The girl in the red dress.

The girl in the red dress.

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I decided to log into the blog after someone that I have known since childhood said to me "I read your blog and I'm waiting for an update" I had no idea that people I knew actually read this blog because I tried to keep it as out of that loop as possible but here goes, an update. 

When I say there is a lot going on in my personal life I am understating, which honestly sounds like an excuse to me but as I have stated before I am indeed a stress/emotional eater which I'm working on but for now it wins that fight more times than not and I find myself lit from the front by a refrigerator light at times. My success with dropping weight paired with this whole regain bullshit that I've allowed myself to slide back into just because focusing on me is rougher these days has got to stop and I've "restarted" so many times in the last 2 years that I could be the poster boy for yo yo dieting at this point. There are days when I'm all like "Bring it on, I am the god of hellfire and everything health bows to me bitches! I got this" Then there are times that I feel more like Eore from Winnie the pooh and it goes to shit, I suppose I'm not alone in that kind of thing but damn its gotta let up sometimes... or. 

The day that this person I've known forever stated that she reads my blog I met a friend of hers and I didn't say anything at the time but this friend of hers forced me to think about this whole walk down the yellow brick road to health I've been on in a different way, the way I use to see it. Talking to this person reminded me that the attitude in which you approach a situation is possibly more important than than the process itself in a way. Though we only spoke briefly, I learned that she had lost 90 pounds and was a kettlebell instructor, her attitude and positive outlook stuck with me more than she probably realized in that moment. Over the last week I have been reflecting on a lot of things and decided that its time to take my body and health back from the negativity that currently holds the keys with an attitude change.

Life is too short and we never know what cards we will be dealt at any given moment, sometimes we get pocket aces, win the huge pot then happily ever after and other times we lose the farm, the key is that whatever we are handed that we stay the course. A blip on the radar in the grand scheme, a short conversation with a person who I know not much about other than she was really positive and dealt with some weight loss/health tuning of her own forced a week of reflecting on my part and here I am, with an update.

My excel sheet was dusted off and the salter scale is on the counter, I am heading out to the grocery store for some fresh stuff to eat after I click publish, Its time to find that guy who use to be as positive as that girl in the red dress again.

Thats all I got for today.

As Ever
Me 

A new week

A new week

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We have a week behind us, but its not just a week its a successful week where my health is concerned. I stuck to my calories all week and throughout the weekend and I am moving more again, I am going to admit something because my blog has always been about accountability. I have a scale, it weighs up to 400 pounds, when I bought this scale I had the option to buy one that went to 450 pounds but in my wildest dreams I never thought I would see even 350 pounds never mind 400 and I find myself unable to weigh myself at home currently. Yep, I am more than 400 pounds currently and not very happy about it so I am indeed weighing myself every couple days waiting for that scale to pop off a number for me to go off of but for now I am as they say flying blind. 

I am not much more than 400 but I am above because my scale gives me a "E" I will continue to do what I am doing, logging my food, walking daily and getting my fluids in and sooner than later I am guessing that scale will give me a number. 

A shot of the moon over the lake I was fishing Saturday.

From Friday to Sunday I stayed active running errands and fishing, I skipped going out to a Polynesian place on Saturday night with my father in law mostly because looking at their menu it was a lot of fried foods and "Chinese" style dishes read: like Chinese fast food and since I have done so well I wanted it to remain that way. I have a walk planned for today some time and maybe some fishing so staying active is definitely on my agenda and I am bringing it back to basics with the walking because it works! 

when I began down this road to a healthier life I walked, I walked some more and then I walked some more, then it wasn't because I thought it to be an awesome weight loss tool (I sort of did) but it was because it was what I could muster being 500 plus pounds. This time around its a combination of the two, walking is something that I can do with my daughter and we both enjoy it, walking allows me to basically have an hour long conversation with her while we do something physical together and well to be honest its at my current pay grade so to speak.

