I really did not know exactly the amount of loss I was going to have after the first month.  My scale at home measures me heavy, the scale at the Y a little lighter.  So when I stepped on the scale yesterday for the first month weigh in I really had no idea.  I planned on only having a 6-8 pound loss but the scale came back 290 which is a 16 pound loss.  I was very happy, I really pushed myself Thur, Fri and Sat morning at the Y before the weigh in.  So now I have an idea in my head what my scale is off by so it feels much better knowiing that my loss is a little more than what I am reading on the scale. 

So begins month #2 I hope to continue with double digit numbers any were between 15-20 pounds a month.  I know that it will be very hard to maintain the numbers because the more I lose the harder it becomes to lose more.  I need to stick to the 1100 a day diet and see if I can hit that number without adding my workout burns.  I still am lookiing forward to running in the moring, if i can add that extra 500-600 burn to my normal evening work out I think I can contiune with the loss.  So as of today I have lost 100 pounds since Jan 09 and exactly 100 pounds from my goal weight.   

 

Tom

So this is the start of the 3rd week and I am hitting a nice flow.  My weight was yo-yoing up and down last week but I think I will hit my loss goal for our 2nd weigh in on Saturday. My lifting and cardio workouts are right on pace.  I have started slowing increasing the pounds on my lifting schedule.  With my lifting I hope to burn a lot of extra calories when I am at work in the office.  I can't wait to the weather is better in the morning so I can add my 3-4 mile run to my daily workouts.  I can't stand to run outside when it is cold but once it is over 40 I will start running outside again.  As for my food intake I still have to do a better job of finding healthier food choices, but I seem to be hitting my calorie intake.  Other than that I feel good, I feel full of energy and a little stronger too.

 

Tom

So for the last week I find that my weight is slowly going down then going up slightly or staying the same, but my fat mass is going decreasing and muscle mass is increasing.  I have been told this is because I am converting more fat into muscle than actually burning off all the fat.  I have been doing a lot of cardio and weight lifting and feel much better and stronger.  The issue I have is will this lead me to my weight goal of 190 pounds.  I very conflicted, one hand I want to be skinny but on the other I do want to stronger.  When I played football my body was "heavy"  but I could bench press and leg press massive weight.  I was a lineman with a linesman's body shape, I am starting to feel that way again.  The problem is that if I want that body type I might not ever be skinny.  I do enjoy eating the healthier and smaller portion foods and working out on an almost daily basis.  I have more energy and able to do more activities which in turn drives me more to push myself.  I guess in the end that is what I consider "Healthy"  

Till next time

Tom

So after the super bowl Sunday I took Monday off for my regular off day for working out, which my body needed.  Tuesday I was unable to hit the Y had car issues plus had some running around with the kids.  I felt a little down on myself but Wed came and I pushed myself a little harder in the gym.  Yesterday was a good day all around so back on schedule with everything.  I find that working out is not my main issue, it is the food intake.  To be honest I set a 1300 level calorie intake per day, that is not the issue.  What I have trouble with is that I eat mainly wrong foods to met that level.  This tends to be ok for the calorie counts, I eat just smaller portions of bad foods.  Though now I am concerned about  fat, sodium and cholesterol intake, the counts are way too high.  So I have been trying to find better recipes to use and my wife turned me on to this "Hungry Girl" lady.  We have been trying some recipes and tricks she gives out and so far it is pretty good.  Tonight is Mexican night so I am going to have a light lunch, work out hard and enjoy some chips, salsa, and fajitas.

