Man in My Shadow

5

So last week, I had a 1.2 pound gain and as I said, I was not going to let that get me down.  I got back on track this week with the food and the gym and I lost 5 pounds!

22.25/37.25

As I mentioned in A Time to Measure , I am not just looking at my weight loss as the sole measuring stick.  When I started this, I took measurements and have been tracking my loss in size (see below).  As of my current measurements, I have lost a total of 22.5 inches between my Chest, Neck, Waist and Hips.  If you figure in my biceps, thighs and calves, it is a total of 37.25 inches.

48/3x

Man my clothes are fitting better!  When I started, I was wearing size 56 pants and a 4x/5x shirt.  Recently, I have gone shopping for a few new items and am in size 48 pants and a 3x shirt! 

40

In my Week 12 update (the Mental Game andNSV’s) I talked about my first week on the elliptical and how I started at a whopping 1 minute and made it up to a 3 minute stretch by the end of the week.  Needless to say, my cardio in the beginning was less than stellar.  I am now working out at a minimum pace of 40 minutes of cardio with 20 minutes on the elliptical and 20 minutes on the stationary bike.  This week, Sheri and I have started to add in weight training to our workout.

80

As you can see below, I am at total loss so far of 78.4 lbs.  My goal for this week is to loose at least 1.6 lbs to get me to the 80 pound mark.

16,000

In my posts The rest of the story and Thankful for good friends I discussed I was perusing getting the Lab Band surgery and that I would be what is called “self pay” since my insurance does not cover it.  In reading back over my posts, I failed to mention the $16,000 price tag to the surgery.  Well, I have not made much mention of the surgery, so I figured it was time for an update. 

After much consideration, I have made the decision to hold off on getting the surgery at this time.  The Primary reason is I do not have $16k nor am I in the place to finance the $16k.  The secondary reason for me holding off on the surgery is that at the pace I am going, I do not feel I need the surgery.  I am going to continue doing what I have been doing and keep getting healthier.

Now for my Weeks 29 updates.

Weight recap:

• Week 29 Weight – 9/4/11 – 306.4 pounds
• Week 28 weight -8/28/11 – 311.4 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

Weight loss for Week 29 – 5 pounds

Total Weight loss - 78.4 pounds

Measurements:

• Current  Measurements – 9/4/11 – Chest – 55.25″, Neck – 20″, Waist – 53.5″, Hips – 54″
• Last Month’s  Measurements 6/12/11 – Chest – 56″, Neck – 21″, Waist – 55.75″, Hips – 54.5″
• Starting Measurements – 2/13/11 – Chest – 61″, Neck – 23″, Waist – 61.5″, Hips – 59.5″
• Total Lost – Chest 5.75″, Neck – 3″, Waist – 8″, Hips – 5.5″

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Over the last two weeks I have had several victories, some on the scale and some not.  Let’s start with the scale victories since those are the easiest.  On Monday, March 30 I hit the 50 lb mark for weight loss!  That is in a little more than 15 weeks.  Now this serves as 2 milestones for me.  The first is I hit the second 25 lb loss in this journey.  The second is I am now below 335 which means that I am now able to use the Balance Board for the Wii!  That is, of course, once I find the box it is packed in. 

On the Non-scale victories, I am finally able to shop at Wal-Mart for more clothes than just underwear and socks!  On Saturday, May 28^th, we were shopping in Wal-Mart and I decided to go over and look at the workout clothes.  I have shorts and shirts I have been wearing to the gym but they are kind of thick and don’t breathe well.  I went over to see what was out there since it has been a long time since I shopped for anything like this.  I found some cool 3XL shirts and 2XL shorts and decided to try them on to see how close I was to being able to wear them.  To my surprise, almost all of them fit!  I ended up buying 2 pairs of shorts and 7 shirts.  Even now, a little over a week later I am still smiling about the fact that I fit into a 3XL

We have been fairly consistent with going to the gym.  We are going at least 5 times a week and are aiming for 6 days a week.  My endurance continues to increase on the cardio machines.  If you remember back in Week 12, I started on the elliptical at a whopping 1 minute and by the end of the week, I was up to 3 minutes straight and a total of 6 minutes that day.  In Week 13 I mentioned that I was able to increase my cardio from 15 min to 30 min.  As of today, I am up to 40 min of cardio a day and on the elliptical I’m able to do 15-20 min in a stretch.  I have been working out on both the regular and recumbent stationary bikes.  I am able to do about 20-30 min straight on the bike and my best time on each bike has been 9 miles in a 30 min time.  I am still aiming for 45 min of cardio and once I am able to do that, I will probably start branching out and adding some weight lifting in to tone and firm what is becoming a flabby body. 

