Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Five - Weigh in #52 - And Then There Were None

I did it!  I honestly don't know where to start.  In August of 2016 I made the decision to blog what I eat every day for an entire year.  It happened rather suddenly, following a kidney stone, and it didn't have a lot of planning.  Over the past few years I had tossed the idea of a daily weight loss blog around in my mind.  I just never had the guts to do it.  I mean having everyone see the food I put into my body each day was not something that I wanted to do (especially with the type and amounts of food I was consuming).  It finally clicked after the kidney stone, and I knew I had to make a serious change.  The thought to blog popped up a few times throughout the month of August.  At the end of the month my mind was made up, and I told Bekah what I was going to do.  On September first I wrote my first blog, and committed to writing each day for a year.  I honestly wasn't sure if I would be able to stick to the daily blog, but I was determined to give it my best shot.  I knew that if I was going to successfully lose the weight that I would need the accountability this blog would provide.

When I started the blog, my intention was to try to lose 116.2 lbs. in a year, and then lose the other 50 lbs. over the next three to six months.  I never imagined that I might actually be able to lose over 140 lbs. in a years time.  So when I set my goal of being down to 220 lbs. by September first, I had already surpassed my original goal.  I wasn't sure if I would be able to hit my new goal after a few slowdowns and setbacks these past two months, so I was nervous about my weigh in this morning.  When I weighed in this morning, I am excited to report that I hit my goal!  This week I lost another 3.8 lbs!  That means that I now weigh in at 219.6 lbs. with a total amount lost of 146.6 lbs.  I can't believe in one year I have lost 146.6 lbs!  I am so excited to have hit my goal!  So, as I finish my commitment to blogging daily, I want to thank each and every one of you who have been part of my accountability.  I also want to ask that you would continue to hold me accountable as I lose this final twenty pounds.  I will only be writing a post each Thursday, but I will still post my calorie tracker each day until I hit 200 lbs.  I am excited to have completed a year, and I'm ready to finish this journey, and then start the process of maintaining my new lifestyle.  I'm so excited to be losing my butter half!

My calories today were not perfect, but not bad either.  I did allow myself a few treats in celebration of hitting my goal.  Bekah made a phenomenal cheesecake with blueberry topping.  I had most of a tiny piece.  My run this morning was during a light sprinkle/misting of rain.  It was really cool to be outside with the cool air and water hitting my skin.  I really am learning to enjoy running each day.  I think this is going to be something I do the rest of my life.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Four - 'Twas the Night Before Weigh In

It's the eve of my biggest weigh in since December when I was attempting to get below three hundred pounds by Christmas.  I was able to hit that goal, and now I am doing everything I can to hit my goal of two hundred and twenty pounds at the one year mark.  Tomorrow morning I am going to step on my scale again.  It will be the fifty-second time in a row that I have done this, and I'm not sure I have been this nervous at any of them.  I am pretty nervous, but at the same time I am confident.  I did exactly what I wanted to do to put me in a good position to hit this goal.  I have followed the processes that brought me this far, and then added in a few tweaks.  I started running each morning, and even had a few two workout days with a bike ride in the evening.  I can't think of anything else I could have done to hit this goal.  So on that note, I am going to bid you good night.  Whatever tomorrow's numbers are, one thing is for sure.  It's been a heck of a year losing my butter half!

My calorie intake today was really good.  I also did a good job of avoiding extra sugar.  I was mentally prepared to avoid any unhealthy foods that they may have had at our men's bible study tonight (last year they had pizza), but thankfully they didn't have anything.  My run this morning was good.  It was a little slower than some of my more recent runs, but it felt great.  I'm hoping and praying that it doesn't rain while I'm running in the morning.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Three - The Final Countdown

I'm down to my final three days of my year commitment to blogging my weight loss journey each day.  I know last night I mentioned being unsure of what exactly my journey will look like after I complete this year.  I have a good idea of how I want to continue to lose and then maintain after I hit my final goal weight.  As of right now I plan to do a weekly blog on my weigh in day until I hit my final goal of two hundred pounds.  Each day I will still post a quick paragraph about my day and my calorie tracker.  I want to keep the accountability going until I hit my final goal.  After I hit that goal, I will raise my calories some, and continue to track my food and regularly run.  I know that the only way for me to maintain this weight loss long term is to continue to be intentional with my calorie tracking and exercise.  The method that will help me maintain is the same methods I am using to lose my butter half.

