Taking a Plunge

So far I’ve been trying to post every two weeks, but this one is coming in a few days late. We’ve had a lot going on in our home. Several kids have been sick, as well as Bekah. I’m still dealing with my lower back issues, but thankfully with rest and the best chiropractic care, it is improving. The hard part is doing the right thing, and making the changes, but to be set back. I don’t like being out of the gym, and thanks to a fantastic online trainer I now have some workouts I can do that won’t hurt my lower back and keep the muscle I’ve built. 

I’ve also decided to add cold plunging to my routine. I know that the benefits may be questionable or minimal, but for me, the help with inflammation could be great. In the past two days my lower back feels better with a cold plunge than it did with icing it multiple times per day. And that’s only 3-4 minutes of cold plunge vs multiple 15 minute icing sessions. Other potential benefits are muscle recovery, improved circulation, immune system activity, mental well-being, and temporary metabolism increases. If nothing else, it’ll be good discipline in doing hard things (like I’m getting from learning to eat healthy, change my environment, and work out regularly). So far, other than the initial shock, it’s been very relaxing and energizing. We’ll see how it does. 

Now for my weigh in. I remained the same for one week, but when I weighed in this past Monday I was 333.6 lbs. That’s a 2.8 lbs loss from two weeks ago. So not quite the 2 lbs. per week I’m aiming for, but still anything 1-2 lbs. per week is success! I have some goals set, and the first will be to hit 25 lbs. down. I’m right at 19.8 lbs. lost right now. So I’m getting close. I’m very grateful for the accountability of my brother and good friends, and others who have been instrumental in helping me re-lose my butter half!

Welcome to Your Late 30s

 

In December of 2022 I had a small medical issue.  Nothing serious at all, but while I was at the doctor I asked him about it.  He checked it out, and let me know everything was good.  His next comment was a little bit of a reality check for me.  He said, “welcome to your late thirties.”  LATE THIRTIES! Why, I wasn’t in my late thirties.  When I got to the car I called Bekah and told her what he said.  To my shock, she chuckled (and not in a “he’s a crazy doctor” type of way) and said, “well, you are in your late thirties!” I really don’t know why, but to me late thirties meant 38 (my current age) or 39 (what I’ll be in Oct), and 35-37 were mid-thirties.  She set me straight, and I know now that I am in my late thirties, and I have all of the new issues that come with it.

It’s been a good couple of weeks. I’m now over a month into re-losing my butter half, and I am learning and adjusting to the changes I’ve put in place. Tracking my food is becoming a habit, and staying within my calories hasn’t been too hard. It took a little more effort this past week because we had family in town and it was Bekah’s and my anniversary. It’s a little frustrating to think that six years ago (our 8th anniversary) I weighed in 100+ lbs less than this year, but that just means I have the motivation to be back at that weight for our 15th anniversary. 

While the past two weeks have gone well in regard to food, I have had a set back with my workouts. I’m not sure if I did something while working out, or just being in my late 30s means I can hurt myself while sleeping. Somehow I have hurt my lower back. It started pretty light, but around Thursday it started really hurting. By Friday I couldn’t really sit much and had to stand up at my desk all day. I’ve been reclining on the couch and was able to get to my chiropractor today. If you don’t have a good chiropractor, then you need to see my good friend Dr. Dawson, in Benton, AR, at Apex Health.  I know he’ll have me pain free and back to exercising again in no time. 

Now for the update on my last two weigh-ins.  Since my last post I have done well with eating and getting more protein. The thing I was struggling with the most was increasing my steps. I was successful in that area a few days. I was able to increase to over 5K steps per day by adding a short walk after my workout, and getting up and walking around the office more throughout the day.  It hasn’t been every day (especially with hurting my back), but it should become more routine over the next few weeks.  My weigh-ins the last two weeks were very encouraging.  I weighed in today at 336.4 lbs.  That’s a 4.2 lb. drop from two weeks ago.  I lost 2 lbs. per week which is the ideal rate for me to hit my end of the year goal.  I may not hit this each week, and it will be ok.  Just like it’s ok that I am in my late thirties.  I’m still going to re-lose my butter half. 

Unmet Expectations

I know I didn’t post last week. I was planning to, but I didn’t have much to say (shocker, I know). So I guess tonight we can talk about the past two weeks. My expectations for week two were missed. In my past weight loss attempts, I’d have a pretty big drop week one, followed by a medium drop week two. It was usually an eight to ten pound drop followed immediately by a four to six pound drop in week two. This time, I dropped nine pounds the first week and then not even a pound for week two. There was a brief moment that I was discouraged by this. But I reminded myself that I had eaten right and worked out hard all week. If I didn’t lose more weight, it would be ok. I had made healthy decisions and stuck to them.