Till next time  

 

Tom

So I picked up the paper Sunday morning and there I was, pictured with my fellow contestants in the News Herald Lighten Up 2011 Contest.  I received some calls & emails mostly asking me why and how also giving me advice, I thanked everyone and started out my day.  It is a weird feeling knowing that there are people tracking me, not a lot of people but still being more public than normal.  So since it was Super Bowl Sunday I really had to have a game plan for the festivities.  First I limited my breakfast and lunch intake, drank a lot of water.  Then I hit the Y ran 4 miles (45 min.) and jumped on the elliptical machine for another 25 minutes, I really kicked my own butt.   So when I got home I made the food I was going to eat,  BBQ wings (baked) and pizza (Veggie).  I also consumed only 2 beers, could have had 2 more if I bought MGD 64 but I like beer with flavor.  Munched on chips with salsa (the best) and veggies w/dip.  Near the end I only and 1 low cal cupcake. I made sure that that I made most of the food so I could some what control the calories on my intake.  Once it was over I counted it up,  went a little over on my goal but not by much.  I was really happy with myself when I got on the scale this morning.  So now starts a new week, with a full week down and some 23 weeks to go I keep chugging away day by day, pound by pound.

Till next time

 

Tom

So all is going well I have worked out everyday since weigh-in execpt for Monday.  I have been tracking my workouts & food intake on Livestrong - Dailyplate (http://www.livestrong.com/thedailyplate/).  It is free and a great website I also use it on my Iphone so it is real easy to look foods up and track what it do.  My goal is to take in about 1000-1500 calories a day and workout about 1200-1500 daily.  It is very difficult, the intake especially but I am adjusting.  My wife has been so great in this and she too is trying to limit her intake.  I find that having a plan is key.  Knowing what you are going to eat and when you are going to work out creates a strudy foundation for the weight loss.  Trying to wing it or pushing it off when other things come up leads me to bad habits.  I remember reading about creating better habits, if you repeat an action again and again daily for two weeks it becomes a habit.  Blocking off the times to work out lets me focus on 1.5-2 hours.  Now with 2 little kids and 2 working parents free time is not a huge luxury, that block of time is taking away from other blocks in my life.  It is a give and take, I must sacrifice things like watching TV, movies, surfing the net, golfing (when it is nice) or sporting events (good thing all of them stink right now).  Even waking up at 5am instead of 6am to get that workout in. This give and take can be real hard sometimes.  That is why I am so grateful to my family and friends.  They help out if I need help and understand when I can't be available because my time is filled. Remember Roman nor our bodies were built like this in a day.   Slow progress is lasting progress  

 

Tom

So this is it, it is happening I have made it real.  I have decided to compete in the News-Herald Lighten Up 2011 contest.  No matter what I say or do for the next 6 months I have to push myself to reach my goal.  That goal is to lose 100 pounds, to reach a weight between 190-200 pounds.  Now in the past 2 years I have lost up to 120 pounds but was unable to reach my final goal.  This is why I figured I needed to put more pressure on myself to lose the last half.  People have always asked me how i lost the weight.  To be honest it, for me it was easy I just started to work out at the Y (west branch) and jog around my neighborhood.  I started to work out and push a little harder every week the pounds started to come off.  Then it was cycle effect.  Pounds off leads to working out harder which of course leads to more pounds off.  That was not the only thing that was changing.   Few pounds off lead to lots of pounds off the visible changes accrued.  Now when I started at 395 and lost 10-15 pounds I always said it is like throwing a chair off the Titanic.  Once I hit 50 pounds then it was like the whole lido deck.  Then mentally I started to feel better and started to create little goals to achieve.  When I got to 278 and 15 months of working out a funny thing happened.  I slowed up, I figured, I got this.  I can ease off the pedal and stop working so hard.  That was April 2010, and since i have put on 30 pounds and starting to get down on myself.  So around Thanksgiving I thought I could flip a switch, start it back up again.  This time I find it a lot harder so I wanted to change it up a little, find a challenge to push me and that is when my wife showed me the Lighten up Contest.  This brings us up to the present and now I hope this will help me achieve my goal.  To me it is not about winning a prize it is about winning a goal I set for myself over 2 years ago. 

Till next time keep pushing, keep sweating, and keep believing    

 

Tom