My calories today were good.  I had a few more snacks than I normally do, but overall I feel like I did well.  Bekah made a really delicious lemon salmon for dinner.  Her cooking skills never cease to amaze me.  My run this morning was great.  There is something about running in sixty-seven degree weather that is so nice.  I did push-ups and sit-ups, and then this evening I added a little time on the recumbent.  Two more days!

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-Two - Nearing the Finish, Here's Where My Mind is At

It's a frustrating thing when you only have four blog posts left to write, and you can't think of what you want to say.  Maybe it is from being over-tired.  I'm not sure, but I have been sitting here for half an hour wondering what I should say.  I really want these final posts to be meaningful and to finish my year on a strong note.  That may not be the case for me.  So tonight, I'm going to give you a brief post of where I'm at mentally.

As I'm approaching my one year mark, it is so hard to fathom what has happened during the past twelve months.  The hardest part of all of this is that there are days where I feel like I'm not sure where to go from here.  Obviously I have to continue for a little while longer to hit my final goal.  But what happens after that?  Do I keep blogging?  I will definitely continue to work out and count my calorie intake each day, but I'm not sure that I have it in me to continue with regular posts after I'm through.  One thing I have gained is respect for all the bloggers out there.  Writing a post every single day was one of the hardest things I've ever done.  So what do I do with this blog after I'm finished?  Do I try to compile my posts into a book (I'm not sure I have the following for that to be successful)?  Do I take the site down, or leave it up hoping that the occasional reader may stumble upon it?  There is also fear in my head.  I've read so much about people who have lost weight going back to old habits, and after only a few years, putting all their weight back on.  Will this happen to me?  I don't want all of this to have been for nothing.  I have to keep these good habits going even after I've hit my final goal.  I never want to go back after losing my butter half.

My calorie intake today was good.  I think I've done well this week and have a great shot at hitting my September first goal.  My run this morning was a little slower than some of my other runs, but it took a few minutes to get my legs going with the stiffness from yesterday's bike ride.  Tomorrow and Wednesday need to be double workout days.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty-One - "It's Like Riding a Bike"

We've all either said it, or have been told this at some point in our lives.  It's the saying that we use when speaking to someone about something they haven't done in a long time.  If someone says that they aren't sure they will be able to remember it, the other person will nearly always say, "You'll be fine, it's like riding a bike."  Why do they say this?  It is because for some reason, it is nearly impossible to forget how to ride a bike.  Once you have learned how, that ability doesn't go away.  I haven't ridden a bike since at least 2008 or 2009.  I have actually owned a bike (a nice bike) since 2006.  The problem is that until last night, I had never ridden it.  Someone gave us a bike for Bekah recently, and we purchased a pull-behind trailer for E and B, so we planned to go out today.  I spent last night getting the tires filled up (and replacing two inner-tubes), and the bikes ready to go.  I wasn't sure what would happen when I got on the pedals last night, but somehow I knew that I would be just fine.  Somehow, even though it's been years, I didn't forget how to ride.  In fact, I didn't even think about it much.  I just swung my leg over the frame and put my feet on the pedals.  It just came naturally.  

We went for a ride with my sister and brother-in-law and their kids this afternoon.  We rode close to five miles down near the Arkansas River.  It was an amazing day.  We hit a small rainy patch that soaked us while we rode.  The cool thing is that E and B's little bike trailer has built in rain protection.  They were happily dry in their trailer, and I was thrilled that I'm not the only person in history who has forgotten how to ride a bicycle.  I pulled the kids in the little trailer the entire time so my legs are pretty much useless.  Still, I'm glad to be back outside enjoying nature and praising God for creation.  I'm so glad to to be able to do things I couldn't do last year on this day.  I'm so thankful to be losing my butter half.

My calories were good today.  I did have a slice of pizza with my salad this evening, but I kept it to just the one.  I ran this morning (which felt great!), and then with the long ride this afternoon, I can say its been a great day for exercising.

