Another long time between posts

Well, since last time I posted, my new elliptical that I bought used on Craigslist died, so I joined a gym. Planet Fitness to be exact. $1 to join and $10 per month! If you have one close, I highly recommend them! I'll post soon with scale pics, but for now I'm still 307. At least I havent gained.Time to get serious again.

Holy crap it's been awhile

And yet I'm still working out and eating pretty good. I only really took off the week my dad died, and it was just because I was so busy planning his stuff and hanging out with family.
The contest was over on 6-17 and I weighed in at 307.0. Not too bad for not working out a week prior. I suspect if I didnt have 2 deaths in my family during the contest I would have reached my goal to be under 300.
Even with the contest over, I'm not stopping. I still have a long way to go to get to my final goal. Hopefully I'll be better about posting and putting up pics of my weigh ins. Until the next post, peace out yo

Finally back in the swing of things...

Back from my Granny's funeral in Tn and back at work with a full work week. I know I've been MIA, but rest assured I'm here and have been working out. My days  have changed though, Monday - Friday now with Wednesday being my straight cardio day. I have found that being out of town on Wednesdays, its easier to do cardio. Every hotel has some sort of cardio machine, but not a whole lot of weight machines. Weigh in days are going to change too. Either Tuesdays or Fridays, not sure yet.

4-19-10 Weigh In

Well just as I suspected, up by 1.8 pounds. Not much to say other than I have to work harder.

First workout this week....

and I wonder why it is so much harder than the rest. I only had one day off this week and still, it was difficult. Oh well, it's in the books and ready to start another week.
I'm not looking forward to tomorrows weigh in. It's been a stressful week. My Granny died and just the few days leading up to it were a little difficult. She had brain cancer for the last 2 years and while we were all ready for her to go, it still was difficult. On top of that I was on call this past weekend and that means I usually dont make the best choices with food. I didnt go all out and eat like total crap, but I could have eaten better. This week doesnt look any better either. We are leaving Friday to go to Tn for my Granny's funeral. I'll still work out and eat the best I can, but you know how it is on the road.
Anyway, good or bad the scale pic will be up tomorrow.

4-12-10 Weigh In.....

Another good week! That makes a total of 12.8 pounds total lost since the end of February.

Last workout of the week thoughts.....

Even with my good weigh in on Monday, I have been very unmotivated this week. Maybe because my boss was off this week? Maybe because I got 2 new contracts this week? I have no idea. I do know that it trickled down to my workouts. Dont get me wrong, I did them anyway and did it hard to boot. It was just difficult to get started.
I guess that will be the case from time to time. One thing I did feel though t the end of every session this week was a huge sense of accomplishment!
Crazy the range of feelings and emotions this whole journey has brought out in my.
Now to my buddy JJ. Happy birthday and congrats on finishing up your MBA this week!

See ya'll Monday or maybe sooner

4-5-10 Weigh In....

As you can Imagine, I'm pretty stoked about this weigh in. That makes 9.4 total pounds lost since I started! almost 10% of what my goal is. I'm right where I want to be, losing fat slow and steady while adding muscle at the same time! I think the extra day of cardio helped out as well, so I'll keep that going.

The end of another workout week.....

And I'm damn tired. I did not want to work out at all tonight, but I sucked it up and did it anyway. I had already had a workout this morning loading up 200 helium cylinders int cages that hold 20 each for a shipment to Greenland (yes Greenland). In case you're wondering, they are going to a weather station in Greenland to fill weather balloons. It's a $54k sale that I get a couple times a year and I have to help the driver to make sure it doesnt get screwed up. After that, it was back to the house for a shower, then up to Fredericksburg to make sales calls. Needless to say I was tired when I got home. No inspiring words this week, just a kick in the ass for you people wondering if you should get healthy. Quit screwing around! work on it for you and your family! If thats not enough, when you're old and fat you will have to rely on government run health care thanks to The idiot in the white house. Do you really want to depend on the government for that?
Hopefully, I'll be on the boat tomorrow afternoon and relax for a while. Until Sunday.... Later

First straight cardio workout

Well, I started my cardio on by day off today, and it wasnt bad. 15 minutes of hard elliptical work with no break is a tad bit different than 5 minutes then weight and back to the elliptical though. It will take a few weeks of building up my endurance, but I will get to where I can do it for an extended period of time. BTW, I weighed myself this morning, and I was at 316.0. I dont know what it is about Monday's weight, but it is what it is.

