Day One Hundred and Eighty-One - Spring is Here in Arkansas

In some states you know Spring has arrived by the singing birds and aroma of fresh flowers.  In Arkansas we know it's Spring with the arrival of tornados.  This year, it appears Spring is arriving early.  Today was the first tornado warning of the year, with warnings across Central Arkansas.  Thankfully, it doesn't appear that any tornados touched down, but it is still something that puts the entire area on edge.

E and I were talking about how we can watch our local weather stations so that we can be prepared.  I explained that sirens used to mean that there was a tornado spotted, but now with new technology the sirens sound when it looks like there is a good chance of a tornado touching down.  We discussed how this helps us get to our safe space ahead of time.

Just like our technology has assisted with the weather, we have technology to assist with losing weight as well.  For me, the myfitnesspal app has been a vital part of my journey so far.  It allows me to plan ahead with my meals.  I punch in what I'm going to eat before hand, which serves as a sense of accountability.  It helps me stick to the calorie intake I need, and then lets me know how many calories I can allow myself for a snack.  The biggest thing about this is that it keeps me from overeating.  As someone who used to sit down to eat a few chips and polish off the entire bag, this is critical.  So tonight I'm thankful for technology and how it's helping me to lose my butter half.

My calorie intake today has been great.  Also, I got up again this morning and worked out first thing. I'm very tired because I went to bed too late, but I love that I got to spend more time with my family.

Day One Hundred and Eighty - It's Time to Shake Things Up

For the past six months I have worked out nearly every evening.  My workouts started out around twenty-five to thirty minutes at a time.  They have now grown to at least fifty minutes per day.  Between that and blogging each night my evenings are pretty well taken up.  So I've decided to shake things up a little.  For the next week (and probably longer) I am going to work out every morning.  This is really going to be a lot different for me.  In order for me to do this, I will have to start getting up each day before six.  I know for many of you out there that isn't difficult, but it isn't something I'm conditioned for right now.  I'm used to getting up right before seven.  What this also means is that I'm going to have to make adjustments to when I get to bed each evening.

Another contributing factor to me making the decision to try my workouts in the morning is that I am trying to change more in my life than my weight.  I want to grow as a person.  One of the habits of many of the highly successful people I read about seems to be that they are all early risers.  Now I'm not sure if that means that they all go to bed extra early, but for me it does.  I want to be successful in all that I do.  I don't want to half-do anything in life.  With my family, my work, my relationship with God and others.  I know that if I'm going to be successful, it has to start by scheduling my time better.  Trust me, I don't like the sound of waking up early or dragging myself onto the exercise bike (believe me, my legs are pretty stiff at six in the morning).  The thing is I know that making a life change will cost me something.  It really seems like nothing worthwhile is easy.  If I'm going to be giving up an hour of my day for the rest of my life, then I don't want that to be an hour that I could be spending with Bekah and the kids.  My question for you is, what are you willing to give up to hit your goal?  If there isn't anything that you are willing to give up, that means your goal isn't big enough.  For me, my goal is big enough to wake up earlier each morning.  I'm shaking things up, and I'm losing my butter half.

My calorie intake today was really good.  I'm feeling much more positive about my food intake and choices this week.  Also, I had a great win at work today by turning down my favorite chicken wings (and they were free!).  My workout this morning was really good.  It gave me a good opportunity to read and get my head clear before my day began.

Day One Hundred and Seventy-Nine - I'm Sorry, the Doritos Diet Just Won't Work

Last summer we bought E her first two wheel bicycle.  She received a tricycle a few years ago from my parents for Christmas and has outgrown it.  The problem was that she wasn't (and still isn't) quite tall enough to touch the ground while on the seat.  The bike also doesn't have training wheels, so she is struggling to learn to balance.  When I was little I learned to ride a bicycle by touching my toes on the ground, and teetering back and forth until I had my balance.  Then I put my feet on the pedals and rode.  So for E we tried multiple methods to help her learn to balance.  First I tried the old school method of holding the back of the seat.  That was probably a lot easier on the old banana seat bicycles.  It just didn't provide the stability she needed.  The next method was Bekah holding the handle bars and walking behind E while straddling the back tire.  This worked, but it didn't give E the opportunity to learn to balance for herself.  The seemingly best method was with me walking backwards in front of her with my hands on either side of the handle bars and barely pushing back just when she started to tip.  She really did great.  I'm sure it won't be long before she'll be riding that bike on her own.

Balance is critical when learning to ride a bike.  It's the same when seeking to meet a goal.  Bekah and I were just talking about having balance in a diet when trying to lose weight.  It's really tempting to just eat an insanely strict diet and completely cut out certain foods.  The problem is unless you are going to keep that up after you lose weight, you will have trouble maintaining your weight loss.  It is also tempting to simply fill all of your calories with one food you really like.  Sure, if you limited your calories, and only ate Doritos (I know, I know, a Doritos diet does sound absolutely amazing!) to meet that calorie intake you would still lose weight.  The problem is that you would also be lacking nutrients you need.  I mean we all had that friend that ate chips and drank Diet Mountain Dew for each meal while staying a skinny as a pole.  They probably weren't very healthy and if it continued they would eventually get really sick.  My goal has been to find the balance of eating nutritious, tasty food, while limiting calories to lose weight.  I really like food.  I wanted to learn how to balance enjoying the foods I eat while monitoring my intake.  I also wanted to find the discipline to avoid overeating and to work out each day.  So I've balanced my calorie intake with a regular workout, and if you look at my tracker each day you'll see that I'm not just eating celery and carrot sticks.  I still eat pizza and other tasty foods, I just limit the amount and frequency that I have them.  I am learning to have balance in my diet, and it's helping me lose my butter half.