Walking, counting calories, staying focused on the task at hand is my job right now, not because I want to do it, not because I should do it but because I need to do it.... so I will. 

the cycling like a madman will come back in due time... until then its just me and my walking with some light biking tossed in. 

Until next time.

As Ever
Me

Cupcake crisis walking Crisscross a weekends review.

Cupcake crisis walking Crisscross a weekends review.

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Over the weekend I was offered a challenge, a challenge in the way of a couple plates of cupcakes, challenge accepted and beat. Sunday my daughter spent some time with her Grandma and upon returning to the nest she came bearing treats "Look  dad, I made these" "awesome honey!" was my reply but I was thinking Oh damn! I dodged the cupcake mines and moved on with my day unimpeded by anything that is food. Its funny because I had just told my wife on Friday that I have hit a point where food is not a distraction for me right now, I view it as fuel and nothing more which does not necessarily mean I am not tempted but it means that I am able to not react and start chowing on the contents of the cupboards when the feeling hits.

Over the weekend I stayed within my calories and got out for a nice walk with my daughters, over all it was a pretty nice weekend and now today Wify has the day off so is home with us for a long weekend. Walking was a huge part of my weight losses on the first go around so with the concept if it ain't broke don't fix it in mind walking has to be a part of this. I do enjoy walking for what it is, it allows me to think, look at the scenery and just get away from things for a time but I also view it as something that I couldn't do for very long time without being in pain so I appreciate the simplicity of just going for a walk these days. There once was a guy that actually thought "why would someone want to just walk" as he watched from his window and I look back at that guy and am sad for him. When you are limited you create excuses and reasons for why you aren't doing things and get somewhat bitter with certain things and all along its the outlook that is creating the bitterness towards a situation that we seemingly have no control over. Walking is an important thing for me and whenever I start getting down on myself I think about it for a moment and decide to go for a walk because once upon a lullaby going for a walk was not an option and I recommend it to anyone starting off on a path to better health.

This weekend also afforded me some time with my bicycles, I don't mean riding, I mean working on them. I have a 1991 Schwinn Crisscross that I picked up some time ago and though I have slowly done some work to this bike it mostly sat waiting for its turn. This weekend I decided to pull it out, install some new bars on it, remove the too small rear rack and "finish" it up so I could call it a useable bike. I would like to install a set of fenders on it but otherwise its done besides some small details like removing the discolored disk on the rear wheel etc and I think it came out pretty good too. A quick ride around the neighborhood proved that it fits me good and is a keeper for sure. If you are interested in more details on the crisscross or would like to check out another blog that I started that is more cycling related, which basically means that I only really write about bikes that I am working on or cycling news etc you can Visit Two Wheels and a Fat Guy HERE and please do!

Over all I am doing well on this restart and the weight is coming off which makes me more than a happy camper, cupcake crisis averted a bike is complete and walking for health is a key element.

Until next we meet, keep on keepin on and all that. 

As Ever
Me

Suck it up buttercup.

Suck it up buttercup.

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Yesterday I had the chance to go out on a ride so that's what I did, I took the regular trail that I ride that is about a 15 mile round trip but at every trail head where it crossed a street I explored a bit up and down the roads. The bike computer said that I did 19.5 miles so a new long distance for me was made but my ass paid for it because man was it begging me to get off of the bike by the end of the ride. I need to figure out my what to eat needs if I am to keep going on longer rides because I started feeling low on energy around an hour into the hour and 28 minute ride, the last time I took a longer ride which was 18 miles and an hour twenty minutes I ate a Zone bar about halfway through the ride and I didn't feel anything negative the entire ride. I figured that I had the camera with me and was taking a break at the end of the trail before taking on the hill to my house and decided to make another video to post so here it is.

Today will be a gym day because I like to alternate between the longer rides and the gym, plus I want to lift weights so I won't be on the bike today unless you count the stationary at the gym. The plan is simple, 25 minutes on the stationary bike followed by 45 to 60 minutes worth of weight lifting and a cool down either on the treadmill or a spin bike depending on whether there is a class going on when I am there. My weekend sort of steered me off course a bit because of some not so good decisions and lack of working out but I am still looking to pull off a loss come tomorrow mornings weigh in.

