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.








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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.