Still Losing Weight
Sorry for the absence over the last week or so. Something went wrong with the webhost I am using for this blog and it messed up how I could login. I just was able to get back in tonight.
But, just a real quick update on things:
First, I dropped another pound over the last week, so still making my way back down. It feels good. Like anything, I wish it was faster. I wish I could have lost about 10 pounds by now over the first few weeks. At times it feels like I’m doing more than enough to lose the weight, but it is slow to come off.
Second, I did something to injure my right knee again. I heard it pop when I was running last Monday. I was stepping up onto a curb and my ankle rolled outward, and the inside of my knee popped. It took me off my training schedule of the half-marathon in March, but I still plan on doing that, even if I have to walk most of it, I’m not going to let an injury stop me.
Third, I am continuing to explore some major health and wellness things. Last year I did two separate cleanses. They went “okay.” I never got around to taking things further, but this year I want to change that.
I am planning a pretty focused 30 day detox, cleanse, and health program. It is going to involve three main things:
Food – I am going to be focusing on natural and organic detoxification diet for 30 days. This will mean the elimination of things like processed foods, soda, refined foods, etc. It is going to take some planning, but I have a couple of friends who have done this and they say it is pretty incredible how it makes you feel as your body goes through this cleansing and detox. I’m also going to be stepping up with some pretty specific supplements during this.
Faith – During this time I am also going to be focusing my faith, reading my Bible, praying, and listening to Christian music. I want to have a detox for my faith and brain as well.
Fitness – I am going to be putting forth a 30 days fitness program, exercising for at least 30 minutes a day for 30 days.
I will have more details in the days to come as I spell this out. Naturally, I’m sure I will be losing weight during this, but the main purpose is to do a detox… getting rid of, eliminating, and otherwise getting out of my body the toxins that have built up over the years.
Losing weight is great, and it is the beginning of being healthy. But, I also want to make sure my body is working well and the cells of my body are working together optimally.
I’ll be sharing some of the individual things… I think it’s gonna be great!
A Positive Spin
I don’t know about you, but I can be pretty hard on myself. When I have had a bad day on my diet, a bad week, or maybe a bad month or two (see my post on January 26, 2012 for a bad month or two), I can get negative and beat myself up over it.
Being negative about what went wrong on Weight Watchers doesn’t help. In fact, it tends to make you stay on a negative path:
- I’ll never make it.
- I guess it was just not meant to be.
- It doesn’t work for me.
- I guess I’m just gonna be heavy.
- I like my butt big, my jeans tight, and wearing XXL.
That’s all just a bunch of crap. Here’s the truth:
- You’re gonna have a day now and then when you blow your points. So what. Get over it and start the next day back at zero points
- You do feel better and look younger when you don’t have 30, 50, or 80 pounds of blubber hanging over your belt and strapped around your thighs.
- Your heart loves it when it doesn’t have to work as hard because your blood pressure, cholesterol and triglycerides are too high.
- Your body loves it when you’re not cramming prescription medication down your throat to control all of the weight-related diseases.
- Sex is a whole lot better when you weigh less than when your fat… Period. Fact. Truth. And how about an AMEN!
- Buying skinnier clothes just plain feels good.
- Crossing the finish line at a race… sigh… it doesn’t get much more satisfying
I could go on… but the main thing is… STOP being so darn negative. Find something positive. Here’s what I found:
2011 was the first year, possibly since I was born, that I weighed less at the end of the year than at the beginning. It was the first year in my life that I actually lost weight instead of gained it!!
It is never too late to do well with Weight Watchers… never. It’s a new day. It’s a new day. Points start over at zero.
Lost 2 More Pounds
On Weigh In Day, I was down to 260 lbs. I was hoping for a bit more, but it’s two more pounds lost, so at least I’m going in the right direction 
Feeling better than I was 2-3 weeks ago, that’s for sure. I know that Weight Watchers puts you on a program of losing 2-3 pounds per week, so, I guess I’m on track then. While there are times I want the quick results, if I’ve learned nothing, it is that the quick results don’t last and those kinds of diets are not sustainable.
I put up the graphic of the Plan Manager from Weight Watchers, showing from when I started in February 2011, my trek downward, until it started to come undone around Thanksgiving, or a bit after that. You can click on the image to make it bigger and easier to see.
My blood pressure was down a bit too, which is very good.
- Weight: 260
- Blood Pressure: 140/84
I would recommend going to the store and buying a blood pressure cuff. For me, I is very necessary. The machines at the grocery stores are not that accurate, and this way you can do it at home.
My Exercising
I got my butt out the door and running again. I ran a total of 16.22 miles this week. It felt good. It wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be. The first day was, but the other days it wasn’t too difficult. It was hopeful that I can quite possibly be in shape for the half marathon a the end of March.
I also did my Bowflex a couple of times. Overall, I did 32 activity points for the week… not that that really matters. It all depends on how you interpret what you did. I chose my activity as a moderate intensity instead of high. When it’s all said and done (as I’ve said before), the activity points seem to be meaningless, except to show you actually moved.
Well, I’m off to church, and then to get ready for the Super Bowl tonight.