I am slowly checking off things from the “Things I want to do” list I made in the beginning.  On Saturday, June 18, I will be checking one more thing off the list.  Sheri and I have signed up for the USGBC North Florida Chapter Green Run/Walk 5k.  We will be doing this walk with some of our co-workers.  I am not looking for a record breaking pace, just want to be able to say that I am able to walk a 5k.  I will try to take some pictures (and maybe a video) to post after the event!

Now for my Weeks 15 & 16 updates.

Week 15 Weight:

• Week 16 Weight – 6/5/11 – 332.6 pounds
• Week 15 weight -5/29/11 – 335 pounds
• Week 14 weight -5/22/11 – 339.8 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for Week 15 - 4.8 pounds

Weight loss for Week 16 – 2.4

Total Weight loss - 52.2 pounds

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Another week has come and gone and so have 2 more pounds!!!   

Last week, I was in the gym 6 days in a row doing around 30 min each day.  I am aiming to build up to 45 minutes of cardio a day.   I would like to say it is getting easier but I am not so sure yet

I have decided to alter my diet adding some carbs back in.  While I was trying to keep my carbohydrate intake below 30g a day, I was dropping things like fruit out of my diet because it contained too many carbs.  I am of the firm belief that carbs are not bad, it was just the excessive amount I was eating combined with the lack of exercise to burn them off that was bad.  So, I am easing some of the carbs back in until I get to a comfortable balance.

We settle on our house in a little less than a month so we will be doing some packing over the next few weeks.  Once we are moved into the new house, I will start working on getting my surgery planned.

I have some other thoughts for the week that I put into a video blog (linked below) about the overwhelming positive support I continue to receive.  I would like to thank everyone for all of the support and encouragement you give me every week!  It really means a lot to me.

Now for my Week 14 update.

Weight:

• Current weight -5/22/11 – 339.8 pounds
• Last weeks weight -5/15/11 – 341.8 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 2 pounds

Total Weight loss - 45 pounds

Measurements:

• Current  Measurements – 5/15/11 – Chest – 57″, Neck – 21.25″, Waist – 57.25″, Hips – 56.75″
• Last Month’s  Measurements 4/17/11 – Chest – 59.25″, Neck – 21.5″, Waist – 58.25″, Hips – 57.5″
• Starting Measurements – 2/13/11 – Chest – 61″, Neck – 23″, Waist – 61.5″, Hips – 59.5″
• Total Lost – Chest –4″, Neck – 1.75″, Waist – 4.25″, Hips – 2.75″

Filed under: Bariatric Surgery, Diet, goals, Health, Inspiration, Journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Other, Overweight, Personal, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Tagged: Bariatric Surgery, diet, Goals, health, inspiration, journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Obesity, other, Overweight, weight loss | 3 Comments »

I am in sensory overload at the moment.  Between work, the new house, the new lifestyle of eating healthy & exercising and the impending surgery, it is all a bit overwhelming sometimes.  This week is one of those times.  Once I sort out all of the details, I will be sure to post more.  For the time being, I will just go ahead and give you a quick summary of the week:

1. My food choices were good last week but my exercise was weak if not non-existent.
2. On Saturday, we joined a gym to increase our exercise.
3. Sunday, I ended up working out in our apartment and I was able to do 30 min of Cardio, which is about 15 min more than I was able to do before.
4. Monday, we started working out in the gym and I was able to do another 30 min (so it is not a fluke )

Now for my Week 13 update.