Tomorrow I weigh in, keeping focused is going to be my main concern in the coming weeks, I need to get down below 300 pounds and I need to get to that 275 pound goal and I would like it to be sooner than later. With a lot of face time at the gym and on the trails I will get there, I will need to keep my intake where it needs to be and I will have to remain diligent and complete the task at hand, I will do those things and I will do them decisively. There will be weeks that I lose more, there will be weeks that I lose less, then there will be those weeks that nothing will be able to get in my way as I excel into the physical me that I am aiming for, I am taking matters into my own hands and when that happens nothing is stronger than that.

My time, your pain, I reign on you....

As Ever
Me

Will today be your Day one?

Will today be your Day one?

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This morning I woke up to a ton of email and a lot of messages on my facebook page which I encourage you to add me if it pleases you! that AOL article is to blame and it has put me into a magnificent mood! yes folks I just said magnificent! I have mentioned this before, I started this blog literally as a place to put my progress or back steps in a more public kind of way and it has become so much more than that in the last 983 days which wow! I've been at this for 983 days?? When I began down this road I wasn't sure what would come of it, I did not know if it would be a failed attempt or if I would be down to my goal weight in record time and for whatever reason it stuck this time and here I sit in my plush couch typing a blog and there is an article on a website called "Thatsfit" with me in it! I tell you that I can clearly remember writing my first post titled Day 1 and never did I think that I would be associated with something called Thatsfit, perhaps "ThatsFAT" but not the other.


My Thursday went very well, my calories came in at 1810 which is just about perfect and I went over because of having a pear around 8:30 last night so I am cool with the slightly over. When I was at the gym I decided that I hadn't been on the arc-trainer in a while so I did my 20-20-20 routine for an hour of cardio. The 20-20-20 is 20 minutes on the stationary bike, 20 minutes on the arc-trainer finishing up with 20 on the treadmill, I did change it up a bit because I did 25 on the bike and only 15 on the treadmill but a good solid cardio workout was had either way. My fluid intake was on par with just under 2 gallons of fluids between the H2O and green tea so hydrated I am and as I type I am already down a little more than a half gallon for Friday. I will not have a chance to get to the gym today so it looks like a bike ride around the lake is in my future which is more than ok with me, in fact I have come to enjoy my bike rides more than almost anything that I could be doing, almost.

I enjoy what I have done for myself and for my family, a two hour walk through a virtual world to kill a notorious monster has turned into a bike ride to the playground with the kids. Instead of a sack full of sodium laced processed meats and cheeses on a corn tortilla...er on 7 corn tortillas I eat fresh grilled salmon and sweet potatoes, Mangoes and green tea, the flavor difference is quite amazing if you don't believe me try for yourself! The fact that I can now decide that a walk around the lake or a hike on a local trail would be a good way to spend my afternoon is light years away from hoping that I was going to make it up the stairs before my heart grenaded inside my chest and ending up with a hole in the side of my house so that the firemen could drag me out.

When you were once 534 pounds and limited by that fact things look a little different that they do from a closer to normal weight, somehow things seem impossible when simply walking up a flight of stairs is a huge task. For the longest time I was in pain, I don't mean emotionally though that was there too, I had a back injury and 3 disks that were just not the way that they should have been after a work accident and something like that controls the way we feel mentally and obviously physically. Having been through an injury like that left me feeling helpless to get out of my own way and there were times that I physically could not get out of my own way but that has all seemed to change and that happened when I decided to completely revamp the way that I was doing things. I in the last couple years have learned that if a person wants something they need to grab it and make it what they want it to be, no one will hand life to you but giant plates of food and a sedentary lifestyle can and will take it from us each and every time.

Take back what is yours..

As Ever
Me