My intake was great today.  Bekah made a really good breakfast, we had left over grilled food for lunch, and then finished the day off with a salad.  I did have a few sweet things, but really limited the amount.  I got a full workout in before church this morning, and really felt great all day.  I think I need to start working out each morning.

Day One Hundred and Seventy-Eight - PB&J, UK Basketball, and the Two Most Adorable Kids Ever!

Bekah had an all day event today (if you haven't talked to her about Plexus yet, you really need to do it ASAP), so I got to spend the day with my munchkins.  We had a blast!  I was able to eat breakfast with B because E woke up extremely late (around 10:30!!!).  Then right before E woke up, B feel asleep for a nap.  This gave me the opportunity to sit with E while she ate breakfast.  The rest of the day was filled with coloring, Paw Patrol, Rusty Rivets, UK basketball, making faces, a few tears, and more.  We ate scrambled eggs (Omelet for me!), bacon, PB&J, apples (with more PB), bananas, veggie straws, and a gummy worm (or two).  Hanging out with these two blessings really reminds me of why I made the decision to make drastic changes with my health.  I can't wait to see what God has in store for their lives!  Here are a few photos of our day.  These pictures represent a few of the reasons I'm losing my butter half.

My calorie intake today was perfect (I mean come on, when you get PB&J for lunch you know it's going to be a great day for dieting).  Also, while B was napping and E was watching Paw Patrol, I got to knock out a full workout!  It really was a good Saturday! 

Day One Hundred and Seventy-Seven - Great Start to the Weekend

There is nothing like the feeling of leaving work on a Friday.  After a long week it doesn't matter how much you enjoy your job (which I do), there is something relaxing about heading home to be with family and/or friends.  The weekend for me is always a great opportunity to rejuvenate as well as get in some great workouts.  The hardest part of the weekend for me is not being lazy.  When you've been working all week, it is so easy to just plop down in an easy chair and veg out.  I'm not saying that doing that isn't necessary every once in a while (we all need those days where we do nothing but rest), I just hate seeing an entire weekend pass without taking advantage of the time we are given.

We had some good friends over for dinner tonight.  It was really great to hang out and talk to them.  Also, it provided me the opportunity to grill some more chicken and vegetables.  I would have to say that for Bekah and I, hosting is one of our favorite things to do.  It's really cool to see the differences in the food choices (or at least the amounts I eat) when we host now.  I really want to have someone over and make our grilled pizza for them.  I think I've come far enough along our journey to make my grilled pizza and not overdo it.  Maybe I'll make it for one of you reading this?  It really is a privilege to play host, and an honor to have friends to come dine with us.  I'm so grateful for a wife who enjoys it as much as I do (and a daughter who loves having people over).  It's been a great start to the weekend, and I'm losing my butter half.

I had another good day for calorie intake.  I did have a cookie after dinner, but overall I was very pleased with my day.  I didn't exercise tonight.  I am absolutely beat, so I will make sure I make up for it tomorrow!

Day One Hundred and Seventy-Six - Weigh in #25 - Chocolate-Covered Strawberries are the Devil

I'm not going to lie.  This morning's weigh in was disappointing.  At my last weigh in I was 278 lbs. even.  I was really hoping to be down at least two more pounds from last week.  I know that I did not do a great job the last few days, and allowed myself several sugary treats (chocolate-covered strawberries, ahem! ahem!).  I'm starting to wonder if myfitnesspal has the calorie value correct for the strawberries.  I thought I had done enough on Tuesday and Wednesday to get myself back on track to have lost my goal.  So where did I end up?

When I weighed this morning I was a little disappointed.  I didn't go the wrong direction, but I didn't lose as much as I need to be losing.  I am down another 1 lb. from last week.  This brings my total amount lost to 89.2 lbs., with a current weight of 277 lbs.  Don't get me wrong, I am glad that I at least lost another pound.  I am happy to have avoided gaining or maintaining.  I also know that for some people losing a pound in a week is a lot.  The problem for me is that I don't feel like I'm in the one pound a week territory yet.  I know I should still be losing at least two pounds per week.  Losing two pounds over two weeks means that I am now a week behind.  Here is what I'm going to do.  I'm not going to give into the frustration.  I am going to make sure to avoid the sugary sweets that hindered me this week (no more of those devil strawberries), and be very specific about what I put in my body this next seven days.  Like I said last night, if I allow the frustration to take hold, I will put myself in a position to give up.  I'm not giving up.  On the contrary, I'm just getting started.  I will lose my butter half.

My calorie intake today was really good.  I avoided extra sweets and stayed within my calorie goal.  I've had a pain like I've pulled a muscle or bruised a bone on the right center of my chest, so I rested a lot tonight.  I did complete a moderate workout on the bike still, so I feel great about that.