It would have been very easy to get stuck being upset that my expectations weren’t met. But I have started to focus more on making goals and creating plans to meet those goals. If the expectations aren’t met, but I’ve followed the plan, it isn’t failure. It just means my work produced a different outcome. 

So, let’s talk about week three. I made sure to follow my plan. At least four days in the gym (I had to adjust because I had a bug a couple mornings), eat at 100-130 grams of protein per day (this is tough), and eat at a calorie deficit. The last part of my plan is to walk 6,000-10,000 steps per day. That just isn’t happening yet. But I’ll get there. I weighed again this morning and came in at 340.6 lbs. That’s exactly three pounds less that last week! Bringing my total amount lost to 12.8 lbs! I hope to drop one to two pounds a week from here out. So, even if I have more weeks that don’t meet my expectations, as long as I keep putting the hard work in, I’ll eventually hit my goal of re-losing my butter half. 

It’s Been… One Week Since You Looked at Me

I can’t believe I’ve already hit the one week mark on my restart.

I really wasn’t sure how this week would go. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad. I hit the gym multiple days and stayed under calories each day. A few days it was even hard to get enough calories. I know that will change some as I drop weight, but I’m really excited about this past week. 

When you’ve accomplished something like I did seven years ago, it is insanely tough to have to restart it all again. I don’t know how many times in those blog posts I talked about it being “for good.”  Having wasted all that hard work is a real mind job. It’s emotionally, mentally, and physically tough to think about the progress I made, and where I am now. Still, I’m excited to be restarting and to have the accountability of both my brother and a good friend/workout buddy. Also, my best friend, and partner in crime, my beautiful wife is helping and encouraging me along the way. 

I’m not sure if I said where started last week or not. I had crept back up to 353.4 lbs!  I had been working out a lot this past year, but had just been out-eating my workouts. So I do believe there was more muscle to that weight than there was 8 years ago, but still… it is way too heavy. So after my first week I am happy to report that I am down to 343.8 lbs! That’s a 9.6 lb drop this past week. Now I know that is the typical “first week drop” that happens, but it was still very encouraging. I’ll probably drop 4-6 lbs. this next week, and then it should taper down to 2 lbs. per week. 

Anyway, if anyone is reading this, I appreciate your time and the accountability you provide. Here’s to another great week of re-losing my butter half!

Guess Who’s Back?

Wow, I can’t believe it’s been almost six years since my last entry. There is quite a bit I could fill you in on. In that time our family has increased by 33%. I’ve swapped companies. We’ve moved to a different home. And I’ve completely let my health go.

It’s been very frustrating. I mean the whole point of this blog was for the accountability I needed to lose the weight and keep it off. I find myself getting close to the weight I was when I first started nearly seven years ago. I have been strength training for about a year now, but I didn’t change my eating habits. So now I’m stronger, but also heavier than I was when I first started lifting. Thankfully, I have a great group of guys to keep me going there. So it’s on to the hard part. Building the habits that I had six years ago. Changing my environments, gaining self-control, and working hard towards my goals  

So today I’m starting over again. This time I have help from my brother who started with me today. I have accountability from one of my pastors and workout partners. And I want that third element back. I want to have all of you out there. I know there are others like me who have lost weight and put it back on. Maybe I can encourage you to join me as I’m going to try again to lose my butter half. 

Day Seven Hundred and Thirty-Three Through Forty-One

So I ran tonight. It’s been one days of laziness. I am amazed at how hard it was to run a 5K, but I am glad I finished it. I have to get honest and real again. I have put on tons of weight. I have to make some drastic changes to get back on track. I have to cut carbs (not entirely or permanently) for a little while, and use my Plexus products to help get rid of the cravings. I know that with hard work I can get back down into the two hundred range! Time to get my rear back in gear!

Day Seven Hundred and Twenty-Eight Through Thirty-Two

The past few days have been a little crazy. It was a great weekend with my family. We spent time at the office, at church, with friends, and most importantly, with each other as family. I missed one or two days of running, but for the most part I’ve run each day. I put in three miles today, and then spent about half an hour doing body weight workouts at a park with one of my friends. I think it’s safe to say I’ll be feeling it tomorrow!

Seven Hundred and Twenty-Six Through Twenty-Seven

The last two days have been up and down for my calorie intake. Yesterday was awesome, and then today I completely blew my diet. I’ll get back at it tomorrow and start another streak (hopefully for twenty-one straight days). My runs have been pretty good. I’m having some tendinitis pain in my left knee, so it slowed me down some. The good thing is I made a full five miler today with very little pain during the run. I know I can get this back on track. It’s just going to take a lot of discipline and hard work.