Day Three Hundred and Sixty - A Day With My Kids

Bekah went to the annual Choir Retreat at church today, which gave me the opportunity to spend the morning and early afternoon with my kids.  It was great!  We went out to breakfast at Chick-fil-A.  Those kiddos can eat!   They polished off two chicken minis combos like it was nothing.  I had my favorite breakfast meal, an Egg White Grill.  I did have a few of their hash browns, but overall it was a good meal.  We came home for a little while and then headed out to a local park.  I was amazed by how well B climbed the stairs and went down the slides.  His grin and cackles are contagious.  Finally we went to Kroger and then came home for lunch and a rest.  We capped off a really great day with E's first fire in our fire pit.  I know the s'more didn't help me any as I'm trying to hit my goal, but when there is an opportunity to make s'mores with my kid, I'm going to enjoy it!  E thought the fire pit was amazing.  Five more days, and we'll see how close I am to losing my butter half!

I ate too many calories today.  It's pretty plain and simple.  I will regroup in the morning and make sure to finish off this final week of my journey.  I ran this morning, but I didn't get my workout in tonight.  I'll have to do better tomorrow.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty-Nine - A Lot Can Change In A Year

I went for a run around the neighborhood this morning.  I really want to try and fit at least five runs in this week.  I figure if I run that often, and ride the recumbent the nights that I've already run, then I should put myself in a good position to hit my goal of two hundred and twenty pounds on September first.  There is something amazing about morning runs.  It's very peaceful, and the weather is perfect.  Not to mention the sun rising while I'm running.  It was sixty-two degrees when I stepped out the door today.  Honestly, it may have even been a little too chilly.  It didn't take long for me to warm up and enjoy the weather.  The run was a little slower than my last run, but I was trying to focus on my form and pace more than speed.

I can't believe how amazing it is to be able to go out and run whenever I want.  Last year at this time, running to the corner of my block would have been a miracle.  If I didn't collapse from exhaustion (or worse), I would have pulled most of the muscles in my body.  To say I was in bad shape would have been an understatement.  I can now run two miles (fairly easily), and I'm planning on running in a 5K later this fall.  I've got to tell you, it's great to be losing my butter half.

My calorie intake today was perfect.  I'm doing a good job avoiding temptations and making sure not to eat extra calories.  My run was great this morning, and my workout tonight was exactly what I needed to finish off my day.  I'm ready for the weekend.

Day Three Hundred and Fifty-Eight - Weigh in #51 - This One Was Frustrating

I really don't know what to say about today's weigh in.  For fifty-one weeks I have stepped onto the scale, and for almost all of those weeks I've been happy with the results.  For the first time I can honestly say that I am actually upset with my weigh in.  Even the weeks when I went up in weight didn't frustrate me like this one did.  If you remember, I am trying to hit my September first goal of 220 lbs.  This would end my year of blogging with a total loss of 146.2 lbs., and leave me with only 20 lbs. left to hit my final goal.  After my morning weigh in, it will be amazing if I'm able to hit that goal.

When I weighed this morning, I was very surprised to see the numbers that showed up.  I didn't think I had lost much, but I was thinking it would at least be over a pound.  I was wrong.  As of this morning, I have lost another 0.2 lbs.  This gives me a total loss of 143.8 lbs., with a current weight of 223.4 lbs.  I know it is good that I didn't go up any, but I didn't eat horribly this week.  There were a few meals that I had more than usual, but nothing that should have prevented me from losing weight.  As I mentioned before, I'm pretty frustrated about this.  Especially since I was only 12 pounds from my goal back at the beginning of July.  I was certain I would hit this goal.  In order for me to hit the goal now I will have to lose at least 3.5 lbs. to be below 220 lbs.  I'm not saying that it is impossible, but it will definitely require a lot of hard work (which I'm not afraid of).  One thing I will say about not losing this week is that I did have a big drop right after being sick.  I guess once I started eating again, it balanced out some of my big loss last week.  Regardless of why, I need to have the best week ever to hit this goal.  I am going to keep losing my butter half.

My calories today were perfect.  I am going to be extremely cautious his week and make sure to give myself the best possible chance to hit my goal.  My workout this morning was good, and I'm planning to run tomorrow morning.  For several days this week, I want to double up my workout with a morning run, and an evening ride on my recumbent bike.