“July, 2007” Archive
Jul
24
It’s been a while since I last updated the Pound-O-Meter but I happy to say I have gotten down to 250 lbs., a weight loss of 44 pounds since I started my journey.
The key to the continued weight loss, at least for me is getting in the high intensity, aerobic exercise at least 5 times per week for 50-60 minutes. I also do weight training 2-3 times per week to keep up my muscle mass, but that alone won’t drop the calories. In a recent Q&A on MSNBC, it looks like their ‘expert’ agrees with me that weight-training alone won’t trim the fat.
I know 50-60 minutes may seem like a long time to do aerobic exercise, or any exercise for that matter. So how do I stay motivated? First I make sure I mix up the workouts. I will do 20 minutes on the treadmill, stationary bike and elliptical to keep things from getting too dull. In addition, I typically mix up the order in which I do each machine. An iPod with some good, fast paced workout music also seems to keep me motivated. I figure it is 6-7 songs worth on each machine, which isn’t too bad when you just focus on the music.
I’m to the point now where I am comfortable running on the treadmill. Previously I felt my weight was too high and that my knees would suffer serious injury if I were to run. I’m not running a marathoner’s pace at this point but I did manage to get a 13:00 mile in, which isn’t bad considering the last time I RAN a mile was in college.
In order to keep myself motivated to run and continue to lose the weight, I signed myself up for a 5K run here in Seattle in late September. I know 5K might not seem like a big deal for most people, but to me it is a stretch. I will seriously feel a tremendous sense of achievement if I can manage to do it.
The only potential pitfall here is the beer garden at the end of the race, but I should be able to avoid that without any problems. It also looks like I will still qualify for the ‘Beer Belly’ division so that gives me some extra incentive to keep things moving forward.
Jul
11
I apologize to all my readers (I know there are a few out there) who have been anxiously awaiting some updates here or have been following me over at Dollar Buy Dollar. The past few weeks have been somewhat trying with my mental health issues, family visits and over the past few days, numerous technical problems with my blogs, i.e. my Wordpress install.
I’m happy to report that this is all behind me now and I look forward to keeping your updated on my diet, exercise and weight loss progress.
As I reported over at Dollar Buy Dollar, I had been having some Fellowes’ Mental Health and Debt and I ended up in an intensive outpatient program. This program was originally going to last 7-10 days but it ended up lasting nearly 3 1/2 weeks and I have been out of work on short-term disability during that period. I’m happy to report I will be heading back to work next week.
Unfortunately, between the combination of struggling with my mental health issues and having my daughter, ex-wife and mother in town, sticking to the diet and exercise regimen proved to be somewhat futile. The good news is that I haven’t gained any weight. The other ’side effect’ is that I have had to temporarily stop my sessions with my trainer (again, this is paid for by employer), but those too will start back up next week.
That said, I have been hitting the gym regularly over the past seven days, doing at least 60 minutes of cardio (treadmill, elliptical and bike combination) as well as some strength training. I’m down another 2 pounds since getting back into the swing of things this week, which makes me quite happy.
For those of you wondering what my diet generally looks like, let me give you a snapshot of what I have had today, as well as what I plan on eating for dinner this evening:
Breakfast: Protein Shake (EAS Chocolate Protein Powder) with Mixed Berries. I use two scoops of the powder so I get some good mileage out of the container. I usually get this from Costco in a 6lb. package. I also add a serving of fiber to the shake each morning.
Snack: One normal sized banana and string cheese
Lunch: Grilled Chicken Breast Salad with 2 Tbsp of Lowfat Dressing. Admittedly, I bought this salad at my gym because it is SO good. The salad is a mix of green and iceberg lettuce, sliced red and yellow peppers, low-fat cheddar cheese and pinto beans. Remember, on the cheese and pinto beans, it is all about portion control, i.e. 1 cup max.
Snack: Apples slices with 1 Tbsp of Natural Peanut Butter. It is always good to match the carbs in the fruit with a protein source like yogurt or peanut butter. Peanut butter can be high in fat so again, watch the portions!
Dinner: 6 oz. Flank Steak with a nice and spicy steak rub with a nice mixed green salad and a slice of whole grain, whole wheat bread, aka ‘colon blow’.
Yes ladies and gents, this is ALL I eat in a typical day when I am following my diet. In addition, I drink at least 64 oz. of water each day. This may seem like a lot, but when you work out at the intensity level I do, you will end up drinking at least half this intake during and/or shortly after the workout.
The amount of food I eat each day, when I follow my diet, is a tremendous change from my past diet. It also may seem like not much food, but let me tell you that eating 5 times a day, while drinking 64 oz. of water is not an easy task. The high protein, lower carb meal plan I follow keeps me very satiated and for the most part I am never hungry at the end of any given day.
Again, I am not a dietician so I cannot recommend this plan specifically for anyone, but should you choose to try it, I wanted to give you some details into what my daily food intake looks like. If you do nothing else, I urge you to cut out any soda or juice from your diet and drink only water. I promise you will lose weight!