My weight loss target that I need to achieve in order to lose 100 pounds this year is 8 lbs per month. I have just surpassed that and I still have a few days left in the month. Since I have started the early morning cardio, the weight has been coming off at a steady pace. I am still only doing about 30 minutes of exercise a day on average. Sometimes I do spend an hour at night doing the Yoga routine that I have mentioned, but only a few times a week. The Yoga is more of a stress relief thing than a workout.
Today's official weigh in: 310.4 lbs. That's 8.6 lbs for the month and 39.6 lbs for the year.
I have been compiling a list of foods that are conducive to weight loss. They are high nutrition, low calorie foods that are easy to digest. I am not sure what I am going to call the list yet. When I decide on a name, I'll post them on the blog. Last night I started to incorporate them into my diet. Ironically, I had to take off work yesterday morning to take my daughter to the doctor and take care of some business. We were short on time so we ended up eating at McDonald's for lunch.
So the first day that I want to start eating these super healthy foods, I end up eating fast food which is "the devil" ( Water boy reference). The truth of the matter is that 10 years ago, when I lost 75 lbs in 9 months, I ate fast food 2 or 3 times a week for lunch. It was just a thing of convenience. I didn't have my usual snacks yesterday. I had cereal for breakfast. For dinner I had a small portion of sirloin steak and 2 big bowls of collard greens.
Now for you collard green fans, I didn't cook them in bacon grease, which is an old Southern way of cooking greens that is absolutely delicious, but fattening as hell. I cooked them in chicken broth which is just as tasty but doesn't add a bunch of unnecessary calories into the mix. Collard greens is one of the "super" foods on my list.
I finally finished the Hoodia Gordonii info page. If you are considering using the herb as an appetite suppressant, you want to give it a looksie so that you can make an informed decision. I did a lot of research before I purchased my first bottle and you should too. My research has revealed that 80% of all Hoodia products on the market are counterfeit! Please be careful and take the time to do your homework. Click on the link under "Browse My Blog" to learn more.
I apologize for not posting the last couple of days. I was busy working on the page and attending to some of my internet marketing stuff. I am working on a new product that I am going to be launching on clickbank soon and it is a lot of work getting things ready for my potential affiliates. I am on a low budget so I am doing most of the work myself. Anyhow, back to the weight loss program.
Today's official wiegh in: 327.0 lbs. That's .6 lbs for the month and 23 lbs for the year.
The last couple of days have been fairly normal. It has been raining in the evenings so I haven't walked or road the bike. I have done at least 400 situps everyday and worked out on the Total Gym Tuesday. Yesterday I finally made the time to try the Yoga workout. The first time I watched it, my impression was that it looked like a good stress releiver…and it was. I slept like a rock last night and my body was void of aches and pains when I went to bed. I have a degenerated lower disc and my feet always hurt (because I'm a fat ass) so I it is normal for me to always have some discomfort. It is amazing how you become accustomed to certain things.
The thing that suprised me about the Yoga routine was that it was quite the workout and an exercise in balance. I took karate as a teen. When I first started karate I was amazed how bad my balance was. It became evident the first time I attempted a "cata", which is a series of moves performed as a sort of dance routine. I would have never thought that doing a series of "poses" would be such a workout. I especially like the way I felt afterwards. It had a very calming effect on the mind as well as the body.
The last couple of days my eating has been routine. A peice of fruit, carrots, or celery for both snacks and lunch. I always have a bowl of cereal for breakfast. Tuesday I had stew meat with noodles cooked in the crock pot. Wednesday we had spagetti for dinner and last night I had clam chowder and a turkey sandwich. As usual, we popcorn in the evenings.
I am starting to feel the effects of my exercise program. I am not just talking about the weight loss. I am talking about the way I feel when I get up in the morning. I am talking about the way I feel when I get home from work. I actually look foward to my exercises now. Part of it is a pscological high that comes from seeing the weight come off when I step on the scales in the morning. The rest is a physical feeling that comes from my increased energy levels which are a result of my evelvated metabolism that is brought about by my healthy eating habits and most of all the exercise itself. I am really feeling good this morning because…
Today's official weigh in: 329.2 lbs. That is 7.8 lbs for the month and 20.8 lbs for the year.
I am only .2 lbs short of my monthly target, but I am 3.2 lbs behind for the year. I slipped a little in Febuary but I think I will gain a little of it back this month. You will find that as you get a few months into your program that the weight will start to come off at a faster rate. This is due to an elevated metabolism and the process of turning fat into muscle. Muscle burns more fat, so as you increase your muscle mass by exercising, your body begins to burn more fat. I will probably end up losing about 9 lbs. this month. I would guess that will increase to about 12 or more in April. Like I mentioned earlier, I am starting to noticably feel the difference in my energy levels which is a sure sign of increased metabolism.
I am also going to start a yoga routine in April. I watched the "Yoga For Weight Loss" dvd last night and I am going to give the work out a try this weekend. I am going to have to make an adjustment in my schedule because the routine takes about an hour. It appears that before bed will be the best time to do it. It looks like an excellent stress relieving cool down. I will give you my impressions this weekend after I try out the workout. I am also going to reveal my secret weapon this weekend so make sure you check back.
Yesterday I had cereal for breakfast, a banana for mid-morning snack, a ham and cheese sandwich on wheat for lunch, and apple for mid-afternoon snack, a bowl of minestrone soup for dinner, and popcorn later in the evening. I did what is now my normal 400 situps, 200 before work and 200 in the evening. The wife and I walked to the grocery store and back which is a total of about 3 miles. That was it for the exercising. I was supposed to do my total gym, but just ran out of time. I am getting ready to launch an internet marketing product online and it is eating up most of my spare time.
