Day 102 – Well, I’m back. Is it possible to have a healthy vacation?

Good Morning.

Well it’s over, vacation that is. The time off was just what I needed. I had plenty of time to re-charge, relax and enjoy family that is too far away to enjoy regularly. I was very concerned at the start (and during) this vacation that I would not continue to lose weight. I thought about my weight everyday, every meal. I will come clean, I had a couple cookies, ate more than I normally do and even had a few beers. I mean who goes to the ocean and doesn’t have a Corona and lime or two, or three or… well I think you get my point. I was in the land of sweet treats and deep fried EVERYTHING. After all it’s about moderation, right?

Dining out was my biggest obstacle. The restaurants in that area do not put any emphasis on healthy cooking. Almost everything on the menu is deep fired or smothered in sugar, sometimes both!! The healthy food while, there, took some detective work to find. Chickens must be hard to come by south of the Mason-Dixon Line, because it was not a popular menu choice, nor was it ready available in the local super market. Eating at home was easier and healthier. While there where still had the assortment of un-healthy deep fried, processed choices, everyone made concessions for me and provided healthy choices as well. I appreciate the flexibility and everyone not making me feel like a crazy northerner! Without everyone’s support, this trip would have been a lifestyle disaster!!

All the way home I keep wondering what the scales would say. Would have gained, stayed the same or heaven forbid stayed the same. I wanted to keep things consistent and weight my self in the am, like I have done for the last 88 days, so I had to avoid the temptation of stepping on my normal scales the second I walked in the door last night.

Bright and early this morning, I jumped out of bed and raced to the bathroom. Stripped down to what god gave me and hopped on the scales. SCORE !! 273.8 POUNDS. So I lost 5.2 pounds while on vacation. I was pretty stoked. Thats 61 pounds in 102 days, not to shabby. I guess all the walking did the trick!

Myfitnesspal said that I have lost an additional ten pounds and now they have automatically adjusted my daily caloric intake goal to 1840 calories.

Time to get back to my normal routine and hopefully I will be able to hit my primary goal of 270 pounds this week. When that occurs, I am going to reward myself with a massage!!

Hope everyone has a great day. Glad to be back!

Big thanks goes out to everyone that has provided me with positive comments and support. Keep them coming!!

SATURDAY JULY 21, 2012

STARTING WEIGHT: 334.8 pounds
GOAL WEIGHT: 270.0 pounds
TODAY’S WEIGHT: 273.8 pounds
WEIGHT LOSS: 61 POUNDS
WEIGHT LOSS PERCENTAGE: 18.2 %

Day 59 – The goal gets closer every day!

Good Morning!!

Another 1.6 pounds gone. Yesterday was an exceptionally light food day. It was odd, but I was not hungry at all yesterday. I did however still eat ‘something healthy’ every 3 hours. I believe that the ‘lack’ of hunger allowed me to eat small portions and remain satisfied. I am telling you, there is something to this eat every three hours idea. It really seems to be working for this body. I admit that the process takes a level of dedication that at times is overwhelming, but with good planning and a committed mind, it is possible. Take a look at my food diary. I ate something every 3 hours. I never once ate a large meal, remained below my suggested caloric intake and remained satisfied all day. To complicate this somewhat yesterday I worked EMS. I planned ahead and took snacks and foods that where portable and non-perishable, so I could eat them on the move if needed. It all worked out and I lost over a pound yesterday.

Today should be a good day too, that is if I survive. Saturday’s are CaveMan Days at the YMCA. Gonna try to be a caveman for a day then hit the treadmill or stationary bike. I just pray to the good lord above that I am able to get out of bed in the morning!!

June 7, 2013

MyFitnessPal Personal Food Diary.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

“Every human being is the author of his own health or disease.” ~Buddha

Day 52 – Energy UP and weight DOWN – Sounds like a good formula!

Good Morning.

This has been a busy and quite productive week for me. It’s kind of odd to me the amount of energy and drive I have these days. I feel like i’m always looking for the next project. Maybe it’s the warmer weather, maybe it’s the weight loss who knows for sure, but I am liking it.