Rich
Smart Ones Waffles Review
I tried the new Smart Ones Waffles with Turkey Sausage breakfast this morning… blah!!
It looked promising, but after cooking the two whole grain waffles in the 2 layer crisper in the microwave, pouring over the tablespoon of syrup they give you, it was worse than eating cardboard.
I would have been better off going out in the garage and eating a cardboard box and pouring 7 points worth of sryup down my throat.
The flavor would have been about the same as well.
The only flavor in the meal was the syrup.
the two turkey sausage links are about half the size they show in the pictur on the box, are mostly flavorless, and not a way I want to waste proteins in the future.
Smart Ones Waffles with Turkey Sausage – 7 Points Plus
One of the things that irritated me as well is that it was 41 grams of carbohydrates. I should have read that in the grocery store, but I just ready the point value only. Not all point values are created equal.
Anyway, just throwing this out there. I like the Smart Ones French Toast. The Waffles is a bust.
My 2012 Exercise Goals
Just checking in half way through the week. I’ve been back on Weight Watchers now for a week… and feeling very good. My clothes are already starting to fit a little better again, and I definitely have more energy.
I made a change to my exercising. I said I was going to walk and hike for February, maybe February and March, and start running again after that. I couldn’t help myself. I had to get out and run.
On my desk, just to the right of my monitor, is my medal and bib number from the half marathon last November. I began going back through things, and made some decisions regarding my exercise goals for 2012. I began to evaluate what I wanted to do this year.
My 2012 Exercise Goals
I’m laying this out there to be held accountable for my words. For most of my adult life I have had 3 things I said I wanted to do: run a marathon, sky dive, bungee jump.
This year I am going to do two of those!!
1) I am going to run the San Antonio Rock-n-Roll Marathon on November 11, 2012. That is a long way off, but I want to run it, and run it well. I want to run it with a solid performance, and not run the first 3 miles and walk the last 23.2 miles.
To prepare for this, I am going to run the Dallas Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon on March 25th and the Chicago Rock-n-Roll Half Marathon on July 22nd. I’m also going to be running some 5K, 10K, and 20K races as well.
With the first race on March 25th, I’ve got to get my butt back in shape. I started running this week, rather than waiting. I have about 8 1/2 weeks until this race, so I need to get my mileage back up again.
All of this is to help me reach my goal of the full marathon in November. I’ve also been scoping out the Disney marathons, but those are kind of hard with my kids’ school.
BTW, I don’t have any big thing for the Rock-n-Roll series of races. In fact, they are a bit over crowded, but they are done pretty well, the timing of the races is good, and I like the medals you receive when you cross the finish line. There’s a lot of pride in getting those medals!
2) I’m going sky diving on my birthday in May. The reason this is an exercise goal is that a) you must be below a certain weight to sky dive (250 lbs), and b) you need to be somewhat physically fit to jump and land. I want to be well below that weight. I don’t want to drop like a rock from 1.5-2 miles up in the air.
I know it’s only February, but I want to get my focus clear. By the end of this year I will have met two of my three “things I wanna do” list.
Tips On Getting Started With Weight Watchers
I’ve been thinking over the last week about what makes for the best start with Weight Watchers. After all, it’s about results. When the scale goes down, it keeps you motivated. When the jeans aren’t tight anymore, it makes it easier to stick with things.
The primary tip I would have is – keep breakfast easy.
In the first couple of weeks, don’t over complicate things. The harder you make it, the easier it can be to quit.
For example, about one year ago today I got started on Weight Watchers. If you look at the video I posted about a week ago about getting re-started with Weight Watchers, I realized I had to keep things basic and simple. Here’s what I did:
I went to the store and bought several Smart Ones meals, Skinny Cow ice cream sandwiches, bananas, lean lunch meat, good bread, lettuce, baked Lays chips (in the individual bags), etc. I wanted to keep things quick and easy for my meals, especially breakfast.
Here are the last 4 breakfasts I’ve had:
- Trop 50 Orange Juice, Smart Ones Stuffed Breakfast Sandwich, Strawberries – 7 Points Plus
- Trop 50 Orange Juice, Frosted Mini Wheats (24 biscuits), 2% milk (I just use enough for the cereal – I don’t drink it) – 8 Points Plus
- Trop 50 Orange Juice, Frosted Mini Wheats, 2% milk – 8 Points Plus
- Trop 50 Orange Juice, Smart Ones French Toast w/ Turkey Sausage, banana, – 8 Points Plus
Nothing complicated, but, I’m a guy. If it’s gonna take me 30 minutes to prepare breakfast, I’m out.
BTW, if you want to make the Smart Ones French Toast better, you can put some fruit over the top, like blueberries. The photo may not be real appealing, but it comes with syrup. I think it’s quite tasty.
I have found that breakfast can be the most dangerous meal of the day. It is probably the worst meal to try and eat out at a restaurant. Almost any drive through, fast food place, or even a sit-down restaurant are going to be high in points.
The primary thing is to keep breakfast easy. Eat something quick at home. Have some fruit to make it more filling. Without it, I think you can tend to be too snacky the rest of the day.
Grab yourself a bottle of water or a Skinny Latte from Starbucks, and you’re good to go.
Have a good breakfast!