Yesterday was an average day. A bowl of cheerios for breakfast followed by 100 crunches. I had a pack of cheese crackers for a mid morning snack and I drank my meal supplement for lunch. The after lunch snack consisted of a handful of baby carrots. I might have overdone dinner a little bit. My wife made rice with mixed vegetables and meat balls. I had a bowl of this but I also finished off the leftover lasagna from a couple days ago.
OK, you will have minor slips of your will power from time to time. Hopefully, they won't be major slips like eating a half gallon of chocolate ice cream. It does happen! Just don't let it happen frequently and don't let it get you down. Depression is your enemy. You must remain positive. I am weighing myself everyday because of this blog. Normally I weigh in about every 3 or 4 days. This is because sometimes you won't always lose weight everyday. This can be a pschological blow and kill your momentum. Consistency is the key here.
Today's weigh in: 336.0 lbs. That's a gain of .6lbs but don't let it get you down. We will make it up today.
Last night I put in 2 miles on the bicycle and did another 100 crunches while watching TV. We also had popcorn as an evening snack. I didn't do anything as a cool down (stress relief) and I stayed up until 1 in the morning working on my internet marketing business. I only got 5 1/2 hours of sleep. Now we could over anylize this and try to determine the cause of today's weight gain. Was it the extra bowl of lasgna? The lack of sleep? Or maybe because I didn't do my stretching or meditation? Actually, who cares. Don't sweat the little stuff. Let's just put it behind us and worry about today.
Filed under How To Lose Weight, Stress Relief, Weight Loss by 
Yesterday was Saturday, but I still got up at 6:30 in the morning. I still have a job working on automated welding equipment but I don't travel any more. I work at the companies headquarters and get to do a lot of research and development projects. I actually enjoy my job now. I don't have to be at work until 8:00 but I have always had to get up at 5:00 in the morning for the better part of my life and it is hard wired into my psyche. I haven't needed an alarm clock for years. The first think I do in the morning is take care of natures business, brush my teeth, and step on the scales.
Today's weight: 336.8 lbs
The only other person in the household that likes to get up that early is my 3 year old daughter Mary. So, I did 100 crunches on the Ab Roller while we watched the Wiggles on TV. We both had a bowl of Captain Crunch (we were out of Cheerios), a glass of orange juice, and I had 2 cups of coffee. Coffee is the one vice I have allowed myself to keep for now. I have cut down on the amount I drink. I used to drink almost an entire pot before I went to work.
I also took my vitamins. I mention this because it is an important part of your weight loss. You need to take a good multi-vitamin supplement everyday. I am not going to tell you what I take at this time because I don't want to sound like I am pimping pills and potions. Just make sure it is a reputable brand name and has a good smattering of all the B's and some of the good stuff like bee pollen, and ginseng, which will help boost your metabolism. When your body is functioning at optimum, it is burning calories even when you are at rest. Kind of like a big diesel engine when it idles. By taking vitamins everyday, you make sure your "engine" is well oiled and has the proper fuel it needs.
The rest of the day was fairly uneventful. I didn't do anymore exercise. I pretty much sat on my butt and watched TV, played with the kids, spent 4 or 5 hours working on my Internet marketing business (including getting this blog online), and started reading the latest book in the Stars Wars series that just came out last week. I have been a fanatic Star Wars fan since the first movie and have read almost every book written, which there are about 100 to date. Does that make me a nerd?
Back to business. Once everyone got up, we watched TV and my wife cooked eggs and pancakes at about 11:00. I had one pancake and a couple of eggs, chased down with a huge glass of water. Keep in mind, I drink water like it is going out of style. It helps to keep your stomach full. Whenever you fell really hungry, chug a big glass of water. It helps resist the urge to go eat something.
Later in the day, about 4:00, I had a small bowl of leftover chili. We ate dinner late in the evening around 8:00. I had one helping of lasagna and a big glass of water. Notice that I ate some pretty fattening things throughout the day. There is no reason you have to give up all of the foods you like in order to lose weight. You do need to give up things like candy bars and ice cream for the most part, at least until you reach your goal. You also need to keep your portions small. Stop eating until you your gut feels stuffed. Forget about the all you can eat buffets, unless you can restrain yourself and only hit the salad bar.
That was it except for the before bed routine that I would like to recommend to you now. Stress is one of your greatest enemies when you are trying to lose weight. I always take 15 or 20 minutes before I go to bed and unwind. I took karate when I was a teenager and learned to meditate. I also go through a stretching routine that I used to do after track practice. Stretching can be very relaxing but a little difficult when you have a huge gut. Just make sure you take it easy and never bounce when you stretch. Make a slow, easy, pull and never over do it. You will become more flexible with time.
If you want to try your hand at meditation, here is an exercise to kind of break you in. This works best if you can do it in absolute quiet. I know that this can almost be impossible unless you live in the middle of the wilderness, but that's OK. Sit in your favorite chair or on the floor, what ever is comfortable. Clear your mind of all thoughts. Let me say it again. Clear your mind of ALL thoughts. You will find that this is easier said then done because if you are thinking about clearing your mind, you have not cleared your mind. Some people like to concentrate on their breathing. Start practicing this every night for about 5 or 10 minutes. I think you will find it surprising effective.
See you tomorrow.
Filed under How To Lose Weight, Stress Relief, Supplements, Weight Loss by