I am kinda bummed that I am not going to be able to attend the ‘caveman’ class this morning. I have a continuing education class for my medic card all day today. I was really – all kidding aside – looking forward to another class. I mean the soreness from last weeks class finally wore of by about Thursday. So why not give it another shot! Is it dedication and determination to lose weight, or pure stupidity? Guess we will never know. Regardless of the reason, the only thing that will show is the weight loss.

Friday May 31,2013

The formula is simple – WORK MORE THAN YOU EAT!! – The weight will come off.

Caloric Goal: 2130 calories
Caloric Intake: 1312 calories
Difference: -818 calories

Breakfast: 360 cals
Fiber One Honey Squares
Banana
Unsweetened Almond Milk
Whey Protein Shake w/ Almond Milk
Men’s Health One a Day
Vit D Supplement
Fish Oil
Vit C Supplement
Vit B-100 Complex

Lunch: 150 cals
Whey Protein Shake – Vanilla Cream
Unsweetened Almond Milk

Dinner: 512 cals
Chicken and Veggie Pizza
Whole Wheat Low Carb Tortilla

Snacks: 290 cals
Orange
Kashi Peanut Butter Granola Bar

Workout:
45 mins Alternating incline on the treadmill. Speed 2.6 – 3.0 mph
Mowed the yard
Worked in the garden
Cleaned the garage out
Laundry

Day 51 – Extra for Avocado – What??

Good Morning!!

Wow, yesterday was a long, but productive day. The day started with the routine transport the boy to school. Then to they YMCA. Was able to get a 2 hr work out in. Dedicated an hour to cardio (walking) and a hour to free weights. Next was a ‘healthy’ lunch with my adorable girl at Subway Restaurant.

Pardon me, but I am going to go on a rant about a subject. I noticed on the door of subway that they now offer Avocado as a topping on sandwiches. So when I ordered my veggie delight, and asked about Avocado. I was informed that I could have a 75 cent portion or a $1.50 portion. I was kinda taken back by the additional charge for a vegetable topping. After all I had ordered a vegetable sub. Oh well, I love avocado and it’s health benefits are amazing, so I paid the extra fee. I am somewhat disappointed that Subway, the fast food restaurant know for serving healthy food, is jumping on the band wagon and taking advantage of people trying to improve their health. I mean what would Jarred say? Would he support charging an additional fee for a healthy topping? Would they do not charge additional fees for mustard or mayonnaise. Well no of course they wouldn’t. Doesn’t seem right.

Anyway – After lunch, I had to run to Walmart for a few odds and ends. Finally made it home with only a half hour or so to get my son from school. Today was the last day of the year, so school dismissed 2 hours early. We all came home and finished planting the garden. After everything was planted, jumped in the shower and refreshed! Then off to baseball. I was recruited into pitching for the tball team. I know what your thinking, who needs a pitcher for tball. Well we do. We allow our kids to take 3 pitches before they have to use the tee. This is a great way to get them prepared for following years. After baseball it was off to grab dinner. Kids had subway again and I came home and prepared sour kroute and turkey hotdogs. Man it was good. I really enjoyed it. Got the kids bathed and finished up laundry. Finally was able to set and kinda relax at 2145. Wow that was 12 hours of non-stop action! I was so busy, I never once thought of food.

Day 25 – 315.4 – 19.4 Pounds GONE!! – 45.4 pounds to GO. Sugar is the DEVIL!

Good Morning!!

Well this starts another work week for me. I am excited and ready to tackle another week and get more of this weight off. Last week was a good week, however I want to make this a better one! It appears that gained a bit yesterday. I was motivated and moving all day yesterday. It was either the pasta or sweet team that got me!! Oh well, what’s one day, right?

Please remember you can follow my journey at MyFitnessPal.com.

Breakfast: 390 calories
Quaker Oats w/ 2% Milk
Folgers Coffee
Vanilla Creamer
Supplements

Lunch: 623 calories
6″ Veggie Delight Subway Sub – Every Vegetable except Black Olives (nasty)
Kettle Cooked Applewood BBQ Low Fat Chips
Southern Sweet Tea – The devil juice. I should have passed, but it sounded (and was) soooo good.

