or 10 ounces. Add another 230 calories for an order of fries, and 200 calories for coleslaw and I can top 1000 calories easy.
I'm going fishing tomorrow, so I'll hit Mcdonalds for an egg mcmuffin which is about 300 calories. I'll hit sheetz or subway for a sammich (roast beef on wheat, provolone, everything except black olives and jalapenos, oil and vinegar) 420 calories, baked lays @ 140 calories. I don't know about dinner yet, but I'll have plenty of calories to spare.
Sunday is Easter and I'm not going to attempt to count. I'll watch my portion sizes and not overdo it on the finger foods and I'll enjoy the day with my family. I hope you will too!
Please note that the calories I post are approximations based upon information found on the web, calorie counts on packages, and my best guess on size and weight. I don't measure out or weigh my food. I've done this in the past and have a good idea on what constitutes a serving. I may be off a little, but not by much and I'm not going to go through life measuring everything I put in my mouth. I recommend that you start by measuring until you get a feel for it. Be honest with amounts (don't fill a plate with pasta and tell yourself "that's about a cup") and you'll be fine. The more you do it, the easier it will get.
All it takes is patience and work.
At first I was expecting a challenging weekend in regards to sticking to my calorie limits, but as I thought about it, I realized that I'll be fine. I'm off today and I shouldn't have a problem. First, I'll have one of my favorite breakfasts: a toasted english muffin with peanut butter and apple slices. I know it doesn't sound like much, but it is so good. An english muffin is around 110 calories, depending upon the brand, 2 tbsp peanut butter is 180 calories and an apple is around 80 to 100, depending upon the size. It's important to use the right kind of apple. I like either Honeycrisp or Fuji. They both have a sweet spice background flavor that goes great with the peanut butter.
I've pulled out a couple tilapia fillets for lunch, I'll probably brush them with a little italian dressing and grill them. They'll go well with a salad. The fish fillets are around 100 calories each and the salad with a little balsamic vinagrette is about 150 calories (35 for the salad and 120 for 2 tbsp of dressing).
That'll put me at around 800 calories with 1200 left. That's good, because it is fish fry Friday! A 4oz serving of fried cod is around 200 calories and a typical piece from a church is around 8 or 10 ounces. Add another 230 calories for an order of fries, and 200 calories for coleslaw and I can top 1000 calories easy.
I'm going fishing tomorrow, so I'll hit Mcdonalds for an egg mcmuffin which is about 300 calories. I'll hit sheetz or subway for a sammich (roast beef on wheat, provolone, everything except black olives and jalapenos, oil and vinegar) 420 calories, baked lays @ 140 calories. I don't know about dinner yet, but I'll have plenty of calories to spare.
Sunday is Easter and I'm not going to attempt to count. I'll watch my portion sizes and not overdo it on the finger foods and I'll enjoy the day with my family. I hope you will too!
Please note that the calories I post are approximations based upon information found on the web, calorie counts on packages, and my best guess on size and weight. I don't measure out or weigh my food. I've done this in the past and have a good idea on what constitutes a serving. I may be off a little, but not by much and I'm not going to go through life measuring everything I put in my mouth. I recommend that you start by measuring until you get a feel for it. Be honest with amounts (don't fill a plate with pasta and tell yourself "that's about a cup") and you'll be fine. The more you do it, the easier it will get.
All it takes is patience and work.
Thursday, April 5, 2012
Week 4
Things are rolling right along. Last weekend, my wife and I started spring cleaning. As part of that, I decided to scrape the old caulking from around the master bath and redo it. Unfortunately, this meant I had to spend a considerable amount of time kneeling on a tile floor. By the time Sunday afternoon rolled around, I could barely walk. I had recovered some on Monday, but thought it best to rest my knees another day, so I didn't exercise. I have exercised the last 2 days and will continue to do so today and tomorrow, so I'm still on track.
Also, I have been packing lunch and breakfast to work all week, except today. I feel much more confident with my calorie counts for the week. I didn't pack today, so I'll have to be careful on choices and really consider what I'm ordering. Breakfast will be easy. I can get an egg-white omelet with veggies, bacon and a little cheese. I'll get a side of fruit salad and a piece of whole wheat toast. Lunch will be a little harder, but I know they offer turkey burgers and turkey dogs, or I can just order a sandwich with a side of raw veggies.
I've stayed on track with my calories all week. I went over one day, but I was still under the total after the program added in the calories I burned from exercising. That's the one thing I don't like about the tracking programs. When you add in your exercises, it adds those calories to your daily total. I want my daily calorie intake to be 2000, within 50 calories either way. I've taken to adding my exercises a day later, just so I won't lose track.
I haven't told many people about this blog, just my wife and 2 or 3 close friends. Essentially, I've been talking to myself. That's going to change. I'm going to include it in a Facebook status update and add a link to my homepage.