3-29-10 Weigh In

To say I'm disappointed is an understatement. I know I want and need to have slow and gradual weight loss, but this is ridiculous!! I'm adding another day of nothing but cardio on Tuesdays, so maybe that will help.
I know I'm getting smaller, because the elastic on my fat boy pants aren't stretching  anymore when I put them on, meaning my waist is smaller. I just wish it would show up on the scale. I also wonder how much muscle I've added as opposed to how much fat I've lost. If anyone has an idea on how to figure that out, let me know.
Thanks for looking and following.

End of the week thoughts

Instead of my last work out of the week being yesterday, it was today. I just had too freakin much to get done.
 It's been a hell of a week. Got a decent contract at work, my oldest daughter Zoe, broke both of her arms last Saturday and my mom wrecked her car. Through all of this, I have done pretty well food wise. Still eating salads for lunch except once this week. Still no fast food. No sodas. It's becoming habitual now and I'm not having to work quite as hard to eat well. I still have cravings, fried chicken this week but havent caved. I'm pretty proud of myself.

I have also decided this week that on my off day during my workout week, I'm going to hit the elliptical. I dont know how long yet, but my endurance and strength has built up enough to do it.
It's now time to get ready for a relaxing yet busy weekend. I have family  coming over Saturday and Sunday.
Ya'll have a great weekend and check out the blog Monday for weigh in results!

3-22-10 Weigh In

As promised, here is my Monday weigh in. I am a little disappointed to be honest. No change since last week. I know my weight will change from day to day and I also know I am putting on a lot of muscle (I can really fell them toning up even through the fat), but to be exactly where I was last weigh in I dont think is good. I will not give up and I will not dwell on it. I know I am making progress that I can see and feel! Others can see it too, so its all good yo!

Last workout of the week thoughts

As I've been working out and focusing on bettering what I eat (today doesnt count with the NCAA tourney. While it wasnt bad it still wasnt that healthy) I have been thinking about one word...... Revolution.
One of the songs that is on my workout play list is "That Was A Crazy Game of Poker" by O.A.R.  While the song is about just that, a poker game, there is a line in the song where it talks about a revolution. So while the crowd is all singing about a revolution, I just kept thinking about how what I'm doing is a revolution in my own life.
We all have things in our lives that we need to start a revolution with. Some are public and some are private. The key is to have the courage and conviction in your own life to do it. More so this week than since I've started my revolution I have wanted to cheat for no good reason other than to satisfy my own cravings. I havent given in except for a beer and 6 boneless wings at BW3 this afternoon. (like I said, NCAA tourney) As odd as it sounds, I just keep thinking about this dumb blog that no one reads to keep me straight. Like I said when I first started, it is about me for me.
I hope next week these cravings let up a little bit.








.

The new elliptical

Tonight was the first night I worked out on my new elliptical and all I have to say is it kicked my ass!! It was all I could do to finish my routine. I'll put up some pics of it as soon as I get them. I know y'all are dying to see it!

Goals...

So unless you're an idiot, I think you know what my goal is. The thing is that goal is a long way off. I am losing my weight the healthy way. A change in what I eat, a new outlook on food, and exercise with weight and cardio training. I am not giving in to the surgeries, quick gimmicks, or anything else. My weight loss will be done with hard work. That means it will be a slow process. With that slow process, it would be very easy to get discouraged, so I'm setting small goals.
My first goal you ask?? Getting below 300. In my mind I'm so close I can taste it! And when I get there, what will I do to celebrate? Set a new goal, not go stuff myself on some kind of food that may make my mouth feel good, but could start to destroy what I've earned.
Every morning when I look in the mirror to get ready for work, I winder what I'm going to look like 100 pounds lighter. It's super exciting!! Until I get there though, I will keep making small goals all along the way.

First official weigh in

So, I started at 323 and here is where I am now. Not too bad!

So my mom says......

Doug, if you lose 100 pounds, I'll take you shopping for new clothes to the tune of $1,000! Not a bad deal at all. She doesn't think I will do it, but that's just even more motivation for me!!

On a side note, my step grandfather in Georgia had a pretty massive stroke. Unfortunately, he happened to be taken to a hospital where they have a pretty invasive stroke program. So instead of letting him be comfortable and pass away peacefully they have managed to keep pretty much a vegetable alive for God knows how long. Most of you that know me know my dad had a pretty massive stroke 5 years ago, so I know the hell they will be going through if Ralph comes home alive. Anyway, keep my grandmother and the rest of the commune (it pretty much is with all the family down there) in your thoughts. If he comes home, nothing will be the same for them. I speak from knowing all too well. Even more motivation to keep a healthy lifestyle!!

No pics, sorry

So it may not be the best thing to post pics on a Friday. Looking at my calendar, Fridays are not great. I think I will do them on Mondays. I can tell you that my weight has moved up and down. I think I'm down 4 pounds but I'm not making that official yet. The official number will be out on Monday.