Day Seven Hundred and Twenty-Five

Today’s calorie intake was perfect! The only thing I could even point out that wasn’t perfect was that I had a slice of pizza with my dinner. The encouraging thing is that I only ate one piece! My run this morning went well. I had some knee pain, so I ended my run a little earlier than I planned. To make up for not getting in a 4-5 mile run I rode the recumbent for a little while! I’m excited to be able to say that I had an excellent day today!

Day Seven Hundred and Twenty-Two Through Twenty-Four

I know I keep missing udates. I’ve missed a couple runs and my calorie intake is definitely not good. Today I was able to get back out for a run, but it was 93 degrees with a heat index of 103 so I did t make it past 5K. Instead I came in and put 20 minutes in on the recumbent bike. I’m going to do my best to do the recumbent each day after my run this week. I have to track my food each day also.

Day Seven Hundred and Twenty Through Twenty-One

It’s late, so I’m going to give you a brief update for my day. I did really well with my calorie intake. There were a couple of things I could have left out, but as I continue on this journey, I’ll be able to eliminate bad choices again. My run this morning went well, and I put a solid workout mowing the grass this evening. I’m exhausted now, so I’m off to sleep!

Day Seven Hundred and Nineteen

My calories were definitely on the right track today! I had a few things I didn’t necessarily need, but I was much more careful than I have been these last few months. I am still fighting the temptations to gorge and stuff myself. I really don’t think that temptation will ever really go away. I just wish I hadn’t been giving into it for the past four months. I missed my run this morning, but I was able to get out and run tonight. I put in a (not so) quick 5K. It was dark so I had the opportunity to use my Noxgear Tracer360. It works great! It was very visible and bright!  I would definitely recommend it for those who run when it’s dark out. Over the run could have been better. I just run slower at night. I hope to wake up and run again in the morning.

Day Seven Hundred And Fifteen Through Eighteen

I know I’ve been hit or miss with my posts, and I’ll try to do better. I missed a few runs over the weekend, but thankfully I was able to get out this morning between rain showers. My eating has been so terrible lately, but I am working hard to get it back in check. Today wasn’t as good as I had planned, but it definitely could have been worse. Tomorrow will be better. Thankfully I have an amazing wife committed to helping me by fixing great healthy foods for me!

Day Seven Hundred and Thirteen Through Fourteen

It’s really late so I’m going to post a quick update. My runs are still going strong. I had a really good (albeit slow) 5 mile run this morning. I’ll plan on hitting the pavement for a quick 3 miler in the morning, and then 5 again on Saturday. My calories are what are killing me. I am back to some old bad habits of snacking late at night. I’m also eating foods I wouldn’t have touched last year. On top of that I’m not counting calories in myfitnesspal. I may not be going out to eat and gorging like I used to, but these are still destructive habits I need to break. I need to make some changes fast.

Day Seven Hundred and Eleven Through Twelve

My calories weren’t bad today, but they weren’t great either. I need to avoid snacking at night (a reoccurring  problem), and focus more on making wise decisions. I’ve been craving sugar a lot, and need to go a couple of weeks without it. My run today felt really good, but  it was shorter than I like. I want to get back to five and six miles being my daily normal. Anyway, it’s time to sleep. We’ll see if the rain holds off so I can run in the morning.

Day Seven Hundred and Six Through Seven Hundred and Ten

Just a quick update. I don’t think I’ve ever really understood the meaning of busy. I now that there have been days that I was really busy, but  I thing like I’ve been experiencing these last week. I know the blog is getting neglected, but don’t worry, my runs are still happening. I missed a couple days for rain, but I was excited to get runs in the past three mornings. The sad part is that we are supposed to have ten straight days of rain. My calories have been terrible. I eat great during the day and then poorly at night. I’m ready to get back to the self-control that I know is possible. Time to buckle down.

Day Seven Hundred and Five

Today wasn’t an awful day, it was just far from my best. I ate really great until dinner I gave into my carb cravings for chips and crackers. I ate so many tortilla chips. Thankfully I put in an excellent run this morning. I had a great running buddy help me finish thes last quarter mile. I really don’t know what tomorrow will look like. The forecast is calling for storms, so we’ll see what the weather is like in the AM. For now, it’s time for sleep!

Day Seven Hundred Through Seven Hundred and Four

I know I keep disappearing for several days at a time, but when I get home and fall asleep in the recliner at night, I guess it means I’m a bit exhausted. My business is up and running! It’s been a slow start while at the same time being very busy. The good news is that I’ve only missed one run since I opened! Now I just have to get my eating back under control. It’s been really bad y’all! I’m completely ashamed of the choices I’ve been making. I know some of it is stress-eating, but a lot of it is gluttony/lack of self-control. Today however, was much better. Also, my run this morning was good. It wasn’t an easy four miles, but definitely a good run.

On a side note. I would like to ask if all of you would consider liking my agency’s Facebook page. Also if you’d invite your friends to like it as well I would really appreciate it. Just click here! Thank you!