I've noticed a pattern in my weigh-ins that is disturbing. All my weights have ended in .8 pounds. I meant to change the batteries on my scale before this started, but didn't, Now I wonder if they are dying and I'm not getting an accurate reading. I know I lost weight. I can tell by the way my clothes feel, I'm down 2 holes on my belt and I'm wearing pants that didn't fit a month ago. I just wonder how accurate the numbers are. I'll get new batteries today and weigh myself again tomorrow to see the difference. Actually, I'll weigh myself twice tomorrow, once with the old batteries and once with the new.
Regardless, the scale said I lost 3 pounds this week, so I'm happy! 373.8 and 11.2 pounds in 4 weeks.
Or not, depending on the batteries...
All it takes is patience and work.
Also, I have been packing lunch and breakfast to work all week, except today. I feel much more confident with my calorie counts for the week. I didn't pack today, so I'll have to be careful on choices and really consider what I'm ordering. Breakfast will be easy. I can get an egg-white omelet with veggies, bacon and a little cheese. I'll get a side of fruit salad and a piece of whole wheat toast. Lunch will be a little harder, but I know they offer turkey burgers and turkey dogs, or I can just order a sandwich with a side of raw veggies.
I've stayed on track with my calories all week. I went over one day, but I was still under the total after the program added in the calories I burned from exercising. That's the one thing I don't like about the tracking programs. When you add in your exercises, it adds those calories to your daily total. I want my daily calorie intake to be 2000, within 50 calories either way. I've taken to adding my exercises a day later, just so I won't lose track.
I haven't told many people about this blog, just my wife and 2 or 3 close friends. Essentially, I've been talking to myself. That's going to change. I'm going to include it in a Facebook status update and add a link to my homepage.
I've noticed a pattern in my weigh-ins that is disturbing. All my weights have ended in .8 pounds. I meant to change the batteries on my scale before this started, but didn't, Now I wonder if they are dying and I'm not getting an accurate reading. I know I lost weight. I can tell by the way my clothes feel, I'm down 2 holes on my belt and I'm wearing pants that didn't fit a month ago. I just wonder how accurate the numbers are. I'll get new batteries today and weigh myself again tomorrow to see the difference. Actually, I'll weigh myself twice tomorrow, once with the old batteries and once with the new.
Regardless, the scale said I lost 3 pounds this week, so I'm happy! 373.8 and 11.2 pounds in 4 weeks.
Or not, depending on the batteries...
All it takes is patience and work.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Another week down!
I've had a pretty good week. I have increased the weight for my strength routine and increased the speed I was walking. I'm working a little harder, but not hard enough. Next week, which will be the 4th week, I'll really start challenging myself. I'm used to the movements and feel looser on a daily basis. Before starting this, there were times when I was starting to feel like the Tin-Man, all rusted and stiff!
I've also been diligent about recording my food intake. I switched from the Spark People app to MyFitnessPal. I like the UI a little better. I really liked the Calorie King App that I used to use on my Palm PDA, but they don't offer one for Android.
Even without trying, I've stayed pretty close to my target intake. I made a couple bad choices and went well over my limit one day, but the other days, I was on the money. Of course, I've been eating in the work cafeteria and have been doing a lot of guessing on ingredients and quantity. I'll feel better about it once I sit down with my wife and we plan out our meals. I'll also start packing breakfast and lunch. Then I'll really be sure of my calorie count. For another week, however, I am just focusing on recording what I eat.
Once I do start focusing on my diet, I'm going to start posting what I'm eating here. Maybe it will be beneficial to someone else. I'd like to be able to show people that you don't need to buy special food or supplements to loose weight. Yes, I'll have to think about what and how much I'm eating. Yes, I'll have to prepare more food at home. Yes, I'll have to exercise. I won't have to spend a ton of extra money on special food. I won't have to replace a meal with a drink and I won't be hungry, feel deprived, or give up the foods that I enjoy!
All it takes is patience and work.
I lost 2 pounds this week, down to 376.8. 8.2 pounds in 3 weeks.
I've also been diligent about recording my food intake. I switched from the Spark People app to MyFitnessPal. I like the UI a little better. I really liked the Calorie King App that I used to use on my Palm PDA, but they don't offer one for Android.
Even without trying, I've stayed pretty close to my target intake. I made a couple bad choices and went well over my limit one day, but the other days, I was on the money. Of course, I've been eating in the work cafeteria and have been doing a lot of guessing on ingredients and quantity. I'll feel better about it once I sit down with my wife and we plan out our meals. I'll also start packing breakfast and lunch. Then I'll really be sure of my calorie count. For another week, however, I am just focusing on recording what I eat.
Once I do start focusing on my diet, I'm going to start posting what I'm eating here. Maybe it will be beneficial to someone else. I'd like to be able to show people that you don't need to buy special food or supplements to loose weight. Yes, I'll have to think about what and how much I'm eating. Yes, I'll have to prepare more food at home. Yes, I'll have to exercise. I won't have to spend a ton of extra money on special food. I won't have to replace a meal with a drink and I won't be hungry, feel deprived, or give up the foods that I enjoy!
All it takes is patience and work.