Cheat days are for pussies

As I have started my journey, I have had a ton of advice from well meaning people on my diet. A lot of them have told me I should have a "cheat day". A day where you eat whatever it is you want. I ask you, if you smoked for 20 years then quit, how beneficial would a cheat day be? Ask the recovering drug addict or recovering alcoholic if a cheat day is a good idea. A little extreme you say? I've gone overboard? You make your excuses, call me crazy, whatever you want. But I guarantee that if you have a cheat day, your chances of slipping back into your old eating habits will be huge.
I refuse to have a cheat day. I have a totally new view on food that will not be the same ever again. If you are serious about not only losing weight but also your overall health you will learn not to have a cheat day too.

Starting week 2.....

As I post this I have just finished my first workout for week #2 on my journey. I can honestly say that on my 2 days of rest I missed working out and kept wondering to myself if I should do something on the elliptical or something else. I chose not to keeping with the workout routine I'm following. Maybe as my endurance builds up and I get stronger I'll do some cardio on those days, but not right now.

My world view of food is changing big time. I had a buddy of mine that I have known since we were 8 years old email me when he saw what I was doing. He too had put on weight over the years. While I dont remember him being nearly as big as I was in school I believe the years after high school had caught up with him. We lost touch over the years and like so many others kind of reconnected via Facebook. He told me his story and what he had done and one of the things he said that has been sticking with me is that his lifestyle was "a slow suicide". I've been thinking about that statement a lot as my lifestyle has been the same thing.
The biggest thing I have learned this week is that this is not just about a bet, not about losing a little weight or even going on a diet. This for me is a complete lifestyle change.
I had to run a call at work this weekend because I happen to be the lucky guy on call. My weakness as I was running calls or driving a truck for that matter was fast food. I passed all of my former death camps and the thought of stopping almost made me sick! Three weeks ago I would have stopped at even the thought of being hungry! One thing I know is that I cant go back to the way I was living. I refuse to!

What I want to do....

Putting all this stuff down in a blog quite honestly is to help me out. If it helps anyone else out that reads this, that's an added bonus. I have seen it in my own life how seeing someone else with the same issues overcoming theirs helps me out. If this blog helps you, great and please share..... but it's mostly for me to track my progress.
You will see that I have an odd sense of humor and I am NOT politically correct. Some of what I say may offend you. I'm not sorry about it, just realize other people think, act, and say things different than you might. Anyway..

Every Friday, (not including today) I will have a weigh in with a picture to show I'm not lying. It will be done on the big scale at my office in Richmond. If I am not in the office that day, I will put it on the blog and get it done as soon as possible.

I work out 4 times a week using a Bowflex routine that consists of 5 min cardio on an elliptical then an exercise on the Bowflex. I do that for 4 cycles during my workout. Sunday and Monday I work out, rest Tuesday, again Wednesday and Thursday, rest Friday and Saturday.

As far as my diet goes, I have cut out all fast food and sodas.I was looking on the McDonalds website at the "snack" I used to get during the day and I almost puked! 1000 calories!! I am not calorie counting ye. That time may come, but right now it's eating fruit,salad with home made olive oil and balsamic vinegar dressing, almonds, and a decent dinner. No fried foods at all. Not to mention portion control.

The first post.........

I'm 35 years old and weigh 323 pounds. That's morbidly obese. I play it off most of the time, but I don't like my image. I have tried many times to change the way I look. I've started exercise programs, joined a gym, bought work out equipment. All of that I have done over the years and guess what? I'm still a fat ass.
So on a bet from work, I decided to lose weight. To make a long story short, the loser of the bet has to wear a wifebeater and jeans out to Olive Garden while the others laugh at him. I decided to join the bet, much to the surprise of everyone at work.
While I was trying to figure out how I was going to accomplish my weight loss, I found multiple people in my same shoes that have lost 100 pounds and even much more than that! I thought to myself that I could do that!
You see, every time I went to the gym, I got advice from people that have always been fit, not a slug like me with the same struggles I have. It's hard to relate to someone like that.
Back track to all the fatties I saw losing all this weight online. They all have been through the same crap I have in the past. Wanting to lose the weight, but never following through. Now a lot of them have and you know what it did? Gave me hope that I can do the very same thing!
So here I start. On blood pressure and cholesterol meds, borderline diabetic, and pretty damned unhealthy. Where I end up will be 100 pounds lighter at least and off my meds. Able to shop and buy the clothes I want. Able to ride rides at Busch Gardens with my kids. Alive to see my 3 girls get married and have kids of their own.
Here I go!!!