Honey Badger Friday

Weight on 9/16/11: 269.5 lbs...-5 lbs since 9/9/11

Hey everyone!

First off, I'm happy to report that I am DOWN 5 POUNDS from last Friday Morning!

Now, I have to confess that after a work week of being good, I took kind of a "day-off" today and went into "honey badger mode" when it came to my food.  I just didn't, as the infamous Honey Badger Video on YouTube goes, "give a s***" today.  I actually started off with my usual breakfast: Egg Beaters on Ezekiel Bread with a slice of cheddar.  But then, I got derailed at work today.  They had this little college-football-themed carnival today in the courtyard of my office complex (where, incidentally, I won a $10 Subway gift card for knowing that Notre Dame had more players in some Hall of Fame, which was really a complete guess because I'm not exactly a huge sports buff, but I digress...).  Well, lo and behold, they're serving burgers and hot dogs and desserts, and, well, I partook.  A good bit.  The sad thing about it is that I kind of rationalized it by saying "well, I've lost 5 pounds.  I could treat myself just this once."  But it kind of led me down a slippery slope for the rest of the day...

It didn't help that I capped off the day with a trip to Taqueria del Sol for my usual dinner there of one fish taco, one fried chicken taco, and one memphis (BBQ) taco, with a cup of shrimp and corn chowder.  Not exactly a Lean Cuisine.  And furthermore I stopped off at Menchie's, but at least that's frozen yogurt and not ice cream.  But I still could've skipped that last stop altogether.

At the end, my eating today was far from ideal, but hey, even Body for Life allows you sort of a "cheat day" once a week.  Realistically, I highly doubt that I'm going to gain those five pounds back from just one day of maybe not eating the best foods.  But I do know that I have to be more cognizant of what I do eat from now on and I shouldn't rationalize a day of semi-gorging myself because I've lost weight.  But at the same time, this is more of a minor setback, really.  One thing I've learned about trying to lose weight is that it's all basically trial and error.  As long as I re-engage in good habits again first thing in the morning, I know I'll continue to be successful. 

Alrighty.  Back to healthier eating and hitting the gym in the AM.

The First Two Days

Hey everyone,

So I've been dieting and exercising for the last couple of days, and so far so good!  I haven't given into unhealthy cravings and I'm actually feeling better about myself for not eating all these things I don't need.  The six smaller meals thing is working out well too and I don't find myself as hungry as I was on the whole three square meals thing.  I've also been doing well with my workouts.  I actually thing that getting to the gym will be a bigger challenge than dieting actually.  It's not even because I mind exercising.  I actually enjoy it.  It's the whole finding time and actually making my way to the gym that will be an obstacle that I need to overcome.

Honestly, I don't have too much to say except that things are going well and I just thought that I'd keep you posted.

Tres

I can do this. I can do this. I can do this.

Weight on 9/9/11: 274.5 lbs*

I was urged by a friend of mine to write another post.  I was planning to, of course, but things have been so hectic this past week that I haven't had time to devote to writing another entry until today, so here goes.

So, I just got back from Athens for the UGA/South Carolina game and for what I hope will be my last weekend of gastronomical debauchery for the last time until December 2.  It may be tough.  Thanksgiving and this trip to Orlando I have planned with a good friend may put a slight wrench in the gears, but I have to go into this realstically.  I may have to have the occassional burger every once in a blue moon.  I just have to keep from making it a habit and not look at myself as a ruined person just because I went to the drive-thru line.

Anyway, my diet plan:  Tomorrow's the first day officially of the diet and I'm trying the whole "six smaller meals" thing.  Now, I'll be honest.  I'm "Mr. Three-Square-Meals".  But apparently the six smaller meals boosts your metabolism and makes you less hungry.  That remains to be seen, in my case:

So here's what tomorrow will look like:

Breakfast -- Two slices of Ezekiel Bread toast and 2 eggs

Mid-Morning Snack -- GNC Lean Protein Shake

Lunch -- A Lean Cuisine (I have a few in the office freezer I need to get rid of)

Mid-Afternoon Snack -- Fruit Salad and Yogurt

Dinner -- Salmon and Sauteed Veggies

Evening Snack -- ? (Hopefully not high-tailing it to Chick-Fil-A...)

Give me strength...

* So, this is my true weight.  I will admit that the 280.5 mentioned in the last post was me weighing myself at night and with clothes on.  The 274.5 from this past Friday is me first thing in the morning and in a more "natural" state (sorry for the image).  I just wanted to clear up the 6-pound difference before people start congratulating me.  But from now on, I will consider 274.5 my official starting point on this journey.

280.5 lbs. Absolutely Unacceptable.

So, I'm about to do this "Biggest Loser" competition for my fraternity's alumni chapter that starts next Friday.  I think it'll be good because it'll give me some accountability.  And goodness knows, as evidenced in this picture, I haven't been doing the best job at taking care of myself for the last several months since I moved back home.  Part of me wants to blame my mom because she's like having my own personal Paula Deen, but I can't kid myself.  I don't make the healthiest decisions when it comes to what I put in my mouth and working it off.  I could cut out the breakfasts at Chick-Fil-A and the lunches at Willy's.  I could eat smaller portions at dinner.  I could make about 4-5 trips per week to the gym I pay good money for each month.  Basically, I could be doing, well, better.

This is actually kind of heartbreaking because it's just one pound shy of where I started when I did Weight Watchers 7 years ago.  I worked really hard and it took a long time for me to drop like 75 pounds.  And now I've gained it all back.   All I know is that I've got to do better.  I need to spend the next week mentally preparing for my 12-week journey back into my old Levi's.  And in doing so, I decided to start myself a little blog to make a daily journal of my efforts.  So, I hope you can join me as I go along and perhaps even offer some words of encouragment and advice, because goodness knows I could use it.

The best of luck to myself...

Tres