I lost 2 pounds this week, down to 376.8. 8.2 pounds in 3 weeks.
Tuesday, March 27, 2012
Third time's a charm!
All right, this time I really mean it! Honest. No, seriously, I'm going to do it.
I went to the doctor about a month ago for my normal sugar/bp check up. Everything is under control, but Doc brought up gastric bypass again, and I started considering it again. Every time I start considering it, I almost have myself talked into it and then I realize that if I have the surgery, I'll have to start exercising and paying attention to what I shove in my face. Then I realize that if I start exercising now, and pay attention to what I shove in my face now, I'll lose the weight without the surgery. So...
I found out that one of the things you have to give up after GB surgery is soda. I love Diet Mt. Dew. It's the thing I drank 95% of the time. I was drinking between 64 and 84 ounces a day. 3 or 4 bottles a day. So I gave it up about 3 weeks ago. I now drink water, brewed iced tea with artificial sweetener or Crystal Light. Yes, I know. I'm still drinking caffeine and I'm still drinking chemicals. Deal with it. After about a week, I noticed that I wasn't snacking nearly as much. I used to snack all the time, especially between 8:00 and 11:00 at night. Now I might have a bowl of cereal or a few pretzels and that's it.
Next thing I did was to rearrange my exercise room. I have a Weider weight machine and Pro-Form treadmill in a spare bedroom. The original layout had the treadmill facing away from the door and the Weider was situated so that I didn't have room to do seated rows. The treadmill freaked out my wife because she saw an episode of Criminal Minds that showed a killer sneaking up behind a woman exercising and I wanted to do seated rows, so I flipped everything around.
A week after I quit soda, I started exercising. I gave up the idea of doing it in the morning. It was just too easy to stay in bed. I now do it in the evening, after dinner. Mon, Wed, Sat I use the Weider and do 15 - 30 minutes on the treadmill. Tues and Thur, I do 30 minutes on the treadmill. I've only missed one day in the first 2 weeks, so I'm pretty pleased with myself.
Yesterday, I started tracking my calories. I'm not specifically watching what I eat yet. I'm just recording what I eat and eating normally. In about 2 weeks, I'll really start watching, although I suspect that it will happen before then. One thing I realized is that when you start seeing calories add up, you automatically start making better choices.
The way I chose my daily calorie target was pretty simple. I went online and googled "how many calories should I eat?" That resulted in a number of calculators that ask for your age, sex, height, weight and activity level. I plugged in my goal weight and use that for my daily intake. I figure it I get used to eating it now, it will be easier to maintain it when I eventually reach that goal.
2 weeks ago, I weighed 385. Friday 3/23/12, I weighed 378.8
So far so good.
I went to the doctor about a month ago for my normal sugar/bp check up. Everything is under control, but Doc brought up gastric bypass again, and I started considering it again. Every time I start considering it, I almost have myself talked into it and then I realize that if I have the surgery, I'll have to start exercising and paying attention to what I shove in my face. Then I realize that if I start exercising now, and pay attention to what I shove in my face now, I'll lose the weight without the surgery. So...
I found out that one of the things you have to give up after GB surgery is soda. I love Diet Mt. Dew. It's the thing I drank 95% of the time. I was drinking between 64 and 84 ounces a day. 3 or 4 bottles a day. So I gave it up about 3 weeks ago. I now drink water, brewed iced tea with artificial sweetener or Crystal Light. Yes, I know. I'm still drinking caffeine and I'm still drinking chemicals. Deal with it. After about a week, I noticed that I wasn't snacking nearly as much. I used to snack all the time, especially between 8:00 and 11:00 at night. Now I might have a bowl of cereal or a few pretzels and that's it.
A week after I quit soda, I started exercising. I gave up the idea of doing it in the morning. It was just too easy to stay in bed. I now do it in the evening, after dinner. Mon, Wed, Sat I use the Weider and do 15 - 30 minutes on the treadmill. Tues and Thur, I do 30 minutes on the treadmill. I've only missed one day in the first 2 weeks, so I'm pretty pleased with myself.
Yesterday, I started tracking my calories. I'm not specifically watching what I eat yet. I'm just recording what I eat and eating normally. In about 2 weeks, I'll really start watching, although I suspect that it will happen before then. One thing I realized is that when you start seeing calories add up, you automatically start making better choices.
The way I chose my daily calorie target was pretty simple. I went online and googled "how many calories should I eat?" That resulted in a number of calculators that ask for your age, sex, height, weight and activity level. I plugged in my goal weight and use that for my daily intake. I figure it I get used to eating it now, it will be easier to maintain it when I eventually reach that goal.
2 weeks ago, I weighed 385. Friday 3/23/12, I weighed 378.8
So far so good.
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
EPIC FAIL!
Yeah, it all went to hell last month!
New Year - Same plan, except I'm going to try exercising in the evenings.
I forgot to weigh myself this morning, but last Friday it was 372.8.
New Year - Same plan, except I'm going to try exercising in the evenings.
I forgot to weigh myself this morning, but last Friday it was 372.8.
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