Weight:

• Current weight -5/8/11 – 341.8 pounds
• Last weeks weight -5/8/11 – 343.2 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 1.4 pounds

Total Weight loss - 43 pounds

Filed under: Bariatric Surgery, Diet, goals, Health, Inspiration, Journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Other, Overweight, Personal, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Tagged: Bariatric Surgery, diet, Goals, health, inspiration, journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Obesity, other, Overweight, weight loss | 2 Comments »

This week I have done a lot of thinking about the whole mental aspect of this journey.  I think about 95% of this whole battle is a mental game and not a physical one.  Weather it is the will power to avoid buying Ben & Jerry’s at the store or planning out new meal options that are better for me, I must stay mentally alert at all times.  As I said in my letter to the next generation, I spent most of my life with my brain disengaged from the decision making of food choices.  Now, I need to retrain myself to make good choices as automatic as my bad choices used to be.  In the last few weeks, Sheri and I have been working on new meal plans that would be better alternatives.  We have even come up with some new dishes like a crust-less pizza dish and a noodle-less lasagna.  In addition, I went out this weekend and bought a few new books to help teach me the right way to do things.  The way I figure it, I have had these bad habits for over 30 years, and they are not going to change overnight.  I will just have to take it one step at a time and in the end, I will be better for it all!

Now, forNSV’s

I have had several Non-Scale Victories this week I wanted to share.

• The first is the fact I felt “stuffed” twice this week from meals that would normally leave me wanting more.  Now, of course, this means I ate more than I should have in my current eating plan, but it is a good feeling my old portions sizes are now too much for me.
• The next is that I ran into several friends this week I had not seen in over a month and they all made comments on how they could see I have lost weight in my face and waist.  (YEAH!)
• Finally, I am now 2 belt notches down and if I really want to, I could be 3 notches down but it is a little snug.

 As I mentioned last week, I started a YouTube channel to do video blogs as well.  One of the people I have been watching has thrown out a challenge to her viewers to lose 15 lbs in 30 days and over 50 people have accepted the challenge.  I am one of those people.  I figured I was planning on losing more than that in the next 6 weeks so the challenge would just give me more motivation.  To “kick it up a notch” I started working out in the gym at my apartment complex in addition to my walking.  The elliptical seems to be a favorite of many people I know, because it is supposed to be low impact on the knees.  So, in addition to my tried and true forms of exercise, the bike and treadmill, I decided to try the elliptical as well.  For some reason, that machine kills my knees.  The first day I worked out, I was able to do a whopping 1 minute on the elliptical  By the end of the week, I was up to 3 minutes straight and a total of 6 minutes for the session.  Again, this will be another slow process but it is not something I can’t overcome! 

 Now for my Week 12 update.

Weight:

• Current weight -5/8/11 – 343.2 pounds
• Last weeks weight -5/1/11 – 347.2 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 4 pounds

Total Weight loss - 41.6 pounds

Filed under: Bariatric Surgery, Diet, goals, Health, Inspiration, Journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Other, Overweight, Personal, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Tagged: Bariatric Surgery, diet, Goals, health, inspiration, journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Obesity, other, Overweight, weight loss | 4 Comments »

I start a blog, I start losing weight, I have my biggest weight loss week so far (7.4 pounds) and then BAM, I stop posting.  What is up with that???  Well I have a million reasons why there was no week 10 update but none of them justify me not writing.  So that leaves the question, Where have I been?

Lets back up to last weekend.  I had a great week 10.  Got out at least once a day walking, made great choices eating and continued coming up with more and more eating options.  On Saturday, Sheri and I decided it was too hot to go walking outside so we went to the Mall and did 3 laps around it.  Normally 1 lap would be the most I could do with out either knee or hip pain, but I managed 3 with no problem.  Sunday, I decided I was going to unpack all of the boxes from the closet in the spare bedroom so I could get to the boxes of clothes in the back.  I proceeded to unpack every box of my clothes and stack them in size order.  I had shirts from 2 XL – 4 XL and pants from size 48-56 waist.  As I started trying on clothes (starting with the smallest stuff first), we took some pictures that I plan on using for progress photos as they start to fit and then get too big. 

Closet Before

Closet after

2XL and 3XL shirts, 49-52 pants

 

At this point, I need to point out a correction in a previous post.  Remember the post about the black jeans that fit?  The “first pair” of black jeans I had?  Well, in a weight induced moment of amnesia, I some how thought the size 56 black jeans were the first pair I brought.  I realized I was wrong when I unpacked the size 50 black jeans from one of the boxed and tried them on.  This still does not take away from the victory of the black jeans being too baggy now to wear, I just wanted to clarify.  Back to the fashion show I was doing.  The end result was that I came up with 4 pairs of pants that now fit and about 8 shirts that fit much better.  (YEAH, a new wardrobe!)

In addition to my non-scale victory of fitting into smaller clothes, I also had my first Milestone on the scale.  I had made 350 my first weight milestone and I hit it sometime during Week 10!  Here is my Week 10 update.