Dinner: 580 calories
Barilla Plus Spaghetti
Meat Flavored Spaghetti Sauce

Snacks: 230 calories
Kosher Dill Pickles
Raw Brazil Nuts

Excercise:
Precor Treadmill = 890 calories burnt (per machine)
House Cleaning – Light to Moderate Effort = 445 calories (per myfitnesspal applicaiton.

Here is my nutritional information:

If you look at the numbers, I am not real sure why I gained a pound. My diet was low in fat, cholesterol, Sodium (which is normally always high) and Carbs. The thing that jumps out was the amount of Sugar. Damn you sweet tea!! Maybe it was muscle – at least that’s what I am telling myself.

Day 24 – 314.4 Pounds – 20.4 Pounds GONE!! 44.4 Pounds to Go.

Good Afternoon!!

My goodness the last few days have been a marathon, and this boy is exhausted. It seems that since Thursday, I have been going non-stop. While it has run my batteries, it has also helped me drop some extra pounds. A couple of things have contributed to losing weight the last few days. I have been busy and moving quite a bit and I really haven’t had the down time to think about food. Win = Win.

MyFitnessPal Information

Friday: May 3, 2013

Total Caloric Intake: 1595 calories
Suggested Intake: 2160 calories

Breakfast: 345 calories
Protein Shake
2% Milk
Supplements
Coffee w/ creamer

Lunch: 730 calories
12″ Veggie Delight Sub on wheat bread
Kettle Cooked BBQ chips

Dinner: 180 calories
Chicken – Grilled
Onion
Pepper
Tomato
Mustard

Snacks: 340 calories
Honey Crisp Apple
Chocolate Milk (2% milk & Hershey’s chocolate)

Good day tater!! Thanks for following and the support!!

Pre-Workout Meal to help you burn fat!!

Research suggests that pre-workout diet of the “right” carbohydrates can actually help burn fat. Studies show that if you have a Low Glycemic Meal high in fiber the weight loss beneifts are increased.

Examples of Low Glycemic Foods:

– Nuts
– Legumes
– Fructose (basic sugar in fruits)
– Pasta
– Dairy
– Fruits (ONLY – Plums, Peaches, Apples, Oranges, Pears, Grapes, Grapefruit)
– Rice
– Sweet Potato
– Oats
– All Brain
– Most Vegetables (Except – Carrots, Corn, Root Vegetables)

Day 13 – 320.6 – 14.2 pound worked off – 50.6 pounds to go!!

Good Morning. Yesterday was a good day. I worked and was stationary for 12 hours. This sedentary job is killing my progress. Oh what ya going to do?

I ate really well yesterday, and stayed feeling full all day. I even fought of the urge to have Jet’s Pizza at work!! Yea Me. It was hard but I said NO. As you will see from my food diary, I stayed well below my calorie allotment. As you may notice, again I didn’t lose any weight. MyNetDairy application said that I should eat 2,746 calories for optimal weight loss. I ate healthy foods every there hours and still was unable to reach 2,746 calories, and I gained weight. So it appears that there is something to this you have to eat to burn idea.

Breakfast:
Protein Shake 130 cals
2% Milk – 256 cals
Supplements – 55 cals

Lunch:
Low Sodium Chunk Tuna – 140 cals
Miracle Whip w/ Olive Oil – 80 cals
Bell Pepper – 23 cals
Asparagus – 32 cals

Dinner;
Hamburger Only – 284 cals
Pickle – 5 cals
Asparagus – 32 cals
Frozen Banana Peanut Butter Yogurt – 166 cals

Snacks
Orange – 69 cals
Brazil Nuts – 185 cals
Cherry Tomato’s – 15 cals

TOTAL CALORIES: 1458 cals – 1276 short and I still didn’t lose any weight.

The truth about Sugar & Are Sweetners Safe?

I have always wondered what artifical sweenters are safe. One day you read that Sweenters will give you cancer and Sugar will make you fat. Again confusing. This artical seems to break it down and makes it easy to understand.

Truth About Sugars & Are Sweetners Safe?

Does Eating Mushrooms Help You Lose Weight?

I love mushrooms!! As part of a healthy diet and exercise, it appears they can assist with weight loss. Details of the study can be see at Medindia.net.