Weight:

• Week 10 weight -4/24/11 – 349 pounds
• Week 9 weight -4/17/11 – 351 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 2 pounds

Total Weight loss - 35.8 pounds

Sheri and I sat and discussed goals, rewards and my surgery over the weekend and we decided to set our next goals to be a bit aggressive.  My next goal is to lose 24 pounds by6/5/11.  This will be right before my birthday as well as right before us buying the house, which you may remember is what we are waiting on before we move forward with the surgery. 

Well, that is what I was going to post for week 10, had I done it.  By the end of Sunday, I was exhausted!  I decided I would wait till Monday to post forgetting, of course, I had plans for Monday.  Monday, after work, Sheri and I went back out looking at houses.  We viewed 7 more houses and once we got home, we talked about the pro’s and con’s of the houses and made a decision on a house we want to buy.  Tuesday night, we went thru the hoops of getting the contract written on the house etc and when I got home, I was so excited about the house I totally forgot about the fact I had not written my post.  So far, the lack of a post is understandable (at least to me )  Well, that is the end of the understandable explanations.  The rest of the week held no good reasons not to make my updates.

The week was good on an eating front, but my exercise dropped drastically near the end of the week.  The Arthritis in my hip started acting up to the point I was limping by Thursday.  I decided to skip walking for exercise on Thursday and Friday but was feeling a bit better yesterday so we decided to go mall walking again.  This time was not as fast paced but it was better than sitting on the couch doing nothing.

While we were out, we decided to purchase something I had been eyeing as a reward for my first scale milestone.  As I mentioned in previous posts, I have become a fan of video blogs on YouTube.  Well, I decided to start video blogging as well as this written blog (I have got to be out of my mind!)  To do this, we got me a new Flip digital video recorder.  I have created my intro video (see below) and posted it to YouTube and will post there every now and then.

Now for my Week 11 update.

Weight:

• Current weight -5/1/11 – 347.2 pounds
• Last weeks weight -4/24/11 – 349 pounds
• Starting weight -2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 1.8 pounds

Total Weight loss - 37.6 pounds

Filed under: Bariatric Surgery, Diet, goals, Health, Inspiration, Journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Other, Overweight, Personal, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Tagged: Bariatric Surgery, diet, Goals, health, inspiration, journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Obesity, other, Overweight, weight loss | 4 Comments »

I wanted to give everyone an update this week but did not want to tack it onto the end of the letter to the younger generation, so I will make this quick.

For exercise this week, I was able to do 30 min of brisk walking on 4 days and 15 min of brisk walking one day. 

For my Food plan, my goal was to try for 30 grams of carbs a day.  I did not even come close to hitting that goal this week but I learned a ton and Sheri and I are developing menu’s to get me close or lower than 30 grams of carbs

For my Weight loss, my goal last week was 5 lbs.  (not easy, but possible).  Well, I did not lose 5 pounds.  I LOST 7.4 POUNDS!!!!!  (Happy dance time)

Now for my Week 9 update. (and it is measurement time again)

Weight:

• Current weight – 4/17/11 – 351 pounds
• Last weeks weight – 4/10/11 – 358.4 pounds
• Starting weight – 2/13/11 – 384.8 pounds

 Weight loss for this week - 7.4 pounds

Total Weight loss - 33.8 pounds

Measurements: (I have decided to cut down on the measurements I am tracking to what seems to be the most common ones.)

• Current  Measurements – 4/17/11 – Chest – 59.25″, Neck – 21.5″, Waist – 58.25″, Hips – 57.5″
• Current  Measurements – 3/20/11 – Chest – 60.5″, Neck – 22.5″, Waist – 60″, Hips – 59″
• Starting Measurements – 2/13/11 – Chest – 60.5″, Neck – 22.5″, Waist – 60″, Hips – 59″
• Total Lost – Chest –1.75″, Neck – 1.5″, Waist – 3.25″, Hips – 2″

Filed under: Bariatric Surgery, Diet, goals, Health, Inspiration, Journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Other, Overweight, Personal, Uncategorized, Weight Loss | Tagged: Bariatric Surgery, diet, Goals, health, inspiration, journal, Journey, Lap Band, Losing Weight, Mens Weight Loss, Obesity, other, Overweight, weight loss | 4 Comments »